Listen: Farmers shouldn't panic over new animal welfare regulations

Farmers should not panic about new animal welfare regulations released by MPI this week says DairyNZ.

DairyNZ animal care team leader Helen Thoday told The Country Early Edition's Rowena Duncum that a lot of farmers will be practising the regulations already.

"Many farmers go above and beyond the current standards, so there's nothing too concerning for most of our farmers," says Thoday.

One requirement that may cause concern is a complete ban on routine tail-shortening which came into effect from October 1.

Thoday says this is a practice that some farmers are still carrying out and urges them to look at the DairyNZ website for alternative methods on tail management.

Also in today's interview: Helen Thoday talks about DairyNZ's Dairy Tomorrow initiative and how it relates to animal care and has a bit of advice for busy farmers coming up to mating season.