Editorial: RMA reforms uproar
OPINION: The euphoria over the Government’s two new bills to replace the broken Resource Management Act is over.
TATUA MEMBERS of Federated Farmers are welcoming an all time record payout by a New Zealand milk processor at $9 per kilogram of milk solids (kg/MS) for the 2013/14 season.
The in-season forecast for 2014/15 is standing at $6.50 kg/MS.
"Tatua's tremendous trifecta is the only way to describe it," says David Fish, a Federated Farmers member and Tatua shareholder.
"It's an all-time record payout for any dairy company. It comes off record milk volumes for our cooperative and this year marks our centennial to boot.
"Most amazingly, the co-op has retained $1.32 kg/MS that will see nearly $13 million invested back into our business after tax. A year as we continue to build a major new dryer, which is an investment worth about two-thirds of our co-op's book value.
"We're small in the context of the New Zealand dairy industry but we are damn good at what we do with a focus on specialised quality products.
"I am also very pleased to see Tatua's forecast payout this season at $6.50 kg/MS. I believe there'll be another review in November but given what's happening internationally, it is a very good number.
"No one foresaw the international surge in production or the level of stock being held by China, now compounded of course by displaced European milk due to Russian sanctions. It's all collided more or less at the same time.
"Despite that, our co-ops smart business strategy is navigating these currents very well.
"While prices are flattish on the GlobalDairyTrade, there's massive demand out there. It isn't like the 1970s and 1980s when there were butter mountains. Those days are gone as consumers increasingly turn away from heavily processed food towards more natural ones," Fish says.
The Meat Industry Association of New Zealand (MIA) today announced that Chief Executive Officer Sirma Karapeeva has resigned from the role.
The winners of the 2026 Hawke’s Bay/Wairarapa Dairy Industry Awards were announced at the annual awards dinner held at Copthorne Solway Park in Masterton on Thursday evening.
Environment Southland is welcoming this week’s decision by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to approve the release of Blaptea elguetai, a leaf‑feeding beetle that will help control the highly invasive Chilean flame creeper.
This March, the potato industry is proudly celebrating International Women’s Day on 8 March alongside the International Year of the Woman Farmer, recognising the vital role women play across every part of the sector — from paddocks and packhouses to research, leadership, and innovation.
Fruit trader Seeka posted a record profit and returns to shareholders in 2025.
Recent weather events in the Bay of Plenty, Gisborne/Tairawhiti, and Canterbury have been declared a medium-scale adverse event.

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