A record milk payout for this season remains on the cards - but breaking the $10/kgMS ceiling will be a stretch.

New Zealand’s fledgling dairy goat industry is in turmoil.

According to Zespri, it will be supplying RubyRed to consumers in New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan and China.

Zespri is expecting this year to be one of its most challenging seasons it has faced, thanks to the impact of Covid across the global supply chain.

A recent global report says the outlook for the NZ kiwifruit sector remains strong due to expanding kiwifruit consumption in Asia, the EU and the US.

In a Covid-constrained season, where many horticulturists are struggling with the lack of labour, family-run Mill Orchard - at Loburn, just north of Rangiora - is enjoying a great harvest.

Successive drops in the price of whole milk powder have prompted Fonterra to revise its forecast milk price for the season.

Global dairy prices are retreating as Omicron takes hold in more Chinese cities, disrupting the world's biggest market.

Farmers are being told to expect further rises in fertiliser prices within weeks.

Some 300 farmers around the country - supplying 12,000 dairy cattle for export to China have been left hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket due to the non-arrival of a live export ship.