Nine To Noon for Tuesday 3 October 2023

 

09:05 Agribusiness-Government joint venture aims to cut farm emissions by 30%

A joint venture between six major agribusiness companies and the government aims to reduce farm emissions by 30 per cent by 2030. AgriZeroNZ is an investment partnership between New Zealand's leading agribusiness organisations and the government. Synlait, Rabobank, Fonterra, ANZCO, Silver Fern Farms and Ravensdown are the foundation partners, each investing tens of millions of dollars a year, matched dollar for dollar by the government.  So far,  four investments in tech and research have been made - with a focus on lowering methane. The most recent is $4.1 million into a US-based start-up aiming to reduce methane while improving cow health. To date, $165m has been committed through to 2026. Kathryn speaks with Simon Limmer - CEO of Silver Fern Farm; Grant Watson - CEO of Synlait and Chief Executive of AgriZeroNZ, Wayne McNee.

09:25 More money for Ruapehu ski fields  

Ruapehu Alpine Lifts is to get $7.35 million from the Government to get its ski field operations through to March. RAL went into voluntary administration last year on the back of a bad ski season, the impact of Covid-19 and hobbled with $45 million in debt. Of the money announced yesterday $4.3 million is for continuing operations of the two ski fields until March while the remaining $3.05 million is set aside to support the preferred bidder of the Tūroa ski field to complete that purchase, subject to a concession being granted. The latest injection brings the Government's commitment to bailing out RAL to $20 million. PwC liquidator John Fisk talks to Kathryn about the latest grant. 

09:30 Call to ban mixed-gender hospital rooms

University of Otago academics say New Zealand needs to immediately ban the practice of men and women sharing hospital rooms. In a paper out today they argue mixed hospital rooms undermine patient security and dignity. They say mixed gender rooms are happening in a major New Zealand hospital and the practice is increasing. Mixed gender rooms have been banned in the United Kingdom since 2010 and there have been attempts to prohibit the practice in some Australian states. The paper's lead author is Dr Cindy Towns.

09:45 US correspondent Ron Elving

A federal government shutdown has been narrowly avoided in the US, at President Joe Biden signed a temporary funding bill to keep agencies open. Congress rushed to approve the bipartisan deal which drops aid to Ukraine, but increases federal disaster assistance by US$16b, at President Biden's full request. It's likely to be a week of procedural wrangling and voting on complex motions as lawmakers battle to keep government open.

Ron Elving is a Senior Editor and Correspondent at NPR news' Washington Desk.

10:05 Why women put themselves last (and why they shouldn't)

Dr Cate Howell has written a new book called The Flourishing Woman, a mental health and wellbeing guide for women and it follows her previous book focusing on men's mental health. In it, she seeks to help women stop putting themselves - and their mental health - last. Key to the strategy are being in tune with ourselves and our emotions, feeling connected with others and finding a sense of purpose. Tools include meditation, journalling and regular exercise. Dr Howell is a GP, who has had more than 40 years of training and experience across the health sector.

10:35 Book review: The Girl in the Eagle's Talons by Karin Smirnoff 

Ralph McAllister reviews The Girl in the Eagle's Talons by Karin Smirnoff published by Quercus Publishing

10:45 Around the motu: Logan Savory in Southland

The October election looms as a big day for National's Penny Simmonds and Labour's Liz Craig for differing reasons. The pair contested the Invercargill seat in 2020, which Ms Simmonds won with just a 224 vote margin. Ms Craig still picked up a spot in Parliament as a list MP in 2020, although on current polling she will probably need to win the Invercargill electorate to return to Parliament. On the flipside, Penny Simmonds has surged up National's list rankings, going from 63 at the last election to 16 now.

11:05 Business with Rebecca Stevenson

Business commentator Rebecca Stevenson takes a look at what's changed in commerce and consumer affairs under the Labour government - including giving the Commerce Commission the power to conduct market studies and Section 36 of the Commerce Act, which deals with the misuse of market power. She'll also talk about why behavioural analytics are now being used by banks, including one in New Zealand, to help catch scammers - and how we use our bank's apps and websites can give away clues that we're being scammed.

Rebecca Stevenson  is a senior writer at interest.co.nz

11:20 Bookworm Tony Eyre on his passion for second-hand books

Tony Eyre is a proud bibliophile and has taken a lifetime of loving books and wrapped it into a bibliomemoir called The Book Collector. The Dunedin-based writer was also an accountant for 50 years, but his book looks back on his life and connection to various works and authors. He also shares a love of second-hand book stores, having travelled to nearly all of them in New Zealand - and a decent number of them on overseas travels. Tony is chair of the Dunedin Athenaeum Library and is a strong advocate for the city as a UNESCO City of Literature.

11:45 Sports commentator Glen Larmer

NZ Rugby has taken the famous Ranfurly Shield trophy off of Hawke’s Bay after it was broken in two during aftermatch celebrations. A photo of the damaged shield with white powder and a rolled-up banknote on top emerged this week, raising suspicions of drug use at a party where 12 rugby players were present. Though there's now a new theory over the white powder; the man responsible for repairing the trophy says it may be plaster. Sports commentator Glen Larmer has the latest.