China’s new beef tariffs expected to favour New Zealand exporters
Additional tariffs introduced by the Chinese Government last month on beef imports should favour New Zealand farmers and exporters.
Silver Fern Farms chief executive Dan Boulton says his recent visit to China has left him feeling optimistic about the situation there for the meat industry.
He says the recovery in the Chinese market will not happen overnight but says he senses it's moving in the right direction, although he adds that one should not expect to see the same high prices for product of a few years ago.
Boulton says the market is going to be far stronger in the protein space - particularly for the high-quality products that NZ sells.
"The Chinese middle class is forecast to grow from 400 million to 800 million people, and they are really conscious about where their food is grown, and they care about sustainability. They have got a strong green agenda and that plays into our offering from SFF, so there is still a very affluent growing middle class segment that we will be targeting," he told Rural News.
According to Boulton, the mood of the Chinese consumers is quite buoyant - something that hasn't been seen for a few years. He says looking forwards, pricing in that market is starting to lift with investment growth in retail stores.
Boulton says they have got some deep relationships with their customers and partners who want to grow SFF brands.
He says the situation is being helped by the stimulus packages being provided by the Chinese government to kickstart their economy.
Boulton's comments come after spending a week attending the Chinese International Import Expo (CIIE) at which NZ launched its $8 million three-year publicity campaign to get Chinese consumers to buy our high-quality meat products.
The sale of Fonterra’s global consumer and related businesses is expected to be completed within two months.
Fonterra is boosting its butter production capacity to meet growing demand.
For the most part, dairy farmers in the Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Tairawhiti and the Manawatu appear to have not been too badly affected by recent storms across the upper North Island.
South Island dairy production is up on last year despite an unusually wet, dull and stormy summer, says DairyNZ lower South Island regional manager Jared Stockman.
Following a side-by-side rolling into a gully, Safer Farms has issued a new Safety Alert.
Coming in at a year-end total at 3088 units, a rise of around 10% over the 2806 total for 2024, the signs are that the New Zealand farm machinery industry is turning the corner after a difficult couple of years.

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