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Environment and agriculture can both benefit from trade agreement

The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTTP) trade agreement has the potential to transform the agricultural sector and at the same time benefit the environment, agribusiness expert Dr Nic Lees of Lincoln University says. However, he added, the public needed to be convinced of that. The CPTTP is the re-negotiated Trans Pacific Partnership after the USA withdrew, and is a free trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Negotiations have concluded between the countries but it is yet to be ratified by New Zealand. The TTP had met some public and political opposition. The CPTTP could change the sector from relying on low cost commodities to a focus on high value exports intimately connected to a pristine environment, Dr Lees said. “Where New Zealand producers are exporting high value branded products we see an associated increase in concern for the environment. These producers know that they need to meet consumers demand for products to be produced ethically and sustainably.” He said tariffs on New Zealand beef exports to Japan will drop from 38.5% to 9%, saving the industry $25 million. “This reduction in tariffs will give New Zealand and Australia a competitive advantage over the USA beef in the high value Japanese market. “It will encourage New Zealand beef farmers to target high value beef cuts in the Japanese market rather than export commodity hamburger beef to the USA,” Dr Lees added. Tariffs on kiwifruit exports to Japan, the largest importer of New Zealand kiwifruit, will be eliminated. Tariffs on wine exports to New Zealand’s fourth largest market Canada will also be removed. Overall the CPTPP could provide approximately $222m of tariff savings each year. However, he said, the public need to be convinced of these benefits. “There is […]

Lincoln part of Australian horticultural innovation

Lincoln University is extending its expertise offshore as part of a unique Australian programme cultivating its next horticultural industry leaders. Its Faculty of Agribusiness and Commerce is involved in teaching the Masterclass in Horticultural Business course at the University of Tasmania. Lincoln’s role is led by Professor Alison Bailey and includes collaborating with the world’s top agricultural university, despite mostly staying put in New Zealand. Professor Bailey made the trip to Australia to be part of the course’s first year in 2017 and envisages more Lincoln staff making the journey this year. “It’s an exciting development to be part of,” she said. The course is the first of its kind in Australia for the horticulture industry and is specifically designed for upcoming leaders in the industry. It is being developed in Tasmania in partnership with international leaders in horticulture – Horticulture Innovation Australia, Wageningen Academy (part of Wageningen University, ranked number one globally in Agriculture) and Lincoln University. Professor Alison Bailey said Modules which Lincoln experts contribute to include horticultural management, financial management, horticultural marketing, global trends and international business, innovation and entrepreneurship, and business development and strategy. The course is offered through flexible online delivery, with three face to face intensives, or workshops, and students are tasked with developing a strategic plan for their own company. Students go online to listen to pre-recorded mini lectures of between 8-15 minutes duration. The lectures are supported by guided reading material, online mini-quizzes, and assignments to be completed by the student usually offline and then sent in electronically The course reflects Lincoln University’s focus on collaborating with other institutions.

Riot Foods success defies doubters

In 2013 when Ryan Kamins took a brown paper bag with his home-made Paleo cereal to the local health food shop to see if it would sell, he had little idea that it was the beginning of a business that is forecast to sell over $2 million in product this year. Along with Art Green, Ryan Kamins has successfully established Riot Foods, a new generation food business, now in its 5th year. They have an unshakeable commitment to producing wholefoods that are free from harmful ingredients and making wholefoods accessible to mainstream consumers. Under the Riot Foods umbrella sits CleanPaleo, Poppy + Olive and WholeFoods Manufacturing. The flagship brand, CleanPaleo, has a range of 20 products, including breakfast blends, protein powders, biltong and bread, with more products set to launch in 2018 (most of which have been requested by their major retail partners). It’s a premium brand, characterised by products that are free from gluten, grains, dairy, preservatives and additives and is the leading Paleo brand in New Zealand. CleanPaleo is stocked Nationwide in Countdown as well as over 50 other independent stores. It is also selling to Australia, with 10 new stores coming on board every month, and Amazon U.S.A., who recently awarded CleanPaleo Manuka crunch breakfast blend their Amazon Choice award. Earlier this year Riot Foods purchased Poppy and Olive, a niche range of nut butters- which features Smooth Almond, Crunchy Almond, Cashew Almond and Chocolate Hazelnut. All the products are made using only wholefood ingredients and are high in protein and free from processed sugar and are of course gluten free, vegan and paleo approved! At purchase, the business was selling less than $2,500 per month of product. 9 months later, and after a re-brand, Poppy + Olive is now selling more than 6x that, with negotiations […]

Focus on New Zealand brands needed in face of trade uncertainty

Uncertainty over Brexit means New Zealand needs to urgently focus on developing brands and differentiating our agricultural exports. However, the recently announced TPP agreement – which is to be signed on 1 March – offers potential for enhancing our markets. Senior lecturer in Agribusiness Management, Dr Nic Lees, said New Zealand produces some of the best fruit, wine, meat, seafood and dairy products in the world but around 70 per cent reaches the consumer with no identification that is sourced from here. “Sudden changes such as Brexit remind us that relying on undifferentiated commodity exports leaves us vulnerable to sudden changes in government policies,” Dr Lees said. “When consumers demand a branded product, it is difficult for governments to shut it out of the market.” Forty-four years ago, Britain joined the European Common Market. At the time Britain took approximately 90 per cent of our butter, 75 per cent of our cheese and about 80 per cent of our lamb exports. Britain had to adopt the European “common agricultural policy” which imposed tariffs and quotas on non-European agricultural imports This meant New Zealand was effectively shut out of our largest agricultural export market. At the time, most of these products were being exported as commodities, frozen lamb carcasses and blocks of cheese. The only branded product was Anchor butter. For the next thirty years the New Zealand economy suffered as we searched for new markets and attempted to develop alternative industries. China has replaced Britain as our largest market. However, 70-80 per cent of our food exports are still sold as commodity products. “We need to develop differentiated and branded products that consumers demand,” he said. “We can learn a lesson from Anchor butter, as it is a brand that is still strong in the British market.” However, he said, […]

Dairy robotics success story attracts Australasian investors

The latest investment offering for inspection industry disruptor Invert Robotics has closed after attracting considerable interest from a number of high net worth and institutional investors from across Australia and New Zealand. Invert Robotics provides non-destructive inspection services using state of the art mobile climbing robots. Their climbing robots enable precise and accurate remote inspection of non-ferromagnetic surfaces such as stainless steel, carbon fibre, aluminium and glass. Patented robots are installed with high definition cameras and sensor technology to allow for equipment to be assessed for maintenance and for preventative analysis on a remote basis. Inspectors are fed real-time video during the inspection that allows for immediate and highly accurate analysis. The device is already being used by the major Australian and New Zealand dairy companies and co-operatives such as Fonterra, Synlait and Murray Goldburn, as well as a number of global food and beverage brands. It is also attracting interest across other sectors and throughout the food and beverage manufacturing industry in Europe and Asia such as FrieslandCampina and Heineken. The Company has also captured the attention of those working in the lucrative aviation inspection market and is poised to make a European partnership announcement soon regarding its successful development of further advanced robot technology. Invert Robotics is also looking at potential opportunities in the chemical industry, in addition to further work with energy, oil and gas companies. Following an almost million dollar crowdfunding campaign through the Sydney-based platform Equitise, a further NZ$6.4 million has now been raised from a limited sophisticated private investor round. Shareholders now include the former CEO of Macquarie Group Ltd, Allan Moss, and Inception Fiduciary Pty Ltd. These investments add to the considerable funding received from government and private venture capital sources soon after the company was founded by its now Chief Technical Officer, […]

Workforce robots on the horizon

Primary sector and manufacturing employees may find themselves with some interesting new colleagues in the next few years as researchers develop robots that can be trained to work alongside people in factories and the great outdoors. A two-year, $2m project funded by the Science for Technological Innovation National Science Challenge Board is examining how next-generation robots can work with humans in a safe and flexible manner. Researchers will focus on developing robots to work in small-scale manufacturing and unforgiving outdoor environments. Such technology could become a global specialty of New Zealand robotics businesses, with great export opportunities and long-term solutions for the country’s economic needs. The interdisciplinary research programme involves robotics experts from Lincoln Agritech and Scion, as well as researchers and PhD students from the universities of Auckland, Canterbury, Massey, Otago, Victoria and Waikato. The programme is laying the groundwork for follow-up projects over the next few years that will focus on making New Zealand a competitive country for the production and use of robots in small-scale, flexible manufacturing businesses and challenging environments such as those found in agriculture and forestry. “We will advance the science required for a new generation of industrial robotic solutions,” says Lincoln Agritech Group Manager in Precision Agriculture, Dr Armin Werner. “These robots can provide enormous benefits to the primary and manufacturing sectors. Both industries require fast adaptation to different products and markets, and constant responsiveness to changing outdoor environments. “The robots can assist with complex tasks such as pruning tree or vine crops, safely felling trees on steep slopes or assembling small batches of appliances on demand.” To develop the technology, researchers will investigate how sensors and artificial intelligence can allow robots to perceive and understand their surroundings, flexibly handle new situations through learning or training by humans or other robots, and work […]

Synlait can now make twice the amount of infant formula

Synlait Milk has opened its new Wetmix kitchen, which will enable it to simultaneously run both large-scale infant formula spray dryers. This will double the amount of infant formula powder which can be produced at the Dunsandel site, from 40,000 metric tonnes (MT) to 80,000 MT per year. “We were at the point where our current Wetmix facility was at capacity, and our consumer demand was continuing to grow. Building this new Wetmix kitchen will relieve that pressure,” says John Penno, Managing Director and CEO. Synlait has invested $37 million in the new Wetmix kitchen, which is at the core of the production process. It’s where the dry ingredients (such as dairy proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals) are mixed into the liquid milk. That mixture is then sent to the dryer, where it is dried into infant formula base powder. Mixing the dry ingredients into the liquid milk before drying ensures a superior blend quality. The project has been in planning since December 2015 and contractors began work on site in February 2017. At times there were up to 125 contractors on site per day, but the construction of the Wetmix kitchen did not disrupt the activities of other areas on site. “We’re really happy with how the build went,” says Mr Penno “it was a smooth process which was completed on time and within budget, without the need to alter our day-to-day operations.” Designed with staff in mind, some manual steps (e.g. lifting and tipping large bags of ingredients) have been reduced with the help of automation. This creates a safer environment and provides operational efficiencies. “It was really important for us to make this new facility as user-friendly as possible. We want our employees to be safe at work, and to work under the best possible conditions,” he […]

Dairy not all about milking it

A Lincoln University pilot study is backing the importance of environmental and social responsibility, as well as the bottom line, to dairy farmers. Seeing themselves as “guardians of their land” and adopting environmentally friendly ways of farming is a key component of the farmers’ personal convictions. The study, What really drives dairy production systems: economic rationale or social and environmental responsibility? surveyed owners, share milkers and managers, to format a questionnaire for much larger sample of interviews with farmers, due to take place in January. Co-author, Professor of Farm Management Alison Bailey, who teaches primary industry systems in the Bachelor of Commerce (Agriculture) degree, said all the study subjects recognised social and environmental responsibilities as key areas that have to be integrated into their objectives and decision making. However, profitability and financial performance remains the basis of their system and their first objective. “In the context of changing internal and external pressures on agriculture it is important to determine whether the dimensions of sustainability – economic, social, environmental – can be integrated successfully at the farm level. “Having this knowledge is critical if we are to more fully understand the social and environmental consequences of changes in agricultural management,” Professor Bailey said. One of the farmers’ objectives was to leave the land in a better shape than when they took it on themselves so that the next generation could also benefit from it as a productive resource. It was generally agreed amongst all respondents that, in the long term, equal importance should be given to all three areas, financial, social and environmental. Most of them also mentioned sustainability concerns as one of their main objectives, and they wanted a system that is productive in the long term, resilient and environmentally friendly. Key findings • The farmers interviewed were all reasonably […]

T & G Global re-commits to growing horticulture sector

T&G Global has announced it has signed an extended five-year sponsorship agreement with the Royal NZ Institute of Horticulture Education Trust which runs the Young Horticulturalist of the Year competition. RNZIH Members from left to right: Leigh Cornes, Elle Anderson – Chair, Elenka Nikolof, Ben Buchanan, Andrew Keaney, Cathrine Ming, Tara McLeod, Susan Tremain, Inrid Ennis and Nicola Rochester. T&G has supported the annual competition since it started in 2005, renewing annually, as a top-tier partnering sponsor but the growing need for more talent in the industry has led T&G to double its financial support through to 2022. Andrew Keaney, T&G’s executive general manager, New Zealand produce, says T&G considers competitions like the Young Horticulturalist of the Year to be incredibly important. “They’re vital for developing and recognising the next generations’ skills and knowledge to ensure that as an industry, we are collectively supporting our future leaders.” T&G’s strengthened commitment will enable a significant step-up in gear for the competition says Young Horticulturalist of the Year organiser Susan Tremain. “Securing a five-year strategic partnership from a company of T&G’s stature is a massive vote of confidence for the growing relevance of the competition, which not only sets the bar for the industry, but horticulture’s rise as potentially the economic powerhouse of New Zealand’s future. “It also sends a strong signal that the major players in our economy are committed to taking horticulture to a bigger and better future for our sector, and for the young talented Kiwis who are building that future in horticulture,” adds Susan. “The world needs food and the planet needs it to be produced sustainably – there’s a reason we are calling horticulture ‘the new black’”. Andrew Keaney continues saying the competition also supports the growing horticulture industry which is now worth $8 billion. “As an […]

Major waste-to-energy project honored for innovation

A major waste-to-energy project incorporating GWE RAPTOR anaerobic digestion technology available throughout Australasia has been honored as a Finalist in this year’s American Biogas Council Industry Awards. The Quantum Biopower organic-waste-to-energy project in Connecticut USA began producing biogas this year that will be used to generate electricity, demonstrating financial and environmental benefits achievable locally and globally by converting up to 40,000 tons of organic waste annually into environmentally harmonious green energy and dry bio fertiliser. The RAPTOR technology is one of a suite of GWE clean water/green energy technologies represented in Australasia by CST Wastewater Solutions, which already has successful GWE technology installations operating locally in the food, beverage and agribusiness industries. including meat processing and other industries with a biological waste stream. CST Wastewater Solutions Mr Michael Bambridge says the latest award for GWE anaerobic technologies shows their effectiveness and versatility for not only many more industrial uses, but also for municipal applications. The Quantum Biopower plant, serving the central Connecticut region, incorporates its GWE RAPTOR rapid anaerobic digestion system at the heart of its process that harvests mixed organic wastes for conversion into enough biogas (primarily methane) to generate 1.2 MW of electricity and up to 5.6 tons a day of dry bio fertiliser. The Finalist award to the Quantum Biopower project in October follows other major waste-to-energy awards for technologies represented by CST Wastewater Solutions, including one earlier this year for a project incorporating GWE technologies into the world’s largest integrated pineapple operation, Del Monte Philippines Inc. (DMPI), which won the Best Water and Wastewater Solutions Provider honor at the Asian Manufacturing Awards. RAPTOR technology has also won a global environmental engineering from the Institute of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), which represents more than 40,000 chemical engineers worldwide. This latest honor for Quantum Biopower is a major achievement, […]

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