Fonterra farmers have elected Canterbury farmer John Nicholls to the board. Nicholls received 53% support in the second director election; the other candidate Jamie Tuuta received 37% support. Nicholls’ election means Fonterra farmers have only elected one of the three … Continue reading →

IrrigationNZ has appointed Elizabeth Soal as its new chief executive. “IrrigationNZ has recently adopted a new strategy which focuses on creating an environment for the responsible use of water for food production,” says Nicky Hyslop, IrrigationNZ board chair.  “As part … Continue reading →

Global dairy prices posted their second increase in a row. Last night’s Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction saw the price index rise 1.7%. Whole milk powder price rose 0.3% to US$2674/metric tonne. However, Rabobank has downgraded its 2018-19 full-year forecast … Continue reading →

DairyNZ says it supports the Waikato Regional Council monitoring and increasing their focus on high-risk farms. DairyNZ says Waikato dairy farmers found to be significantly non-compliant are letting all farmers down by not doing their bit for the environment, so … Continue reading →

A cohort of 27 new NAIT compliance officers have graduated and will begin working with farmers. The officers graduated from their training programme on Friday. The new officers are part of a greater effort to educate farmers about their NAIT … Continue reading →

Independent milk processor Synlait has signed up its first Waikato dairy farmers. They will supply Synlait’s new Pokeno plant from 2019-20 season. Synlait’s entry into Waikato puts pressure on Fonterra and Open Country Dairy, who have dominated the milk supply … Continue reading →

Fonterra has appointed Mike Cronin as managing director cooperative affairs. Cronin will head the co-op’s corporate affairs and Farm Source teams. He takes over Farm Source management from Miles Hurrell who was appointed chief executive in August. Hurrell says the … Continue reading →

It’s been three years since the free trade agreement (FTA) was signed with South Korea and New Zealand cheese is making a significant impact on their shelves. The country is NZ’s fifth-largest cheese market, and in 2017 was worth NZ$120m … Continue reading →

Fonterra is leading the industry in some areas of sustainability, says chief executive Miles Hurrell. But there are areas where the cooperative has tried and hasn’t hit the mark yet. The cooperative’s second annual Sustainability Report doesn’t shy away from … Continue reading →

Farmers will have to look at their fundamental farming systems if they are to meet future nitrogen leaching limits. Farmers might not have to move completely away from “the philosophies we all grew up with,” says DairyNZ science manager Dave … Continue reading →