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The shipping crisis in the Panama Canal appears to be deepening.
The shipping crisis caused by Houthi rebel attacks in the Red Sea and problems with a lack of water in the Panama Canal appears to be deepening by the day.
Many of the ships heading to Europe with NZ produce are being forced to take the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, adding an extra two weeks to the journey to some of NZ's major markets.
One of the companies affected is Silver Fern Farms and its GM sales, Peter Robinson, says they have been told that there appears to be no easy fix to the present situation.
"We've been told that disruption in the Red Sea area could continue for many months or even years," he told Rural News.
Robinson says shipping companies are passing on the cost of re-routing, resulting in additional supply-chain costs for product on the water. He says the Middle East is also affected, with the main port into Saudi Arabia in Jeddah virtually inaccessible. Instead ships are unloading at Damman Port in the Persian Gulf and carting containers inland an additional 1600km to their destinations, Robinson says.
"Empty containers must then be returned to Damman Port adding further costs to importers."
Robinson says Silver Fern Farms (SFF) is closely monitoring timeliness of refrigerated containers due to longer journeys on land and sea. He says while it has successfully managed container availability so farm, they are advised disruption in this region could continue.
Robinson adds that SFF will continue to work closely with its global freight partner Kotahi, to ensure the product they work so hard to produce can make it through to customers in the UK, Europe and Middle East.
OPINION: A nation that relies as heavily as NZ does on functional global shipping lanes will have to do its bit on the international security front, hence the additional $1.58b in military spend over 4 years that Dame Lynda Topp thought should have been spent on sheet music.
Applications for Silver Fern Farms Co-operative's next board-appointed farmer director are open.
Silver Fern Farms has tackled the ongoing war-induced shipping challenges to mideast markets by airlifting 90 tonnes of chilled New Zealand lamb and beef to the United Arab Emirates.
Silver Fern Farms has successfully produced and delivered 90 tonnes of premium chilled New Zealand lamb and beef to the United Arab Emirates via airfreight.
There's optimism emerging among farmers on the Chatham Islands after years of an irregular and poor shipping service.
State farmer Pāmu is opening its farm gates this summer in an effort to give the rural sector the opportunity to see how large-scale, multi-system farming is delivering productivity and profitability across New Zealand.
A five-year study has found that the cost of reducing emissions without technology may be significant and unsustainable for Northland dairy farmers.
DairyNZ says Waikato farmers need certainty on Plan Change 1, but they say that certainty must be matched with practical, workable rules and a clear transition that doesn't get ahead of the new resource management system currently under review.
While the Government has moved quickly to make commercial hauliers' lot easier during the current fuel crisis, they appear to be stuck in the creep box when it comes to the agricultural industry.
Waikato farmers have been told that the Government’s new planning system legislation and the region’s Plan Change 1 (PC1) “won’t mesh together very well”.
More than 300 growers, exporters, researchers, service providers and industry leaders will descend on Queenstown later this month for EXPO 2026, the annual conference for New Zealand’s apple and pear sector.
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OPINION: A nation that relies as heavily as NZ does on functional global shipping lanes will have to do its…
