Regenerative farming practices are Robbie Hill's vision for his family's sheep, beef and deer farm in Hawke's Bay.

Farmers may rightly feel under siege in recent months, from the weather as much as from media coverage about the environmental impacts of farming, the rise of alternative proteins, and the tough toll the job can have on mental health.

But looking through the weather's challenges and negative headlines, the farming sector has a highly positive story to tell as the farming year approaches its seasonal end.

Without exception every part of New Zealand's farming sector has enjoyed a positive profitable year in terms of returns, delivering record incomes to provinces from Kaitaia to Bluff.

LISTEN: Tucked away at the furthest end of a remote private road in central South Island, New Zealand lies one of the world's biggest deer farms. Around 6000 stags, hinds and fawns range over some of Haldon Station's 22,000 hectares of high land, alongside huge flocks of Merino sheep and British breeds of cattle.

Landcorp is milking 80 red deer to make milk powder for high end New Zealand restaurants and skin creams and other cosmetics for Asian markets.

The government's farming company completed its second season of milking last month. and is due to start milking hinds again when they drop their fawns in November.

Innovation general manager Rob Ford said the hinds were in-fawn at the moment and were not being milked. "The season usually goes from November until February or mid March, the deer are milked twice a day, and the fawns are hand raised."

He said Landcorp was conscious of environmental concerns about cows and was looking at alternative land uses for its farms.

Venison prices are expected to continue their record-breaking run as high demand continues from key markets in Europe and North America.

The venison price schedule traditionally peaked in spring while demand from European markets was at its highest before easing off in November. Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) passion to profit manager Innes Moffatt said the schedule had surprised everyone by lifting post-Christmas.

New Zealand's TB free programme is reducing testing requirements for cattle and deer herds in a few areas of the North Island. The changes became effective from March 1.

OSPRI's TBfree programme divides the country into a number of disease control areas.

Each has different TB testing requirements and control measures depending on the level of risk of TB being transferred from infected wildlife (mainly possums) to cattle and deer. Intense TB testing, movement control and both ground and aerial pest control are used to stop the spread of TB.

New research from Lincoln University shows poor relationships between farmers and their meat processors could be costing New Zealand.

Dr Nic Lees, a senior lecturer at Lincoln University, said improving those relationships was essential to New Zealand producing higher value products that meet consumer needs.

He surveyed over 1000 sheep, beef and deer farmers. These three industries together make up 12% of New Zealand’s exports and currently contribute $5 billion a year to the New Zealand economy.

Silver Fern Farms has achieved a pass-mark profit turnaround but the business remains a work in progress, chairman Rob Hewett says.

“We’re not resting on our laurels, there’s still more to do,” he said after reporting an after-tax profit of $15.4 million for the Silver Fern Farms Ltd operating business in the year ended December 31, recovering from the tough trading conditions of a year earlier.

Venison prices are holding at their record levels, apparently some of the premiums being achieved are due to demand from US pet owners...