Finding entrepreneurs and companies here or offshore to spearhead branded product campaigns in the United States is the next strand of SWAG’s workplan. When the Strong Wool Action Group’s CEO Andy Caughey updated Federated Farmers Meat & Wool delegates in March, he described the in-depth US consumer research SWAG had commissioned from San Francisco-based design-led […]
Exports
Economic Week – July 9
by Nick Clark, Federated Farmers Manager General Policy Commodity prices rise but freight issues biting June saw commodity prices continue to rise to new record highs, but freight costs and delays are also intensifying, according to the monthly ANZ Commodity Price Index. The World Commodity Price Index was up 0.8% June, taking the year-on-year […]
Beef + Lamb New Zealand sees growing US appetite for grass-fed and sustainably raised meat
The latest insights from Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) reported strong growth and increased demand for its grass-fed, pasture-raised beef and lamb in the US. Despite significant export and supply chain disruptions, New Zealand’s red meat exports reached a record high of $9.2 billion last year, with the US leading beef export volume growth across all key global markets. B+LNZ […]
Economic Week – May 28
by Nick Clark Reserve Bank points to rates hikes The Reserve Bank this week kept monetary policy settings unchanged but also signalled a path towards higher interest rates. The headline decisions were no surprise at all. The Reserve Bank kept the OCR on hold at 0.25% and it made no changes to its Large […]
Economic Week – May 14
Budget 2021. Next Thursday Finance Minister Grant Robertson will deliver his fourth Budget, and his first unencumbered by coalition politics and horse trading. What can we expect? This will be a Labour Budget. We can expect more spending on traditional Labour priorities like health, education, and welfare. There will be a focus on things like […]
Trade Minister to travel to UK and EU to progress free trade agreements
Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor announced today he will travel to the United Kingdom and European Union next month to progress New Zealand’s respective free trade agreement negotiations. The decision to travel to Europe follows the agreement reached last week between Minister O’Connor and UK Secretary of State for International Trade, Liz Truss, to […]
Economic Week – May 7
by Nick Clark, Federated Farmers GM General Policy Dairy prices slip again…. The Global Dairy Trade auction edged down another 0.7% at this week’s auction, on the back of weaker prices for fats more than offsetting increases for powders. Whole milk powder (by far the biggest product traded by volume) was up 0.7%, skim milk […]
Extra guidance for farm foresters a good move
From the Forest Owners Association The Forest Owners Association says the just announced creation of Te Uru Rākau – New Zealand Forest Service heralds the potential to fix vital bottlenecks in the initial stages of the forest industry supply chain and drive further timber processing downstream as well. The Association says the Minister of Forests, […]
Economic Week – April 30
by Nick Clark, Federated Farmers Manager General Policy Imports on the rise Despite a fall in petroleum imports, overall imports rose sharply to the highest ever for a March month while exports continued to slip. Statistics NZ’s Overseas Merchandise Trade statistics showed goods imports worth $5.65 billion in March 2021, up 11.0% compared to March […]
Feds: live export ban ‘surprising’
The government’s announcement this morning that live export of animals will be banned after a transition period of up to two years has come as a surprise to Federated Farmers, Feds animal welfare spokesperson Wayne Langford says. “The Minister has said this is all about protecting New Zealand’s reputation as the most ethical producer of […]