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SocietyOctober 28, 2016

The Figure-Friday quiz: get your hands dirty with some farming figures

Staff writers

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They’re some of our biggest industries but how much do you really know about New Zealand growers and farmers? Test your knowledge below.

Having trouble viewing the quiz? Take it here.

Jordan Hamel, poet of the moment (Photo: Supplied; Design: Archi Banal)

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending 20 May

Jordan Hamel joins the phalanx of New Zealand poets who've topped these esteemed charts.

By The Spinoff Review of Books

Tin Shui Wai (Photo: K. Y. Cheng/South China Morning Post via Getty Images)

The Friday Poem: we miss, by Vaughan Rapatahana

kei te mate o mātou i roto | namamatay kami sa loob | 我們已死心

By Vaughan Rapatahana

Tana Umaga: Good listener, good talker (Photo: Getty Images; additional design: Archi Banal)

Tana Umaga knows how to listen

The All Blacks legend carries the Sāmoan title Fa’alogo, meaning 'to listen' – something he does expertly on his podcast Teem Talks.

By Arizona Leger

Contributing writer

(Illustrations: Ruby Santos-Jackson; Design: Archi Banal)

The day the Queen came to Birkenhead KFC

(Not based on a true story.)

By Annabel June Barlow and Ruby Santos-Jackson

The Ex Best Thing (Photo: TVNZ; additional design: Archi Banal)

TVNZ’s new dating show has the ex-factor

On The Ex Best Thing, ex-partners choose each other new lovers. What could possibly go wrong?

A budget for a secure furture featuring a few lollies (Photo: RNZ/Angus Dreaver)

Key reads on the biggest budget ever

The biggest budget ever was called many things. It delivered well-signaled funding for health and a package squarely aimed at middle-income earners.

By Anna Rawhiti-Connell

Bulletin editor

Image: Tina Tiller

When Labour turns on the money hose, who gets drenched?

After 2021's budget opened the spending floodgates, this year's version couldn't help feeling like a damp squib.

By Danyl Mclauchlan

Contributing writer

GoSee CEO Darren Linton on how travel has changed (Image: Supplied; additional design: Tina Tiller)

How Covid has changed international travel

The borders are reopening soon, but will that mean a return to normal for tourism?

By Darren Linton

Image: Tina Tiller

Short-term pain, long-term gain – but the budget can’t fix a deteriorating economy

There was little in the way of game-changing policy, but few were expecting it.

By Reweti Kohere

Mad Chapman, Editor

Aotearoa continues to adapt to a new reality and The Spinoff is right there, sorting fact from fiction to bring you the latest updates and biggest stories. Help us continue this coverage, and so much more, by supporting The Spinoff Members.Madeleine Chapman, EditorJoin Members

Society

(Image: Bianca Cross)

Why has the ‘gay blood ban’ still not been lifted in New Zealand?

Does the risk of HIV still justify the effective ban on donations from sexually active gay men?

By Tony Sriamporn

Getty Images / Tina Tiller

Who’s your daddy: The rise of sugar dating

'Sugar dating can be amazing and glamorous and sexy, and feel naughty and exciting – but know your rights.'

By Fiona Fraser

Don’t just drive through (Photo: Tina Tiller)

Hear me out: Levin is the best town in New Zealand

It's more than just a pitstop.

By Stewart Sowman-Lund

Live updates editor

The Sunday Essay: My favourite girl

The Sunday Essay: My favourite girl

Falling in love with a man who has a young daughter is like falling in love twice. But it doesn’t make me a parent.

By Jazial Crossley

Image: Getty Images / Tina Tiller

Remembering March 15 during the month of Ramadan

'Last night, during prayer at my masjid, I was startled by a man’s loud voice. My stomach dropped and fear spread through my body.'

By Zeba Bahadur