Winston's crusade
OPINION: A short-term sugar hit. That's what NZ First leader Winston Peters is calling the proposed sale of Fonterra's consumer and associated businesses.
Fonterra has appointed Professor Sally Poppitt to a newly established Fonterra Chair in Human Nutrition based out of The University of Auckland. The new Chair will also sit within the Riddet Institute, New Zealand's Centre of Research Excellence for food science and technology.
The establishment of the Chair is part of Fonterra's $40 million investment in the seven year, $72 million post-farmgate Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) announced in August 2010 which sees Fonterra join forces with the Ministry of Agriculture in the New Zealand Government, DairyNZ and other industry players in a $170 million research programme set to drive new value in the dairy industry.
Fonterra's General Manager - Dairy Primary Growth Partnership Arie Geursen says the new Chair would support Fonterra's recent Strategy Refresh, which has a strong focus on advanced nutrition for mothers and babies, and enhancing the mobility of seniors.
"Professor Sally Poppitt has had a longstanding involvement in dairy nutrition for health and wellness, collaborating both directly with Fonterra and within the LactoPharma research consortium investigating the role of dairy foods and ingredients in adult health," Geursen says.
"Sally is ideally placed to hit the ground running and assist the Primary Growth Partnership in its goals to support the long-term transformation of the New Zealand Dairy Industry."
Prior to her appointment to the new Chair, which commenced on 3 May, Poppitt was Associate Professor in Nutrition at the University of Auckland where she held lecturing and research positions in both the Department of Medicine and the Faculty of Science. She is also the founder and Director of the University's Human Nutrition Unit where her research has focussed on the prevention and treatment of conditions arising from poor nutrition.
The University of Auckland Vice Chancellor, Professor Stuart McCutcheon has welcomed this appointment: "The University of Auckland is committed to an extensive platform of food and nutrition research. We welcome this further opportunity to work with Fonterra and the dairy sector," he says.
A major feature of the Ashburton A&P Show, to be held on October 31 and November 1, will be the annual trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial test match, with the best heading dogs from both sides of the Tasman going head-to-head in two teams of four.
Fewer bobby calves are heading to the works this season, as more dairy farmers recognise the value of rearing calves for beef.
The key to a dairy system that generates high profit with a low emissions intensity is using low footprint feed, says Fonterra program manager on-farm excellence, Louise Cook.
Rural retailer Farmlands has reported a return to profitability, something the co-operative says shows clear progress in the second year of its five-year strategy.
According to a new report, the Safer Rides initiative, which offered farmers heavily discounted crush protection devices (CPDs) for quad bikes, has made a significant impact in raising awareness and action around farm vehicle safety.
OPINION: In the past weeks, much has been said and written about one of New Zealand's greatest prime ministers, James Brendan Bolger, who died just a few months after his 90th birthday.
OPINION: Microplastics are turning up just about everywhere in the global food supply, including in fish, cups of tea, and…
OPINION: At a time when dairy prices are at record highs, no one was expecting the world's second largest dairy…