Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures projects

The project trial found that the introduced parasitoid wasp appears to be an effective biological control agent for giant willow aphid, and able to proliferate and spread up to 100km from release locations. At the earliest release sites, monitored for two subsequent years, aphid abundance decreased each year, and the proportion of aphid-free trees increased.

Tiny parasitoid wasp packs a big punch in fight against giant willow aphid – MPI media release

The project has improved understanding of this pest including likely impact, life cycle, and poplar susceptibility. It found that although spread was as expected, severity of impact was less, and resistance exists in some New Zealand poplar cultivars. This will feed into future work between Scion and Plant & Food Research to consider poplar sawfly’s impact and potential controls.

This project enabled an efficient and successful transition from the Strong Wool Action Group (SWAG) to Wool Impact, the industry service delivery body for strong wool. Wool Impact launched on 1 July 2022. Wool Impact aims to create new demand for New Zealand strong wool brands, products and services that meet sustainability driven consumer needs.

This project investigated whether daffodils could be cultivated in New Zealand for the production of Galanthamine, a compound used to treat Alzheimer’s. A variety of daffodils were grown in New Zealand conditions across 10 trial sites in various locations to enable a range of data points to be collected. Results from the trials have concluded that there is potential to produce Galanthamine in New Zealand conditions at a commercial scale.

Digital agriculture represents a significant opportunity to enhance the economic, environmental, and social outcomes of New Zealand’s food and fibre sector. This project developed a baseline of digital adoption to better understand the motivations, pressures and barriers farmers and growers face in adopting new tools. It provided actionable insights for businesses, industry groups and public agencies to develop strategies to support farmers and growers.

Agritech baseline of digital adoption in primary industries report - AgriTech New Zealand 

This project has enabled the participants to imagine what a kānuka industry could (and should) look like. It created several key resources and part of the infrastructure that the industry will need to be successful. The project recognised that kānuka is a taonga species, and that Māori must have a special relationship to, and position within, the industry because of their kaitiaki responsibilities to kānuka.

This project developed a seed certification system to protect and grow New Zealand’s $400 million seed industry. Its deployment will be a significant milestone for the industry, and will completely change the way seed certification is administered in New Zealand. The system will enable New Zealand to be a leader in online data sharing between designated authorities for certified seed around the globe. A final stage is currently being scoped before the system goes into production to ensure it meets security and privacy control standards.

This project sought to improve productivity and worker safety on farm while reducing waste and costs. It created a software dashboard and diagnostic tools which have progressed through viability testing to commercialisation. The ‘Silo-Man’, which measures grain levels, was designed in response to Worksafe’s guidance that, where possible, workers should not climb or enter silos. The ‘Vat-Man Auto’ offers refrigeration integration and temperature control, while hot water clean-in-place (CIP) systems are being further developed for next generation milk vat monitoring. This CIP control ensures compliance with regulations while not wasting energy by heating beyond the required temperature.

This project sought to attract New Zealand workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic into the dairy sector, through a marketing and communications campaign and newly developed three-week courses. The courses involved one week of online training and two weeks of practical training, delivered at sites around New Zealand. As the project progressed it became apparent the anticipated impacts of COVID-19 on employment were less than forecast. The project was reviewed and revised milestones were agreed between MPI and DairyNZ at the end of 2021. Online training was reduced and the project was re-positioned to support both dairy sector employers and potential new employees. This included initiatives such as Good Boss and the Go Dairy marketing campaign.

The project developed a long-term adaptation strategy for New Zealand’s seafood sector that seeks to reduce climate-related risks, build resilience, and capture emerging opportunities. The strategy forms a framework for coordinated and complementary action by government, iwi, businesses, civil society, and science providers. It includes impact indicators and priority actions to be implemented by key stakeholders.

Seafood sector adaptation strategy – The Aotearoa Circle

This project was the first stage of a proposed six-year partnership, which aims to define, validate and implement regenerative horticultural practices that are valued by consumers in New Zealand and overseas. The project aims to improve environmental and social performance of New Zealand kiwifruit, apples, and berries growers while maintaining high production.

This project assessed whether feeding honey back to bees will increase the quality of honey into honeycomb sections. It resulted in some interesting insights into bee behaviour, and an improved understanding of feeding bees honey. The trial ultimately showed that this approach is not economical.

This project will evaluate the potential to increase grower returns and resilience through durum wheat production. This includes identifying opportunities for New Zealand grown durum wheat in the domestic pasta market, evaluation of commercialisation options to maximise grower returns, and development of new durum wheat cultivars.

Putting a local twist on durum wheat – MPI media release

Summary report: Durum wheat flour – a flavour of the Wairarapa [PDF, 484 KB]

This project developed a minimum viable product tool to improve digitisation among primary producers in the New Zealand hemp industry. The web-based tool allows individual growers to record high-quality data for the benefit of an industry which is still in its early growth stage. Hemp growers must be licensed and act in accordance with regulations. As the tool is further developed, it will facilitate license applications and offer guidance on compliance.

This project aims to improve sheep and beef farm management for Māori landowners in Hurihārama, Whanganui region.

This project undertook work to deliver a roadmap for the strong wool industry, including identifying new commercial strong wool opportunities. It recommended an enduring business model for the sector.

This research tested a pain mitigation (analgesic) strategy for lambs undergoing castration and tail docking. The lambs were treated with Firocoxib, a long-acting non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drug used for control of pain and inflammation. Lambs treated with this drug showed less stress and pain behaviours compared to untreated lambs. No drug toxicity was observed, and it did not impede the average daily gain of lambs. Tissue residue levels of the drug need to be determined in future studies.

This project developed a set of models and business cases to inform potential iwi investment in aquaculture in the Bay of Plenty. It successfully promoted growth in the region and the aquaculture industry, and contributed to establishing processes and technologies that could be transferred to other regions and industries.

This project completed a proof of concept for a locomotion scoring system that continuously monitors animals throughout their life on a farm. This system detects lameness early and reduces the prevalence of lameness, resulting in less suffering, less cost and less culling. The next step is to bring the product to market.

The Find-A-Pest app, which enables members of the community to participate in biosecurity surveillance of biosecurity pests and environmental weeds, is now widely used by industry and regional councils. Its functionality was improved through the SFF Futures project. The project is now directed by a governance group that includes MPI, regional councils, the Department of Conservation and primary sectors. App development and an engagement coordinator is supported by ongoing funding from central and local government agencies and primary sectors to ensure that Find-A-Pest is available as an early reporting and information tool for biosecurity surveillance in New Zealand. The app can be found at Findapest.nz or downloaded from the Apple and Android app stores.