MEDIA & RESEARCH

An MPI audit has confirmed Indonesia's palm kernel supply chain continues to meet New Zealand's strict biosecurity requirements for foot and mouth disease.

The disease was discovered in Indonesia in May.

Biosecurity deputy director general Stuart Anderson said the risk of the product carrying the disease back to New Zealand was low, but border staff border were paying close attention to goods and travellers arriving in the country from Indonesia.

Scientists told attendees at an Ag@Otago webinar that virtually all NZ sheep and beef farmers and most dairy farmers would be carbon dioxide-equivalent neutral due to the naturally occurring element hydroxyl, which removes methane from the atmosphere. They also expressed doubts an effective methane vaccine for livestock will be developed because of the difficulties overcoming the complex biology of ruminant animals.

Read Neal Wallace’s Farmers Weekly story.

The Paris Agreement on Climate Change has as one of its aims increasing the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that does not threaten food production.

In this report Te Awamutu based farm consultants Headlands examine whether it is possible to design dairy-farming systems with equal production levels but better environmental and financial outcomes.

Academic, farmer, and agricultural commentator Jacqueline Rowarth talks to Jamie Mackay about the importance of a nutritionally balanced diet for humans and for animals.

Recent research, commissioned by NZBFIF and led by Phil Journeaux , a respected, independent agricultural economist, demonstrates that supplementary feed PKE supports the health and wellbeing of cows while increasing the profitability of dairy farms.