[ad_1]
Piers Fuller / Stuff
Wairarapa farmers Sophie and Daniel Hansen have organized the Rapa Feed Run to get much-needed feed supplies to drought stricken Hawke’s Bay farmers. (Pictured with 7-month old Ella)
Wairarapa farmers know how hard their neighbors to the north are doing and they are reaching out with the one thing that will help – feed for their stock.
South Wairarapa farmers Sophie and Dan Hansen have organized the Rapa Feed Run, to get desperately-needed stockfeed up to Hawke’s Bay.
They have been overwhelmed with the response which has generated more than 10 truck-and-trailer loads of baleage in just four days.
When drought comes to the east coast it usually affects everyone from Wairarapa to northern Hawke’s Bay, but this year it was different.
READ MORE:
* As winter approaches, drought deepens in parts of the country
* Seven months with below-normal rain in Southern Hawke’s Bay
* Drought hits ‘critical point’ in parts of Hawkes Bay, as region calls for assistance
* Stress levels rise among farmers as dry weather continues
John Cowpland / Stuff
Hawke’s Bay is facing its worst drought in decades.
In a cruel hand played by the weather gods, Hawke’s Bay missed out every time the rain clouds gathered nearby.
Wairarapa got around 200 millimeters of rainfall at the end of March and another 50mm last week, while Hawke’s Bay has only had a few millimeters all year.
“That’s what saved us from being in the same predicament, and we were trying to think of ways we could help,” Sophie Hansen said.
The Rapa Feed Run started with an idea. “What if we and our neighbors all managed to put in a couple of bales.”
From there, the donation tally had grown to more than 400 bales.
The couple both have their roots in ” The Bay ” and they know how difficult it is for friends and family on farms with no feed.
SUPPLIED
Federated Farmers Hawke’s Bay President Jim Galloway said the generosity gave people faith in human nature.
“It’s just heart-breaking. There are so many stories where people are fighting to get through this situation and it’s hard to know where the end is.
“I’ve got friends who have six dams on their properties and five are bone dry in the middle of May,” Hansen said.
The feed situation was so tight across the North Island that bales were more than twice the normal cost, when you could find them.
Federated Farmers Hawke’s Bay president Jim Galloway described the feed situation as “dire” and thought it was a wonderful initiative of their southern neighbors.
“The thought that people are doing that for us is just brilliant. That will give a lot of people faith in human nature.
“They know that people are thinking about them and have really pulled together, because Wairarapa hasn’t got a heap of feed themselves.”
Hansen said it was heartening to see how much care Wairarapa farmers had for their brothers and sisters to the north.
They had expected to get a couple of truckloads of feed but the response had been “overwhelming”.
Through working with organizations such as the Rural Support Trust, Beef & Lamb, and the Rural Advisory Group they were able to triage the feed to the farms that needed it most.
Local transport companies and rural contractors were helping with the logistics of handling and cartage.
“All these different parts of the rural community are helping out.”
