Bank's desire to be part of the solution
ASB says the decision to sign on to the AgriZeroNZ joint venture came out of a wish to be a part of the solution.
Fonterra is closing its Brightwater site in Nelson in April next year, with 30 staff set to lose their jobs.
However, Fonterra chief operating officer Fraser Whineray says the workers are highly skilled and is confident they’ll be able to secure new roles.
Whineray says the priority right now is supporting them.
“It’s no doubt tough news for some of the Brightwater team and we’ll be working with them in the coming months on their future options, including redeployment opportunities within the co-op.”
The small aging plant at Brightwater will continue as a milk collection site as Fonterra moves its milk transfer activities there from Tuamarina.
Brightwater processes only about 0.25% of the co-operative’s overall milk supply into whole milk powder. Whineray says the move to close the milk processing plant, which will instead see the milk being processed at Fonterra’s Darfield site, is in line with Fonterra’s long-term strategy.
“We know milk supply is declining over time, flat at best, so we need to make sure we’re getting the most out of every drop of milk and optimising our plants to match both consumer demand and available milk supply.
“This, along with forecast capital and maintenance costs, means we’ve made the tough decision to close our milk powder plant at Brightwater.
“We’re continually working to ensure our assets across the country are as efficient as they can be, changing product mixes, and moving more milk into value-add products.”
New Zealand dairy processors are welcoming the Government’s commitment to continuing to push for Canada to honour its trade commitments.
An educational programme, set up by Beef + Land New Zealand, to connect farmers virtually with primary and intermediate school students has reported the successful completion of its second year.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has welcomed a resolution adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to declare 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer.
Waikato herd health veterinarian Katrina Roberts is the 2024 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says New Zealand has no intention of backing down in a trade dispute with Canada over dairy products.
Horticulture NZ chief executive Nadine Tunley will step down in August.