The Government Must Enable Farmers To Adopt A Flexible Commonsense Approach To Exclusion Of Beef Cattle And Deer From Waterways

The Government must enable farmers to adopt a flexible commonsense approach to exclusion of beef cattle and deer from waterways. Beef + Lamb New Zealand , Federated Farmers, and Deer Industry New Zealand have put in a joint submission on the low-slope map consultation calling on the Government to work with the sector on a fair and workable solution to keep beef cattle and deer away from water bodies. They believe Freshwater Farm Plans may be the best option to manage exclusion of beef cattle and deer from water bodies and that stock exclusion requirements should be flexible enough for farmers to adapt and innovate to meet demands on their businesses, the environment and fulfil unique catchment values. The joint submission, which was based on more than 340 responses from farmers to a joint survey seeking feedback on the consultation.