LIC’S $11M spend on R&D is high by NZ primary industry standards, says chief executive Wayne McNee. The core business of sire proving and getting the best bulls, the development of new IT products and longer-term R&D took most of the money. Some research is government supported through Primary Growth Partnership and other funding.

DAIRY FARM running costs haven’t abated after increasing a lot in 2007-08 and they are now out of kilter with the consumer price index, LIC chairman Murray King says.

THE AGRICULTURE-BASED degree courses at Massey have changed and kept pace with the changing demands of the primary sector. If you are bright enough then maybe a career in the agribusiness sector is for you.

FARM SOURCE/RD1 managing director Jason Minkhorst admits you wouldn’t plan to rebrand and reposition Fonterra’s RD1 stores to Farm Source when you have a $5/kgMS payout.

NORTHERN TERRITORY cattle producers have launched a class action over the former Federal Government’s ban on live exports to Indonesia in 2011.

RURAL CONTRACTORS New Zealand (RCNZ) says it endorses recent warnings by Waikato Regional Council (WRC) that agrichemical contractors operating without certification are breaching regulations.

WE ALL know China makes some crap. But we also know China makes quality items – Apple i-Phones, supertankers, Red Bands and Swandris, to name a few. The trick is knowing which is which.

TWO SEASONS into an investigation of the impact of tailing or docking lambs has prompted further analysis to see if longer tails could increase processing revenue by generating extra product for rendering or sale, says Alliance Group.

AGRICULTURE OFFERS many more career opportunities than just farming. That’s the message from 2014 Young Farmer of the Year, David Kidd, the guest speaker at the recent Massey Agricultural Awards dinner. 

MASSEY UNIVERSITY’S top agriculture student is determined to make a career in the dairy industry.