Biosecurity tops priorities for agribusiness leaders - report
Biosecurity remains the top priority for agribusiness leaders, according to KPMG’s 2025 Agribusiness Agenda released last week.
KPMG’S Ian Proudfoot says the biggest surprise for him when compiling the latest Agribusiness Agenda was the discussion on what the future dairy industry might look like.
He didn’t expect to have the level of conversation fundamentally about how much milk Fonterra will end up collecting.
“It’s a conversation that has definitely come up in the last 12 months and I think it’s from seeing well-capitalised companies come into the industry with the potential to change the industry,” Proudfoot told Rural News.
“It comes from real concerns about whether Fonterra is adding value, and the general answer is that there is a lot more they could be doing.”
Proudfoot says the other surprise for him was seeing broadband climb the list to second equal – indicating it is a core issue for the sector.
“We can see the productivity opportunities in technology, its environmental potential and what it can do to strengthen our communities. If we can get rural broadband right, we can transform the rural environment, create new jobs and generate more wealth.”
Proudfoot points to a growing realisation of the need to inspire young people to make a career in agriculture and to help them understand the sector.
Legal controls on the movement of fruits and vegetables are now in place in Auckland’s Mt Roskill suburb, says Biosecurity New Zealand Commissioner North Mike Inglis.
Arable growers worried that some weeds in their crops may have developed herbicide resistance can now get the suspected plants tested for free.
Fruit growers and exporters are worried following the discovery of a male Queensland fruit fly in Auckland this week.
Dairy prices have jumped in the overnight Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction, breaking a five-month negative streak.
Alliance Group chief executive Willie Wiese is leaving the company after three years in the role.
A booklet produced in 2025 by the Rotoiti 15 trust, Department of Conservation and Scion – now part of the Bioeconomy Science Institute – aims to help people identify insect pests and diseases.

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