Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor has today classified the drought in the North Island, parts of the South Island and the Chathams as a large-scale adverse event, unlocking up to $2 million in Government funding to support farmers and growers from now until June next year.

"The intensity of the drought and its spread across multiple regions has affected many people and their livelihoods," O’Connor said.

The last large-scale adverse event classification for drought was in 2013.

The $2 million package includes:

• drought coordinators and additional coordinators where needed;
• a feed working group;
• expanded psychosocial support, including $90,000 for Hawke’s Bay and Wairarapa;
• animal welfare information and expertise; and
• professional advice for recovery.

"This new funding allows us to boost co-ordination efforts and activate some additional recovery measures, including for animal welfare and wider rural communities, while also ensuring there is funding to respond to future adverse events," he said.

The classification covers the entire North Island along with the top of the South Island (Tasman, Marlborough, Kaikoura), North Canterbury and the Chatham Islands.

Drought relief has been extended to cover the Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay regions with $90,000 in funding available for local Rural Support Trusts to assist primary sector communities, provide farm management advice and animal welfare support.

"Farmers and growers have shown that they are able to roll with the punches and most have been well-prepared for these types of events, but as the weeks go by without significant rain in many parts of the country, there is a cumulative impact," O'Connor said.

"It’s getting very hard for people to keep planning for, and it puts pressure on rural communities."

Despite recent rain across parts of the North Island, many rural people remain under pressure with water shortages and low feed availability, he said.

"It will take more than a few sprinklings of rain to get out of drought."

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