Two Major NZ Dairy Deals Completed
Two major acquisitions in the New Zealand dairy sector were completed this week.
Growth has been debated at the Fonterra board table and the directors’ view now is that the co-op will not see the huge growth of the past, says director Brent Goldsack.
Environmental constraints could be the limiting factor.
“Things around water and nutrients: we will get a very good handle on that,” he told the Northland Dairy Development Trust’s annual meeting in Whangarei last week.
“But as we look at gases – whether methane or nitrous oxide -- that’s much harder.”
Methane may be a little easier but generally it gets harder, Goldsack said.
Over 35 years production has increased threefold but the co-op won’t be getting that growth in the future, he says. With genetics and science he is confident farming will consistently improve.
“As a board I think we are saying [growth] is probably going to be relatively flat — certainly for the foreseeable future.”
Goldsack says he is worried at the prospect of a payout of $7/kgMS or better next year because at that price people start getting ahead of themselves and do things they later regret.
“The Europeans, the Americans… they would much rather be where we are today and this is our third year in the mid $6/kgMS. It’s been a nice spot for the co-op over the last three years.”
While the District Field Days brought with it a welcome dose of sunshine, it also attracted a significant cohort of sitting members from the Beehive – as one might expect in an election year.
Irish Minister of State of Agriculture, Noel Grealish was in New Zealand recently for an official visit.
While not all sibling rivalries come to blows, one headline event at the recent New Zealand Rural Games held in Palmerston North certainly did, when reigning World Champion Jack Jordan was denied the opportunity of defending his world title in Europe later this year, after being beaten by his big brother’s superior axle blows, at the Stihl Timbersports Nationals.
AgriZeroNZ has invested $5.1 million in Australian company Rumin8 to accelerate development of its methane-reducing products for cattle and bring them to New Zealand.
Farmers want more direct, accurate information about both fuel and fertiliser supply.
A bull on a freight plane sounds like the start of a joke, but for Ian Bryant, it is a fond memory of days gone by.