Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy and Associate Minister for Primary Industries Louise Upston have welcomed the beginning of construction on a new centre to showcase the best of the primary sector in the hear

A change to the constitution of Crown Irrigation Investments Limited (CIIL) will allow it to fund water storage projects with direct environmental and economic benefits, rather than on the basis of purely economic gro

Work has begun on the improvements to New Zealand’s geological hazards monitoring as announced in Budget 2017, Civil Defence Minister Nathan Guy and Science and Innovation Minister Paul Goldsmith have announced today.

Economic Development Minister Simon Bridges and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy have announced government funding of up to $800,000 for 3-D aerial mapping of Northland to provide the region with highly accurate

A new $400,000 scholarship programme to build global expertise on climate change, agriculture and food security will boost New Zealand’s contribution to agricultural greenhouse gas research say Climate Change Minister

A new pledge by farming leaders to improve the swimmability of New Zealand’s rivers has been welcomed by Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith.

The Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand (DCANZ) has become the fifteenth and largest industry sector to join the Government Industry Agreement (GIA) biosecurity partnership, Primary Industries Minister Nathan G

New Zealanders have never been better prepared for disasters according to the latest annual disaster preparedness survey, but it’s important to stay prepared.

Minister of Civil Defence Nathan Guy says levels of household preparedness for disasters have risen sharply since the Kaikoura earthquake last year, followed by a string of other emergencies such as the Port Hills fires and the Edgecumbe flooding.

“Current levels of preparedness are on par with the previous highest on record, which was following the Canterbury earthquakes,” says Mr Guy.

Flood-hit farmers in the Bay of Plenty region will have a further opportunity to apply for a grant to help with clean up and recovery, say Social Development Minister Anne Tolley and Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy.

The $100,000 Primary Industries Flood Recovery Fund is part of a package of additional support totalling $295,000 for farms and orchards who suffered damage following the floods. 

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has welcomed new grant funding of over $1.1 million for two irrigation projects in South Canterbury and Central Otago.

Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd has agreed development grant funding of $339,875 for the Orari-Temuka-Opihi-Pareora (OTOP) irrigation conceptual design and costing project, which Environment Canterbury (ECAN) is managing.

“This is an important project because South Canterbury and particularly the greater Opihi catchment have struggled with water shortages and drought for many years,” says Mr Guy.

Primary Industries and Civil Defence Minister Nathan Guy has welcomed the announcement of eight successful projects that will be supported by the $5 million Earthquake Recovery Fund.

Announced in May this year, the Earthquake Recovery Fund supports quake-struck farmers and growers in the Marlborough, Kaikoura and Hurunui regions by funding community-driven projects, as well as funding professional advisory services for future land use planning.

Biosecurity heroes from across the country were recognised in Wellington tonight with the announcement of the 2017 New Zealand Biosecurity Award recipients. 

Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy says the winners of these inaugural awards have shown a real commitment to protecting New Zealand.

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has today officially classified the flooding in Otago as a medium-scale event for Dunedin City, Clutha District, Waitaki District and Central Otago District.

“This is recognition of the damage caused and the challenges faced by the region, and triggers additional Government support,” says Mr Guy.

Land consents necessary to allow Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre’s acquisition of Lincoln University’s Telford Campus to proceed have been given today by Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy and Associate Minister Louise Upston.

Wairarapa-based Taratahi has been negotiating with Lincoln on the purchase of the Balclutha campus since 2016. While the commercial decisions regarding the sale were the responsibility of Taratahi and Lincoln, legislation required that Ministers’ approval be given for the transfer of any associated properties or leases.

As water recedes throughout flood-impacted areas of the South Island, Minister of Civil Defence Nathan Guy has praised the efforts of those who were involved in the response to the flooding.

“Civil Defence Emergency Management Groups have acted proactively and decisively to keep people and property out of harm’s way,” says Mr Guy.

Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy has confirmed 46 new animal welfare regulations will be developed this year.

“Changes we made to the Animal Welfare Act in 2015 have allowed us to create directly-enforceable regulations. This has given the Act more teeth, and creates more tools to deal with mistreatment of animals,” says Mr Guy.

“These 46 regulations include stock transport, farm husbandry, companion and working animals, pigs, layer hens and the way animals are accounted for in research, testing and teaching.

Social Development Minister Anne Tolley and Civil Defence Minister Nathan Guy today visited Edgecumbe to see how the recovery is progressing.

“The Government is committed to ensuring the Edgecumbe community and Bay of Plenty has the support they need to recover from the April floods,” says Mrs Tolley.

“This includes $1 million in funding to enable Enhanced Taskforce Green teams to clear debris from towns, rural properties, and parks and reserves in Edgecumbe, Whakatane, Taneatua, Ruatoki, and other affected areas.

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry have announced the Government will control the spread of wilding conifers over an additional five priority areas this year in Canterbury, Otago and Southland.

The five new areas, covering 371,000 hectares of affected land, add to the 1 million-plus hectares of successful control delivered last year across 14 priority areas.

Civil Defence Minister Nathan Guy has officially re-opened the Coastguard ramp at Kaikoura harbour today, eight months after it was badly damaged in the November 2016 earthquake.

“It’s great for the local community to have the ramp now fully operational, after the earthquake made it unusable except at high tide,” says Mr Guy. 

The project was paid for under the government’s $5.7m funding to restore the harbour to full functionality.

Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy has announced a new $520,000 fund to help the Kaikoura paua fishing community as the latest primary sector support following November’s earthquakes.

This new fund follows the almost $3.5 million that has already been granted to farmers and growers for uninsurable infrastructure repair following the November 2016 earthquakes.

Speaking at a visit to the area today, Mr Guy said the new fund was part of acknowledging the challenges faced by the commercial paua fisher community since the earthquake.

Economic Development Minister Simon Bridges and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy today announced Government funding of $50,000 for the Bay of Plenty to look at economic growth opportunities through the use of water across the region.



The announcement was made at the Bay of Connections Forum today in Rotorua where a refreshed Toi Moana Bay of Plenty Economic Action Plan was launched. 

Economic Development Minister Simon Bridges and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy have welcomed a refresh of the Toi Moana Bay of Plenty Action Plan which was launched at the Bay of Connections forum in Rotorua today.



The refreshed action plan reflects 46 completed or reassigned milestones and 38 new actions for the region. It follows the announcement of a new $8.42 million Regional Research Institute in Tauranga, centred on horticulture.

New regulations gazetted today will help revolutionise the way New Zealand’s commercial fisheries are managed and monitored, says Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy.

The regulations require the use of geospatial position reporting (GPR), e-logbooks, and cameras across the commercial fishing industry and are being rolled out from 1 October this year.

Economic Development Minister Simon Bridges and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy have announced $17.7 million in funding over the next two years for the Regional Growth Programme as part of Budget 2017.

This is further to the $50 million announced by Prime Minster Bill English in Hawkes Bay today to help the most at-risk young people in regional New Zealand into sustained employment, a key part of the Government’s plan to support the regions.