Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: ACT looks to the past with new policies, unions recommend new pay offer to teachers, and spies keeping oversight watchdog out in the cold. It was probably fitting Richard Prebble was there for the relaunch of the ACT Party over the weekend. After all, much of what … Read more
The government’s environmental policy is creating major tensions in farming communities. Alex Braae went to a meeting in Taumarunui to see it play out. “We’ve got to get the government’s attention somehow. Okay, we’re not all going to jump on our tractors and drive to Wellington. But we could jump on our tractors and block … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Kate Gwilliam, CEO of feedstock solution Zeddy. … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Govt gives and takes with first Wellbeing Budget, Treasury Secretary under immense pressure, and dozens of kākāpō sick from fungus. The question was asked in yesterday’s Bulletin – what does this government value enough to put real money towards? In the end, the Budget that was delivered wasn’t … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Farming groups concerned about growth of forestry, dramatic new documents revealed in Hit and Run inquiry, and govt agency loses town records. Land conversions towards farming have pretty much always brought with them economic growth at the expense of environmental health. But increasingly, farmers and those who … Read more
Restaurateur Ganesh Raj details the future-of-food epiphany that led him to the conclusion that once the meat-mad dinosaurs are gone, the world will be a better place. My task was clear. Immerse myself in an alternative universe. One where there might never be meat, as we know it, again. A world where farms would disappear, … Read more
Can New Zealand afford for the world to give up meat eating, and go fully vegan? Can the planet afford for that not to happen? Here are the key issues around whether or not the world should make that choice. This piece by Emma Cropper was originally published on Newshub. While some have declared 2019 … Read more
Environmental limits, changing tastes and a redefined social licence are driving consumers away from animal proteins. In part two of a series on the rise of veganism, Daniel Eb looks at what New Zealand must do to get on board. There is a sense of impending transformation ahead for agriculture in New Zealand. The world’s … Read more
He founded an ethical dairying company that would allow calves to stay with their mothers. But Happy Cow founder Glen Herud admits that his enterprise had failed. This post was originally published 21 April 2018 I’m a third generation dairy farmer. The milk business is the only business I know. Four years ago I decided … Read more
In 2018, Leonie Hayden decided she didn’t want to each as much meat for the good of the planet – but also realised ‘flexitarian’ is a stupid word, and we’re all going to die anyway. A revelation came to me this year in the form of a New York magazine article titled The Last Conversation … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to the last edition of The Bulletin for 2018. Well, crikey. It’s the end of the year. I’ve got some thoughts on that down the other end of the page, but you’re here for the news and there’s still heaps to get through here. I thought what might help people out the … Read more
The Spinoff partnered with UMR to survey the attitudes of our readers, and the nation as a whole. Today, how much meat is the country eating? And is that changing? You’ve probably got stereotypes in your head about vegetarians. You’ve definitely got stereotypes in your head about vegans. But would it surprise you to know, … Read more
Alarmed by the disconnection between his food and its source, Simon Day visits the home of his bacon. I‘ve eaten a lot of bacon. And roast pork shoulder with crispy crackling. I’ve used cured pig’s cheek to make carbonara. Glazed ham at every Christmas. And barbecued so many sausages. But I’d never recognised how disconnected … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Animal rights concerns hit the agenda, tenancy law changes set to be announced, and PM Ardern gives her first minister the boot. Animal rights has been big news over the weekend, with a 500 strong protest in Auckland. Māori TV was there, and the quotes they gathered … Read more
Pressure is mounting to ban the intensive farming practice found in feedlots. What are they, and why are they such a problem? Don Rowe explains Fifteen minutes out of Ashburton, thousands upon thousands of cattle are penned in grassless paddocks. The cows are meat animals, spending their final days held in these so-called feedlots being … Read more
Late last month, John Hart attended the ProteinTech 2018 conference and got thinking about New Zealand’s agricultural future. I was at the ProteinTech 2018 conference held in Auckland in late July – the first of its kind, and judging by the response, definitely not the last. Among the 200 plus attendees were representatives from traditional … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Glut of good news for sheep farmers, a new poll comes out, and education minister hammers teacher pay aspirations. It’s a good time to own a flock of sheep. NZ lamb prices have hit a record high, reports the NZ Herald. It’s not expected that they’ll go … Read more
The Vegan Society’s Claire Insley went along to ProteinTECH 2018 last week and left confident that a plant-based future was closer than we think, despite the day’s lunch offering leaving a lot to be desired. Investors look to whatever’s new and sexy, and right now plant-based proteins are the future. At last week’s ProteinTECH Conference … Read more
Glen Herud’s mission for an ethical dairying company isn’t over yet. In part two of his series documenting his attempts to launch Happy Cow Milk 2.0, Herud talks about single-use plastic in the dairy industry and the plan to get farmers to adopt the “Happy Cow way”. It’s been a very busy month scurrying around rebuilding … Read more
Beef + Lamb New Zealand says farmers care just as much about the environment as everyone else, and with its new Environment Strategy and Implementation plan, it plans to help sheep and beef farmers promote reduced carbon emissions, cleaner water, thriving biodiversity, and healthy productive soils. I recently spoke at a farmer’s event in Christchurch with … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week Simon is joined by Bridget Hawkins, CEO of Regen, an app helping … Read more
This week the government announced a mass cull in an attempt to rid New Zealand of Mycoplasma bovis. Via RNZ, an explainer on how we ended up here On Monday, the government announced a 10-year plan to eradicate the disease, saying about 150,000 cows would have to be slaughtered. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the … Read more
We need to stop arguing about whether the government has made the right decision to cull more than 100,000 cows and get on with supporting those affected, says Gore farmer Bernadette Hunt. My husband Alistair I own 430 acres just north of Gore, and farm a total of 1500 acres with leaseblocks included. We bought … Read more
Inside the cutting edge Waikato farm technology hub which makes our pastures greener and impregnates up to 80% of New Zealand’s dairy herd. The inside of a cow’s anus is warm and cavernous, and getting your hand inside is a breeze. After smearing a dollop of lubrication to a sleeved glove you simply beak your … Read more
His company has been liquidated, his mobile milking shed sold for a song. But Glen Herud is not giving up on his ethical milk mission. Last month, we hit the wall and shut the doors – but our customers encouraged us to go on. I founded the Happy Cow Milk Company in 2012, and my mission … Read more
Don Rowe takes a deep dive into the disgusting to rank the diseases and bugs currently plaguing our shores, threatening our agriculture and tourism industries. Just as our clean green image is threatened by the various turds, both bovine and backpacker, flooding into our waterways, so too is our biosecurity consistently in danger of bugs … Read more
It’s not just a challenge on Fear Factor anymore. Charlie O’Mannin talks to locust farmer Malcolm Diack about farming locusts for human consumption, doing it within city limits and doing it ethically. Malcolm Diack loves animals. As we enter his suburban house in Caversham we’re greeted by a beautiful deaf Samoyed, two cats, and a tank of … Read more
Welcome to the Cheat Sheet, a clickable, shareable, bite-sized FAQ on the news of the moment. Today, what mycoplasma bovis means for our beef and dairy industry. What’s all this about then? Tens of thousands of cows will be culled, mostly in the South Island, to deal with an outbreak of mycoplasma bovis. The cattle … Read more
Rachel Stewart reviews the bovine love letter, The Secret Life of Cows. Even though I’m likely New Zealand’s harshest critic of modern dairy farming, I’ve always enjoyed the company of cows. I’ve worked with them for years. And played with them. And frolicked in the grass with them. And slept with them. As a kid … Read more