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Daily Digest: May 19, 2020

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Primary sector leaders have launched a commendable initiative in Southland to avoid a repeat of last year’s winter grazing controversy.  It wasn’t a good look from an environmental or animal welfare point of view to see wet and miserable cattle wallowing in a sea of mud.
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But Federated Farmers, DairyNZ and Beef + Lamb hope to head off criticism this year by engaging with farmers who aren’t doing the right thing and nudging them on the right path. If that fails to get a response, the Ministry for Primary Industries and Environment Southland will become involved.

It remains to be seen whether the persuasive approach works with those laggards who often let their peers down.

  

Pork for the needy 

The Government has averted an animal welfare crisis at the same time as offering poor families a lifeline by sending 112 tonnes of pork a week to food banks over the next six weeks. About 40% of the New Zealand market was closed off with the shutdown of independent butchers.

  

Public call for farming changes  

The public doesn’t have a beef about farmers but more about some of their practices. This is a key finding of a survey of 322 people who visited 45 farms as part of the Open Farms field days earlier this year.

  

Relief funds for Hawke’s Bay 

The Government is topping up the Hawke’s Bay Mayoral Drought Relief Fund with $500,000. So far two mayors have donated $50,000 each with a further three to decide on their contribution. The funds will be used to subsidise transport costs of grain from the South Island.

 

Export prices hold up 

Dairy, red meat and fruit prices are all maintaining good value with dairy and fruit especial standouts. The only negative is forestry exports but they had already fallen before the covid-19 crisis.

 

Silver Fern Farms sales partner 

SFF has joined with commerce business Gourmet Direct to sell its retail range of meat while continuing to supply its existing retail partners and their online delivery platforms.

 

Tonight on Sarah’s Country 

7.10pm – The Government will buy surplus pork for the country’s food banks. We are joined by NZ Pork chief executive David Baines to discuss this and exporting pork to Singapore. 

7.20pm – We discuss the benefits of using catch crops to mitigate nitrate leaching under winter forage grazing with successful results to share from Peter Carey of Lincoln AgriTech. 

7.30pm – The Hawke’s Bay Mayoral Drought Relief Fund has been created to contribute to the cost of transport and logistics to get more feed on the ground with $500,000 added to it by Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor. We speak to Central Hawke's Bay Mayor Alex Walker about the collaborative fundraising. 

7.40pm – Delivered in conjunction with DairyNZ and PaySauce, Dairy Women's Network is hosting virtual webinars on how to be a good boss. King Country dairy farm manager Chelsea Smith will join us to discuss the many ways we can improve our workplaces. 

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