Fonterra slashes forecast milk price, again
Fonterra has slashed another 50c off its milk price forecast as global milk flows shows no sign of easing.
OPINION: The Hound notes that Fonterra is cashing in on the curent government's largesse with taxpayer money.
The dairy co-op recently unveiled its first electric milk tanker for which it received $427,000 in co-funding from taxpayers to offset the estimated total cost of $850,000 to purchase the electric truck cab/chassis and convert it into a tanker.
The tanker - apparently named 'Milk-E' - will be based at Fonterra's Waitoa plant, where there's a lot of close supplying farms on relatively flat land.
This begs the question, just how realistic and sustainable are electric milk tankers if they can only do short runs with no hills to maintain battery life?
Looks like more greenwashing than anything realistic.
Meanwhile, speaking of greenwashing, Energy Minister Megan Woods, who was on hand to unveil the electric truck, had a V8 BMW740 and driver waiting outside to take her to her next appointment!
Farmer interest continues to grow as a Massey University research project to determine the benefits or otherwise of the self-shedding Wiltshire sheep is underway. The project is five years in and has two more years to go. It was done mainly in the light of low wool prices and the cost of shearing. Peter Burke recently went along to the annual field day held Massey's Riverside farm in the Wairarapa.
Applications are now open for the 2026 NZI Rural Women Business Awards, set to be held at Parliament on 23 July.
Ravensdown has announced a collaboration with Kiwi icon, Footrot Flats in an effort to bring humour, heart, and connection to the forefront of the farming sector.
Forest & Bird's Kiwi Conservation Club is inviting New Zealanders of all ages to embrace the outdoors with its Summer Adventure Challenges.
Grace Su, a recent optometry graduate from the University of Auckland, is moving to Tauranga to start work in a practice where she worked while participating in the university's Rural Health Interprofessional Programme (RHIP).
Two farmers and two farming companies were recently convicted and fined a total of $108,000 for environmental offending.

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