Leaders of the Groundswell ginger group say they are surprised at how little senior government ministers know about the impact of their policies on rural communities.
“Some of what we told them was new, which was disturbing,” the group’s co-founder, Bryce McKenzie, said after a top-level meeting this week.
McKenzie and fellow Groundswell founder Laurie Paterson met with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor, associate Agriculture Minister Meka Whaitiri, Climate Change Minister James Shaw and associate Local Government Minister Kieran McAnulty to explain the concerns of their members.
He said they enjoyed the experience, with the scheduled 30-minute meeting lasting 70 minutes.
“It’s not every day that you get to speak to that number of ministers at one time and put forward the concerns of those people we represent.”
It follows the delivery last month of a 102,000-signature petition organised by the group calling for an end to any greenhouse gas tax on food.
The ministers were told of the impact on farmers and rural communities of carbon farming, the implementation of freshwater and climate change policies and mental health concerns.
McKenzie said the politicians were told of a young farming couple who have tried to buy five farms but have each time lost out to forestry companies.
Even worse, said McKenzie, each time the couple were strung along, told the purchase was all but done when in reality the sellers were waiting until a foreign-owned forestry company received Overseas Investment Office approval for the purchase.
McKenzie said they reiterated to the ministers the impact of this land use change on rural communities and food security, saying the Emissions Trading Scheme is influencing land prices.
“We were amazed to hear that they weren’t happy with it themselves and that they are not sure how to correct it.”
The ministers were also told that freshwater policies break the trust between farmers and the government because of the “roughshod” way they were implemented.
The Groundswell leaders told the ministers that hill country is often the best area to winter stock because of the large buffer zones, unlike flat country, which is often alongside waterways.
“We explained the basics of how we operate and I think they understood from a layman’s point of view what the issues were.”
The mental health impact from these policies, especially on young farming families, was also raised.
“They didn’t think this was the case.”
McKenzie and Paterson passed on contact details of those working in mental health to explain the problem.
McKenzie believes the government will struggle to pass He Waka Eke Noa policy by the election and is hopeful it will prompt rural sector leaders and the government to restart negotiations.
He said Shaw told him he prefers a cap-and-trade process.
The foray to Wellington followed McKenzie and Paterson hosting Climate Change Commission officials a week earlier, saying it became obvious they are target focused.
McKenzie is about to install Halter cow collars on his dairy farm, a technology he said sparked the interest of commission staff.
He told them that markets and technology such as Halter and Fonterra’s low-carbon farming agreement with Nestlé are the answer to reducing greenhouse gas emissions rather than tax.
McKenzie said he is confident the ministers listened and hopes there will be further engagement.
He has invited Shaw to visit the Pomahaka Watercare Group, of which he is a member.
