19-08-2023, 10:38 AM
(19-08-2023, 09:36 AM)king1 Wrote: Well I personally think Farmers just need to wake up to the new reality of climate change...Add to that the looming risk to NZ farmers of precision fermentation. Those big companies are cost driven and as their supplies can be met by much more cheaply produced (economically and environmentally) they will drop traditional farmers like a hot potato, and those with the worst environmental degradation will be the first ones ditched. This presentation gives the likely scenario for the change away from pastoral farming and Tony Seba has proved to be deadly accurate in his predictions for more than a decade now if not slightly on the conservative side.
It's a long read, but I read this statement below as a very good reason for farmers to get on board, otherwise they may find their market drying up...
Quote:At the same time, the commercial market has shifted, with companies like Nestle, Mars and Danone, which buy significant quantities of New Zealand milk powder, announcing they will only buy from suppliers who achieve significant emissions cuts. Their policies are driven by consumer preferences, as more customers demand lower emissions food. Offshore supermarkets, like British multinational Tesco, also have emissions targets.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/in-dept...-emissions
If NZ farmers think that their 'naturally farmed' produce will provide a market advantage over lab produced proteins this is all the more reason to get their shit together (pun intended) and prove the purity of their products. Whinging and bitching about the unfairness of environmental regulations will get them nowhere and reflects badly in the public arena to the detriment of our more responsible farmers.
Add to that the the golden rule of production that you must focus on the demands of your customers. In other words grow what your market demands as to produce what best suits your resources and then blindly expecting that customers will line up for your wares is a recipe for economic disaster, and that is what appears to be the case for our farmers, and especially dairy farmers. This combined with a refusal to add significant value to basic produce lines is totally the wrong way for a geographically isolated country like NZ to earn an income. The practice of exporting whole sheep carcasses was replaced by vacuum packed prime cuts decades ago but other producers continue to ship tonnes of dried milk and logs for example and can't understand why they're now on the bones of their arses.
Add to that the the golden rule of production that you must focus on the demands of your customers. In other words grow what your market demands as to produce what best suits your resources and then blindly expecting that customers will line up for your wares is a recipe for economic disaster, and that is what appears to be the case for our farmers, and especially dairy farmers. This combined with a refusal to add significant value to basic produce lines is totally the wrong way for a geographically isolated country like NZ to earn an income. The practice of exporting whole sheep carcasses was replaced by vacuum packed prime cuts decades ago but other producers continue to ship tonnes of dried milk and logs for example and can't understand why they're now on the bones of their arses.