Halter goes global, but NZ farmers remain core to innovation
Virtual fencing company Halter is going global but for founder Craig Piggott, New Zealand farmers will always remain their main partners.
When it comes to online entertainment, country-loving folk are much like anyone else: they like to read, play games, Skype family and friends, peruse social networking sites, listen to music and watch the latest movie at home.
For many, the speed and reliability of their internet connection becomes a barrier to favourite online pastimes: it affects them and their families and their workers – and they don't like it one bit.
Paul O'Hagan runs a 1780ha dairy unit in the Rangitiki District. He gets his internet via Wireless Nation's satellite services and says it's proven a boon.
"We employ backpackers during busy times, and offering them online services like Skype has meant we've had more success recruiting and retaining workers," O'Hagan says. "They want to be able to talk to their families at home in the evenings."
A Venture Southland report released in 2015 says the region could be short of up to 12,000 employees in the next 15 years because people are aging and leaving the workforce. The report says better access to high-speed broadband is a must if Southland is to attract people and avert a massive workforce shortage.
What no one wants is for the Southland example to become a ripple effect to other parts of rural New Zealand. Rural communities need to be able to retain good staff. Given the extent to which the rural economy impacts the whole country, rural employers quite rightly expect access to fast, reliable internet services.
The Government has come a long way in improving rural connectivity under the RBI network, with average internet speeds having tripled during the past seven years, but much more and rapid change is necessary.
If you're keen to know what broadband services are currently available or planned around the country, check out the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Enterprises useful map: https://broadbandmap.nz . This map details service availability and expected speeds across multiple technologies, including fibre, copper, cable and wireless.
The glaring service omission on this map is satellite – the most reliable internet service of them all.
New Zealand milk production is off to a strong start, with the first month of the 2025/26 dairy season recording a whopping 17.8% jump in milk production, compared to the previous season.
With adverse weather set to rain down on the Top of the South, the Bay of Plenty and parts of Northland, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says farmers, foresters, and growers need to prepare for possible challenges.
Keep up with innovation and e-commerce in China or risk losing market share. That was the message delivered at the China Business Summit in Auckland this month.
Meat Industry Association (MIA) independent chair Nathan Guy says getting meat processors involved has been a shot in the arm for the sector's key marketing initiative into China, Taste Pure Nature.
Listed carpet manufacturer, Bremworth is undertaking a $6 million expansion at its Napier plant more than two years after the site was heavily damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle.
Federated Farmers is vowing to keep the big banks accountable for their actions and to continue pushing for meaningful change in the rural lending sector.
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