The new classes will sit alongside the popular Export Lamb competition which Progressive Meats have supported for the past two years.
Entries close on September 18, along with entries in other show classes.
The 2015 Royal New Zealand Show will be held at the Hawke's Bay Showgrounds, Hastings, on October 21-23.
Velvet tonic
New Zealand and South Korean scientists believe they will soon be able to identify compounds that give deer antler velvet its immune-boosting properties.
If successful, it will allow velvet extracts to be sold with a precise measure of the active ingredients they contain, which Deer Industry NZ says is an important step in getting such products registered for sale as healthy foods.
Chief executive Dan Coup says: "Velvet's reputation as a health tonic goes back more than 1000 years and it is still widely used in Korea and China in mixtures with ginseng and herbs in tonics and traditional medicines."
"But these days, government regulators and consumers everywhere want the claims made for medicines and tonics to be supported by scientific evidence.
"It appears that we are on the threshold of doing this with at least one of the health-promoting properties attributed to velvet."
The research is being carried out by AgResearch on behalf of VARNZ, a joint venture between DINZ and AgResearch, with critical support from the Korean Ginseng Corporation (KGC), the world's largest ginseng company.
Fagan at the top table
Shearing great David Fagan had barely put the last competition sheep through the porthole before accepting a job at the top of the organisation responsible for shearing and woolhandling competitions in New Zealand.
Just returned from his last tour of the UK - and a four-test series against Wales - Fagan was appointed chairman of Shearing Sports New Zealand at its annual meeting in Christchurch a fortnight ago.
Fagan said he had little hesitation in accepting the role, replacing outgoing chairman Gavin Rowland, who had been in the position since 2012, when he replaced the previous chairman of nine years - Fagan's brother, fellow former Golden Shears champion and record-breaking shearer John Fagan.
The other referendum
One in five registered voters have cast their vote at the halfway mark in the 2015 Sheepmeat and Beef Levy Referendum.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand chairman James Parsons, who was in Hawke's Bay last week as part of the cycle of 53 referendum information meetings throughout the country, said this week the vote was a pleasing start.
More than 600 farmers had attended the meetings and, by Tuesday night, 3364 farmers had voted.
"There's good awareness among farmers and we want to make sure that's turned into active participation in the vote," Mr Parsons said.
He said it was important for the organisation to have a strong mandate to continue its activities on the farmers' behalf, it wants to make sure all farmers know now is the time to vote to continue the organisation.
Dairy help, UK-style
A supermarket chain in Northern Ireland is taking the lead to assist farmers struggling during the milk price crisis by donating 10p to a Rural Support charity for each two litres of a selected milk brand.
Armagh-based Emmerson's responded as farmers battle a crisis in which they fear they'll be out of business by Christmas.
Farmers in Northern Ireland have been joining dairy farmers across the UK in protests over the cost of milk production.
Supermarket chain owner Gavin Emmerson said: "No business person wants to get up out of bed knowing they are getting up to lose money."
