Network technology to optimise readiness, response and eradication of bio-security incursions in the primary sector
Project start: 1 April 2022
Project length: 3 year
MPI funding: $4,000,000
Industry funding: $6,000,000
Industry partner: OnSide Ltd
Region: Nationwide
This project will expand biosecurity readiness and response software developed by Onside Ltd. The software uses data from a range of sources to construct an intricate map of rural interactions that’s able to map potential disease pathways. It will be a faster and more efficient way of supporting biosecurity management activity.
Govt invests in cost-saving biosecurity app to protect rural sector
Advisory support for agricultural and horticultural science in schools
Project start: 11 April 2022
Project length: 5 years
MPI funding: $1,600,000
Industry funding: $400,000
Industry partner: Waikato Anglican College Trust
Region: Nationwide
This project will increase support for agriculture and horticulture science teachers in secondary schools. It will develop a support network of one full-time adviser and a support person based at St Paul’s Collegiate, and up to 16 part-time regionally based advisers. The network will provide support to teachers, create resources, and provide links to local primary industry partners.
Improving allied veterinary professional utilisation
Project start: 1 April 2022
Project length: 2 years
MPI funding: $80,000
Industry funding: $49,900
Industry partner: Massey University, Lewis Fitch Fund, Roger Morris Foundation Trust
Region: Nationwide
Allied Veterinary Professionals (AVPs) and paraprofessionals include veterinary technologists, nurses, technicians and assistants. This project will explore how AVPs and paraprofessionals are currently utilised in New Zealand veterinary practices, identify any perceived and real barriers to leveraging them appropriately, and develop resources that will help practices better use AVPs as part of the wider veterinary team.
Open Farms 2022-2024
Project start: 16 March 2022
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $90,000
Industry funding: $210,000
Industry partner: Beef + Lamb New Zealand, DairyNZ, Farmlands and Farmers Weekly
Region: Nationwide
Open Farms is a nationwide series of on-farm events designed to reconnect urban Kiwis with our land, food and farmers. The platform supports farmers to host engaging, safe events on a single 'national open farm day'. It provides a space for all New Zealanders to participate in our farming story first-hand.
Delivering sustainable benefits for the primary sector through a rural focused IoT network
Project start: 15 March 2022
Project length: 1 year
MPI funding: $120,000
Industry funding: $149,500
Industry partner: WISPA Network Limited
Region: Nationwide
This project seeks to address on-farm connectivity, which remains a significant barrier to farmers widely adopting agricultural technology solutions. The project will work through several commercial issues. It will test a collaborative delivery model for a nationwide, rural-focused LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network), and develop a business model for its rollout.
Prototyping a spatial integrated farm plan for greenhouse gas reduction
Project start: 16 February 2022
Project length: 1 year
MPI funding: $398,952
Industry funding: $205,968
Industry partner: LandPlan Trust
Region: Nationwide
The project will develop and test a free online tool for farmers to help them meet the new greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets that will come into effect in 2025. The tool will help farmers and communities apply landscape planning and farm land-use modelling to produce farm plans that tackle known GHG and other environmental issues, including water management.
From the Ground Up – building value and volume for Auckland
Project start: 26 November 2021
Project length: 2 years
MPI funding: $180,000
Industry funding: $270,000
Industry partner: Auckland Unlimited
Region: Auckland
This project will assist a collective of food and beverage businesses on their journey toward greater resilience, productivity, and outcomes, with support from global expertise and best practice specialists. It will develop three volume-to-value initiatives to help build a sustainable regional food and beverage ecosystem that focuses on the seafood and potato industries.
Digital Farm Environment Plan (dFEP)
Project start: 5 November 2021
Project length: 1 year
MPI funding: $493,500
Industry funding: $330,000
Industry partner: Trust Alliance New Zealand Inc (TANZ)
Region: Nationwide
This project aims to undertake a technical feasibility to explore and recommend ways to make digital Farm Environment Plan (dFEP) a value-added activity for farmers and growers. Proposed solutions will be based on feedback from wide stakeholder engagement. With better data interoperability and digital automation for data entry, compliance costs will be reduced. The result will achieve and promote better environmental outcomes and improve efficiency with enhanced data sovereignty.
Government media release: Digital farm environment planning to simplify admin for farmers
Preliminary evaluation of potential feed-based commercial solutions to the problem of ruminant methane emissions
Project start: 6 October 2021
Project length: 2 years
MPI funding: $998,400
Industry funding: $1,497,785
Industry partner: Methane Mitigation Ventures Ltd, CH4 Global, Lone Star Farms, ANZCO/Five Star Beef
Region: Nationwide
Mootral™, a natural plant-based feed supplement, and Asparagopsis armata, a type of seaweed that contains bromoform, have both been shown to reduce methane emissions from ruminants in research settings but have not yet been trialled in pastoral conditions. This project will evaluate the effectiveness of these two supplements, develop practical feeding systems, and assess the potential commercial viability of these bioactive products in New Zealand.
Improving the embryo development process and increasing New Zealand's supply of elite merit bulls
Project start: 1 October 2021
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $598,188
Industry funding: $1,084,182
Industry partner: Rissington Farms Limited, Kai Mana Milltrust, Synthase Biotech
Region: Nationwide
This project increases supply of elite-merit bulls for New Zealand’s dairy beef industry, providing farmers with better, cheaper tools to improve animal welfare and reduce net greenhouse gas emissions, while maintaining herd performance and boosting profitability. The project also pilots a novel, high-throughput, cattle embryo development technology, and will determine its economic viability at a commercial scale for cattle genetics companies and farmers.
Pathways to primary sector leadership: Māori women & young women
Project start: 2 September 2021
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $566,650
Industry funding: $228,000
Industry partner: Agri-Women’s Development Charitable Trust (AWDT), Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT)
Region: Nationwide
This project will deliver two leadership development programmes, Māori Women’s Leadership - Wāhine o te Whenua and 'Generation Change' for young women in tertiary study or training – Pathways to Primary Sector Careers. The programmes will empower Māori women and young women to accelerate progress and change in New Zealand’s primary sector and rural communities.
Takapau - A digital mat
Project start: 8 July 2021
Project length: 1 year
MPI funding: $230,150
Industry funding: $106,440
Industry partner: Haunui Technology Group
Region: Hawke's Bay
This project aims to enable Māori landowners to achieve greater environmental, economic, cultural, and social benefits for whānau, hapū, iwi. It will improve productivity of Māori-owned land through the deployment of a proof-of-concept agricultural technology platform. This includes developing a system that combines mātauranga Māori with environmental data and artificial intelligence to implement sustainable farming practices.
Supporting Otago South catchment groups to improve ecosystem health
Project start: 1 July 2021
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $1,804,977
Industry funding: $1,669,499
Industry partner: Otago South River Care
Region: Otago
This project will engage South Otago communities to improve ecosystem health, freshwater quality, and increase the value of food and fibre products produced in the district. The project involves community and school events, establishing farmer networks and catchment groups, implementation and demonstration of good management practices, water quality testing, the development of new innovative mitigation options, and research into consumer expectations for sustainable, high value food and fibre.
$1.8m for water quality work – Otago Daily Times
Multi-weed biocontrol
Project start: 14 June 2021
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $2,090,000
Industry funding: $1,200,000
Industry partner: Landcare Research New Zealand Limited, the National Biocontrol Collective (a consortium of regional councils, unitary authorities, and DOC)
Region: Nationwide
This project will develop simultaneous biocontrol solutions for 6 high priority weeds through a coordinated national research project with the National Biocontrol Collective. These weeds are costly to control for landowners and councils. Over time, successful biocontrol of these weeds will reduce the need to use conventional herbicides. Productivity of the land will be improved, as well as farmers' ability to comply with environmental regulations.
Media release: Nationwide project offers hope in war against weeds
Baselining primary sector digital adoption
Project start: 24 May 2021
Project length: 1 year
MPI funding: $100,000
Industry funding: $145,000
Industry partner: AgriTechNZ, Zespri, Foundation for Arable Research, Fertiliser Association of New Zealand, Dairy NZ
Region: Nationwide
AgriTechNZ is leading a project, supported by key sector partners, to benchmark digital adoption across the primary sector. The survey methodology will allow for partners to gain insights into the adoption of digital agricultural practices and to provide a benchmark to measure future uptake. The survey will identify motivations, challenges and strategies for the adoption of digital technologies in the primary sector.
Implementing a transformative business model for New Zealand Young Farmers
Project start: 14 May 2021
Project length: 3 years
MPI funding: $1,760,000
Industry funding: $711,288
Industry partner: New Zealand Young Farmers
Region: Nationwide
This project will enable New Zealand Young Farmers to better support young people in the primary sector by strengthening its core business, future-proofing the organisation, and ensuring its financial sustainability.
Investing in the future of New Zealand Young Farmers – Government media release
Branching Out – diversifying land use and adding to Taranaki’s food and fibre value chains
Project start: 26 February 2020
Project length: 2 years
MPI funding: $594,800
Industry funding: $319,000
Industry partner: Venture Taranaki
Region: Taranaki
‘Branching Out’ will explore, investigate and potentially pilot new commercial opportunities in Taranaki's food and fibres sectors. The project aims to stimulate more diverse and complementary forms of land usage within the region to boost Taranaki’s economy.
New programme to boost high-value products in Taranaki – Government media release
