A wet job done very well
Well done to everyone in the livestock farming industry of our district, with 300ml of rain recorded by some in the previous 45 days ending August 24. Calving dairy herds in such challenging wet conditions, let alone wintering beef cattle, is not for the fainthearted.
The physical and mental inputs need to be acknowledged for a job well done. Now I see lambs appearing as well, with pastures responding well to the blue skies and warm sun, feed budgets will be heading to more economical inputs, when current returns for primary export can be easily observed for a practical cautious control of cashflows.
Our local rural scene also has several regulatory issues with us and heading our way.
The National Animal Identification and Tracing Act NAIT came into being on July 1.
I have had some contact from amateur and professional farmers on some conflicting advice from the NAIT telephone centre.
I have asked those people to log the time, date and an idea of the phone operator gender and possibly an age indication.
If this is just the teething troubles with the implementation of NAIT, so be it. But if I receive some consistent concerns, then I will pass them on to the Minister of Primary Industries.
I must admit, I am a bit miffed at some rhetoric comments from the NAIT administration, being quoted to their refusal to acknowledge the extra costs to farmers now coming to my attention.
Many livestock farmers I am told have not yet registered their livestock properties yet.
The Ministry of Primary Industries has put out a public consultation document for NAIT to review how legal action can be brought against farmers who do not wish to be 100 per cent accurate with the objectives of NAIT.
The panel that will be formed, as I understand it, can receive an application from Inland Revenue for data access.
Farmers who have concerns have until September 5 to lodge a submission.
The discussion paper incorporating the proposals includes details for how to make a submission and is available on the internet at: mpi.govt.nz
Next topic, to be highlighted by me is the over allocated Piako and Waitoa River catchments, and the process that we’ll need to apply for a resource consent for water.
Water allocation resource consents, were an omitted oversight by Waikato Regional Council in 1989.
Te Aroha District Federated Farmers under the enthusiastic chairmanship of Andrew McGiven has already had Waikato Regional Council officers address their farmers.
I and my Matamata team will be arranging such a farmers’ information meeting with the regional council representatives in attendance before the end of September in Matamata.
A remit will be considered by the Waikato Provincial Federated Farmers executive from Te Aroha members, to confirm an application lodgement fee of $1000 plus annual fee of $350 required by the regional council.
That does not include the cost to farmers to gather evidence to support their application.
That can run into literally thousands of dollars.
That cost is where Matamata Federated Farmers will be of huge benefit to its members, to group share of such evidence gathering.
A valid resource consent will maintain the value of your property well into the foreseeable future, is an opinion of a regional councillor who is getting all the consents that are needed, regardless of whether, at this point in time, he needs one.