Editorial: Having a rural voice
OPINION: The past few weeks have been tough on farms across the North Island: floods and storms have caused damage and disruption to families and businesses.
In the November survey, 61% of farmers reported being satisfied or very satisfied with their bank, about steady from the May 2025 survey.
"That’s a good improvement from the 51% satisfaction rate from our survey this time last year but it’s a long way off from the 80% level recorded in 2017," Federated Farmers banking spokesperson Mark Hooper says.
Just on 14% of the nearly 600 survey respondents said they were feeling undue pressure from banks, down from 24% in November last year.
"Clearly, economic conditions weigh in on these farmer sentiments but it’s also true that good communication, access to advice, lending terms and other factors are part of the equation.
"For example, nearly a quarter said their bank hadn’t allowed them to structure their debt in the most efficient or appropriate way, such as restricting access to fixed rates, splitting loans, or using interest-only periods.
"That’s up from 19% in the previous survey."
Hooper says comments from farmers also stressed the importance of the bank manager relationship.
"Good managers were praised, with one farmer saying, ‘we have a fantastic bank manager who understands farming’.
"But many complained about turnover, inexperience, and poor communication.
"One comment - ‘haven’t seen our bank manager for six and a half years’ - captures that frustration."
Banks, their charges and services, and competition in the rural lending market have been a focus for Federated Farmers over the past two years.
"We’ve been a driving force behind the inquiry into banking, the Reserve Bank capital review, and the Commerce Commission’s investigation into cartel-like behaviour," Hooper says.
"Just this week we’ve seen the result of that, with the Reserve Bank easing capital settings, which will save the average farmer $11,000 a year in annual interest costs.
"It’s just a shame we couldn’t persuade the Reserve Bank to be less cautious and conservative, as they could have eased the settings much more."
Hooper says that result, and the findings from the banking survey, show that Federated Farmers’ fight for a better deal for farmers from banks needs to continue.
"In the interests of farmers - and also food production, export earnings and the wider economy - we won’t be letting up on that pressure for the lowest possible borrowing costs for our members."
Other findings from the November Federated Farmers banking survey:
- 23% reported their banking relationship negatively affected their mental wellbeing. This is down from 26% in the May 2025 survey and is the lowest level recorded since the question was introduced in 2022.
- 69% of respondents support legislation preventing banks from withdrawing or restricting banking services solely for environmental or non-financial reasons. Only 19% oppose such a measure. Support is consistent across sectors and regions.
- 73% of farmers report having an overdraft facility, down from 88% in 2015.
- Overdraft rates have fallen from 9.0% to 8.3% on average. However, differences between banks are substantial. Rabobank’ s seasonal finance product averages 6.6% (not directly comparable to overdrafts), while BNZ sits at 9.5% and Westpac at 7.83%. The 2.8-percentage-point spread underscores the importance of bank choice and competition in the rural banking sector.
- 9% of respondents reported being asked by their bank to fund capital projects through overdraft facilities rather than term loans. This is unchanged from the May survey and remains a longstanding concern for Federated Farmers.
