Feds support live animal exports
Federated Farmers have reiterated their support for the coalition Government to abolish the present ban on the live export of animals.
Experienced trade negotiator Charles Finny believes reports relating to a free trade agreement with the UK are positive.
Finny says full credit should go to Agriculture and Trade Minister Damien O'Connor for this development.
"He has pretty much secured a really good deal with the UK off the back of what Australia has secured. As long as New Zealand can deliver a really good outcome on services and investment, then I think we are there."
Finny says the UK is looking like it could be a very exciting market for NZ companies that want to reinvest in that market. But he's not sure it is going to be as dominant as it was in the past.
He would like to see a really good deal with the EU as well. Finny doesn't want companies to focus entirely on the UK and forget about the EU. However, he concedes that the EU is "a longer term burn". That aside, he believes NZ should be trying very hard to get a deal done this year.
"What will be interesting is the quality of that deal compared with the UK deal, which - if it happens - will be very good for the NZ ag sector."
Commodity prices and interest rates play a huge role in shaping farmer confidence, but these factors are beyond their control, says Federated Farmers dairy chair Richard McIntyre.
DairyNZ is supporting a proposed new learning model for apprenticeships and traineeships that would see training, education, and pastoral care delivered together to provide the best chance of success.
Two agritech companies have joined forces to help eliminate manual entry and save farmer time.
The recent squabble between the Cook Islands and NZ over their deal with China has added a new element of tension in the relationship between China and NZ.
The world is now amid potentially one of the most disruptive periods in world trade for a very long time.
Former Westland Milk boss Richard Wyeth is taking over as chief executive of Canterbury milk processor Synlait from May 19.
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