Wednesday, 05 March 2025 10:55

Editorial: Keeping the Govt honest

Written by  Staff Reporters
Farmer confidence is now in positive territory, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement. Farmer confidence is now in positive territory, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement.

OPINION: Federated Farmers' latest farmer confidence survey results won’t surprise too many people.

Falling interest rates, rising incomes, stabilising farm input prices and more favourable farming ‘rules’ have all played a major role in that improvement.

It’s incredibly satisfying to see farmer confidence rebounding so strongly – to its highest point in over a decade and the largest one-off lift in farmer confidence seen to date. This is a cause for celebration.

However, the results are coming off a pretty low base. And as Federated Farmers points out, farmer confidence is now in positive territory, but there’s still a lot of room for improvement.

Farmers can’t control either interest rates or the farmgate milk price, so Federated Farmers and other industry organisations are using energy on what they can influence – making sure farming regulations are practical, affordable and fair. This means keeping the Government honest.

Not all decisions made by the Government help farmer confidence. For example, the recent Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) announcement by the Government hasn’t gone down well with farmers as it would mean more pine trees on productive land. The Feds’ survey was carried out before the latest NDC announcement and one can bet that this almost certainly would have taken some of the gloss off the results.

Government rules and regulations have a significant impact on farmers’ costs and these costs really can make or break a season and have a significant impact on a farmer’s confidence to keep investing in their busi-ness.

Farmers have a simple message to the Government: “As a country, we’re never going be able to regulate our way to prosperity, but with the right policy settings, we might just be able to farm our way there”.

More like this

Editorial: Long overdue!

OPINION: The Government's latest move to make freshwater farm plans more practical and affordable is welcome, and long overdue.

Contract milkers hit hard by drought crisis

Many contract milkers in badly drought affected regions around the country are coming under severe financial stress and farm owners are being urged to help them through a bad patch until the start of the new season.

Editorial: Making wool great again

OPINION: Otago farmer and NZ First MP Mark Patterson is humble about the role that he’s played in mandating government agencies to use wool wherever possible in new and refurbished buildings.

Greenpeace a charity?

OPINION: Should Greenpeace be stripped of their charitable status? Farmers say yes.

Featured

Being a rural vet is ‘fantastic’

Everyone from experienced veterinarians and young professionals to the Wormwise programme and outstanding clinics have been recognised in this year’s New Zealand Veterinary Association Te Pae Kīrehe (NZVA) awards.

Editorial: Long overdue!

OPINION: The Government's latest move to make freshwater farm plans more practical and affordable is welcome, and long overdue.

National

Lame stories from a country vet

Everyone from experienced veterinarians and young professionals to the Wormwise programme and outstanding clinics have been recognised in this year’s…

Machinery & Products

Gongs for best field days site

Among the regular exhibitors at last month’s South Island Agricultural Field Days, the one that arguably takes the most intensive…

Amazone extends hoe range

With many European manufacturers releasing mechanical weeding systems to counter the backlash around the use and possible banning of agrochemicals,…

Gong for NH dealers

New Holland dealers from around Australia and New Zealand came together last month for the Dealer of the Year Awards,…

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Less hot air

OPINION: Farmers won't get any credit for this from the daily media, so Milking It is giving the bouquets where…

Dollars go offshore

OPINION: The Advertising Standards Authority’s 2024 report revealed that not only is social media rotting our brains, it is also…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter