So Far So Good With Emergency Forage Shipping
NEW ZEALAND – Efforts to supply North Island farmers with emergency feed have been hailed as a success.The hay shipments have been entering the eastern port of Hawke’s Bay to provide farmers with vital supplies following three months of prolonged dry weather with forage quality and quantity reported as being ‘great’.
This is how Hawke’s Bay Drought Committee and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council Chairman, Fenton Wilson described the shipments.
He praised the work of Federated Farmers of New Zealand, Hastings District Mayor Laurence Yule and the Rural Support Trust for a combined effort to get quality feed to where it is so vitally needed.
However, Mr Wilson detailed the setbacks in trying to use Ravensdown bulk carriers to transport feed.
Fire safety legislation states that the transporters of nitrogen producer Ravensdown are not sufficiently equipped with fire suppression equipment to ship vast straw quantities.
“It transpires the offer of using bulk carriers is not going to be a workable solution,” said Mr Wilson.
“Everyone genuinely appreciates the lengths Ravensdown has gone to in trying to secure a certified vessel. With no other vessels scheduled until early August a bulk shipment now becomes a remote possibility,” says Mr Wilson.
He did note that more positive news came from coastal shipping carried out by Hamburg Sud and Pacifica Shipping into the Port of Napier, adding that road links are starting to ‘free up’, widening haulage options.
TheCattleSite News Desk