Chinese strategy
OPINION: Fonterra may have sold its dairy farms in China but the appetite for collaboration with the country remains strong.
A message to dairy farmers - be patient with China and things will come right.
That's the word from Ray Smith, the Director General of MPI, who's just returned from a visit to China where he met with three of his counterparts in the Chinese government who deal with agriculture, rural affairs, customs and importing of infant formula.
He says his engagement with these top influential government officials could not have been warmer and says both parties are working closely together to improve both our respective systems and trading relationships.
"I think what we must remember about the Chinese economy is that there are hundreds of thousands of people growing into the middle class as we speak. So we just have to be involved in China for the long run," he says.
Smith says the Chinese economy is slowly lifting after the challenges of the Covid pandemic. This he says has seen Chinese consumers acquiring conservative spending patterns but says this will ease over time.
He says NZ is dealing with a massive market and there will be dips along the way, but China will come back, and this will drag prices back up.
He notes that in recent weeks the GDT prices have been positive.
"The world needs protein and there are more consumers wanting it and just remember that China is one of the world's largest economies. China is coming back it'll take a bit of time and it's not what happens this year it's what will happen over the next five years," he says.
The horticulture sector is a big winner from recent free trade deals sealed with the Gulf states, says Associate Agriculture Minister Nicola Grigg.
Fonterra shareholders are concerned with a further decline in the co-op’s share of milk collected in New Zealand.
A governance group has been formed, following extensive sector consultation, to implement the recommendations from the Industry Working Group's (IWG) final report and is said to be forming a 'road map' for improving New Zealand's animal genetic gain system.
Free workshops focused on managing risk in sharefarming got underway last week.
Annual farmer gathering, the South Island Dairy Event (SIDE), is set to make history as it heads to Timaru for the first time.
Installing 400 solar panels at their Taranaki piggery and cropping operation will have significant environmental, financial and animal welfare benefits for the Stanley family.
OPINION: Fonterra may have sold its dairy farms in China but the appetite for collaboration with the country remains strong.
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