Jamie Mackay: The Country host on Federated Farmers firing back at Westpac over emissions targets

Federated Farmers have voiced their disapproval with Westpac over their emissions targets for New Zealand producers.

The bank's new climate targets will require Kiwi farmers to get their climate targets down to 0.75 tons of carbon per ton of milk - while Australian farmers need to get emissions down to 0.85 tons of carbon.

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained the controversy further.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Jamie McKay Hosts of the Countries with me right now, Jamie, Hello.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Hello here, that just before I get stuck into the banks,
I might just get stuck into your family who actually
honors the bets and your family because Barry's gone to
the ground over my Trump.

Speaker 1 (00:13):
Nothing's to do with me, nothing to do with me.
You know, he's got he's deranged, you know that about Trump?
Like he's he is so sad. He doesn't admit this,
but he's so sad that Carmel has lost because he
can't believe anybody can can vote for Trump.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
That.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
I don't know, Jamie. It might take him a while
to come around to the idea. First he has to
go through the process of the denial, then the acceptance,
then the anger. Then he will pay you your bet.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
I might be a seventy eight year old man by then.
Tell him to hurry up a bet to bet, especially
with family too.

Speaker 1 (00:46):
Right now, what is going on with Whispac and as
it turns out, now B and Z as well going
hard on our dear if farmers not on the Aussies.

Speaker 2 (00:53):
Oh don't don't start me. I heard you just before
the six o'clock news saying who makes the banks the
carbon police. And that's exactly what Federated Farmers are saying.
And good on them. They're Banking Inquiry spokesperson Richard McIntyre,
I think you might ad them on the show yesterday
that you is leading the charge on this and doing
a good job. So you know, as you said, they're

(01:15):
asking these zealandairy farmers to meet higher emissions reductions targets
than ossie farmers. Totally unfair, totally unfair. Absolutely The latest
banking surveys incidentally, have a showed that only one and
eleven farmers supported banks setting climate change targets. As Richard

(01:37):
McIntire said, we've already have emission targets that have been
set by the government. They are who should be setting it.
And plus to add to that, you've got your milk
and meat companies dipping in as well, so the bank
should stay out of it. And what I would say,
even to those meat and milk companies, Heather, is if
you want lower emissions farmers at farming and farmers reward behavior,

(02:01):
pay a premium. Where is this wonderful premium that we're
getting off shore for our lower missions produce At the
moment there isn't one. That's why they're not paying a premium.
When they do, farmers will change their behavior or change
their farming practice to suit. But I mean, we've now
got Trump and Barry's mate and he's going to drill,
baby drill. So to what end are we saving the planet?

Speaker 1 (02:23):
Oh, Jamie, I mean there is an argument here that
the Australian owned banks are actually giving Australian dairy farmers
a competitive advantage over our farmers.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
Oh, it would seem odd. It would seem odd to
me that one. I don't know. Look, I'm just dead
against the banks poking their nose at all. I don't think. Look,
they would be better off, much better off, Heather, and
hopefully the Banking Inquiry shows this. To spend their time
going through their books and looking at their risk margins

(02:54):
they've placed upon farming clients and especially some of the usurers.
Is that the right word are usury? Yeah? Okay, rates
they're applying on overdrafts to farmers. Look, you can talk
about security and farms having higher risks than residential lending,
but I put it to you, if you've got a
farm with say fifty percent equity, remember these same banks

(03:15):
are lending on residential properties with eighty sometimes ninety percent borrowing,
ten percent, ten or twenty percent equity. You can't tell
me that if you're lending to a farm with fifty
percent equity or better, that if it all turned to custard,
you can't sell them out and get your money back
in a reasonably short period of time. Look, there are

(03:35):
safe as houses to use the bad pun.

Speaker 1 (03:38):
Now, it's a fair point to make. Jamie, thank you
so much as always, Jamie McKay, host of the Country.

Speaker 2 (03:43):
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