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Irrigation projects will receive a kick-start of $25 million in operating funding for five years from 2016/17 through the Irrigation Acceleration Fund (IAF), Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has announced today.

“This funding will help to complete the investigation and development of new regional scale irrigation proposals,” says Mr Guy.

“The need for more water storage projects is obvious given that nearly every part of the country has suffered through drought at some stage over the past three years.

The Government will invest $7.5 million over two years in developing key skills and systems to help boost exports across the primary sector, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy says.

This investment focuses on key initiatives that will help deliver greater economic growth, including:

A $10 million package over four years will further strengthen New Zealand’s animal welfare systems, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy says.

“New Zealand already has a strong reputation for animal welfare,” Mr Guy says.

“However, the expectations of consumers and society are constantly changing and our farming systems are continually evolving,” he says.

Biosecurity funding will be boosted by $24.9 million over four years, in addition to $2 million of capital funding, to increase our border capabilities, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy says.

“New Zealand has a world-class biosecurity system but there will always be a need for improvement. This investment will help future-proof our system to deal with the constantly changing demands of modern biosecurity,” he says.

A new border clearance levy will help the Government to protect New Zealand from imported pests, diseases, illegal drugs and contraband and bring us in line with border approaches by other countries, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy and Customs Mi

The Government has today confirmed a multi-million dollar reboot of the popular Afforestation Grant Scheme (AGS), Associate Primary Industries Minister Jo Goodhew says.

The new version of the scheme will see $22.5 million invested over the next six years to encourage the planting of an expected 15,000 hectares of new forest.