We have been advised that the submission date for the Sediment and Debris Fund has been further extended to 31 August 2023
For more information about the fund and how to apply, please see HERE
Growers can now log a job via the HBRC website to have their reflective polypropylene matting, bird netting collected and the green wind/shade cloth. These materials will then be taken to a holding site until we are confident with our due diligence around its recycling potential.
Below is the HBRC link to log a job for the collection of material. HBRC and HDC have a Silt & Debris taskforce that is managing the collection and holding sites for these multiple waste streams.
It is preferred that the materials are separated into their individual waste streams.
https://www.hbrc.govt.nz/our-council/cyclone-gabrielle-response/dealing-with-waste/
Submission Date – now extended to 31 August 2023.
Please find the below links to a recording from the webinar, supporting presentation slides, info sheet and FAQs.
Webinar Presentation Sediment and Debris – Commercial Funding – HB Grower QA 8-6-23
Infosheet Sediment and Debris Recovery Fund for Commercial Entities
FAQs Sediment and Silt Recovery Funding for Commercial Entities
Questions and documentation and evidence required
The Government has passed an Order in Council – Severe Weather Emergency Recovery (Resource Management—Burning of Waste) Order 2023. This is a result of advocacy by the Horticulture Action Group (HAG), NZ Apples & Pears, and HortNZ.
The order came into force on 5 July 2023. It allows the burning of waste in the open air only if the owner or the occupier or their authorised person:
The permitted activity standards stipulate:
The detail is provided in the Order of Council, which you can view here.
29 June 2023
The Government has announced a support package for growers, farmers and businesses affected by the North Island Weather events.
For the full announcement please visit HERE
First the preview of something that has been playing on my mind as it always does at this time of the year; how much winter chilling are we stacking up. June, July, and August are normally reliably cold thus the bonus chilling is what we get in May. It’s been terrible! Many of the HB weather stations had been recording negative chill, which sounds a bit arse about face, but it’s not ideal. Witness the level of leaf retention on cherry and apple trees. Not cold enough.
Georgina Griffiths from Met Service was on the radio (RNZ) a few days ago talking about the incoming El Nino event, and her comments were backed up by Brent Clothier (PFR, Palmerston North) at conference. We are in for a cold winter. Bingo, tick that off, something is going our way. Now we can focus the dormancy enhancer (breaker) products on tightening up bloom or playing with the timing of bloom. The winter chill calculators are now moving towards more normal accumulation with the Longlands site already there.
The downside of the incoming El Nino is that spring will still be cold with southerlies, but let’s deal with that bit when it arrives.
The upside is a predicted return to a westerly pattern for summer, hot and dry. Yippie, happy growers and wholesalers and retailers and consumers. As Meatloaf sang – two out of three aint bad. And to quote Bruce McKay, our best years are drought years.
In the review space, the Summerfruit conference was a couple of weeks ago based in Queenstown and Cromwell. Grower participation from HB was light but there was good representation from other sectors of the industry. The kick-the-dirt sessions were hosted by Michael Jones and Mike Casey with on-orchard presentations by Matt Whiting and Clive Kaiser respectively. While the blocks, in this case vertical and horizontal planar canopies, and observations were cherry focused, the lessons learned are appropriate across most fruit groups. For those interested I have a few paper copies of Clive Kaisers orchard presentation which is a very good 101 level, maybe 200 level paper, on the fundamentals of growing and pruning deciduous trees. Again, cherry focused but well worth a read for all stone fruit or pipfruit crops. His suggestions on beehives are; grouping them together, raising them off the ground and facing the hive entrance towards the rising sun. The use of glucose feeding and placement outside of netted orchards were also interesting. Considering the potentially cold spring these ideas are well worth a thought.
Matt Whiting from Washington State University had two presentations in the conference proper, one on cold hardiness and a potential new frost fighting tool and the other an update on sweet cherry research in his neck of the woods. The presentations were captured on video and with a bit of luck will be available on the portal in due course.
We also had Jerf van Beek give a Cyclone Gabrielle effects and recovery presentation. For those that have lived though this it was nothing new, but emotional to see again. For the majority in the room the focus on deciduous trees was new and brought a degree of reality compared to a 3-minute news item. Jerf’s passion and tears were there for all to see, and I applaud him for the ability to show vulnerability. I would also like to publicly thank him and Xan Harding as regional councillors for the work the continue to on our behalf.
Richard Mills
Summerfruit Technical Advisor
021 632559
We have been advised that the submission date for the Sediment and Debris Fund has been extended from 30 June 2023 to 31 July 2023.
For more information about the fund and how to apply, please see HERE
Submission Date – now extended from 30 June to 31 July 2023
Please find the below links to recordings of Q&A webinars, supporting presentation slides, info sheet and FAQs.
Webinar Presentation Sediment and Debris – Commercial Funding – HB Grower QA 8-6-23
Infosheet Sediment and Debris Recovery Fund for Commercial Entities
FAQs Sediment and Silt Recovery Funding for Commercial Entities
Questions and documentation and evidence required
Blueprint for learning, run a series of webinars that are currently available free of charge.
One of these courses is Rural MH101 which deals with developing confidence to recognise, relate and respond to people experiencing mental health challenges.
An in-person version of this course was recently attended by a cohort of local growers and packhouse staff who found the workshop extremely beneficial. If we can arrange for a minimum of 16 people to register, we can arrange for a repeat workshop here in Hawke’s Bay.
If you are interested in attending, please email shayna@temataexports.co.nz to express your interest prior to Friday 30 June 2023.
Advertorial –
Mela Apple Juice is currently operating as a small family run juice producer and contract bottling operation located in Greytown, Wairarapa. The company supplies to Foodstuffs and is listed on the Foodstuffs Exchange.
Distributed through Bidfood Foodservice and Goodtimes Foods.
Operates under a verified Food Safety plan that conforms to MPI’s National Program 3 MELA LIMITED has been in operation since 2004.
Sale includes all the necessary equipment for the production of apple-based beverages, with PET bottles and the capacity to fill glass closures ranging from 200ml to 1.5 litre. A full list of equipment is available on request.
Please email mela@mela.co.nz or 06 304 8012 for more information.
