Misguided campaign
OPINION: Last week, Greenpeace lit up Fonterra's Auckland headquarters with 'messages from the common people' - that the sector is polluting the environment.
Fonterra has announced new appointments for two of its senior leaders.
Mike Cronin, who is currently group director governance and legal, is stepping into the newly created role of managing director corporate affairs, effective immediately.
Announcing the appointment, Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings says Cronin's connection with the business, and its risk and reputation drivers, makes him the natural choice for this role.
"Mike has extensive experience in corporate risk and reputation management, and providing trusted strategic counsel to the cooperative," says Spierings.
"He has an in-depth understanding of New Zealand and the cooperative, and the internal and external dynamics of our business. This, combined with his strong stakeholder management skills, provides Mike with the required skills to lead a team responsible for enhancing and protecting Fonterra's brand and reputation, including governance and legal, health and safety, food safety and quality, brand, social responsibility and communications, and stakeholder affairs."
In the other appointment announced, Joanne Fair, currently Fonterra's regional director ingredients, South East Asia, has been appointed to the role of managing director people and culture, effective July 1, 2016.
Spierings says Fair is ideally placed to lead the cooperative's People and Culture team. She has a strong background and expertise in human resources and has held global and regional commercial leadership roles, having worked with Fonterra across New Zealand, Latin America, Europe and South East Asia.
"With over a decade of experience in the dairy industry, Jo is an experienced senior human resources and commercial leader, with a strong understanding of how Fonterra operates," says Spierings.
"She has shown agility in working with diverse cultures and customers, and her human resources and commercial experience positions her well to lead a team responsible for delivering our people strategy, and organisational health and engagement."
Both Cronin and Fair will report directly to Spierings.
Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford says the 2025 Fieldays has been one of more positive he has attended.
A fundraiser dinner held in conjunction with Fieldays raised over $300,000 for the Rural Support Trust.
Recent results from its 2024 financial year has seen global farm machinery player John Deere record a significant slump in the profits of its agricultural division over the last year, with a 64% drop in the last quarter of the year, compared to that of 2023.
An agribusiness, helping to turn a long-standing animal welfare and waste issue into a high-value protein stream for the dairy and red meat sector, has picked up a top innovation award at Fieldays.
The Fieldays Innovation Award winners have been announced with Auckland’s Ruminant Biotech taking out the Prototype Award.
Following twelve years of litigation, a conclusion could be in sight of Waikato’s controversial Plan Change 1 (PC1).
OPINION: Last week, Greenpeace lit up Fonterra's Auckland headquarters with 'messages from the common people' - that the sector is…
OPINION: Once upon a time the Fieldays were for real farmers, salt of the earth people who thrived on hard…