On 7 March 2025, Minister of Agriculture, Todd McClay, and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Patterson declared a medium-scale adverse event for the Northland, Waikato, Horizons (Manawatū-Whanganui) and Marlborough-Tasman regions as a result of ongoing hot, dry conditions and below average rainfall. This declaration is an extension of the previous classification for the Taranaki region announced on 27 February 2025.
To help affected farmers and growers we have made a “class of case” determination for the Income Equalisation Scheme to allow late deposits for the 2024 year until 30 June 2025, and allow early withdrawals if the deposit was made before:
- 27 February 2025 (for affected customers in the Taranaki region)
- 7 March 2025 (for affected customers in the Northland, Waikato, Horizons and Marlborough-Tasman regions).
We have more information about this event and the help available to farmers and growers below.
2025 March - Drought conditions across New Zealand
The discretionary relief is in addition to our available standard support.