Field Notes Issue 714

In Aotearoa, the government has commenced a review of the Accredited Employer Work Visa scheme to ensure it is balanced for dairy farmer employers, to allow compliant employers to hire migrant workers when there is a genuine shortage. In the interim, temporary changes have been made to speed up the hiring process, enabling employers to recruit staff for the upcoming calving season. The Environmental Protection Agency has given Marlborough District Council approval to release a host-specific rust fungus as a bio-control agent for the invasive Chilean needle grass, a weed that left unchecked could cost the nation NZ $1.16 billion in production according to one study. The approved rust fungus poses no risk to humans and is unlikely to harm native plants and animals. In weather, stratospheric warming over Antarctica means an increased chance of severe weather and a more turbulent winter this year for farmers and growers. Warming high in the stratosphere can cause storms around Antarctica to become more "loose," raising the chances of lows, fronts, southerlies, and even extensive highs being sent towards New Zealand.

In international news, an Irish independent advocacy group, Social Justice Ireland is urging their government to trial a Farm Sustainability Passport Scheme, to shift farmers towards environmentally friendly and sustainable agricultural practises. The scheme’s focus goes beyond emission reduction to include policies aiming to enhance living standards, foster a prosperous and sustainable economy, and address existing inequalities. In the United Kingdom, a free online tool is now available to assist farmers in monitoring and alleviating heat stress in cattle. The tool is the result of collaboration between weather solutions company, Galebreaker, and animal health and nutrition company, Phibro Animal Health, to install internet-connected temperature and humidity dataloggers in barns throughout the UK, the Netherlands, and Belgium. The Temperature-Humidity Index tool provides farmers real-time information on in-barn conditions and evaluates the risk of heat stress for local areas. Meanwhile, beef production in the United States has declined in 2024, but not as rapidly as analysts had expected according to a new report released by the agribusiness cooperative bank, CoBank. The slower decline is due to heavier cattle moving through the value chain. Feeder cattle have stayed longer in feedlots, putting on more weight, resulting in heavier carcasses and this has offset the impact of the ongoing decline in herds nationwide. International wine & spirits company, Pernod Ricard, has announced the sale of its global wine portfolio to Australian Wine Holdco Limited. This portfolio encompasses various brands from New Zealand, Australia, and Spain, as well as seven wineries. 

Panel Industry good, good for industry | E Tipu 2024 [10 July, YouTube]

The E Tipu Agri Summit 2024 speaker talks have been released and are available to watch online. This week, we are pleased to feature one of these recordings, the soft launch of a report developed through collaboration between KPMG New Zealand and The Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT), and significant input from many across the food and fibre sector. The report examines the industry good ecosystem of New Zealand’s food and fibre sector, exploring the question ‘are industry good organisations good for industry?’.

The E Tipu recording shares the high-level findings of this work, highlighting the strengths in the current ecosystem, but also identifying its key flaws. The discussion introduces an alternative for industry good, called Common Ground, which would aim to create an environment that would bring industry good organisations together to collaboratively address topics of mutual interest.

AGMARDT and KPMG’s intent in undertaking and releasing the report is to stimulate debate and discussion; the Common Ground is just one possible construct for the future, and it is presented as a starting point to generate further discussion on how as a sector, we might organise ourselves differently, and ultimately encourage action for change within the food and fibre sector.

The final report will be released in August. Original video here

Tags: industry good; association; food and fibre

Food safety scandal rocks China as report claims cooking oil carried in same trucks as fuel [10 July, CNN]

Allegations are being made against Sinograin, China’s largest grain storage and transport company, and the private conglomerate Hopefull Grain and Oil Group. They are being accused of using the same tankers to transport both fuel and cooking oil without conducting appropriate cleaning in between trips, raising concerns about food contamination. The consumption of oils with chemical residues can lead to poisoning, resulting in symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea, and potentially cause lasting harm to the liver and kidneys. There is public pressure for the recall of affected products and the application of increased industry supervision. The food safety office of China’s administrative State Council has announced inquiries and vowed to impose severe penalties on those accountable for any violations in compliance with the law. Original full article here

Tags: Transport; oil; fuel; consumption; contamination

Meatly becomes first company cleared to sell cultivated meat in the UK [17 July, Agriland]

Meatly has become the first European company to gain authorisation to sell cultivated meat as pet food in the United Kingdom. Their production facility received approval from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to produce and manage its cultivated chicken. Meatly’s focus will be reducing costs and expanding production to achieve industrial-scale volumes within the next three years. They have created a safety dossier and conducted extensive testing to ensure the safety and healthiness of their cultivated chicken for pets, confirming no presence of bacteria, viruses, GMOs, antibiotics, harmful pathogens, heavy metals, or impurities in the product. The company plans to introduce its initial samples of cultivated chicken for pet food this year.. Original full article here

Tags: cultivated, meat, chicken, pet food

Vertical farming startup Plenty to expand via $680 mln JV with UAE's Mawarid [20 July, Reuters]

Plenty, a US vertical farming startup, is establishing a US $680 million (NZ $1.1 billion) joint venture with Mawarid, a subsidiary of Alpha Dhabi Holding, to build several indoor farms in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The collaboration sets out to build five indoor farms within the next five years. Approximately, US $130 million (NZ $219 million) will fund setting up an indoor farm in Abu Dhabi, aiming to produce over 4.5 million pounds (2 million kilograms) of strawberries each year for local consumption and exports. While indoor farming startups were initially heavily funded by venture capitalists, investment from these sources has reduced (down to just a fifth of its peak in 2021), leading to debt funding for this indoor farm being raised through a local bank. Mawarid aims to enhance food security in the UAE by providing a solution for the scarcity of land and water noting there would be potential to switch to other crops when needed. Original full article here

Tags: vertical farming, indoor farm, middle east, food solution

Spring Sheep China access a gamechanger [18 July, Farmers Weekly]

Spring Sheep Milk Co, a New Zealand-based sheep milk company, has received approval to sell its Chinese label infant formula in retail stores throughout China. Before obtaining the approval, the company had been selling their product online helping them grow their brand and became one of the highest performing brands within its category through that online channel. The Chinese market for infant formula is valued at US $17 billion (NZ $28.7 billion), and high-end goat and sheep categories are experiencing strong growth, presenting a promising opportunity. Infant formula is mostly sold in retail stores in China, and the approval now allows Spring Sheep Milk Co to enter a new channel. Distribution partner, Neptunus Foods, will distribute the products in premium baby product stores. Original full article here

Tags: sheep milk, infant formula, approval