Latest farm confidence survey ‘a tale of two islands' - Read more »

Golden Bay floods highlight river management flaws - Read more »

Unsurprising OCR hold but political leaders need to lead - Read more »

New Tararua Provincial President welcomed - Read more »

To view the full list of media releases or to view any other publications, click here.

Waikato Regional Policy Statement - The Regional Policy Statement (RPS) is a very important document for farmers in the entire Waikato Region because it may direct councils to have rules and control certain farming activities. Federated Farmers is currently working on getting a submission to Environment Waikato by 28 February 2011 to make sure that farming is not unfairly regulated.   One topic in the RPS is native biodiversity, with the RPS directing district councils to protect areas of special native bush that EW has identified. Federated Farmers thinks that it should be up to the district councils in consultation with their ratepayers and stakeholders how to manage their own areas of special native bush in a way that suits the district.

Facial Eczema - to find out information on how to manage facial eczema see  DairyNZ's Farm Facts. They can be ordered through DairyNZ's farmer information line on 0800 4 DAIRYNZ or click here. For farm specific situations contact your local vet or DairyNZ Consulting Officer.

Changes to Management of Lake Ellesmere - Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere is currently subject to a Water Conservation Order (WCO) which recognises its value for providing outstanding wildlife habitat and sets threshold water levels for various lake management activities.  Ngai Tahu and the Department of Conservation have applied for a variation to the Water Conservation Oorder, which will affect farming surrounding the lake.  The application requests additions to the outstanding features to be recognised by the Water Conservation Order to include indigenous wetland vegetation, customary fisheries, and a range of Ngai Tahu values. This will change the way the lake is managed, in order to protect the wider range of values. The threshold levels at which the lake may be artificially opened or closed will remain the same, but the threshold level for damming and draining the lake bed will be raised from 1.13m to 1.20m above mean sea level. This will be significant when assessing resource consent applications for future damming or draining of land around the lake edge.  It is important that those who farm around Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere read the application and decide what it means for you.  Federated Farmers will submit on the application and is keen to receive your feedback, please contact Lionel Hume, Senior Policy Advisor, Ashburton, phone 0800 327 646.  Click here to read the application.

Consultation meetings on the Red Meat Sector Strategy - Deloitte are to hold a series of meetings between 24 January and 14 February to discuss the preliminary findings of their work. Farmers are welcome to attend these meetings to help add value to the strategy development process. In addition, other mechanisms to enable farmers to have input into the process are being investigated. For details of the meeting locations and times click here. 

Beef + Lamb New Zealand director elections - Voters in the B+L NZ Eastern North Island and Southern South Island electorates are encouraged to check that they are on the electoral roll  - this can be done by calling the Election Hotline on 0508 666 336. Farmers who are not registered need to fill out a voter registration form by Thursday 17 February 2011. To be eligible to vote, a livestock farmer must have owned at least 250 sheep, 50 beef cattle or 100 dairy cattle on 30 June 2010. Election day is Thursday 17 March 2011. Elections will be conducted by postal and internet voting and forms will be posted out in February 2011.

Wool Partner's Cooperative share offer extended - Wool Partners Co-operative Limited is amending the terms of its capital raising and extending the closing date until 16 February 2011. For more information click here.

Community Irrigation Fund - The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's Community Irrigation Fund (CIF) is still open for applications for the 2011/12 funding round. The fund provides grants to assist: promoters of community water storage and/or irrigation schemes for generating investor and community support;  for detailed engineering design and local government-led water strategies that consider the potential for rural irrigation related-infrastructure. For more information including the application forms click here  or call Loretta Dobbs, CIF Project Adviser on  04 894 0632 or email: CIFund@maf.govt.nz, applications close on Friday, 18 February 2011. It is recommended you discuss your potential application with the CIF Project Adviser

The Pahiatua Long Lunch - Get into the swing of summer this Waitangi Day at the Pahiatua Long Lunch in the town square. The afternoon will feature a formal three course meal served by the Black Stump Café.  Palmerston North based singer Erna Ferry and her band will be entertaining the crowd with jazz music. The theme is garden party, so get out the glad rags and don't forget your hat.  Tickets are $50 per person and are available from the Pahiatua Information Centre or the Black Stump Café. Numbers are limited, for further information, contact Andrea Beagley Tararua Field Officer at abeagley@fedfarm.org.nz on 027 551 1673.

Fencing in Action - On February 10 and 11 is a demonstration event bringing together fencing industry exhibitors.  There will be four demonstration areas where exhibitors can interact and show their products.  Look for Fencing in Action at site 14 at Ag in Action. For more details click here

Cut out the hassle and turn effluent into dollars - On Friday, February 11 Fonterra and the staff of Awaroa Farm in the Bay of Plenty invite Federated Farmers members to view a comprehensive approach to designing and running an effluent system. They have recently installed Re:Gen to provide daily effluent irrigation recommendations and to monitor pond levels. Re:Gen automatically collects farm data on rainfall, soil moisture and soil temperature and provides a daily recommendation for effluent irrigation to ensure the right amount of effluent is applied each day. Also featuring on the day is the Travelling Irrigator Shut Down Monitor System from Trac Map NZ Ltd.  For more details email john@regenerated.co.nz.

2011 Federated Farmers Goats conference - The Federated Farmers Goats conference is heading to Central Otago in 2011. Preliminary information can be found by clicking here and registration forms can be downloaded by clicking here. An additional, optional, day has been added to the normal Federated Farmers Goats conference format, so that visitors to the area can enjoy some of the sights and tastes of Central Otago. This extra day will be on Monday, 21 February while the conference itself will be held on Tuesday, 22 and Wednesday, 23 February, finishing at lunchtime. Gold panning, curling and vineyard visits are also being planned, in addition to farm visits and the normal business of conference. The venue for next year's conference is the Centennial Court Motor Inn, Alexandra.

2011 Land Treatment Collective annual conference - Registrations for the 2011 New Zealand Land Treatment Collective (NZLTC) annual conference, which is to be held from 23 - 25 March in Palmerston North, are now open. The conference theme, ‘Winds of change: land treatment in challenging times', covers a broad range of topics including the application of biosolids to land, dairy effluent and water quality, onsite wastewater designs and issues  in a new lifestyle block subdivision, GIS mapping and modelling and a preview of the New Zealand greywater guidelines. The 2011 conference is being held in cooperation with Small Wastewater and Natural Systems Special Interest Group (SWANS-SIG) of WaterNZ. To enquire about registration, please email the organisers by clicking here or, if you are a member, you may visit the website by clicking here.

Applications are now open for Agriculture ITO's National Certificate in Agriculture - Do you want your staff to handle more responsibility, bring fresh ideas to your business and work more efficiently? Agriculture ITO's National Certificate in Agriculture, Level 4, Dairy Farming, is suitable for people with several years experience looking to move into positions with more responsibility. Trainees will learn to understand the implications of management decisions on future production, plan their workload and that of others, and train other staff. Topics covered also include pastures and feeding, soils and fertilisers, animal health and production, and mating and calving. To find out more about their qualifications, contact an Agriculture ITO training adviser on 0800 691 111 or visit  www.agricultureito.ac.nz.

Are your individual employee agreements current?  - Along with a range of contracts and agreements tailored for the rural sector, Federated Farmers has the Individual Employment Agreement. At just $50 + GST, members will save up to $115 and receive two copies of the Agreement. Safe guard all concerned, check that your employee agreements are correct and current. If in doubt, call 0800 327 646  and speak with our Customer Services team, they will assist you with all legal enquiries, and members receive up to 15 minutes of free advice!

Versatile's Flamin' Hot February Sale - Outrageous deals on garage and carport kitsets and 15% off all farm building kitsets! Or, purchase any fully constructed Versatile home and get a FREE Fisher and Paykel appliance package valued at $7385!  Terms and conditions apply. Hurry, this is for February only! To find out what great deals are available, call 0800 VERSATILE or visit www.versatile.co.nz.

Member benefits and offers - To view special discounts exclusive to Federated Farmers members, please call 0800 327 646 or click here to log onto our members only area.

Quote of the week -  "When dairy farmers are smiling, the whole region smiles." - New Zealand Institute of Economic Research