The Farmy Army is gathering its forces together again to help deliver much-needed supplies to Nepal, following April's devastating earthquake and aftershocks.
Quilts handmade in Canterbury, which will be sent to victims of the Nepal earthquake. Photo: Supplied
The farmer group, which has its origins in the Canterbury earthquakes, said it was focusing on schools and urgent shelter from the upcoming monsoon season.
North Canterbury farmer Helen Heddell said there were a lot of supplies sitting in storage waiting to go, such as bedding, food and roofing iron.
But she said it had been difficult to get a clear pathway to deliver the goods to Nepal, so the group had decided to concentrate on what was urgently needed, including tarpaulins for shelter.
"Aiming at schools and children and shelter, at this stage there will be some school supplies go. There are 40 beautiful handmade quilts that the ladies locally have done - they will go," she said.
"We'll get up and running and send two or three pallets... in by Silk Air through Kathmandu and the Global Peace Foundation will collect and distribute them and see that they get into the right hands.
"That's been the hardest thing. It's not hard to know their needs and it's not hard to have access to all sorts of wonderful things back here in New Zealand. But it is trying to address the needs and also to cut across the barriers that exist at customs over there, the regulatory details."
Ms Heddell said the Farmy Army was working with the Student Volunteer Army and the Himalayan Trust to send the aid, initially at a cost of about $10/kg.
She said it would also welcome donations towards freight costs.
