'Grand Alliance' growing grass-fed beef exports to China
Alliance Group and Grand Farm have signed a strategic co-operation agreement with a focus on delivering more premium New Zealand grass-fed beef to Chinese consumers.
New Zealand's dairy farmer leaders have been told that while global demand for milk is great, there is no future without China.
Retired Lincoln University professor Keith Woodford told the Federated Farmers dairy conference that China is where “all the markets and opportunities are”.
“Europe and the US don’t need us, Africa can’t pay for it, so it has to be Asia and that’s where all the growth is occurring,” he says.
Woodford, who has visited China since 1973, says NZ continues to lack understanding of the China market.
“We have to work with China – spend more time in China understanding how the markets work and not repeating the big mistakes we have made there over the last 10 years.”
He also pointed out that NZ’s spring calving and grass-fed system work well for long-life commodities only, not for value-added products, including infant formula.
Woodford points out that infant formula earnings in China are greater than for whole milk powder but NZ remains a small player with Synlait and Danone doing well. Fonterra has failed to make a dent in China’s infant formula market which is dominated by European processors.
He says NZ manufacturers marketing infant formula state on the cans the manufacturing and use-by dates; this may need to change.
“We talk about milk being a 48-hour asset, then it becomes a liability,” he says.
“What’s the first thing done when your milk reaches the factory? It all gets dried and goes into a storehouse; six months later when things are quieter in winter, the first thing they do is add water back again.
“We won’t be able to do that for too long; the Chinese are onto that and the only reason they are not moving right now is because they manufacture that way as well.”
Woodford says infant formula manufacturing would need to become a one-line system; the manufacturing date for infant formula will be the date milk came to the factory.
He says the industry should start thinking about how it would manufacture for such markets.
“We are the only country in the world to have this calving system; let’s start thinking about other options.”
A brilliant result and great news for growers and regional economies. That's how horticulture sector leaders are describing the news that sector exports for the year ended June 30 will reach $8.4 billion - an increase of 19% on last year and is forecast to hit close to $10 billion in 2029.
Funding is proving crucial for predator control despite a broken model reliant on the goodwill of volunteers.
A major milestone on New Zealand's unique journey to eradicate Mycoplasma bovis could come before the end of this year.
We're working through it, and we'll get to it.
The debate around New Zealand's future in the Paris Agreement is heating up.
A technical lab manager for Apata, Phoebe Scherer, has won the Bay of Plenty 2025 Young Grower regional title.
OPINION: It's official, Fieldays 2025 clocked 110,000 visitors over the four days.
OPINION: The Federated Farmers rural advocacy hub at Fieldays has been touted as a great success.