<?xml version="1.0"?>
<rss version="2.0">
<channel>
<title><![CDATA[The Area News - News - General]]></title>
<link><![CDATA[http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/]]></link>
<description><![CDATA[The latest from The Area News]]></description>
<lastBuildDate>Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:46:01 GMT</lastBuildDate>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Bitter row taints politics of citrus]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/bitter-row-taints-politics-of-citrus/2450318.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[THE peak national citrus body has launched an extraordinary attack on Riverina Citrus, accusing it of putting self-interest ahead of its members.
The explosive claims come just days before the start of a Riverina Citrus member vote to decide whether to retain the grower-funded local group.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450318</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Rice growers upbeat about crop promise]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/rice-growers-upbeat-about-crop-promise/2450316.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[IT’S been far from a trouble-free season, but local rice growers are remaining quietly confident about the coming harvest which has the “potential to be as good as 2010”.
Despite the ducks and a cold snap in January, the summer crop is on track for a promising April harvest with many growers anticipating a 10 tonne per hectare yield.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:30:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450316</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Piccoli ‘missing in action’]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/piccoli-missing-in-action/2450312.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[MURRUMBIDGEE MP Adrian Piccoli has been forced to defend himself against accusations he has shown little support for his own community in its battle for water.
The state education minister did not speak at Griffith’s Murray-Darling Basin Authority rally in December and has rarely spoken publicly about the plan that threatens to take 2750 gigalitres of productive water from irrigation communities.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450312</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Saucy tradition preserved by Griffith families]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/saucy-tradition-preserved-by-griffith-families/2450309.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[IT’S a time-honoured Italian tradition that continues to thrive in Griffith. 
Despite a shortage of locally grown produce and bulging supermarket shelves spoiling for choice, hundreds of Griffith families will make their own tomato sauce again this year.
On Tuesday, Ralph and Vera Franco and members of their family were elbow deep in sauce.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:30:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450309</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Jail term for child porn dad]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/jail-term-for-child-porn-dad/2450296.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[A MAN who was found with nearly 600 explicit child pornography photos on his laptop computer was sentenced to 18 months’ jail in Griffith Local Court yesterday. 
Jamie Alexander Wilson, of Ararat, pleaded guilty to possessing the images, some of which featured children as young as 12 months old.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450296</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Equality is in sight for Griffith couple]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/equality-is-in-sight-for-griffith-couple/2450293.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[FOR many people, marriage is a way to demonstrate the love they share and to strengthen commitment.
For Griffith couple Richard Brewer and Justin Bennett, it’s those things and a whole lot more.
Being able to tie the knot would mean they have finally achieved equality. 
Engaged for seven years, the pair has decided to boldly push ahead with plans to wed despite the fact that same-sex marriage is not yet legal in Australia.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2450293</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Family juice business is sold to WA company]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/family-juice-business-is-sold-to-wa-company/2447259.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[THE Nugan family has sold its Hanwood juice processing business to a West Australian-based food and beverage company.
Nugan Quality Foods (NQF) was established by the local family in 1974 and had been run by Michelle Nugan for more than 25 years before being sold to Harvey Fresh Limited this week.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447259</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Blocks a costly city asset]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/blocks-a-costly-city-asset/2447207.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[GRIFFITH City Council has refused to sell four blocks of land at a “fire sale” price, despite them draining more than $100,000 from council coffers over the past decade.
At a time when every dollar counts in council’s budget, turning the properties into profit would make a big difference to its financial position.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:30:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447207</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Club to stage crisis talks]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/club-to-stage-crisis-talks/2447258.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[THE embattled Yoogali Catholic Club (YCC) will hold a crisis meeting of members next week in a bid to save itself from financial obliteration.
The club, one of the city’s most popular wedding reception venues, is walking a fiscal tightrope after it posted a $150,000 loss last year and the St George bank put a stop on its offer of credit.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447258</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Griffith salons applaud state ban on solariums]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/griffith-salons-applaud-state-ban-on-solariums/2447265.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[STATE government legislation to ban tanning beds has come too late for most of Griffith’s beauty salons – they’ve already moved on to safer tanning practices.
The state government announced on Saturday it would introduce legislation to ban commercial solariums by the end of 2014, acknowledging the link between the units and skin cancer.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:30:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447265</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Rent scam rip-off]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/rent-scam-ripoff/2447254.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[RUTHLESS landlords are earning up to $2000 a week in rent for a single home by slugging backpackers “obscene amounts” to live in overcrowded quarters, a whistleblower has claimed.
The predatory practice, widespread in the district, sees landlords prey on vulnerable harvest labour workers, many who have just arrived in the country or are working illegally.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447254</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Musical chairs for schools’ principals]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/musical-chairs-for-schools-principals/2447214.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[LOCAL school principals are playing their own version of musical chairs.
Two weeks into the new school year, students and parents will have noticed a number of new faces leading the way – many of whom have moved on from other schools in the area.]]></description>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2447214</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA['Salt dump' claim denied]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/salt-dump-claim-denied/2445183.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[THE Wilderness Society has launched a scathing attack on Murray-Darling Basin irrigators, accusing them of using South Australia as a "salt dump".

]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445183</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Fashion and fillies return to the bush]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/fashion-and-fillies-return-to-the-bush/2445182.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[THE region's most iconic "bush bash" - Carrathool Races - made a spectacular return on Saturday after a three year hiatus.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445182</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Parents split on smack debate]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/parents-split-on-smack-debate/2445181.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[LOCAL parents remain divided over whether to slap an immediate ban on smacking kids following calls by the nation's top paediatricians to make the practice illegal.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445181</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA['Cop crash' driver appeals jail term]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/cop-crash-driver-appeals-jail-term/2445179.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[A GRIFFITH man who nearly ran down a police officer has launched an appeal against the severity of his jail sentence.

]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445179</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Labor calls for Piccoli's head]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/labor-calls-for-piccolis-head/2445178.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[A STATE government bungle that saw 740 disabled students stranded on the first day of school has sparked calls for Murrumbidgee MP Adrian Piccoli to be sacked as education minister.

]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445178</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Historic walk hits home for brothers]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/historic-walk-hits-home-for-brothers/2445176.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[IT WAS a homecoming rich in symbolism and choked with emotion.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445176</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Commodity prices 'in freefall']]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/commodity-prices-in-freefall/2445172.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[AS THE region braces for the release of the future-defining Murray-Darling Basin plan, farmers are confronting a far more immediate enemy - rock-bottom commodity prices.


]]></description>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2445172</guid>
</item>
<item>
<title><![CDATA[Ruff start becomes happy tail]]></title>
<link>http://www.areanews.com.au/news/local/news/general/ruff-start-becomes-happy-tail/2442216.aspx?src=rss</link>
<description><![CDATA[FROM death row doggie to princess pooch, Zabella the shih tzu is a canine Cinderella story.
Just like Cinderella, Zabella had an unglamorous start to life, left for dead at Griffith Pound as a small puppy.
With scruffy blonde curls and a mischievous nature, council rangers feared she may never find someone to love her.]]></description>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">au.com.yourguide.articles.2442216</guid>
</item>
</channel>
</rss>

