Dr Tim Mackle looks back on a big year for DairyNZ

DairyNZ chief executive Dr Tim Mackle. Photo / Supplied

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This year has been tough on the dairy sector, and Dr Tim Mackle is proud of how farmers have "stood up and just kept moving ahead."

It was impressive that farmers had kept their own operations going, while also supporting the country through the Covid-19 pandemic, Mackle, who is DairyNZ's chief executive, told The Country Sport Breakfast's Lee Piper.

"It's been fantastic, actually," Mackle said.

These efforts were noticed by the general public as well, with a "good little lift" in positivity toward dairy farmers recorded in DairyNZ's public perception survey results, Mackle said.

Although this probably had a bit to do with the dairy sector's response to Covid-19, Mackle believed it was also about farmers' environmental work starting to resonate with Kiwis.

Tackling a global pandemic was not the only challenge for Kiwi farmers in 2020, Mackle said.

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"The other big one of course, has been around Government policy changes and so that's been a period of uncertainty for many people."

A "big job" for the year ahead was translating the rules around essential freshwater into "actual rules" at a regional council level, Mackle said.

"Those rules came out and that's been a source of concern for farmers, but we know we've got to keep improving ... we're looking for pragmatic and practical approaches, so that we can keep making improvements to the environment but at the same time have sustainable businesses."

As for the future, Mackle said there were "rocky times" ahead, but there were also positives to look back on in 2020.

These included New Zealand's response to cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis and DairyNZ's commitment to managing emissions and climate change through the He Waka Eke Noa partnership.

Mackle said DairyNZ would continue to focus on these issues in 2020, while also working on managing migrant labour in the dairy sector.