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Robotics Plus wins ANZLF Trans-Tasman Innovation and Growth Award

Robotics Plus, a world-leading robotics and automation company developing innovation to unlock new levels of productivity in some of the world’s most labour-intensive food and fibre value chains, has won an ANZLF Trans-Tasman Innovation and Growth Award. The awards celebrate innovation, growth and impact of emerging businesses in Australia and New Zealand. Robotics Plus was founded in 2013 by Steve Saunders and Dr Alistair Scarfe with a simple goal in mind: to improving the quality, productivity and sustainability of the horticultural and other primary industry supply chains. The company’s R&D efforts focus on automation, vision, robotics and AI, to solve the growing challenges in the primary industry globally such as: labour shortages, sustainability for growers and producers, pollination gaps and yield security. Steve Saunders, Chairman and Founder of Robotics Plus, says: “It’s an absolute honour for the team to receive an ANZLF Trans-Tasman Innovation and Growth Award. It is validation of the hard work of a lot of people over a number of years and celebrates our innovation, culture and diversity. “Receiving such a prestigious award provides a valuable opportunity to showcase Robotics Plus to the world. We would like to recognise our fantastic partners and collaborators in the commercial, research and Government sectors, without them this would not be possible.” Robotics Plus CEO Dr Matt Glenn says the company is experiencing strong growth on the back of increasing demand for its world-first platform technologies. “Over the last 18 months Robotics Plus has launched two commercial products, entered the US and European markets, completed a US$10M Series A investment with Yamaha Motor Company and grown from a team of 12 to over 50. We also have a number of new products in the pipeline and expect our growth to continue at the same rate for the foreseeable future. “We’ve been able to […]

Dairy exports up, providing good ‘nutrition’ for the economy

By Professor Graeme Doole, Principal Economist DairyNZ. The value of New Zealand dairy exports jumped by $1.47 billion to total $18.1 billion in the year ended June 30 – that’s got to be some good nutrition for the New Zealand economy, and help towards providing Kiwis with more of what they say matters to them. It doesn’t take an economist to tell you that if we’re to afford more of what is important to our quality of life here in New Zealand, the economy has to grow – and it has to grow sustainably and responsibly to ensure our future generations can continue to benefit and enjoy a high level of wellbeing. Given our relatively small population base, the way to grow a strong and healthy economy is by increasing exports of high-value products. As New Zealand’s largest exporter of goods, the dairy sector currently sits at 31 percent of total merchandise exports, having grown in value over the past two decades at a compound annual rate of eight percent per year. This remarkable growth has been achieved both through increased milk production and by increasing the value of exports through the ongoing product innovation and skilled, targeted marketing by New Zealand’s dairy processing companies. And it’s also important to note is that this growth is being achieved at the same time the dairy sector is stepping forward to embrace greatly improved environmental practices, both on farm and in processing. Dairy exports are a major driver of New Zealand’s terms of trade – this is the ratio of the value of our exports to the value of our imports. An improvement in a nation’s terms of trade increases the purchasing power of its people as they can afford more imports for a […]

Farmer voting open for DairyNZ board

Voting closes before DairyNZ’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Hamilton on Tuesday, October 22.

Marlborough wine producer wins diversity award

A cadetship programme giving Marlborough and Hawkes Bay locals employment and providing a solution to skills shortages in the wine industry has won a national workplace diversity award. Constellation Brands New Zealand, which owns Drylands Winery and Riverlands winery in Marlborough, and Selaks winery in the Hawkes Bay, took out the Tomorrow’s Workforce category at the 2019 Diversity Awards NZ The company began its cadet programme in Marlborough in 2012 as a way of identifying and training local talent. It gives young people and those outside the industry a chance to explore working within the wine industry during a year of paid training. The programme was later extended to Hawkes Bay. About a fifth of the 60 people who have completed the training have been offered permanent employment with Constellation Brands New Zealand. Those who aren’t offered employment leave fully trained and qualified to work in most New Zealand vineyards and wineries. “This programme is an investment in the future of the company, the industry and New Zealand. This is critical in helping to fuel a growing industry with a labour shortage in Marlborough,” says Constellation brands New Zealand Vice President Human Resources Julie Bassett. Judging convener Neil Porteous says this is a well-designed programme with the greater good of the industry and regions at its heart, that has invested in developing capability creating pathways for both younger workers and those looking for a career change.

Climate explained: regenerative farming can help grow food with less impact

Troy Baisden Professor and Chair in Lake and Freshwater Sciences, University of Waikato Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nz I would like to know to what extent regenerative agriculture practices could play a role in reducing carbon emissions and producing food, including meat, in the future. From what I have read it seems to offer much, but I am curious about how much difference it would make if all our farmers moved to this kind of land management practice. Or even most of them. – a question from Virginia To identify and quantify the potential of regenerative agriculture to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we first must define what it means. If regenerative practices maintain or improve production, and reduce wasteful losses on the farm, then the answer tends to be yes. But to what degree is it better, and can we verify this yet? Let’s first define how regenerative farming differs from other ways of farming. For example, North Americans listening to environmentally conscious media would be likely to define most of New Zealand pastoral agriculture systems as regenerative, when compared to the tilled fields of crops they see across most of their continent. If milk and meat-producing animals are not farmed on pasture, farmers must grow grains to feed them and transport the fodder to the animals, often over long distances. It’s hard to miss that the transport is inefficient, but easier to miss that nutrients excreted by the animals as manure or urine can’t go back to the land that fed them. Healthy soils Returning nutrients to the land really matters because these build up soil and grow […]

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Urgent need for primary sector career pathway

The Tractor and Farm Machinery Association (TAMA) welcomes the challenge posed by the Minister of Agriculture to focus on training New Zealanders rather than continuing to rely on seasonal migrant workers. Minister Damien O’Connor spoke at the recent inaugural TAMA conference and in response to questions following his speech said the continued reliance on migrant workers during seasonal spikes was “problematic”. “Focus instead should be on the long term and therefore on training our own to be part of the most noble industry – feeding the world.” This need to train young people was echoed by TAMA president John Tulloch who said the tractor and farm machinery sector had to work together to develop a strong career pathway. “There are many exciting and challenging career opportunities within our sector, especially within the technology area, but school leavers need to be made more aware of them,” Mr Tulloch said. Mr O’Connor said such investment in labour in the primary sector was long overdue. “This industry has invested a lot in land, a lot in technology and a lot machinery but we’ve invested as little as we can in labour.” “The system has failed because we just don’t have enough skilled people. We need to deliver what the economy needs. At the moment we have fewer people going into vocational training and far less coming out. We don’t want to disrupt unnecessarily but we do need to change things.” The need for skilled workers was the major theme of the conference with many other speakers pointing to this as being a more pressing issue for the industry than rising costs and extreme weather events. The first-ever TAMA conference was attended by about 70 people from across New Zealand, including farm machinery importers, manufacturers and retailers.

ThinkTop revolutionises valve sensing and control units

Alfa Laval has unveiled a refreshed, rethought version of the Alfa LavalThinkTop, the company’s best-selling valve sensing and control unit for hygienic valves used in the dairy, food, beverage, brewery and pharmaceutical industries. The Alfa Laval ThinkTop V50 and V70, the second-generation of premium control units, have been reengineered to meet customer needs while incorporating the latest advances in technology. “We have listened carefully to what customers want from a valve sensing and control unit,” says René Stietz, Product Management Valves & Automation, Hygienic Fluid Handling, Alfa Laval. “The changes we’ve made to the ThinkTop are highly responsive to customer needs and therefore highly relevant – for instance, faster and more intuitive setup without compromising durability and reliability.” Reengineered to meet customer needs For the first time, the rethought Alfa Laval ThinkTop offers customers fast and intuitive setup and commissioning; enhanced 360° LED visual status indication, a repositioned Gore Vent, a more compact and aesthetic design, burst seat clean functionality, and a QR code for easy online access to support materials and direct support. Fast and intuitiveThe new auto setup feature offers manufacturers quick, easy commissioning – up to 90% faster than the previous generation. Plus, the live setup feature coupled with true valve recognition ensures the perfect match during any-and-all setups. Adaptable and smartThe new ThinkTop fits on any Alfa Laval valve, making it perfect for all retrofits. What’s more, it is smart. It features 24/7 self-diagnostics, checking and remedying operations when required, and an enhanced 360° LED visual status indication so that operators can clearly see the valve status no matter where they are on the production floor. Durable and reliable The new ThinkTop is as long-lasting and dependable as the first generation. However, repositioning the Gore Vent makes the ThinkTop more durable and more reliable than before, […]

IPCC Special Report adds much needed detail to climate debate

“New Zealand co-sponsored a proposal for a Special Report on Climate Change, Food and Agriculture in 2015. The report has arrived at an opportune time as New Zealand works out how to play its part in tackling climate change and what it might mean for our agricultural sector and our economy” Dr Mackle says. “In October 2018, the IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming by 1.5 °C really turned the way policymakers viewed climate change on its head. “This report has the potential to do the same as it highlights some of the challenges and opportunities of providing sustainable food for a growing global population”, says Dr Mackle. The world’s population is forecast by the United Nations to grow from 7.7 billion today to 9.7 billion by 2050. “As world leaders in the efficient production of high quality, nutritious, pasture-based, low emissions milk, New Zealand has a huge role to play in showcasing what a sustainable system can deliver. “The report highlights how much the science is still developing, especially when it comes to agricultural emissions, which again demonstrates that a prudent approach for New Zealand is needed. “DairyNZ is fully behind playing our part on climate change and supporting our farmers to take action. We need to take some time, however, to fully digest this report and how it might be applied in a New Zealand context,” Dr Mackle concluded.

Future-focused leaders sought for DairyNZ board

Nominations have opened for two farmers to join DairyNZ’s Board of Directors. Dairy farmers have until Thursday, September 5, to get nominations in for DairyNZ’s Board of Directors. This year, elections are taking place for two farmer-elected directors and a Directors Remuneration Committee member. DairyNZ chairman Jim van der Poel encourages dairy farmers who are strategic thinkers, future-focused and have experience in governance and leadership to consider applying. “Farmer-elected directors play a really key role on DairyNZ’s board and we are keen to have skilled, forward-thinking dairy leaders join our team,” said Mr van der Poel. “So, we are looking for people who understand farm systems, research and development, policy and advocacy. Candidates should also have an understanding and interest in driving Dairy Tomorrow and therefore a vision of what the future of dairy looks like.” Mr van der Poel said candidates must have the best interests of all New Zealand dairy farmers at heart. Broad dairy sector knowledge, strong business skills and some exposure to research and development principles are also preferred. Nominations are also being taken for a farmer to join the DairyNZ Directors Remuneration Committee, which considers and recommends remuneration for directors each year. All farmers paying a levy on milksolids to DairyNZ are eligible to stand for the Board of Directors and the Directors Remuneration Committee. The DairyNZ board consists of five farmer-elected directors and three board-appointed directors. This year, director Ben Allomes is not re-standing for election. Candidate nominations are open until September 5. Voting opens for dairy farmer levy payers on September 23 and election results will be announced at the DairyNZ Annual General Meeting on October 22. For more information on the nomination process, visit dairynz.co.nz/agm.

Government- work with farmers to reduce emissions: ETS is not the answer

DairyNZ Chief Executive Dr Tim Mackle is urging the Government to work with agricultural groups to drive real behaviour change on farm, instead of imposing a broad-based tax. Sector organisations have put forward an alternative Primary Sector Climate Change Commitment- He Waka Eke Noa – to build an enduring farm-level emission reduction framework to help the rural sector reduce its footprint. “We want to play our part and take action. That’s why we have put forward a credible five-year work plan with clear and measurable actions, outcomes and timeframes” Dr Mackle says. “Our proposed plan is a collective initiative across multiple agricultural sectors, and includes rolling out Farm Environment Plans for all farms by 2025 to ensure every farmer knows their emissions footprint, where on farm those emissions are coming from, and what they can do to manage them”. Having reliable data is important so that a farmer can make decisions and trade-offs factoring in resilience, profitability, and all the business decisions that need to be weighed up. “We are asking the Government to partner with the agricultural sector to develop and deliver targeted programmes of action and coordinate efforts to reduce emissions. We strongly believe that working in partnership is the best approach to deliver real change” Dr Mackle added. “DairyNZ does not support a levy on farmers in the ETS at processor level because it won’t drive the behaviour change to reduce emissions. “It will take money out of farmers pockets at a time when it would be better invested on-farm to prepare for and start the process of managing emissions. “Safeguarding the environment and maintaining a sustainable and competitive dairy sector is very important to our farmers, customers, and consumers. “Farmers care about the environment and are continuously refining their farm systems to improve environmental outcomes. “The […]

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