Here is a selection of current stories from agridata.co.nz ETS costs imminent for farmers If you think the Emissions Trading Scheme doesn’t apply to farming until 2015, think again, says ACT MP John Boscawen. From July 1 costs on most farms will rise by thousands of dollars due to an ETS induced 4c/litre rise in fuel prices, and a 5% hike in electricity charges. New Zealand now stands alone in implementing such a scheme and he says he would like to see farmers and the public protesting in the streets to persuade Government to ditch it. “Why are we penalising our farmers? Our farmers have enough problems competing internationally without this,” he told Rural News. Read the rest of this entry » Focus on productivity not capital gains Farmers need to forget about making quick money through capital gain and instead focus on improving productivity and their cashflow to grow their wealth, ANZ-National Bank chief economist Cameron Bagrie believes. He visited Invercargill last week as part of a National Bank rural roadshow to let clients know how things were changing following the global economic crisis last year reports The Southland Times. “New Zealanders need to accept that the economic model of the past 20 years, which is borrow and spend-style growth, is an unsustainable model. ”The rural sector needs to accept … you’re not going to see the big speculative asset price booms. The value of your asset needs to be determined by yield and cashflow.” Read the rest of this entry » Bunny hunt kills thousands but many more live The great bunny hunt in Alexandra recorded its second-highest kill but it is unlikely to have made a dent in the overall rabbit population in Central Otago reports Stuff. The highest number of rabbits killed in the competion was in 1997 – 23,948. At the weekend, for the 19th competition, 23,064 rabbits were killed. Event organiser Dave Ramsay said one hunter returned to a block that yielded a high number of kills during the shoot, only to find rabbits still in abundance the morning after. “We’ve made a good dent in numbers, and rabbits are coming into a dormant breeding season, but there’s no doubt we’ll have plenty again next year,” Mr Ramsay said. Read the rest of this entry » For up-to-date schedule and saleyard prices, see - Bulls - Steers - Lamb - Wool - Dairy cows - Stags
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