Strange bedfellows
OPINION: Two types of grifters have used the sale of Fonterra's consumer brands as a platform to push their own agendas - under the guise of 'caring about the country'.
This old mutt has been a long-time critic of the multi-national, tax-dodging, political activist group Greenpeace for its sustained and never-ending attacks on the New Zealand farming sector.
So, your old mate was not surprised to see the group’s latest anti-farming campaign, this time calling for a ban on the use of nitrogen fertilisers.
Greenpeace is nothing if not consistent in its hatred of farming, having spent the last few years blaming the agricultural sector for polluting the country’s waterways and rivers, campaigning against irrigation and criticising agriculture’s greenhouse gas emissions. However, what the Dutch-headquartered organisation (estimated annual budget at least $420 million) seem totally oblivious to is the old truism: ‘It’s hard to be green when you are in the red’.
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.