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Government’s farm emissions plan - say goodbye small town New Zealand

Government’s farm emissions plan - say goodbye small town New Zealand The greenhouse gas reduction plan released by the government this morning will rip the guts out of small town New Zealand, putting trees where farms used to be. The plan aims to reduce sheep and beef farming in New Zealand by 20% and dairy farming by 5% to achieve the unscientific pulled-out-of-a-hat national GHG targets. This is the equivalent of the entire wine industry and half of seafood being wiped out. The government’s rehashed plan to reduce on-farm greenhouse gas emissions throws out the two and a half years of work the industry did to come up with a solution, supposedly all that time in a ‘partnership’ with government to achieve a workable solution which would not reduce food production. "This is not what we’ve got this morning. What happened to the ‘historic partnership’? "Federated Farmers is deeply unimpressed with the government’s take on the He Waka Eke Noa proposal and is concerned for our members’ futures," Federated Farmers National president and climate change spokesperson Andrew Hoggard says. "We didn’t sign up for this. It’s gut-wrenching to think we now have this proposal from government which rips the heart out of the work we did. Out of the families who farm this land. "Our plan was to keep farmers farming. Now they’ll be selling up so fast you won’t even hear the dogs barking on the back of the ute as they drive off. "Some overseas buyer can plant trees and take the carbon cash." The scariest impact from the government’s rehash of the He Waka Eke Noa proposal was that it’s own modelling showed the impact on sheep and beef farming would be as high as 20%. It also shows that world agricultural emissions would increase, not decrease, under this plan. "The government’s plan means the small towns, like Wairoa, Pahiatua, Taumaranui - pretty much the whole of the East Coast and central North Island and a good chunk of the top of the South - will be surrounded by pine trees quicker than you can say ‘ETS application’." So all the small town cafes, car yards, schools, pubs, rugby clubs, hairdressers and supermarkets can say goodbye to the small town business supported by the agriculture around them. ENDS For more information contact: Andrew Hoggard, 027 230 7363 or Leigh Catley | GM Communications, Federated Farmers Email: lcatley@fedfarm.org.nz, Mobile: +64 (0)27 241 4350

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The China market for mutton. An update.

China demand has pulled record numbers in mutton imports, particularly in the last quarter of 2017.

Overall China meat import data broken into major categories shows the sharp rise in values and volumes of mutton imports in 2017.

First a look at New Zealand. NZ annual sheep slaughter in season 2015-2016 was 3,793,597 head, down 5.6% on the previous year of 4,019,779 head. Sheep slaughter dropped a further 6.4% in 2016-2017 season (3,551,842 head). To week 12 of season 2017-2018, sheep slaughter is up 10.9% to 1,303,244 head. As week 12 is the festive season, slaughter dropped back. Against that, New Zealand has shipped record volumes of mutton to China in the last quarter of 2017 according to Agri HQ market intelligence and based on New Zealand exports stats.

Australian mutton production reached 172,201 tonnes Jan-Nov 2017, a rise of 10.6% on the same period in 2016 (155,626 tonnes). That is almost an additional 17,000 tonnes. Mutton exports to China surged in Oct-Dec 2017 with a rise of 264%; a lift in exports from 5,468 tonnes Oct-Dec 2016 to almost 20,000 tonnes Oct-Dec 2017.

In relation to China mutton imports, the data available from a Hong Kong source shows estimated 2017 annual mutton and goat meat imports of 241,000 tonnes at a value of US$849.2 million. This compares with 220,063 tonnes in 2016 calendar year at a far lower value of US$573.9 million. If these estimates are correct, China mutton and goat meat values have increased 47%. Historical data collated by MLA show annual Chinese mutton imports as follows from 2000 calendar year.

China has resumed its demand for mutton after imports eased for two years 2015,2016. However the exponential growth in import values in 2017 augers well for demand.

If we look at China mutton retail and wholesale prices, we see mutton retail prices have increased from 60.7 Yuan per kg in September to 64.98 Y per kg in December 2017. In wholesale prices, September 2017 reported mutton at 47.92 Y per kg and this increased to 52.80 Y per kg in December 2017, a lift of 10%.