Make the right decision, Peters urges Fonterra farmers
New Zealand First leader and Foreign Minister Winston Peters is ratcheting up pressure on Fonterra farmers as they vote on divesting the co-operative’s consumer and related businesses.
Fonterra has announced $15 million in investments in electrification projects across the North Island over the next 18 months.
The investment will see electric boilers installed at the co-operative’s Whareroa, Edgecumbe, and Waitoa sites, along with further fleet decarbonisation.
The co-operative says this will contribute towards its goal of a 50.4% reduction in Scope 1 & 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 from a 2018 baseline.
Fonterra chief operating officer, Anna Palairet, says the investments mark a significant step for the co-operative’s future operations.
“Last year, we turned off the last coal boiler in the North Island, meaning manufacturing operations in the North Island are now coal-free,” Palairet says.
She says these investments are the next step in creating enduring assets that are fit for the future as Fonterra looks to reduce its reliance on gas.
“Choosing the right energy solutions is about striking a balance between affordability, security of energy supply and reducing our environmental footprint, and the new electric boilers are crucial to navigating this challenge,” Palairet adds.
She says the electrification projects play a significant role in ensuring efficient operations with a reliable energy supply for Fonterra’s manufacturing sites and to support the long-term sustainability of the business.
“It also represents a commitment to our farmer owners that we are building a resilient, future-ready co-operative,” she concludes.
Agriculture and Forestry Minister, Todd McClay is encouraging farmers, growers, and foresters not to take unnecessary risks, asking that they heed weather warnings today.
With nearly two million underutilised dairy calves born annually and the beef price outlook strong, New Zealand’s opportunity to build a scalable dairy-beef system is now.
Graduates of a newly-updated Agri-Women’s Development Trust (AWDT) course are taking more value than ever from the programme, with some even walking away calling themselves the “farm CFO”.
Meet the Need, a farmer-led charity, says food insecurity in New Zealand is dire, with one in four children now living in a household experiencing food insecurity, according to Ministry of Health data.
Applications have now opened for the 2026 Meat Industry Association scholarships.
Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) says it is backing aspiring dairy farmers through a new initiative designed to make the first step to farm ownership or sharemilking easier.