Fonterra slashes forecast milk price, again
Fonterra has slashed another 50c off its milk price forecast as global milk flows shows no sign of easing.
Prime Minister John Key has opened Fonterra's new $200 million Darfield site in Christchurch.
He paid tribute to Fonterra's contribution to the New Zealand economy and our reputation worldwide.
Key says Fonterra is New Zealand's only "truly global champion".
"The Fonterra brand and name is known around the corporate world," he says.
The new factory processes around 2.4 million litres of milk in a single day. A second plant is under construction and it will triple Darfield's capacity.
Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings says Fonterra's Darfield site represents a great achievement for the operations teams that had overseen its construction and successfully commissioned the plant just as the new season got underway.
"This is a tribute to the hard work of more than 1500 people who have built a world-class dairy processing site – from paddock to powder – in just 18 months," Spierings says.
"Since August, when the first bags of whole milk powder rolled off the production line, more than 30,000 metric tonnes of high quality product have been produced, destined for customers in China, South East Asia and the Middle East. That's enough to fill about 1300 20-foot containers.
"This new site is already playing an important part in delivering on our business strategy. It is one of our most efficient plants, with the capacity and flexibility that will help drive further performance improvements and a better payout for our farmers."
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.
A Taranaki farmer and livestock agent who illegally swapped NAIT tags from cows infected with a bovine disease in an attempt to sell the cows has been fined $15,000.

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