News Ticker

Industry invests in farming women

From left: UYFB facilitiator Justine Kidd, AWDT executive director Lindy Nelson and facilitator Sam Orsborn at one of the UYFB pilot programmes held in 2014. A programme to improve on-farm performance and profitability of sheep and beef farmers by developing the business skills of farming women is being funded by the Red Meat Profit Partnership (RMPP). Funding from RMPP will see up to 160 sheep and beef farming women throughout New Zealand complete the Agri-Women’s Development Trust’s (AWDT) Understanding Your Farming Business (UYFB) programme during 2015. Successfully piloted last year with 90 women by the AWDT, in partnership with Beef + Lamb New Zealand, the programme equips farming women with the business knowledge, skills and confidence to better engage as critical farming partners. The Red Meat Profit Partnership (RMPP) is a unique collaboration between nine industry partners and the Government who are coordinating efforts to increase profitability and productivity in the red meat sector. All investment is centred behind the farm gate, aligning with the recommendations in the Red Meat Sector Strategy. The UYFB programme is one of the first RMPP-funded activities to roll out to farmers. “We welcome this investment in women who make up 50 percent of our sector but who have usually gained their skills through default rather than design,” AWDT executive director Lindy Nelson said. “The RMPP support enables us to extend our targeted development to women in farming partnerships while creating change agents to help achieve the Government’s goal of doubling agricultural sector exports by 2025.” RMPP General Manager, Duncan McKinnon said the AWDT programme fitted extremely well with the aims of the RMPP. “We’ve done some very comprehensive research into the characteristics of high performing farmers and a common factor is the family farming partnership. Those businesses where the husband and wife and wider […]

No slowing in demand to buy Canterbury farms

Local and international interest in the New Zealand rural real estate market remains extremely strong, defying suggestions demand could soften in the face of the lower Fonterra payout to farmers. Shane O’Brien, national director of Colliers Rural & Agribusiness division, said buyers were taking the medium to long-term view of the dairy industry and were still keenly contesting quality land. “We’re still getting strong enquiry both from local buyers wanting to expand their land holdings as well as from international funds and private investors.” He said international funds wanted to invest in New Zealand farming as part of the global trend to secure food production for emerging Asian economies. “New Zealand has an excellent international reputation for food production, we have world class infrastructure to support on-going investment and we’re close to the burgeoning markets of Asia and India. After Denmark, we’re considered one of the safest economies in the world in which to conduct business.” Colliers Rural & Agribusiness had recently negotiated three substantial off market sales in Canterbury to local buyers. While the deals were confidential, O’Brien said prices were equal to levels achieved over the past two years, reflecting continued confidence in the dairy industry. Buyers were increasingly sophisticated in their requirements, seeking reliable and good quality irrigation along with detailed information on nutrient management status of any given property. O’Brien said Australia’s Free Trade Agreement with China, coupled with its strong government support for investment in the dairy industry in both land and infrastructure, had yet to impact on the New Zealand rural real estate market. “Australia is looking for around $10 billion worth of external investment in their dairy industry and has government support to enable this – they don’t have the same Overseas Investment Office regulations that New Zealand has and their new Free […]

Half year performance better than expected for farmer co-op

LIC has recorded a solid performance in the first half of the financial year. In the six months to 30 November 2014, the co-op achieved revenue of $159 million, 17.7% higher than the same period last year. Chairman Murray King said the half year result was better than expected, and driven by farmers choosing to continue to invest in solutions which improve their productivity and prosperity. “As their co-operative, we provide farmers with solutions that will add value on-farm and deliver a return on their investment. “While we do see a reduced spend in lower payout years, we find that farmers are willing to continue to invest in the solutions that will deliver a high return for their business.” King says the co-op experienced particularly high demand for its short gestation genetics. DNA parentage testing and information and automation technology systems also remain popular. A lower year on year net profit after tax result is forecast, as part of the expected impact of milk payout and the co-op’s ongoing investment into technology and infrastructure worth more than $20 million. The co-op has reviewed where it can reduce discretionary costs without impacting service to farmers, King said. As part of its growth strategy, the co-op has announced a number of new developments this financial year, including a joint venture in Brazil, partnerships with Figured and SCR, and the merger of subsidiary business DAL and Protrack. Summary, Half Year Result LIC revenue and other income for the six months to 30 November 2014 was $159 million, 17.7% ahead of the $135.2 million achieved during the same period in 2013. Net profit after tax for the half year was $29.7 million, up $2.7 million from the previous year reflecting the strong first half revenues across most product categories. LIC’s business, particularly artificial breeding […]

LIC forms strategic partnership with SCR world-leading cow intelligence provider

Farmer-owned co-operative LIC (NZX:LIC) has secured a new strategic partnership with the world-leading cow monitoring and milking intelligence solutions company, SCR. The partnership includes a distribution agreement whereby SCR, recently acquired by Allflex Group, will distribute the co-op’s DAL milking sensors internationally and LIC will become a New Zealand distributor for SCR’s cow reproduction and health monitoring system, Heatime®. LIC chief executive Wayne McNee says the partnership is part of the co-op’s strategy to grow the business overseas and provide New Zealand dairy farmers with more choice. “SCR is a world-leading provider of cow intelligence systems with a strong history of delivering solutions to improve farm efficiency worldwide. This agreement aligns with our vision to improve the prosperity and productivity of our farmers, and our focus on key international markets that will add value for shareholders in New Zealand. “DAL sensors are highly regarded here in New Zealand for their unique ability to measure a range of factors (milk volume, fat, protein, lactose, and somatic cell counts) while a cow is being milked. This partnership confirms the global demand for the value the sensors deliver on-farm, and ability to meet the needs of farmers worldwide. “The SCR Heatime system will be a valuable addition to our range of herd improvement and animal management solutions here in New Zealand,” McNee said. LIC and SCR have identified four initial markets for distribution of the DAL meters, with the potential to add more in the future. SCR’s Heatime will be available to all New Zealand dairy farmers from LIC, with its Protrack™ farm automation systems. Heatime collects and analyses critical data points, from activity to rumination, on every individual cow, delivering the heat, health and nutrition insight to improve accuracy and drive overall farm efficiency. Shane McManaway, general manager Allflex Australasia said it […]

Food Security Governance: Empowering Communities, Regulating Corporations

By Nora McKeon This book fills a gap in the literature by setting food security in the context of evolving global food governance. Today’s food system generates hunger alongside of food waste, burgeoning health problems, massive greenhouse gas emissions. Applying food system analysis to review how the international community has addressed food issues since WWII, this book proceeds to explain how actors link up in corporate global food chains and in the local food systems that feed most of the world’s population. It unpacks relevant paradigms – from productivism to food sovereignty – and highlights the significance of adopting a rights-based approach to solving food problems. The author describes how communities around the world are protecting their access to resources and building better ways of producing and accessing food, and discusses the reformed Committee on World Food Security, a uniquely inclusive global policy forum, and how it could be supportive of efforts from the base. The book concludes by identifying terrains on which work is needed to adapt the practice of the democratic public sphere and accountable governance to a global dimension and extend its authority to the world of markets and corporations. This book will be of interest to students of food security, global governance, development studies and critical security studies in general.

Industry partnerships behind move for new agribusiness

The agribusiness education partnership is crucial for the future of the industry. Success in creating a large-scale public-private partnership with the New Zealand primary industries is likely to see a new agribusiness secondary school subject created. The brainchild of St Paul’s Collegiate School in Hamilton, agribusiness in secondary schools is being lauded as an obvious gap that once filled could have massive economic and employment benefits for New Zealand. The new secondary school agribusiness programme was launched in November by the Minister for Primary Industries, Nathan Guy. The programme has been made possible thanks to a public-private partnership. Led by St Paul’s Collegiate School, Dairy NZ and Beef + Lamb. St Paul’s has had 48 students trial a pilot curriculum this year with another 85 signed up for next year. In addition there are now seven other schools formally involved in the project and will offering the new subject in 2016. These are: Southland Boys (Southland); Southland Girls (Southland); John McGlashan College (Otago); Christchurch Boys (Christchurch); Feilding High School (Manawatu); Lindisfarne College (Hawkes Bay) and Mt Albert Grammar School (Auckland). Following the pilot, and the Ministry of Education approval, it is hoped to offer Year 12 and 13 students at participating schools an NCEA qualification in agribusiness. The agriculture industry employs an estimated 11.4% of New Zealand’s workforce while the number of university graduates in agriculture related fields has been dropping in recent years. The curriculum development has been possible through a $2 million dollar partnership investment with principal support from DairyNZ and Beef + Lamb New Zealand. Other business partners include: BNZ, LIC, Zoetis, AGMARDT, NZ National Fieldays Society,Greenlea Premier Meats, Waikato Milking Systems, Waitomo Petroleum and Campbell Tyson. Strategy and Investment Leader for People and Business at DairyNZ, Mark Paine, says the agribusiness education partnership is crucial for […]

Farm Open Day showcases the dairy industry

Lincoln University Dairy Farm (LUDF) opened its gates on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 November to more than 900 visitors, showcasing the operations of a commercial dairy farm and giving the public an opportunity to learn about the transformation of sunshine into food. Friday was a schools only day which saw approximately 350 Year 9 and 10 students from nine secondary schools arrive in a range of vans and buses (including an old double decker bus) to be immediately taken on a guided tour of the science and business of dairy farming. School finishing times meant there was a quick view of milking at 2.30pm before departing, but not before the effects of a hot nor’wester were alleviated by a round of ice-creams. Although Saturday’s general public day was met with more moderate weather, there was still a steady supply of free dairy products on hand for sampling; such as a range of cheeses, yoghurt and more ice-cream. Visitors were given an overview of the multifaceted world of modern dairy farming; such as photosynthesis, soil types, irrigation, pastures, cows, milking, and the important aspect of collecting and processing milk for export to international markets. “The purpose of the open days are to connect visitors with the transformation of ‘sunshine into food’ and answer their questions regarding the science and technology of producing milk on farm,” says Ron Pellow, Executive Director of SIDDC. “We started the LUDF Farm Open Day last year and added a specific event for secondary schools this year. Visitors often want to view cows being milked, so we’re pleased our proximity to Christchurch enables us to give this opportunity on an annual basis. At the same time we can enhance their connection to where and how our food is produced,” he says. Overall the organisers were pleased […]

Fonterra affirms 2015 milk price payout of $5.30/kgMS

Fonterra Cooperative Group chairman John Wilson has affirmed the world’s biggest dairy exporter plans to pay its farmers $5.30 per kilogram of milk solids for the 2015 season. Wilson affirmed the payout in presentation slides for Fonterra’s annual meeting in Palmerston North today. It also expects to pay a dividend of 25-35 cents a share, making a total payment of $5.55 to $5.65. The 2014 payout was $8.50 including a 10 cent dividend. The Reserve Bank cited the reduced milk payout in its financial stability report, released today. While New Zealand’s overall financial system remained sound, risks in the dairy sector increased as plunging global milk prices prompted a reduced forecast payout to farmers by Fonterra, it said. “The forecast dairy payout for the coming season has been reduced significantly, and could result in rising loan defaults should the lower payout level persist,” deputy governor Grant Spencer said in a statement. Wheeler said the bank hadn’t given any thought to imposing lending restrictions or ratios on dairy lending, and that about 10 percent of farmers still have about half of the sector’s $33 billon in debt. The Reserve Bank expects dairy prices to recover early next year, supported by growing Chinese demand, though it said there is a risk of protracted weakness if global supply keeps expanding or if China takes longer to resume its forward purchasing. Farmers had used last year’s high price to repay debt, and the early signalling gave them time to manage down their costs, which helps mitigate the threat posed by the dairy sector. Spencer said farmers’ deleveraging and higher farm prices meant average LVRs on dairy debt had reduced, meaning safety buffers in place on dairy farm debt have improved. The Reserve Bank said farms using intensive methods on more marginal land and less […]

New pastures may be future weed threat

Breeding new fast-growing grass varieties that produce more seeds and are resistant to drought, pests, grazing and disease may inadvertently be creating the next generation of invasive weeds, warns an international team of researchers. As the global demand for dairy and beef escalates, farmers are increasingly seeking ways to reap greater productivity from their pastures. The problem is that in making grass varieties more robust, they are more prone to becoming a problem for the environment. For instance, new varieties can invade adjacent areas and spread across the landscape, or they can interbreed with existing invasive weeds. That’s according to Professor of Plant Biosecurity at Lincoln University and lead researcher at the Bio-Protection Research Centre, Philip Hulme, who has co-authored a research paper published in the latest edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). “Pasture species such as ryegrass and fescue may not strike people as major threats to the environment but they are regarded by the Department of Conservation as environmental weeds,” explains Professor Hulme. The research team have highlighted the need for government and agribusiness to ensure pasture plants are of low risk to the environment. “Pasture is big business in New Zealand and a large part of our economic success arises from agribusiness developing ever more productive or persistent varieties,” says Professor Hulme. “As a result there is a clear conflict between economic and conservation outcomes.” Agribusinesses do not have to assess the environmental risk of the new grass varieties they develop, but some consideration in this area might prevent the future spread of environmental weeds. “It is probably those varieties being developed for greater persistence, especially in the face of drought, that might pose the greatest future risk,” suggests Professor Hulme. The researchers have made four biosecurity recommendations for government, industry and researchers: […]

Industrial energy efficiency a full-time job

A PhD focused on increasing the energy efficiency of milk powder production has led University of Waikato engineering graduate Tim Walmsley to a full-time job with the very research group within which he worked as a PhD candidate. “My PhD research demonstrated that steam use in a typical New Zealand milk powder factory could decrease by 10% if exhaust heat recovery for the milk dryer is installed. Lab scale tests indicated issues relating to milk powder build-up and fouling, which is a key reason why dairy companies choose not to install this energy efficient technology, can be avoided through smart heat recuperator design and purposefully not being greedy in recovering heat,” says Tim. His position as a Research Fellow came about when the University of Waikato’s Energy Research Group was awarded a three-year grant from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) late last year. “Fonterra, Windsor Engineering and the Energy Education Trust co-funded our research bid and a significant part of this successful proposal continues on from my PhD research.” The next step in his research is to prove his design solution at a pilot-scale level before further up-scaling to a full-size New Zealand milk spray dryer. “A milk spray dryer exhaust heat recovery project is a million dollar investment and a pilot scale installation will help de-risk and bring greater certainty around the economics of a full-scale project.” While studying towards his PhD, Tim won a University of Waikato Doctoral Scholarship, the Todd Foundation Scholarship in Energy Research, and a Claude McCarthy Conference Travel scholarship. These scholarships supported him through his three years of study towards a PhD in engineering, which he completed in June 2014, and provided the opportunity for him to present his work at two international engineering conferences.

«‹ 76 77 78 79 ›»