Today on The Country, Jamie Mackay bids farewell to ex-Central Hawke's Bay farmer and long-time contributor to the show Jeremy Rookes, who is retiring from his regular slot.
On with the show:
Winston Peters:
In response to a Jane Clifton column in The Listener, the NZ First leader vehemently denies he's forming a political unholy alliance with Bishop Brian Tamaki. Plus, he shares his thoughts on China's power plays in the Pacific and the unlikely prospects of an FTA with the EU.
The AgResearch senior scientist tells us more about New Zealand research which shows that red meat is a better source of protein than a processed plant-based alternative.
Darryl Oldham:
We catch up with the winner of the 2022 Rabobank Farm Managers Programme Management Project. The Oldhams farm in partnership near Ashburton and in his role as the farm manager, Darryl, alongside his wife Anna, is involved in all the day-to-day aspects of running the farming business which grows cereals, small seed, peas, maize for silage, and fodder crops for finishing lambs. His project was based on assessing the viability of converting all, or part of, the farming operation to sheep milking.
Our Australian correspondent talks pies and chips, a varroa mite scare, and the threat F&M Disease is posing to live cattle exports to Indonesia.
Jeremy Rookes:
A bit like having to put down your favourite farm dog, we bid farewell to a favourite farming correspondent, but not before we let him off the chain one more time.