Milk Powder Prices Prop Up Farmgate Milk Price
Milk powder prices are keeping farmgate prices up, helping processors offset the dip in milk fat prices.
Independent Waikato dairy company Tatua Cooperative has given its 114 suppliers a financial boost with a final payout of $7.10 per kilogram of milksolids for the 2014-15 season.
A strong financial performance for Tatua paved the way for the farmgate payout. This included group operating revenue of $286 million and earnings before tax of $121.1 million in 2014-15. This actually equates to $7.73 per kgMS but the Tatua board has announced a pre-tax retention of 63 cents per kgMS for reinvestment in plant and its value added business strategy.
Tatua's gearing ratio (of debt divided by debt plus equity) increased from 25% to 36.4% after the installation of a new specialised powder dryer.
Milk volume was also up with suppliers producing 15.7 million kgMS compared to 13.2 million kgMS in 2013-14.
Applications are set to open for the 2027 Zanda McDonald Award, a trans-Tasman award recognised for identifying and fast-tracking talented young leaders in agriculture and agribusiness.
The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (the College) and Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network are calling for investment in a proposed new training pathway for rural GPs, warning that many rural practices are struggling to recruit while a large share of the existing workforce nears retirement.
Federated Farmers has called on Central Otago District Council (CODC) to drop or vote down a plan to truck sludge from Alexandra and Cromwell to farmland near Lauder, warning it would compound an "outrageous" situation created by a separate council's decision weeks earlier.
Synlait has swung to second-half profit as operations stabilise, but the dairy processor still posted a $75.4m annual loss.
LIC shareholders have elected a new North Island representative to the co-operative's Board, along with five representatives to its Shareholder Reference Group (SRG), following the company's Annual Meeting held in Invercargill.
Farmers across parts of Southland and South Otago are continuing to deal with difficult conditions after a prolonged run of wet weather, with pressure building around feed supply, stock management, pasture damage, farm infrastructure and everyday workloads.