Farmer confidence dips slightly, but positivity still dominates
Farmer confidence has taken a slight dip according to the final Rabobank rural confidence survey for the year.
Many agricultural loans will now be guided by sustainability considerations including climate change mitigation and adaptation, water use, waste minimisation, labour rights and animal welfare.
This follows the launch last week of the Sustainable Agriculture Finance Initiative (SAFI) guidance.
ASB, ANZ, BNZ, Rabobank and Westpac, and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) joined forces in early 2020 to develop the SAFI guidance, to improve the flow of sustainable finance to New Zealand’s agricultural sector.
The SAFI guidance is intended to support a framework, from the finance sector, for integrating sustainability considerations into funding for New Zealand’s agricultural sector.
Additional tariffs introduced by the Chinese Government last month on beef imports should favour New Zealand farmers and exporters.
Primary sector leaders have praised the government and its officials for putting the Indian free trade deal together in just nine months.
Primary sector leaders have welcomed the announcement of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and New Zealand.
Dairy farmers are still in a good place despite volatile global milk prices.
Legal controls on the movement of fruits and vegetables are now in place in Auckland’s Mt Roskill suburb, says Biosecurity New Zealand Commissioner North Mike Inglis.
Arable growers worried that some weeds in their crops may have developed herbicide resistance can now get the suspected plants tested for free.