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The Hound reckons news that an Austrian billionaire has been granted consent to purchase an $8m Hill Country farm, is living proof that the NZ First’s billion tree policy is a disaster for farming in this country.
The Overseas Investment Office (OIO) has granted Wolfgang Leitner consent to buy the 800ha property located in Kotemaori, Wairoa and convert it to forestry.
The property known as Ponui Station currently has 714ha being grazed by sheep and beef stock. Leitner plans to plant a further 640ha of commercial forest, it currently has just 14ha of existing commercial forestry.
According to the real estate listing the farm is described as “clean, healthy country, sought after scale, and opportunity to extend farm capability.”
Meanwhile, this isn’t Leitner’s first farm purchase in NZ, having been granted consent to buy the $4.5m, 489ha Ngapuke Station in Gisborne last September.
The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) has released its latest rural property report, providing a detailed view of New Zealand’s rural real estate market for the 12 months ending December 2025.
Additional reductions to costs for forest owners in the Emissions Trading Scheme Registry (ETS) have been announced by the Government.
A New Zealand-first native tree study has highlighted the Bioeconomy Science Institute's position as a forestry research leader.
OPINION: Forestry is not all bad and planting pine trees on land that is prone to erosion or in soils which cannot support livestock farming makes sense.
Farmers who find the land next to them is about to be converted into forestry, face potential damage and costly consequences.
Farm software outfit Trev has released new integrations with LIC, giving farmers a more connected view of animal performance across the season and turning routine data capture into actionable farm intelligence.
Crafting a successful family succession plan is a notoriously hard act to pull off.
Farmers need not worry about fertiliser supply this autumn but the prices they pay will depend on how the Middle East conflict plays out.
American butter undercutting New Zealand's own product on New Zealand supermarket shelves appears to be a case of markets working as they should, says Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ).
Tech savvy Huntly farmer Rhys Darby believes technology could help solve one of the dairy industry's pressing problems - how to attract more young people into farming.
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) has released its 2026 election manifesto, outlining priorities to support the sector’s growth, resilience, and contribution to New Zealand’s food security and export revenue.
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