Government appoints three new directors to Pāmu board
The Government has appointed three new members to the board of state farmer Landcorp Farming Ltd, trading as Pāmu.
A programme of improvements on the Crafar farms will begin as soon Chinese company Shanghai Pengxin can settle on the properties.
The company says it is pleased with the Court of Appeal ruling in its favour and, with Landcorp, looks forward to beginning the improvements.
Shanghai Pengxin says the farms will be bought in the name of its subsidiary Milk New Zealand Holding Ltd and run by Milk New Zealand Farm Management Ltd, a joint venture with Landcorp Farming Ltd, which will honour all current arrangements made by the receiver with sharemilkers and staff.
"Our immediate priority is to begin the process of improving the farms, increasing production, and making sure we comply with all of the conditions imposed by the Overseas Investment Office," says a statement issued by Shanghai-Pengxin.
"We look forward to becoming part of our local communities and we will set up a local team to explore opportunities to add value to New Zealand milk through further processing by New Zealand companies and the sale of high-value dairy based products to China under the Pure 100 and Nature Pure brands."
Shanghai Pengxin thanked the many individual Kiwis and organisations who welcomed, encouraged and worked with them to help make their vision a reality.
"We believe there will be strong benefits to New Zealand as a result of us proceeding with our business plans, and we look forward to making a contribution to New Zealand's dairy industry and strengthening the relationship between our countries," it says.
"We will make further announcements in due course."
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.

OPINION: Meanwhile, red blooded Northland politician Matua Shane Jones has provided one of the most telling quotes of the year…
OPINION: This old mutt has been around for a few years now and it seems these ‘once in 100-year’ weather…