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Jan 25, 2024 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
Leading into the 2023 elections one of the promising announcements that came from National was the intent to open negotiations with India and achieve a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) - and dairy was to be included. It was described by National as a “major strategic priority”. At the time many (myself-included) poured cold water on the plan as a broad-based FTA was thought to be unlikely to succeed. Even the Australians who had just signed a reasonably broad-based FTA failed to get dairy included.
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Jan 16, 2024 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
This year is starting much as the old one finished. Dairy on a promise of good things or better things ahead while beef and lamb and to a lesser extent venison continuing the woes that began over twelve months ago. This time last year we came out of the Christmas New Year slumber to see beef and sheep meat prices had plummeted and nothing much has changed.
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Dec 31, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
With the local front being relatively quiet at the moment, it seemed timely to have a scan at what is happening in some of our markets. We already know that demand for our meat products are 'down' (and that’s putting a positive face on it!) but what else is occurring overseas? Something out of the USA that will put a smile on to livestock growers is a legislative proposal in Arizona making it illegal to “misrepresent” a product as meat when it clearly is not.
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Dec 12, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
With the end of the year rapidly approaching it is perhaps worth having a look back and see where and how we’ve come as an industry through the last twelve months. When we cranked up in January the prices being paid by livestock processors had taken a chronic downward slide. To a degree this is normal but this season the drop was more marked than seen for some time. Lamb dropped 85c/kg between just prior to Christmas and mid-January and prime beef 40-50c/kg.
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Dec 5, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
Many of the policies of the National-led coalition leading up to the elections concerned the rolling back (again) of regulations brought in by the previous government. When it came to climate change and emissions much of the rhetoric coming from National was about the lack of the Labour Government making any progress on reducing emissions, and putting up to 20% of sheep and beef farms at risk through making agriculture liable for (some of) their emissions by 2025.
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Nov 29, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
The new government has now been appointed and confirmed and PM Christopher Luxon can, at last, get on with his plan. To date it has appeared from the outside that the two tails have been wagging the dog as the focus has been largely what both ACT and NZ First have been able to extract from the negotiations. This has given the impression, due to the lack of National’s input or perhaps output, that it is ACT’s and NZ First’s agendas that are going to drive this government.
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Nov 24, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
On the back of the poor returns being experienced by New Zealand sheep farmers in particular, much of the ‘over supply’ into reduced demand areas is being ‘blamed’ upon Australian farmers. While this is superficially correct, no blame should be placed upon the Australian farmers. They, as are New Zealand farmers are nervous (perhaps extremely in Australia) of the impending onset of the El Nino weather conditions.
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Nov 20, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
Rural News / opinion Guy Trafford says although an El Niño drought in northern and eastern areas is not yet here, there is much already here to worry livestock farmers 21st Nov 23, 2:28pm by Unless something happens to the major markets, all aspects of livestock farming look set to be going through a prolonged lean spell. Most farmers on the eastern and northern regions had girded their collective loins for a tough season with El Nino being forecasted. The good news to date is that any sign...
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Nov 7, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
As most dairy farmers will have heard Fonterra at the request of Nestlé is looking to reduce emissions intensity (i.e. amount of carbon per unit of milk produced rather that the absolute total of overall). The call to New Zealand farmers from Fonterra is to reduce on farm emissions by 30% by 2030.
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Nov 3, 2023 | 
interest.co.nz | Guy Trafford |Gareth Vaughan |David Hargreaves
A major notable date on the dairy calendar is approaching, that of Fonterra‘s AGM. To be held at the Mt Hutt Memorial Hall in Methven at 10.30am on Thursday, 9th November. In recent years they have been considerably less volatile than the previous decade when Fonterra was facing controversy on a multitude of fronts.
