Wednesday, 07 June 2023 12:25

Deafening silence

Written by The Hound

font size decrease font size increase font size
Print
Email

OPINION: This old mutt reckons the climate alarmists at multi-national, tax-dodging, fundraising outfit Greenpeace should be delighted with news that NZ's sheep and dairy cow numbers are falling.

According to the screaming skulls at Greenpeace, all of this country's problems to do with fire, floods, and pestilence are because of farming - particularly livestock farming.

However, the latest Stats NZ figures shows there are now a lot fewer dairy cattle and sheep (down almost 1 million from 2020) on NZ farms.

This is outlined in the latest five-yearly Agricultural Production Census 2022, which was recently released.

It also shows the total number of dairy cattle was 6.1 million at June 2022 - 8% lower than in 2014, when the total dairy cattle herd peaked at 6.7 million.

You'd think Greenpeace would be shouting this big drop in livestock numbers from the hilltops.

More like this

Leaky waka

OPINION: Was the ASB Economic Weekly throwing shade on Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr when reporting on his speech in Washington recently?

OPINION: A reader recently had a shot at the various armchair critics that she judged to be more than a bit preachy, telling sheep farmers how they "must learn" and "embrace change" and various other platitudes that armchair critics bandy about on LinkedIn and on the speaker circuit in 'NZ agbiz'.

Mixed legacy

OPINION: You're never as good as when you're dead, and with due respect to Theo Spierings' family, the Hound can't let the death of the former Fonterra CEO pass without mentioning the parlous state he left Fonterra in when he exited in 2018 - having pocketed well north of $30 million over seven years.

Dead in the water

OPINION: In a victory for common sense over virtue signalling, David Parker's National Policy Statement (NPS) work on freshwater is now dead in the water.

'Mea culpa'

OPINION: The Reserve Bank’s rate cut is great news, albeit a bit late, but your old mate agrees with Act leader David Seymour that the cut – with more to come – is a “multi-billion dollar mea culpa” by the RBNZ.

Featured

Upcoming farmer meetings with PM 'to boost confidence'

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will be fronting farmers at three large public meetings organised by Federated Farmers over the coming weeks.

Feds, Westpac butt heads over emissions reduction targets

Federated Farmers and a major Australian-owned bank are at loggerheads over emissions reduction targets set for New Zealand farmer clients.

Kiwi-grown tomatoes flocking to stores

More locally grown tomatoes are coming to stores this month and you can thank New Zealand greenhouses for that.

New ag degrees at Massey

Changing skill demands and new job opportunities in the primary sector have prompted Massey University to create a new degree course and add a significant major into another in 2025.

The show is on!

It was bringing in a new Canterbury A&P Association (CAPA) show board, more in tune with the CAPA general committee, that has ensured that Christchurch will have a show this year, says CAPA general committee president Bryce Murray.

Editorial: Pipfruit success

OPINION: Hats off to our pipfruit sector.

National

National catchment advocacy group elects first chair

A North Canterbury farmer has been elected as the first chair of Aotearoa New Zealand Catchment Communities (ANZCC).

New tricks from food science at international conference

Can discarded beef skins become premium dog food? Would camel milk work for your morning flat white? These are just…

Food charity to hold online auction

Meat the Need, New Zealand’s dedicated charity delivering locally sourced protein meals to food-insecure communities, is launching an online National…