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."
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) has released its 2026 election manifesto, outlining priorities to support the sector’s growth, resilience, and contribution to New Zealand’s food security and export revenue.
Farmers have voted to continue the Milksolids Levy that funds DairyNZ.
Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell has resigned after eight years in the role.
Matt McRae, a farmer from Mokoreta in Southland who runs a sheep, beef and dairy support business alongside a sheep stud, has been elected to the Beef +Lamb NZ Board as a farmer director.
Ravensdown's next evolution in smart farming technology, HawkEye Pro, was awarded the Technology Section Award at the Southern Field Days Farm Innovation Awards in February 2026.
While mariners may recognise a “dog watch” as a two-hour shift on a ship, the Good Dog Work Watch is quite a different concept and the clever creation of Southland siblings Grace (9) and Archer Brown (7), both pupils at Riverton Primary School.

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