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OPINION: Your old mate is cynical about the real motives of many who push the latest fad in farming, regenerative agriculture.
Several groups - as well as a fair few government-funded bodies - seem to be cashing in on the regen bandwagon.
One is a group called 'Calm the Farm' - a self-described investment service that aims to "help" conventional farmers to convert to regenerative agriculture.
Its founders are Nathalie Whitaker of Give A Little, data analytics expert Mike Taitoko and physicist Shaun Hendy.
If that last name rings a bell, that's because it is the the same Shaun Hendy from the University of Auckland's Te Punaha Matatini (TPM), the Government's favoured 'Covid modelling' outfit.
It seems Hendy is not content with just clipping the ticket on Covid, to the tune of more than $6 million for Covid-19 modelling from TPM, but is now also keen to cash in on the regen ag fad as well!
OPINION: The same mainstream media muppets that brought you Jacindamania in 2017 have been flat out pimping for the Opportunities Party, labelled by some as the 'LinkedIn Greens' for their corporate spin on Green-esque 'tax the rich' policies.
OPINION: Your old mate reckons the atrocious way farmers in the UK are treated by their lords and masters in Westminster is a salient warning for us.
OPINION: Proponents of regenerative agriculture tend to be naturally aligned with a 'green mindset', so they will be nonplussed with their new mates in the US of A.
OPINION: Mike Chapman, former chief executive of levy-funded HortNZ, has thrown out a challenge to farmers and growers to put their levy-funded industry organisations under the same scrutiny as fertiliser, electricity, labour and freight.
A fair question has been raised about how member-funded organisations should conduct themselves when taking a public position on any given issue.
OPINION: In politics, credibility is and should be big. It must surely rank higher than charisma, which is quite trite and superficial. Yet, voters nowadays are often wooed and influenced by how someone looks or talks at a superficial level. TV plays a huge role in this.
Farmers can spend less time on paperwork, thanks to a new data sharing agreement between DairyNZ’s DairyBase and LIC’s MINDA software.
Kaikōura families affected by July's severe storm have found a practical solution to a problem that's kept some children away from regular schooling for weeks: a washed-out section of Inland Kaikōura Road, which has stopped the local school bus from running its usual route.
Rural New Zealand is welcoming the Government’s recent package of rural healthcare initiatives.
Interest in agritech and production animal systems has prompted Massey University's School of Agriculture and the Environment to new majors to its popular animal science degree.
Ballance Agrinutrients chief executive Kelvin Wickham says despite a tough year, he is pleased the business has returned to profit.
