FONTERRA HAS upped its forecast payout for the 2012 season 20c/kgMS to $6.90-$7.00 for a fully shared up farmer.

MEAT EXPORTER Alliance Group is among companies trialling new refrigeration technology shipping line Maersk says will cut annual CO2 emissions by 500,000t.

WITH ELEVEN days still to go until entries close, the 2012 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards have already attracted over 400 applicants.

THREE MORE Ballance Agri-Nutrients' sites – Awarua, Whangarei, and Mount Maunganui – have gained ISO14001 certification recognising effective environmental management systems capable of continuous improvement.

JOHN HARTNELL, chairman of Federated Farmers Bees and a former Feds national board member, is a semi-finalist in the 2012 Kiwibank Local Heroes Award, recognising his work as "generalissimo" of the Farmy Army in the wake of Christchurch's February and June earthquakes.

DAIRY PRICES will continue to fluctuate as economic uncertainty grips the EU and the US, says Fonterra chairman Henry van der Heyden.

AS Greenpeace launches its annual attack on dairying's use of palm kernel, drought is looming over key agricultural areas, threatening to put pressure on feed availability.

A MOVE by Australian beef producers to wind up the industry's umbrella body, Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), has failed.

FARMERS ARE concerned that imported strawberry seed kits went on sale without proper biosecurity checks.

EAT MORE seasonal fruits and vegetables and take advantage of specials.