Arable farmers are experts at growing crops, but not as skilled at capturing value beyond the farm gate. In this episode of Cut the Crop, Federated Farmers arable group chair David Birkett talks to Alison Stewart about a new arable strategy which aims to assist farmers with the financial skills, quality assurance and infrastructure needed to get out of the commodity trap.

The Government is ending New Zealand’s nearly 30-year ban on genetically modified and edited organisms outside the lab next year. So how informed are you on the topic? In this episode of Cut the Crop, Alison Stewart talks to Emeritus scientist at AgResearch Tony Conner about some of the potential positives and challenges for arable growers.

Seed cleaners are reporting increasing dressing losses in ryegrass and other small seed crops, with losses often as high as 25%. In this episode of Cut the Crop, Methven farmer and seed cleaner John McCaw and FAR technology manager Chris Smith talk about the importance of combine harvester set-up, which will be examined at a series of December workshops.

In this week’s Cut the Crop, Alison Stewart talks to three growers in Manawatu, Southland and South Canterbury about how the season and market prospects are looking. With the sun finally coming out in some regions and the lift in dairy payout, has the outlook turned a corner?

FAR’s biggest annual event of the year, CROPS, is being held at the Chertsey Arable Research Site on Wednesday November 27. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR’s Communications Manager Anna Heslop says the range of topics covered means there is something for everyone.

By factoring in soil-available nitrogen when making fertiliser decisions, maize growers can save money on input costs as well as benefit the environment. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR senior environment researcher Abie Horrocks says trials show no maize yield or quality differences when soil N is used.

When it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, increasingly the conversation is about “Scope” emissions. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR senior environment researcher Dirk Wallace explains what this means and its implications for arable growers, particularly those supplying dairy farmers with feed.

The inclination of farmers to be “tidy Kiwis” by repeatedly spraying the vegetation along fence-lines is increasing the risk of herbicide resistance, says FAR senior field researcher Charles Merfield (Merf). In this episode of Cut the Crop, he tells Alison Stewart about a demonstration trial at Kowhai Farm looking at alternative approaches.

Marton maize and cereal grower and contractor Simon Nitschke is the 2024 Arable Farmer of the Year. In this episode of Cut the Crop, he tells Alison Stewart that his family’s decision to move up the value chain and expand their maize grain storage, drying and blending business means better understanding and meeting the needs of end-users.

FAR has summarised 15 years of research into cocksfoot seed production into a guide for growers. In this episode of Cut the Crop, FAR senior herbage seed researcher Richard Chynoweth says the aim of the guide is to bring all the information together in one place for growers.