News

Abundant feed drives heavy demand Commencing in early January, South Island store lamb sales are delivering excellent results for breeders. With plenty of moisture in most areas, feed is abundant in quantity and excellent in quality, motivating strong demand. As works schedules have dropped away...

Good values based on heavy demand and excellent stock condition feature in most sales Regular rainfall and mild weather prior to Christmas resulted in exceptional grass growth in most North Island districts, enabling farmers to retain greater numbers of stock than they would expect through what is...

After marvelling at the rapid passing of forty years, the lads turned to the glory days of the Gore Ram Fair, when they sold Romney rams for days and days. Jamie wondered whether the Romneys are playing a part at all in the current Gore Ram Fair. Simon says they are - probably about 15 rams out of a...

Jamie started by raising anecdotal talk doing the rounds of a sheep and beef farm in the Hawke's Bay selling for twenty-two and a half thousand dollars per hectare - for trees. Peter confirmed he knows of one property selling for north of twenty - but that's the exception. The majority are between...

Jamie Mackay from The Country has caught up with Palle Petersen from PGG Wrightson for the monthly report on the state of the wool market. Things kicked off on a low note as Jamie wonders whether Palle has ever known the wool market to be as bad as it currently is. Palle agrees the outlook for the...

The first of two world record shearing attempts this week has been a successful one, with 19-year-old Kiwi Reuben Alabaster challenging the solo strong wool lamb shearing record of 744 lambs, set by Irish shearer Ivan Scott at Opepe (near Taupo) in 2012. Alabaster started his attempt at 7am this...

A pair of mobile wool sheds are on a tour of New Zealand schools teaching students about the story of wool. Written by Annabelle Latz, Country-Wide Tennis balls used at Wimbledon are made with New Zealand wool felt. It has the best crimp factor in the world and gives balls the best bounce. Kiwi...

Farmers and animal lovers across Aotearoa will have more peace of mind knowing the vaccines they’re purchasing are fit for purpose thanks to a new technology trial between agricultural business, PGG Wrightson and Spark New Zealand. PGG Wrightson CEO Stephen Guerin, says, “ Animal clostridial...

Stephen Guerin, CEO of PGG Wrightson and Jamie Mackay from The Country caught up at Fieldays to reflect on 40 years of support for the IHC Calf and Rural Scheme and discuss the latest Situation and Outlook for Primary Industries (SOPI) report.

Jamie Mackay took a final look at the state of the wool market for the year with Grant Edwards. Both agree that it's been a very challenging year for the wool industry. Jamie reckons Grant would never have had a tougher year than he's had this year. Grant says that people within the wool industry -...

Brook has recently won the 11 th Annual Heartland Bank Young Auctioneer competition. Jamie asked how Brook got his start. After leaving school at 17, Brook did a stint farming before starting with PGG Wrightson in the rural supplies store. he then started a traineeship with Wrightson Livestock...

Te Kuiti shearer Jack Fagan realised another dream when he won the Canterbury Shears’ New Zealand Corriedale Open shearing championship at the New Zealand Agricultural Show in Christchurch on Friday. The victory in a six-man final over 14 sheep each was his biggest of 13 show wins in eight years of...

The 2021/2022 lineup of the 12 PGG Wrightson Vetmed National Shearing Circuit quarter-finalists as the shearing was about to begin. South Island shearers go into the Canterbury Shears and New Zealand Corriedale Shearing and Woolhandling Championships well placed to continue a domination of the PGG...

The winner of the 2022 Ahuwhenua Trophy for the top Māori sheep and beef farm is Wi Pere Trust, a large sheep and beef farming operation at Te Karaka, near Gisborne. The Minister of Agriculture, Hon Damien O’Connor announced their success at the Ahuwhenua Trophy awards dinner in the Hawke’s Bay...

Over 500 people gathered in Te Aroha last month to listen to Sir John Kirwan, or JK as he’s most commonly known, share his humble yet powerful words on managing mental health and the process of moving from surviving to thriving. It was an important message for rural communities. Across the country...

This season has seen some profound logistical challenges in the fine wool sector. High quantities of wool came forward to our Christchurch and Mosgiel wool stores at this time of the year for these types. This high wool flow coinciding with such a wet spring resulted in a bottleneck that constricted...

Photo of Henry, Gaby and their daughter Jess supplied by Anna Munro - MUSTER Photography. Written by Hine Mullany, PGG Wrightson Wool Trainee. Alistair Flett, our rep for South Canterbury and Central Otago recently took me out of the office to see an Upper Waitaki-based farming family who are...

Two senior executives from Devold of Norway were in New Zealand recently, alongside Craig Smith GM Devold NZ, to meet the growers who supply merino wool for the manufacture of their prestigious natural clothing range. Devold owner and CEO Knut Flaak and the manager of the company’s Lithuania mill...