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4 Timutimu named top dairy woman Vol 24 No 18 | May 11, 2026
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Heels drag on govt’s wool carpet drive NEWS
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Wool
HE transition to using wool in government buildings has not been as smooth as hoped for. Associate Minister for Agriculture Mark Patterson told Farmers Weekly he received feedback from some in the industry that the transition hasn’t been seamless. The government announced last year that from July 1 2025 government agencies would be expected to use woollen fibre products in the construction and refurbishment of government buildings, where practical and appropriate. “Some of the departments have not been taking it as seriously as they should have been in terms of giving wool a fair crack,” Patterson said. “We’ve been working proactively with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment [MBIE] procurement team to make sure they’re giving effect to the policy,” Patterson said. “It’s a clear wish from the government that wool be used in buildings.” Patterson said there have been some wins, such as the announcement by Kāinga Ora last year that it will transition to also using wool carpet in new social housing, and projects in the Ministry of Education.
“We’re trying to quantify whether that’s been picked up across full public service, where the gaps might be, or where the uptake mightn’t have been as we anticipated,” he said. Patterson did not say which departments are slow to adopt wool. A spokesperson from MBIE said New Zealand Government Procurement, which sits within MBIE, is responsible for supporting the implementation of the government procurement framework, but individual agencies are responsible for making their own procurement decisions within these settings. The cabinet agreed that agencies will be required to report to MBIE on an annual basis if they have chosen not to use woollen fibres, and give reasons why woollen fibres were not practical or appropriate. The first annual reporting is due from July 1 2026, the spokesperson said. Big names in the wool industry feel the transition to using wool is going as well as can be expected. Anna Crosbie, navigator at Wool Impact, said because of the commercially sensitive nature of projects, Wool Impact cannot disclose how many agencies it is working with. An education pack by Wool Impact about the uses of wool in buildings has examples of 10 Continued page 3
Singh family set sale record Waikato Holstein Friesian breeders Arjun, Anjena and Amreeta Singh have achieved a new Australasian record for the highest sale average at a single vendor sale, which was $12,330. The Singhs own and operate Lawwal Holsteins and had their Land at Lawwal Sale last month. The top price of $40,000 was for Lawwal A2P2 Miranda P-ET VG89 max (pictured). Photo: Supplied
Armchair farming on the horizon
S FOECT CU OR S
Gerhard Uys
Almost 160 years of family farm ownership and 42 years of stud cattle breeding have all but come to an end for South Otago’s Garry and Julene McCorkindale.
SHEEP & BEEF 14-17 Ex-farmers and growers adding kiwifruit to investment portfolios.
Global protein demand will keep markets bouyant, says SFF.
Carbon forestry a threat to our wellbeing, writes Alan Emerson.
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NEWS 5
OPINION 13
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