Northland's drought-stricken farmers can't expect any rain relief over the next two weeks as an urgent call goes out for help with grazing and supplementary feed.
This week most of Northland's west coast, from Cape Reinga to Pouto Pt, has been classified a localised drought area under government regulations for a small-scale adverse climatic event, covering an estimated 400 dairy farms and 700 sheep and beef units.
It's the third drought in four years in the area and there's little chance of any significant rain to end the drought for at least the next two weeks.
MetService meteorologist John Law said a high-pressure system was expected to bring fine weather over Northland for the next two weeks.
"That will keep things fairly dry for the next couple of weeks, which is not great if you need rainfall," Mr Law said.