September 13, 2026 • 40 mins
Jamie Mackay talks to Colin Hurst, David Seymour, Pita Alexander, Jeremy Rookes and Phil Duncan.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
The Country with Jamie Mackay and Farmlands. Because rural never
grows it alone. Newstalk ZB. It was 929.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
929 Backstreet Big City.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
The sun was going down.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
There was music all around.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
But that's all right. Good afternoon, New Zealand. Welcome to
the country. I'm Jamie Mackay, 70s theme today. Tell you
about that a wee bit later. Last train to London. Well,
(00:39):
a wee bit later, I'm going to be chatting to
David Seymour, ACT Party leader. We'll see if he is
caught at a last train to, where? Kauranga, Happy Station.
There's so many of them now with the City Rail Link. Anyhow,
we're going to talk infrastructure projects with him. But first,
kicking off the show today is the President of Federated Farmers.
(00:59):
They've just come out with their latest Farmer Confidence Survey.
We will have a look at that one for you.
Also on the show, Peter Alexander, Christchurch-based farm accountant and raconteur, saying,
and this coincides with what Federated Farmers are saying in
their latest Farmer Confidence Survey, that farm expenses are coming
(01:20):
up to meet incomes. Jeremy Rooks, lifestyle correspondent, just to
lighten things up a wee bit, and Phil Duncan on
the weather. I was down in Southland on the weekend
for a wonderful 70s rugby reunion of all the old
Southland players. And I can tell you what, it was
a bit windswept and bleak down there, water lying everywhere.
(01:40):
So we'll have a look at the weather with Phil Duncan.
But kicking off the show, President of Federated Farmers, Colin Hurst.
And in your latest Federated Farmers Confidence Survey, Colin, 72%
of farmers are making a profit with fewer than 1
in 20 making a loss today. But farmers are worried
whether the good times will last. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Good afternoon, Jamie.
Speaker 5 (02:03):
Yeah, no, they certainly are concerned about the good times last. Yeah,
it's concerning about the rise in some of our costs
like fuel, feed and freight and insurance and that type
of thing. Yeah, looking forward, we're just keeping a close
eye on those things and we're seeing a bit of
a drop in confidence going forward. But certainly, currently, it's
(02:26):
never been better.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Well, the prices have never been better. Dairy, sheep and
beef farmers are getting strong returns. We'll come back to
the likes of the arable farmers who are having a
bit of a battle at the moment. The interesting one
is most concern about the year ahead is actually coming
from the dairy farmers.
Speaker 6 (02:44):
Yeah, that is jammy.
Speaker 5 (02:45):
And you've got to remember when we undertook this survey,
it was mid-July through to the end of the month.
And that was exactly when Fonterra announced their 50 cent
drop in the milk price. So, of course, it's going
to be very focused on dairy farmers undertaking the survey.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
And since then, we've had two or three positive GDT
auctions in a row. So maybe that's all right. But
as you quite rightly pointed out, we've got fuel and fertiliser,
the Middle East crisis. You've got rates, local body rates,
that is, not to mention interest rates. Everything's going up.
Speaker 5 (03:22):
Yeah, no, you're right about that, Jeremy. So also when
we started the survey, the OCR went up, so that
was increasing interest rates. And then also the inflation rate
was up to 4.1%. So all these sort of things transpired.
But you are correct, the GDT auctions had a bit
of a lift. So we're looking forward to the next
one of them, so to see how that goes for
(03:43):
dairy farming.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Yeah, farmers' top three concerns were, unsurprisingly, rising input costs
and on-farm inflation at 33%. Coming in at second place
was the election and domestic politics, and I guess we
can add in the result of an election and local
body politics, and then there's regulation compliance and red tape. Interestingly,
(04:09):
worries about commodity prices and weather, especially when we've got
a Super El Nino, just around the corner, they're well
back at 12% and 11%.
Speaker 5 (04:19):
Yeah, that's right, Jamie. So, yeah, the key one is
compliance costs. You know, that's the top priority we want
the government to look at, or this is what the
farmers in the survey indicated, followed by business and economic environments.
We want that ramped up. But also the other one
was government fiscal policy. So that's something we want the
(04:39):
government to be responsible about their spending and all that
type of thing. But you're right, the El Nino is
just around the corner or it's supposed to be affecting us.
I don't think it's actually hit too much yet. From
what I can see, it's still early in the season,
but it's just around the corner and hopefully it's not
going to be as bad as the pundits are making.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
I was looking at a soil moisture deficit map or
just a soil moisture map and I'm going to talk
to Phil Duncan about this. It was on his weather
watch site and areas where you are, Canterbury, for instance,
which is right in the firing line for the Super
El Nino, you're above average. soil moisture?
Speaker 5 (05:14):
Well certainly on our farm I've never seen it so wet.
We've got water lying in the paddocks still and we're
on the east coast of the South Island and typically
that's one of the areas that we would expect to
be impacted by these types of weather events but anyway
we'll get it if we do Jamie we'll just manage
the season as we need to appropriately as it comes
(05:34):
along so.
Speaker 3 (05:35):
Now, you were predominantly an arable farmer. I think, am
I right in saying that, Colin? You've just recently bought
a dairy farm to diversify. This is a bit of
a sad stat. Only one in five arable farmers report
making a profit.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
Yeah, that's pretty sad, Jamie. Arable sector's in a bit
of a dire straits. But quite often when there's the
depths of these types of situations, it can turn around.
reasonably quickly and certainly a lot of our arable farmers
in Canterbury have got good irrigation systems and we're suppliers
of feed to the livestock sector so that's the seed
(06:13):
and feed types of things we all grow so there
could be good opportunities around the corner certainly if we're
going to have demand for feed.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
Well that's the positive side of it, the negative side
of it of all the farming systems I think the
arable farmers are the most at risk from the likes
of fuel and fertiliser prices.
Speaker 5 (06:33):
Yeah, fertiliser's a big one, and fuel. Certainly, I know
on our farm, that was a significant impact, what it
is going forward for the fertiliser for the spring. And
certainly fuel, when we established a lot of our crops
in the autumn, certainly the fuel bill was getting jacked
up there, Jamie. But anyway, our family made a decision
to invest in another enterprise, so we're hopefully going to
(06:56):
get the best of all worlds.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Well, it's spreading the risk, isn't it? Diversification. How is
the dairy farm going? Because this is your first season.
Speaker 5 (07:04):
First season, I think we're due for our first milk
check tomorrow, so we're looking forward to that. So we
might be able to reduce the overdraft.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
To a small amount. Have you darkened the door of
the milking shed yet, Colin? Have you put the cups on?
Speaker 5 (07:19):
No, I haven't put the cups on, but certainly we've
employed a contract milker, and that's one of my... ambitions
to get uh get in there and learn how to undertake.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
That i thought you're going to say your ambition was
to never have to go in there and put the
cups on and get shat upon by a cow.
Speaker 5 (07:34):
Oh no no that's uh no no definitely keen to
be involved so um you gotta when i'm representing farmers
i need to represent them all and i need to
understand the issues so this is just one of them.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
All right hey colin colin hurst out of out of
waimati you're in waimati aren't you Yep.
Speaker 5 (07:50):
We're on State Highway 1. We're actually at Makiki, of
all places.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Oh, where they make the chips.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
That's right. Our farm is on either side of the township.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Do you grow spuds for the chip factory?
Speaker 5 (08:01):
We have in the past. We've quite often leased land
for the Bleeker family to grow potatoes. We haven't in
recent years, but yeah. No, it's a good enterprise there.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, it is indeed. Wonderful chips. Hey, thank you very
much for your time.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
Thanks, Jamie.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yep, good on you. Colin Hurst there, President of Federated Farmers.
And if you want to find out more about that
or you haven't seen the press release, we obviously get
them here. Just go to the Federated Farmers, well, any
of their social channels or their website and you can
read all about the latest Farmer Confidence Survey. 72% of farmers,
(08:37):
as I said, making a profit, which is good because
we're coming off a really good year. Fewer than 1
in 20 making a loss, but then the negative side
of that is only 1 in 5 arable farmers report
making a profit. And I might talk to, and we'll
continue this theme when we chat to Peter Alexander, farm accountant,
who says, I've even got his notes in front of
(09:01):
me and he's typed them out because I can't read
his handwriting. expenses rise to meet farm incomes. We're going
to have a talk to him about that and what
you can do about that. But up next, David Seymour.
Interestingly or unsurprisingly, Paul Henry's in at number four on
the ACT party list. But the good news for farming
is Andrew Hoggard, the former president of Federated Farmers, very
(09:24):
capable man too, I might add, has come in at
number three. Should he be the next Minister of Agriculture?
We'll ask David Seymour next. We celebrate the 70s. David
(10:07):
Seymour is the ACT Party leader. He's also the Deputy
Prime Minister as we count down to the election less
than two months to go. David, pat on the back time.
Good to see in your party list that your ag guy,
Andrew Hoggard, former president of Federated Farmers, is at the
lofty heights of number three. Well done.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Yeah, well, well done, Andrew. A few things about him.
First of all, he told me it'd be much simpler
for him because he's used to being a tight-haired prop,
so number three will make his life less confusing. But
underneath that self-deprecating humour, he's razor-sharp. His grasp of economics
and his knowledge of all things agricultural means that he
(10:50):
can turn a conversation in Cabinet by introducing facts that
are absolutely critical that no one else was aware of.
And he has an authenticity not to cast shade on
any other party's agricultural spokespeople. But when you talk to Andrew,
you get the feeling you've got the real deal. I
don't know if that's always the case.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Are you going to demand that he's the Minister of
Agriculture in the next coalition government, should you get across
the line? I mean, Winston's demanding immigration ministers.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
Well, let's see. I mean, one thing that's clear is
that if it was to be done on merit... in
terms of knowledge and performance and work ethic and connection
with the rural sector, I think you would pick Andrew Hoggart.
Let's see what the numbers are. If we're even in
a position to form government, are we going to work
(11:43):
like hell and get people to give their party a
vote to act to make that happen and to keep
the other guys out? So, you know, there's a lot
of water to go into that particular bridge. But if
you look at the people in the current parliament, And
if you were going to choose someone on merit to
be the Minister of Agriculture, I think it would be
pretty hard to argue, putting aside politics, that it should
(12:05):
not be Andrew.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
Mind you, Todd McClay's done a pretty good job, to
be fair. Look, will some of your sitting MPs be
a bit peeved that you've got your pet, Paul Henry,
at number four? Because you obviously did a deal with
him to get him on board, and he's been very
good for the ACT Party polls, I put it to you.
But you said to him you're going to guarantee him
a place He's not going to do all that work
(12:26):
for nothing.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
Well, I'll put it this way. We did say he'd
have a high ranking, but the ranking he's got is
higher than I thought and that we'd previously discussed. And
the reason for that is that he's got out and
done the work. I think the thing about Paul is
a lot of people know him for a few things
he said on Breakfast TV 15 years ago. What I
(12:48):
realised when I met him and got to know him
over the last two years was is you don't build
and sell off a successful provincial radio station by getting
up at 3 a.m. every morning for 20 years unless
you have a work ethic. And if you look at
him getting around the country, you know, he's spoken, they
tell me, to 7,000 people. He had about 20 meetings
(13:12):
in the last few weeks. You know, the guy's a machine.
Across the ACT family, people respect that he's actually doing
the work, and the same with James Christmas. I mean,
James has knocked on the door of your near namesake,
Mr Mackay, and he's also doing the work, and that's
(13:34):
one thing that ACT people respect is meritocracy.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Okay, that's Hamish Mackay I think we're referencing there. Paris,
when it comes to Paris and pricing ag emissions, for
once are you in total agreement with Winston?
Speaker 2 (13:47):
No, I mean, you know, Winston's, of course, doing the
Winston thing, which is short soundbite, absolute, and, you know,
who knows what happens after the election. What we're saying
is a bit more consistent with ACT, that New Zealand
has a balancing act. Anyone that says, oh, you just
pull out tomorrow and see what happens, I don't think
(14:09):
that's responsible because it's not clear. But anyone that says
we're in it to the hilt and we're going to
send ourselves broke but to remain pure regardless of what
other countries do. I mean, that's totally nuts. It'll make
us broke and actually will increase global emissions because foreign
farmers are generally less efficient in terms of greenhouse gases
(14:31):
per kilogram of protein than our competitors. Well, than we are, sorry. So,
you know, New Zealand needs to very carefully look at
how do we renegotiate a fairer deal for methane. That
was not done. because when Paris was done, we basically
had public officials that are supposed to represent our interests
(14:52):
to the world, and they found they got on a
bit better with the other public officials in Paris. They
ended up representing Paris to us. We need to change that,
get a better deal, team up with countries like Uruguay
that are more methane intensive, and if they're not going
to be reasonable, maybe we should look around, see what
other countries are up to by that stage, and be
prepared to walk. It may be that the cost of
(15:15):
walking are going to become far lower than the cost
of staying in as other countries fail to walk the
talk on their commitments.
Speaker 3 (15:24):
Just a couple to quickly finish on. I understand you
haven't been on the city rail link, the underground train system,
the subway, we could almost call it, couldn't we? Subway,
the tube in Auckland. It's pretty impressive. I went to
an open day, but it's infrastructure, $ 5. 5 billion of the stuff.
(15:45):
We're going to have to pay for that, obviously. But
surely in this country, David Seymour, we need more kick-ass
infrastructure projects like that. And I'll throw one at you,
Four Lane Highway, Auckland to Whangarei.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Well, I agree with you that we need more infrastructure
for a whole bunch of reasons. You look at Northland,
where I happen to grow up, It's one of the
poorest areas in the world. And the only real solution
to the social problems and the poverty up there in
the division is called Four Lanes to Kaitaia. I mean,
I don't know if you'd ever get that far, but
(16:20):
once you start connecting people to opportunity and you make
businesses more efficient, then some of the other problems tend
to melt away. So I tend to agree with that.
But we've got to ask ourselves why the costs are
so high. Simon Court has put out, I think, a
very good transport policy where he says look at the
very least when a project is published the minimum viable
(16:43):
option the lowest cost way of achieving the goal should
be published alongside the option that they choose because at
the moment we're building gold-plated stuff the city rail link's
a good example of that even the guy that was
in charge of the project the year we overcooked it
six billion dollars later um you know that doesn't seem
so wise so The Ag Party is all for more infrastructure,
(17:04):
but that doesn't have to mean more money. It could
mean more efficiency.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
Hey, David Seymour, I'm out of time. I can't even
talk about you as a child actor. Someone told me
you played a young Sir Ed Hillary when you were
a kid. Maybe we'll talk about that next time.
Speaker 2 (17:18):
OK, I look forward to it.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Yeah, it is a good story, that one. Just didn't
have time to go there. Apparently, Ed Hillary went to
Auckland Grammar and they went to Auckland Grammar and looked
for a kid who looked like a young Sir Ed
Hillary and they picked... David Seymour. Some of your texts
coming in, Jamie, you know I like your show. They
didn't sign their name, but thank you for liking the show.
(17:41):
But I do get sick of hearing about how dry
it is, or the impending dry coming. At least those people,
if they are sheep and beef farmers, will have plenty
of animals to sell and make the most of the
good prices, even if store stock. This person, by the way,
is from southern Southland. The constant wet here is killing
(18:01):
lambs before we have a chance to sell them. 28
days of rain for August in southern Southland and it's
still going. Growth is really slow. Covers are disappearing really quickly.
We are on the hills and the tops of the
hills are a bog. Oh for a week of sun.
Hey look, I did mention that earlier in the show, Texter,
(18:21):
because I was down in Southland for a wonderful reunion
of the 70s Southland rugby teams. I was lucky enough
to MC it, spend some time with some real heroes
of mine. And I saw for myself how wet it
is in Southland. It's a bit of a bog. There's
water everywhere. It's blowing its arse off. It's really cold.
(18:43):
You can see the pasture covers aren't flash. Absolutely get
your frustration. But the numbers around the Super El Nino,
even though Colin Hurst said not an issue at the
moment in Canterbury, but they are quite dire, the numbers.
And all we're trying to do is just reflect what
we're hearing and that people need to be aware of it.
(19:06):
I know you could do with some, the good news is,
and we'll talk to Phil Duncan for you folks in Southland,
I think you're going to get a couple of decent
days with a bit of big yellow, but later in
the week it comes in again. And here's another one. Jamie,
was Jeff Gardner a big man with a huge punt
at the Southland reunion? I remember in the 1970s at
Carisbrook when an Otago player made a break, him yelling
(19:29):
at his team to bury him. says Charlie well Jeffrey
Gardner JJ Gardner was there yes and he had a
big punt a huge punt and he always had lots
to say for himself on and off the rugby paddock
and that wasn't any different on Saturday night what a
character Probably should have been an All Black. He told
(19:52):
the All Black selectors he should have been an All Black. Hello, Geoffrey,
if you're listening. Right up next, Peter Alexander. I think
Geoff's based in Christchurch these days. Christchurch-based farm accountant on
expenses rising to meet farm incomes. That's up next on
The Country. He is a Christchurch-based farm accountant and raconteur.
(20:28):
He has generously given some of his time today on
the country to inform and entertain. Peter, normally you send
me a scribbled, handwritten message, which I can barely read.
Your secretary says, has typed out some key topics to
talk about. I'll be forever thankful for that. I want
to talk about number one, and this follows on from
(20:48):
the Federated Farmers' latest confidence survey. On farm, in New
Zealand at the moment, expenses are rising to meet income,
which is a shame.
Speaker 6 (20:59):
Yes, before you go any further, Jamie, at your age,
I would have thought you could read my writing, but
we won't go into that.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Yes, you're quite right.
Speaker 6 (21:10):
At the moment, I'm striking every day expenses rising to
meet income. We've had a good year and we needed it,
sheep and beef. But this year is not going to
be as good. The income will still look sound, but
the expenses keep rising. The old story, the expenses keep
going up and up and up. And it's very frustrating,
(21:32):
but we've got to deal with it.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
Well, what's happening in the Middle East is helping nobody.
That's a war that's going to get worse, I think,
before it gets better. Obviously, there's fuel and fertiliser. They're
really key things on a farmer's cost side of the ledger,
if you want. The other one is interest rates. We
had Rabobank on last week saying a couple more OCR rises,
(21:58):
we might get to 3.25%. But then you're telling me
what everyone knows. Anyhow, the global bond markets are starting
to get a bit twitchy.
Speaker 5 (22:08):
Yes.
Speaker 6 (22:08):
Now, that is a very interesting issue. If you said
what's one of the most things that's cheered me up,
it's that. At the moment, I read the Wall Street
Journal and New York Times every day, and Mr. Trump
is getting twitchy with the bond market, just like Mrs.
Truss did, and it's on the rise. The moment it
(22:30):
starts rising, it will flow onto all interest rates. So
in one way, it's a credit, it's a plus, but
in another way, it's hard on every business. At the moment, it's...
The bond market in the UK, in France, in Italy,
(22:51):
in Germany, it's all starting to react. And when I
say react, they are getting annoyed with the amount of
the debt and they want more interest to cope with
that more risk.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Where do you reckon interest rates are going to settle here?
If we do have an OCR that peaks or plateaus
or settles, get my terminology right at 3.25%. Where does
that leave, for instance, floating mortgage rates for farmers and businesses?
Speaker 6 (23:20):
Yeah, that's a good question. I would guess 5.75%. I
don't think you'll borrow much below that.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
Mind you, Peter, historically, and we're both getting longer in
the tooth, especially you, I mean, 5.75%. I used to
have a mantra when I started out in the radio
business 30-odd years ago, If it was below 7%, I'd fix.
Speaker 6 (23:44):
Yes, no, you're quite right. That comment is quite correct.
But our expenses, when you're talking back when you were
a young boy before the war, the farm working expenses
to gross farm income ratio was 45%. Now you're at 65%, 67%
of the gross farm income. So you're in a different era.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
Peter, one thing I do remember from my farming days,
and that's a few years ago now, was at the
behest of my accountant, using the Farm Income Equalisation Scheme.
Do farmers still use that?
Speaker 6 (24:20):
Yes, they do. It's being used by a hardcore farmer.
It's a damn good scheme. You get 3% while the
money's in there, so it's not complete loss. The IRD
look after it. There's no risk with it. With these volatility,
the minute you've got volatility, you should be looking at
(24:40):
the intrapicalisation scheme more than you are now.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Well, it's a good way to even out your income
and therefore your tax payments. You carry on to suggest,
and this is such a pleasure chatting to you today,
I can actually read what you want to talk about.
It's a wonderful change, Peter. Did you ever think of
becoming a doctor with handwriting like that?
Speaker 5 (25:00):
Yeah, get on with it.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
All right, okay. The present coalition you're suggesting is the
wrong structure for digging us out of a financial hole.
What is the right structure?
Speaker 6 (25:10):
The right structure is really a party that's got a
stronger mandate. I mean, The Labour Party in the UK
had a stronger mandate and it still didn't work. The
coalition in France, I mean, France is an absolute financial shambles.
They've got another election coming up in about six months
(25:33):
and they're still letting their debt rise and rise and rise.
Their coalition can't agree on anything. A coalition is not
the right structure to dig yourself out of a hole.
You need more strength, more mandate.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Hey, Peter, be careful what you wish for. The last
time we had a government that wasn't dependent on a coalition,
in fact, could rule alone and do what it wanted. Jacinda,
2020 to 23 with Chippy at the end, that didn't
end that well.
Speaker 6 (26:05):
No, I agree. And Mr. Trump's another good example. But
I wouldn't change what I've said. A coalition in France
isn't working. A coalition here is not working. None of
these coalitions reduce debt. Hardly any of these politicians reduce debt.
They just haven't got the stomach for it.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
What is that, the old saying I learned many, many
years ago? The best form of an investment is to
repay debt.
Speaker 6 (26:33):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Well, we're both sounding like boring accountants, Peter.
Speaker 6 (26:37):
Yeah, okay. I think a good accountant can still add value.
Maybe you're past it, but a good accountant can still
add value.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
I always appreciate you adding value to my show. Thanks
for your time, Peter Alexander.
Speaker 5 (26:52):
Righto, Jamie.
Speaker 7 (26:54):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (26:56):
Thanks, Peter. 23 away from one, you're with the country,
brought to you by Isuzu and Farmland's Farmland's got a
wonderful promo going at the moment. You can get 50
grand for your rugby club. Go to their website and
have a look how you could do that. It'd be
great for your local footy club, wouldn't it? Jamie, if
farmers have to pay land tax, this is obviously a
(27:17):
reference to the Opportunities Party, then they might have to
pay the bank's business rate due to extra risk, says Doug.
Food for thought. Up next, Michelle with the latest in
rural news. We'll have a look at sports news for you.
Alexander Zverev winning the US Open. That's two Grand Slams
for him this year. Before the end of the hour,
(27:40):
lifestyle correspondent Jeremy Rooks and Phil Duncan on the weather,
which is really peeving some farmers off at the moment.
20 away from 1R, the 70s. Great reunion of the
(28:08):
old guys. They're all a wee bit older than me.
Most of them were. In Invercargill on Saturday night. Five
All Blacks in the room. Six if you count Jeff Valley.
And the next day they all went along and watched
the Southland Stags beat Bay of Plenty. How good was that?
Here's Michelle Watt with the latest in rural news.
Speaker 1 (28:30):
The country's rural news with Cub Cadet. It's one thing
to talk innovation, another to back it up. Drive it,
we dare you. Visit steelfort.co.nz for your local stockist.
Speaker 8 (28:42):
And a new story about probably one of, in fact, no,
I know it's not one of your favourite fruits or vegetables.
Speaker 3 (28:49):
No, no, I'm supportive of the industry, just don't like
the taste of avocados.
Speaker 8 (28:54):
I think they're more of a millennial thing, aren't they?
Speaker 2 (28:56):
No, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 3 (28:57):
Avocado on toast? The program director loves avocado. It's just
a personal. Look, I'm a kiwifruit guy, but since I've
had influenza A and just about recovered from it, I
look at a kiwifruit and get a metallic taste in
my mouth. I've only had one beer or one drink, drinks,
in a month. This could be a new chapter in
(29:18):
my life.
Speaker 8 (29:19):
A new beginning, you think?
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Well, I hope not. Anyhow, what's some rural news about
the avocados?
Speaker 8 (29:24):
The avocado industry. So New Zealand's avocado industry says boosting
local consumption could generate tens of millions of dollars in
extra demand as growers head toward a potential record harvest.
The industry expects to produce almost 8 million trays in
the 2026-27 season, with nearly three million destined for the
domestic market and almost 5 million for export. New Zealanders
currently eat about 3 kilos of avocado per person per year,
(29:47):
compared with almost 5 kilograms in Australia. And industry leaders
are saying that matching Australians' consumption levels could significantly increase
the value of the domestic market. Research also has shown
that avocado is being used across a wider range of meals,
with more people proofing dishes at home, such as avocado
toast and guacamole. And that's rural news.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
So there you go.
Speaker 6 (30:07):
Here's sport.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Sport on the country with AFCO. 100% Kiwi owned and trusted.
That's rare.
Speaker 3 (30:15):
And as I mentioned a wee bit earlier, Alexander Zverev's
dominant year on the Grand Slam tennis circuit has ended
with a four-set victory over Ben Shelton, the American, in
the US Open finals. Zverev also won the French Open
and made it to the final at Wimbledon, where he
was beaten by, off the top of my head, Yannick Sinner.
(30:35):
So Sinner and Alcaraz were the two big things in tennis,
but now Zverev is having a very good year indeed.
Can we say that about the All Blacks? They're heading
home after their series defeat to the Springboks with a
clear idea of shortcomings. Three straight losses followed four consecutive wins.
(30:56):
in the Dave Rennie coaching era, with five tests left
in 2026. Rennie insists the lessons of the South African tour,
like maintaining their discipline and pace of play, will be
vital at next year's Rugby World Cup. Tony Brown's in
our golfing group on a Wednesday, not that I've been
(31:17):
for ages myself, and on the last day before he
left to go back to South Africa yesterday, Someone said,
what's the score going to be in the series? And
I won't tell you what he said, but he wasn't
a mile away from the truth. Look, the South Africans
were just too good. They're too big and they're too good.
(31:37):
Simple as. But never mind, we've got a year to
sort it out. Up next, a man who had an
illustrious career with the Christ College 3rd 15, our lifestyle correspondent,
Jeremy Rooks. There's no need to feel down. I said,
(32:03):
young man. Welcome back to the country.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
13.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
13 away from one. It's only coincidence, Jeremy Rook's lifestyle correspondent,
that I'm playing the village people into you. Please don't
take any personal umbrage. Good afternoon.
Speaker 7 (32:16):
Hello, Jeremy.
Speaker 3 (32:18):
Now, did you watch Country Calendar last night and that
excellent program on fielding agricultural hives?
Speaker 4 (32:27):
No, I was out last night.
Speaker 3 (32:28):
Well, you need to go to TVNZ On Demand and.
Speaker 8 (32:30):
Have a look at it.
Speaker 7 (32:31):
I always watch it. Yeah, I always watch it.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
Yeah, no, it was really good what they're doing with
Ag there. And then you think of what they're, you know,
I remember old Braden Whitelock telling me everything that they
did around sport there. And look how many All Blacks
have come out of there. You know, the Whitelocks, Aaron Smith.
It was Cody Taylor. I think he might have been. Yeah.
Was he fielding?
Speaker 7 (32:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (32:55):
So just a great school. We need more of those
in New Zealand.
Speaker 7 (32:57):
100% agree. Yeah, well, we need to, as long as
they teach the basics, so we can beat South Africa
in the future, it'll be good.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
Look, I made my comments on it, and those All
Blacks were battered, but South Africa, and we need to
put this into some form of context, because they'd do
the same to any other team in world rugby at
the moment.
Speaker 7 (33:20):
Oh, they're a fantastic team, but I mean, it's as
plain as day. We can't catch the high ball. When
Tupu Vai gave away that idiotic penalty when we were
hot on attack, that cost us the game right there.
And then we just seem to sort of not commit
players to the breakdown. So we keep getting isolated because
all the forwards are standing out in the back line
(33:40):
waiting to do a swing pass for another one. back
line move. It's like, if you just do the basics right,
we can beat them. I mean, they're a fantastic team,
but every team's beatable, provided you play well and make
good decisions under pressure, which we don't at the moment.
Speaker 3 (33:55):
Yeah, but you're up against, you're up, I mean, look
at that Malcolm Marks and the number eight Jasper Visa.
Speaker 7 (34:02):
They're man-beasts. Yeah, they are, but, I mean, if you
do your stuff correctly, you can always beat them. I mean, someone,
you know, we can beat these guys. We've just got
to play well and not give away dumb penalties and
protect the ball carrier. They've got so many turnovers. It's
just infuriating. I was throwing rosé bottles at the television
yesterday morning.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Wasn't it a 9 o'clock kick-off, or wasn't it a
bit early for the rosé?
Speaker 7 (34:27):
Nah, it was a Sunday and a test match.
Speaker 6 (34:29):
Any excuse, Jamie?
Speaker 3 (34:31):
You sound like my son. Rightio, um... You didn't see
Country Calendar. You watched the rugby. You've had a bit
of a bitch about that.
Speaker 6 (34:37):
Now, the weather.
Speaker 3 (34:38):
I was down in Southland for the weekend, and my goodness,
it's bad enough here in Dunedin, but it's bleak. It
is bleak down there, the poor buggers. There's water lying everywhere.
Wind's blowing its ass off. It's cold. The feed covers
are going. This El Nino, it might not have affected
the parts of Canterbury and the east coast of the
(35:01):
North Island yet with the dry, but it's certainly affecting
the south.
Speaker 7 (35:05):
Well, that's not unusual, though, is it, at this time
of year? I mean, how many times September, October, Southland
gets battered with wet weather, but from a Canterbury perspective,
it's fantastic here. We keep getting rain. We've had over
two inches in the last couple of weeks. It's warm,
the grass is growing, and maybe for once we might
get a decent spring rather than relief in December, and
(35:28):
then Yeah, I mean, and just the way the media
are sort of hyping up this El Nino. I mean,
you know, what was in stuff the other day, oh
my God, you know, homeowners told to stock up on
food if drought arrives. I mean, for God's sake, what's
wrong with this country? It's nuts. It's all being prepared, Jamie,
(35:49):
but my 30 years experience is you just... You've just
got to play what's in front of you because you
never know. In New Zealand, the weather can change overnight.
You can be dry then wet or wet then dry. So,
you know, nobody ever knows what's going to happen really.
Speaker 3 (36:04):
Yes, we are a maritime climate. You are dead right
about that one. Less than two months out, final question
for you. From the election, how do you think this
is playing out?
Speaker 7 (36:16):
I think the current government will get back in. I
think there's just so much... craziness going on on the left.
I mean, Chloe Swarbrick's clearly unwell. I mean, her supermarket
policies reminds me of sort of an optimistic yet ignorant
six-form sort of economics business project where they get up
and present and think it's all really good but there's
(36:37):
no substance behind it. The Opportunities Party is a media
creation and they're communists. All they want to do is
make everyone dependent on the government and then tax the wealthy.
I mean, I don't know. I mean, The whole country's buggered.
I mean, as Peter Alexander was saying, you know, the
expenses of everything are going up, and this government hasn't
cut out the bureaucracy and the expense. I mean, you've
(36:59):
got people going, oh, something's got to change. Well, I
tell you what. Well, we've just got to cut down
compliance costs, bureaucrats and everything. I reckon what we need
to do is get all the bureaucrats in Wellington and
put them on the ferry, biff them off the ferry
500 metres offshore and go, right... Those that survive are
the ones that we keep employed.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Right, now those are the thoughts of Jeremy Rooks, lifestyle
correspondent here on The Country. Got to go. There we go.
You never die wondering what he's thinking. Jeremy Rooks, we're
going to wrap it with Phil Duncan. It is six
(37:42):
away from one. Phil Duncan from Weather Watch, favourite weatherman
on a Monday on the country. Hey, Phil, I was
in Southland over the weekend. It's miserable down there. They're
going to get a couple of decent days and then
there's some more crap coming and the areas that are
supposed to be dry are doing quite nicely, thanks. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (38:00):
Yeah, good afternoon. Yeah, Southland's certainly having a wet, a
pretty wet time at the moment and more wet weather
this week, 30 to 60 millimetres on the way for
the next eight, nine days. And there's a significant cold
change coming for Southland and actually for a number of
other regions later on Wednesday. So, you know, the overnight
low is two degrees in northern Southland, which is a
(38:23):
sign of that's with some wet weather around, which means
there'll be maybe some snow. Back on the rest of
the country, though, it is on the edge of high
pressure this week. There's a really big high in the
Casman Sea that's just going to encourage warmer west to
northwest winds. that cold change comes through later in the week,
and then we get a low pressure zone that spins
(38:45):
up around the upper North Island around about Friday. So
there is rain falling in places where typically with El
Nino you don't normally expect it, but I think the
drying out phase is going to move in a little
faster over the next month.
Speaker 3 (38:58):
Mind you, if we're getting the moisture now, it does
set up for a bit later. If it does get dry,
is there anywhere in the country at all that's dry?
Speaker 4 (39:05):
I wouldn't say there's anywhere that's really dry, but the
eastern side of Northland, eastern part of Waikato, all of
Bay of Plenty, those areas are leaning a little bit drier.
There will be some rain coming this week, but I
think after that there could be a drier trend, especially
if these warm westerlies keep blowing. Things could dry up
very quickly.
Speaker 3 (39:26):
Yeah, OK. So this El Nino, we've all been warned
about it. When will it show its face?
Speaker 4 (39:32):
So normally, I mean, we've already got the windier westerlies.
They kicked in in August this year. But I think,
you know, as far as El Nino is concerned, the
negative side of it usually shows up more towards the
later part of spring. So if we can make it
to November with good rainfall, that bodes very well for summer.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
Yeah, we'll take that. Hey, Phil, always good to catch
up on the country. Thank you very much for your time.
Speaker 4 (39:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (39:55):
Phil Duncan there from Weather Watch. Runs a great website
and some really interesting commentary there you can find as well. Right,
that's us done and dusted for a Monday. Thanks for listening.
Really appreciate it and catch you tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
The Country with Jamie Mackay and Farmlands. Because rural never
grows it alone. Newstalk ZV.
The Country with Jamie Mackay and Farmlands. Because rural never
grows it alone. Newstalk ZB. It was 929.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
929 Backstreet Big City.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
The sun was going down.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
There was music all around.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
But that's all right. Good afternoon, New Zealand. Welcome to
the country. I'm Jamie Mackay, 70s theme today. Tell you
about that a wee bit later. Last train to London. Well,
(00:39):
a wee bit later, I'm going to be chatting to
David Seymour, ACT Party leader. We'll see if he is
caught at a last train to, where? Kauranga, Happy Station.
There's so many of them now with the City Rail Link. Anyhow,
we're going to talk infrastructure projects with him. But first,
kicking off the show today is the President of Federated Farmers.
(00:59):
They've just come out with their latest Farmer Confidence Survey.
We will have a look at that one for you.
Also on the show, Peter Alexander, Christchurch-based farm accountant and raconteur, saying,
and this coincides with what Federated Farmers are saying in
their latest Farmer Confidence Survey, that farm expenses are coming
(01:20):
up to meet incomes. Jeremy Rooks, lifestyle correspondent, just to
lighten things up a wee bit, and Phil Duncan on
the weather. I was down in Southland on the weekend
for a wonderful 70s rugby reunion of all the old
Southland players. And I can tell you what, it was
a bit windswept and bleak down there, water lying everywhere.
(01:40):
So we'll have a look at the weather with Phil Duncan.
But kicking off the show, President of Federated Farmers, Colin Hurst.
And in your latest Federated Farmers Confidence Survey, Colin, 72%
of farmers are making a profit with fewer than 1
in 20 making a loss today. But farmers are worried
whether the good times will last. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Good afternoon, Jamie.
Speaker 5 (02:03):
Yeah, no, they certainly are concerned about the good times last. Yeah,
it's concerning about the rise in some of our costs
like fuel, feed and freight and insurance and that type
of thing. Yeah, looking forward, we're just keeping a close
eye on those things and we're seeing a bit of
a drop in confidence going forward. But certainly, currently, it's
(02:26):
never been better.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
Well, the prices have never been better. Dairy, sheep and
beef farmers are getting strong returns. We'll come back to
the likes of the arable farmers who are having a
bit of a battle at the moment. The interesting one
is most concern about the year ahead is actually coming
from the dairy farmers.
Speaker 6 (02:44):
Yeah, that is jammy.
Speaker 5 (02:45):
And you've got to remember when we undertook this survey,
it was mid-July through to the end of the month.
And that was exactly when Fonterra announced their 50 cent
drop in the milk price. So, of course, it's going
to be very focused on dairy farmers undertaking the survey.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
And since then, we've had two or three positive GDT
auctions in a row. So maybe that's all right. But
as you quite rightly pointed out, we've got fuel and fertiliser,
the Middle East crisis. You've got rates, local body rates,
that is, not to mention interest rates. Everything's going up.
Speaker 5 (03:22):
Yeah, no, you're right about that, Jeremy. So also when
we started the survey, the OCR went up, so that
was increasing interest rates. And then also the inflation rate
was up to 4.1%. So all these sort of things transpired.
But you are correct, the GDT auctions had a bit
of a lift. So we're looking forward to the next
one of them, so to see how that goes for
(03:43):
dairy farming.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
Yeah, farmers' top three concerns were, unsurprisingly, rising input costs
and on-farm inflation at 33%. Coming in at second place
was the election and domestic politics, and I guess we
can add in the result of an election and local
body politics, and then there's regulation compliance and red tape. Interestingly,
(04:09):
worries about commodity prices and weather, especially when we've got
a Super El Nino, just around the corner, they're well
back at 12% and 11%.
Speaker 5 (04:19):
Yeah, that's right, Jamie. So, yeah, the key one is
compliance costs. You know, that's the top priority we want
the government to look at, or this is what the
farmers in the survey indicated, followed by business and economic environments.
We want that ramped up. But also the other one
was government fiscal policy. So that's something we want the
(04:39):
government to be responsible about their spending and all that
type of thing. But you're right, the El Nino is
just around the corner or it's supposed to be affecting us.
I don't think it's actually hit too much yet. From
what I can see, it's still early in the season,
but it's just around the corner and hopefully it's not
going to be as bad as the pundits are making.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
I was looking at a soil moisture deficit map or
just a soil moisture map and I'm going to talk
to Phil Duncan about this. It was on his weather
watch site and areas where you are, Canterbury, for instance,
which is right in the firing line for the Super
El Nino, you're above average. soil moisture?
Speaker 5 (05:14):
Well certainly on our farm I've never seen it so wet.
We've got water lying in the paddocks still and we're
on the east coast of the South Island and typically
that's one of the areas that we would expect to
be impacted by these types of weather events but anyway
we'll get it if we do Jamie we'll just manage
the season as we need to appropriately as it comes
(05:34):
along so.
Speaker 3 (05:35):
Now, you were predominantly an arable farmer. I think, am
I right in saying that, Colin? You've just recently bought
a dairy farm to diversify. This is a bit of
a sad stat. Only one in five arable farmers report
making a profit.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
Yeah, that's pretty sad, Jamie. Arable sector's in a bit
of a dire straits. But quite often when there's the
depths of these types of situations, it can turn around.
reasonably quickly and certainly a lot of our arable farmers
in Canterbury have got good irrigation systems and we're suppliers
of feed to the livestock sector so that's the seed
(06:13):
and feed types of things we all grow so there
could be good opportunities around the corner certainly if we're
going to have demand for feed.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
Well that's the positive side of it, the negative side
of it of all the farming systems I think the
arable farmers are the most at risk from the likes
of fuel and fertiliser prices.
Speaker 5 (06:33):
Yeah, fertiliser's a big one, and fuel. Certainly, I know
on our farm, that was a significant impact, what it
is going forward for the fertiliser for the spring. And
certainly fuel, when we established a lot of our crops
in the autumn, certainly the fuel bill was getting jacked
up there, Jamie. But anyway, our family made a decision
to invest in another enterprise, so we're hopefully going to
(06:56):
get the best of all worlds.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Well, it's spreading the risk, isn't it? Diversification. How is
the dairy farm going? Because this is your first season.
Speaker 5 (07:04):
First season, I think we're due for our first milk
check tomorrow, so we're looking forward to that. So we
might be able to reduce the overdraft.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
To a small amount. Have you darkened the door of
the milking shed yet, Colin? Have you put the cups on?
Speaker 5 (07:19):
No, I haven't put the cups on, but certainly we've
employed a contract milker, and that's one of my... ambitions
to get uh get in there and learn how to undertake.
Speaker 3 (07:27):
That i thought you're going to say your ambition was
to never have to go in there and put the
cups on and get shat upon by a cow.
Speaker 5 (07:34):
Oh no no that's uh no no definitely keen to
be involved so um you gotta when i'm representing farmers
i need to represent them all and i need to
understand the issues so this is just one of them.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
All right hey colin colin hurst out of out of
waimati you're in waimati aren't you Yep.
Speaker 5 (07:50):
We're on State Highway 1. We're actually at Makiki, of
all places.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Oh, where they make the chips.
Speaker 5 (07:55):
That's right. Our farm is on either side of the township.
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Do you grow spuds for the chip factory?
Speaker 5 (08:01):
We have in the past. We've quite often leased land
for the Bleeker family to grow potatoes. We haven't in
recent years, but yeah. No, it's a good enterprise there.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, it is indeed. Wonderful chips. Hey, thank you very
much for your time.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
Thanks, Jamie.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yep, good on you. Colin Hurst there, President of Federated Farmers.
And if you want to find out more about that
or you haven't seen the press release, we obviously get
them here. Just go to the Federated Farmers, well, any
of their social channels or their website and you can
read all about the latest Farmer Confidence Survey. 72% of farmers,
(08:37):
as I said, making a profit, which is good because
we're coming off a really good year. Fewer than 1
in 20 making a loss, but then the negative side
of that is only 1 in 5 arable farmers report
making a profit. And I might talk to, and we'll
continue this theme when we chat to Peter Alexander, farm accountant,
who says, I've even got his notes in front of
(09:01):
me and he's typed them out because I can't read
his handwriting. expenses rise to meet farm incomes. We're going
to have a talk to him about that and what
you can do about that. But up next, David Seymour.
Interestingly or unsurprisingly, Paul Henry's in at number four on
the ACT party list. But the good news for farming
is Andrew Hoggard, the former president of Federated Farmers, very
(09:24):
capable man too, I might add, has come in at
number three. Should he be the next Minister of Agriculture?
We'll ask David Seymour next. We celebrate the 70s. David
(10:07):
Seymour is the ACT Party leader. He's also the Deputy
Prime Minister as we count down to the election less
than two months to go. David, pat on the back time.
Good to see in your party list that your ag guy,
Andrew Hoggard, former president of Federated Farmers, is at the
lofty heights of number three. Well done.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Yeah, well, well done, Andrew. A few things about him.
First of all, he told me it'd be much simpler
for him because he's used to being a tight-haired prop,
so number three will make his life less confusing. But
underneath that self-deprecating humour, he's razor-sharp. His grasp of economics
and his knowledge of all things agricultural means that he
(10:50):
can turn a conversation in Cabinet by introducing facts that
are absolutely critical that no one else was aware of.
And he has an authenticity not to cast shade on
any other party's agricultural spokespeople. But when you talk to Andrew,
you get the feeling you've got the real deal. I
don't know if that's always the case.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Are you going to demand that he's the Minister of
Agriculture in the next coalition government, should you get across
the line? I mean, Winston's demanding immigration ministers.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
Well, let's see. I mean, one thing that's clear is
that if it was to be done on merit... in
terms of knowledge and performance and work ethic and connection
with the rural sector, I think you would pick Andrew Hoggart.
Let's see what the numbers are. If we're even in
a position to form government, are we going to work
(11:43):
like hell and get people to give their party a
vote to act to make that happen and to keep
the other guys out? So, you know, there's a lot
of water to go into that particular bridge. But if
you look at the people in the current parliament, And
if you were going to choose someone on merit to
be the Minister of Agriculture, I think it would be
pretty hard to argue, putting aside politics, that it should
(12:05):
not be Andrew.
Speaker 3 (12:06):
Mind you, Todd McClay's done a pretty good job, to
be fair. Look, will some of your sitting MPs be
a bit peeved that you've got your pet, Paul Henry,
at number four? Because you obviously did a deal with
him to get him on board, and he's been very
good for the ACT Party polls, I put it to you.
But you said to him you're going to guarantee him
a place He's not going to do all that work
(12:26):
for nothing.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
Well, I'll put it this way. We did say he'd
have a high ranking, but the ranking he's got is
higher than I thought and that we'd previously discussed. And
the reason for that is that he's got out and
done the work. I think the thing about Paul is
a lot of people know him for a few things
he said on Breakfast TV 15 years ago. What I
(12:48):
realised when I met him and got to know him
over the last two years was is you don't build
and sell off a successful provincial radio station by getting
up at 3 a.m. every morning for 20 years unless
you have a work ethic. And if you look at
him getting around the country, you know, he's spoken, they
tell me, to 7,000 people. He had about 20 meetings
(13:12):
in the last few weeks. You know, the guy's a machine.
Across the ACT family, people respect that he's actually doing
the work, and the same with James Christmas. I mean,
James has knocked on the door of your near namesake,
Mr Mackay, and he's also doing the work, and that's
(13:34):
one thing that ACT people respect is meritocracy.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Okay, that's Hamish Mackay I think we're referencing there. Paris,
when it comes to Paris and pricing ag emissions, for
once are you in total agreement with Winston?
Speaker 2 (13:47):
No, I mean, you know, Winston's, of course, doing the
Winston thing, which is short soundbite, absolute, and, you know,
who knows what happens after the election. What we're saying
is a bit more consistent with ACT, that New Zealand
has a balancing act. Anyone that says, oh, you just
pull out tomorrow and see what happens, I don't think
(14:09):
that's responsible because it's not clear. But anyone that says
we're in it to the hilt and we're going to
send ourselves broke but to remain pure regardless of what
other countries do. I mean, that's totally nuts. It'll make
us broke and actually will increase global emissions because foreign
farmers are generally less efficient in terms of greenhouse gases
(14:31):
per kilogram of protein than our competitors. Well, than we are, sorry. So,
you know, New Zealand needs to very carefully look at
how do we renegotiate a fairer deal for methane. That
was not done. because when Paris was done, we basically
had public officials that are supposed to represent our interests
(14:52):
to the world, and they found they got on a
bit better with the other public officials in Paris. They
ended up representing Paris to us. We need to change that,
get a better deal, team up with countries like Uruguay
that are more methane intensive, and if they're not going
to be reasonable, maybe we should look around, see what
other countries are up to by that stage, and be
prepared to walk. It may be that the cost of
(15:15):
walking are going to become far lower than the cost
of staying in as other countries fail to walk the
talk on their commitments.
Speaker 3 (15:24):
Just a couple to quickly finish on. I understand you
haven't been on the city rail link, the underground train system,
the subway, we could almost call it, couldn't we? Subway,
the tube in Auckland. It's pretty impressive. I went to
an open day, but it's infrastructure, $ 5. 5 billion of the stuff.
(15:45):
We're going to have to pay for that, obviously. But
surely in this country, David Seymour, we need more kick-ass
infrastructure projects like that. And I'll throw one at you,
Four Lane Highway, Auckland to Whangarei.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Well, I agree with you that we need more infrastructure
for a whole bunch of reasons. You look at Northland,
where I happen to grow up, It's one of the
poorest areas in the world. And the only real solution
to the social problems and the poverty up there in
the division is called Four Lanes to Kaitaia. I mean,
I don't know if you'd ever get that far, but
(16:20):
once you start connecting people to opportunity and you make
businesses more efficient, then some of the other problems tend
to melt away. So I tend to agree with that.
But we've got to ask ourselves why the costs are
so high. Simon Court has put out, I think, a
very good transport policy where he says look at the
very least when a project is published the minimum viable
(16:43):
option the lowest cost way of achieving the goal should
be published alongside the option that they choose because at
the moment we're building gold-plated stuff the city rail link's
a good example of that even the guy that was
in charge of the project the year we overcooked it
six billion dollars later um you know that doesn't seem
so wise so The Ag Party is all for more infrastructure,
(17:04):
but that doesn't have to mean more money. It could
mean more efficiency.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
Hey, David Seymour, I'm out of time. I can't even
talk about you as a child actor. Someone told me
you played a young Sir Ed Hillary when you were
a kid. Maybe we'll talk about that next time.
Speaker 2 (17:18):
OK, I look forward to it.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Yeah, it is a good story, that one. Just didn't
have time to go there. Apparently, Ed Hillary went to
Auckland Grammar and they went to Auckland Grammar and looked
for a kid who looked like a young Sir Ed
Hillary and they picked... David Seymour. Some of your texts
coming in, Jamie, you know I like your show. They
didn't sign their name, but thank you for liking the show.
(17:41):
But I do get sick of hearing about how dry
it is, or the impending dry coming. At least those people,
if they are sheep and beef farmers, will have plenty
of animals to sell and make the most of the
good prices, even if store stock. This person, by the way,
is from southern Southland. The constant wet here is killing
(18:01):
lambs before we have a chance to sell them. 28
days of rain for August in southern Southland and it's
still going. Growth is really slow. Covers are disappearing really quickly.
We are on the hills and the tops of the
hills are a bog. Oh for a week of sun.
Hey look, I did mention that earlier in the show, Texter,
(18:21):
because I was down in Southland for a wonderful reunion
of the 70s Southland rugby teams. I was lucky enough
to MC it, spend some time with some real heroes
of mine. And I saw for myself how wet it
is in Southland. It's a bit of a bog. There's
water everywhere. It's blowing its arse off. It's really cold.
(18:43):
You can see the pasture covers aren't flash. Absolutely get
your frustration. But the numbers around the Super El Nino,
even though Colin Hurst said not an issue at the
moment in Canterbury, but they are quite dire, the numbers.
And all we're trying to do is just reflect what
we're hearing and that people need to be aware of it.
(19:06):
I know you could do with some, the good news is,
and we'll talk to Phil Duncan for you folks in Southland,
I think you're going to get a couple of decent
days with a bit of big yellow, but later in
the week it comes in again. And here's another one. Jamie,
was Jeff Gardner a big man with a huge punt
at the Southland reunion? I remember in the 1970s at
Carisbrook when an Otago player made a break, him yelling
(19:29):
at his team to bury him. says Charlie well Jeffrey
Gardner JJ Gardner was there yes and he had a
big punt a huge punt and he always had lots
to say for himself on and off the rugby paddock
and that wasn't any different on Saturday night what a
character Probably should have been an All Black. He told
(19:52):
the All Black selectors he should have been an All Black. Hello, Geoffrey,
if you're listening. Right up next, Peter Alexander. I think
Geoff's based in Christchurch these days. Christchurch-based farm accountant on
expenses rising to meet farm incomes. That's up next on
The Country. He is a Christchurch-based farm accountant and raconteur.
(20:28):
He has generously given some of his time today on
the country to inform and entertain. Peter, normally you send
me a scribbled, handwritten message, which I can barely read.
Your secretary says, has typed out some key topics to
talk about. I'll be forever thankful for that. I want
to talk about number one, and this follows on from
(20:48):
the Federated Farmers' latest confidence survey. On farm, in New
Zealand at the moment, expenses are rising to meet income,
which is a shame.
Speaker 6 (20:59):
Yes, before you go any further, Jamie, at your age,
I would have thought you could read my writing, but
we won't go into that.
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Yes, you're quite right.
Speaker 6 (21:10):
At the moment, I'm striking every day expenses rising to
meet income. We've had a good year and we needed it,
sheep and beef. But this year is not going to
be as good. The income will still look sound, but
the expenses keep rising. The old story, the expenses keep
going up and up and up. And it's very frustrating,
(21:32):
but we've got to deal with it.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
Well, what's happening in the Middle East is helping nobody.
That's a war that's going to get worse, I think,
before it gets better. Obviously, there's fuel and fertiliser. They're
really key things on a farmer's cost side of the ledger,
if you want. The other one is interest rates. We
had Rabobank on last week saying a couple more OCR rises,
(21:58):
we might get to 3.25%. But then you're telling me
what everyone knows. Anyhow, the global bond markets are starting
to get a bit twitchy.
Speaker 5 (22:08):
Yes.
Speaker 6 (22:08):
Now, that is a very interesting issue. If you said
what's one of the most things that's cheered me up,
it's that. At the moment, I read the Wall Street
Journal and New York Times every day, and Mr. Trump
is getting twitchy with the bond market, just like Mrs.
Truss did, and it's on the rise. The moment it
(22:30):
starts rising, it will flow onto all interest rates. So
in one way, it's a credit, it's a plus, but
in another way, it's hard on every business. At the moment, it's...
The bond market in the UK, in France, in Italy,
(22:51):
in Germany, it's all starting to react. And when I
say react, they are getting annoyed with the amount of
the debt and they want more interest to cope with
that more risk.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
Where do you reckon interest rates are going to settle here?
If we do have an OCR that peaks or plateaus
or settles, get my terminology right at 3.25%. Where does
that leave, for instance, floating mortgage rates for farmers and businesses?
Speaker 6 (23:20):
Yeah, that's a good question. I would guess 5.75%. I
don't think you'll borrow much below that.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
Mind you, Peter, historically, and we're both getting longer in
the tooth, especially you, I mean, 5.75%. I used to
have a mantra when I started out in the radio
business 30-odd years ago, If it was below 7%, I'd fix.
Speaker 6 (23:44):
Yes, no, you're quite right. That comment is quite correct.
But our expenses, when you're talking back when you were
a young boy before the war, the farm working expenses
to gross farm income ratio was 45%. Now you're at 65%, 67%
of the gross farm income. So you're in a different era.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
Peter, one thing I do remember from my farming days,
and that's a few years ago now, was at the
behest of my accountant, using the Farm Income Equalisation Scheme.
Do farmers still use that?
Speaker 6 (24:20):
Yes, they do. It's being used by a hardcore farmer.
It's a damn good scheme. You get 3% while the
money's in there, so it's not complete loss. The IRD
look after it. There's no risk with it. With these volatility,
the minute you've got volatility, you should be looking at
(24:40):
the intrapicalisation scheme more than you are now.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Well, it's a good way to even out your income
and therefore your tax payments. You carry on to suggest,
and this is such a pleasure chatting to you today,
I can actually read what you want to talk about.
It's a wonderful change, Peter. Did you ever think of
becoming a doctor with handwriting like that?
Speaker 5 (25:00):
Yeah, get on with it.
Speaker 3 (25:01):
All right, okay. The present coalition you're suggesting is the
wrong structure for digging us out of a financial hole.
What is the right structure?
Speaker 6 (25:10):
The right structure is really a party that's got a
stronger mandate. I mean, The Labour Party in the UK
had a stronger mandate and it still didn't work. The
coalition in France, I mean, France is an absolute financial shambles.
They've got another election coming up in about six months
(25:33):
and they're still letting their debt rise and rise and rise.
Their coalition can't agree on anything. A coalition is not
the right structure to dig yourself out of a hole.
You need more strength, more mandate.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Hey, Peter, be careful what you wish for. The last
time we had a government that wasn't dependent on a coalition,
in fact, could rule alone and do what it wanted. Jacinda,
2020 to 23 with Chippy at the end, that didn't
end that well.
Speaker 6 (26:05):
No, I agree. And Mr. Trump's another good example. But
I wouldn't change what I've said. A coalition in France
isn't working. A coalition here is not working. None of
these coalitions reduce debt. Hardly any of these politicians reduce debt.
They just haven't got the stomach for it.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
What is that, the old saying I learned many, many
years ago? The best form of an investment is to
repay debt.
Speaker 6 (26:33):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
Well, we're both sounding like boring accountants, Peter.
Speaker 6 (26:37):
Yeah, okay. I think a good accountant can still add value.
Maybe you're past it, but a good accountant can still
add value.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
I always appreciate you adding value to my show. Thanks
for your time, Peter Alexander.
Speaker 5 (26:52):
Righto, Jamie.
Speaker 7 (26:54):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (26:56):
Thanks, Peter. 23 away from one, you're with the country,
brought to you by Isuzu and Farmland's Farmland's got a
wonderful promo going at the moment. You can get 50
grand for your rugby club. Go to their website and
have a look how you could do that. It'd be
great for your local footy club, wouldn't it? Jamie, if
farmers have to pay land tax, this is obviously a
(27:17):
reference to the Opportunities Party, then they might have to
pay the bank's business rate due to extra risk, says Doug.
Food for thought. Up next, Michelle with the latest in
rural news. We'll have a look at sports news for you.
Alexander Zverev winning the US Open. That's two Grand Slams
for him this year. Before the end of the hour,
(27:40):
lifestyle correspondent Jeremy Rooks and Phil Duncan on the weather,
which is really peeving some farmers off at the moment.
20 away from 1R, the 70s. Great reunion of the
(28:08):
old guys. They're all a wee bit older than me.
Most of them were. In Invercargill on Saturday night. Five
All Blacks in the room. Six if you count Jeff Valley.
And the next day they all went along and watched
the Southland Stags beat Bay of Plenty. How good was that?
Here's Michelle Watt with the latest in rural news.
Speaker 1 (28:30):
The country's rural news with Cub Cadet. It's one thing
to talk innovation, another to back it up. Drive it,
we dare you. Visit steelfort.co.nz for your local stockist.
Speaker 8 (28:42):
And a new story about probably one of, in fact, no,
I know it's not one of your favourite fruits or vegetables.
Speaker 3 (28:49):
No, no, I'm supportive of the industry, just don't like
the taste of avocados.
Speaker 8 (28:54):
I think they're more of a millennial thing, aren't they?
Speaker 2 (28:56):
No, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 3 (28:57):
Avocado on toast? The program director loves avocado. It's just
a personal. Look, I'm a kiwifruit guy, but since I've
had influenza A and just about recovered from it, I
look at a kiwifruit and get a metallic taste in
my mouth. I've only had one beer or one drink, drinks,
in a month. This could be a new chapter in
(29:18):
my life.
Speaker 8 (29:19):
A new beginning, you think?
Speaker 3 (29:21):
Well, I hope not. Anyhow, what's some rural news about
the avocados?
Speaker 8 (29:24):
The avocado industry. So New Zealand's avocado industry says boosting
local consumption could generate tens of millions of dollars in
extra demand as growers head toward a potential record harvest.
The industry expects to produce almost 8 million trays in
the 2026-27 season, with nearly three million destined for the
domestic market and almost 5 million for export. New Zealanders
currently eat about 3 kilos of avocado per person per year,
(29:47):
compared with almost 5 kilograms in Australia. And industry leaders
are saying that matching Australians' consumption levels could significantly increase
the value of the domestic market. Research also has shown
that avocado is being used across a wider range of meals,
with more people proofing dishes at home, such as avocado
toast and guacamole. And that's rural news.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
So there you go.
Speaker 6 (30:07):
Here's sport.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Sport on the country with AFCO. 100% Kiwi owned and trusted.
That's rare.
Speaker 3 (30:15):
And as I mentioned a wee bit earlier, Alexander Zverev's
dominant year on the Grand Slam tennis circuit has ended
with a four-set victory over Ben Shelton, the American, in
the US Open finals. Zverev also won the French Open
and made it to the final at Wimbledon, where he
was beaten by, off the top of my head, Yannick Sinner.
(30:35):
So Sinner and Alcaraz were the two big things in tennis,
but now Zverev is having a very good year indeed.
Can we say that about the All Blacks? They're heading
home after their series defeat to the Springboks with a
clear idea of shortcomings. Three straight losses followed four consecutive wins.
(30:56):
in the Dave Rennie coaching era, with five tests left
in 2026. Rennie insists the lessons of the South African tour,
like maintaining their discipline and pace of play, will be
vital at next year's Rugby World Cup. Tony Brown's in
our golfing group on a Wednesday, not that I've been
(31:17):
for ages myself, and on the last day before he
left to go back to South Africa yesterday, Someone said,
what's the score going to be in the series? And
I won't tell you what he said, but he wasn't
a mile away from the truth. Look, the South Africans
were just too good. They're too big and they're too good.
(31:37):
Simple as. But never mind, we've got a year to
sort it out. Up next, a man who had an
illustrious career with the Christ College 3rd 15, our lifestyle correspondent,
Jeremy Rooks. There's no need to feel down. I said,
(32:03):
young man. Welcome back to the country.
Speaker 1 (32:06):
13.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
13 away from one. It's only coincidence, Jeremy Rook's lifestyle correspondent,
that I'm playing the village people into you. Please don't
take any personal umbrage. Good afternoon.
Speaker 7 (32:16):
Hello, Jeremy.
Speaker 3 (32:18):
Now, did you watch Country Calendar last night and that
excellent program on fielding agricultural hives?
Speaker 4 (32:27):
No, I was out last night.
Speaker 3 (32:28):
Well, you need to go to TVNZ On Demand and.
Speaker 8 (32:30):
Have a look at it.
Speaker 7 (32:31):
I always watch it. Yeah, I always watch it.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
Yeah, no, it was really good what they're doing with
Ag there. And then you think of what they're, you know,
I remember old Braden Whitelock telling me everything that they
did around sport there. And look how many All Blacks
have come out of there. You know, the Whitelocks, Aaron Smith.
It was Cody Taylor. I think he might have been. Yeah.
Was he fielding?
Speaker 7 (32:54):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (32:55):
So just a great school. We need more of those
in New Zealand.
Speaker 7 (32:57):
100% agree. Yeah, well, we need to, as long as
they teach the basics, so we can beat South Africa
in the future, it'll be good.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
Look, I made my comments on it, and those All
Blacks were battered, but South Africa, and we need to
put this into some form of context, because they'd do
the same to any other team in world rugby at
the moment.
Speaker 7 (33:20):
Oh, they're a fantastic team, but I mean, it's as
plain as day. We can't catch the high ball. When
Tupu Vai gave away that idiotic penalty when we were
hot on attack, that cost us the game right there.
And then we just seem to sort of not commit
players to the breakdown. So we keep getting isolated because
all the forwards are standing out in the back line
(33:40):
waiting to do a swing pass for another one. back
line move. It's like, if you just do the basics right,
we can beat them. I mean, they're a fantastic team,
but every team's beatable, provided you play well and make
good decisions under pressure, which we don't at the moment.
Speaker 3 (33:55):
Yeah, but you're up against, you're up, I mean, look
at that Malcolm Marks and the number eight Jasper Visa.
Speaker 7 (34:02):
They're man-beasts. Yeah, they are, but, I mean, if you
do your stuff correctly, you can always beat them. I mean, someone,
you know, we can beat these guys. We've just got
to play well and not give away dumb penalties and
protect the ball carrier. They've got so many turnovers. It's
just infuriating. I was throwing rosé bottles at the television
yesterday morning.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Wasn't it a 9 o'clock kick-off, or wasn't it a
bit early for the rosé?
Speaker 7 (34:27):
Nah, it was a Sunday and a test match.
Speaker 6 (34:29):
Any excuse, Jamie?
Speaker 3 (34:31):
You sound like my son. Rightio, um... You didn't see
Country Calendar. You watched the rugby. You've had a bit
of a bitch about that.
Speaker 6 (34:37):
Now, the weather.
Speaker 3 (34:38):
I was down in Southland for the weekend, and my goodness,
it's bad enough here in Dunedin, but it's bleak. It
is bleak down there, the poor buggers. There's water lying everywhere.
Wind's blowing its ass off. It's cold. The feed covers
are going. This El Nino, it might not have affected
the parts of Canterbury and the east coast of the
(35:01):
North Island yet with the dry, but it's certainly affecting
the south.
Speaker 7 (35:05):
Well, that's not unusual, though, is it, at this time
of year? I mean, how many times September, October, Southland
gets battered with wet weather, but from a Canterbury perspective,
it's fantastic here. We keep getting rain. We've had over
two inches in the last couple of weeks. It's warm,
the grass is growing, and maybe for once we might
get a decent spring rather than relief in December, and
(35:28):
then Yeah, I mean, and just the way the media
are sort of hyping up this El Nino. I mean,
you know, what was in stuff the other day, oh
my God, you know, homeowners told to stock up on
food if drought arrives. I mean, for God's sake, what's
wrong with this country? It's nuts. It's all being prepared, Jamie,
(35:49):
but my 30 years experience is you just... You've just
got to play what's in front of you because you
never know. In New Zealand, the weather can change overnight.
You can be dry then wet or wet then dry. So,
you know, nobody ever knows what's going to happen really.
Speaker 3 (36:04):
Yes, we are a maritime climate. You are dead right
about that one. Less than two months out, final question
for you. From the election, how do you think this
is playing out?
Speaker 7 (36:16):
I think the current government will get back in. I
think there's just so much... craziness going on on the left.
I mean, Chloe Swarbrick's clearly unwell. I mean, her supermarket
policies reminds me of sort of an optimistic yet ignorant
six-form sort of economics business project where they get up
and present and think it's all really good but there's
(36:37):
no substance behind it. The Opportunities Party is a media
creation and they're communists. All they want to do is
make everyone dependent on the government and then tax the wealthy.
I mean, I don't know. I mean, The whole country's buggered.
I mean, as Peter Alexander was saying, you know, the
expenses of everything are going up, and this government hasn't
cut out the bureaucracy and the expense. I mean, you've
(36:59):
got people going, oh, something's got to change. Well, I
tell you what. Well, we've just got to cut down
compliance costs, bureaucrats and everything. I reckon what we need
to do is get all the bureaucrats in Wellington and
put them on the ferry, biff them off the ferry
500 metres offshore and go, right... Those that survive are
the ones that we keep employed.
Speaker 3 (37:18):
Right, now those are the thoughts of Jeremy Rooks, lifestyle
correspondent here on The Country. Got to go. There we go.
You never die wondering what he's thinking. Jeremy Rooks, we're
going to wrap it with Phil Duncan. It is six
(37:42):
away from one. Phil Duncan from Weather Watch, favourite weatherman
on a Monday on the country. Hey, Phil, I was
in Southland over the weekend. It's miserable down there. They're
going to get a couple of decent days and then
there's some more crap coming and the areas that are
supposed to be dry are doing quite nicely, thanks. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (38:00):
Yeah, good afternoon. Yeah, Southland's certainly having a wet, a
pretty wet time at the moment and more wet weather
this week, 30 to 60 millimetres on the way for
the next eight, nine days. And there's a significant cold
change coming for Southland and actually for a number of
other regions later on Wednesday. So, you know, the overnight
low is two degrees in northern Southland, which is a
(38:23):
sign of that's with some wet weather around, which means
there'll be maybe some snow. Back on the rest of
the country, though, it is on the edge of high
pressure this week. There's a really big high in the
Casman Sea that's just going to encourage warmer west to
northwest winds. that cold change comes through later in the week,
and then we get a low pressure zone that spins
(38:45):
up around the upper North Island around about Friday. So
there is rain falling in places where typically with El
Nino you don't normally expect it, but I think the
drying out phase is going to move in a little
faster over the next month.
Speaker 3 (38:58):
Mind you, if we're getting the moisture now, it does
set up for a bit later. If it does get dry,
is there anywhere in the country at all that's dry?
Speaker 4 (39:05):
I wouldn't say there's anywhere that's really dry, but the
eastern side of Northland, eastern part of Waikato, all of
Bay of Plenty, those areas are leaning a little bit drier.
There will be some rain coming this week, but I
think after that there could be a drier trend, especially
if these warm westerlies keep blowing. Things could dry up
very quickly.
Speaker 3 (39:26):
Yeah, OK. So this El Nino, we've all been warned
about it. When will it show its face?
Speaker 4 (39:32):
So normally, I mean, we've already got the windier westerlies.
They kicked in in August this year. But I think,
you know, as far as El Nino is concerned, the
negative side of it usually shows up more towards the
later part of spring. So if we can make it
to November with good rainfall, that bodes very well for summer.
Speaker 3 (39:49):
Yeah, we'll take that. Hey, Phil, always good to catch
up on the country. Thank you very much for your time.
Speaker 4 (39:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (39:55):
Phil Duncan there from Weather Watch. Runs a great website
and some really interesting commentary there you can find as well. Right,
that's us done and dusted for a Monday. Thanks for listening.
Really appreciate it and catch you tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
The Country with Jamie Mackay and Farmlands. Because rural never
grows it alone. Newstalk ZV.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!