Dairy power
OPINION: The good times felt across the dairy sector weren't lost at last week's Beef + Lamb NZ annual meeting.
Some skilled migrant dairy farm employees will now be able to return to New Zealand from overseas.
The decision announced this week by the Government has been welcomed by DairyNZ.
“This is a real breakthrough for migrants who meet the criteria and gives their farm employers certainty to plan for the future,” said DairyNZ chief executive, Dr Tim Mackle.
Visa holders and their families will follow all border control processes and go into quarantine or managed isolation, before re-joining their communities in New Zealand.
DairyNZ says it has been working with the Government since the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdown. The Government originally provided a six-month extension on employer-assisted temporary work visas due to expire by the end of 2020.
Mackle is strongly advising migrants and their employers understand the rules and confirm if they meet the exemption criteria before submitting applications.
“We don’t want to see additional stress, costs and disappointment for this group of patient people,” says Mackle.
DairyNZ says some migrants and their employers will not meet the criteria to come back to New Zealand.
“I am sure they will be disappointed and we thank them for the contribution they have made to our dairy sector,” says Mackle.
Federated Farmers supports a review of the current genetic technology legislation but insists that a farmer’s right to either choose or reject it must be protected.
New Zealand’s top business leaders are urging the US Administration to review “unjustified and discriminatory tariffs” imposed on Kiwi exporters.
New tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump signal an uncertain future, but New Zealand farmers know how to adapt to changing conditions, says Auriga Martin, chief executive of Farm Focus.
A global trade war beckons, which is bad news for a small open economy like New Zealand, warns Mark Smith ASB senior economist.
Carterton's Awakare Farm has long stood as a place where family, tradition and innovation intersect.
Fonterra says the US continues to be an important market for New Zealand dairy and the co-op.
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OPINION: The good times felt across the dairy sector weren't lost at last week's Beef + Lamb NZ annual meeting.