Alliance Group chief executive steps down
Alliance Group chief executive Willie Wiese is leaving the company after three years in the role.
OPINION: Your old mate hears some of the farmers involved in the Meat Industry Excellence (MIE) group ten years ago think the Alliance deal with Irish company Dawn Meats is “an absolute disaster” – and is the kind of outcome they predicted back then if nothing changed.
They say the detailed ‘Pathway To Long Term Sustainability’ report MIE produced identified the downward spiral this section of the meat industry was in and offered solutions for a profitable farmer-controlled direction.
The ‘Mega Co-op proposal’ was rejected by the Alliance and Silver Ferns management of the day.
The latter was subsequently taken over by Shanghai Maling.
Alliance will soon be controlled by an Irish company. So it seems the days of farmer control of the industry are over. Being right is cold comfort to those that saw this coming.
Fonterra’s impending exit from the Australian dairy industry is a major event but the story doesn’t change too much for farmers.
Expect greater collaboration between Massey University’s school of Agriculture and Environment and Ireland’s leading agriculture university, the University College of Dublin (UCD), in the future.
A partnership between Torere Macadamias Ltd and the Riddet Institute aims to unlock value from macadamia nuts while growing the next generation of Māori agribusiness researchers.
A new partnership between Dairy Women’s Network (DWN) and NZAgbiz aims to make evidence-based calf rearing practices accessible to all farm teams.
Despite some trying circumstances recently, the cherry season looks set to emerge on top of things.
Changed logos on shirts otherwise it will be business as usual when Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses are expected to change hands next month.

OPINION: Here w go: the election date is set for November 7 and the politicians are out of the gate…
OPINION: ECan data was released a few days ago showing Canterbury farmers have made “giant strides on environmental performance”.