Seeka returns to profitability after horror 2023
Kiwifruit and fresh produce handler Seeka will be bouncing back strongly from a big financial loss in 2023.
Kiwifruit company Seeka has announced its half-yearly results for the six months to 30 June 2022, with revenue up 10%.
This is in spite of a time period that was dominated by the Covid pandemic, adverse weather events, labour shortages, machine commissioning delays, shipping disruptions, lower fruit yields and poor quality produce.
While revenue was up 10% to $247.3m, earnings were impacted by increased costs and lower than expected fruit volumes.
Labour was extremely tight through key main harvest periods, the company said, adding that they needed to innovate to maintain operations. Personnel were redeployed to different areas of the business at peak stress load to ensure the continuity of operations.
Fruit volumes for the six months were lower than expected, due, in part, to a late 2021 storm in the Ōpōtiki region, accompanied by a seasonal reduction in yields.
Additionally, the Gisborne region was later than normal to mature and was then hit with persistent rain.
The company’s full year net profit before tax is forecast to be between $9m and $11m.
A US-based company developing a vaccine to reduce methane emissions in cattle has received another capital injection from New Zealand’s agriculture sector.
Wools of New Zealand has signed a partnership agreement with a leading Chinese manufacturer as the company looks to further grow demand in China and globally.
Opportunities for Māori are there for the taking if they scale up their operations and work more closely together.
OPINION: Farmer shareholders of two of New Zealand's largest co-operatives have an important decision to make this month and what they decide could change the landscape of the dairy and meat sectors in New Zealand.
As the first of a new series of interprofessional rural training hubs opened in South Taranaki late September, Rural Health Network has celebrated the move as a "key pathway to encourage the growth and retention of health professionals in rural areas".
OPINION: Ageing lefty Chris Trotter reckons that the decision to delay recognition of Palestinian statehood is more than just a fit…
OPINION: A mate of yours truly recently met someone at a BBQ who works at a big consulting firm who spent…