LIC lifts half-year revenue on strong demand for dairy genetics
Herd improvement company LIC has posted a 5.2% lift in half-year revenue, thanks to increasing demand for genetics.
Federated Farmers has brokered what could be its last meeting before the mutant calf issue ends up before the Courts and/or the Commerce Commission.
"Over the weekend we tried one last time to get to a solution. I now fear this is heading towards the Commerce Commission and possibly the courts," says Willy Leferink, Federated Farmers Dairy chairperson.
"The shame is that this hairy mutation is so rare, a farmer is more likely to win Lotto's first division than to encounter it again. This rarity is why we felt Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) ought to get on the front foot and actively build its customer relations.
"We hoped LIC would have run their commercial ruler over this issue, bearing in mind how low the odds are of a repeat.
"I guess it comes down to LIC shareholders either ringing directors to give them an ear-full or to lend them their support.
"Likewise, for affected farmers, they could club together in order to pursue some form of remedy if that is their wish.
"As this could now become a commercial dispute, Federated Farmers has to step back until this these processes are complete.
"Federated Farmers does a lot of work behind the scenes in order to resolve matters before they publically break; this issue has sadly been anything but. A dose of pragmatism would have avoided much public acrimony.
"Federated Farmers is however ready to mediate for a solution that works for those affected by this mutation and for LIC's wider shareholding base."
Rural contractors will be able to play a role in the revamped agricultural plastic recycling scheme with new regulations due for Cabinet signoff before this year’s election.
Farm workers living in accommodation provided by their employers are now set to be able to access their KiwiSaver funds to buy their first home thanks to a pending change in the rules governing KiwiSaver.
Treat agricultural emissions differently. That’s the message from the chair of the prestigious Riddet Institute, Sir Lockwood Smith.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand Inc and Pacific Toyota have pulled the covers off the season's most unique performance vehicle - The Lamb Cruiser.
The 2026 New Zealand Horticulture Conference is set to see more than 900 growers, employers, service providers and industry stakeholders gather in Wellington in July.
New Zealand's longest running television programme, the iconic Country Calendar, celebrated its 60th birthday in style in Wellington last week.

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