Deer farmers can now get direct support to develop or review farm plans, to meet compliance requirements and ensure strong systems for their farm management.
This page outlines opportunities available to deer farmers in 2025, under the Integrated Farm Planning project.
What is an Integrated Farm Plan?
An integrated farm plan brings together crucial areas of farming, including climate change, freshwater management, animal welfare, biosecurity, and people management. Having an all-of-farm plan approach allows farmers to consider all these factors in a unified way.
Still not sure what an integrated farm plan is?
You may already have completed part of one. Heard of NZFAP (and NZFAP Plus) or freshwater farm plans? These are good examples of farm plans, and we will be offering these and other farm plan modules throughout the programme.
How can a farm plan assist me?
Having a farm plan can help build resilience when dealing with change, improve performance, and manage risk through taking a planning approach to farm management.
It should help streamline compliance and reduce duplication by combining all farm information in one repository.
In some cases, having a farm plan can help you qualify for higher premiums for your venison.
How can DINZ help me with farm planning?
We’re aiming to fill the gaps between the resources provided by regional councils and local groups, and what you, our deer farmers, have already established on your farms.
- Workshops – We are running workshops with small groups of farmers, tailored to the group’s needs. The modules in the image on this page provide an overview of offerings, groups can select those areas most relevant to them. The workshop approach suits farmers who want to collaborate with other farmers and work alongside trusted farm professionals.
- Rapid Assessments – Have you considered getting certified under the NZ Farm Assurance Programme (NZFAP and NZFAP Plus), but aren’t sure how well placed your farm is? We are offering rapid assessments carried out by accredited consultants, who will review material and help you identify any gaps that need to be addressed for certification.
- Farm Planning Tools – Feeling overwhelmed by the variety of farm management programmes available (Farm IQ, Resolution, PDF templates from MPI, etc)? We’re developing an unbiased overview of farm planning tools to help farmers identify the format, costs, and what they offer, so you can decide what’s right for your farm.
- Compliance support - National, regional and local council compliance standards sometimes overlap or conflict, and it’s hard to find them all in one place. PerrinAg has been developing a resource (paper binder and online) to help farmers understand local compliance requirements, with workshop support to provide hands-on examples. Where a resource is already available (Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Northland, Manawatū-Whanganui, Taranaki and Auckland), DINZ can support with workshops or resource printing for your group. If your group outside of these regions is interested, get in touch to discuss options for further roll-out.
Where is the funding coming from?
Deer Industry New Zealand is a recipient of the Integrated Farm Planning Acceleration Fund from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI). This fund must be used by March 2026.
I want to know more
To register your interest, please email ifp@deernz.org. Please note if you are interested in Workshops, Rapid Assessments, Farm Planning Tools or Compliance support.
