Battle for milk
OPINION: Fonterra may be on the verge of selling its consumer business in New Zealand, but the co-operative is not keen on giving any ground to its competitors in the country.
PRICES FOR dairy products were down 8.9% in the Global Dairy Trade auction overnight.
Whole milk powder was down 8.4% to US$4022 per metric tonne, its lowest level in more than a year.
Skim milk powder was down 9.6% with an average price of US$4126 per metric tonne.
Butter was down 11% to an average price of US$4040/MT.
Other results were: anhydrous milk protein, down 11.3%, average price US$4,062/MT;
butter milk powder down 15%, average price US$4,211/MT; cheddar down 3.5%, average price US$4,438/MT; MPC70 down 4.3%, average price US$8,436/MT; rennet casein index up 5.5%, average price US$11,105.
There were 201 bidders with 167 winners in 11 rounds and 39,653 tonnes of product sold.
Keratin biomaterials company Keraplast and Wools of New Zealand have signed a new superpremium wool contract which is said to deliver a boost to wool growers.
While things are looking positive for the red meat sector in 2026, volatility in global trade remains a concern, says the Meat Industry Association (MIA).
The quest to find innovative practical, scientific solutions to deal with water-related issues at a catchment level has been the theme of an important conference at Massey University last week.
One of the country's top Māori farms faces a long and costly rebuild to get the property back to where it was before recent storms ripped through it.
The latest Global Dairy Trade auction results have delivered a boost to dairy farmers.
New Zealand potato growers are prioritising value creation from high yields to meet a complex mix of challenges and opportunities, says Potatoes NZ chief executive Kate Trufitt.

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