DairyNZ lifts breakeven milk price forecast to $8.68 for 2025/26 season
According to DairyNZ's latest Econ Tracker update, there has been a rise in the forecast breakeven milk price for the 2025/26 season.
OPINION: One thing I keep hearing from rural New Zealanders is the importance of relationships. Strong relationships don’t just happen - they take trust, consistency, and time.
It doesn’t mean that we’ll always agree – but it does mean that we’re willing to have robust and respectful conversations regardless of what side of the coin we are on. What matters is that we’re willing to sit down, have the tough conversations, and keep showing up.
That’s why I’m proud of the work Labour has been doing to keep those conversations going. At the recent Farmers Forum, I joined many of my Labour colleagues, along with representatives from DairyNZ, Beef + Lamb, Rural Women NZ, Horticulture NZ, IrrigationNZ and Federated Farmers. It’s not easy to get everyone in the same room - or out on the same farm - but it shows we’re serious about building trust and understanding.
We covered a lot of ground: pest control, local government, gene technology, environmental standards, and backing our farmers. One key discussion was the proposed shift from traditional resource consents to risk-based, certified farm plans. There’s strong support for cutting red tape, but we can’t lose sight of our long-term goals like swimmable rivers. The right balance means smart regulation.
There’s more to do. We need to keep talking about rural health, land-use change, job creation, better connectivity - including internet and postal services - rural disaster resilience, the cost of living, and how to support rural businesses. These issues go right to the heart of whether farmers can succeed, and whether rural communities can thrive.
We have a strong history of backing rural New Zealand. We signed game-changing free trade deals with China, the United Kingdom and the European Union – boosting exports, and opening up new markets for dairy, meat, and horticulture. We tackled Mycoplasma bovis head-on. We launched a Rural Health Strategy. And we worked with farmers to support innovation and protect our reputation for high-quality, sustainable produce.
The progress is under threat. The current Government has slashed research funding - cutting investment in sustainable land use and emissions research, and is winding down Predator Free NZ.
We’ll be at Fieldays again this year at our Labour Stall, and I’m looking forward to more of those good conversations. A strong future for rural New Zealand is something we all have a stake in, and we can achieve it together.
Jo Luxton is Labour spokesperson for agriculture.
Hosted by ginger dynamo Te Radar, the Fieldays Innovation Award Winners Event put the spotlight on the agricultural industry's most promising ideas.
According to DairyNZ's latest Econ Tracker update, there has been a rise in the forecast breakeven milk price for the 2025/26 season.
Despite the rain and a liberal coating of mud, engines roared, and the 50th Fieldays Tractor Pull Competition drew crowds of spectators across the four days of the annual event.
Nationwide rural wellbeing programme, Farmstrong recently celebrated its tenth birthday at Fieldays with an event attended by ambassador Sam Whitelock, Farmers Mutual Group (FMG), Farmstrong partners, and government Ministers.
Six industry organisations, including DairyNZ and the Dairy Companies Association (DCANZ) have signed an agreement with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to prepare the country for a potential foot and mouth outbreak.
The 2026 Red Dairy Cow conference will be hosted by New Zealand in March.
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