increase font size
Steven Carden, Landcorp.
Landcorp chief executive Steven Carden says while the company has taken a hit in its profit this year due to the downturn in the dairy industry, it has done a lot to control costs and increase production.
For the year ended June, profit dropped by just over $25 million to $4.9m but Carden says in the circumstances the result is a solid one for the state owned farmer. He says like all farmers in the dairy industry they suffered the same fate in terms of profit.
But he says the result could have been worse had Landcorp not secured a significant volume of milk to Fonterra’s guaranteed milk price.
Milk revenue was down from $129m last year to $88.1m, but livestock revenue was up from $98.7m to $111.3m, partly offsetting the drop in dairy income.
Carden says while the drop is not unexpected, there are some positives.
“We have a 9% decrease in the cost of our dairy production and that coincided with the 4% increase in overall production so it’s a sizable increase in our efficiency. We will increasingly lower stocking rates to a system two type rather than the more intensive systems,” he says.
Carden says as part of a move to get greater efficiency in their dairy operation they are adopting a management regime based on the system Toyota uses.
“We are looking at how we spend our time in every aspect of our dairy operation and looking for areas where we are inefficient and to standardise the way we do things to drive out that inefficiency. It sounds very mechanistic but these are disciplines from other businesses that work really well in every sense, and the great thing is the staff love it because it means they are a lot more productive in what they do. They don’t waste a lot of time looking for tools or conducting a process like putting on cups in an inefficient manner because they have been shown the most efficient way of doing it,” he says.
Carden says this means staff get through milking faster, get home sooner and are more energised. He says it’s having a big impact on the quality of the experience of working at Landcorp regardless of the dollar savings.
The further development of dairy farms in the central North Island is under review.
Carden says that since he came into the role of chief executive he’s been very wary of the risks dairying poses to Landcorp’s balance sheet.
Landcorp had planned to develop 35 dairy farms in the region in partnership with a private company Wairakei Pastoral but has so far done only 13.
To mark International Day of Education on January 24, 2025, state farmer Pāmu (Landcorp) announced the commencement of its Apprenticeship Scheme, designed to equip the next generation of farmers with the skills, knowledge, and experience needed for a thriving career in agriculture.
OPINION: Landcorp is putting a brave face on its latest result, highlighting its progress on KPIs like climate change and gender pay gaps.
In a landmark move, the state-owned farmer Pāmu (Landcorp) is making four of its 44 dairy farms available for people wishing to take up various contracts including herd-owning, share milking, variable order share milking and contract milking.
Major steps are underway to improve the quality of dairy beef calves.
Tucked away in a remote part of the central North Island, staff at a Pāmu (Landcorp) farm are working hard to solve one of the biggest challenges facing the dairy and beef sectors.
OPINION: Federated Farmers' latest farmer confidence survey results won’t surprise too many people.
The cost of producing milk in New Zealand continues to compare favourably with other exporting regions despite a lift in production costs over the past five years.
DairyNZ says potential benefits from gene technology must be carefully weighed against the risks of such technology.
Pleased, but cautious. That’s how PGG Wrightson chief executive Stephen Guerin says he’s feeling about the rural retailer’s latest financial result.
Commodity prices and interest rates play a huge role in shaping farmer confidence, but these factors are beyond their control, says Federated Farmers dairy chair Richard McIntyre.
DairyNZ is supporting a proposed new learning model for apprenticeships and traineeships that would see training, education, and pastoral care delivered together to provide the best chance of success.
OPINION: Nearly four years after buying a 75% stake in Southland processor Mataura Valley Milk (MVM), A2 Milk is still…
OPINION: Fonterra isn't backing down in its fight with Greenpeace over the labelling of its iconic Anchor Butter.
