Fed Farmers too slow on gun control
Even before they were banned, many farmers voluntarily surrendered their semi-automatics for destruction last week and the distant voice of Federated Farmers could be heard echoing that these guns are still needed on farms.
TOWN TALK: Farm practices need open debate
The first time I drove past the billboard saying Ravensdown and Ballance pollute rivers I did a double-take.
Auckland’s billboards are often standard but every now and then there’s a campaign that grabs people’s attention – last year there was a marriage proposal.
TOWN TALK: Foodie tourism begins at home
While backpacking around Europe over a decade ago I happily spent hours drifting through markets where olives were the size of plums and cured meats hung from big metal hooks above counters.
TOWN TALK: The end of plastic milk bottles
One evening as I sat scrolling through my social media feeds I joined an online petition to Fonterra to bring back glass milk bottles.
The petition was small with just over 1000 supporters and called for the dairy giant to switch to glass to reduce plastic and it got me thinking about who initiates change – consumers or businesses?
TOWN TALK: The produce perils of city living
Homegrown produce is hot property where I live in Auckland – woe to you if your avocado tree is in sight of the street.
TOWN TALK: Failure is better than lack of transparency
I've been watching the story of Happy Cow Milk Co with interest since it popped up on my Facebook feed.
TOWN TALK: I do wish they’d bring back the milkman
The other day I was reminiscing about how I used to take the empty milk bottles out to the front gate as a child, in an iconic white wire holder, to be swapped by the milkman the next morning for bottles filled to the brim with creamy milk.
TOWN TALK: Vegans are the new vegetarians
Veganism is no longer just the domain of animal rights activists and hippies but everyday people concerned about their health, animal welfare and the environment.
TOWN TALK: The rural-urban gap is shrinking
As we waited for a political coalition to determine who would lead us for the next three years I got thinking about farmers and how hard done they must be feeling about now.
TOWN TALK: The Sunday roast is a ritual of the past
You could be forgiven for thinking millennials are to blame for the demise of the Sunday roast and that smashed avocado on toast has replaced a great family tradition.