No to live sheep exports but it's okay to hurt the crabs?

Aaah what a strange world we live in...full of hypocrisy.

We don't like the idea of sending lambs on a comfortable ship to Saudi Arabia to be killed when they would be killed here anyway but we don't mind boiling the odd crab or lobster or two for our supper.

Think there's a difference? You might be wrong. Today's UK Daily Mail reports that latest research shows that crabs feel pain when they are boiled - surprise surprise - and would remember that pain if they escaped the pot.

The finding could have important implications for the food industry, where many chefs boil crabs, lobsters and prawns alive in the belief that they are impervious to pain.

Wonder if the Green Party think of that when they order up a crustacean delicacy alongside their barley smoothies?

Jeanette Fitzsimons departure could signal a dangerous radical change in Green Party politics

All farmers will be shuddering today at the news that Jeanette Fitzsimons is expected to stand down as the Green Party co-leader.

Fitzsimons changed the face of NZ politics in a positive way and allowed the Greens to have a moderate face - enhancing their appeal.

Her legacy is in all of us - particularly in the agricultural sector, where like it or not we have all begun to think about environmental impacts of farm practices and although I hear some of you grumbling about that, I think we owe her some gratitude.

As Jeanette and the Greens have campaigned, the world and consumers have changed. Now, more than ever, our produce has to appear to be safe, sustainable and with a regard for tomorrow's customers. When the Greens first came to power we hadn't even heard of carbon miles - now we are racing to catch up, trying desperately to win the overseas markets, and to convince the public that we, as farmers, are doing everything we can to produce a clean fresh product that will be able to be grown today, tomorrow and the next decade without damaging the land we are caretakers of.

Jeanette brought these issues to the forefront but in a dignified and patient manner. She was not extreme, but a realist in some respects, and had the interests of all New Zealanders in her grasp.

What then is the new face of the Green Party to look like?

Sue Bradford and Metiria Turei are front runners for the position - both of which are enough to put the heebie jeebies into any farmer. Bradford looks to be the favoured prospect but she is a radical (God help us if the Greens get to hold any power in future Governments). Think anti-smacking bill and you get some idea of her agenda.

Unlike Fitzsimons she appears to have little patience and a loose grasp on the reality of business and the economy.

For farmers she is everything in the Green party they are afraid of...and then some.