Wool’s deja vu moment is here
Released 28 Nov 2011
James Houghton is the Federated Farmers Waikato provincial president
Less than a year after the Wool Partners Cooperative failed to win over a majority of wool growers, they have another decision to make on a cooperative style industry venture. This time they have to decide which outcome from the battle over Wool Services International New Zealand (WSI)will benefit them more.
On one hand, carpet maker Cavalier has won its right to make an offer on the 64 percent of WSI shares held by Plum Duff and Woolpak Holdings, both former Alan Hubbard companies now in receivership.
If Cavalier's offer is accepted, it will have a monopoly on wool scouring in this country. Is this a bad thing? Cavalier says not, but farmers should also consider Wool Co's proposal to use farmer cash to buy up of the shares from receivers by pooling farmer funding.
This could be wool growers' last chance to take control of scouring in this country. There has been a fair amount of confusion about the offered deals, but it is important growers look at all the options on the table to secure the best outcome for their future.
I think the recent government enquiry into the price of milk would have been better off looking at petrol prices, how they are set around various parts of the country and who is subsidising who with those 4 cents off supermarket vouchers.
Some of my staff drove to Rotorua recently and noted the price between different brands spotted along the way could vary by up to 20 cents per litre.
I know where I would rather fill my tank; the cheaper place, even if it didn't take discount vouchers.
I am sure there is a large chunk of consumers, such as the young or the elderly, who struggle to even buy enough food in a supermarket visit to ‘earn' a petrol voucher who would agree with me.
If some places can afford to have their fuel that much cheaper, without forcing their customers to spend $200 or more at the supermarket, why can't they all do it?
There may be a logical explanation, but it isn't springing to my mind and with fuel making up an increasing chunk of my weekly expenses, I would like to know. With taxpayer funds used to examine milk from every angle, surely an enquiry into the price of petrol is overdue.
The National party will be leading our country for another term, which goes to show there amount of rational people in our society. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the other guys, except that I did not think their policies would not have done right by agriculture and New Zealand as a whole. May their policies and political success be better in 2014.
Many minor parties campaigned on expensive policies which they could never hope to deliver on, even as part of a coalition.
What were their voters hoping for when they ticked their boxes?
Thank goodness the campaigning is now over, although it was shortened by the Rugby World Cup.
Topping my list of campaign highlights was anytime Peter "Rambo" Dunne and his faithful followers stood up for the rights of possums, rats and stoats to wage war on our native wildlife.
They don't understand that 1080 might be a nuisance to possum trappers and feral deer hunters, but it is a small price to keep both our native wildlife and our multi-billion dollar beef and dairy industries safe.
What's next, a campaign to plant Old Man's Beard around the Tane Mahuta kauri tree?
Some kind of contamination from the Rena must have accidentally found its way into Tauranga's drinking water, because Winston Peters' campaign suddenly came to life in the last two weeks.
John Key and John Banks surely learned a lesson not to speak ill of the elderly, especially when they have invited the nation's media along to a tea party.
I doubt Mr Key will ever look the same way at a cuppa ever again.
Having dominated headlines throughout the year, the Maori and Mana parties seemed uncharacteristically quiet during the campaign period. Have they not realized the truth in the adage, divide and conquer? It is by working together they will achieve the most for their people, not by splitting their votes.
Labour floated through most of the campaign like the proverbial dead duck, but managed to turn the worm in their favour in the final leaders' debate. Phil Goff was admirable in opposing asset sales, However, insisting on a bunch of crazy agriculture policies which would have seen most family farms go to the wall, did not win me over.
Likewise Russel Norman and the Greens. Are their policies designed to meet the worlds' food needs? This is not the way to a richer, smarter New Zealand. It is time for them to get their heads out of the ideological box on farming and come up with some constructive ideas.
