Business

The milk of human genius

The end of the cow is near as animal-free milk is likely to decimate the traditional dairy industry within the decade, and plant-based meat is set to upend the beef market Meet Daisy, a typical Australian dairy cow. Daisy is likely to be a Holstein Friesian, whose ancestors grazed the cool lush pastures of northern Germany and the Netherlands. When she was only a day or so old, Daisy would have been separated from her mother, and raised for her first few weeks on bottled milk before being put out to graze. Sometime in her first six months, Daisy would have been “disbudded”, her developing horn buds heat-cauterised without anaesthetic or sedation, to prevent subsequent horn growth. At about two years old, Daisy will give birth to her first calf, having been artificially inseminated nine and a half months previously. Within a day, the calf, if female, will be separated to be raised like her mother as part of the dairy herd. If her calf is a male “bobby calf”, he will be surplus to requirements, with only two fates possible – either to be transported to an abattoir at about five days old, or to be fattened up for a few months then slaughtered for veal. After her calf is taken away, Daisy will continue to produce milk for about 10 months. Then after a few weeks respite she will be ready to conceive again, and the lactation–pregnancy cycle will continue. For the rest of Daisy’s life, she will be a factory on legs, turning grass into something you can put on your cereal or in your coffee. Daisy’s natural lifespan is about 20 years, but she is unlikely to live past six or seven, by which time her milk production will have declined to a point where she […]

One week left to enter iconic New Zealand art award

Entries for the 2020 Fieldays No.8 Wire National Art Award close in just over a week at 1pm on Friday 13 March.There is nearly $10,000 in prize money in total, with a $7,000 first prize up for grabs. The annual award, hosted by Waikato Museum, partnered by Farmlands, and supported by the New Zealand National Fieldays Society, challenges artists to create artworks made from agricultural products, predominantly the use of No.8 wire.Judge for the 2020 award, award-winning New Zealand sculptor James Wright, says he is looking forward to seeing the artworks being entered. “This award embodies New Zealand’s rural heritage and culture. As a nation we pride ourselves on our No.8 wire mentality. This is an opportunity like no other for New Zealand artists to demonstrate this sense of Kiwi ingenuity and create something magical out of this everyday fencing material.”The Fieldays No.8 Wire National Art Award culminates in a month-long exhibition from Friday 24 April to Monday 25 May at Hamilton’s ArtsPost, part of Waikato Museum’s operation. To enter the 2020 Fieldays No.8 Wire National Art Award, go to www.waikatomuseum.co.nz/no8wire.

Global food industry deals total $665.89m in January 2020

Total food industry deals for January 2020 worth $665.89m were announced globally, according to GlobalData’s deals database. The value marked a decrease of 88.1% over the previous month and a drop of 76.4% when compared with the last 12-month average of $2.82bn. In terms of number of deals, the sector saw a drop of 17.9% over the last 12-month average with 55 deals against the average of 67 deals. In value terms, North America led the activity with deals worth $424.07m. Food industry deals in January 2020: Top deals The top five food deals accounted for 88.4% of the overall value during January 2020. The combined value of the top five food deals stood at $588.66m, against the overall value of $665.89m recorded for the month. The top five food industry deals of January 2020 tracked by GlobalData were: Green Monday, Qatar Investment Authority and Temasek Holdings (HK)’s $225m venture financing of Califia Farms The $161m venture financing of Memphis Meats by Bill Gates, Cargill, CPT Capital, Fifty Years Fund, Finistere Ventures, Future Ventures, Kimbal Musk, Norwest Venture Partners, Richard Branson, SoftBank Group, Temasek Holdings (Private), Threshold Ventures. and Tyson Foods SEA Diner Holdings’ $130m acquisition of Del Monte Philippines The $40.66m acquisition of Shanghai Ground Food Tech by China Mengniu Dairy 301,(US), Almanac Investments, CPT Capital, Greenleaf Foods, New Crop Capital, Rocana Venture Partners and Stray Dog Capital’s venture financing of SeaCo Foods International for $32m.

UBCO unveils game-changing FRX1 trail bike

Kiwi Utility Electric Vehicle (UEV) company, UBCO, has unveiled the innovative new Electric Trail Bike (FRX1). It has also launched a public capital raise of up to NZ$2m to drive further growth in product, inventory and market development, via online investment platform Snowball Effect. Pairing the power of a motocross bike with the agility of a mountain bike, the FRX1 is a high-performance, light-weight trail bike designed specifically for off-road riding – and brings UBCO closer to delivering its complete product platform. UBCO co-founder and CEO Timothy Allan says, “The FRX1 Trail Bike adds to the existing 2×2 Utility Bike and the incoming KXH portable Power Supply. Our goal is to deliver the world’s first full Off Road Electric Vehicle Platform.” Founded in 2015, the Tauranga-based company is developing a complete product platform, combining a range of two and four wheel electric vehicles, with three enabling products and services: Portable Power, Accessories and Subscription Software (SaaS). UBCO first experienced success in 2016 with the launch of the world’s first electric-powered two-wheel drive motorcycle, designed for off-road use in farming, followed by tourism, conservation and a range of other applications. It later released an upgraded dual-purpose model in response to demand for a road legal version, which expanded its use into recreational and urban environments. The unique design, functionality, safety and sustainability of its innovative products helped fuel UBCO’s successful entrance to the Australian, US and European individual and commercial fleet markets – including Agriculture, Tourism, Conservation, Food Delivery and Postal Delivery, among others. Having sold over 1,000 units since launch, and now working with over 120 dealers globally, export sales currently account for 70 percent of Global Revenue – with US sales achieving 50 percent of this. The company is forecasting a jump revenue of NZ$12.1m in FY20-21 with the […]

Setting the sustainability standard high

The New Zealand National Fieldays Society is committed to achieving its long-term sustainability goals through environmentally responsible business. “Environmental concerns are increasingly at the forefront of our visitors’ and exhibitors’ minds. Across all sectors of our organisation, from events to everyday practices, the Society aims to be a leader through sustainable practices,” says CEO Peter Nation. Fieldays 2019 saw the highest landfill diversion rate in the history of the event with 41 percent of waste diverted, or 10,285 fewer kilograms sent to landfill. The total waste fell 16 percent from 2018 and landfill waste by 19 percent. The target for composting was achieved, with 1,500 kilograms sent for composting. Fieldays continues to implement the Event Sustainability Management System ISO 20121 to ensure the event is delivered in accordance with this internationally recognised ISO standard. “This process continually challenges us to improve our event planning, processes and delivery whilst addressing major impact areas such as environmental management and carbon emission generation from the event,” says Nation. For the last eight years the Society has partnered with Instep, who have supported the design and implementation of the Fieldays sustainability programme and report. Instep director Peter Birkett believes it is these initiatives, along with actions to minimise energy consumption and specific waste management programmes, that positions Fieldays as a well-recognised leader in best practice and sustainability leadership. “As the largest agricultural event in the Southern Hemisphere, it is crucial the event is delivered in a way that supports industry and exhibitors to satisfy the market-place demand for product and technology transparency. Products and services are increasingly scrutinised in real-time by an environmentally driven global market. “Excellent support from all areas of food vendors, exhibitors and general stakeholders allows the short-term target of moving away from traditional problematic packaging and plastic material to gain […]

Lessons in mass production

Socrates and his student, Plato, are a perfect example of how good leaders are shaped by observant students. Here, Darcy Simonis, industry network leader for food and beverage at ABB, explains what can be learned from global manufacturing leaders such as China. China, a leader in mass production, has firm plans to build upon its proud history by investing in the robotics and automation industry. However, because labor is plentiful, mass production is not always automated in China at present. Because China’s working-age population is falling significantly, labor costs are increasing by 15-20 per cent year on year, compared to only 1.6 per cent in the US. This opens opportunities for automation across all economies. In 2014, the International Federation of Robotics announced that China was buying more robots than any other country each year, partly due to government funds as part of China’s five-year plan to develop intelligent manufacturing. This trend has continued, in 2015 China bought more robots than every European country combined. Generally speaking, Chinese manufacturers are choosing to buy robots from the same global suppliers as other countries, including ABB, despite there being a number of small Chinese robot manufacturers. “This trend is driven by the Chinese Government´s 2025 initiative to support automation. The country aims to become a leader in automation globally,” explained Joe Gemma, President of the International Federation of Robotics, in February 2017. Given the clear manufacturing focus in several governments’ foreign policies, including UK and US policy, it’s clear that the progress China is making in automating mass production is something that many countries aspire to. But there is also a clear reciprocal relationship, just as there is with Plato and Socrates, which is allowing countries around the globe to benefit from technological advances. History Mass production became possible because technology and […]

Agricultural nanotechnology project wins million dollar research grant

Applying nanotechnology to agriculture to increase productivity and reduce environmental impacts has secured a Lincoln University team a million dollar grant from MBIE’s Endeavour Fund. Lincoln University Associate Professor, Craig Bunt, said his team would develop a groundbreaking nano-coating which could be applied to fertiliser to control its rate of release into soil, and to seeds to control their timing of germination. “Controlling fertiliser rate of release is important because release that is too rapid can result in excessive nitrogen being lost into soil and waterways, causing significant pollution and other negative environmental impacts. “When nitrogen is lost to the soil, waterways, or atmosphere, farmers must apply more fertiliser to achieve desired results, which increases farming costs.” He said they would initially focus on understanding the science of the new polyester nano-coating and its biodegradation, then apply the technology for controlled release fertilisers and delayed seed germination in partnership with companies and organisations such as Ravensdown and the Foundation for Arable Research. He added that while controlled-release fertilisers are currently available, they have significant limitations, including lack of robustness (reducing their effectiveness) and a high coating-to-fertiliser ratio. “Our technology, using a novel, revolutionary coating, will solve these limitations.” He said it could also be applied to seeds to control the timing of germination. “The benefits of delayed germination are manifold. For example, farmers could sow crops traditionally sown in autumn several months earlier, when weather conditions are more conducive to sowing. “They could also sow two crops at once: one with uncoated seeds, and the other with coated seeds, to delay germination until after the first crop has matured or been harvested. “Delayed germination could also allow farmers to control weeds that grow after sowing, so that the coated seeds germinate after weeds have been sprayed. This will increase crop […]

Wetlands-kidneys-of-the-land-NZF-Website

Dairy farmers’ wetlands work takes to the skies

No one can say that the owners of a dairy farm near Wairarapa Moana can’t see the wood for the trees. After being knee-deep at ground level over the past few years constructing their large-scale wetland project, they are now taking a bird’s eye view using a drone. The drone is helping to map the wetland area, measure the biomass accumulation to better understand carbon sequestering opportunity, and allow the farmers to clearly see which of the many thousands of different native species they have planted is thriving. One of the six shareholders at Kaiwaiwai Dairies, Aidan Bichan, says planting and maintaining wetland areas is a constant learning curve for anyone, including dairy farmers. “Not all species are created equally resilient – and nor is the soil type, land contours and even the water flow the same on any given farmland,” he says. “Using the drone gives us footage that allows us to readily see what species are doing well, but also see where there’s a problem, such as areas being affected by invasive species like blackberry.” But there have also been other learnings for Mr Bichan and his fellow owners. “For example, we planted the wrong species in the wetland water channel. We planted club rush there a couple of years ago and it grew so well it clogged the channel. We recently brought in a digger to rip out the rush and we’ve now replanted that area with raupo.” The drone filming at the farm has been taking place this week in the lead up to World Wetlands Day on Sunday (February 2), celebrated each year around the globe to draw attention to the importance of looking after wetland areas, both on farms and other locales. DairyNZ’s environment manager Aslan Wright-Stow says a wetland is an area of […]

Alliance Group acquires stake in India partner

Alliance Group has acquired a stake in its India partner QualityNZ as it looks to capture more value from the world’s second most populous nation. The 100 per cent farmer-owned co-operative has purchased 10.4 per cent of QualityNZ, which supplies New Zealand’s products such as red meat, seafood and wine to India. QualityNZ’s other shareholders include New Zealand cricketing legends Sir Richard Hadlee, Stephen Fleming, Daniel Vettori and Brendon McCullum. “This investment in QualityNZ is consistent with the co-operative’s strategy of moving up the value chain and having an in-market presence in key regions,” said Alliance Group chief executive David Surveyor. “India’s fast-growing middle and upper classes have a real appetite for New Zealand lamb and value the Pure South story of grass-fed red meat produced naturally. “We are targeting the higher socio-economic category, which is represented by more than 200 million people. It is estimated this number is expected to grow strongly within the next decade and India is forecast to soon exceed China’s GDP.” The investment in QualityNZ will ensure Alliance Group is closer to its customers and can better understand their needs and expectations, said Mr Surveyor. “This will provide us with deeper connections to this important market and lift Alliance’s visibility and engagement across all steps of the supply chain. “It will also enable Alliance to effectively get in on the ‘ground floor’ of a country which one day will be the next China. For us, this is an investment for the long-term. As a co-operative, we can take an inter-generational view of investments for the benefit of our farmers. “We are looking forward to bringing our capabilities in sales and marketing and food processing to support the growth of QualityNZ. “Alliance’s world-class reputation for producing the highest quality red meat, combined with QualityNZ’s expertise and […]

Flooding impact severe for 100-plus Southland-South Otago dairy farms

With swollen rivers still rising in some areas, DairyNZ reports that more than 100 dairy farms in Southland and South Otago are being severely impacted by the extensive flooding in the region. While the scale of damage is unknown at this time, DairyNZ’s South Island manager, Tony Finch, says these farms are either under water or cut off with access roads flooded. “We’re in phone contact with many of the farmers. It’s a dire situation for many right now. Their key focus is to get their people and their animals to safety,” he says. “Farmers and their teams are moving their cows to higher ground where they can, and we know of some who have been able to relocate their herd to their neighbour’s farm out of the danger zone.” While flooding ravages Southland-South Otago, dairy farmers in other parts of the country, in particular Northland, are facing drought conditions. Dairy farms in the Southland-South Otago Oreti, Aparima and Clutha river catchments are the most severely impacted with the flooding and many areas are now also without power. With access to the farms cut off, dairy companies are not able to get tankers in to collect milk, which means many farmers will need to dispose of the uncollected milk. “Added to this, the flooding has impacted effluent management systems on many of the farms so farmers now also face the challenge of how to dispose of this in the best way,” says Mr Finch. Farmers in the affected regions are working together to accommodate animals on any dry land there is. “We’re also talking with farmers where the milk tankers can reach them, and many are sharing their milking sheds with neighbours who’re flooded.” As well as farmers helping each other, Mr Finch says impacted farmers can contact DairyNZ for […]

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