Damien O’Connor: NZ united on global trade
When it comes to international trade, politicians from all sides of the aisle are united, says Labour's trade spokesman Damien O'Connor.
Your old mate reckons plenty of the current crop of MPs in Parliament would struggle to read, let alone make laws for this country.
The Hound was reminded of this by a mate of his attending the recent Beef + Lamb annual meeting in Timaru, which some MPs turned up to.
Ag Minister Damien O’Connor couldn’t attend because he was under security watch due to the Christchurch shootings and was replaced by a MPI policy wonk.
However, the Nats’ climate change spokesman Todd Muller was invited to speak on his work and seemed to impress the audience.
However, the same can’t be said for NZ First list MP Mark Patterson who was not down to speak. But when given the opportunity – by all reports – he completely misread the room and went on a long, boring rant about how great the current government was.
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.
Farmers have voted to continue the Milksolids Levy that funds DairyNZ.
Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell has resigned after eight years in the role.
Matt McRae, a farmer from Mokoreta in Southland who runs a sheep, beef and dairy support business alongside a sheep stud, has been elected to the Beef +Lamb NZ Board as a farmer director.
Ravensdown's next evolution in smart farming technology, HawkEye Pro, was awarded the Technology Section Award at the Southern Field Days Farm Innovation Awards in February 2026.
While mariners may recognise a “dog watch” as a two-hour shift on a ship, the Good Dog Work Watch is quite a different concept and the clever creation of Southland siblings Grace (9) and Archer Brown (7), both pupils at Riverton Primary School.

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