12
The Sun
Friday August 7, 2015
farming Marlborough
Scott takes top marine farmer award
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The Marine Farming Association has recognised Marlborough man Scott Madsen’s contribution to their industry. The MFA awarded their Donaghys Outstanding Marine Farmer Award to Scott at the industry’s annual dinner in Nelson last Friday. Scott Madsen grew up in a marine farming family in Marlborough which operated farms in Port Underwood. He now employs 15 staff growing and harvesting 4500 tonnes of greenshell mussels at farms across the Top of the South. Pioneering work in producing crucially important greenshell mussel spat was also recognised by the Marine Farming Association, which is Blenheim based and represents Top of the South marine farmers. At its 42nd annual awards dinner it gave the Sensor Systems Research and Development Award to SPATnz, a collaboration between the marine farming industry and the Ministry of Primary Industries. SPATnz established the world’s first purpose-built greenshell mussel hatchery this year at Cawthron Institute’s Glen facility. It provides an alternative to the variables of harvesting wild spat around the coastline. The initial benefits are expected to be around $80 million a year by 2026. Other work on spat production was also recognised by the MFA Merit Award given
Hamish Oakley from Donaghys (left) with Marlborough marine farmer Scott Madsen.
to Tasman’s Andrea Strang who started as a marine biologist in 1996 with Sealord Shellfish, developing the first commercial volumes of spat reared on rafts in the Marlborough Sounds. The Port Marlborough Environmental Award went to Hika Rountree and Brian Godsiff, two long standing and respected members of the mussel farming industry for
their contribution to the MFA’s Environment Strategy in the Marlborough Sounds and Tasman/Golden Bay area. Ellie Kerrisk who started her aquaculture training on the NMIT Aquaculture course and was top student for both years and who now works at SPATnz won the Ngai Tahu Seafood Resources award for a recent industry entrant.
Dealing with stressful farming Support for farmers, particularly dairy farmers during the down turn in returns, was vital, but also farmers need to be mindful that they must be careful in alleviating potential stress says Ian Blair, Top of the South Rural Support Trust facilitator. In a report to a recent Marlborough Federated Farmers monthly meeting he said the Rural Trust was constantly recommending three strategies for farmers: 1. Get a medical check 2. Before the production season with lambing etc, starts get some real time off-farm. Budget for a week at least. 3. Ensure when talking to your financial adviser that some time off-farm is built into the budget even if it means some seasonal loss.
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Ian Blair reminded farmers the closing date for Rural Assistance Payments would be September 30 . Term of payments will be until the end of February next year. “These payments are to help rural families where there currently is no income to meet day-to-day living expenses. Application forms are available from WINZ or the Top of the South Rural Support Trust.” Ian says farmers needed to fully support each other in the tough times and season. He assured farmers all information would remain confidential to the Trust, including the anonymity of those supplying data or names. “Understandably there is some stress in the industry over dairy payout prices and weather conditions.”
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