Field Notes Issue 745

In Aotearoa…

New Zealand and India have launched negotiations for a Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. The plans were announced ahead of a bilateral meeting between the prime ministers of both nations, and follows 15 months of relationship building between their respective governments.

Zespri International Limited’s first charter shipment of the 2025 New Zealand kiwifruit season has departed from Tauranga for Shanghai, carrying Zespri SunGold and RubyRed kiwifruit. This season is expected to be New Zealand’s largest crop to date, with 200 million trays to be shipped to over 50 markets worldwide.

The Foundation for Arable Research and Eat New Zealand will launch a certification mark for New Zealand-grown grains. The certification would allow a logo to be used on packaging of products using verified locally-sourced grains, to drive consumer awareness and increase usage.

In international news...

In the United States, hundreds of meat processing plants may face potential export disruptions to China as their access granted under a 2020 trade agreement nears expiration. The U.S. Meat Export Federation estimates the impact could total US $4.13 billion (NZ $7.15 billion) for beef and US $1.3 billion (NZ $2.25 billion) for pork if the approvals remain unconfirmed, amid strained trade relations with China.

Brazil has reduced import tax tariffs to zero on 11 food staples, including beef, coffee, corn, and olive oil, to tackle rising food price inflation. The measures, effective from March 14, aim to increase the supply of these products in their domestic market, protect low-income families, and inhibit further price increases.

In the United Kingdom, dairy calf registrations declined by nearly 13% in Q4 2024, marking the lowest figure ever recorded for this period, with a total of 314,000 head. Annual registrations for 2024 saw a 2.4% decline, highlighting a shift toward block calving systems and could potentially impact future milk output in the longer term.

In the European Union, member states have agreed to ease restrictions on some gene-edited crops. The proposal distinguishes between NGT 1 plants (considered equivalent to naturally occurring varieties, would be free from GMO regulations) and NGT 2 plants (which will remain mostly under GMO restrictions). Final legislation will now be negotiated with the European Parliament, with contentious issues expected to be labelling and patenting.

Agri-Tech and Future Food Tech Summit [19 March, LinkedIn]

Ian Proudfoot, KPMG’s Global Head of Agribusiness, attended the World Agri-Tech and Future Food Tech summits in San Francisco last week. He has shared his key insights from the conferences. There were seven dominant themes he identified in the discussions, and one topic that was unexpectedly not talked about. While AI’s transformative opportunities, and challenges, across the agri-food system were unsurprisingly dominant; a topic that Ian hadn’t previously spent much time thinking about was the disruptive impact that GLP1 weight loss drugs (Ozempic-style drugs) present to the future of food systems. Read more of his insights and takeaways from the conferences here: Original full article here

Tags: Future Food and Agri Tech, San Francisco, 

Wool pellets to boost gardens [13 March, Rural News]

Cosy Crops, launched by Waikato couple Kieran and Jessica White, repurposes wool from their 80ha farm to produce 100% wool pellets that serve as both fertiliser and mulch for gardeners. Cozy Crops was in response to the couple seeking a solution to declining wool prices, rising shearing costs, and an ambition to utilise all that their sheep produced. The pellets utilise lower quality wool that typically ends up in landfill. Original full article here.

Tags: wool, innovation, wool pellets, landfill

Scientist to create unique New Zealand-flavoured dried meat flake [18 March, RNZ]

Inspired by the traditional Japanese katsuobushi (dried tuna flakes), AgResearch scientist Dr Renyu Zhang, is aiming to develop a unique New Zealand dried meat flake. Dr Zhang is the winner of the Meat Industry Association's Dragon's Den competition which was set up to develop innovative ideas to advance the red meat processing industry. The winning idea would create a high-value flake from mechanically deboned meat, normally sold as a cheap by-product. Original full article here

Tags: dried meat flake, Meat Industry Association's Dragon's Den competition

Food price dip in February fuelled by fruit and veges but butter prices shoot up [14 March, NZ Herald]

According to the latest Stats NZ Selected Price Index, food prices in New Zealand fell by 0.5% in February. The February monthly decline was driven by lower prices for seasonal fresh produce, including 25.7% and 28.4% decreases for apples and broccoli prices respectively; and Valentine's Day specials, such as a 26% drop in boxed chocolate prices. Despite the monthly decrease, annual food prices were 2.4% higher than in February 2024. Original full article here.

Tags: Selected Price Index, fruit, vegetables, New Zealand

Americans go egg hunting in Europe [17 March, Euractiv]

The United States Department of Agriculture are seeking eggs from European suppliers to address increasing egg prices, which have been driven by rising bird flu cases in North America. Despite requests to suppliers and industry groups across all European nations, the response has been limited, with most European countries focused on supplying their own domestic markets. Exporting eggs from Europe to the US would also require additional processing to meet US standards, as most EU countries do not wash their eggs. Original full article here.

Tags: Eggs, US, European Union