Editorial: Support, don't stifle farmers
OPINION: Ministry for Primary Industries' situation outlook for primary industries report (SOPI) makes impressive reading.
OPINION: Sobering is perhaps the best word to describe the latest Situation and Outlook report on Primary Industries (SOPI) produced by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).
The quarterly report is a snapshot of the performance of our primary sector that also forecasts the outlook for the coming four years, based on data from a variety of sources.
First up the good news, much touted by the Government, is the performance of the overall sector in the past to the end of June: The sector has earned the country a whopping $56.2 billion – an increase of 6% on 2022 and according to Agriculture Minister, Damien O’Connor, $1.2 billion more than MPI had earlier predicted.
This great outcome is largely the result of the performance of the dairy industry which earned $25.1 billion – double that of the meat and wool sector. Further good news is that, all things being equal, the dairy industry will keep up the good work over the next four years and by 2027, export revenue from the sector will hit $28.2 billion.
But in a world where things change rapidly, where the words volatility and uncertainty are commonly used, there is no guarantee things will go as MPI suggests.
On the home front, dairy farmers face a tidal wave of challenges with high interest costs, inflation, on-farm costs, a messy situation with regulations which has now become politicised and then there a still something of a problem with accessing labour.
So, it’s far from a perfect world.
Two butcheries have claimed victory at the 100% New Zealand Bacon & Ham Awards for 2025.
A Taupiri farming company has been convicted and fined $52,500 in the Hamilton District Court for the unlawful discharge of dairy effluent into the environment.
The Climate Change Commission’s 2025 emissions reduction monitoring report reveals steady progress on the reduction of New Zealand’s climate pollution.
Another milestone has been reached in the fight against Mycoplasma bovis with the compensation assistance service being wound up after helping more than 1300 farmers.
The Government’s directive for state farmer Landcorp Farming (trading as Pamu) to lifts its performance is yielding results.
The move to bring bovine TB testing in-house at Ospri officially started this month, as a team of 37 skilled and experienced technicians begin work with the disease eradication agency.
OPINION: Will synthetic milk derail NZ's economy?
OPINION: According to media reports, the eye-watering price of butter has prompted Finance Minister Nicola Willis to ask for a…