Federated Farmers welcomes RUC changes - Read more »

Young Federated Farmers staff off to Japan - Read more »

CraFarm saga reaches the end, perhaps - Read more »

Super insect villain finally meets its match - Read more »

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

Responsible regulation on the way? - Government has released a discussion document seeking public comment on whether it should proceed with a Regulatory Responsibility Bill. New Zealand is concerned with both the volume of regulation and the costs of that regulation and previous attempts by various governments to improve regulatory quality have done nothing to stem the tide and a new approach is needed. A Regulatory Responsibility Bill has been developed, setting several general principles to which legislation should conform. These principles include protection of property rights and that the takings and impairments of property should be compensated. Although it would not impact on the sovereignty of Parliament or give the courts the power to strike down legislation, the Bill would be an important transparency measure.  Federated Farmers strongly supports the Bill and we will be submitting that it should proceed.  Submissions close on Friday, 27 August and should be made to regulation@treasury.govt.nz. To read more about the discussion document, please click here.

Federated Farmers appears before the Youth Parliament - Lachlan McKenzie appeared before the Youth Parliament's Primary Produce Select Committee this week. The topic was a review of factory farming versus free range farming and Lachlan's 15 minute appearance was sandwiched between the MAF Animal Welfare team and Save Animals From Exploitation (SAFE) - an interesting combination. This experience will have highlighted to the young people present the difficulty decision makers have in coming to sensible outcomes that affect the economy of the country, while dealing with the public's animal welfare concerns.

Old Telecom CDMA mobile network services - Telecom would like to advise its customers that two services on its old CDMA mobile network will be closing later this year. The CDMA-based Worldmode Roaming service will stop on Thursday, 28 October 2010, while the CDMA 3G data network (CDMA mobile broadband) will stop on Tuesday, 30 November 2010.  The new XT Network provides considerably better global roaming service for customers (70 more destinations compared with CDMA), while offering a faster mobile broadband experience in more places, when compared to its old CDMA 3G data network.  If you are affected, please call Total Network on 0800 44 44 75 for more information. Remember to quote your Federated Farmers membership number to receive unique services and solutions available only to members of Federated Farmers.

Dairy prices fall - The gDT-TWI index was down 13.7 percent after this week's globalDairyTrade trading event. Fonterra said the result reflected increasing global supply in response to what has been a very strong price signal over recent months. Concerns in the market about short term product availability, which to a large extent underpinned recent high prices, appear to have eased.  For full results see www.globalDairyTrade.info. The next globalDairyTrade trading event will be held on Wednesday, 4 August 2010.

Warning for Reserve Bank - Respected economists of the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) have warned of a stalling economy and have called on the Reserve Bank to put on hold planned OCR increases. This came after NZIER's quarterly business opinion survey found a fall in business confidence. Last month Federated Farmers urged a cautious approach to raising the OCR and noted that inflationary pressures were coming largely from Government policies (ETS, ACC, tobacco excise tax) as opposed to the private sector. To read more about Federated Farmers caution over raising the OCR, click here.

Federated Farmers National Board - After the Federated Farmers National Conference in Invercargill from 23 - 25 June 2010, there were no changes to the Federated Farmers National Board. Thus, the National Board for 2010-11 is Don Nicolson, Donald Aubrey, Lachlan McKenzie, Bruce Wills, Phil York, John Hartnell and David Rose.

Changes to Federated Farmers Dairy and Sharemilker' Section - Following the Federated Farmers Dairy and Sharemilkers' Section AGMs, both held last month, Federated Farmers are pleased to announce the following changes to the executive of Federated Farmers Dairy and the Sharemilkers' Section. Robin Barkla has stepped up as second Vice-chairperson in Federated Farmers Dairy, with John Bluett deciding not to stand again. Michelle Riley has become a new member of the Dairy executive and Ciarán Tully is now the Sahremilkers' Section representative. We would like to thank John for the many years of service to Federated Farmers Dairy and wish him all the best going forward. Within the Sharemikers' Section, Ciarán Tully was elected Chairperson, while Jessie Chan was elected to the position of Vice-chairperson. Federated Farmers would like to thank out going Chairperson, Jeff Bolstad, for his dedication to the Section. Jeff remains on the executive.

NZFSA GST and bank account number changed - NZFSA would like to advise all dual operator butchers and homekill service providers that their GST and bank account numbers have changed as of 1 July 2010. Two application forms are affected: Homekill and Recreational Catch Service Provider Listing - Application Form AP2 and Dual Operator - Butcher - Application Forms and Guidelines AP3.

Federated Farmers feed list - The Federated Farmers feed lists, which include both feed wanted and feed available, can be accessed via the 0800 DROUGHT line (0800 376 844) or by clicking here. The drought line and feed lists are available to both members and non-members of Federated Farmers.

South Otago and Taieri AgriAwards - The South Otago and Taieri AgriAwards are to be held at Telford Rural Polytechnic, Owaka Highway, Balcultha from 6pm Friday, 16 July 2010. Tickets are $40 per person and the guest speaker for the evening is Tony Laker of Laker House of Travel. For more information and/or registration forms, please click here or call Russell Stuck on 027 678 9659.

Rural Butchers Conference and AGM - The 2010 Federated Farmers Rural Butchers Conference and AGM is to be held at the Rendezvous Hotel, corner of Mayoral Drive and Vincent Street, Auckland on Saturday, 25 September. An agenda is currently being developed and will be sent out in the near future, but we can announce that it will include a field trip on the afternoon of Friday, 24 September. Registration forms will also be sent out shortly. As usual, members will need to arrange their own travel to and from the conference. If you are interested in attending this event, please contact David Burt, by clicking here or by calling 0800 327 646.

Need to get a firearms licence? - Open Polytechnic's Firearm Safety course for existing firearm users and those needing to get a Firearms Licence covers firearm and cartridge safety and security and firearms legislation. For more information, click here or call 0508 650 200. Remember, Federated Farmers members get a 20 percent discount. Click here to download an enrolment form.

New Telecom mobile rates - Remember that with the old CDMA network closing in a few months all existing Telecom CDMA customers will need to upgrade to the new Telecom XT network. Federated Farmers members can receive fantastic deals on plans within the XT network, so with huge savings to be made, faster mobile broadband and improved global roaming why wouldn't you make the change?! To find out more call 0800 44 44 75.

LEAP into water heating - Water is a big issue for New Zealand farmers. Contact LEAP today to find out about water heating using renewable energy or advanced plumbing to save water and energy. To find out more, call 0800 246 810 or visit www.leapltd.co.nz.

Fancy a free Solahart panel? - Yes, when buying a GreenGlo Saver mains pressure tank you get a free Solahart panel and a free solar controller. This is an amazing offer, why wouldn't you go solar when you can go for free. For more information, please click here or call 0800 769 377.

More 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.

Need staff? - If you need staff or are looking for a job, visit www.ruraljobs.co.nz

Need a contract? - If you need a contract or free legal or employment advice, simply call 0800 327 646.

Contracts, agreements and leases - These include land, stock, contractor, sales and purchase, agreement to grow, log books, access pads, Over Dimension Certificates and employment. Remember, it's a legal requirement to have an employment contract for EVERY employee so if you don't have a current employment agreement, then order one now. Contracts, agreements and leases are available in both electronic and hard copy formats for your convenience. To purchase, call 0800 FARMING or click here.

Quote of the week - "This Skeletoniser insect villain will meet its natural match". Federated Farmers Biosecurity spokesperson, John Hartnell, describes how insect super villain, the Gum Leaf Skeletoniser, could be taken down by its natural nemesis, the parasitic wasp, Cotesia Urabae.