Crazy
OPINION: Your canine crusader was truly impressed by the almost unanimous support given by politicians of all stripes in Parliament to the recent passing of legislation for the NZ/EU free trade deal.
Damien O'Connor in his dual capacity of Agriculture and Trade Minister, officially launched a 250 page report on barriers to horticultural trade before a group of about 60 industry representatives in Wellington last week.
He says New Zealand has a lot of work to do at the far end of the world to keep nations focused on the need to support free trade and international rules based trade.
O'Connor concedes that there will be challenges to get free trade agreements (FTAs) over the line.
"We are in a challenging time. We are probably facing more barriers in spite of our efforts to support the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and to get other economies to support us to get the WTO up to where it belongs," he told Rural News.
"NZ is doing its bit to maintain contact with the relevant ministers despite the pandemic. I have been given a list of European ministers to call over January during my holiday.
"Remaining in contact with those people is really important at a time when they will be very domestic focused."
O'Connor says Covid has changed the world and food security has become a huge focus for many nations.
He says there is a risk that some will put up innappropriate trade barriers to protect their domestic food suppliers.
O'Connor says NZ has to counter that argument and also demonstrate that it can supply high quality, sustainably produced food.
The country’s 4200 commercial fruit and vegetable growers will vote from May 14 on a new HortNZ levy.
Meat processor Alliance Group is asking farmer shareholders to inject more capital in order to remain a 100% co-operative.
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.
Telco infrastructure provider Chorus says that it believes all Kiwis – particularly those in the rural areas – need access to high-speed, reliable broadband.