farming Archive

  • frog

    Farm Weka in order to save them?



    An enterprising farmer, Roger Beattie, is proposing that he should be allowed to farm Weka (and presumably Kiwi, etc), for sale to be eaten. Apparently “weka [were] delicious, and made chicken look bland and greasy in comparison.” That’s all well and good. Maybe they do taste good and maybe there would be a [...] read more
    February 5, 2010 1:00 pm - 50 Comments
  • Russel Norman

    The brand vs battery cows



    This is how we present our butter to the world: “Only our cows are free to roam all day long. Anchor – the free range butter company”. And this is cubicle factory dairy production – the battery cow. Or this: Cognitive dissonance anyone? read more
    December 9, 2009 7:56 pm - 62 Comments
  • Jeanette Fitzsimons

    Herd homes vs cubicles like home vs prison



    Have you ever felt that after a long day inside a building you just have to get out and feel the sun and breathe some air? I guess not being able to do that is one  of the punishments the prison system imposes on offenders. But even they get an hour or so out in [...] read more
    December 9, 2009 3:35 pm - 11 Comments
  • frog

    Good Farm Stories and the polluted Manawatu



    As Jeanette previewed yesterday, the Greens’ Good Farm Stories website has been launched today. You can find it here: www.goodfarmstories.org.nz. There’s a wealth of material, so grab a cup of tea and enjoy! read more
    November 26, 2009 12:43 pm - 7 Comments
  • frog

    Think our native forests were safe? Think again.



    “Agricultural intensification over the past 10 years has led to the highest rate of native vegetation loss since European colonisation.” Landcare Research Annual Report read more
    November 2, 2009 11:29 am - 18 Comments
  • frog

    Love Wild Rivers? Give them your support



    Cool. Today a new campaign has been launched for one of New Zealand’s most iconic features – our Wild Rivers. It’s great to see diverse groups – tree-huggers, deer-stalkers, bird-watchers, knobbly-kneed trampers, sharp-edged climbers, risky rafters, kool-kat kayakers, and angelic anglers – representing “over 100,000 New Zealanders” and united in seeking to protect wild rivers from [...] read more
    October 28, 2009 12:37 pm - 3 Comments
  • Jeanette Fitzsimons

    ETS is sure to spur growth – but what kind?



    Now here’s a great idea for economic development. Extract lignite, the lowest quality coal, very wet and of low calorific value. Add copious water pollution, coal seam methane and land disturbance from open cast mining. read more
    October 1, 2009 6:45 am - 20 Comments
  • frog

    Mohaka needs you!



    The Dompost on Saturday reported that a debate about landuse and water quality is deepening in the Hawkes Bay. The Mohaka River has a Water Conservation Order on it. However its quality is declining. One tributary comes from the volcanic plateau where land has been converted from forests to industrial-sized dairy farms. read more
    September 21, 2009 3:30 pm - 11 Comments
  • Catherine Delahunty

    World Bank Goes Green?



    Sometimes something really good happens. The World Bank has withdrawn funding for the palm oil sector including the Wilmar company that supplies [PDF] palm kernel to Fonterra. The World Bank is not satisfied that the palm plantations they loaned to in parts of the developing world met acceptable standards for sustainability. Congratulations to the Forest Peoples [...] read more
    September 14, 2009 12:22 pm - 74 Comments
  • frog

    Sober Sunday reading



    Kim Knight at the Sunday Star Times provides welcome investigative journalism today in a story and major feature on the origin of the massive amount of palm kernel expeller (PKE) that New Zealand imports for supplementary feed on dairy farms. She writes: It looks like Armageddon. It’s just a palm plantation. Palm oil is a controversial component [...] read more
    August 23, 2009 10:32 am - 57 Comments
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