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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Dairy Farming New Zealand Can Be Proud Of

I've changed my header to the Milking On The Moove logo. My goal is to create a dairy farming system that New Zealanders can be proud of.

I'm passionate about dairy farming and agriculture. While I have blogged about aspects that I think should change, I'm a fan of the industry. I'm concerned that Fonterra seems to get so much flack from the New Zealand public, which includes individual farmers.

I can understand left leaning environmentalists having a dim view of Fonterra, as that would be in keeping with their attitude towards corporates and big business in general. I'm concerned by the attitudes of middle New Zealand. It seems that many view Fonterra as a money hungry corporate giant that is screwing New Zealand consumers. I'm prepared to be a little understanding of a middle of the road New Zealander, who knows nothing about farming being influenced by the media.

But what really concerns me is the negative attitudes from business people, who I would have thought would lean towards Fonterra and farmers. But even these people seem to have it in for Fonterra. The comments in this  NBR article are a good example. 

I want to do my little bit to try and change the way dairy farming is viewed in New Zealand. So I hope to be helpful to non farmers, by being informative about issues like the price of milk and other industry matters.
But for the New Zealand public to be proud of dairy farmers, they need to change too. I don't want to be a negative voice against dairy farmers, but I want to highlight where farmers can do better. I'm not going to be an armchair farmer, preaching from my keyboard either. I'll practice what I preach (once I get my act together) and I will don a pair of gumboots and trial my ideas. I'll do it in full view, via my blog. So I will succeed or fail in full public view.

Please view all my utterances from the angle of, creating a dairy farm that New Zealanders are proud of.

7 comments:

  1. jealousy from the urban population.there is a whole generation of people who were bought up on farms who didnt want to farm or thought they were to smart.(remember careers advisers who only pushed the dumber kid to farming)now those same people find that the dumb kids are worth millions and they arnt

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  2. That's what I like about farming, you don't need to be the smartest person to be successful. Its largely common sense. I'd love to see people from town turn their hand to farming and be successful.

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  3. So what are your ideas? what will you practice? Dairying farming is in crisis. New Zealand public have a right to ask the big questions, we all know that our waterways are contaminated. That swimming and fishing may not be a future past time. That the dream of owning a small, localised farm and raising a family is a lifestyle that is more and more of an unobtainable quest as land has become more a commodity for big business food production. God save us.

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  4. As I said in my post "When I get my act together" I'll get some cows and trial some different systems.

    Dairy farming is taking a track which I am uncomfortable with. Cows can be farmed in a much more environmentally friendly than we currently do it, the small scale farmer does have a future and we can make dairy farming a decent lifestyle, where farmers can work a reasonable work day with their family. Dairy farmers should be getting more than .50c/litre for their milk too.

    Keep watching this space!

    Cheers
    Glen

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