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New consultant takes coaching approach to helping farmers

Perrin Ag’s newest agribusiness consultant is taking a coaching approach to his role, as he hangs up his footy boots to work alongside farmers and help their businesses thrive. Morgan Inness (26) grew up on a lifestyle block just north of Whanganui. After school, he took a gap year as a teacher in England before completing an Honours degree in Agricultural Science from Lincoln University. Morgan’s talent for rugby then took him to Russia, where he played the sport professionally, followed b...

New Territory Manager brings practical and technical farming expertise to the Manawatu

Gallagher’s new Territory Manager for the Manawatu believes livestock weighing systems and animal performance technologies will enable farming and the environment to thrive side-by-side. Georgia Davies (28) grew up on a small farm near Rangiora in Canterbury. Her love of rural life led her to Lincoln University where she earned a Bachelor of Agricultural Science. During her studies, Georgia worked on sheep and beef properties in Central Otago. It was this experience, along with her time at Ba...

New Zealand sheep milk pioneer Maui Milk positions for growth

New Zealand sheep milk supplier Maui Milk is experiencing rapid growth which has led to a shareholding change, structural change and resource injection to equip the business for expansion. Maui Milk Ltd is currently supplied by 13 farms, and since its formation six years ago, has been jointly owned by Shanghai-based Super Organic Dairy and Māori farming trust, Waituhi Kuratau (WKT). The company has announced it is moving into a growth phase, beyond the scope of WKT’s ability to fund, leading ...

Assistance dog gives Bay of Plenty girl freedom, independence and ‘a voice’

The Farrell family of Omokoroa, Bay of Plenty, has witnessed the life-altering changes an assistance dog can bring to a family or person affected by a disability, since Labrador Lobo joined them in 2015. The Farrells are sharing their story as Assistance Dogs NZ Trust (ADNZT) launches their Appeal Week this week, petitioning to the public to help fund the organisation’s plans to double its dog training graduates within the next three years. This will start to address the escalating need withi...

Kiwi e-bike company launches own brand Black Bikes into the UK after home success

New Zealand-owned e-bike supplier Electrify NZ has launched their own e-bike brand into the United Kingdom, following success in the New Zealand market. With a recent survey by Bosch eBike Systems showing 55 per cent of British people are considering purchasing an e-bike following last year’s lockdown, the opportunities are clear for the Kiwi company. Electrify NZ is New Zealand’s only nationwide specialist electric bike retailer, with a franchise retail operation of eight stores around the ...

Awards finalists demonstrate willingness to embrace challenges for the greater good

This year’s Zimmatic™ Trailblazer Sustainable Irrigation Awards finalists have been praised by the judges for their willingness to embrace the challenges of irrigation and commitment to finding solutions for the benefit of their farm business and their communities. Three New Zealand farmers have been selected as finalists in this year’s competition, which aims to celebrate excellence in sustainable irrigation and encourage farmers to share ideas for achieving sustainable freshwater ma...

CRV sources additional sexed semen as farmer orders triple

CRV has sourced additional frozen sexed semen straws to cater for demand, as orders from farmers triple those from last season. CRV product development manager Peter van Elzakker believes the rise in demand is a result of dairy farmers looking to accelerate their herd’s genetic gain and reduce bobby calf numbers. “An increasing number of farmers are considering sexed semen as a tool for lifting herd performance by ensuring they get replacement heifers from their best cows. “We’ve seen de...

Scholarship recognises student’s passion for agriculture and grasp of industry issues

Penny Chapman’s passion for agriculture and her understanding of industry issues has been recognised through a scholarship from Perrin Ag. The 22-year-old has received a $3,000 scholarship from the agribusiness consulting firm towards her final year studying a Bachelor of Agricultural Science with Honours at Lincoln University. Penny is originally from Methven and her family runs a cropping and dairy support operation near the Rakaia River in Canterbury. Perrin Ag Director Trudy Laan says her...

PR TIPS - The he(art) of good business writing

The he(art) of good business writing As a person who makes her living on being a good communicator, poor business writing frustrates me to no end.  On the flip side, however, nothing is more satisfying than clicking on the ‘track changes’ button and taking the digital red pen to a piece of text.  Pure joy. What I’ve experienced over the years is writing well doesn’t come naturally to everyone.  That’s why I thought I’d take the time this month to give you some tips on ...

Home buyers faced with paying more for new builds as developers choose to sell finished homes

Home buyers are faced with paying even more for new houses as developers reduce the number of their properties that they sell off plans, opting instead to cash in on finished builds.  In a hot property market where the median house price increased 28.7 percent over the past year, real estate agents and second tier lenders say developers have recognised the money they can make out of selling finished builds, meaning new home buyers end up paying more.  Lodge Real Estate Managi...

CRV signs exclusive agreement with NZ Wagyu

An exclusive agreement between CRV and NZ Wagyu Corporation Limited will provide New Zealand dairy farmers with the opportunity to diversify their businesses and capitalise on high returns for Wagyu dairy beef. From this month, CRV will exclusively sell NZ Wagyu’s Black Origin Wagyu semen straws to New Zealand farmers. Until now, farmers have purchased semen directly from NZ Wagyu. Farmers’ purchase of Black Origin Wagyu semen includes an agreement for NZ Wagyu to buy the resulting Wagyu-c...

Real estate agents go digital to cope with Covid uncertainty

Real estate agents are turning their businesses digital as they adjust to Covid uncertainty.  The switch is paying off for many with Hamilton agents Lodge Real Estate selling nearly $17.5 million worth of property at online auctions during the first week of New Zealand’s level 4 lockdown. Managing Director, Jeremy O’Rourke, said the Covid pandemic was forcing the real estate industry to innovate quickly and reassess its traditional face-to-face approach to selling property. Agents are n...

Pasture with ‘no guts’ poses challenges for Waikato dairy farmers at balance date

Waikato dairy farmers may face challenges from pasture with low nutritional value as they head into Spring and balance date approaches, according to GrainCorp Feeds’ Technical Support Manager Glen McFarlane. Now looking after the Wider Waikato region, Glen has been with the GrainCorp Feeds team for four years after spending 9 years in agri-business banking. Born and bred in the Waikato, he grew up on a farm and today, still relief milks cows on the weekend. “We’re 15-20 days from when gras...

PR TIPS - Communications momentum creates change

Momentum.  While it’s a physics term, its principles have everything to do with good communication.  And if you are trying to spark a change in your organisation, you won’t get far without it. American business leader and author, Farshad Asl, wrote, “Momentum is the bridge between a vision and its results.” So, what exactly is momentum?  One of the simplest definitions I found is, “Momentum is a measure of an object’s tendency to move in a straight line with constant s...

New graduate programme driven by farmer demand for specialist agribusiness expertise

Perrin Ag’s new graduate programme responds to demand from farmers and growers for specialist agribusiness expertise as they navigate their way through unprecedented change. Specialist skills in agriculture and horticulture consulting are in hot demand, but graduates with the tertiary qualifications and interpersonal skills needed to help facilitate change are in short supply. Perrin Ag has launched its EMPOWER Graduate Advisor Development Programme to help fill the gap. The firm has committe...

Threatened whio population climbs as DOC and Genesis renew recovery partnership

The number of breeding pairs of New Zealand’s threatened whio (Blue Duck) has almost tripled over the last 10 years, according to a survey released today by the Department of Conservation (DOC).  There are now 863 whio breeding pairs living in eight protected sites across the country – 565 more pairs since 2011 and an increase of 190%. DOC Director General Lou Sanson says the excellent survey results reinforce the decision of DOC and Genesis to renew their Whio Forever partnership. “...

Hamilton records lowest number of homes listed as housing demand continues to rise

The number of houses for sale nationwide has reached its lowest level since recording started 13 years ago with just 449 houses currently for sale with agents in Hamilton according to realestate.co.nz. Lodge Real Estate director Jeremy O’Rourke said there were approximately 269 houses listed for sale with agents in Hamilton during July, one of the lowest levels of listings on record, and down 30% when compared with July 2020. “July is traditionally always a quieter time in the market, but st...

Farmers need certainty about environmental management tools used for regulation

The Managing Director of agribusiness consulting firm, Perrin Ag, says farmers need certainty about the tools regional councils will use to estimate on-farm nutrient loss, consider and grant resource consents, and assess compliance. Lee Matheson’s caution comes on the back of the Government’s report on Overseer, released yesterday (12 August 2021). “It is clear that the Scientific Review Panel has identified a number of issues with Overseer that it considers significant and the Government...

Gallagher supports red meat sector innovation with B+LNZ Awards sponsorship

Gallagher is strengthening its support for innovation in the red meat sector through a three-year sponsorship agreement with the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Awards. Gallagher will sponsor the Innovative Farming Award, which recognises excellence in an innovative farm activity, or activities, that have the potential to increase on-farm profitability, safety or resource-use efficiency. Demonstrating ‘out of the box’ thinking, the farmer or farming operation will have (or in process of completing)...

Shedding sheep - Wool you or won’t you?

By Lee Matheson, Perrin Ag A perfect storm has been brewing. Low wool prices, increasing shearing costs, dilapidated wool harvesting infrastructure (historically known as woolsheds), a tightening labour pool and an apparent lack of consumer recognition of wool’s inherent values and performance as a fibre, are all contributing to increasing moves towards shedding sheep. It is a potentially divisive and emotive topic when raised with sheep farmers. The noise around the place for shedding breeds ...

Ditch the spin

By Heather Claycomb. There are a lot of things that “spin.” In fact, spinning is most often a good thing.  We want the Earth to keep spinning – that’s a good thing.  Those of us who spin multiple plates simultaneously are praised for our skill.  Other good things that spin include cricket balls, wheels, fans, tops.  You see where I’m going with this, right? While spinning can be a good thing, in the context of communication it’s bad.  Very bad. And unfor...

Cannasouth opens $6 million capital raising to fund revenue-generating growth phase

Medicinal cannabis company, Cannasouth Limited (NZX:CBD), announced this morning that it has opened a $6 million offer to consolidate its operations to take full advantage of the revenue opportunities ahead of it. Earlier this month, Cannasouth announced it had entered into two conditional agreements to acquire the balance of the stakes that it does not already own in its cultivation and manufacturing joint venture businesses, Cannasouth Cultivation Ltd and Midwest Pharmaceutics NZ Ltd.  A ...

Marketing & PR: get the balance right!

If you are a business owner, manager or leader, you not only need to understand the difference between marketing and PR, you need to ensure your company is implementing a balance of both.  If you’re not, the reputation of your organisation could be on shaky ground. So, here are four differences between marketing and PR.  Building sales vs building reputation Marketing’s ultimate goal is to sell more.  Whereas the ultimate goal of PR is to solidify your organisation’s reputat...

Cannasouth appoints cultivation operations manager

Cannasouth has appointed Tony Clark as Operations Manager of its Cannasouth Cultivation Limited joint venture business.  Mr Clark brings to Cannasouth more than 20 years of engineering, manufacturing, and pharmaceutical industry experience, having worked with Pentair Valves & Controls Pacific Pty Ltd and Douglas Manufacturing Ltd. He is currently the General Manager of Douglas and will join Cannasouth on 20 September 2021. Clark will manage the company’s state-of-the-art controlled envir...

Strong industry partnerships will protect farming’s future

Strong industry partnerships will be crucial to protecting the future of New Zealand’s primary industries as farming becomes increasingly data driven, according to Gallagher’s new Global General Manager of Animal Management, Lisbeth Jacobs. Lisbeth’s comments come as she joins other industry leaders in Christchurch this week for the Federated Farmers Primary Industries New Zealand Conference. Lisbeth believes that unlocking the full potential of the technology needed to safeguard farming�...