"Our" business?
OPINION: One particular bone the Hound has been gnawing on for years now is how the chattering classes want it both ways when it comes to the success of NZ's dairy industry.
OPINION: Fonterra deserves a pat on the back for delivering another solid set of financial results.
They are the culmination of a huge amount of hard work put in by everyone across the co-op, led by chief executive Miles Hurrell and his management team. They must be commended for continuing to deliver consistently strong financial results in an increasingly volatile world.
The results also delivered relief to Fonterra’s 10,000 farms, whose owners have a stake in the co-op. Life on farms has been tough thanks to high input costs and interest rates over the past few years.
Fonterra is an extension of the farm businesses. Peter McBride, Fonterra chair, says the co-op exists to provide certainty and manage risk on their behalf, while maximising returns via a competitive and sustainable milk price, and a respectable return on the capital they invest in Fonterra.
Stable earnings across the co-op - Ingredients, Foodservice and Consumer channels- contributed to earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) from continuing operations of $1.6 billion.
Last year the co-op’s Foodservice channel was the standout performer with a return on capital of 19.6%.
Fonterra finished the year in a strong position - a solid return on capital of 11.3%, significantly above its five-year average and with a gearing ratio of 24%, a drop of almost 50% over the previous year.
A strong balance sheet delivers benefits and Fonterra farmers will receive an extra dividend of 15c/share.
Fonterra farmers, like other sectors of the agriculture sector, have been doing it tough for the past few years.
For many farmers, the extra cash this season would be used to catch up on deferred farm maintenance and improve cash flows, making life a bit easier on the farm in the coming months.
Phoebe Scherer, a technical manager from the Bay of Plenty, has won the 2025 Young Grower of the Year national title.
The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards, providing the opportunity to honour both rising talent and industry stalwarts.
Award-winning boutique cheese company, Cranky Goat Ltd has gone into voluntary liquidation.
As an independent review of the National Pest Management Plan for TB finds the goal of complete eradication by 2055 is still valide, feedback is being sought on how to finish the job.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand has launched an AI-powered digital assistant to help farmers using the B+LNZ Knowledge Hub to create tailored answers and resources for their farming businesses.
A tiny organism from the arid mountains of mainland Greece is facilitating a new way of growing healthier animals on farms across New Zealand.
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