Reeling from two consecutive years of heavy losses, Alliance says it has appointed Craigs Investment Partners to explore external capital-raising options.

After a tough 18-plus months, there is now an air of optimism in the sheepmeat market as we hit the start of the 2024-25 export season.

OPINION: How do you keep a farming business viable?

When Kelvin Wickham stepped into the chief executive's role at Ballance Agri-Nutrients one year ago, it was more challenging than he had expected.

Lower sales affected fertiliser co-operative Ballance's revenue and gross profit for the last financial year.

Fertiliser co-operative Ballance’s revenue and gross profit tumbled last year as the co-op prioritised passing on price and cost savings to customers through the year.

As a sign of the times, a sharp downturn in the global demand for tractors and machinery has seen some of the global players announcing lacklustre half yearly results.

Earlier signalling by the dairy industry of how many hectares of maize silage is required each season would assist maize growers to better plan their planting programmes, says the Foundation for Arable Research’s Ivan Lawrie.

The four-day National Fieldays at Mystery Creek last week attracted 106,000 visitors.

After the volatility of recent years, stockfood prices and availability have now stabilised, according to J Swap Stockfoods general manager Morgan Swap.