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Simon Limmer
Silver Fern Farms chief executive Simon Limmer has signed off after six years at the helm of the meat processor and exporter optimistic about the future of New Zealand red meat.
"Current conditions provide a clear reminder that we are still exposed to global cycles and other challenges," he told suppliers in his final newsletter. "However, I am optimistic that our strategy is the right one and we have the momentum and capability to ensure a prosperous future."
Limmer said he'd spent his final week at the company in Shanghai, alongside incoming chief executive Dan Boulton.
"This is a reminder of the opportunities and challenges that incredible markets such as China present to us," he told suppliers. "We will need to earn the rewards on offer by being better connected, agile and creative if we are to deliver to the expectations of a discerning customer who is spoiled for choice."
Limmer claims that the 'nature positive promise' has positioned the Silver Fern Farms brand as a global leader, catching the attention of consumers around the world. However, he concedes this also imposes an ongoing expectation of continuous improvement and integrity beyond reproach.
"We will always be confronted by an ever-changing set of uncontrollable," Limmer added. "Economics, market trends, trade access, logistics, or the weather, all continue to throw curve balls at us, without wanting to reference a regulatory environment which is uncertain and imposing at best."
Limmer says the NZ red meat has enjoyed some tailwinds over the past few years.
"But the volatility remains and challenges still lie ahead as current conditions remind us."
Limmer told suppliers that incoming chief executive Dan Boulton will keep SFF progressing.
"His knowledge of our industry and determination to drive the business forward is clear."
Limmer paid tribute to both the farmer suppliers and workers at SFF saying the greatest privilege in his job was to work alongside some incredibly passionate and progressive people.
"New Zealand farming systems are the best in the world and continue to respond to those ongoing challenges, setting the reference for others," he added. "Consumers will always place real value on the goodness we create from the farms the world needs."
As dairy farmers lock in plans for the upcoming mating season, a partnership between Fonterra and Silver Fern Farms has been formed with the aim of making it simpler to create additional value from calves not entering the replacement herd.
Applications for Silver Fern Farms Co-operative's next board-appointed farmer director are open.
Silver Fern Farms has tackled the ongoing war-induced shipping challenges to mideast markets by airlifting 90 tonnes of chilled New Zealand lamb and beef to the United Arab Emirates.
Silver Fern Farms has successfully produced and delivered 90 tonnes of premium chilled New Zealand lamb and beef to the United Arab Emirates via airfreight.
Silver Fern Farms has announced a major capital investment valued at over $100 million to redevelop freezing, cold storage, and automation facilities at its Finegand Site near Balclutha.
Bigger, bolder salads packed with colour, crunch and flavour are making headlines overseas — and the arrival of fresh spring vegetables means New Zealanders can now get chopping too, creating their own Great Kiwi Spring Salad.
Chinese beef trade quotas and a looming suspension of Brazilian beef imports into the European Union are expected to reshape global beef trade flows over the remainder of 2026, with implications for New Zealand exporters, according to Rabobank's Q3 Global Beef Quarterly report.
James Blair, an agronomist for AS Wilcox and the Pukekohe regional champion, has won the 2026 Young Grower national title.
An Auckland gelato shop and an established New Zealand ice cream maker have both been named Supreme Champions at the NZ Ice Cream & Gelato Awards 2026.
As the cost-of-living crisis continues to put pressure on household grocery budgets, new figures show pork remains one of the most affordable fresh meat options for New Zealand families.
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