August 20, 2025 • 37 mins
Jamie Mackay talks to Todd McClay, Matt Bolger, Graeme Williams, Kate Scott, and Peter Newbold.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Catch all the latest from the land. It's the Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to Brent, the starkest of
the leading agriculture brands and so vainous.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Thanks Gorman, you're and a nervous on the taxi and Jesus.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
And Jesus.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Get Amie, Zelle and welcome to the Country. The show
was brought to you by Brent. We're heading to another country. Yeah,
we're going to put one not party in the USA
with Miley Cyrus. We're going to get some information out
of our Minister of Agriculture and Trade. He's really racking
up the airpoints at the moment. He's been in Saudi Arabia.
He's now in Washington, d C. To talk to his
(00:57):
trade counterparts. No doubt tariffs will be on the menu,
and we're going to look at some changes positive changes too.
I might add to freshwater farm plans. Matt Boulger from Fonterra.
Good news this morning from Fonterra. They've lifted the price
of milk. Well, it's good for the farmers. Graham Williams,
East Coast farmer and bush poet, putting pen to paper,
(01:18):
lamenting the loss of food producing land to carbon farming.
This poem is called carbon Cudlas. Kate Scott from Hort,
New Zealand, and Peter Newbold, who's the GM of Real
Estate and Livestock ge livestock's going well at the moment
for PGG rights, but waiting patiently on hold. He's a
busy man in Washington, d C. Minister of Agriculture and Trade,
(01:39):
Todd McLay and Todd, you don't let the grass grow
under your feet. How was Saudi Arabia to start with here?
Speaker 4 (01:44):
Jamie, Hey, good afternoon, Thanks for having me on Soudy's
really good. Where are such a good place with them?
You know, this is a three trillion dollar opportunity, you know,
that's their annual GDP and they like us a lot.
But it's a country that's just so full of energy
and opportunity at the moment, and they're very very keen
on everything we produce in the primary sector and so
(02:08):
very positive, very very positive meetings. And we're going to
have a bit more some announcements around that in the
coming month or so.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
What do they mainly take from us?
Speaker 4 (02:17):
So there's a lot of red meat, a lot of
lamb and meat and beefs go up there. Tonterra puts
quite a bit of dairy product in there. They've got
a processing plant, a small one. But you remember years
ago we had all those arguments and debates about sort
of live animals going up there. They don't want that anymore.
They actually just want food. And what they're doing is
(02:39):
pitching themselves. They want companies large and small to come
and join with them and do a bit of processing
of their products there for the rest of the Middle
East market, particularly into Africa, and I just think that
there will be a lot of opportunity for key we
companies there. I'm leading a trade mission up there later
in the year and it's going to be a very
focused one. It's going to be about putting businesses together
(03:01):
to do deals. But you know, every time we get
something that was going it just means more money in
the pockets of our farmers. And look at the payout
forecasts from Frontier today, really good.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
News, absolutely good news. More about that shortly with Matt Bolger.
Who do you get an audience with in Washington, d C.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Well, it's not Miley Cyrus. She's not in any of
the meetings that I'll be and I met today with
the Agriculture Secretary, so I suppose that's my equivalent agriculture minister,
and tomorrow with Jameson Grea, the United States Trade Representative,
who again is my counterpart. Tomorrow we will be talking
about the tariff and the harm that does to you know,
(03:41):
exports and trade on both sides. But today with their
ag secretary, it was really good. It's a chance to
talk about agriculture and farming here. You know, their farmers
had many of the same concerns that New Zealand farmers
have had too many roles, too much cost, too much
a regulation. But I did talk to them a lot
about Canada, and you know that we won that case
gets to Canada around dairy access. We have another issue
(04:03):
with Canada over the way they subsidize milk created more
protein than are dumping it around the world, and she
and I have agreed they're official to get a look
and work together, talk together about whether there is some
joint action we could take against Canada so that they
meet their obligations and they're not dumping product in markets
around the world that are harm in New Zealand farmers
and our dairy exports.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
So I'm guessing. In fact, I know because I roughly
know the time difference Washington, d C. What is it
seven or eight o'clock at night?
Speaker 4 (04:31):
At eight o'clock eight of nights here on I don't
even know what day.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
It is Wednesday. I think it's Wednesday your time Thursday
out ons. So have you been? Have you been had
a wander around, gone out for a bear, gone out
for a meal? Have you seen all Trump's the National
Guard on display?
Speaker 4 (04:47):
Yeah? So no, I haven't been everywhere. We arrived a
sort of fifteen or sixty in our flight straight from
the Middle East and had a shower, iron a shirt
and then went straight to meetings. But driving a the
capital you do see a lot more National Guard than
others in places. But in the areas we are around
the White House and so on, they're just there as
(05:08):
part of the public. And I've not armed or anything
like that. But to tell you, it's looking really, really good.
It's the holiday times. There's not many people here. Tomorrow
is the important meeting though, that's with James and Guia,
and that's about the fifteen percent tariffs we have on us.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Good on your good luck there. What about the changes announced?
Was it yesterday or this morning on the freshwater farm plans.
You're just going to make it easier, get rid of
a better red type and good on you.
Speaker 5 (05:33):
Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
You know, this has been something that's been a bane
for farmers for a long time and it was put
in place. So originally the idea was David Parker's and
poor old Dame you know, kind of had to follow
on with it. I guess we just think that they
had it in the wrong place. There is no evidence
of doing anything other than putting costs on farmers in
New Zealand, making it hard to farm, you know, showing
that the last government didn't trust them, and there are
(05:55):
no environmental outcomes that are good for New Zealand as
a result. So we've taken a very different approach and
it's a much much more light hearted one. We still
have to meet obligations, no question about that, but we're
really saying that you know, around your farm plans, if
you're already doing that with your meat processor or your
dairy processor, that's largerly enough for us. You shouldn't have
to fill out more forms and do more for the government.
(06:18):
And so you know, we're going to work with farmers
to make sure that they meet their obligations, that they
are sensible and they're not going to cost the money.
But what we want to do is get on and
continue to produce the world's best, highest quality, safest food
so we can sell it around the world.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Yeah, well, okay, is this correct me if I'm wrong here,
For around eight thousand smaller, lower risk farms, the requirement
for a fresh water farm plan has been scrapped completely.
Speaker 4 (06:44):
Yeah, so that's right. So it's very much a risk
based approach. So if you think about why the last
government was with almost everything that was one size fits
all and so and everything we're doing, you know, as
riskcore activity increases, then there is more requirement to do
certain things, and so it means there will be parts
of New Zealand where no harm is done. Farmers meet
(07:05):
their obligation and so we want them to get on
with it. But you're also got to remember that almost
every farmer, for their meat company or their dairy company,
has obligations and they have to do plans and provide
them to them. So it's not that nothing's happening, it's
just that we get to recognize that because what they're
doing with those processes works for us. And then as
you sort of go up the scale of more intensity
(07:27):
or higher risk or attachments that are have greater challenges,
there's more requirements, but they're always going to be sensible
and we are thinking about the cost as opposed to
just the process. And that's the biggest difference between this
government and the labor government.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Well, you can't be accused of not doing your bit
for the farmers of New Zealand. You're working hard for
us all around the world. Thanks for some of your
time today.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
Hey, thank you.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
There we go. Todd McLeay, Minister of Agriculture and Trade
in Washington, d C. Fascinating country, fascinating city should I
say District of Columbia if you ever ever get to Washington.
This is a boring travel story, muzz So you're going
to text me and abuse me. You've got like the
Smithsonian museums amazing. You could spend a week going through
(08:13):
them all. My particular favorite as the National Aeronautical in
Space one or whatever it is, fantastic. I've got the
original landing capsule from when Neil Armstrong set foot on
the moon way back and what was it nineteen sixty nine.
Right up next, more good news for the dairy industry.
(08:34):
We've got some good news. We will talk about it
on tomorrow's show more and more depth, although I might
touch on it with Kate Scott Zesbury coming out with
some really good news. And this morning it was the
turn of Fonterra. Matt Bolger. Up next, Graham Williams, East
Coast farmer, bush poet put pen to paper as he
laments the loss of food producing land to carbon farming.
(08:54):
And Peter Newboldt he's got a good job at the moment.
He's running the PGG rights in real estate and protect
the livestock teams. They're on fire or the industry's on
fire at the moment. All that on the show today, Michelle,
I'll have rural news and we'll look at sports news
for you as well.
Speaker 6 (09:19):
Am I gonna.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
More good news for the dairy industry this morning. Fonterra
coming out and increasing the twenty four twenty five season
forecast milk price from ten bucks to ten dollars fifteen.
And we're going to talk about twenty five twenty six
as well, to tell us more. He is the managing
director of co Op Affairs for Fonterra. Matt Bulger, Hey, Matt,
(09:43):
does your old man Jim Jim Boulger, James Bolger, does
he listen to the show, because if he does, I'd
like to give him a shout out, good farmer and
prime minister, former prime minister.
Speaker 5 (09:56):
He may do, Jamie, I don't know, but I touched
him regularly, So get a if you are listening, GB, Well.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Yeah, every listener is a prisoner and we're in the
ratings season, so just tell them to tune on. Okay,
So I guess there's no real surprise in this one, Matte.
We knew that ten dollars was pretty much locked and loaded.
You're at ten to fifteen. This is for the season
we've just finished, and that band has narrowed right down
to ten dollars ten to ten dollars twenty effectively, it's
(10:22):
locked and loaded.
Speaker 5 (10:24):
Yeah, we're pretty close. Look, this is for the season
just finished, and you know it's good news coming from
ten to ten to fifteen. We'll announce our final price,
of course, when we close out the year in about
a month's time. But Border Management, we've taken a look
at this and we're very close to that now. So
we've got a narrow range. A few last things to finalize,
(10:46):
but you know ten fifteen's ten fifteen is great for
the year just gone, and obviously holding ten dollars for
the year ahead as well.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
I found that the more interesting numbers. So you've also
retained ten dollars, as you said, for the year are
in now twenty five twenty six, and you had that
wide range. It was from eleven eight dollars, should I say,
to eleven dollars? Strangely, I thought at the time the
midpoint wasn't nine fifty You said ten dollars. So what
(11:14):
you've done is effectively you've moved the midpoint to the midpoint.
Does that make sense or is that a bit irish?
Speaker 5 (11:20):
No? No, I'm with you. So look, when we came
out with our ten dollars forecast for the Curren season
twenty five twenty six, we did put an upside of
the range at eleven and a downside at eight dollars.
So what that was signaling was that there was greater
risk out there in the environment. And if you cast
(11:41):
your mind back to May, of course, even back then,
the range of outcomes that could have happened geopolitically on
the Tarraf front, all of that was weighted to the downside,
and we wanted to signal that to farnas as we've
come into the season. Now you know, a few few
months on, there's still a risk there. So we've narried
that range still nine dollars to eleven with the mid
(12:02):
point of ten. What that's saying is that some of
those really big downsides haven't eventuated. So that's a signal
of confidence. But look, we're still very early in the season,
so plenty of order to go under the bridge, but
no again good news for farmacy.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Yeah, you're also very early into the Trump tiff regime.
What sort of effect is that having thus far or
is it too early to tell?
Speaker 5 (12:26):
Yeah, it's too early to tell overall, but it is
having an effect. So it's the way it plays out
is really on a customer by customer basis. We've got,
you know, many different customers in the United States, and
with each customer we might have a range of different
contracts that you know, are renewed or negotiated at different
times in each contract might have different terms. So within
(12:48):
that fifteen percent, you know, it's not a disaster, but
it's not great, particularly when we're looking at other countries,
say Canada, which is good as zero p cent tariff
and its protein exports are effectively subsidized. So we're working
really closely with officials and Minister maclay and team to
look at that with Canada and appreciate all the work
(13:10):
that they're doing on that. But no, so that is
a cloud on our horizon. But as I've said before,
Richard Allen and the team, they do a great job
of navigating that, working really closely with customers. So challenging,
but we'll get.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Through, okay. And the other number that came out this morning,
I've got to cover this one off. The forecast earnings
of sixty five to seventy five cents per share remain unchanged,
and this is all about how much farmers are going
to get paid for their annual dividend.
Speaker 5 (13:39):
YEP, there's the one. So no change on that, and
I guess just reflecting it's you know, it's great to
have a high meal price looking at ten fifteen for
the season's gone and still maintaining those high earnings. You know,
a lot of parts of the economy are having a
pretty rough time, but with holding those earnings high and
particularly that shift and mill price. You know it's more
than two hundred million dollars extra flying back out into
(14:02):
the economy, which is good.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Good news day about the dairy industry. Today tomorrow will
be talking more about a good news day for the
Kiwi fruit industry with Jason to Break. The chief executive
of Zesbury, Matt Bolger, Thanks for your.
Speaker 5 (14:15):
Time, great, Thanks Jim, I'm go.
Speaker 2 (14:18):
Dock twenty four after twelve. You're with the Country, brought
to you by Brant. Thanks Matt. Hello Jim, James, I've
mistakenly caught Hi, Sir James Bolger. He refused to take
a knighthood. Hello if you're listening anyhow. Up next Graham
Williams Outs of the East Coast Gisbane Region, farmer, bush poet,
(14:40):
put pen to paper, always interesting. Kate Scott out of
hort of Culture in His Zealand. They've got their big
annual conference in Gala dinner coming up next week. We
might preview some of those great numbers for Zesbrey that
have come out. And Peter Neubold GM of PGG Rights
in real Estate and Livestock. Before the end of the hour,
(15:08):
haven't caught up with this bloke for a while, and
I'm really looking forward to enjoying his company, if such
a thing as possible, at the Gisbone or the Poverty
Bay amp show in October. Looking forward to getting there,
albeit seven or eight years late. That's another story for
another day. Graham Williams, you're an East Coast farmer and
bush poet and you've written the poem about carbon cuddlers.
(15:31):
I guess the net effect of this poem is that
you're just lamenting that we're losing food producing land to
carbon forestry.
Speaker 7 (15:39):
Yeah, well that's right, Jamie. You know that it's been
a gripe of mine for a long time, as you
well know, and I think it's really coming to the fore.
And I think I think what really epitomized it. I
was listening to your show the other day, and you
know that that American lady was the goat farming down
at Oxford there, and that was on Country Calendar, and
there was a lot of people say, oh, well, you know,
(16:01):
that's that's sort of not what country calendus should be.
But I looked at it completely differently. And what I
saw in that little operation there to me have pitomized
everything that's fantastic about you know, the great place of
New Zealand and the food we're producing, because you know,
she had tremendous passion, as all farmers do. She had
(16:21):
a huge commitment to producing healthy food, to animal welfare,
you know, that was her highest priority. I mean, those goats,
they were bloody, happy animals and fantastic. And the other
thing that really struck home to me was, you know,
she said she looks after those goats twenty four to seven,
three hundred and sixty five days a year. Now, every
(16:41):
New Zealand farmer that's got livestock looks after those animals,
you know, twenty four to seven. And I think I
think a lot of people have to really realize, you know,
that in this country we produce happy food. And I
call it happy food because that Oxford lady to pitomize that,
and obviously it was good, Tucker, and people were wanting
to buy it. And the other question that crops up, Jamie,
(17:04):
I think you see it on your show the other
day that sixty percent of our pork in New Zealand
comes from overseas. And you've done a hell of a
lot more traveling than I had, Jamie. But you know
when you go overseas and you look at some of
the conditions these intensive farming operations have, and I'll tell
you what. None of those qualities that were exhibited in
(17:25):
that country calendar at Oxford the other night, I know
for a fact are not happening overseas, and that's where
our tucker is coming from. And it's going to get
worse and worse if we put more land, good land
into trees. So that's a guts of where I'm at, Jamie,
and I've sort of summed it up in a bit
of a poem for you.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
All right, Well shoots, so my poem's.
Speaker 7 (17:45):
Called carbon Cuddlas. Well, I'm not a financial guru, but
the word that's on the street is that the country's
in a hell of a state because food's far too
expensive to eat. But it is spreadable gold if in
fact it can be found. Shoppers are doing somersaults at
ten bucks for a pound. Mince was poor man's tucker
(18:09):
once as the bank it wouldn't break, But now she's
thirty dollars where once was. Phil at steak Lamb is
up there too, and no one's happier than me. For
hitting a person in the wallet is how you make
a blind man see. It's called supply and demand. The
concepts tried and true, and I don't think urbanites grasp
(18:33):
it as well as rural people do. Our livelihoods depend
on it, and right now there's a boost for the
khoos in the carbon forests are coming home to roost.
We won't say that we told you so, especially because
we did a perfect recipe for oblivion two point six
(18:54):
million stop units. We have slid save the world with
carbon fi frus. The wombles they did bleat is bugger
all point and breathing. If you can't afford to eat,
if people reckon prices are high, I predict they'll only climb.
And if people are searching for reasons, then I suggest
(19:15):
it now's the time to be fair. The horse has
bolted as the damage has been done, the leg ups
and incentives and the stories that were spun. Every pastoral
farmer that's sold to carbon trees is another nail in
our coffin from polluters over seas. Limiting our food production
(19:38):
is far from sound advice. The lack of that production,
hence the increase in the price, so a toast to
our remaining farmers is what I wish to do the
best and most efficient in the world, a fact we
know is true. They deserve our total backing and our respect.
They do command. It's them that should reap the rewards
(20:01):
the reality of supply and demand. Don't blame them for
the cost of food. If the price it makes you choke,
blame it on the carbon cuddlers, the ideologists and the woke.
They're away with the bloody fairies, unaccountable and aloof. They're
the buggest to lynch when your tucker bull hits the roof.
(20:23):
And that's my take on it, Jamie, and I think
we all need to wake up to the fact that
we're the best producers of the best tucker in the world,
and we need to preserve the production of it.
Speaker 2 (20:32):
So that's me, Graham Williams. Lovely work. Looking forward to
catching up with you at the POVERTYA and P Show,
the best little am P show in the country mid October.
Speaker 7 (20:42):
Good on you, Jamie, we'll see you then.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Looking forward to it, Graham twenty eight After twenty eight
away from one, get the time right. You heard them
talking about the woke there and Michelle was mentioning to
me that President Trump's is going to explore all options
and avenues because we talked about the Smithsonian Museums in Washington,
d C. On the mall, are there well, mal Mare
(21:07):
Mal's in England, isn't it? Yep? Okay, right, let's do
so Trumpy. He wants to get rid of the woke
out of the Smithsonian and hold them accountable. A White
House official said, until we get info from the Smithsonian
response in response to our letter, we can't verify the
number of artifacts that have been removed because the Smithsonian
has removed them on their own. Trump announced the Initiative
(21:29):
on Truth Social as he announces everything earlier this week,
writing the Smithsonian is out of control, out of control
in capital letters where everything discussed is how horrible our
country is, how bad slavery was. But yeah, I think
slavery was quite bad there, don And how unaccomplished the
(21:50):
downtrodden have been. Ah. He just keeps rewriting history, doesn't he?
Up next Rural News, Sports news before the end of
the hour. Big week coming up next week for the
horticulture industry. Kate Scott, Chief Executive and Peter Ubold Happy
Days for the livestock industry.
Speaker 8 (22:15):
I came in like.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Twenty four away from one Miley Cyrus Today party in
the USA. Not a Trump has his way. Have you
been to the Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
I don't know if I've told you this travel story,
but it's the biggest disappointment for my father that I
went to Washington d C. Walked around the bottom floor
of the SMITHSONI and then got back on the bus.
It's his biggest disappointment about me. I think it reminds
me every time we talk about it.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Jesus, Oh, hang on, turn your headphones down. It reminds me.
I hope he doesn't mind me telling the story. We
had a young guy in the Riversdale rugby club who
could have been an all black. Things got on the way.
His name's Drew Red and hello Drew if you're listening.
And Drew was a very good player, had the ability
to be an all Black, and we fundraised to send
him on the Rugby News Youth Tour to Europe and
(23:19):
he went to Paris and quite a few of those
guys went on to be all blacks, but they got
to go to the Eiffel Tower probably the number one.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, that's number one place to go.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
Go in Paris. There Drew didn't bother getting out of
the backseat of the bus to go to the Eiffel Tower,
and then he hated the food he wanted to go
to McDonald's. Travel is wasted on some people. Hello, Drew,
hope you're okay. His Michelle with the latest and Rural News.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
The Country's world news with Cob Cadet, New Zealand's leading
right on lawn Bower brand visit steel Ford dot cot
insaid for your locals, douggist and.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Because you stole all my hard news today with all
their great gripping interviews which, by the way, if you
missed any you can find them on air podcast, I
had to go find this nice fluffy story off their website.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
Jamie, all right, what is it about cats?
Speaker 3 (24:06):
No, it's not about cats, not about goats, not about goats.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
Good, it's a happy story.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
A Central Ohioman has taken the idea of corny proposal
to New Heights literally. Tim Sullivan used his family family
thirteen acre Cornfield to pop the question to his girlfriend
Carolyn Liggett. Inspired while mowing the lawn, Sullivan teamed up
with a crop consultant and a computer program to plant
a message in seventy five foot letters, will you marry me? Carolyn.
(24:32):
The crops corn, sunflowers and pumpkins were planted early June
and by mid months the message. You could see it
from up in the air. He quoted. It's kind of corny,
but it's what we live, it's what we breathe. And
of course you want to know, Carolyn said, yes, of
course she did.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Well, what a good corny story. I enjoyed that one.
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (24:48):
Here.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Sport sport with a f go Kiwi to the bone
since nineteen.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
Oh four, and Cody Taylor has poinned poised to join.
Kevin me A Lama is the second hooker to play
one hundred tests for the the All Blacks. See that
could have been you, Drew, if you'd behabe yourself better.
The thirty four year old will become the fourteenth player
to bring up the milestone in Sunday's Rugby Championship match
against Argentina at Buenos Aires. He started sixty six of
(25:16):
his ninety nine tests and I think I heard this morning.
Ardi Savella will clock up injury, permitting his hundredth against
the Springboks at Eden Park on September the sixth. That
is the game of the century, well not the century,
but certainly the game of the decade in between Rugby
World Cup games. Up next on the Country, we're going
to have a look at the horticulture industry with Kate Scott,
(25:38):
chief Executive of hort New Zealand.
Speaker 7 (25:41):
Your spell Loved.
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Kate Scott is the chief executive of Horticulture New Zealand
and your conference coming up next week in Wellington. Kate,
I want to start on the keyw Fruit story because
tomorrow the show is coming out of the talrong of studios.
I'm heading up for a fundraiser at the Tapuke Rugby
Club with Shane Jones. Thus the reason for broadcasting out
of Taroga, and one of my guests live in the
(26:06):
studio will be Jason to Break, the chief executive of Zestprie.
So they're getting record returns for everything apart from organic
green at the moment, so Kiwi fruit is on a
real high right look.
Speaker 6 (26:19):
Kiwi fruit are certainly the star of our horticulture sector
at the moment. They are absolutely smashing it. So you
know great that you can head to the capital of
Kiwi Fruit and.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
Pocky Yeah, really looking forward to it, Kate. Okay, so
they've reached that they've fulfilled their ten year plan, which
was to have the industry worth a four point five
billion by twenty twenty five. Their next ten year plan
by twenty thirty five, they want to be known as
the world's healthiest fruit brand and I see no reason
why Kiwi fruit shouldn't be. It's a superfood.
Speaker 6 (26:52):
Look, Kiwi fruit is a superfood. And look, we as
a horticulture set there are incredibly proud of, you know,
the role that hewy fruit plays in our sector. But
you know, for them to have done what they've done
over the past ten years and looking to the future
is just a real clear signal for the opportunity that
lies generally within the hawks sector. I think from my
(27:13):
point of view, you know, the opportunity that falls on
the back of Kiwi Fruit being able to establish its
strong health claims is something that the rest of the
sector can aspire to in terms of how do we
continue to talk about healthy fruit and healthy vegetables for
the world.
Speaker 7 (27:31):
Last week, what is New Zealand's right?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Ok last week you were at the Spud Conference the
Potato Conference. Let me be more formal there, how do
you make the common spud sexy?
Speaker 5 (27:40):
Kate?
Speaker 6 (27:41):
Well, look, that was a key part of the discussions
at last week's conference, and I guess you know, the
humble spud is something that seems to get a bit
of a bad rap these days. We all think, you know,
eating potatoes is going to overload ourselves with carbs. But
if we start to look at you know, what are
the opportunities for potatoes to I don't know, become more
of a convenience snack. You know, no one wants to
(28:02):
spend the time peeling or roasting these days. So there
were some great insights shared at the conference around the
way that the potato industry is focusing on adding value
to the humble spud, something that I think, off the
top of my head, a significant portion of New Zealanders
are still eating every day or three to five times
a week. You know, there's a lot of work to
(28:23):
be done, but a lot of opportunity to enhance the
humble spud.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
You've got over eight hundred people attending the Heart New
Zealand Annual Conference next week in Wellington. Four hundred and
fifty attending the Industry Awards in gala dinner. Also, the
conference is being run concurrently with the RSC conference. Now
there's a bit of an issue there. You're having a
bit of a dig at the government because you reckon
they're not letting enough RSC workers in. We're trying to
(28:49):
double the value of exports in this country. Horticulture is
going to have to do a lot of the heavy
lifting there. Kate Scott and the key Wes in many
cases aren't prepared to do the heavy lifting when comes
to the picking.
Speaker 7 (29:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (29:01):
Look, what we have recently been raising our concerns about
in terms of RC is the recent government decision to
lift the accommodation rate by two point five percent rather
than seeking an increase to the caps, so that the
current cap is around that twenty odd thousand RC workers
every year. What we are seeing across our sector is
(29:24):
that over the last six to seven years, the cost
of providing accommodation have risen substantially on the back of inflation.
You know, to put it in context for you, you know,
we've got some pretty near evidence that talks to the
fact that it used to cost probably in the order
of about twenty eight thousand dollars a bid equivalent to
build a new accommodation facility to hose RC workers. That
(29:47):
cost over the last six years has risen to around
eighty six thousand dollars a bid, which is a substantial increase.
And when growers are only able to increase what they
can cap all that cost by two five percent, there
is a bit of a gap there and so that's
a concern for many of our growers as how do
they continue to provide good quality accommodation when they can't
(30:11):
approporate the cost for doing so.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
Kate Scott, chief executive of Horticolchure is Ellen. Thanks for
your time today on the country. Good luck for your
big conference next week in Wellington.
Speaker 6 (30:19):
Thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
Peter Newbold's PGG right, since GM of real estate and
live stock. Normally we talk about how much your farm's worth,
and we're going to do that in the tech But Peter,
put on your live stock hat. What are your agents
in the field? Sounds like the CIA, doesn't it. What
are your agents in the field telling you? Have they
ever known the market to be as buoyant as it
is at the moment now?
Speaker 8 (30:48):
If you look at last year we had a fantastic
year and everything's lining up well this year. I think
the only challenge might be enough stock. But all the
guys are out there at the moment and working on that.
But you know, I think if we have a reasonable spring,
things look really good. The markets look strong overseas. You know,
(31:10):
hopefully the alliance thing will be sorted, so, you know,
all things being equal, I think we're going to have
another very very strong season as long as we can
get enough stock for everyone.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
Yeah, that's the problem, isn't it enough enough livestock. We're
continuing to decline in our livestock numbers, and then we've
got the weather and strong wall to worry about. But
everything else is lining up pretty nicely. Is that transferring
into increased interests? Say, look for sheep and beef properties,
it has.
Speaker 8 (31:39):
To well, look, I think definitely. And you know, I
was just thinking the other day, if you think of
you know, interest rates, farmgate returns, you know, the sheet
and beef pricing, you know they're receiving it all flows
through to where I think we're going to see really
solid farm sales spring right way through to Christmas. And
(32:01):
the other interesting thing is not that the big months
at the moment, but we've basically had steady sales all
the way through since since autumn, so you know, things
boded really well. So I think, you know, it's not
going to boom, but I think we're going to see
really good activity over the next few months.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Reserve Bank announcement yesterday and the rhetoric around it, most
importantly has got to be a positive for future sales
in the coming season.
Speaker 8 (32:31):
Yeah, look, definitely. And I think that's the other thing.
You know, what, real estate sales are reliant on sentiment,
and sentiment will improve after that announcement, which as we
know is probably long overdue. Then, as I said, you
add all those other bits into it, it's probably a
perfect time to purchase the property. And I think the
other thing too, on the other side, is we are
(32:53):
seeing a number of people saying, look, the market's strong
at the moment, good time to sell. I know people
often they carry out on one season too long, but
it's a good time to sell your property too.
Speaker 4 (33:03):
Well.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
I guess if you're in the market, for instance, to
sell your dairy farm, you're thinking I might hang in
for another season at ten bucks and cash in. But
then again you might pay the price at the other end.
We don't know. And I'm assuming again with dairy coming
off a ten dollar payout, I'm making that assumption for
twenty four to twenty five looking good for ten dollars
(33:23):
plus and twenty five twenty six. There's got to be
people looking at.
Speaker 8 (33:27):
That all look definitely and you know, as you know,
you know, markets will only hold for so long, and
so we are seeing not big numbers, but we are
seeing people going, right, I'm going to divest and do
something else. And so that is taking place because they
look at it and they go the market's market strong now,
(33:47):
So why wouldn't I operate in these conditions?
Speaker 2 (33:51):
Okay, Peter Newbolt, elephant in the room. Carbon farming, full
farm to forest conversions as that pass tenths now or
is it still.
Speaker 8 (34:01):
Happening, Oh, it's reduced considerably, So I don't see that
as a big threat moving forward. The only thing we
are going to see is over the next couple of years,
as those forestry transactions took place, we're still going to
see some stock numbers reduced as those properties you know
(34:23):
I put into it, put into trees. But I think
the peak is gone. I think we'll look back in
years to come and go, God, what happened there? And
hopefully it'll slow down and we can and we won't
lose any more good land that we need, the sheep
and beef and dereck hey.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Just to finish on. You live in a beautiful part
of the country, Central Otago walckets Upoo Basin. I was
in Queenstown last weekend. There was no snow on the hills.
Has Mother Nature remedied that?
Speaker 7 (34:52):
Look?
Speaker 8 (34:52):
No, really? And I was saying to someone the other day,
I don't think we've seen a real storm this season,
and you'd have to go back ten or twelve years
to see a decent snowfall down there. So it's been,
in my opinion, a mild winter. We've had some fross,
but there's nothing wrong with some good fross. But from
a weather perspective, it's been a mild winter and I
(35:14):
guess for I put my livestock had on Letoberd stay
that way as we move into the next couple.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Of months, absolutely August and September, as I say, the
most important farming months on the calendar. I reckon anyhow,
got to go. Peter Newbold thanks for your time.
Speaker 8 (35:29):
You have a good afternoon, Jamie cheers.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Good on your pete. There we go. That's almost us
done and dusted. Some of your feedback. I knew Matt
Bolger when he was a kid, and Jim used to
bring him into the Bolk store of AFC and Tekowetti
when I worked there back in the early eighties. From
Steve from TEKOWITTI thank you very much for that. Kevin
from Madam Matta writes Jamie Graham Williams's gold he is
(35:52):
good too. He kind of speaks a lot of common sense.
A little known fact and other text says we don't
expect any pork no, because we import over half of it.
I think my numbers are right. And here's muzz and
only because you've texted in Muz's regular texter, I've gone
to the trouble of answering your question. How many tests
(36:14):
did Andrew Whore and Dane Coles get well, Hoory got
eighty three, he had to sit on the bench quite
a bit for Kevin Milamu and Dane Cole's got ninety.
And when you look at Cody Taylor, great hooker, he
is he's well. When I say only started sixty six
of his ninety nine tests. He sat on the bench
quite a bit for Dane Cole's We've been very Lucky
(36:36):
in this Country with Andrew Whore, Dane Coles, Cody Taylor
and of course Drew Redden. Hello Drew, if you're listening,
I'll catch you tomorrow from Taronga. Take care.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Catch you're the latest from the land. It's The Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to friend. You're specialist in
John Deere construction equipment.
Speaker 3 (37:03):
Yeah,
Catch all the latest from the land. It's the Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to Brent, the starkest of
the leading agriculture brands and so vainous.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Thanks Gorman, you're and a nervous on the taxi and Jesus.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
And Jesus.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Get Amie, Zelle and welcome to the Country. The show
was brought to you by Brent. We're heading to another country. Yeah,
we're going to put one not party in the USA
with Miley Cyrus. We're going to get some information out
of our Minister of Agriculture and Trade. He's really racking
up the airpoints at the moment. He's been in Saudi Arabia.
He's now in Washington, d C. To talk to his
(00:57):
trade counterparts. No doubt tariffs will be on the menu,
and we're going to look at some changes positive changes too.
I might add to freshwater farm plans. Matt Boulger from Fonterra.
Good news this morning from Fonterra. They've lifted the price
of milk. Well, it's good for the farmers. Graham Williams,
East Coast farmer and bush poet, putting pen to paper,
(01:18):
lamenting the loss of food producing land to carbon farming.
This poem is called carbon Cudlas. Kate Scott from Hort,
New Zealand, and Peter Newbold, who's the GM of Real
Estate and Livestock ge livestock's going well at the moment
for PGG rights, but waiting patiently on hold. He's a
busy man in Washington, d C. Minister of Agriculture and Trade,
(01:39):
Todd McLay and Todd, you don't let the grass grow
under your feet. How was Saudi Arabia to start with here?
Speaker 4 (01:44):
Jamie, Hey, good afternoon, Thanks for having me on Soudy's
really good. Where are such a good place with them?
You know, this is a three trillion dollar opportunity, you know,
that's their annual GDP and they like us a lot.
But it's a country that's just so full of energy
and opportunity at the moment, and they're very very keen
on everything we produce in the primary sector and so
(02:08):
very positive, very very positive meetings. And we're going to
have a bit more some announcements around that in the
coming month or so.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
What do they mainly take from us?
Speaker 4 (02:17):
So there's a lot of red meat, a lot of
lamb and meat and beefs go up there. Tonterra puts
quite a bit of dairy product in there. They've got
a processing plant, a small one. But you remember years
ago we had all those arguments and debates about sort
of live animals going up there. They don't want that anymore.
They actually just want food. And what they're doing is
(02:39):
pitching themselves. They want companies large and small to come
and join with them and do a bit of processing
of their products there for the rest of the Middle
East market, particularly into Africa, and I just think that
there will be a lot of opportunity for key we
companies there. I'm leading a trade mission up there later
in the year and it's going to be a very
focused one. It's going to be about putting businesses together
(03:01):
to do deals. But you know, every time we get
something that was going it just means more money in
the pockets of our farmers. And look at the payout
forecasts from Frontier today, really good.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
News, absolutely good news. More about that shortly with Matt Bolger.
Who do you get an audience with in Washington, d C.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Well, it's not Miley Cyrus. She's not in any of
the meetings that I'll be and I met today with
the Agriculture Secretary, so I suppose that's my equivalent agriculture minister,
and tomorrow with Jameson Grea, the United States Trade Representative,
who again is my counterpart. Tomorrow we will be talking
about the tariff and the harm that does to you know,
(03:41):
exports and trade on both sides. But today with their
ag secretary, it was really good. It's a chance to
talk about agriculture and farming here. You know, their farmers
had many of the same concerns that New Zealand farmers
have had too many roles, too much cost, too much
a regulation. But I did talk to them a lot
about Canada, and you know that we won that case
gets to Canada around dairy access. We have another issue
(04:03):
with Canada over the way they subsidize milk created more
protein than are dumping it around the world, and she
and I have agreed they're official to get a look
and work together, talk together about whether there is some
joint action we could take against Canada so that they
meet their obligations and they're not dumping product in markets
around the world that are harm in New Zealand farmers
and our dairy exports.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
So I'm guessing. In fact, I know because I roughly
know the time difference Washington, d C. What is it
seven or eight o'clock at night?
Speaker 4 (04:31):
At eight o'clock eight of nights here on I don't
even know what day.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
It is Wednesday. I think it's Wednesday your time Thursday
out ons. So have you been? Have you been had
a wander around, gone out for a bear, gone out
for a meal? Have you seen all Trump's the National
Guard on display?
Speaker 4 (04:47):
Yeah? So no, I haven't been everywhere. We arrived a
sort of fifteen or sixty in our flight straight from
the Middle East and had a shower, iron a shirt
and then went straight to meetings. But driving a the
capital you do see a lot more National Guard than
others in places. But in the areas we are around
the White House and so on, they're just there as
(05:08):
part of the public. And I've not armed or anything
like that. But to tell you, it's looking really, really good.
It's the holiday times. There's not many people here. Tomorrow
is the important meeting though, that's with James and Guia,
and that's about the fifteen percent tariffs we have on us.
Speaker 2 (05:22):
Good on your good luck there. What about the changes announced?
Was it yesterday or this morning on the freshwater farm plans.
You're just going to make it easier, get rid of
a better red type and good on you.
Speaker 5 (05:33):
Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 4 (05:34):
You know, this has been something that's been a bane
for farmers for a long time and it was put
in place. So originally the idea was David Parker's and
poor old Dame you know, kind of had to follow
on with it. I guess we just think that they
had it in the wrong place. There is no evidence
of doing anything other than putting costs on farmers in
New Zealand, making it hard to farm, you know, showing
that the last government didn't trust them, and there are
(05:55):
no environmental outcomes that are good for New Zealand as
a result. So we've taken a very different approach and
it's a much much more light hearted one. We still
have to meet obligations, no question about that, but we're
really saying that you know, around your farm plans, if
you're already doing that with your meat processor or your
dairy processor, that's largerly enough for us. You shouldn't have
to fill out more forms and do more for the government.
(06:18):
And so you know, we're going to work with farmers
to make sure that they meet their obligations, that they
are sensible and they're not going to cost the money.
But what we want to do is get on and
continue to produce the world's best, highest quality, safest food
so we can sell it around the world.
Speaker 2 (06:32):
Yeah, well, okay, is this correct me if I'm wrong here,
For around eight thousand smaller, lower risk farms, the requirement
for a fresh water farm plan has been scrapped completely.
Speaker 4 (06:44):
Yeah, so that's right. So it's very much a risk
based approach. So if you think about why the last
government was with almost everything that was one size fits
all and so and everything we're doing, you know, as
riskcore activity increases, then there is more requirement to do
certain things, and so it means there will be parts
of New Zealand where no harm is done. Farmers meet
(07:05):
their obligation and so we want them to get on
with it. But you're also got to remember that almost
every farmer, for their meat company or their dairy company,
has obligations and they have to do plans and provide
them to them. So it's not that nothing's happening, it's
just that we get to recognize that because what they're
doing with those processes works for us. And then as
you sort of go up the scale of more intensity
(07:27):
or higher risk or attachments that are have greater challenges,
there's more requirements, but they're always going to be sensible
and we are thinking about the cost as opposed to
just the process. And that's the biggest difference between this
government and the labor government.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Well, you can't be accused of not doing your bit
for the farmers of New Zealand. You're working hard for
us all around the world. Thanks for some of your
time today.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
Hey, thank you.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
There we go. Todd McLeay, Minister of Agriculture and Trade
in Washington, d C. Fascinating country, fascinating city should I
say District of Columbia if you ever ever get to Washington.
This is a boring travel story, muzz So you're going
to text me and abuse me. You've got like the
Smithsonian museums amazing. You could spend a week going through
(08:13):
them all. My particular favorite as the National Aeronautical in
Space one or whatever it is, fantastic. I've got the
original landing capsule from when Neil Armstrong set foot on
the moon way back and what was it nineteen sixty nine.
Right up next, more good news for the dairy industry.
(08:34):
We've got some good news. We will talk about it
on tomorrow's show more and more depth, although I might
touch on it with Kate Scott Zesbury coming out with
some really good news. And this morning it was the
turn of Fonterra. Matt Bolger. Up next, Graham Williams, East
Coast farmer, bush poet put pen to paper as he
laments the loss of food producing land to carbon farming.
(08:54):
And Peter Newboldt he's got a good job at the moment.
He's running the PGG rights in real estate and protect
the livestock teams. They're on fire or the industry's on
fire at the moment. All that on the show today, Michelle,
I'll have rural news and we'll look at sports news
for you as well.
Speaker 6 (09:19):
Am I gonna.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
More good news for the dairy industry this morning. Fonterra
coming out and increasing the twenty four twenty five season
forecast milk price from ten bucks to ten dollars fifteen.
And we're going to talk about twenty five twenty six
as well, to tell us more. He is the managing
director of co Op Affairs for Fonterra. Matt Bulger, Hey, Matt,
(09:43):
does your old man Jim Jim Boulger, James Bolger, does
he listen to the show, because if he does, I'd
like to give him a shout out, good farmer and
prime minister, former prime minister.
Speaker 5 (09:56):
He may do, Jamie, I don't know, but I touched
him regularly, So get a if you are listening, GB, Well.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Yeah, every listener is a prisoner and we're in the
ratings season, so just tell them to tune on. Okay,
So I guess there's no real surprise in this one, Matte.
We knew that ten dollars was pretty much locked and loaded.
You're at ten to fifteen. This is for the season
we've just finished, and that band has narrowed right down
to ten dollars ten to ten dollars twenty effectively, it's
(10:22):
locked and loaded.
Speaker 5 (10:24):
Yeah, we're pretty close. Look, this is for the season
just finished, and you know it's good news coming from
ten to ten to fifteen. We'll announce our final price,
of course, when we close out the year in about
a month's time. But Border Management, we've taken a look
at this and we're very close to that now. So
we've got a narrow range. A few last things to finalize,
(10:46):
but you know ten fifteen's ten fifteen is great for
the year just gone, and obviously holding ten dollars for
the year ahead as well.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
I found that the more interesting numbers. So you've also
retained ten dollars, as you said, for the year are
in now twenty five twenty six, and you had that
wide range. It was from eleven eight dollars, should I say,
to eleven dollars? Strangely, I thought at the time the
midpoint wasn't nine fifty You said ten dollars. So what
(11:14):
you've done is effectively you've moved the midpoint to the midpoint.
Does that make sense or is that a bit irish?
Speaker 5 (11:20):
No? No, I'm with you. So look, when we came
out with our ten dollars forecast for the Curren season
twenty five twenty six, we did put an upside of
the range at eleven and a downside at eight dollars.
So what that was signaling was that there was greater
risk out there in the environment. And if you cast
(11:41):
your mind back to May, of course, even back then,
the range of outcomes that could have happened geopolitically on
the Tarraf front, all of that was weighted to the downside,
and we wanted to signal that to farnas as we've
come into the season. Now you know, a few few
months on, there's still a risk there. So we've narried
that range still nine dollars to eleven with the mid
(12:02):
point of ten. What that's saying is that some of
those really big downsides haven't eventuated. So that's a signal
of confidence. But look, we're still very early in the season,
so plenty of order to go under the bridge, but
no again good news for farmacy.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
Yeah, you're also very early into the Trump tiff regime.
What sort of effect is that having thus far or
is it too early to tell?
Speaker 5 (12:26):
Yeah, it's too early to tell overall, but it is
having an effect. So it's the way it plays out
is really on a customer by customer basis. We've got,
you know, many different customers in the United States, and
with each customer we might have a range of different
contracts that you know, are renewed or negotiated at different
times in each contract might have different terms. So within
(12:48):
that fifteen percent, you know, it's not a disaster, but
it's not great, particularly when we're looking at other countries,
say Canada, which is good as zero p cent tariff
and its protein exports are effectively subsidized. So we're working
really closely with officials and Minister maclay and team to
look at that with Canada and appreciate all the work
(13:10):
that they're doing on that. But no, so that is
a cloud on our horizon. But as I've said before,
Richard Allen and the team, they do a great job
of navigating that, working really closely with customers. So challenging,
but we'll get.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Through, okay. And the other number that came out this morning,
I've got to cover this one off. The forecast earnings
of sixty five to seventy five cents per share remain unchanged,
and this is all about how much farmers are going
to get paid for their annual dividend.
Speaker 5 (13:39):
YEP, there's the one. So no change on that, and
I guess just reflecting it's you know, it's great to
have a high meal price looking at ten fifteen for
the season's gone and still maintaining those high earnings. You know,
a lot of parts of the economy are having a
pretty rough time, but with holding those earnings high and
particularly that shift and mill price. You know it's more
than two hundred million dollars extra flying back out into
(14:02):
the economy, which is good.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Good news day about the dairy industry. Today tomorrow will
be talking more about a good news day for the
Kiwi fruit industry with Jason to Break. The chief executive
of Zesbury, Matt Bolger, Thanks for your.
Speaker 5 (14:15):
Time, great, Thanks Jim, I'm go.
Speaker 2 (14:18):
Dock twenty four after twelve. You're with the Country, brought
to you by Brant. Thanks Matt. Hello Jim, James, I've
mistakenly caught Hi, Sir James Bolger. He refused to take
a knighthood. Hello if you're listening anyhow. Up next Graham
Williams Outs of the East Coast Gisbane Region, farmer, bush poet,
(14:40):
put pen to paper, always interesting. Kate Scott out of
hort of Culture in His Zealand. They've got their big
annual conference in Gala dinner coming up next week. We
might preview some of those great numbers for Zesbrey that
have come out. And Peter Neubold GM of PGG Rights
in real Estate and Livestock. Before the end of the hour,
(15:08):
haven't caught up with this bloke for a while, and
I'm really looking forward to enjoying his company, if such
a thing as possible, at the Gisbone or the Poverty
Bay amp show in October. Looking forward to getting there,
albeit seven or eight years late. That's another story for
another day. Graham Williams, you're an East Coast farmer and
bush poet and you've written the poem about carbon cuddlers.
(15:31):
I guess the net effect of this poem is that
you're just lamenting that we're losing food producing land to
carbon forestry.
Speaker 7 (15:39):
Yeah, well that's right, Jamie. You know that it's been
a gripe of mine for a long time, as you
well know, and I think it's really coming to the fore.
And I think I think what really epitomized it. I
was listening to your show the other day, and you
know that that American lady was the goat farming down
at Oxford there, and that was on Country Calendar, and
there was a lot of people say, oh, well, you know,
(16:01):
that's that's sort of not what country calendus should be.
But I looked at it completely differently. And what I
saw in that little operation there to me have pitomized
everything that's fantastic about you know, the great place of
New Zealand and the food we're producing, because you know,
she had tremendous passion, as all farmers do. She had
(16:21):
a huge commitment to producing healthy food, to animal welfare,
you know, that was her highest priority. I mean, those goats,
they were bloody, happy animals and fantastic. And the other
thing that really struck home to me was, you know,
she said she looks after those goats twenty four to seven,
three hundred and sixty five days a year. Now, every
(16:41):
New Zealand farmer that's got livestock looks after those animals,
you know, twenty four to seven. And I think I
think a lot of people have to really realize, you know,
that in this country we produce happy food. And I
call it happy food because that Oxford lady to pitomize that,
and obviously it was good, Tucker, and people were wanting
to buy it. And the other question that crops up, Jamie,
(17:04):
I think you see it on your show the other
day that sixty percent of our pork in New Zealand
comes from overseas. And you've done a hell of a
lot more traveling than I had, Jamie. But you know
when you go overseas and you look at some of
the conditions these intensive farming operations have, and I'll tell
you what. None of those qualities that were exhibited in
(17:25):
that country calendar at Oxford the other night, I know
for a fact are not happening overseas, and that's where
our tucker is coming from. And it's going to get
worse and worse if we put more land, good land
into trees. So that's a guts of where I'm at, Jamie,
and I've sort of summed it up in a bit
of a poem for you.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
All right, Well shoots, so my poem's.
Speaker 7 (17:45):
Called carbon Cuddlas. Well, I'm not a financial guru, but
the word that's on the street is that the country's
in a hell of a state because food's far too
expensive to eat. But it is spreadable gold if in
fact it can be found. Shoppers are doing somersaults at
ten bucks for a pound. Mince was poor man's tucker
(18:09):
once as the bank it wouldn't break, But now she's
thirty dollars where once was. Phil at steak Lamb is
up there too, and no one's happier than me. For
hitting a person in the wallet is how you make
a blind man see. It's called supply and demand. The
concepts tried and true, and I don't think urbanites grasp
(18:33):
it as well as rural people do. Our livelihoods depend
on it, and right now there's a boost for the
khoos in the carbon forests are coming home to roost.
We won't say that we told you so, especially because
we did a perfect recipe for oblivion two point six
(18:54):
million stop units. We have slid save the world with
carbon fi frus. The wombles they did bleat is bugger
all point and breathing. If you can't afford to eat,
if people reckon prices are high, I predict they'll only climb.
And if people are searching for reasons, then I suggest
(19:15):
it now's the time to be fair. The horse has
bolted as the damage has been done, the leg ups
and incentives and the stories that were spun. Every pastoral
farmer that's sold to carbon trees is another nail in
our coffin from polluters over seas. Limiting our food production
(19:38):
is far from sound advice. The lack of that production,
hence the increase in the price, so a toast to
our remaining farmers is what I wish to do the
best and most efficient in the world, a fact we
know is true. They deserve our total backing and our respect.
They do command. It's them that should reap the rewards
(20:01):
the reality of supply and demand. Don't blame them for
the cost of food. If the price it makes you choke,
blame it on the carbon cuddlers, the ideologists and the woke.
They're away with the bloody fairies, unaccountable and aloof. They're
the buggest to lynch when your tucker bull hits the roof.
(20:23):
And that's my take on it, Jamie, and I think
we all need to wake up to the fact that
we're the best producers of the best tucker in the world,
and we need to preserve the production of it.
Speaker 2 (20:32):
So that's me, Graham Williams. Lovely work. Looking forward to
catching up with you at the POVERTYA and P Show,
the best little am P show in the country mid October.
Speaker 7 (20:42):
Good on you, Jamie, we'll see you then.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
Looking forward to it, Graham twenty eight After twenty eight
away from one, get the time right. You heard them
talking about the woke there and Michelle was mentioning to
me that President Trump's is going to explore all options
and avenues because we talked about the Smithsonian Museums in Washington,
d C. On the mall, are there well, mal Mare
(21:07):
Mal's in England, isn't it? Yep? Okay, right, let's do
so Trumpy. He wants to get rid of the woke
out of the Smithsonian and hold them accountable. A White
House official said, until we get info from the Smithsonian
response in response to our letter, we can't verify the
number of artifacts that have been removed because the Smithsonian
has removed them on their own. Trump announced the Initiative
(21:29):
on Truth Social as he announces everything earlier this week,
writing the Smithsonian is out of control, out of control
in capital letters where everything discussed is how horrible our
country is, how bad slavery was. But yeah, I think
slavery was quite bad there, don And how unaccomplished the
(21:50):
downtrodden have been. Ah. He just keeps rewriting history, doesn't he?
Up next Rural News, Sports news before the end of
the hour. Big week coming up next week for the
horticulture industry. Kate Scott, Chief Executive and Peter Ubold Happy
Days for the livestock industry.
Speaker 8 (22:15):
I came in like.
Speaker 2 (22:26):
Twenty four away from one Miley Cyrus Today party in
the USA. Not a Trump has his way. Have you
been to the Smithsonian Museums in Washington, DC.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
I don't know if I've told you this travel story,
but it's the biggest disappointment for my father that I
went to Washington d C. Walked around the bottom floor
of the SMITHSONI and then got back on the bus.
It's his biggest disappointment about me. I think it reminds
me every time we talk about it.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Jesus, Oh, hang on, turn your headphones down. It reminds me.
I hope he doesn't mind me telling the story. We
had a young guy in the Riversdale rugby club who
could have been an all black. Things got on the way.
His name's Drew Red and hello Drew if you're listening.
And Drew was a very good player, had the ability
to be an all Black, and we fundraised to send
him on the Rugby News Youth Tour to Europe and
(23:19):
he went to Paris and quite a few of those
guys went on to be all blacks, but they got
to go to the Eiffel Tower probably the number one.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, that's number one place to go.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
Go in Paris. There Drew didn't bother getting out of
the backseat of the bus to go to the Eiffel Tower,
and then he hated the food he wanted to go
to McDonald's. Travel is wasted on some people. Hello, Drew,
hope you're okay. His Michelle with the latest and Rural News.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
The Country's world news with Cob Cadet, New Zealand's leading
right on lawn Bower brand visit steel Ford dot cot
insaid for your locals, douggist and.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Because you stole all my hard news today with all
their great gripping interviews which, by the way, if you
missed any you can find them on air podcast, I
had to go find this nice fluffy story off their website.
Speaker 2 (24:04):
Jamie, all right, what is it about cats?
Speaker 3 (24:06):
No, it's not about cats, not about goats, not about goats.
Speaker 2 (24:09):
Good, it's a happy story.
Speaker 3 (24:11):
A Central Ohioman has taken the idea of corny proposal
to New Heights literally. Tim Sullivan used his family family
thirteen acre Cornfield to pop the question to his girlfriend
Carolyn Liggett. Inspired while mowing the lawn, Sullivan teamed up
with a crop consultant and a computer program to plant
a message in seventy five foot letters, will you marry me? Carolyn.
(24:32):
The crops corn, sunflowers and pumpkins were planted early June
and by mid months the message. You could see it
from up in the air. He quoted. It's kind of corny,
but it's what we live, it's what we breathe. And
of course you want to know, Carolyn said, yes, of
course she did.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
Well, what a good corny story. I enjoyed that one.
Thank you.
Speaker 7 (24:48):
Here.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Sport sport with a f go Kiwi to the bone
since nineteen.
Speaker 2 (24:53):
Oh four, and Cody Taylor has poinned poised to join.
Kevin me A Lama is the second hooker to play
one hundred tests for the the All Blacks. See that
could have been you, Drew, if you'd behabe yourself better.
The thirty four year old will become the fourteenth player
to bring up the milestone in Sunday's Rugby Championship match
against Argentina at Buenos Aires. He started sixty six of
(25:16):
his ninety nine tests and I think I heard this morning.
Ardi Savella will clock up injury, permitting his hundredth against
the Springboks at Eden Park on September the sixth. That
is the game of the century, well not the century,
but certainly the game of the decade in between Rugby
World Cup games. Up next on the Country, we're going
to have a look at the horticulture industry with Kate Scott,
(25:38):
chief Executive of hort New Zealand.
Speaker 7 (25:41):
Your spell Loved.
Speaker 2 (25:44):
Kate Scott is the chief executive of Horticulture New Zealand
and your conference coming up next week in Wellington. Kate,
I want to start on the keyw Fruit story because
tomorrow the show is coming out of the talrong of studios.
I'm heading up for a fundraiser at the Tapuke Rugby
Club with Shane Jones. Thus the reason for broadcasting out
of Taroga, and one of my guests live in the
(26:06):
studio will be Jason to Break, the chief executive of Zestprie.
So they're getting record returns for everything apart from organic
green at the moment, so Kiwi fruit is on a
real high right look.
Speaker 6 (26:19):
Kiwi fruit are certainly the star of our horticulture sector
at the moment. They are absolutely smashing it. So you
know great that you can head to the capital of
Kiwi Fruit and.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
Pocky Yeah, really looking forward to it, Kate. Okay, so
they've reached that they've fulfilled their ten year plan, which
was to have the industry worth a four point five
billion by twenty twenty five. Their next ten year plan
by twenty thirty five, they want to be known as
the world's healthiest fruit brand and I see no reason
why Kiwi fruit shouldn't be. It's a superfood.
Speaker 6 (26:52):
Look, Kiwi fruit is a superfood. And look, we as
a horticulture set there are incredibly proud of, you know,
the role that hewy fruit plays in our sector. But
you know, for them to have done what they've done
over the past ten years and looking to the future
is just a real clear signal for the opportunity that
lies generally within the hawks sector. I think from my
(27:13):
point of view, you know, the opportunity that falls on
the back of Kiwi Fruit being able to establish its
strong health claims is something that the rest of the
sector can aspire to in terms of how do we
continue to talk about healthy fruit and healthy vegetables for
the world.
Speaker 7 (27:31):
Last week, what is New Zealand's right?
Speaker 2 (27:32):
Ok last week you were at the Spud Conference the
Potato Conference. Let me be more formal there, how do
you make the common spud sexy?
Speaker 5 (27:40):
Kate?
Speaker 6 (27:41):
Well, look, that was a key part of the discussions
at last week's conference, and I guess you know, the
humble spud is something that seems to get a bit
of a bad rap these days. We all think, you know,
eating potatoes is going to overload ourselves with carbs. But
if we start to look at you know, what are
the opportunities for potatoes to I don't know, become more
of a convenience snack. You know, no one wants to
(28:02):
spend the time peeling or roasting these days. So there
were some great insights shared at the conference around the
way that the potato industry is focusing on adding value
to the humble spud, something that I think, off the
top of my head, a significant portion of New Zealanders
are still eating every day or three to five times
a week. You know, there's a lot of work to
(28:23):
be done, but a lot of opportunity to enhance the
humble spud.
Speaker 2 (28:26):
You've got over eight hundred people attending the Heart New
Zealand Annual Conference next week in Wellington. Four hundred and
fifty attending the Industry Awards in gala dinner. Also, the
conference is being run concurrently with the RSC conference. Now
there's a bit of an issue there. You're having a
bit of a dig at the government because you reckon
they're not letting enough RSC workers in. We're trying to
(28:49):
double the value of exports in this country. Horticulture is
going to have to do a lot of the heavy
lifting there. Kate Scott and the key Wes in many
cases aren't prepared to do the heavy lifting when comes
to the picking.
Speaker 7 (29:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (29:01):
Look, what we have recently been raising our concerns about
in terms of RC is the recent government decision to
lift the accommodation rate by two point five percent rather
than seeking an increase to the caps, so that the
current cap is around that twenty odd thousand RC workers
every year. What we are seeing across our sector is
(29:24):
that over the last six to seven years, the cost
of providing accommodation have risen substantially on the back of inflation.
You know, to put it in context for you, you know,
we've got some pretty near evidence that talks to the
fact that it used to cost probably in the order
of about twenty eight thousand dollars a bid equivalent to
build a new accommodation facility to hose RC workers. That
(29:47):
cost over the last six years has risen to around
eighty six thousand dollars a bid, which is a substantial increase.
And when growers are only able to increase what they
can cap all that cost by two five percent, there
is a bit of a gap there and so that's
a concern for many of our growers as how do
they continue to provide good quality accommodation when they can't
(30:11):
approporate the cost for doing so.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
Kate Scott, chief executive of Horticolchure is Ellen. Thanks for
your time today on the country. Good luck for your
big conference next week in Wellington.
Speaker 6 (30:19):
Thanks Jamie.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
Peter Newbold's PGG right, since GM of real estate and
live stock. Normally we talk about how much your farm's worth,
and we're going to do that in the tech But Peter,
put on your live stock hat. What are your agents
in the field? Sounds like the CIA, doesn't it. What
are your agents in the field telling you? Have they
ever known the market to be as buoyant as it
is at the moment now?
Speaker 8 (30:48):
If you look at last year we had a fantastic
year and everything's lining up well this year. I think
the only challenge might be enough stock. But all the
guys are out there at the moment and working on that.
But you know, I think if we have a reasonable spring,
things look really good. The markets look strong overseas. You know,
(31:10):
hopefully the alliance thing will be sorted, so, you know,
all things being equal, I think we're going to have
another very very strong season as long as we can
get enough stock for everyone.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
Yeah, that's the problem, isn't it enough enough livestock. We're
continuing to decline in our livestock numbers, and then we've
got the weather and strong wall to worry about. But
everything else is lining up pretty nicely. Is that transferring
into increased interests? Say, look for sheep and beef properties,
it has.
Speaker 8 (31:39):
To well, look, I think definitely. And you know, I
was just thinking the other day, if you think of
you know, interest rates, farmgate returns, you know, the sheet
and beef pricing, you know they're receiving it all flows
through to where I think we're going to see really
solid farm sales spring right way through to Christmas. And
(32:01):
the other interesting thing is not that the big months
at the moment, but we've basically had steady sales all
the way through since since autumn, so you know, things
boded really well. So I think, you know, it's not
going to boom, but I think we're going to see
really good activity over the next few months.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Reserve Bank announcement yesterday and the rhetoric around it, most
importantly has got to be a positive for future sales
in the coming season.
Speaker 8 (32:31):
Yeah, look, definitely. And I think that's the other thing.
You know, what, real estate sales are reliant on sentiment,
and sentiment will improve after that announcement, which as we
know is probably long overdue. Then, as I said, you
add all those other bits into it, it's probably a
perfect time to purchase the property. And I think the
other thing too, on the other side, is we are
(32:53):
seeing a number of people saying, look, the market's strong
at the moment, good time to sell. I know people
often they carry out on one season too long, but
it's a good time to sell your property too.
Speaker 4 (33:03):
Well.
Speaker 2 (33:03):
I guess if you're in the market, for instance, to
sell your dairy farm, you're thinking I might hang in
for another season at ten bucks and cash in. But
then again you might pay the price at the other end.
We don't know. And I'm assuming again with dairy coming
off a ten dollar payout, I'm making that assumption for
twenty four to twenty five looking good for ten dollars
(33:23):
plus and twenty five twenty six. There's got to be
people looking at.
Speaker 8 (33:27):
That all look definitely and you know, as you know,
you know, markets will only hold for so long, and
so we are seeing not big numbers, but we are
seeing people going, right, I'm going to divest and do
something else. And so that is taking place because they
look at it and they go the market's market strong now,
(33:47):
So why wouldn't I operate in these conditions?
Speaker 2 (33:51):
Okay, Peter Newbolt, elephant in the room. Carbon farming, full
farm to forest conversions as that pass tenths now or
is it still.
Speaker 8 (34:01):
Happening, Oh, it's reduced considerably, So I don't see that
as a big threat moving forward. The only thing we
are going to see is over the next couple of years,
as those forestry transactions took place, we're still going to
see some stock numbers reduced as those properties you know
(34:23):
I put into it, put into trees. But I think
the peak is gone. I think we'll look back in
years to come and go, God, what happened there? And
hopefully it'll slow down and we can and we won't
lose any more good land that we need, the sheep
and beef and dereck hey.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Just to finish on. You live in a beautiful part
of the country, Central Otago walckets Upoo Basin. I was
in Queenstown last weekend. There was no snow on the hills.
Has Mother Nature remedied that?
Speaker 7 (34:52):
Look?
Speaker 8 (34:52):
No, really? And I was saying to someone the other day,
I don't think we've seen a real storm this season,
and you'd have to go back ten or twelve years
to see a decent snowfall down there. So it's been,
in my opinion, a mild winter. We've had some fross,
but there's nothing wrong with some good fross. But from
a weather perspective, it's been a mild winter and I
(35:14):
guess for I put my livestock had on Letoberd stay
that way as we move into the next couple.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Of months, absolutely August and September, as I say, the
most important farming months on the calendar. I reckon anyhow,
got to go. Peter Newbold thanks for your time.
Speaker 8 (35:29):
You have a good afternoon, Jamie cheers.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Good on your pete. There we go. That's almost us
done and dusted. Some of your feedback. I knew Matt
Bolger when he was a kid, and Jim used to
bring him into the Bolk store of AFC and Tekowetti
when I worked there back in the early eighties. From
Steve from TEKOWITTI thank you very much for that. Kevin
from Madam Matta writes Jamie Graham Williams's gold he is
(35:52):
good too. He kind of speaks a lot of common sense.
A little known fact and other text says we don't
expect any pork no, because we import over half of it.
I think my numbers are right. And here's muzz and
only because you've texted in Muz's regular texter, I've gone
to the trouble of answering your question. How many tests
(36:14):
did Andrew Whore and Dane Coles get well, Hoory got
eighty three, he had to sit on the bench quite
a bit for Kevin Milamu and Dane Cole's got ninety.
And when you look at Cody Taylor, great hooker, he
is he's well. When I say only started sixty six
of his ninety nine tests. He sat on the bench
quite a bit for Dane Cole's We've been very Lucky
(36:36):
in this Country with Andrew Whore, Dane Coles, Cody Taylor
and of course Drew Redden. Hello Drew, if you're listening,
I'll catch you tomorrow from Taronga. Take care.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Catch you're the latest from the land. It's The Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to friend. You're specialist in
John Deere construction equipment.
Speaker 3 (37:03):
Yeah,
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