Dairy farmers and the Treasury will be looking to 2015 and beyond with some trepidation after a 52 per cent decline in wholemilk powder prices over the past 12 months.

Dairy prices mostly improved at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction, the GDT price index gaining 2.4 per cent.

A coroner is calling for greater awareness about the importance of farmers using lap-belts in tractors, after two incidents where men died after being thrown from tractors.

A Reefton man has pleaded guilty to pulling a cow to the ground by its tail and punching and kicking it.

A 75-year-old woman was airlifted to hospital after she was injured by a cow earlier today.

Fonterra has moved to shore up its supply base by forming a subsidiary that can take in more milk without suppliers having to buy shares in the co-operative.

The medium to long term outlook for NZ dairy farmers remains sound, despite yesterday's payout cut, says rural lender Rabobank.

Fonterra said it had launched a separate milk sourcing subsidiary - mymilk - to grow its market share in the South Island.

Fonterra plans to cut costs and defer some capital expenditure so that an improved dividend can at least partially offset a likely $6b decline in income for the sector.

The contrast in fortunes this week between two parts of New Zealand could not have been starker.

Parts of the country are rapidly drying out but weather experts are not mentioning the "D" word just yet

ANZ has admitted misleading conduct over interest rate swaps and up to 178 farmers will now have to decide whether to accept their share of $18.5 million from the bank.

NZ farmers are facing summer water restrictions in some regions as an El Nino weather pattern develops.

Wholemilk powder prices continued to decline while other products showed signs of improvement at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction.

Farmers have been increasing their spending on equipment as cash flows were boosted by Fonterra's record payout.

Fonterra says it had started a consultation process to gauge interest in a proposed equity partnership trust for its farmers.

A blood-borne, tick-carried parasite, which causes serious a disease in cattle, has been identified for the first time on the West Coast.

The grass-only dairy farm model has become a thing of the past for New Zealand as farmers increasingly turn to supplementary feeds to increase their production.

A sheep on an escape bid had a lucky break after it took a wrong turn and headed into the sea at Makorori.

New Zealand tractor sales are expected to match record highs this year, thanks to high milk prices and good growing conditions.

Fonterra now looks certain to drop its farmgate payout to its farmers, after prices fell in the latest overnight dairy auction.

Dressed as chickens and posing in giant cages, more than 20 protestors gathered outside the resource consent hearing of a proposed caged chicken farm in South Auckland this morning.

Prime Minister dismisses claims that the dairy industry is not playing its part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The Fonterra Shareholders' Fund should be able to raise its 2015 dividend forecast given it expects to pay farmers less for their milk.

Private dairy ingredient manufacturer Open Country Dairy has told its suppliers to expect a reduced payout in a range of $4.70 to $4.90 per kg of milksolids for 2014/5.

It's a marine ecological gem on the doorstep of our biggest city and it's not the Hauraki Gulf.

International dairy prices showed signs of stabilising at this morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction.

'Horrific" rates of nearly $50k a year on land still being grazed by livestock prompted the $37.9m sale of one of Auckland's largest land lots.

The head of Fonterra says the growing Ebola epidemic could cost the company $150 million.