TV pundit joins New Zealand team to showcase agricultural innovations

Former New Zealand Rugby player and well-known TV-pundit Brent Pope, pictured with his farm hand Kyle Moloney, age 10 from Dublin as they both line up alongside New Zealands international business development agency, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) for this years National Ploughing Championships. Picture: Robbie Reynolds

Five New Zealand companies will showcase, for the first time, the best agricultural innovation, experience and expertise that the country has to offer, including examples of world-leading animal and pasture management tools, such as somatic cell count sensors, heat detection systems and seed drills.

Visitors to the NZTE pavilion at this year’s National Ploughing Championships will have the opportunity to experience the latest in New Zealand’s agricultural technology and hear expert advice on productivity and efficiency of farm machinery and systems to inspire Irish farmers.

The New Zealand organisations exhibiting as part of the NZTE pavilion include:

* Aitchison, a company with a proud 40-year history of machinery manufacturing, will be showcasing their relaunched Seedmatic and Grassfarmer Drills;

* Duncan Ag, market leaders in the manufacturing of robust and user friendly machinery for seed drilling and forage feeding;

* Fieldays®, the largest agricultural event in the Southern Hemisphere will also be part of the exhibiting group;

* New Zealand Pump, coined as the manufacturers of the most dependable manual dispensing system for barrels and bulk containers; and,

* Saber™, LIC Automation’s newly launched brand, is a subsidiary of LIC (Livestock Improvement Corporation), a New Zealand farmer-owned co-operative which specializes in providing world-leading innovations for the dairy industry.

There will also be a host of other New Zealand companies exhibiting at the event outside the New Zealand pavilion representing the strength of New Zealand agritech innovation, including Gallagher, Metalform, Prattley Industries, TruTest, Shoof International and Waikato Milking Systems.

Daniel Taylor, New Zealand Trade Commissioner, United Kingdom and Ireland said: “NZTE is delighted to be attending the National Ploughing Championships for the first time this year, and bringing with us some innovative and leading agricultural companies.

“New Zealand has long been a market leader in development and advancements for the agritech sector and we at NZTE are excited to bring a sample of this innovation in productivity and efficiencies to Irish farmers.”

Brent Pope added: “I am excited to be working with NZTE and the fantastic New Zealand companies that they represent. Ireland and New Zealand have a strong track record of shared learnings and inspiration in the agricultural sector, and as a proud Kiwi, with a strong agricultural background, I welcome the future fostering of this relationship.

“The National Ploughing Championships is a great platform for this, and I am very much looking forward to showcasing what my homeland has to offer at this fantastic event in my adopted land.”

The NZTE pavilion will be located on Block No 1, Row 4, Stand 50 at the National Ploughing Championships from 20-22 September 2016, in Screggan, Tullamore, Co Offaly.