Plant-based bubble bursts
OPINION: Talking about plant-based food: “Chicken-free chicken” start-up Sunfed has had its valuation slashed to zero by major investor Blackbird Ventures, and its products are no longer available in supermarkets.
The payout news has been pretty average recently, so no surprises that confidence in the industry isn’t at an all-time high.
However, if Rural News Group’s Fieldays Previews are any indication, the mood is not overwhelmingly negative; extensive previews in Dairy News and its stablemate Rural News are well supported by advertisers.
Dairy News ran a 20-page preview highlighting the Fieldays themes, activities and exhibitors; Rural News did a 27-page preview along the same lines, complete with a glossy lift-out map.
These sorts of features and their level of advertising well indicate how bullish or bearish the service and supply side of the industry is about the outlook for agriculture. While no one is pretending the short term outlook is a bit flat, these Fieldays previews suggest agribusiness is confident in the medium-long term story for farming.
The country’s 4200 commercial fruit and vegetable growers will vote from May 14 on a new HortNZ levy.
Meat processor Alliance Group is asking farmer shareholders to inject more capital in order to remain a 100% co-operative.
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.
Telco infrastructure provider Chorus says that it believes all Kiwis – particularly those in the rural areas – need access to high-speed, reliable broadband.
OPINION: Talking about plant-based food: “Chicken-free chicken” start-up Sunfed has had its valuation slashed to zero by major investor Blackbird…
OPINION: Synlait's financial woes won’t be going away anytime soon.