Category: Country

Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s hoped a new $1.7 million wetland in Mid Canterbury will improve the once-thriving salmon run in the Rakaia River.

For the past 70 years, Glenariffe Stream – considered a key salmon-spawning site in the braided river – has been diverted to drain farmland.

The stream contributed around 18 percent of the wild chinook salmon that returned to spawn in the river.

For the small farming township of Rakaia, south of Christchurch, its river was once internationally-recognised for its abundant sea-run chinook salmon and other aquatic species, but population numbers have since drastically declined.

Now, three large high country farms have retired hundreds of hectares of land to return the river’s eastern branch to its original course, pre-agricultural expansion.

Forty-four hectares of the wetland habitat have also been restored.

With Fish and Game the project lead, its North Canterbury project manager, Steve Terry, said [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/571617/fish-and-game-family-fishing-licences-to-undergo-changes-to-remove-historic-anomaly

protecting spawning habitat] was one of the few levers available to help the fishery recover.

“Salmon numbers are at historic lows not just in Canterbury but across New Zealand’s East Coast rivers, with unfavourable, warmer ocean conditions among the key drivers of decline.”

He said while the ocean and climate could not be controlled, the efforts would ensure that when salmon do return to the Rakaia to spawn, their offspring have the best possible habitat.

“Glenariffe Stream is one of the river’s most significant spawning tributaries, and for 70 years it simply wasn’t functioning as it should. Getting it back to its natural course is a major step forward for the fishery,” Terry said.

The McIntyre wetland project was named after the late James McIntyre, who bequeathed $550,000 to the project.

Meanwhile, taxpayers fronted $784,000 towards the three-year project under the Ministry for the Environment’s freshwater improvement fund.

Double Hill Station retired 77 hectares of wetlands and waterways, Redcliffes Station stopped farming on 59 hectares of wetlands and native scrub, and a 200-hectare QEII covenant protecting the Hydra Waters for Mount Algidus Station.

Distressed anglers were raising the alarm about the Rakaia’s abysmal fish stocks and degraded river quality and flow, and were currently limited to catching just one salmon.

For the first time in 40 years, organisers of the annual Rakaia River Fishing competition did not weigh in any fish to allow the fishery to recover.

But Hunting and Fishing Minister James Meager said a range of options to help restore state of the fishery were being considered with Fish and Game.

“We have had some concerns over the stock of the fishery there in terms of sea-run salmon.”

But he said it was all about balancing the economic drivers with environmental outcomes.

Meager said a water conservation order in place here provided guardrails, so farmers could irrigate within safe environmental limits.

He said irrigators had high standards, and he hoped Resource Management Act reform would see consenting for water storage eased.

“It’s all a balance though, of course, because we have to generate enough economic activity in the region, and we know that water is a big part of that in Mid-Canterbury, while balancing that off against the environmental outcomes that we want to achieve,” Meager said.

“So particularly for this project, it reaches a good balance.”

When asked if the economic drivers versus environmental impacts were unbalanced, he said he did not think so.

“If you look at the progress that’s been made over the past 10, 20, 30 years in terms of farming practice, in terms of the awareness of our activity and the impact on the environment, I actually think we’ve come a long way.”

Meanwhile, environmental critics including fish veterinarian Peter Trolove said salmon returns were excellent before the privatisation of public grazing runs, following the High Country tenure review.

Published back at the turn of the millennium, the Glenariffe stream’s tenure review warned that land‑use changes could worsen river sedimentation, water quality deterioration and habitat loss-issues.

The Salmon Anglers Association will hold a meeting about the future of the fishery in Christchurch on Thursday.

The wetland restoration was a partnership with landowners, the Canterbury regional council, Cawthron Institute, Manawa Energy, Rakaia River Fishing Promptions and QEII Trust.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/21/taxpayers-invest-784k-to-new-rakaia-river-wetland-to-try-lure-salmon-back/

Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s hoped a new $1.7 million wetland in Mid Canterbury will improve the once-thriving salmon run in the Rakaia River.

For the past 70 years, Glenariffe Stream – considered a key salmon-spawning site in the braided river – has been diverted to drain farmland.

The stream contributed around 18 percent of the wild chinook salmon that returned to spawn in the river.

For the small farming township of Rakaia, south of Christchurch, its river was once internationally-recognised for its abundant sea-run chinook salmon and other aquatic species, but population numbers have since drastically declined.

Now, three large high country farms have retired hundreds of hectares of land to return the river’s eastern branch to its original course, pre-agricultural expansion.

Forty-four hectares of the wetland habitat have also been restored.

With Fish and Game the project lead, its North Canterbury project manager, Steve Terry, said protecting spawning habitat was one of the few levers available to help the fishery recover.

“Salmon numbers are at historic lows not just in Canterbury but across New Zealand’s East Coast rivers, with unfavourable, warmer ocean conditions among the key drivers of decline.”

He said while the ocean and climate could not be controlled, the efforts would ensure that when salmon do return to the Rakaia to spawn, their offspring have the best possible habitat.

“Glenariffe Stream is one of the river’s most significant spawning tributaries, and for 70 years it simply wasn’t functioning as it should. Getting it back to its natural course is a major step forward for the fishery,” Terry said.

The McIntyre wetland project was named after the late James McIntyre, who bequeathed $550,000 to the project.

Meanwhile, taxpayers fronted $784,000 towards the three-year project under the Ministry for the Environment’s freshwater improvement fund.

Double Hill Station retired 77 hectares of wetlands and waterways, Redcliffes Station stopped farming on 59 hectares of wetlands and native scrub, and a 200-hectare QEII covenant protecting the Hydra Waters for Mount Algidus Station.

Distressed anglers were raising the alarm about the Rakaia’s abysmal fish stocks and degraded river quality and flow, and were currently limited to catching just one salmon.

For the first time in 40 years, organisers of the annual Rakaia River Fishing competition did not weigh in any fish to allow the fishery to recover.

But Hunting and Fishing Minister James Meager said a range of options to help restore state of the fishery were being considered with Fish and Game.

“We have had some concerns over the stock of the fishery there in terms of sea-run salmon.”

But he said it was all about balancing the economic drivers with environmental outcomes.

Meager said a water conservation order in place here provided guardrails, so farmers could irrigate within safe environmental limits.

He said irrigators had high standards, and he hoped Resource Management Act reform would see consenting for water storage eased.

“It’s all a balance though, of course, because we have to generate enough economic activity in the region, and we know that water is a big part of that in Mid-Canterbury, while balancing that off against the environmental outcomes that we want to achieve,” Meager said.

“So particularly for this project, it reaches a good balance.”

When asked if the economic drivers versus environmental impacts were unbalanced, he said he did not think so.

“If you look at the progress that’s been made over the past 10, 20, 30 years in terms of farming practice, in terms of the awareness of our activity and the impact on the environment, I actually think we’ve come a long way.”

Meanwhile, environmental critics including fish veterinarian Peter Trolove said salmon returns were excellent before the privatisation of public grazing runs, following the High Country tenure review.

Published back at the turn of the millennium, the Glenariffe stream’s tenure review warned that land‑use changes could worsen river sedimentation, water quality deterioration and habitat loss-issues.

The Salmon Anglers Association will hold a meeting about the future of the fishery in Christchurch on Thursday.

The wetland restoration was a partnership with landowners, the Canterbury regional council, Cawthron Institute, Manawa Energy, Rakaia River Fishing Promptions and QEII Trust.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/23/taxpayers-invest-784k-to-new-rakaia-river-wetland-to-try-to-lure-salmon-back/

Source: Radio New Zealand

The cost of running a farm in New Zealand is more than a quarter higher than it was before the Covid pandemic.

ANZ’s latest Agri Insights report, which analysed financial performance across more than 4000 dairy, red meat, kiwifruit, arable and pipfruit customers over five years, found farm operating costs across the board were 27 percent higher than before Covid.

This was driven largely by increased labour and input costs like fertiliser, and on-farm cost inflation becoming structural.

The gap between average farms and the top performers continued to widen, pointing to significant untapped productivity potential, with leading operators consistently generating materially higher earnings per hectare through system optimisation rather than expansion.

The report’s co-author and ANZ’s head of strategy and execution – business and agri Marcus Bousefield said it showed farms must lift productivity just to stand still.

“Really everything is up on that pre-Covid area in terms of costs. We’ve seen it as a structural shift as opposed to just being inflationary and moving with the inflation cycle.”

Despite having the largest cost increases – which was reflective of their labour-intensive nature and impacts of wage pressures during and after the pandemic – the report found both dairy and kiwifruit had some of the strong returns.

Total kiwifruit farm income rose 59 percent driven by the maturing of post-PSA plantings and higher orchard productivity, while dairy also saw higher earnings per hectare achieved through improved milk production per cow and better herd performance, rather than expansion.

Red meat farms had modest income growth, with a wide gap between top-performing operators who earned about 80 percent more per hectare than poorer-performing counterparts.

Pipfruit faced the most challenges, including labour shortages and multiple weather events.

Bousefield said the report showed the strongest performances were linked to reinvestment and commitment to improving productivity.

“You can look to the singular price in commodity prices being a key leader of performance but that is always outside of farmers’ control.

“It’s really the sum of the parts of all the other components that drive the topline revenue piece that has a bigger bearer on what we saw as performance of the top 25 percent.”

Bousefield said this included factors like the execution of buying and selling, crop management and animal efficiency, particularly in the dairy sector.

He said farming was multi-generational industry where decisions made today would pay off in later years. He said it was at a junction point where stronger markets, coupled with agritech advances provided opportunity to improve efficiencies on farm.

Bousefield cautioned that conflict in the Middle East would continue to create global uncertainty in the shorter term.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/19/inflating-cost-of-running-a-farm-now-structural-report/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Shoppers will take another hit when the impact of the Iran war hits the supermarket shelves, a Foodstuffs boss says.

Households have already been feeling the pressure over the last year as shown by the release of new Stats NZ data.

Prices were up 4.5 percent on an annual basis in February, with mince up 23.2 percent, and sirloin steak 21.5 percent.

There have been warnings that the cost of food may rise further as producer and transportation costs increase, due to the Middle East conflict.

Foodstuffs North Island chief executive Chris Quin said before the Middle East war, two factors were driving prices up despite a drop in inflation.

New Zealand lived in a global economy and when export prices were strong, such as for red meat and fish, Kiwis had to pay more for them.

As well, bad weather hit fruit and vegetable growing.

Retail grocery prices went up around 3.7 percent, he said, which was lower than the overall 4.5 percent announced yesterday.

Supermarkets tried not to pass on all their costs and to manage their costs as efficiently as possible.

Asked if supermarkets were taking the same margin as a year ago, he said they were or were taking even less.

Regarding the Iran war, suppliers were talking about the pressure they were were under but it had not impacted on prices so far.

The cost of diesel was of particular concern both for transport and the impact it had on plastic products.

“It is unclear at this point how much of an impact it will have but it’s going to be very hard to suppress that impact depending on how long it lasts as well.”

The impact of the war was still to be felt on supermarket shelves.

“It’s a live conversation now but it’s not showing up on prices so far.”

There was no concern about getting supply as goods didn’t travel through the Strait of Hormuz, Quin said.

“It is unclear at this point how much of an impact it’s going to have.”

Quin expected that if there was fuel rationing the supermarket sector would be a priority.

He was happy with discussions underway with the government.

Domestic food production a priority

The flow-on effects from the conflict in Iran are being felt by farmers.

Fuel prices are up, and the Middle East is also a major player in fertiliser trade, producing about 40 percent of the world’s nitrogen fertilisers.

That’s a double hit for arable farmers, who rely on fertiliser to grow crops and diesel to run their machinery.

Federated Farmers arable chairperson David Birkett said without a doubt food prices would increase due to the conflict’s impact.

Higher costs of processing and transport were the two key factors, he told Morning Report.

If there was to be any rationing of diesel, farmers should be among those on the priority list.

“Domestic food production should be given some level of prioritisation when it comes to fuel.”

The arable sector was the biggest user of diesel, Birkett said. Harvesting was almost finished and crops would then be resown.

“The diesel price has affected us straight away, which is quite interesting given that the government says we have six weeks’ supply on hand.

“Yet the price goes up instantaneous when the war starts so there’s obviously some cost recovery being done there from the fuel companies I’d imagine.”

If diesel was rationed, that would be “a real challenge” for farmers, especially arable farmers who needed to use machinery.

The two main fertiliser cooperatives have indicated they already have supply to last through autumn which meant settled prices for “a little bit”, Birkett said.

However, for the peak demand time of spring, farmers were already concerned about both supply and price.

He did not expect prices to rise as high as the pandemic when prices doubled after all production stopped.

“Time will tell I guess.”

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/18/iran-war-will-lead-to-more-supermarket-price-rises-foodstuffs-boss/

Source: Radio New Zealand

A growing middle class enjoying products like cakes and iced-teas in China is seeing demand for New Zealand cream surge.

Fonterra is building a new UHT cream factory at its Southland Edendale site – which when complete later this year will produce 50 million litres of cream annually.

The co-ops chief executive of greater China Teh-han Chow has been visiting the plant this week to check on progress.

“It’s looking fabulous, it’s a really important site for us and it’s a really important investment for the food service business.

“We’re investing nearly $150 million in a facility that’s going to create a lot more UHT cream, it complements our existing facility in Waitoa.”

Chow said demand for cream is particularly strong in China but sales are up across the Asia region – so the plant has been designed to increase production if needed.

“Cream is in cakes, that’s very popular and it’s also being used in tea macchiatos a iced tea drink.”

He said demand is up as China’s growing middle class spends more on high quality food products.

“If you look at all the base fundamentals, you’ve got increasing urbanisation, increasing middle class and you’ve got consumers that are waiting higher quality products.

“In western markets we’ve seen a move from animal fat based diets to plant based – in Asia it’s the opposite, people want to move from a plant-based diet to a dairy based one because it’s seen as better, healthier and more nutritious.”

China’s economy has been struggling in recent years and it’s government recently lowered it’s GDP growth target to between 4.5 and 5 percent – the lowest since the 1990s.

But Teh-han Chow is upbeat – he said on the ground the cities are bustling.

“While growth is down, it’s still a good number so I think demand for New Zealand dairy products will continue to grow.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/18/demand-for-new-zealand-cream-surges-in-china/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Wattie’s New Zealand’s proposal to stop producing frozen vegetables is expected to impact the country’s already-hurting vegetable growers and seed producers.

The seed industry was taking stock of what last week’s announcement by one of the country’s largest food producers, would mean for growers.

A well-known packet of Wattie’s frozen mixed vegetables of peas, carrots and corn for example, perhaps no more under new proposals.

Phased closures were also being proposed at its food factories in Auckland, Dunedin, Christchurch and its packing facility in Hastings.

Around 350 mostly full-time roles would be impacted, including vegetable growers – around 220 of them in Canterbury alone.

Heinz Wattie’s previously said the decision was not taken lightly, but was a necessary step to position the company for the future.

Industry group Seed and Grain New Zealand chief executive, Sarah Clark said if Wattie’s stopped contracting vegetables from the region, farmers would lose income from both the crop and the seed.

“The Wattie’s proposal is a really big blow for the arable sector as a whole,” she said.

“Several of our members supply pea seeds for sowing to Wattie’s, so the direct impact to our members, the seed companies, of their proposal is that there’ll be less demand for pea seed, and that in turn means fewer contracts for the farmers, the people who are growing those pea seed crops.”

Clark said the decision was “probably a kick in the guts” for growers, after such a tough season marred by wet weather causing root disease.

She said this was worsened by the rapidly increasing cost of fuel and fertiliser, due to the war in the Middle East.

“The sector’s having a tough time anyway.”

Clark said there were other pea varieties farmers could incorporate into their crop rotation to plug the pea gap.

“Farmers will be hit with a difficult decision about how they maintain their other crop rotations, without either the fresh pea crop that they had growing peas for Wattie’s or the crop of peas for seed production.

“So yeah, it’s a bit of a double whammy for the farmers, unfortunately.”

Growers facing uncertainty

Key vegetable growing region Canterbury was also a seed powerhouse, producing more than half the world’s supply of hybrid radish and 40 percent of the global carrot seed supply, exporting to more than 60 countries.

Horticulture New Zealand chief executive Kate Scott said growers supplying Wattie’s now faced a great deal of uncertainty.

“This is tough news for the New Zealand vegetable sector and for the consumers who rely on locally grown and processed food,” she said.

“While we recognise this is a decision made within a global business, the consequences are very real here at home.”

Scott said growers could not keep producing crops without reliable markets for them, which over time would result in fewer vegetables being grown and processed in New Zealand.

“That would be a concerning direction for New Zealand. In a world where supply chains are increasingly disrupted and freight costs fluctuate; it makes sense to maintain strong domestic food production.”

Consultation on Wattie’s proposals will close next Wednesday on March 25th.

New proposals follow earlier cuts to crops

The company owned by American food giant Kraft Heinz decided to slash some of its crop intake following a review last year, impacting canned peach production, and corn, beetroot, tomatoes.

In recent years, the company made complaints about reports of cheaper imports being dumped into the New Zealand market to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).

MBIE carried out a number of investigations over the past decade into dumping claims of various products, including peach products from countries like Greece, Spain, South Africa and China, and potato fries.

Investigations could result in duties being applied, which happened for preserved peaches from Spain in 2022 and canned peaches from Greece in 2021, among others.

Owner Kraft Heinz also recently rolled back earlier proposals to split up the business, which it told RNZ in September was unrelated to the decision to reduce peach production.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/17/watties-nzs-proposed-cuts-a-really-big-blow-to-seed-arable-growers/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell has announced he is leaving the dairy co-op after 25 years.

Appointed the chief executive officer in 2018, he was tasked with leading a reset of the business to turn around Fonterra’s financial performance and rebuild farmers’ trust.

Hurrell said while it’s not an easy decision to step away, the time is right for the Co-op and him personally.

“When I took the role of CEO, I understood our financial results are not just numbers but the livelihood of thousands of New Zealand farming families,” he said.

“I have always felt a great sense of responsibility to do what’s right for farmers and I believe the Co-op is now in a really good place.”

Hurrell said Fonterra is entering the next phase in in it’s strategic implementation which marks a natural turning point for a new leader to step in.

The co-ops sale of its consumer brands to French dairy giant Lactalis went unconditional earlier this month

“I know that the business will be in good hands. There’s an exceptional team of people who will carry the Co-op forward and continue to drive value for farmers,” Hurrell said.

Fonterra board chair Peter McBride said Miles has a six month notice period, which enables an organised leadership transition.

“Board and management regularly discuss succession as part of good governance practices. We are confident we can run a robust selection process and appoint a new CEO in the coming months.”

He said he echos the sentiment of farmers when saying that Miles will leave with sincere thanks for his 25 years of loyalty and best wishes for the future

“Under Miles’ leadership the team has done that and more. From day one, Miles was able to unite the team under a single purpose and drive performance right across the business, setting the Co-op up for the future,” McBride said.

“On behalf of the Board, I thank Miles for his courageous leadership. He has overseen a significant strategic reset, focused on getting the Co-op back to its core strengths. In doing so he has helped lift Fonterra’s financial discipline and built the strong foundations the Co-op has today.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/16/fonterra-chief-executive-miles-hurrell-resigns/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Growers in the Gisborne region have a long-awaited alternative to road transport to get their produce out of the region.

The arrival of a new government-funded top lifter at Eastland Port is ramping up activity ahead of the busy kiwifruit harvest at the port’s harbourside yards.

Chief executive Andrew Gaddum said the company will now compete directly with trucking operators as it increases container volumes through the port.

Traditionally a logging port, it now sees potential to expand into the produce market.

“We haven’t had the gear to move containers around the port, but access to this funding has given us both the alternative to build a bit of resilience for the region. And at the same time, getting exports out of the region on boats, rather than being trucked,” Gaddum said.

“We’re leaning on Zespri pretty heavily to get containers on some of the ships they put through the port, to start making use of this equipment.”

Logging ships headed to China and Korea and charter Zespri ships currently use the port to move bulk kiwifruit in pallets.

“We’re looking to expand that more into the container space,” he said.

“Initially, we’re hoping we’ll see an uptick in volumes out of Kiwifruit.”

The region’s roads have been hammered recently and its expanded operations provide alternatives when the severe weather hits.

It’s estimated around $8 million per day in GDP is lost when State Highway 2 through the Waioeka Gorge between Opotiki and Gisborne is closed.

If the highway is closed for a week, the wider economic impact can exceed $50 million.

The port now has the facilities through its new heavy machinery which arrived within the past three weeks.

The Eastland Port company said there will be more activity to come, with its second berth to open shortly.

The Twin Berth development has been in the pipeline for the past decade, and it will mark a significant milestone with two 180-metre long ships to berth at the same time.

“That’ll be in the next couple of weeks. There’s a bunch of stuff coming together at one time which is exciting for the region,” Gaddum said.

“We’ve had our fair share of knocks, to be honest, but we’re trying to stand things up.

“We’re right at the start of this and we’re working with a bunch of regional exporters and wood processors to see how we can build a base of volume to attract some services into the region.”

Kiwifruit exporter Seeka says it’s now looking to invest further in local fruit handling infrastructure and capacity.

While National MP Dana Kirkpatrick said the investment demonstrates confidence in the region’s infrastructure and export potential.

“We’ve got plans for substantially more than that as we bring the volume on we’ll bring the kit on to meet the volume demand,” she said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/13/logistics-boost-for-gisbornes-eastland-port-ahead-of-big-kiwifruit-harvest/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Tim Garrick could win his third New Zealand Speed Fencing Championship at the Rural Games in Palmerston North this weekend.

The Gisborne fencing contractor competes in the lesser-known sport of speed fencing which he likens to its higher-profile cousin, competition shearing.

With the Golden Shears recently in the spotlight, Garrick said he could only dream of the recognition the top shearers received.

But he was seeing a rising interest in speed fencing.

“I guess in a lot of ways it’s similar to shearing. It’s what the country is built on and it’s quite physical,” Garrick said.

“Especially competitions like the Rural Games where it’s very public and livstreamed. It’s quite cool because a lot of people get to see it and it gets a lot of exposure.”

The sport showcased strength, speed, and precision with competitors racing to build a fence before officials made their final deliberations.

Strong, agile athletes are seen racing around the field carrying posts, and using heavy machinery and wires to construct a fence in less than 15 minutes.

The boring machines are roaring as the competitors dig holes in the ground for heavy posts, set diagonal stays, and string the fence.

Going in as the two-time defending champion, the adrenaline rush would carry him through the competition.

“It’s one of my favourite comps of the the year. You have 10 competitiors whittled down to the three that compete in the final,” said Garrick, who also won the Golden Pliers at Fieldays in 2024.

Garrick had been rushed off his feet recently in the hill country working on sheep and beef farms around the Gisborne region.

The work was flowing freely with farmers putting their rising red meat returns into fences. He was booked solidly for the next six months.

“The biggest influence lately has been the good stock prices, the phone’s been ringing non-stop,” he said.

“Farmers are feeling good about themselves and willing to spend a lot of money.”

And the demand for fencing was so great he had to be “careful” he did not take on more than he could handle.

And as a bonus, his work on the farm kept him in tip top shape for the competition stage.

The Rural Games kick off in Palmerston North this weekend with shearing, timber sports, sheep dog trials and even gumboot throwing.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/13/decorated-east-coast-fencing-champion-chases-three-peat-at-rural-games/

Source: Radio New Zealand

Exporters of live animals by sea are feeling “not flash” about the government’s announcement it will not resume the trade this term.

On Wednesday, senior National MP Todd McClay told RNZ the party would not progress the move to reverse a ban on live animal exports by sea.

It followed an announcement by Associate Agriculture Minister responsible for animal welfare, Andrew Hoggard, that he did not expect the legislation to progress this side of November’s general election.

“While discussions are ongoing, Cabinet has not agreed any final decisions,” he said.

Nearly three years ago, the Labour-led government banned the trade worth around $374 million in 2022, after a ship en route to China capsized in 2020, killing 41 crew members – including 2 New Zealanders – and nearly 6000 cattle.

But during the last election, there was a push for the practice to resume. It featured in coalition agreements between National and Act and National and New Zealand First.

Since then, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) had been working with industry to create so-called gold standards for live exports.

Industry group Livestock Export NZ’s executive director, Glen Neal said it spent years working closely with MPI on developing the new standards.

But he said he believed Cabinet did not understand that the sector was also focussed on animal welfare.

“The decision leaves us grasping for what the future of the sector really is,” he said.

“We couldn’t agree more with the SPCA and others that this is about animal welfare, which is why we work so closely with MPI on new standards; on standards that New Zealanders could justifiably be proud of, that lined up with our reputation as a proud trading nation in agricultural products.”

He said government went quiet on it last year.

“This decision announced from Minister Hoggard, unfortunately comes as no surprise. We haven’t heard much for the last nine months on this,” he said.

“We elected this government on the back of many promises, but one of them did include reinstating the trade, and so three years of missing $300 million in New Zealand’s rural economies, it does leave you scratching your head about why.

“Three-hundred million dollars, the minister mentioned last night, that per year. That’s what we’re leaving on the table in terms of trade with countries like Indonesia.”

Neal said New Zealand helped contribute to growing Indonesia’s domestic dairy herd, and China wanted this too.

He said these markets wanted dairy cattle from New Zealand, and may look to countries with lower welfare standards to plug the gap.

“Effectively, this decision just postpones the introduction of those good standards, postpones New Zealand’s re-entry into this market.”

Industry group Livestock Export New Zealand represented firms involved with the trade, like farmers, stock agents, shipping companies and veterinarians.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The National Party has withdrawn its support for resuming live animal exports by sea.

Animal Welfare Minister Andrew Hoggard announced on Tuesday that the government would not get round to resuming the trade this term as there were more pressing matters.

The government vowed to reinstate the trade with a new gold standard of animal welfare, but after making it into ACT and National’s coalition agreement – the plan seemed to get lost in the cogs of Parliament.

Speaking to Midday Report Minister of Agriculture Todd McClay said his party had withdrawn support for reinstating the trade.

“It was a policy that the National [Party] had before the last election, and I put it forward as our agricultural spokesperson then, now as agricultural minister. But I was also very clear that we had to have a gold standard, and for animals to leave New Zealand, it had to be the highest level of animal welfare and animal husbandry that New Zealanders would expect.

“We are not convinced that that is possible and so we’ve said that we won’t support that anymore.”

Labour banned live exports by sea three years ago due to animal welfare concerns.

Before the ban the trade which was worth about $300 million a year saw cattle shipped to China to help build the dairy herd there.

McClay said if a case could be made where animal welfare could be guaranteed National would relook at it.

“But I don’t think that is possible so we’re not supporting it. It’s not something I think we’ll see any time soon.”

Green Party spokesperson Steve Abel said National and ACT should never have committed to reinstating exports.

“Look, I think that neither National nor ACT did the background work on establishing if they were committed to the principle of upholding the highest animal welfare standards, which is what New Zealanders expect.

“Can they resume this fundamentally cruel trade? There is no veterinary expert who independently states that that was ever possible. That answer should have been able to be got before the last election.”

Abel said he was glad the truth has come to light.

“This gold standard idea is a public relations exercise that has no substance in fact and the minister, it sounds like, has rightly pulled the pin on the plans to resume live exports at sea.”

Abel said the live animal export industry wassn’t one National should be bending over backwards for.

“It’s a tiny cohort of particularly vested interests who want to reinstate this trade and the public don’t like it because New Zealanders do not want to see animals suffering.

“There should be no future for live exports in New Zealand and it’s a good thing if the National Party are committed to make sure it doesn’t come back.”

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Access to water, food production as a priority, and land use classifications are some of the issues primary sector groups are considering with the government’s proposed new resource management legislation.

Public hearings into the Planning Bill and Natural Environment Bill – which would replace the Resource Management Act – continued during the Environment Select Committee this week.

Primary sector groups generally supported the intent of resource management reform, but requested further changes to the drafts from the government.

The Environment Select Committee will consider all submissions before reporting back to Parliament by the end of June.

It said 2242 written submissions were publicly available, but the total number of submissions was confidential to the committee.

Wine

Water was a key issue for the country’s winemakers who warned that future access would likely become more difficult with climate change in a competitive market for users.

Wine vineyards covered around 44,000 hectares across Aotearoa, with the majority in Marlborough. The sector used water usually for irrigation, frost protection and then in winemaking.

New Zealand Winegrowers general manager for sustainability Dr Edwin Massey told the select committee on Monday, the RMA was no longer fit for purpose, as water became a more “scarce” resource.

“Certainly, water is absolutely critical for the success of our industry, largely along the east coast of both islands,” Massey said.

“And water is highly competitive.”

Massey said the sector prioritised efficient water use, and a market-based allocation, it opposed, could lock-up the resource.

“New Zealand is getting warmer and drier with less snow melt, and those east coast catchments are likely to, on long-term average, to have reduced access to clean, fresh water.

“So getting that allocation system right and basing that around incentivising sustainability, we feel is a great way to not only ensure export return, but also to protect the environment and its quality.”

Massey said wine companies metered their water use and reported back to the organisation to try to improve sustainability and efficiency of water use, under the Sustainable Winemaking scheme.

Group New Zealand Winegrowers represented 1400 commercial grape growers and wine companies.

Irrigators

Agricultural irrigators wanted the new resource management system to recognise the importance of food production and highlight their role as key infrastructure in its success.

Aotearoa has more than 900,000 hectares of irrigated agricultural land, mostly in Te Wai Pounamu/South Island.

These systems either stored rainfall when it was plentiful or extracted it from rivers and streams to feed crops during dry periods.

However, large-scale irrigation could impact river flows, degrade water quality from nutrient runoff, and cause soil issues.

Irrigation New Zealand represents around 5000 irrigators, irrigation schemes and farmers.

Chief executive Karen Williams told the Environment Select Committee on Monday, the proposed legislation replacing the RMA failed to highlight the role of natural resources in producing food.

“If irrigation and farming are framed primarily as environmental pressures, the system will regulate them mainly as activities to constrain,” she said.

“But when managed well, irrigated land strengthens food production, regional employment, and provides greater resilience to climate variability.”

Williams said water storage and distribution should be considered as long-life infrastructure in the legislation.

“So the decisions before this committee are very much about balance between protecting fresh water and enabling responsible use.”

But the Green Party’s agriculture spokesperson Steve Abel told the select committee, groundwater nitrate levels had significantly worsened since the advent of large-scale irrigation.

“Your industry is at the heart of some of our most chronic water contamination problems, particularly in Canterbury because big irrigation has driven dairy intensity,” he said.

“Isn’t your industry exactly the reason we need to constrain activities that could are going to chronically harm what is the collective commons, our freshwater?”

Williams said irrigation had enabled all sorts of agricultural land uses to evolve.

“Yes, it has enabled dairying, and the application of nutrients associated with any of those activities need to be carefully managed.”

The group said 90 percent of horticultural land was irrigated, 80 percent for arable, 40 percent sheep and beef, and 28 percent of dairy.

Livestock farming

Beef and Lamb New Zealand called for significant changes to the drafted legislation in its submission, arguing the wording in the legislation did not match the government’s own intent.

Chairperson Kate Acland said farmers could be worse off under the proposals, as setting and managing limits would likely see the need for more consents, not less.

“There are more onerous requirements on permitted activities,” she said.

“The lack of appropriate guard-rails on the exercise of ministerial and council powers in many areas and the lack of requirement to consider costs and benefits could result in significant economic impacts.”

Acland said freshwater health was incredibly important to farmers, rural communities and the country.

“We need to get the framework for managing this right. Changes to the legislation are necessary but I’m confident we can get to an enduring framework that’s practical and achievable.”

She said the drafted legislation lacked detail on how freshwater farm plans and other assurance programmes might fit into the consenting picture.

Federated Farmers too was concerned about compliance requirements and red tape for farmers.

Spokesperson Mark Hooper said a major concern was that, as currently written, instead of a farm plan replacing the need for a resource consent, a farm may need both.

“We see a risk of farmers facing more red tape under the Natural Environment Act than they presently do under the RMA,” he said.

“There are too many ambiguous, principle-based clauses in the two bills, which is likely to see continued expensive, time-consuming and litigious decision making.”

It raised concerns that the same farming activity might fall between the two Acts leading to more complicated and costly compliance processes.

It did not support a market-based water allocation system nor a levy.

Pork industry group, NZPork said it urged the government to ensure permitted activity rules enabled farmers to operate without unnecessary red tape.

Horticulture

Horticulture New Zealand renewed its calls for commercial vegetable production to be enabled in the new legislation, rather than hindered as it argued some growers faced now.

Some growers in areas like Waikato and Horizons regions have struggled to get consents, due to local, regional rules.

Chief executive Kate Scott told the Environment Select Committee last week, a clearer national direction for securing the supply of domestic production of fruit and vegetables was needed.

She said the government could create goals of either enabling the supply of fresh fruit and vegetables or making it an activity of national significance.

“The way these sections are drafted would mean that most horticultural activities would require a restricted discretionary or discretionary consent, even where growers are making environmental improvements,” she said.

“This is worse than the status quo, particularly for orchardists who do have a very minimal effect on freshwater quality.”

Scott said it was concerned permitted activities under the new system appeared to be more expensive for consent holders, than the status quo.

Horticulture New Zealand did not support the introduction of market-based water allocation, neither did New Zealand Winegrowers nor the Canterbury Regional Council.

It said the approach would allocate resources to the highest bidder or highest value user.

However, the Environmental Defence Society demanded changes to the drafts due to what it called significant weaknesses in the legislation.

It said regulatory relief risked undermining environmental protection, environmental limits lacked clarity, public participation would be stripped away and a narrow scope of planning.

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WorkSafe is mostly content with the health and safety of hundreds of orchards it visited late last year, but warns some farmers are still making risky decisions on farm.

Agriculture remained one of the most dangerous industries in Aotearoa, accounting for around [https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/regional/279795/man-crushed-by-tractor-in-bay-of-plenty

30 percent of injuries at work.]

The workplace health and safety regulator said it did not issue fines during its compliance campaign when it visited just under 660 horticultural businesses nationwide throughout July to September, but a number of infringement notices.

It said hazardous chemicals management was the most significant area of concern, followed by machinery safety issues and working in and around vehicles.

Inspectors said improvements around chemical management were required at just under 40 percent of the assessments.

Project lead, Carl Baker said many failed to have adequate hazardous chemicals inventories or safety data sheets in place that were required.

He said their main concerns were the administrative controls.

“Any business is meant to keep a list of the chemicals they have in their workplace, the quantities,” he said.

“The inventory is designed to help obviously the companies, but also emergency services when they turn on up, so they know what they’re facing.

“We found a high percentage of businesses out there didn’t have that in place.”

Baker said safety data sheets helped give workers an understanding of possible harm from chemicals and precautions that should be in place for their use, like protective personal equipment.

Eighteen percent of assessments found machinery safety issues, and 15 percent had issues of working in and around vehicles, usually around the use of helmets.

Baker said inspectors noticed an ongoing trend of unguarded power take-off shafts between the tractor to its implement.

“There’s a guard that goes around that because that spins at such a high revolution it creates a risk of people if you get in contact with it of getting in entanglement.

“That’s a really straight-forward fix. All they do is have to put a guard or cover over the top of it. But it’s one of the deadliest hazards that we probably would face on a farm is that unguarded PTO.”

He said another issue around vehicles was the lack of seatbelts being used on side-by-sides.

“We did identify a bit of a trend out there that the seatbelt was being plugged in behind the back. So the farmers were bypassing that safety feature,” he said.

“As we know with side-by-sides, just like a vehicle on the road, a seatbelt is designed to make you obviously safe in an instant.”

Horticulture New Zealand helped connect WorkSafe with growers the regulator said it previously had limited access to.

Chief executive Kate Scott said any injury was one too many, and it was using data like from these visits to better understand the causes of on-orchard injuries and develop training tools and solutions.

“The findings show where guidance and practical tools can make a real difference,” said Scott.

“We’re using data to better understand the causes of injury and develop training and tools that address risks such as sprains, cuts, machinery, weather exposure, and hazardous substances.”

There were 16 work-related deaths in agriculture throughout 2024, though the most common type was associated with injuries from livestock.

WorkSafe was set to report back about its health and safety sector compliance, next for sheep, beef and dairy farms it visited between October and December.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Supply pressure and buying interest saw dairy prices continue their climb at the latest Global Dairy Trade auction overnight.

The average price rose 5.7 percent overnight to US$4301 (NZ$7299) a tonne.

It was the fifth consecutive auction where prices have risen since the start of the year and followed a 3.6 percent rise at the previous one.

The New Zealand exchange’s head of dairy insights Cristina Alvarado said even though milk production has been high in the key global regions the volume on offer at the event was down.

She said Fonterra was the company with one of the biggest offerings, but New Zealand was now heading toward the end of its milking season.

“New Zealand’s milk production curve is now firmly in seasonal decline, and forward offer volumes through March to May indicate further easing,” she said.

“At the same time, growing domestic protein demand in the United States and new cheese capacity not yet operating at full utilisation are absorbing milk locally.”

She said with the tightness of product in the US demand was higher for certain products, particularly skim milk and butter.

“We’ve seen a pattern in this last year of more buying what you need rather than building large stocks.”

The important whole-milk powder price, which influences farmer payouts, rose 4.5 percent to US$3863 a tonne.

There were price gains across the board too with skim milk powder up 9.1 percent, along with butter up 6.1 percent, mozzarella 7.9 percent and cheddar 4.3 percent.

The regions which bought most of the product were North and South Asia, however, Alvarado said in terms of percentage buying there was an increase from those in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

“With ongoing geopolitical tensions affecting Middle Eastern logistics and trade lanes, and in the absence of recent Algerian tenders in the region, it is notable that EMEA [Europe, the Middle East and Africa] participation strengthened rather than retreated.”

Alvarado said the Middle East was a “significant” and “growing” market for New Zealand – among our top three buyers.

“It’s definitely a key region and we would hope that despite everything going on and as we saw at the auction today they’re still buying product, even more so.”

While the conflict had brought “some logistics challenges”, she said it presented a competitive advantage for New Zealand in getting supply to its key buyers in Asia over other competitors in Europe.

Alvarado expected prices to remain steady with continued prices increases, though possibly at lesser rates.

“I don’t really see them dropping as there is a need for product and from our end we are heading towards the end of our season.”

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Ravensdown says it has enough fertiliser in the country or on the way to cover autumn – so any price impacts due to the war in the Middle East won’t be felt immediately.

The Middle East is a significant player in fertiliser trade with about 40 percent of nitrogen fertilisers coming from the region.

It’s also a major producer of liquid natural gas which is used to manufacture fertilisers.

Ravensdown chief operating officer Mike Whitty said fertiliser prices will rise due to the conflict but by how much and for how long is not known.

“We saw last year in June when there was conflict with Israel, the US and Iran that prices for energy and nitrogen increased reasonably rapidly, by about 15 percent, but then they came down just as fast about two weeks later – so it really depends how long this conflict is going to continue for really.

“We are expecting a significant spike in prices, we are watching the price daily and everyone is waiting to see what happens in the straight because a lot of the worlds fertiliser trade travels through there.”

Whitty said farmers shouldn’t panic.

“The important thing is we have enough fertiliser in the country or on the water coming here to cover all our autumn needs, so it won’t be an issue until later in the year but that’s only if the conflict continues.”

Another complicating factor in fertiliser trade at the moment is China another major producer of nitrogen is not exporting – every now and then it stops sending product offshore in order to protect domestic supply.

Whitty said Ravensdown is well versed in dealing with geo-politics and has solid relationships with suppliers.

He said there are other options to source nitrogen fertiliser if the Middle East war is prolonged – including Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and some countries in Africa.

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Warning some of the images in this article may be distressing for some people.

More than 31,000 New Zealanders want an independent “Commissioner for Animals” to improve animal welfare for companion and farmed animals.

A petition launched by a group of animal protection organisations was taken to Parliament on Tuesday calling on the Government to establish the parliamentary commissioner role.

Proponents said animal welfare offences like abuse or neglect were being under-reported or even permitted under sector regulations in Aotearoa under the Government’s current system.

At present, the Ministry for Primary Industries enforced animal welfare laws, particularly with production animals, and could pursue prosecutions for offenders.

In addition, there was the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) which advised the Agriculture Minister responsible for animal welfare, Andrew Hoggard, and also the National Animal Ethics Advisory Committee (NAEAC).

MPI provided funding to SPCA for some of its mahi too.

But a collective of 21 animal protection organisations – including SAFE, Greenpeace, HUHA, World Animal Protection and more – wanted the Commissioner role to be created to address concerns about the independence of these government bodies, which it argued was hurting welfare outcomes for animals.

Theroetically, this Commissioner would operate like a watchdog, similar to the Ombudsman or the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

SAFE chief executive, Debra Ashton said the animal welfare system for both companion and production animals was broken, poorly resourced and lacked enforcement – so independent oversight was urgently needed.

“I think that staff at MPI do the best that they can. But the system that we have currently means that their priority is to increase productivity and to increase exports,” she said.

“So when financial and profitability are your priorities, animal welfare considerations are going to come secondary.

“A Commissioner for Animals would have a goal of ensuring animal welfare and making sure that we can have a better system that works for animals.”

Ashton said examples of welfare standards being overlooked in the interest of productivity, included the continued use of farrowing crates for mother pigs, and cages or barns for hens.

She said welfare regulation for production animals was being shaped by farming industries that profitted from using animals.

The case for an Animals Commissioner was explored in depth by the Animal Law Association in its December report, written by Alison Vaughan, who was now the senior scientific officer at SPCA.

The report said while MPI had policies to manage individual conflicts of interest, they did not address structural conflicts between its economic export growth and animal welfare goals, excluded by Public Service guidelines.

“Overall, MPI’s incompatible economic and animal welfare goals are in direct conflict with one another. It seems impossible to pursue economic growth without some negative impact on the welfare of animals,” it read.

“That is not to say MPI does not care about animal welfare; but its structure prevents it from giving both goals equal priority.”

But MPI’s director of compliance and response, Glen Burrell said it was committed to ensuring animal welfare and had a strong system to take action when required.

“The ministry looks at approximately 3,000 animal welfare cases each year, identified through proactive visits (either on farm or at places like sale yards), our 200 vets at meat works around the country, and public complaints,” he said.

Its animal welfare workforce included more than 50 inspectors, including managers who could act as inspectors, across a number of different teams.

For lower level offending, it issued 584 infringement notices during the 2024/25 financial year, and so far 369 were issued this financial year (25/26).

Investigations by inspectors could also lead to prosecutions for more serious offending.

The Green party’s animal welfare spokesperson Steve Abel accepted the petition on Tuesday.

He said the Greens had wanted for some years now to establish a Commissioner for Animals to independently monitor and advocate for animal rights.

A survey run by SAFE in September found that 85 percent of the 1000 New Zealand adults who responded were concerned the Animal Welfare Act requirements were not always upheld.

Ninety-eight percent also believed it was important to protect animals from cruelty and neglect.

Other members of the Commissioner for Animals Alliance included Animal Evac, Chained Dog Awareness, Companion Animals NZ, Goat Welfare NZ, Greyhound Protection League NZ, Māui & Hector’s Dolphins Defenders, New Zealand Animal Law Association, NZAVS and World Animal Protection.

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Government’s plans to change KiwiSaver regulations for farmers and others, opens the door for retirement funds to be used to invest in a business or a rental property.

The proposed changes would alter KiwiSaver to allow first-time farm buyers to buy a farm business with a home, while workers in employer-provided housing would be able to withdraw funds to buy a first home — but not as their primary residence.

Fund managers said the proposed change could equally apply to a shopkeeper buying a business with living accommodation upstairs, or a New Zealand miner living in worker-accommodation in Western Australia and wanting to use their KiwiSaver to buy a house in New Zealand.

Kōura Wealth managing director Rupert Carlyon said the government proposal aligns with the National Party’s efforts to make KiwiSaver withdrawals available to New Zealanders who want to invest or own a business.

“It’s been pretty well flagged by National, I think for quite a long time that they want to do this,” he said, adding the proposal was raised at least three times over the past four or five years.

“National (has) been trying pretty hard to figure out ways to allow people to withdraw KiwiSaver for business purposes.”

Simplicity managing director Sam Stubbs said the KiwiSaver was designed to be a long-term retirement savings plan, rather than a savings plan to buy a business or a rental property.

He said letting farmers buy a farming business with a house on it is much the same as many other types of businesses, such as dairy owners who live upstairs from their shop.

“So what you’re doing here is you’re making an exception for farmers, and it’s understandable why they’re doing that, but it is also challenging, because maybe other people should benefit from the same set of rules,” Stubbs said.

“To make an exception just for farm workers is, I think, a little bit unfair to the other New Zealanders who may be in those circumstances.”

In any case, Carlyon said the changes would make little difference.

“I very much doubt there will be very many farmers that end up using KiwISaver to buy their farms that are not already doing so,” he said, adding that farmers could already buy a farm using their personal name, rather than a business name.

“I also support the idea that people provided with housing for their work will be able to buy a house using their KiwiSaver,” he said.

“My only concern would be – is this a great use of Parliament’s time. I suspect we are talking about hundreds of additional withdrawals a year here — a lot of effort for a pretty small change.”

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Thousands of shipping containers filled with New Zealand exports bound for international markets are caught up in the Midd le East conflict.

New Zealand has a free-trade deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council which includes countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE and Oman.

New Zealand exported $3.1 billion worth of product there in the year to June last year – mostly dairy, red meat and horticulture products.

Shipping firm Kotahi, which was set up by Fonterra and Silver Fern Farms, said it’s working with its carrier partners and customers to identify contingency plans and alternative routes for cargo destined for the Middle East or scheduled to transit through the region.

Chief executive Emma Parsons said all shipping lines have suspended services through the Strait of Hormuz due to the Middle East conflict, Kotahi currently has 4000 TEU (equivalent 20-foot containers) of cargo in transit on this trade lane.

“Kotahi is closely monitoring developments in the Middle East and is well positioned to respond quickly to support New Zealand exporters in this evolving situation.”

The Meat Industry Association said nearly all our exports to the Gulf Co-operation Council, which were worth $298 million last year, go through Hormuz.

“While there are other ports outside the Gulf for some of the GCC countries, such as Jeddah for Saudi Arabia and Soha for Oman, these are likely to face significant congestion and delays if the ports inside the Gulf can’t be accessed,” a spokesperson said.

“If Hormuz is closed, congestion and delays will primarily impact chilled exports to the Middle East, which were worth $166 million last year.”

The association said disruption in the straight won’t affect exports to the United Kingdom and Europe as New Zealand red-meat products are shipped via the Red Sea or around Africa.

Dairy giant Fonterra said it’s monitoring the situation closely, “It’s too early to say what the impact will be.”

“The Middle East is an important and complex region and we are well versed at trading through geopolitical and trade volatility along with supply chain disruptions.

“However, the situation remains highly unpredictable, with a variety of scenarios that could play out over time.”

Export New Zealand executive director Joshua Tan said it’s important exporters monitor developments.

“I think at this stage there are probably more questions than answers, given that it’s all happened over the last 48 hours.

“I think overall, there are probably three key issues for global supply chains at this point. That’s the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and how that affects shipping lanes, but then also the global oil supply, the closure of major airports in the region, and then the anticipated resumption of attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.”

Tan said exporters have product on the water heading towards affected ports.

“Exporters need to work with their logistics providers early on about what to do. It’s about keeping your customers and your clients informed about what potential delays there might be and what you’re doing to mitigate those.”

Tan understands the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade is organising a briefing for exporters.

“Companies learnt some really valuable lessons about resilience during Covid – certainly the need to increase communications up and down the supply chain. improving relationships with customers and also those logistics providers, but then also the need to consider a just-in-case inventory model in markets and holding higher stock levels overseas.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

It is time for the food sector to have difficult conversations about its emissions, particularly beef and dairy. That was the message from a top UK scientist at the Riddet Institute’s Agrifood Summit.

Sir Charles Godfray from Oxford University is a population biologist and director of its Future of Food programme.

Addressing food security and sustainability at the Wellington gathering this week, he said while there had been concerns about how to feed a burgeoning population – expected to hit over 10 billion people by the 2080s – the bigger issue was how to feed them while ensuring adequate nutrition.

“We now know that if you bring people out of poverty, if you provide them with education, especially for girls, then human population fertility goes down. So we can now intellectually think about a time when humanity’s demands on the planet to produce food will plateau and even go down.”

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In particular, there were challenges about feeding an ageing population, Sir Charles said.

“Old people demand different, a different type of food than the younger people.”

Addressing protein deficits and improving diets, particularly in low-income countries, was another challenge facing the food sector with the “fetishisation of protein” in recent years.

Sir Charles said high- and middle-income countries like New Zealand had to avoid the “hypocrisy” of lecturing lower-income countries on how to manage this in a warming climate.

He thought it likely the world would begin to see more and more extreme events associated with climate, so that the effects of the food system on the climate and the climate on the food system would become “undeniable”.

“We need to have proper conversations about livelihoods and just transitions and how sectors can transform.

“When we talk about the challenges of milk and dairy in high-income countries, we must be very careful not to transpose those worries onto low-income countries, especially low-income countries where animal-based agriculture are so important.”

Sir Charles said it was possible ultra-processed foods, or UPFs, may become an important tool in addressing these challenges.

“There will be challenges in the global food system that may require foods that would be categorised as ultra-processed foods. If you think that UPFs are just the devil and can never be improved, then that is to me worrying because we will need these foods to address, for example, environmental things.”

While many contained “a lot of fat, a lot of sugar, a lot of salt” and were designed to be eaten very quickly, thus making them “energy dense” and increasing the risk of overconsumption, he said more work was needed to better understand their possible benefits as well as the harm they can cause.

Food producers had also yet to grapple with the consequences of the rise of GLP-1s – medication which mirrored our natural hormone GLP-1 to suppress appetites and regulate blood sugar levels.

Sir Charles said figures suggested about 15 percent of people in the US were using GLP-1s, and food companies like Nestlé were starting to develop products tailored to these needs.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/02/28/country-life-an-oxford-professor-on-the-future-of-food-and-food-production/