‘The least we can do’
Hawke’s Bay farmers are working to return the favour, offering supplementary stock feed to the floodaffected farmers in Canterbury, who offered their own feed during last year’s drought in the Bay.
Poppy Renton, who created the Hawke’s Bay Drought page to help organise feed runs and support to impacted farmers in the region, said it was the least they could do to help.
“Hawke’s
Bay
farmers
were
so
grateful when other farmers from all areas of New Zealand helped them out last year.
“When we saw that Canterbury farmers are struggling after devastating floods, they were more than happy to help out.”
Between two to three months’ worth of rain fell over two days across Canterbury, causing massive flooding as riverbanks burst and leaving farmland, buildings and equipment underwater.
The Government declared the flooding an “adverse event” for Canterbury, meaning $500,000 in funding can be unlocked for farmers and growers.
“They helped us so the least we can do is help them,” Renton said.
She said the response to a post calling for feed donations and support from local farmers had been incredible.
So far they have organised about 18 bales of hay to be taken down, but
Renton is hoping to find another 26 or so in the Maraekakaho area to fill a unit load.
Renton said it was important that farmers only donate feed “surplus to their requirements”, as the region was heading into a dry winter and could experience an unexpected weather event itself.
She said they would continue to look at other ways of supporting those in Canterbury.
— Hawke’s Bay Today