Red meat sector reaffirms commitment to China
The next phase of the Taste Pure Nature campaign has been launched in Shanghai, China.
Silver Fern Farms (SFF) says it applied for the wage subsidy to ensure it could retain workers when production levels decreased by up to 50% at some of its processing sites.
“This led to projected revenues being over 30% lower during April than the previous year, which met the criteria for being eligible for the wage subsidy,” SFF spokesman Justin Courtney told Rural News.
He says SFF also implemented significant new controls with physical distancing, hygiene practices and PPE in its plants to protect staff.
“This slowed our production levels by up to 50% at some of our sites – though we ramped up efficiency levels across all species. Through all of this we were able to retain and pay our staff.”
Courtney says SFF worked with the support of the union through this period.
“We committed to those employees that were still working during the Alert Level 4 and 3 periods that their pay will not be less than 95% of a normal pre-COVID-19 production day, despite lower throughputs and we also implemented a bonus for production staff.
“For any staff that could not work at all due to COVID-19 restrictions they continued to be paid at a weekly rate higher than the wage subsidy.”
Courtney says this covered those who were solo-carers, employees aged over 70 years and those who meet the Ministry of Health guidelines to self-isolate.
“[The wage subsidy] was applied for during considerable uncertainty for our company – both domestically around our ability to operate under Level 4 restrictions,” he added. “There was significant global market disruption for our products, with containers held-up in China, airfreights to Europe cancelled, disruptions in the Middle East and delays in containers returning to New Zealand for future shipments.”
Courtney says SFF is still monitoring its operating conditions, honouring commitments to staff and will pay any unneeded funds back.
“We are engaging with government in order to keep them updated on our progress given the situation has been so fluid through this period.”
On the eve of his departure from Federated Farmers board, Richard McIntyre is thanking farmers for their support and words of encouragement during his stint as a farmer advocate.
A project reducing strains and sprains on farm has won the Innovation category in the New Zealand Workplace Health and Safety Awards 2025.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ), in partnership with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and other sector organisations, has launched a national survey to understand better the impact of facial eczema (FE) on farmers.
One of New Zealand's latest and largest agrivoltaics farm Te Herenga o Te Rā is delivering clean renewable energy while preserving the land's agricultural value for sheep grazing under the modules.
Global food company Nestle’s chair Paul Bulcke will step down at its next annual meeting in April 2026.
Brendan Attrill of Caiseal Trust in Taranaki has been announced as the 2025 National Ambassador for Sustainable Farming and Growing and recipient of the Gordon Stephenson Trophy at the National Sustainability Showcase at in Wellington this evening.
OPINION: ACT MP Mark Cameron isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but he certainly calls it how he sees it, holding…
OPINION: Did former PM Jacinda Ardern get fawning reviews for her book?