News

NZ Roundtable for Sustainable Beef Conference 2024

Date: May 21, 2024

Murray had the privilege of attending the New Zealand Roundtable for Sustainable Beef’s annual conference and AGM in Christchurch in May. Joining forces with industry leaders like McDonald’s, Fonterra, Beef + Lamb New Zealand, and the SPCA, we delved into the future of sustainable beef.

The event kicked off with an evening of networking, allowing us to connect with fellow members and meet some of the Board. The highlight of the second day was a field trip to a large dairy and dry stock operation south of Rakaia. Despite the weather challenges, we toured the farm and gathered in a wool shed to hear from key speakers. Their insights into what sustainable beef means to their operations were enlightening. Notably, McDonald’s shared their perspective, underscoring the initiative’s importance to their future.

The conference wrapped up with a final session back at our hotel, followed by an enjoyable evening of food, drinks, and camaraderie.

Other news

QCONZ had the opportunity to engage with industry representatives at the Red Meat Sector Conference in Wellington in July. This year, our team participated in the conference under the theme “From our Pasture to your Plate,” highlighting our ongoing involvement in the industry.

Fieldays 2024 was a fantastic opportunity to present our FreshWater Farm Plan (FWFP) tool and reconnect with our clients and wider industry stakeholders.

After an impressive 25-year’s, Murray Pedley, QCONZ’s Major Shareholder, Director, former Board Chair and CEO, has retired.

Justin Moss and Josh Wheeler from QCONZ took a trip to Parliament in May to meet with Hon. Andrew Hoggard to discuss Freshwater Farm Plans (FWFPs). We were excited to share our learnings from the past few years.

Big news for New Zealand farmers! QCONZ is excited to share our new FreshWater Farm Plan Tool. It’s a digital helper that makes it easy for farmers to create their freshwater farm plans quickly.

In late October Chris Leach led an MPI dairy development training programme for farmers and extension officers in Pak Chong, Thailand. Pak Chong is the central region of Thailand, approximately a 2 ½ hour drive north of Bangkok, and is at the centre of the developing Thai Dairy Industry. 

We were thrilled to be a major sponsor of the New Zealand Association of Resource Management (NZARM) conference held in Christchurch in October.

We flew the QCONZ flag again this year at the annual Red Meat Sector Conference, jointly hosted by the Meat Industry Association and Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ltd.

As of 1 October, the QCONZ team will be delivering audits for the New Zealand Farm Assurance Programme (NZFAP). We have been working hard behind the scenes to get systems and processes in place, and from August farmers can expect to start hearing from us regarding audit bookings.

QCONZ proudly sponsored the Milk Quality Conference in Hamilton on the 4th and 5th July. Attended by 125, this was a great opportunity for engagement and collaboration between industry and service providers in the Dairy sector.