Dry weather is taking its toll on Taranaki farmersKELLY HODEL / STUFF Many dairy farmers are having to go down to once a day or dry off completely due to the lack of rain. While townies are hitting the beaches and having a great time in the hot weather, farmers are finding the summer looking increasingly bleak. It's adding up to a trying time for farmers, said dairy farmer Janet Schultz, who is also the dairy chairperson for Federated Farmers Taranaki. At the recent Stratford Cattle Fair, 1100 cattle went through and "the prices just crashed" for both dairy farmers and dry stock. "The dry weather hasn't grown grass and hasn't provided surpluses to farmers to produce supplements," he said.

Source: Stuff December 15, 2017 02:48 UTC