fbpx
Print this page
Tuesday, 12 April 2022 11:59

Gloves off?

Written by  The Hound
Gloves off?

OPINION: Your old mate reckons a nasty war looks to be brewing in NZ farming politics.

For the past 18 months or so, the Groundswell lobby group has been stirring up farmers around the country over freshwater reforms, greenhouse gas taxes and a myriad of other issues troubling the rural sector.

It has also taken regular pot shots at the establishment lobbies such as Beef+Lamb and DairyNZ, accusing them (probably quite fairly) of cuddling up to the Government and selling out the sector time and time again.

All of this tension has now come to a head with the end of the recent farmer 'consultation' meetings held by HWEN (basically BLNZ and DairyNZ in drag).

Groundswell has accused DairyNZ of shutting down options; DairyNZ accused Groundswell of spreading misinformation and being offensive.

Pass the popcorn, this could get interesting.

More like this

Costs too high?

Costs too high?

OPINION: This old mutt is loath to sound like Groundswell has been topping up his bowl with brisket off-cuts, but the ginger group makes a good point about the arguments raised in favour of toeing the Paris Agreement line.

Wrong focus

OPINION: Your old mate reckons townie Brooke van Velden, the Minister of Workplace (or is it Woke Place) Relations is now showing how underemployed she is as a minister by initiating an investigation into whether young children should be banned from collecting eggs on farms and feeding animals.

Burn the village

OPINION: There's an infamous term coined by a US general during the Vietnam war, specifically in reference to the battle of Ben Tre: "We had to burn the village to save it."

Purist problem

OPINION: The sudden departure of Jim Ward, manager of Molesworth Station for 24 years, highlighted some major dysfunction in the way conservation estate is managed in this country - the biggest problem, as the Hound sees it, being idealogues who harp on about "taonga" and use all means possible to block sensible commercial operations on conservation land.

Popular Reads

Tech might take time

Tech might take time

Agritech Unleashed – a one-day event held recently at Mystery Creek, near Hamilton – focused on technology as an ‘enabler’…
Fencing excellence celebrated

Fencing excellence celebrated

The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards,…

John Deere acquires GUSS Automation

John Deere has announced the full acquisition of GUSS Automation, LLC, a globally recognised leader in supervised high-value crop autonomy,…

Featured

'One more push' to eliminate FE

Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling on farmers from all regions to take part in the final season of the Sheep Poo Study aiming to build a clearer picture of how facial eczema (FE) affects farms across New Zealand.

Winston Peters questions Fonterra divestment plan

Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has joined the debate around the proposed sale of Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses, demanding answers from the co-operative around its milk supply deal with the buyer, Lactalis.

National

Machinery & Products