Wool pellets to boost gardens
With wool prices steadily declining and shearing costs on the rise, a Waikato couple began looking for a solution for wool from their 80ha farm.
New Zealand Wool Services International Limited's CEO John Dawson reports that targeted buying saw some types well supported at the North Island auction.
Others either held steady or eased slightly.
Of the 5,000 bales on offer 88% sold. The weaker New Zealand dollar against most of the traded currencies saw the weighted indicator come down 0.80% compared to the last sale on 21st April.
According to Dawson, fine Crossbred Shears were firm to 2% easier. Coarse Crossbred Fleece were firm to 1.5% cheaper. Coarse Crossbred Shears were well supported, ranging from firm to 3% dearer with good styles sought after.
Shorter First Lambs were 1 to 3% easier with long Lambs firm to 4% dearer.
Long Oddments were firm to 1% cheaper with short oddments 2 to 5% dearer.
Next sale on 5th May comprises approximately 4,700 bales from the South Island.
A leading farm consultant says it's likely the dairy season in the Waikato will come to a premature end because of the drought.
Dairy farming siblings Manoj Kumar and Sumit Kamboj's message to other immigrants is simple - work hard and you will be rewarded.
Last season was a mixed bag for Waikato contractors, with early planted forage maize, planted on the dry soils around Cambridge, doing badly after germination and failing to meet potential, says Jeremy Rothery, Jackson Contracting.
A marked turnaround in the financial performance of Canterbury milk company Synlait has halted a threatening exodus of farmer suppliers.
Unnecessary box ticking and red tape are set to go under the Government's new RMA reforms - much to the delight of farmers.
An Auckland man who illegally killed and sold pigs and a chicken has been fined $8,000.