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Electricity users and particularly irrigators face a major hike next year this summer in their account’s capacity charge, with many facing the prospect of several thousand dollars extra in fee charges due to Transpower’s charges increasing in Mid Canterbury.

In an industry dominated by large companies and big brands, Canterbury-based Straight 8 Estate winery is a unique vine-to-bottle vineyard that prides itself on producing real wine at real prices.

For brothers James and Henry Pearse, Canterbury Cup and Show week is most definitely Pig Week. As the founding members of the Boar Breeders Association (BBA) they have a very busy schedule for the week, it’s also a full-on time for Augustus and Hammstein, their precious boars who are entered in the show and competing for the coveted Rammstein Memorial Trophy given to the boar judged best commercial boar across all the weight classes.

The Bethells have been synonymous with North Canterbury farming for almost as long as there have been farms in the region. It is a history that stretches back to the purchase in the 1800s of Pahua Pastures, first farmed by Hugh Bethell’s great-grandfather Marmaduke in 1899. Words by Richard Rennie

Like most farmers on the Canterbury Plains Oxford dairy farmer Andrew Mehrtens has been anxiously eyeing the implications of the region’s land and water regional plan when it comes to nitrogen limitations.

A desire to produce a premium quality product as close to nature intended remains the hallmark of Ashburton-based Crozier’s Turkeys.

At a time when sheep numbers are at an all-time low and amid continued decline in industry confidence, one man’s passion for breeding and improving bloodlines is the driving force behind a new sheep breed being trialled in the Mid Canterbury foothills.

What started out as a stepping stone has developed into a successful horticultural business for Mid Canterbury's Grant and Marilyn Smith of Smithfield Raspberries.