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Sales of tractors and farm machinery have hit a new record.
Sales of tractors and farm machinery hit a new record in 2018 and there are no signs of a slow down.
NZ Tractor and Machinery Association (TAMA) figures to the end of December showed a total of 4640 retail sales across all HP (horsepower) categories compared to 4079 in 2017 and 4062 in the boom dairy year of 2014.
TAMA president, John Tulloch expects the strong sales trend to continue through 2019 unless there was a global event that had a sudden impact.
“Of course we never know what the weather will throw at us but most of our customers are used to dealing with climate variations, even extreme ones. We’ve had a wet season but that could well be followed by a dry season.”
The dairy industry, which accounts for a large proportion of TAMA sales, was looking to improve based on the last four global dairy trade auctions. The latest auction on January 15 resulted in a GDT price index increase of 4.2%.
The increases were reflecting the flow-on impacts of the European summer drought on local dairy production there, Tulloch said. The current Australian drought would also affect production across the Tasman.
“When global supplies are tight and demand is good then prices have to go up. This would be a welcome relief to our industry after recent difficulties for dairying.”
The improving outlook combined with new environmental restrictions being introduced in New Zealand might see more dairy farmers, especially those in the South Island, move to wintering cows inside.
Under-roof wintering causes less damage to pastures and results in less effluent run-off. It also boosts the condition of dairy cows.
“As profit returns to dairy we expect that farmers will look at the benefits of wintering inside. These cows are in better condition because they don’t have to walk in the cold and are fed a more balanced diet rather than just grass.
A move to inside wintering would be a positive trend for the dairy industry, Tulloch said.
“It benefits farmland and surrounding environs as well as ensuring the cows receive good care. It requires substantial investment but the benefits are clear.”
First up to the podium at the recent Tractor and Machinery Association (TAMA) Conference in Wellington, Minster for Agriculture, Todd McClay, reflected on a difficult 12 months, but hinted at signs that things were turning the corner, saying “when ag does well, New Zealand does well”.
A 2022 Nuffield scholar, Lucie Douma, was brought up on a Southland dairy farm and as a hobby likes the risky business of trail running and ultra marathons.
The recent Tractor and Machinery Association (TAMA) conference in Wellington was signalling cautious optimism on the back of rising milk and store cattle prices and drops in interest rates.
Deere NZ territory manager Jaiden Drought was elected new president of the Tractor and Machinery Association (TAMA) at its August annual meeting.
Following a couple of bumper sales years when the rolling year-to-date figure for 2022 hit about 16,250 tractors, it looks like things are changing in the Australian farm machinery landscape.
Farmlands says that improved half-year results show that the co-op’s tight focus on supporting New Zealand’s farmers and growers is working.
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) says that discovery of a male Oriental fruit fly on Auckland’s North Shore is a cause for concern for growers.
Fonterra says its earnings for the 2025 financial year are anticipated to be in the upper half of its previously forecast earnings range of 40-60 cents per share.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is having another crack at increasing the fees of its chair and board members.
Livestock management tech company Nedap has launched Nedap New Zealand.
An innovative dairy effluent management system is being designed to help farmers improve on-farm effluent practices and reduce environmental impact.
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