Bikinis in cowshed
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There has been much commentary about China with concerns about how Covid lockdowns there have dented consumer confidence, driving down consumer spending.
But a recent report by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) predicts that the Chinese market will recover later this year - a view backed up by major exporters. It would also seem that the recent NZ trade mission to China has breathed new optimism into the market.
Speaking at the recent Federated Farmers annual conference, the Minister Counsellor Trade for the Chinese Embassy in NZ, Chen Zhiyang, spoke positively about the recent trade mission saying the outcomes were good news for NZ farmers and Chinese consumers. He went on to say that there is potential for expansion and cooperation in the area of primary products.
"NZ products, especially primary products, are very popular in the China market because they have the reputation of being 100% pure and of very high quality," he says.
Zhiyang says trade had brought tangible benefits between the two countries.
Meanwhile, PM Chris Hipkins discussed his recent trade mission to China and was clearly ecstatic about the way the trip had gone. He said relations between the two countries were excellent and - most importantly - the business-to-business relationship is thriving and has the potential to grow even more.
Hipkins says there are 1.4 billion consumers in China and one of their government's objectives is to double the number of middle-income earners over the next decade meaning more consumers looking for the quality produce and products NZ has to offer.
"There is nothing quite like going into a supermarket somewhere in the world, such as China, and seeing so many NZ products on display - whether it is kiwifruit or beef or lamb or some of the manufactured products. It was a bit of a buzz for me as the Prime Minister."
Hipkins says one take-home message for him was the importance of NZ's clean, green, sustainable reputation when it comes to growing our export market share. He says our international reputation is critical to continuing to expand our export opportunities.
NZPork has appointed Auckland-based Paul Bucknell as its new chair.
The Government claims to have delivered on its election promise to protect productive farmland from emissions trading scheme (ETS) but red meat farmers aren’t happy.
Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks could have a detrimental impact on any country's rural sector, as seen in the United Kingdom's 2000 outbreak that saw the compulsory slaughter of over six million animals.
The Ministry for the Environment is joining as a national award sponsor in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA from next year).
Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.
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