May 15, 2026 • 40 mins
Jamie Mackay talks to Scott and Stacey Mackereth, Emma Higgins, Dr John Roche, Winston Peters, and Jane Smith.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
agribusiness experience.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Grow with Rubbobank. She's living in a run.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
I bet you never had a bad stream guy, mom, than.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Never soul by Gooday and good morning New Zealand. I'm
Jamie McKay. This is the best of the country. It's
brought to you by Rabobank, originally a Dutch bank all
over the world, now the world's leading food and agribusiness bank.
But of a theme here Irish boy bands today because
(00:43):
I talked to a really interesting irishman on yesterday's show,
Doctor John Roach, very clever guide, chief science advisor to
the Prime Minister and also to MPI looked back on
as upbringing on a small Irish dairy farm and forward
to the field day where it's going to be all
about agg science and AI. It was Dairy Week also
(01:06):
on the country, so we were concentrating this week on
our biggest industry, the dairy industry, worth over twenty billion
dollars to the New Zealand economy and goodness knows we
need it. Scott and Stacy Macareth, the big winners at
the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards and rode to Rual
last Saturday night. They are the twenty twenty six Shaer
(01:28):
Farmers of the Year. Emma Higgins, Rabobanks, Senior ag Analyst,
reviewing the May Agri Business Monthly, we had a look
at the prospects for dairy, beef, sheep. They're all pretty good.
Fuel not so flash, fertilizer not so flash, interest rates
not so flash. And the exchange route exchange rate should
I say, well, the jury's out depending on whether you're
(01:49):
an importer or an exporter. And just to lighten things up,
I always enjoy his contribution to the country. He was
at his combative best on Thursday show Narie Old Winston
Peters Love having an argument with Winston and Jane Smith,
north Otago Farmer Award winning Environmentalist. To wrap the Best
(02:10):
of the Country, brought to you by Rabobank and Irish
boy bands. This one's West Life, who are coming to
New Zealand I think next year, and we're going to
sneak in a wee bit of boys own as well
because I like boy bands. Here on the Best of
the Country.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
The Best of the Country with Rabobank choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Rabobank.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
It is dairy week here on the country and it's
rather app that we kick off the show today with
the twenty twenty six Sheer Farmers of the Year. They
were awarded this honor at the Dairy Industry Awards at
rota Ura on Saturday night. They tell me it was
a wonderful night. Every man and his dog was there
and we're going to be chatting to some people on
the show who were also there. But let's start with
(03:04):
the big winners. Scott and Stacy macareth from Southland, Otago
were named the twenty twenty six Sheer Farmers of the Year.
You're farming down in Southland at Edendale, the dairy capital
of the South. I'll start with you, Scott. Have you
been a dairy farmer all your life? Because you're forty
two years of age, which gives you a bit of
skin in the game. You've been around a bit.
Speaker 5 (03:26):
Yeah, yeah, And I started off in sheep and beef
primarily Jamie. But then when Scott, you got into dairy
pretty quick just because of the provision pathways and it
was the only way I could see to end up
coming at an empry level and buying your own farm.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
Stacey, you're slightly younger. I shouldn't ask a lady her age.
But have you been in the dairy industry all your
life as well?
Speaker 6 (03:50):
No, I did grow up on dairy farms. My dad
was a dairy farmer. However, I've been a counselor full
time until just recently in January. I have been taking
a break from that because our business is getting too busy.
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Well, no wonder your business is getting busy. I'm looking
at the numbers. You're milking fourteen hundred cows on four
hundred and sixty four hectares for the Fortuna Group. That's
a big group down in Southland. Twenty four dairy farms,
seventeen thousand cows. You've got You've got a big operation
you too, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (04:20):
And we we've also got a bit of equity in
another two and a half thousand cows, three farms with
fortune A Group in partnership with fortun A Group, and
then also look after a couple of other farms as well.
Up in Riversdale. It's about another two farms seventeen hundred
cows up there. So yeah, we've been a busy few
years since we've come south, but been a really exciting
(04:42):
time for us.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Well, Riversdale is the well, that's utopia. You want to
move up there. The climate's a wee bit better than
Eden Alama but biased though Scott.
Speaker 5 (04:52):
Yeah, now it's a great climate up there. But yeah,
we're just worth four young kids or four kids at
school and in the cargarle. It's it makes sense to
keep you know, where were located is quite central, so
it works well for us.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
You're all around us. You not only took out the
Sheaer Farmer of the Year title, you also took home
three merit awards, Sustainable Pastoral Award, Peeper and People and
Culture Award and Farmers Leadership Award. And it would appear
to me reading your bios Stacey, that you guys are
right into culture.
Speaker 7 (05:26):
Yes, so I.
Speaker 6 (05:27):
Tried to demonstrate the way that we look after our
staff is based on the Taputo type of far wellbeing model,
which is something I used a lot in my work
in mental health. So it's just ensuring that all aspects
of their mental health or well being as looked after
being physical house, family health, mental health, spiritual health, so
I demonstrated that for our presentation.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Scott, I don't want to delve too far into this,
but I was also reading and I was intrigued in
your bio that you had a bit of a not
a whoopsie, but a bit of a tough time business
wise with COVID. I think farming in the States. You
had to bounce back from that. You've certainly done that
by the sounds of things.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
Yeah, we sort of ended up back in New Zilla,
not quite on our terms, but always wanted to return
back to New Zealand and bring our kids up here,
but years sort of took a couple of years just
to find our feet completely. But you know, we just
saw amazing opportunity in Southland and moved down here and
got linked up with Fortuna Group, which has just been
(06:27):
absolutely amazing for us. Been raally good people to work
with and it's enabled us to just grow and really
excel with what we do. So it's been an amazing partnership.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I love your motto go fast alone or go far together.
Speaker 6 (06:44):
Yeah, that's actually another one of Scott's terms down just
I think what we're saying is historically Scott who recognized
you're going too fast, but when you actually work as
a team, you can get a lot further together.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
So for your efforts and road we were on Saturday night.
You won twenty eight thousand dollars prize is obviously a
big one. Plus those three marrit Awards. What are you
going to do with them?
Speaker 6 (07:04):
Team we have we haven't actually discussed have we SPoD
a No, not yet, So I think for us, just
try and get, you know, just get.
Speaker 5 (07:13):
It's been a huge six months for us. We've said
lots of different things on the go and then put
a lot of energy into these awards. So it's been
you know, it's great to get a fantastic to get
a great result and good to get back down at
the Southland and get to focus one hundred percent on
farming again.
Speaker 6 (07:30):
I was just going to say, as we have when
we've won previous awards, we also like to put some
back into our staff, you know, even if that's just
a way to celebrate, take them out for dinner, make
sure that they wrap some of their awards from all
the hard works that we've all put in.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
Well well done you too, Adopted Southland is winning the
Sheer Farmer of the year at the New Zealandairy Industry Awards.
By the way, the Dairy Manager of the Year was
Lauren mcconachie from Canterbury, North Otago. She took away fifteen
thousand dollars in prize as Dairy Trainee of the Year,
Mark Ready, West Coast Top of the South Island ten
thousand dollars worth of prizes. Stacey and Scott Mackareth, thank
(08:06):
you very much for your time. Congratulations, Thank you, hey,
thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
The best of the country with Rabobank, the bank with
local agribanking experts passionate about the future of rural communities Rabobank.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
Her name is Emma Higgins. She's a senior ag analyst
for Rabobank. They've just come out with their May Agribusiness monthly. Now, Emma,
because it's dairy week here on the country, let's start
with the biggest game in town, dairy and your headline
here is dairy markets will find a flaw in twenty
twenty six.
Speaker 7 (08:42):
Yeah, so big heading, isn't it When we've got a
lot of dynamics happening right now which suggests a bit
of divergence across the dairy complex. I think let's start
at the top. Right, we have had a lot of
milk being produced in New Zealand for the twenty five
to twenty sixth season and look that might continue into
the new season as well. But so far we've had
(09:03):
a standout for March, which is the latest numbers been produced,
with milk production volumes up almost ten percent urinear for
that month, So stand out there. That's flowing through into
the broader story that we talked about for a while
now JMIE, which is global milk supply remains abundant. Now
this is the case also in the Northern Hemisphere, and
(09:24):
this is what's leading to a bit of a divergence
across the diary complex when we think about the GDT
results and we think about how butter has trended versus say,
for example, ofscar milk butter. So there's a lot of
preme availability sitting out in Europe and also in the
United States as well, and that supply is being tuned
(09:46):
into butter. It's comfortably exceeding demand and that's placing downward
pressure on prices. New Zealand's not been immune to this,
and that's why our butter prices have melted by around
thirty percent to last year, where we were sitting about
eight thousand US dollars per ton mark. On the flip side,
Skimmitt powder absolute star of the stables. The protein markets
(10:10):
are telling a very different story to fat. Our protein
demand globally has been much more resilient. There's a lot
of good trend supporting that, and so Skimmitt powder basically
is benefiting from this and that's helping underpin milk pressful
casts where they are today.
Speaker 4 (10:27):
Yep, we've got a lot to be thankful for in
terms of over wide Americans and their white loss drugs.
Now is that same demand as ravenous for protein, for
instance from beef?
Speaker 7 (10:39):
Well, interesting you say that. Look right now, the beef
markets have remained pretty well supported over the last couple
of months, and that's been the story that we've spoken
to for a while.
Speaker 6 (10:48):
Now.
Speaker 7 (10:49):
I guess on the front of it, what's helping on
the price side of things right now is that we've
had a lot less throughput coming through. Started to see
some of that start to trend across as we've moved
through the autumn months, but broadly prices are still really supported.
We know that the global beef supply I reflect to
global is expected to run quite tight across the course
(11:11):
of this year, so less beef supply tends to point
to stronger beef prices here in New Zealand, particularly when
we're thinking about again that key market the United States.
So all in all, it's looking like another good season
ahead for beef. The one thing we need to keep
on our radars is what might be happening with China
when it comes to their beef import safeguards might just
(11:33):
steady the flow there. But all in all, things are
looking pretty nice for the beef guys.
Speaker 4 (11:38):
What about sheep? Still tight supply out there. It's a
supply and demand equation and as it stands at the moment,
the markets look pretty stable and can I say positive
for lamb and mutton.
Speaker 7 (11:51):
Absolutely, let's go with that, because you're right, we've got
really great dynamics which have supported our sheep farmers here
in New Zealand tight supply, and we've had actually diversified
export demand as well. If we think about we have
been shipping our volumes to have had about a third
over the six months of this season head across to
China and about a quarter over into the EU. And
(12:14):
some of these markets are really high value, as we know,
particularly with the twenty percent heading across to the UK
and the US as well. So all in all, looking ahead,
demand seems to remain quite robust across the course of
the season, and you know we'll be subject to the
usual timing and volume issues that we tend to see
for farm gate prices, but as you say, dynamics are
(12:34):
still supportive.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
Commodity outlooks. Were having a look at these in the
Rabobank Agribusiness Monthly for the month of May. Fertilizer and
fuel not good.
Speaker 7 (12:46):
I think it's the talking point amongst everyone right, you know,
there is no way of getting around this. What is
happening right now globally and particularly our the Middle East
is having ramification tier in New Zealand at the moment,
you know, global urear prices are continuing to raise. We've
seen the biggest leap already occur, certainly after the immediate
aftermath of the Golf War three, but they're still continuing
(13:08):
to remain elevated and ticking.
Speaker 8 (13:10):
Upwards as well.
Speaker 9 (13:11):
Look, a lot.
Speaker 7 (13:12):
Depends on the Strait of Hamoz and when it's going
to reopen and how we'll start to see some of
that supply starting to feed through into global markets. At
this point in time, our forecast is for the next
couple of weeks, hopefully some positive response to come through.
But look, Jamie, I mean overnight every night. I think
(13:32):
the dynamics are always changing, and it's you know, we're
trying to get a handle on what's going on and
what that might mean for all of these really important
commodity inputs for our New Zealand partial systems.
Speaker 4 (13:44):
No relief at the petrol pump or in the bulky
until such time as we get this one sorted. The
other interesting one that you look at and your commodity
outlooks are interest rates and exchange rates. Now the Aussies
have lifted their official cash right, we kept ours where
it was at a review. We're looking at it again
this month. What's Rabobank saying in terms of ocrlets.
Speaker 7 (14:07):
We are still thinking that it's going to be unlikely
that we'll see a rate hike come through this month,
so we're sticking to our view that that will probably
emerge later on this year. And a lot of the
support really comes back to some of the sentiment that
the Reserve Bank has talked to in the past in
a public manner. So we'll wait and see what happens
(14:32):
at the end of this month. But for now we're
sticking to our view that it might be a little
bit later in the year and maybe October.
Speaker 4 (14:38):
What about foreign exchange, I know that we've strengthened against
the US dollar, Yes we have.
Speaker 7 (14:44):
We have, indeed, which is interesting right when we think
about globally what's going on and how that might impact
again on the input side of things. Look, ultimately, we
have seen that strengthening and we think that there will continue.
Taking that twelve month view, and our estimatetions right now
in our forecast is maybe seeing a rally towards that
sixty two cent mark over the.
Speaker 4 (15:05):
Next twelve months, and I guess as an exporting nation
we could possibly live with that. Every cloud has its
silver lining. It makes feel a wee bit cheaper and fertilizer.
Emma Higgins, senior egg analysts for Rabobank, always appreciate your
time on the country.
Speaker 7 (15:18):
Thank you so much, Jamie.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
The best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
agribusiness experience, grow with Rubbobank.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
He is doctor John Roach. He is mpi's chief Science Advisor.
If that's not enough, he's the Prime Minister's Science advisor.
He joins us on the country. It is dairy week
here on the country. John, you've got a good dairy background.
You grew up on a dairy farm in Ireland as
a young man. Mind you, dairy farms and island back
in those days weren't very big.
Speaker 8 (15:49):
Good afternoon, Good afternoon, Jeremie. Hey, thanks for having me on. Yes,
I did look and I think that's stood to me
my entire life. I'm still an early raiser. Most people
think I'm crazy. I'm not walking the dog at five
o'clock in the morning now, roer milking cows. But yeah,
like it was a great way to grow up, and
back then we would have been regarded as a relatively
(16:11):
large farm in Ireland. My father would have been milking
just over sixty cows. My brother is still on that
farm and he's milking two hundred and twenty cows now.
So you know, the milk quota and the common agricultural
policy environment of the EU created a very strange ecosystem
for dairy farming.
Speaker 4 (16:29):
I was lucky enough to lead a farming tour over
to the UK and Ireland in two thousand and three,
and the one thing that stuck in my head, other
than your smoky bars, because you hadn't been smoking in
bars at that stage, was the size of the cows,
John Roch. They were like houses.
Speaker 8 (16:45):
They were look Many countries make poor decisions, and I
think one of the poor decisions was Ireland followed the
rest of the world in growing bigger cows because bigger
cows can eat more more and can therefore produce more milk,
and the simplistic belief that more milk meant more profit.
(17:06):
We were fortunate in the early nineteen nineties we brought
in a number of New Zealand dairy advisors into the country.
Sharon and Alistair Rain were two that when I was
getting involved in dairy came in. Sharon and Alistair are
now farming in Canterbury themselves, but my brother joined one
of Sharon's discussion groups and to learn more about how
(17:29):
New Zealand farmed grass and how they were an incredibly
profitable dairy sector without any subsidies, and of course through
that we learned the value of a multi trade index
and started breeding back towards a smaller cow, more like
a New Zealand. A robust, resilient cow that was highly profitable,
could get pregnant easily, could produce large volumes of milk,
(17:52):
and could grid as well. So that's changed a lot
as well. Used to have farms are very big cows,
but the vast majority of dairy farms across Ireland, I'll
have a New Zealand type coup.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Ye're a year or so into your job as the
Prime Minister's Science Advisor. How's it gone. How do you
split your time between MPI and the Prime Minister's Office.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
Yeah, that's that's a good question. That that varies on
a daiday basis. It really depends on the demands. But
I think it's gone. Well, look I go back. It
is just over a year. It's a year ago last
week actually that the Prime Minister announced it, and I
was in Ireland at the time for a private visit,
and you know, he had mentioned to me that he
had looked at the Irish system and he was really
(18:36):
impressed with how the science, innovation and technology system had
helped Ireland post GFC. I mean, everybody will know that
Ireland at a very difficult time coming out of the
GFC from an economic point of view, and so I
said to him, I said, well, look, I'm over there
in a couple of weeks, why don't I repurpose a
week of leave and get to meet some of the
(18:58):
departments and the research funding agencies and just see what
they did. And one of those meetings was with the
former Secretary General of Science Foundation Ireland, so the funding agency,
and he also happened to have been the Chief Scientist
at the same time. And I've talked to the Mark Ferguson,
doctor Mark Ferguson is his name, and I've talked to
him a number of times since, and just the pearls
(19:20):
of wisdom that he was able to provide to me
about what Ireland did in that time in prioritization and
what he was able to do for the Irish Prime Minister.
The t shock at the time gave me a great
sense of enablement. I felt like I wasn't quite drowning.
(19:41):
In the same way, I had a fair degree of
impostor syndrume Jimmy, if I'm honest when the Prime Minister
asked me to step into such a big role. Mark
gave me a bit of confidence that I could probably
do the role, but also most importantly the importance of
the role and the science reforms that we were initiating
in New Zealand.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
Yeah, as always will have a huge presence at Field
days when we look at the egg and science. How
do things like AI for instance come into play now?
Obviously more and more on a daily basis.
Speaker 8 (20:13):
Absolutely absolutely. Actually I was at the South Island Area
event last month and we had a session on that
and a farmer from Taranaki head and Laurens spoke about
how how he was using it in his own business
or just playing playing with it to see how we
could use it most effectively. It is coming in increasingly
when we will have it. One of the sites that
(20:34):
NPI is sponsoring alongside partners at Field is the Science
for Farmer's site, which you'll have visited with us last
last year. It's bigger and better, but one of our
modules this year will be working with some of our
partners to show farmers how we can develop technologies for
them in real time. So we're going to try and
(20:56):
run it in real time with farmers coming through helping
us improve some of those products using artificial intelligence and
some of the associated technologies.
Speaker 4 (21:06):
Hey, doctor John Roach, mpi's Chief Science Advisor, Science advisor
to the Prime Minister. I could chat to you all
day with that lovely Irish lott, but I haven't got
all day, nor have you. You're a very busy man.
Thanks for some of your time today.
Speaker 8 (21:20):
A look, I appreciate you. Up to you, Jamie, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
The best of the country with Rabobank. Choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 10 (21:29):
Rabobank no medal, WLDYI, no medal wldy, no medal wldye.
Speaker 4 (21:43):
Gus, Good morning New Zealand. I'm Jamie Mackay. This is
the best of the country. It's brought to you each
and every Saturday morning here on news Talks there'd be
by Rabobank. We're growing a better New Zealand together. How
good was doctor John Rowe, the Chief Science Advisor to
not only MPI but the Prime Minister. Raised on an
(22:05):
Irish dairy farm. So I thought I'd go with Irish
boy bands West Life coming to New Zealand. This is
Boyzone apparently, Well, yes there is. There's a compilation band
called Boy's Life, a supergroup formed by Keith Duffy from
Boys Own Coronation Street. Fans might recognize him. He was
the barman there for a while and Brian McFadden from Westlife.
(22:28):
There's the no end to these Irish boy bands. While
he'd hardly call him a boy now because he's been
on the planet for eighty years and counting Deputy former
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader, a
man on an upward trajectory politically this year on Thursday Show,
he was at his combative best when it came to
(22:48):
New Zealand First propaganda to Party murray in the age
of eligibility for National super However, he did have praise
for Judith Collins who stepped aside this week, and he
had a convenient memory laps when it came to twenty seventeen.
You can hear all about that up after the break.
Jane Smith, North Otago Farmer Award winning environmentalists had a
(23:09):
busload of South American farmers pop on onto a farm
and they were incredulous about our carbon farming disaster. And
yes it is a disaster in the making. In my
humble opinion, Also she's exporting perindale sheep to Japan and
the Waitaki district where she's diamond soldiers is staring down
the barrel of a potential forty five percent rates rise increase.
(23:33):
He just while I'm thinking and talking about Rabobank has
an interesting number for you. Over the next ten years,
New Zealand agriculture is expected to undergo its largest ever
intergenerational transfer of wealth, as more than half yes that's right,
half of the farms and orchards rich or farmers owners
(23:53):
rich retirement age. With so much change ahead, succession is
one of the most important conversations facing farmers. To help
support these conversations, Rabobank has launched a new Succession Stories series.
You can access the stories by visiting the rabobank website
and selecting Succession Stories under the Knowledge and Networks tab.
(24:18):
Up next. He's always great fun on the country, Winston Peters.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
The best of the country with Rabobank, the.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
Bank with local agribanking experts, passionate about the future of
rural communities.
Speaker 4 (24:38):
Rabobank Winston Peters joins us on the country now. His
loyal henchman, Shane Jones actually texted me earlier in the
week and asked to be on the show today, but
his boss has paulled Rank Winston. Just before we talk
about Shane and all the other exciting and wonderful things
that are happening in the world of politics and commerce,
what's the story of me pairing and some New Zealand
(25:02):
first propaganda clips on social media?
Speaker 11 (25:05):
Look, I don't know, but I'm going to make an
inquired to that because I don't I'm.
Speaker 8 (25:08):
Losing more votes.
Speaker 11 (25:08):
I think it's been a bit of a it's been
a bit of a stoppage in our rise in the polls,
and I thought it might be down to that. And
by the way, I didn't tall Rag. I mean, this
is organized by my media specialists, this interview, so i
don't know how organized this way today, but I'm happy
to be on your shout and to before brings in
common sense and logic to your discussion.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
Well, a couple of things Shane did want to talk
about in his text earlier this week was local government
reform and Maori Party reform. Now the clip the social
media propaganda featuring me in a very minor role and
mainly you was actually about to party, Maury, and I'm
working on the theory that unless they won a number
(25:50):
of Maori seats, there's no way for Chippy to get
the treasury benches. You've been about a long time. You
can do the numbers. You'd concur with me, there, wouldn't you?
Speaker 11 (26:00):
I know the reality is that the polls are far
too close for comfort, and therefore, you know, this next
few months is critical that the alternative to the left
wing and Dore I say, the communists and racists in
the Murray Party has got to put in a hard campaign.
I wouldn't take anything for granted. That's my point.
Speaker 4 (26:21):
Where do you sit on local government reform? That's the
other one that Shane wanted to talk about because I
think it's desperately needed.
Speaker 11 (26:30):
Well, of course it's descinately needed. It needs serious rationalization.
But be careful here, be careful. Look, it's not one
case of one size fits all. You'll be very very careful.
Got to make sure that the communities of interests have
shared concerns and shared policy interests meld together. Not like
(26:52):
we head up in Orkland where you had the supersity
and you wound in Franklin all the way up to
Welsford Way. It just was so done wrong, and they
did it as though that they belonged to the super
city and it's wrong and long minutes wrong. Now, so
let's be careful here. Don't most of them make a mistake.
But I do believe it's massively overdue.
Speaker 4 (27:12):
Yeah, but it's ridiculous that we have local body authorities
with populations of seven and twelve thousand. They just haven't
got the critical mass. Look that the core.
Speaker 11 (27:20):
I agree.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
Yeah, okay, we agree. Let's disagree on something. And I'm
not going to go down this rabbit hole with you
because I'm wasting my time arguing with you. But at
what point do you roll over and say, yes, I
was wrong about the age of national of eligibility for
national super We're going to get to the stage under
your scenario where we could have two workers for every
(27:43):
one person getting national superannuation. Totally unsustainable. Got to raise
the age of eligibility. Do we need to means test?
Speaker 11 (27:52):
You know, it's amazing to hear this sort of drivel
from you. Now here's the point. The superinnuation is costing
five point two percent of GDP. That's half what some
countries have got. And then on top of that, we've
been saving for decades for the column fund to smooth
out the bas and costs. That money in its burns
is all there, and you cannot make out the case
(28:13):
that we can't afford it. No, what I'm afraid I'm
going to tell you, Jamie is this. You've got certain
people in government who can't run an economy, and they're
both in labor and national and we're sent them. If
you can't run the economy propert, if you can't get
a growth made wave on above three percent, then get
out of the way and let somebody you can run
the economy properly.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Two workers for everyone, super annuitant is not sustainable.
Speaker 11 (28:34):
No, no, no, no, excuse me. See there's the first
section that's not true. They ever got AI coming. The
whole world's changing dramatically. The real point is how much
is it against your DP costs? And even it's only
five point two percent, it's dramatically less than other countries.
Speaker 8 (28:49):
You've got a problem.
Speaker 11 (28:50):
We have not. And the very idea of people are
going to go on living longer. That's all changing now
with recent forecasts because all this modern food and more
sorts of bad art has meant that this population that's
coming it's not like you live as long as the
population that you and I longed to right here, right now.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
Hey, just a couple to finish on Judith Collins twenty
four years of service. I've always liked Judith. I thought
she might have been a better leader of the National
Party or a more popular one than she ended up being.
You clashed swords with her over the years, but got
along with her.
Speaker 11 (29:21):
I don't recall clashing swords with her very much. In
fact that she will tell you that Mkanto a defense
port to I, you know what, it was the biggest
support or getting her the fund and the budget that
she desperately needed. And I'm just moved her to tell
you that. But the reality is she got caught in
the worst possible circumstances in the middle of the COVID election.
She didn't have a hope in hades. And that's the
(29:43):
way it is sometimes. You know, things were just so
bad for the opposition back then that the Layor Party was,
you know, regarded as the podium of truth. The left
wing media was pushing them, and the Layer Party won
the whole election, won the election. But boy, what a
mistake that one. Within three years they've gone us.
Speaker 4 (30:00):
Yes, sir, who put them in there? Just to finish
on where you put them in there?
Speaker 11 (30:04):
You put them in there people like John Key and
you who ruled me out for years when I'm out
there campaigning.
Speaker 4 (30:09):
Hey, come on, I've known you. I've known you for
a long time. What radio show has always talked to
you through thick and thin?
Speaker 11 (30:17):
Yeah, now that's that's true. But you know that John
Key ruled me. I do you know all that, don't you?
Speaker 4 (30:21):
Bell English didn't rule you out.
Speaker 11 (30:24):
Oh, for goodness, he was part of the guy. He
was a devery prime minister at the time they were
ruling me out. Haven't you guys got a memory?
Speaker 4 (30:31):
I sometimes wonder if you have. But anyhow, I've just
a couple to.
Speaker 11 (30:34):
Finish on memory. That's why I'm win in this argument.
Speaker 4 (30:38):
Just a couple to finish on. Where's Streeting versus Sekia Starmer?
Trump versus President She? There are a couple of big
things happening in the world of politics at the moment
which will have an effect.
Speaker 11 (30:49):
On us well, most definitely. That's the point I know
of This is more acutely of concerning is you're nothing
that has happened like this before in our whole lifetime
to the Second World War. So we're living in a
very difficult age. But I have to tell here in
this difficult age, Jamie experience Madison politics.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Yes, it does, even if experience comes with memory loss
on occasion.
Speaker 11 (31:10):
Winston, No, no, no, sorry, sorry mate. The reason why
I'm standing up because I've got a damn good memory.
Most of you guys have got a convenient.
Speaker 4 (31:18):
Memory, Rightio, I'll forget all about twenty seventeen. It wasn't
your fault, Winston. Peter's thanks for your time on the country.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Yes, the best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
acribusiness experience.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Grow with Rubbobank.
Speaker 4 (31:35):
She's a North Otago farmer, former winner of the Balance
Farm Environment Awards. You never die wondering what she's thinking,
Jane Smith, I'm going to talk about your rates rise
in the Waitaki district up to forty five percent, unbelievable,
and also exporting sheep your parentales to Japan. But if
I can, I'd like to start with the bustlad of
South American farmers that called into your place recently. They
(31:58):
couldn't believe at car urban farming disaster in this country.
Speaker 9 (32:02):
Good afternoon, Jamie, Yes, that's right. So they were from
mainly from Brazil, but also from Uruguay, and they were
farmers and academics and you know, university students in terms
of during genetics, et cetera. And they had been traveling
to the ten days or so before they got here
to look at our genetics et cetera. And they were
(32:23):
just gobsmacked in regards to how we have let the
Paris Agreement, you know, overtake so many things that we do.
And they're obviously in the Paris Agreement, but of course
they're still you know, getting all in gas and do
business as usual basically for them. But they could not
believe carbon farming. And one of the main questions that
they asked was how have sheep farmers survived to date
(32:46):
with that type of pressure and the poor returns? And
you carried on doing what we do, what we do,
but the loss of land just those couldn't believe it.
And you know, we'll all win this feeling.
Speaker 6 (32:56):
The same way.
Speaker 9 (32:57):
A million stock units a year, we're losing three hundreds
and heat DearS And again Jamie, is this went on
for two far too long, and it hasn't actually been
properly fixed. And you know again I laugh actually when
people say Paris is our friend, and I've heard some
of your commentators say that, but in the same sentence say,
you know, they castigate the fact that carbon farmings happen.
I mean, you look at our energy costs, fuel costs,
(33:19):
carbon farming, land lost. It all feeds back to the
Paris called Jamie, and it's just a joke and it
needs to stop. And even if we have to take
a short term trade hit, it's better than losing that
land out of productivity for ever Jamie.
Speaker 4 (33:33):
Yes, And we've already spoken about carbon farming and its
effects on even you know, local communities, local rugby clubs,
lack of young blokes and women playing rugby because the
farms are growing trees rather than sheep and beef. And
there's a rich irony that sheep farmings come right, wolves better.
A lamb is very very good at the moment, that
land should be growing food, not trees. Hey, talk to
(33:56):
me about exporting sheep to Japan.
Speaker 9 (33:59):
Yeah, so that's sign is something that we've done in
the last couple of weeks, and there's a few sheep
going from other parts of New Zealand as well, and
so it's interesting. Over in Japan, I think they've only
got about twenty to twenty five thousand sheep genetic pool
isn't isn't great, So they're wanting to export a number
of different breeds, of which our par and deales are
one of them. They actually have quite a worm burden
(34:22):
issue over there in terms of drench resistance, which is interesting,
and it'd be interesting to see how the sheep go.
I think they're indoors for about three months of the year,
so hopefully the par anddeals go all right at that,
but it's it's going to be fascinating Jamie, and to
see how they go. And New Zealand was their pick
of places to come to for genetics because again we've
had to be innovative with genetics and efficient with our
(34:42):
sheep just to survive the last I guess forty or
fifty years Jamie.
Speaker 4 (34:46):
Well, I'm glad you're making a few bucks out of
sheep farming.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Jane.
Speaker 4 (34:49):
You will need to to pay your rates in the
Waitaki district.
Speaker 9 (34:53):
Yeah, yeah, it's interesting, Jamie. I can write a book
on it. We now find ourselves in a collidisc of
bureaucratic billimia I would call it, because they've thrown up
a three unpalatable wattions of a nineteen percent or a
twenty seven percent or a forty five percent rise, with
only the latter having the outcome of balancing the books.
(35:14):
So actually, well done to the current councilors for settling
up and fronting up and understanding that you know, they've
been honest with it. They've gone to the cupboard, and
the cupboard is beer, and so I don't know, you know,
we obviously need a forward it or an autopsy on
water has gone on, but looking forward we actually need
to need to shape up. I mean we've been bothering
(35:36):
around the last three years talking about a district plan
and hitting private property rates like you know, in terms
of rights, in terms of what they're doing and gun
and gore, and we've missed the big picture. We have
Victorian water system under our feet in the town like
most towns, and the red tape has been overwhelming that
has been thrown at these councils from from the crown,
(35:58):
and you know, like it's interesting, you know, just to
put the cat and monks of Pigeons called Shane Jones
Captain Underpants and Is and his bands not so Mary.
Men have also said at the same time, of course
we've got the RMA changes, but also that we need
to either amalgamate or look at ways of changing things
in terms of working together. And I would suggest an
(36:19):
amalgamation is the only way to go, and I'm not
against that. I really like the idea of unitary authorities,
even though bigot isn't necessarily better. But what Shane Jones
and Winston has conveniently forgotten is when they anointed just
Cinderella and the Greens back in twenty seventeen. In twenty
eighteen they put four well beings into the regulation, so
we actually put more focus on social, environment and culture,
(36:43):
and they seem to have forgotten the fourth pillar, which
is economic Jamie. And of course at the same time
we had David Parker punishing farmers with a not for
purpose environmental regime, so that all of those costs and
distractions and that's what they were, was thrown on councils
and they actually forgot the basic job. So the three
hours reticulation, roading rubbish and all of those things have
(37:07):
fallen by the wayside and we find ourselves in an
untenuable position.
Speaker 4 (37:11):
Jamie, Well, I know you didn't hear the Winston Peters interview,
but he conveniently forgets about twenty seventeen and anointing. Just hey, Jane,
thanks for your time today. Good luck for your angus
Bullsar which is coming up. I think next month we'll
catch you ahead of you selling some black gold. Thanks
for your time today.
Speaker 9 (37:29):
Thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
The Best of the Country with Rabobank. Choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Rabobank Jane Smith, North Otago Farmer wrapping the Best of
the Country. Good morning. My name's Jamie Mackay. The show
is brought to you by Rabobank. We're growing a better
New Zealand together. I'm going to leave you with Irish
boy band Boyzone. I'm off to Lawrence tonight where they
(37:58):
discovered gold at Goa Briell Scully in eighteen sixty one.
Tonight we will be commemorating celebrating thirty six New Zealand
farms that have been in the same family ownership for
one hundred years or more. Twelve of them for one
hundred and fifty one the year before we signed the
Treaty of White Tongui in eighteen forty. Have a great weekend,
catch them back next Saturday morning.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Welcome, help.
Speaker 8 (38:30):
You and.
Speaker 12 (38:34):
Will be so right.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Whiteings just filling that after all, even through.
Speaker 12 (38:57):
Heavy mar excading you, just to show you and forgiving,
forgot the broken bad, have no wealth, Come show me
half with my need is somebody you me half? They
only work a there.
Speaker 10 (39:18):
And make cho you and not.
Speaker 1 (39:22):
Never doing me so long?
Speaker 4 (39:26):
Why change me so long? The fire.
Speaker 3 (39:31):
Farelow hell on the long.
Speaker 10 (39:50):
Drew me half?
Speaker 1 (39:51):
Will my need is?
Speaker 3 (39:52):
Somebody drew me half?
Speaker 1 (39:55):
They only want to help me.
Speaker 3 (40:00):
And a picture aque and mine they'll no Will it
be so wrong? Why it change me so long?
Speaker 12 (40:12):
Just to find the friend that was there long, had
a bitch of a gin and my line never ne
will be so wrong?
Speaker 3 (40:26):
Why it take me so long?
Speaker 12 (40:28):
Just too fine? The friend that was there long
Speaker 1 (40:37):
No fun
The best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
agribusiness experience.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Grow with Rubbobank. She's living in a run.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
I bet you never had a bad stream guy, mom, than.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Never soul by Gooday and good morning New Zealand. I'm
Jamie McKay. This is the best of the country. It's
brought to you by Rabobank, originally a Dutch bank all
over the world, now the world's leading food and agribusiness bank.
But of a theme here Irish boy bands today because
(00:43):
I talked to a really interesting irishman on yesterday's show,
Doctor John Roach, very clever guide, chief science advisor to
the Prime Minister and also to MPI looked back on
as upbringing on a small Irish dairy farm and forward
to the field day where it's going to be all
about agg science and AI. It was Dairy Week also
(01:06):
on the country, so we were concentrating this week on
our biggest industry, the dairy industry, worth over twenty billion
dollars to the New Zealand economy and goodness knows we
need it. Scott and Stacy Macareth, the big winners at
the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards and rode to Rual
last Saturday night. They are the twenty twenty six Shaer
(01:28):
Farmers of the Year. Emma Higgins, Rabobanks, Senior ag Analyst,
reviewing the May Agri Business Monthly, we had a look
at the prospects for dairy, beef, sheep. They're all pretty good.
Fuel not so flash, fertilizer not so flash, interest rates
not so flash. And the exchange route exchange rate should
I say, well, the jury's out depending on whether you're
(01:49):
an importer or an exporter. And just to lighten things up,
I always enjoy his contribution to the country. He was
at his combative best on Thursday show Narie Old Winston
Peters Love having an argument with Winston and Jane Smith,
north Otago Farmer Award winning Environmentalist. To wrap the Best
(02:10):
of the Country, brought to you by Rabobank and Irish
boy bands. This one's West Life, who are coming to
New Zealand I think next year, and we're going to
sneak in a wee bit of boys own as well
because I like boy bands. Here on the Best of
the Country.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
The Best of the Country with Rabobank choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Rabobank.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
It is dairy week here on the country and it's
rather app that we kick off the show today with
the twenty twenty six Sheer Farmers of the Year. They
were awarded this honor at the Dairy Industry Awards at
rota Ura on Saturday night. They tell me it was
a wonderful night. Every man and his dog was there
and we're going to be chatting to some people on
the show who were also there. But let's start with
(03:04):
the big winners. Scott and Stacy macareth from Southland, Otago
were named the twenty twenty six Sheer Farmers of the Year.
You're farming down in Southland at Edendale, the dairy capital
of the South. I'll start with you, Scott. Have you
been a dairy farmer all your life? Because you're forty
two years of age, which gives you a bit of
skin in the game. You've been around a bit.
Speaker 5 (03:26):
Yeah, yeah, And I started off in sheep and beef
primarily Jamie. But then when Scott, you got into dairy
pretty quick just because of the provision pathways and it
was the only way I could see to end up
coming at an empry level and buying your own farm.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
Stacey, you're slightly younger. I shouldn't ask a lady her age.
But have you been in the dairy industry all your
life as well?
Speaker 6 (03:50):
No, I did grow up on dairy farms. My dad
was a dairy farmer. However, I've been a counselor full
time until just recently in January. I have been taking
a break from that because our business is getting too busy.
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Well, no wonder your business is getting busy. I'm looking
at the numbers. You're milking fourteen hundred cows on four
hundred and sixty four hectares for the Fortuna Group. That's
a big group down in Southland. Twenty four dairy farms,
seventeen thousand cows. You've got You've got a big operation
you too, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (04:20):
And we we've also got a bit of equity in
another two and a half thousand cows, three farms with
fortune A Group in partnership with fortun A Group, and
then also look after a couple of other farms as well.
Up in Riversdale. It's about another two farms seventeen hundred
cows up there. So yeah, we've been a busy few
years since we've come south, but been a really exciting
(04:42):
time for us.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Well, Riversdale is the well, that's utopia. You want to
move up there. The climate's a wee bit better than
Eden Alama but biased though Scott.
Speaker 5 (04:52):
Yeah, now it's a great climate up there. But yeah,
we're just worth four young kids or four kids at
school and in the cargarle. It's it makes sense to
keep you know, where were located is quite central, so
it works well for us.
Speaker 4 (05:06):
You're all around us. You not only took out the
Sheaer Farmer of the Year title, you also took home
three merit awards, Sustainable Pastoral Award, Peeper and People and
Culture Award and Farmers Leadership Award. And it would appear
to me reading your bios Stacey, that you guys are
right into culture.
Speaker 7 (05:26):
Yes, so I.
Speaker 6 (05:27):
Tried to demonstrate the way that we look after our
staff is based on the Taputo type of far wellbeing model,
which is something I used a lot in my work
in mental health. So it's just ensuring that all aspects
of their mental health or well being as looked after
being physical house, family health, mental health, spiritual health, so
I demonstrated that for our presentation.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Scott, I don't want to delve too far into this,
but I was also reading and I was intrigued in
your bio that you had a bit of a not
a whoopsie, but a bit of a tough time business
wise with COVID. I think farming in the States. You
had to bounce back from that. You've certainly done that
by the sounds of things.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
Yeah, we sort of ended up back in New Zilla,
not quite on our terms, but always wanted to return
back to New Zealand and bring our kids up here,
but years sort of took a couple of years just
to find our feet completely. But you know, we just
saw amazing opportunity in Southland and moved down here and
got linked up with Fortuna Group, which has just been
(06:27):
absolutely amazing for us. Been raally good people to work
with and it's enabled us to just grow and really
excel with what we do. So it's been an amazing partnership.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I love your motto go fast alone or go far together.
Speaker 6 (06:44):
Yeah, that's actually another one of Scott's terms down just
I think what we're saying is historically Scott who recognized
you're going too fast, but when you actually work as
a team, you can get a lot further together.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
So for your efforts and road we were on Saturday night.
You won twenty eight thousand dollars prize is obviously a
big one. Plus those three marrit Awards. What are you
going to do with them?
Speaker 6 (07:04):
Team we have we haven't actually discussed have we SPoD
a No, not yet, So I think for us, just
try and get, you know, just get.
Speaker 5 (07:13):
It's been a huge six months for us. We've said
lots of different things on the go and then put
a lot of energy into these awards. So it's been
you know, it's great to get a fantastic to get
a great result and good to get back down at
the Southland and get to focus one hundred percent on
farming again.
Speaker 6 (07:30):
I was just going to say, as we have when
we've won previous awards, we also like to put some
back into our staff, you know, even if that's just
a way to celebrate, take them out for dinner, make
sure that they wrap some of their awards from all
the hard works that we've all put in.
Speaker 4 (07:43):
Well well done you too, Adopted Southland is winning the
Sheer Farmer of the year at the New Zealandairy Industry Awards.
By the way, the Dairy Manager of the Year was
Lauren mcconachie from Canterbury, North Otago. She took away fifteen
thousand dollars in prize as Dairy Trainee of the Year,
Mark Ready, West Coast Top of the South Island ten
thousand dollars worth of prizes. Stacey and Scott Mackareth, thank
(08:06):
you very much for your time. Congratulations, Thank you, hey,
thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
The best of the country with Rabobank, the bank with
local agribanking experts passionate about the future of rural communities Rabobank.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
Her name is Emma Higgins. She's a senior ag analyst
for Rabobank. They've just come out with their May Agribusiness monthly. Now, Emma,
because it's dairy week here on the country, let's start
with the biggest game in town, dairy and your headline
here is dairy markets will find a flaw in twenty
twenty six.
Speaker 7 (08:42):
Yeah, so big heading, isn't it When we've got a
lot of dynamics happening right now which suggests a bit
of divergence across the dairy complex. I think let's start
at the top. Right, we have had a lot of
milk being produced in New Zealand for the twenty five
to twenty sixth season and look that might continue into
the new season as well. But so far we've had
(09:03):
a standout for March, which is the latest numbers been produced,
with milk production volumes up almost ten percent urinear for
that month, So stand out there. That's flowing through into
the broader story that we talked about for a while
now JMIE, which is global milk supply remains abundant. Now
this is the case also in the Northern Hemisphere, and
(09:24):
this is what's leading to a bit of a divergence
across the diary complex when we think about the GDT
results and we think about how butter has trended versus say,
for example, ofscar milk butter. So there's a lot of
preme availability sitting out in Europe and also in the
United States as well, and that supply is being tuned
(09:46):
into butter. It's comfortably exceeding demand and that's placing downward
pressure on prices. New Zealand's not been immune to this,
and that's why our butter prices have melted by around
thirty percent to last year, where we were sitting about
eight thousand US dollars per ton mark. On the flip side,
Skimmitt powder absolute star of the stables. The protein markets
(10:10):
are telling a very different story to fat. Our protein
demand globally has been much more resilient. There's a lot
of good trend supporting that, and so Skimmitt powder basically
is benefiting from this and that's helping underpin milk pressful
casts where they are today.
Speaker 4 (10:27):
Yep, we've got a lot to be thankful for in
terms of over wide Americans and their white loss drugs.
Now is that same demand as ravenous for protein, for
instance from beef?
Speaker 7 (10:39):
Well, interesting you say that. Look right now, the beef
markets have remained pretty well supported over the last couple
of months, and that's been the story that we've spoken
to for a while.
Speaker 6 (10:48):
Now.
Speaker 7 (10:49):
I guess on the front of it, what's helping on
the price side of things right now is that we've
had a lot less throughput coming through. Started to see
some of that start to trend across as we've moved
through the autumn months, but broadly prices are still really supported.
We know that the global beef supply I reflect to
global is expected to run quite tight across the course
(11:11):
of this year, so less beef supply tends to point
to stronger beef prices here in New Zealand, particularly when
we're thinking about again that key market the United States.
So all in all, it's looking like another good season
ahead for beef. The one thing we need to keep
on our radars is what might be happening with China
when it comes to their beef import safeguards might just
(11:33):
steady the flow there. But all in all, things are
looking pretty nice for the beef guys.
Speaker 4 (11:38):
What about sheep? Still tight supply out there. It's a
supply and demand equation and as it stands at the moment,
the markets look pretty stable and can I say positive
for lamb and mutton.
Speaker 7 (11:51):
Absolutely, let's go with that, because you're right, we've got
really great dynamics which have supported our sheep farmers here
in New Zealand tight supply, and we've had actually diversified
export demand as well. If we think about we have
been shipping our volumes to have had about a third
over the six months of this season head across to
China and about a quarter over into the EU. And
(12:14):
some of these markets are really high value, as we know,
particularly with the twenty percent heading across to the UK
and the US as well. So all in all, looking ahead,
demand seems to remain quite robust across the course of
the season, and you know we'll be subject to the
usual timing and volume issues that we tend to see
for farm gate prices, but as you say, dynamics are
(12:34):
still supportive.
Speaker 4 (12:36):
Commodity outlooks. Were having a look at these in the
Rabobank Agribusiness Monthly for the month of May. Fertilizer and
fuel not good.
Speaker 7 (12:46):
I think it's the talking point amongst everyone right, you know,
there is no way of getting around this. What is
happening right now globally and particularly our the Middle East
is having ramification tier in New Zealand at the moment,
you know, global urear prices are continuing to raise. We've
seen the biggest leap already occur, certainly after the immediate
aftermath of the Golf War three, but they're still continuing
(13:08):
to remain elevated and ticking.
Speaker 8 (13:10):
Upwards as well.
Speaker 9 (13:11):
Look, a lot.
Speaker 7 (13:12):
Depends on the Strait of Hamoz and when it's going
to reopen and how we'll start to see some of
that supply starting to feed through into global markets. At
this point in time, our forecast is for the next
couple of weeks, hopefully some positive response to come through.
But look, Jamie, I mean overnight every night. I think
(13:32):
the dynamics are always changing, and it's you know, we're
trying to get a handle on what's going on and
what that might mean for all of these really important
commodity inputs for our New Zealand partial systems.
Speaker 4 (13:44):
No relief at the petrol pump or in the bulky
until such time as we get this one sorted. The
other interesting one that you look at and your commodity
outlooks are interest rates and exchange rates. Now the Aussies
have lifted their official cash right, we kept ours where
it was at a review. We're looking at it again
this month. What's Rabobank saying in terms of ocrlets.
Speaker 7 (14:07):
We are still thinking that it's going to be unlikely
that we'll see a rate hike come through this month,
so we're sticking to our view that that will probably
emerge later on this year. And a lot of the
support really comes back to some of the sentiment that
the Reserve Bank has talked to in the past in
a public manner. So we'll wait and see what happens
(14:32):
at the end of this month. But for now we're
sticking to our view that it might be a little
bit later in the year and maybe October.
Speaker 4 (14:38):
What about foreign exchange, I know that we've strengthened against
the US dollar, Yes we have.
Speaker 7 (14:44):
We have, indeed, which is interesting right when we think
about globally what's going on and how that might impact
again on the input side of things. Look, ultimately, we
have seen that strengthening and we think that there will continue.
Taking that twelve month view, and our estimatetions right now
in our forecast is maybe seeing a rally towards that
sixty two cent mark over the.
Speaker 4 (15:05):
Next twelve months, and I guess as an exporting nation
we could possibly live with that. Every cloud has its
silver lining. It makes feel a wee bit cheaper and fertilizer.
Emma Higgins, senior egg analysts for Rabobank, always appreciate your
time on the country.
Speaker 7 (15:18):
Thank you so much, Jamie.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
The best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (15:22):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
agribusiness experience, grow with Rubbobank.
Speaker 4 (15:28):
He is doctor John Roach. He is mpi's chief Science Advisor.
If that's not enough, he's the Prime Minister's Science advisor.
He joins us on the country. It is dairy week
here on the country. John, you've got a good dairy background.
You grew up on a dairy farm in Ireland as
a young man. Mind you, dairy farms and island back
in those days weren't very big.
Speaker 8 (15:49):
Good afternoon, Good afternoon, Jeremie. Hey, thanks for having me on. Yes,
I did look and I think that's stood to me
my entire life. I'm still an early raiser. Most people
think I'm crazy. I'm not walking the dog at five
o'clock in the morning now, roer milking cows. But yeah,
like it was a great way to grow up, and
back then we would have been regarded as a relatively
(16:11):
large farm in Ireland. My father would have been milking
just over sixty cows. My brother is still on that
farm and he's milking two hundred and twenty cows now.
So you know, the milk quota and the common agricultural
policy environment of the EU created a very strange ecosystem
for dairy farming.
Speaker 4 (16:29):
I was lucky enough to lead a farming tour over
to the UK and Ireland in two thousand and three,
and the one thing that stuck in my head, other
than your smoky bars, because you hadn't been smoking in
bars at that stage, was the size of the cows,
John Roch. They were like houses.
Speaker 8 (16:45):
They were look Many countries make poor decisions, and I
think one of the poor decisions was Ireland followed the
rest of the world in growing bigger cows because bigger
cows can eat more more and can therefore produce more milk,
and the simplistic belief that more milk meant more profit.
(17:06):
We were fortunate in the early nineteen nineties we brought
in a number of New Zealand dairy advisors into the country.
Sharon and Alistair Rain were two that when I was
getting involved in dairy came in. Sharon and Alistair are
now farming in Canterbury themselves, but my brother joined one
of Sharon's discussion groups and to learn more about how
(17:29):
New Zealand farmed grass and how they were an incredibly
profitable dairy sector without any subsidies, and of course through
that we learned the value of a multi trade index
and started breeding back towards a smaller cow, more like
a New Zealand. A robust, resilient cow that was highly profitable,
could get pregnant easily, could produce large volumes of milk,
(17:52):
and could grid as well. So that's changed a lot
as well. Used to have farms are very big cows,
but the vast majority of dairy farms across Ireland, I'll
have a New Zealand type coup.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Ye're a year or so into your job as the
Prime Minister's Science Advisor. How's it gone. How do you
split your time between MPI and the Prime Minister's Office.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
Yeah, that's that's a good question. That that varies on
a daiday basis. It really depends on the demands. But
I think it's gone. Well, look I go back. It
is just over a year. It's a year ago last
week actually that the Prime Minister announced it, and I
was in Ireland at the time for a private visit,
and you know, he had mentioned to me that he
had looked at the Irish system and he was really
(18:36):
impressed with how the science, innovation and technology system had
helped Ireland post GFC. I mean, everybody will know that
Ireland at a very difficult time coming out of the
GFC from an economic point of view, and so I
said to him, I said, well, look, I'm over there
in a couple of weeks, why don't I repurpose a
week of leave and get to meet some of the
(18:58):
departments and the research funding agencies and just see what
they did. And one of those meetings was with the
former Secretary General of Science Foundation Ireland, so the funding agency,
and he also happened to have been the Chief Scientist
at the same time. And I've talked to the Mark Ferguson,
doctor Mark Ferguson is his name, and I've talked to
him a number of times since, and just the pearls
(19:20):
of wisdom that he was able to provide to me
about what Ireland did in that time in prioritization and
what he was able to do for the Irish Prime Minister.
The t shock at the time gave me a great
sense of enablement. I felt like I wasn't quite drowning.
(19:41):
In the same way, I had a fair degree of
impostor syndrume Jimmy, if I'm honest when the Prime Minister
asked me to step into such a big role. Mark
gave me a bit of confidence that I could probably
do the role, but also most importantly the importance of
the role and the science reforms that we were initiating
in New Zealand.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
Yeah, as always will have a huge presence at Field
days when we look at the egg and science. How
do things like AI for instance come into play now?
Obviously more and more on a daily basis.
Speaker 8 (20:13):
Absolutely absolutely. Actually I was at the South Island Area
event last month and we had a session on that
and a farmer from Taranaki head and Laurens spoke about
how how he was using it in his own business
or just playing playing with it to see how we
could use it most effectively. It is coming in increasingly
when we will have it. One of the sites that
(20:34):
NPI is sponsoring alongside partners at Field is the Science
for Farmer's site, which you'll have visited with us last
last year. It's bigger and better, but one of our
modules this year will be working with some of our
partners to show farmers how we can develop technologies for
them in real time. So we're going to try and
(20:56):
run it in real time with farmers coming through helping
us improve some of those products using artificial intelligence and
some of the associated technologies.
Speaker 4 (21:06):
Hey, doctor John Roach, mpi's Chief Science Advisor, Science advisor
to the Prime Minister. I could chat to you all
day with that lovely Irish lott, but I haven't got
all day, nor have you. You're a very busy man.
Thanks for some of your time today.
Speaker 8 (21:20):
A look, I appreciate you. Up to you, Jamie, Thank you.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
The best of the country with Rabobank. Choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 10 (21:29):
Rabobank no medal, WLDYI, no medal wldy, no medal wldye.
Speaker 4 (21:43):
Gus, Good morning New Zealand. I'm Jamie Mackay. This is
the best of the country. It's brought to you each
and every Saturday morning here on news Talks there'd be
by Rabobank. We're growing a better New Zealand together. How
good was doctor John Rowe, the Chief Science Advisor to
not only MPI but the Prime Minister. Raised on an
(22:05):
Irish dairy farm. So I thought I'd go with Irish
boy bands West Life coming to New Zealand. This is
Boyzone apparently, Well, yes there is. There's a compilation band
called Boy's Life, a supergroup formed by Keith Duffy from
Boys Own Coronation Street. Fans might recognize him. He was
the barman there for a while and Brian McFadden from Westlife.
(22:28):
There's the no end to these Irish boy bands. While
he'd hardly call him a boy now because he's been
on the planet for eighty years and counting Deputy former
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, New Zealand First Leader, a
man on an upward trajectory politically this year on Thursday Show,
he was at his combative best when it came to
(22:48):
New Zealand First propaganda to Party murray in the age
of eligibility for National super However, he did have praise
for Judith Collins who stepped aside this week, and he
had a convenient memory laps when it came to twenty seventeen.
You can hear all about that up after the break.
Jane Smith, North Otago Farmer Award winning environmentalists had a
(23:09):
busload of South American farmers pop on onto a farm
and they were incredulous about our carbon farming disaster. And
yes it is a disaster in the making. In my
humble opinion, Also she's exporting perindale sheep to Japan and
the Waitaki district where she's diamond soldiers is staring down
the barrel of a potential forty five percent rates rise increase.
(23:33):
He just while I'm thinking and talking about Rabobank has
an interesting number for you. Over the next ten years,
New Zealand agriculture is expected to undergo its largest ever
intergenerational transfer of wealth, as more than half yes that's right,
half of the farms and orchards rich or farmers owners
(23:53):
rich retirement age. With so much change ahead, succession is
one of the most important conversations facing farmers. To help
support these conversations, Rabobank has launched a new Succession Stories series.
You can access the stories by visiting the rabobank website
and selecting Succession Stories under the Knowledge and Networks tab.
(24:18):
Up next. He's always great fun on the country, Winston Peters.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
The best of the country with Rabobank, the.
Speaker 2 (24:34):
Bank with local agribanking experts, passionate about the future of
rural communities.
Speaker 4 (24:38):
Rabobank Winston Peters joins us on the country now. His
loyal henchman, Shane Jones actually texted me earlier in the
week and asked to be on the show today, but
his boss has paulled Rank Winston. Just before we talk
about Shane and all the other exciting and wonderful things
that are happening in the world of politics and commerce,
what's the story of me pairing and some New Zealand
(25:02):
first propaganda clips on social media?
Speaker 11 (25:05):
Look, I don't know, but I'm going to make an
inquired to that because I don't I'm.
Speaker 8 (25:08):
Losing more votes.
Speaker 11 (25:08):
I think it's been a bit of a it's been
a bit of a stoppage in our rise in the polls,
and I thought it might be down to that. And
by the way, I didn't tall Rag. I mean, this
is organized by my media specialists, this interview, so i
don't know how organized this way today, but I'm happy
to be on your shout and to before brings in
common sense and logic to your discussion.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
Well, a couple of things Shane did want to talk
about in his text earlier this week was local government
reform and Maori Party reform. Now the clip the social
media propaganda featuring me in a very minor role and
mainly you was actually about to party, Maury, and I'm
working on the theory that unless they won a number
(25:50):
of Maori seats, there's no way for Chippy to get
the treasury benches. You've been about a long time. You
can do the numbers. You'd concur with me, there, wouldn't you?
Speaker 11 (26:00):
I know the reality is that the polls are far
too close for comfort, and therefore, you know, this next
few months is critical that the alternative to the left
wing and Dore I say, the communists and racists in
the Murray Party has got to put in a hard campaign.
I wouldn't take anything for granted. That's my point.
Speaker 4 (26:21):
Where do you sit on local government reform? That's the
other one that Shane wanted to talk about because I
think it's desperately needed.
Speaker 11 (26:30):
Well, of course it's descinately needed. It needs serious rationalization.
But be careful here, be careful. Look, it's not one
case of one size fits all. You'll be very very careful.
Got to make sure that the communities of interests have
shared concerns and shared policy interests meld together. Not like
(26:52):
we head up in Orkland where you had the supersity
and you wound in Franklin all the way up to
Welsford Way. It just was so done wrong, and they
did it as though that they belonged to the super
city and it's wrong and long minutes wrong. Now, so
let's be careful here. Don't most of them make a mistake.
But I do believe it's massively overdue.
Speaker 4 (27:12):
Yeah, but it's ridiculous that we have local body authorities
with populations of seven and twelve thousand. They just haven't
got the critical mass. Look that the core.
Speaker 11 (27:20):
I agree.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
Yeah, okay, we agree. Let's disagree on something. And I'm
not going to go down this rabbit hole with you
because I'm wasting my time arguing with you. But at
what point do you roll over and say, yes, I
was wrong about the age of national of eligibility for
national super We're going to get to the stage under
your scenario where we could have two workers for every
(27:43):
one person getting national superannuation. Totally unsustainable. Got to raise
the age of eligibility. Do we need to means test?
Speaker 11 (27:52):
You know, it's amazing to hear this sort of drivel
from you. Now here's the point. The superinnuation is costing
five point two percent of GDP. That's half what some
countries have got. And then on top of that, we've
been saving for decades for the column fund to smooth
out the bas and costs. That money in its burns
is all there, and you cannot make out the case
(28:13):
that we can't afford it. No, what I'm afraid I'm
going to tell you, Jamie is this. You've got certain
people in government who can't run an economy, and they're
both in labor and national and we're sent them. If
you can't run the economy propert, if you can't get
a growth made wave on above three percent, then get
out of the way and let somebody you can run
the economy properly.
Speaker 4 (28:30):
Two workers for everyone, super annuitant is not sustainable.
Speaker 11 (28:34):
No, no, no, no, excuse me. See there's the first
section that's not true. They ever got AI coming. The
whole world's changing dramatically. The real point is how much
is it against your DP costs? And even it's only
five point two percent, it's dramatically less than other countries.
Speaker 8 (28:49):
You've got a problem.
Speaker 11 (28:50):
We have not. And the very idea of people are
going to go on living longer. That's all changing now
with recent forecasts because all this modern food and more
sorts of bad art has meant that this population that's
coming it's not like you live as long as the
population that you and I longed to right here, right now.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
Hey, just a couple to finish on Judith Collins twenty
four years of service. I've always liked Judith. I thought
she might have been a better leader of the National
Party or a more popular one than she ended up being.
You clashed swords with her over the years, but got
along with her.
Speaker 11 (29:21):
I don't recall clashing swords with her very much. In
fact that she will tell you that Mkanto a defense
port to I, you know what, it was the biggest
support or getting her the fund and the budget that
she desperately needed. And I'm just moved her to tell
you that. But the reality is she got caught in
the worst possible circumstances in the middle of the COVID election.
She didn't have a hope in hades. And that's the
(29:43):
way it is sometimes. You know, things were just so
bad for the opposition back then that the Layor Party was,
you know, regarded as the podium of truth. The left
wing media was pushing them, and the Layer Party won
the whole election, won the election. But boy, what a
mistake that one. Within three years they've gone us.
Speaker 4 (30:00):
Yes, sir, who put them in there? Just to finish
on where you put them in there?
Speaker 11 (30:04):
You put them in there people like John Key and
you who ruled me out for years when I'm out
there campaigning.
Speaker 4 (30:09):
Hey, come on, I've known you. I've known you for
a long time. What radio show has always talked to
you through thick and thin?
Speaker 11 (30:17):
Yeah, now that's that's true. But you know that John
Key ruled me. I do you know all that, don't you?
Speaker 4 (30:21):
Bell English didn't rule you out.
Speaker 11 (30:24):
Oh, for goodness, he was part of the guy. He
was a devery prime minister at the time they were
ruling me out. Haven't you guys got a memory?
Speaker 4 (30:31):
I sometimes wonder if you have. But anyhow, I've just
a couple to.
Speaker 11 (30:34):
Finish on memory. That's why I'm win in this argument.
Speaker 4 (30:38):
Just a couple to finish on. Where's Streeting versus Sekia Starmer?
Trump versus President She? There are a couple of big
things happening in the world of politics at the moment
which will have an effect.
Speaker 11 (30:49):
On us well, most definitely. That's the point I know
of This is more acutely of concerning is you're nothing
that has happened like this before in our whole lifetime
to the Second World War. So we're living in a
very difficult age. But I have to tell here in
this difficult age, Jamie experience Madison politics.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Yes, it does, even if experience comes with memory loss
on occasion.
Speaker 11 (31:10):
Winston, No, no, no, sorry, sorry mate. The reason why
I'm standing up because I've got a damn good memory.
Most of you guys have got a convenient.
Speaker 4 (31:18):
Memory, Rightio, I'll forget all about twenty seventeen. It wasn't
your fault, Winston. Peter's thanks for your time on the country.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Yes, the best of the country with Rubbobank.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Choose the bank with one hundred and twenty years global
acribusiness experience.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Grow with Rubbobank.
Speaker 4 (31:35):
She's a North Otago farmer, former winner of the Balance
Farm Environment Awards. You never die wondering what she's thinking,
Jane Smith, I'm going to talk about your rates rise
in the Waitaki district up to forty five percent, unbelievable,
and also exporting sheep your parentales to Japan. But if
I can, I'd like to start with the bustlad of
South American farmers that called into your place recently. They
(31:58):
couldn't believe at car urban farming disaster in this country.
Speaker 9 (32:02):
Good afternoon, Jamie, Yes, that's right. So they were from
mainly from Brazil, but also from Uruguay, and they were
farmers and academics and you know, university students in terms
of during genetics, et cetera. And they had been traveling
to the ten days or so before they got here
to look at our genetics et cetera. And they were
(32:23):
just gobsmacked in regards to how we have let the
Paris Agreement, you know, overtake so many things that we do.
And they're obviously in the Paris Agreement, but of course
they're still you know, getting all in gas and do
business as usual basically for them. But they could not
believe carbon farming. And one of the main questions that
they asked was how have sheep farmers survived to date
(32:46):
with that type of pressure and the poor returns? And
you carried on doing what we do, what we do,
but the loss of land just those couldn't believe it.
And you know, we'll all win this feeling.
Speaker 6 (32:56):
The same way.
Speaker 9 (32:57):
A million stock units a year, we're losing three hundreds
and heat DearS And again Jamie, is this went on
for two far too long, and it hasn't actually been
properly fixed. And you know again I laugh actually when
people say Paris is our friend, and I've heard some
of your commentators say that, but in the same sentence say,
you know, they castigate the fact that carbon farmings happen.
I mean, you look at our energy costs, fuel costs,
(33:19):
carbon farming, land lost. It all feeds back to the
Paris called Jamie, and it's just a joke and it
needs to stop. And even if we have to take
a short term trade hit, it's better than losing that
land out of productivity for ever Jamie.
Speaker 4 (33:33):
Yes, And we've already spoken about carbon farming and its
effects on even you know, local communities, local rugby clubs,
lack of young blokes and women playing rugby because the
farms are growing trees rather than sheep and beef. And
there's a rich irony that sheep farmings come right, wolves better.
A lamb is very very good at the moment, that
land should be growing food, not trees. Hey, talk to
(33:56):
me about exporting sheep to Japan.
Speaker 9 (33:59):
Yeah, so that's sign is something that we've done in
the last couple of weeks, and there's a few sheep
going from other parts of New Zealand as well, and
so it's interesting. Over in Japan, I think they've only
got about twenty to twenty five thousand sheep genetic pool
isn't isn't great, So they're wanting to export a number
of different breeds, of which our par and deales are
one of them. They actually have quite a worm burden
(34:22):
issue over there in terms of drench resistance, which is interesting,
and it'd be interesting to see how the sheep go.
I think they're indoors for about three months of the year,
so hopefully the par anddeals go all right at that,
but it's it's going to be fascinating Jamie, and to
see how they go. And New Zealand was their pick
of places to come to for genetics because again we've
had to be innovative with genetics and efficient with our
(34:42):
sheep just to survive the last I guess forty or
fifty years Jamie.
Speaker 4 (34:46):
Well, I'm glad you're making a few bucks out of
sheep farming.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Jane.
Speaker 4 (34:49):
You will need to to pay your rates in the
Waitaki district.
Speaker 9 (34:53):
Yeah, yeah, it's interesting, Jamie. I can write a book
on it. We now find ourselves in a collidisc of
bureaucratic billimia I would call it, because they've thrown up
a three unpalatable wattions of a nineteen percent or a
twenty seven percent or a forty five percent rise, with
only the latter having the outcome of balancing the books.
(35:14):
So actually, well done to the current councilors for settling
up and fronting up and understanding that you know, they've
been honest with it. They've gone to the cupboard, and
the cupboard is beer, and so I don't know, you know,
we obviously need a forward it or an autopsy on
water has gone on, but looking forward we actually need
to need to shape up. I mean we've been bothering
(35:36):
around the last three years talking about a district plan
and hitting private property rates like you know, in terms
of rights, in terms of what they're doing and gun
and gore, and we've missed the big picture. We have
Victorian water system under our feet in the town like
most towns, and the red tape has been overwhelming that
has been thrown at these councils from from the crown,
(35:58):
and you know, like it's interesting, you know, just to
put the cat and monks of Pigeons called Shane Jones
Captain Underpants and Is and his bands not so Mary.
Men have also said at the same time, of course
we've got the RMA changes, but also that we need
to either amalgamate or look at ways of changing things
in terms of working together. And I would suggest an
(36:19):
amalgamation is the only way to go, and I'm not
against that. I really like the idea of unitary authorities,
even though bigot isn't necessarily better. But what Shane Jones
and Winston has conveniently forgotten is when they anointed just
Cinderella and the Greens back in twenty seventeen. In twenty
eighteen they put four well beings into the regulation, so
we actually put more focus on social, environment and culture,
(36:43):
and they seem to have forgotten the fourth pillar, which
is economic Jamie. And of course at the same time
we had David Parker punishing farmers with a not for
purpose environmental regime, so that all of those costs and
distractions and that's what they were, was thrown on councils
and they actually forgot the basic job. So the three
hours reticulation, roading rubbish and all of those things have
(37:07):
fallen by the wayside and we find ourselves in an
untenuable position.
Speaker 4 (37:11):
Jamie, Well, I know you didn't hear the Winston Peters interview,
but he conveniently forgets about twenty seventeen and anointing. Just hey, Jane,
thanks for your time today. Good luck for your angus
Bullsar which is coming up. I think next month we'll
catch you ahead of you selling some black gold. Thanks
for your time today.
Speaker 9 (37:29):
Thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (37:30):
The Best of the Country with Rabobank. Choose the bank
with a huge network of progressive farming clients.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Rabobank Jane Smith, North Otago Farmer wrapping the Best of
the Country. Good morning. My name's Jamie Mackay. The show
is brought to you by Rabobank. We're growing a better
New Zealand together. I'm going to leave you with Irish
boy band Boyzone. I'm off to Lawrence tonight where they
(37:58):
discovered gold at Goa Briell Scully in eighteen sixty one.
Tonight we will be commemorating celebrating thirty six New Zealand
farms that have been in the same family ownership for
one hundred years or more. Twelve of them for one
hundred and fifty one the year before we signed the
Treaty of White Tongui in eighteen forty. Have a great weekend,
catch them back next Saturday morning.
Speaker 3 (38:26):
Welcome, help.
Speaker 8 (38:30):
You and.
Speaker 12 (38:34):
Will be so right.
Speaker 3 (38:37):
Whiteings just filling that after all, even through.
Speaker 12 (38:57):
Heavy mar excading you, just to show you and forgiving,
forgot the broken bad, have no wealth, Come show me
half with my need is somebody you me half? They
only work a there.
Speaker 10 (39:18):
And make cho you and not.
Speaker 1 (39:22):
Never doing me so long?
Speaker 4 (39:26):
Why change me so long? The fire.
Speaker 3 (39:31):
Farelow hell on the long.
Speaker 10 (39:50):
Drew me half?
Speaker 1 (39:51):
Will my need is?
Speaker 3 (39:52):
Somebody drew me half?
Speaker 1 (39:55):
They only want to help me.
Speaker 3 (40:00):
And a picture aque and mine they'll no Will it
be so wrong? Why it change me so long?
Speaker 12 (40:12):
Just to find the friend that was there long, had
a bitch of a gin and my line never ne
will be so wrong?
Speaker 3 (40:26):
Why it take me so long?
Speaker 12 (40:28):
Just too fine? The friend that was there long
Speaker 1 (40:37):
No fun
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