“We are seeing so much legislation coming at us and I felt farmers were a bit apathetic. I felt we needed to get ahead of the game a bit,” she said. An initial $50,000 MPI grant enabled TCC to engage with local communities at the start of this year to establish 14 catchment groups around the region. “Supporting and empowering farmers to control their own destiny will result in long-term sustainability for them and their communities,” Cram added. Key industry bodies and community organisations, including Federated Farmers, Dairy NZ and local authorities, were supporting the work, too, she said. Representatives from the various groups attended the launch on Friday, along with farmers and guests including MPs Glen Bennett and Angela Roberts, South Taranaki District Mayor Phil Nixon and several councillors.