Author Archives: david

DESPITE ALL the hype and political theatre surrounding last week’s release of the Primary Sector Council’s report, Fit for a Better World Roadmap – Accelerating our Economic Potential, this document seems more like a horoscope than a clear guide to anywhere. … Continue reading →

Political pressure and strong lobbying by agriculture groups have seen sensible and practical changes made to Environment Minister David Parker’s previously over-the-top freshwater proposals that were released last September. These water reform proposals caused huge consternation in farming circles and … Continue reading →

If any good can come out of the current COVID-19 crisis it will be greater acknowledgement of New Zealand’s agriculture sector to the economy. It will be interesting to see if the Government, environmental lobbies, mainstream media and the general … Continue reading →

Former Prime Minister John Key said, at the start of the Level 4 Lockdown, that businesses should be concerned about their reputations. “Companies should apply the front page of the newspaper test to understand how its actions and announcements are … Continue reading →

It is especially more astounding given that other meat companies around New Zealand did work – at least for some period – during Easter. This came at a time when farmers around the country are experiencing long wait times to … Continue reading →

The latest MPI report on the state of NZ agriculture points to another good year ahead – with export revenue from the primary sector expected to rise by 3.3% in the year ending June 2020. Published late last year, the … Continue reading →

HOUSTON – OR more correctly Wellington – we have a problem. And that problem is a shortage of workers right across New Zealand’s primary sector. The latest example is the apple sector (story page 7), which is facing a potential … Continue reading →

ACCORDING TO a newly released Rabobank report, New Zealand farm businesses need to get ready for the full cost of environmental policies coming down the track as they make future investment decisions. The report says with the country’s agricultural sector … Continue reading →

IN THEORY everyone is happy with the deal struck between the Government and the agricultural sector over emissions. PM Jacinda Ardern and Climate Change Minister James Shaw waxed lyrical about how their agreement with the ag sector was a ‘world … Continue reading →

IT APPEARS the only people surprised by the plummeting levels of rural confidence across the country are the Government and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor. For months we have seen an endless stream of reports – from Rabobank, BNZ, ANZ, NZIER … Continue reading →