Wednesday, 09 December 2020 11:55

Dine with a long spoon

Written by  Milking It

OPINION: Some leaders in the New Zealand dairy industry will be keeping an anxious watch on the growing spat between China and Australia.

With China slapping hefty tariffs of Aussie exports like wine and barley and its senior government officials trading barbs over trade and political issues, fears are things could turn from bad to worse.

Australia has bounced back from its technical recession with solid growth figures and its politicians were quick to point out that they don’t need China for economic growth.

However, NZ cannot think like that. Fonterra accounts for 36% of all dairy imports into China. One dairy insider says the Oz/China impasse should give you chills. “Dine with a long spoon when you trade with China. They can turn the tap off for geo-political reasons any old time.”

More like this

Featured

How Wearable Tech Powers This 1,850-Cow Dairy Farm

For Canterbury dairy farmers Sian Meijer and Rick Wobben, wearable technology has become one of their most valuable on-farm tools - helping manage 1850 cows across an expansive, high-performing dairy operation while improving efficiency, mating outcomes and day-to-day decision making.

New Dairy Welfare Code Released, Takes Effect 2027

The first major update to the Dairy Cattle Code of Welfare in more than a decade has been released, marking what DairyNZ describes as an important step in ensuring animal welfare standards continue to evolve alongside scientific evidence and on-farm realities.

Federated Farmers Welcomes RMA Replacement Passing

Federated Farmers says new legislation replacing the Resource Management Act will cut red tape, unlock investment and help grow New Zealand's export-led economy, after the Planning Bill and Natural Environment Bill passed their third reading in Parliament yesterday.

National

Machinery & Products

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter