NEW ZEALAND

Blizzard Termed ‘Catastrophe’ for Sheep Industry: New Zealand’s vital sheep industry is facing losses as high as $27 million following freak blizzards that hit during lambing season, burying parts of the South Island under up to six meters of snow. The Ministry of Agriculture called the storm a “catastrophe.” Both wool and sheep meats are major exports from New Zealand, earning the nation more than $540 million a year. Agriculture ministry officials estimated that about 1.5 million lambs have died in Canterbury province and said up to half a million older lambs also are at risk.