Fonterra, Sharesies join to make share trading easier
Fonterra is teaming up with wealth app provider Sharesies to make it easier for its farmer shareholders to trade co-op shares among themselves.
Fonterra is thrilled that its partnership with the Southland District Council to improve management of the roading network has been nationally recognised.
At this week's 2016 LGNZ (Local Government New Zealand) Excellence Awards in Dunedin, Southland District Council won the Chorus Excellence Award for Best Practice in Infrastructure Management, for their programme "Changing Direction, The Way Forward for Southland's Roads".
The partnership uses smartphone technology onboard Fonterra's milk tankers to send road quality information to Southland District Council to gain deeper insights into the state of the district's roads and the pressures placed on them.
Fonterra staff at Edendale worked closely with Southland District Council to develop the programme which enables the Fonterra tanker fleet to effectively become the "eyes and ears" for the council.
"This is wonderful recognition for the council and the Fonterra team at Edendale," says Mark Robinson, Fonterra regional head for Otago/Southland.
"It shows what's possible when we take a partnership approach to issues facing our local communities."
Southland District has the largest rural roading network in New Zealand (about 5000 kms), nearly two thirds of which are gravel. Fonterra drivers know the network well – the company operates 60 tankers from its Edendale site, transporting milk from 1050 farms. Data from these daily journeys allows the council to make smarter spending decisions, and improve service to ensure safer journeys for Southland's road users.
Recent NZIER analysis shows that the dairy sector in Southland contributed $1.024 billion to the Southland economy in 2015/16.
"We know we're a big part of economic life in Southland, so we're proud to be able to apply our existing technology to innovation that benefits the whole community," says Mark Robinson.
Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) is launching an online business directory called The Country Women’s Collective to promote and support entrepreneurial rural women.
New Zealand actor Sam Neill has joined the Campaign for Wool NZ as an ambassador, lending his name and profile to educate and advocate for New Zealand strong wool.
Living labs that bring together expertise at locations around New Zealand are among potential solutions identified by researchers to help the country move towards a more climate resilient future.
The New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS) has started issuing annual reports, a new initiative to share information on consumer-level recalls with the public.
The chair of the Dairy Environment Leaders, the president of the North Otago Federated Farmers, and a herd health veterinarian are among those nominated for the Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year award this year.
Winners of DairyNZ’s Sustainability and Stewardship awards in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards have their eyes firmly fixed on progressing a positive future for New Zealand dairy.