Drought-like conditions come months too soon - Read more »

Farmers help shave trade deficit - Read more »

Environment Canterbury Commissioners deliver ‘a lesson for Wellington' - Read more »

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DIRA - Many of you will be aware that Government has tabled a Bill amending the sunset clauses within the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act (DIRA). The Bill also mandates for a further review when the new market share threshold levels are approached, rather than allowing for the competition policy to fall away. Federated Farmers has submitted against this current Bill, noting that looking at the DIRA in isolation from the changes Fonterra is making to its capital structure, is short sighted. We pointed this out to the Primary Produce Select Committee last week and have also told them to sort out the Raw Milk Regulations. To download a copy of our submission, please click here.

King Country drought shout - The message for farmers facing a potential drought at the Financial Drought Shout in Taumarunui last night, was that while you might not be able to control the weather, you can control how the weather impacts on your business. 60 farmers listened to tips about being proactive from farmers who had lived with the drought on the East Coast. Sharing a beer and a sausage with fellow farmers and hearing that 'we are not alone' was extremely helpful and the support from the local agribusinesses was really appreciated and indicated the true depth of concern - nearly as important as the heat shower that dropped 32 millilitres of rain!

Exports up in October - October 2010 export goods values were $723 million (24 percent) higher than October 2009, according to Statistics New Zealand, with the milk powder, butter and cheese commodity group was the major contributor to the increase in October export values. Meanwhile, the total value of goods imported for October 2010 was up $541 million (16 percent) from October 2009. In October 2010, the trade balance was a deficit of $319 million (8.7 percent of the value of exports), less than one-third of the average deficit of 29 percent of exports over the previous five October months. The annual trade balance for the year ended October 2010, was a surplus of $1.2 billion (2.8 percent of the value of exports), the largest annual trade surplus since 1994.

Commodity prices hit new record high - The ANZ Commodity Price Index lifted a further 4.5 percent in November, taking the series to a new all-time high, with prices higher for ten of the 15 commodities measured.  Last month it was the price of wool that surged, while this month, it's the price of pelts, which jumped 32 percent on the previous month. Lamb prices also rose strongly, up 6 percent, and wool prices lifted a further 3 percent. The prices of beef and dairy products both lifted 1 percent. During November, the New Zealand Dollar (NZD) strengthened against all the currencies of our major trading partners, so this constrained the lift in the NZD Commodity Price Index to 1.4 percent, leaving the series marginally below its peak recorded in May 2010.

Business confidence improves - The National Bank's November Business Update Survey has detected a ‘perkier tone', with a net 33 percent of businesses expecting better times for the economy over the coming 12 months, up 9 points on October. Meanwhile, a net 35 percent expect better times for their own businesses, up 4 points on October. Agriculture has also seen an improvement in sentiment, with previously negative sentiment about the general economy recovering to neutrality (from -14.9 percent to 0.0 percent) and more farmers expecting better times for their own businesses (from +14.9 percent to +19.6 percent). National Bank considers November's survey results a step in the right direction in making progress to rebalancing the economy from ‘borrow and spend' to ‘earn then spend'.

Or not? - Meanwhile, the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research's (NZIER) December Quarterly Survey of Business Opinion has warned that the economic recovery has reversed and that the recovery is going to be ‘shallow and volatile' with economic activity weak into 2011. The global risks remain elevated, which will impact on export growth, but the NZD will stay high due to the ‘currency wars'. As a result the Reserve Bank is likely to delay increasing the OCR until mid 2011. The NZIER survey is an important bell weather for general economic activity, but it does not include agriculture

Beef + Lamb New Zealand director elections - Nominations for two farmer-elected director positions (for the eastern North Island and the southern South Island electorates) on the Board of Beef + Lamb New Zealand will close on Thursday, 27 January 2011. Nominations must be submitted on the official form, which can be obtained from the Returning Officer, Warwick Lampp, via the Election Hotline - 0508 666 336. Voters in the two electorates are encouraged to check that they are on the electoral roll and this also can be done by calling the Election Hotline. Farmers who are not registered will need to fill out a voter registration form by Thursday, 17 February 2011. To be eligible to vote, a livestock farmer must have owned at least 250 sheep, 50 beef cattle or 100 dairy cattle as of 30 June 2010. Election day is Thursday, 17 March 2011 and elections will be conducted by postal and internet voting and forms will be posted out throughout February 2011.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand AGM remits - The 2011 Beef + Lamb New Zealand AGM will be held on Thursday, 31 March 2011 in Christchurch. Livestock farmers who want to propose remits are invited to submit them by Thursday, 27 January 2011. Remits must be submitted on the official form that can be obtained from Beef + Lamb New Zealand General Counsel, Mark Dunlop, by calling 0800 BEEFLAMB (233 352). Remits require ten levy payer signatures and all those farmers must be registered on the Beef + Lamb New Zealand electoral roll. Remits will be included with voting documents and sent to farmers throughout February 2011.

Nomination for Federated Farmers Goats board - Nominations are being called for the position of a South Island based, grower-representative on the Federated Farmers Goats board. Long serving member, Bruce Wilson, has indicated he will not be seeking re-election. Nominations close on Friday, 21 January and nomination forms can be downloaded by clicking here. 

Notices of motion for Federated Farmers Goats 2011 conference - Notices of motion are also invited and the closing date again is Friday, 21 January 2011. Forms can be found by clicking here.

Wool Partner's Cooperative share offer extended - Wool Partners Cooperative (WPC) has extended the closing date for subscriptions until 5pm Friday, 17 December 2010. Further information about the offer can be found by clicking here.

Federated Farmers/Harvey Norman special sales evening - Federated Farmers Manawatu/Rangitikei and Tararua would like to invite all members in these areas to a special sales evening in conjunction with Harvey Norman. Harvey Norman Palmerston North will be open to Federated Farmers members from 6 - 8pm Thursday, 9 December with a fantastic range of specials throughout all departments. There will be unbelievable deals on offer and refreshments will be provided. Registration and proof of membership is essential to attend and make purchases. For more information and to register, contact either Sue Wall on 06 357 4026 or Angela Hogg on 027 432 0174 or at angelah@fedfarm.org.nz.

2011 Federated Farmers Goats conference - The Federated Farmers Goats conference is heading to Central Otago in 2011. Preliminary information can be found by clicking here and registration forms can be downloaded by clicking here. An additional, optional, day has been added to the normal Federated Farmers Goats conference format, so that visitors to the area can enjoy some of the sights and tastes of Central Otago. This extra day will be on Monday, 21 February while the conference itself will be held on Tuesday, 22 and Wednesday, 23 February, finishing at lunchtime. Gold panning, curling and vineyard visits are also being planned, in addition to farm visits and the normal business of conference. The venue for next year's conference is the Centennial Court Motor Inn, Alexandra. 

How good are your milking processes? - The quality of milk produced on your farm directly impacts your profits, so it's important to always be ahead of the game with your milking processes. Agriculture ITO's Milk Quality Programme is a two workshop series that covers the most effective ways to keep your milk at its highest quality. Topics include milking machine components and maintenance, plant hygiene, animal health effects on milk quality, Somatic Cell Counts (SCC) and mastitis. To find out more about this course and many more, contact an Agriculture ITO training advisor on 0800 691 111 or visit www.agricultureito.ac.nz.

Out there South: A 4WD adventure in New Zealand's South Island - This book, Out there South: A 4WD adventure in New Zealand's South Island is a fantastic gift choice for any 4WD owner and an extraordinary record of a 4WD adventure through some of the most spectacular country to be found in the South Island, undertaken by leading photographers Chris Morton and Tony Bridge. Federated Farmers members can purchase this beautiful book at the great price of $39.99 (RRP $49.99), as well as free postage. To purchase your copy, contact Pauline at Craig Publishing on 03 548 9009 or at pauline@cpp.co.nz.

Stock up now for the holidays - Winesonline has its best ever selection of award winning Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc's, priced from as low as $7.95. To view these and all the other great holiday bargains, visit www.winesonline.co.nz.

Ravensdown Flysafe® - Trust Ravensdown to protect your sheep from flystrike with new Flysafe® Liquid and Flysafe® Spray-On. Call 0800 100 123 for more information.

Get a free Masport BBQ or lawnmower with Versatile - Buy any Versatile fully-constructed double garage (or bigger) and get either a Masport BBQ or Masport lawnmower for free. Hurry this amazing deal ends Tuesday, 30 November. Some terms and conditions apply, so see www.versatile.co.nz for details.

More member benefits and offers - To view special discounts exclusive to Federated Farmers members, please call 0800 327 646 or click here to log onto our members only area.

Quote of the week - "Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional". Chili Davis