Kaipara hit by drought

Kaipara farmers are struggling as the drought is back. Photo/File

Drought is back in Kaipara, with some farms worse than they were in the dry summer a year ago.

Farmers of New Zealand operations director Bill Guest said while the rest of the country appeared to be doing well, Kaipara dairy farmers were drying off cows.

"One farmer here has dried off 600 of his 700 cows and is feeding them all 30 tonnes of palm kernel every five days.

"That's costing him over $70,000 a month," he said.

"The season is over on quite a few west coast dairy farms."

Along with the weather, some farmers were struggling with high debt levels, rates and on-farm costs, Mr Guest said.

About 15 Kaipara farms with big debts had "gone down the gurgler" and up to 30 other farms around Northland faced a similar fate.

"A Kaipara farmer came home to find a bank had security guards occupying his farm.

"There was a furniture truck parked outside the house and he was told he had three hours to get out," Mr Guest said.

After the Northland Agricultural Field Days at Dargaville on February 27-March 1, Farmers of New Zealand planned to hold a seminar in the North at which two Auckland lawyers specialising in litigation against banks would sound out the possibility of debt-plagued farmers mounting a class action against banks for irresponsible loans.

Mr Guest said the seminar would also deal with inheritance issues to help farmers keep their properties in their families.

Dargaville had light rain and temperatures of 23C on Sunday, cooling to 21C yesterday with showers and 20C expected tomorrow. Thursday and Friday are forecast to be 20C.