Orchardists for the first time

transformed a 5.85 hectare section into the Coastal Kiwis Orchard it is today.

Former national ambassador Dianne Kidd from Helensville, who chaired the judging panel, said the Whites demonstrated an excellent understanding of all aspects of sustainable food production.

‘‘They are outstanding strategic and agile thinkers on the key issues for New Zealand and have strong primary sector and community leadership qualities. They communicate and operate exceptionally well as a team and are natural leaders with a wealth of knowledge and experience and a willingness to impart this to others.’’

Pedantic it may be, but calling things by correct names is important to me. As a vet and a mum, body parts and sex organs are always identified by recognised anatomical words. Usually it avoids confusion but occasionally sounds off-key in non rural ears.

Travelling on a Hong Kong bus with a group of good church people I saw a female dog running down the footpath with the result of rearing multiple pups swinging low under her belly. The company fell embarrassingly silent when I commented to the lady next to me, ‘‘goodness look at the tits on that poor bitch’’.

Misnomers regularly sneak into our vocabulary. Many words don’t convey correct meanings. Recently, ‘‘police chases ‘‘ have been in the news but that’s not what they are at all. They’re really driver escapes. If the vehicle had not sped off the police wouldn’t need to chase.

Every time I open our fridge at the moment there’s an annoying, glaring misnomer. On the shelf sits ‘‘soy milk’’ as we have a friend staying who is lactose intolerant.

The definition of milk is: An opaque white fluid rich in fat and protein, secreted by female mammals for the nourishment of their young. Whereas this stuff