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Fonterra Cooperative Group chief executive Theo Spierings said he’s determined not to allow the dairy cooperative to fall below its current 87 percent share of the New Zealand milk pool, despite increased competition for supply. Spierings fronted up to the media this morning after widespread criticism of the dairy cooperative’s management performance following a weak half-year financial result, lower forecast dairy …

NBR Rich Lister Diane Foreman’s Emerald Group has sold its ice-cream manufacturing subsidiary to a foreign collective for an undisclosed sum. Hong Kong-based Emerald Foods Group (HK) bought 100 percent of the shares in Foreman’s Emerald Foods subsidiary on June 3, according to Companies Office filings, completing an acquisition that had been approved by the Overseas Investment Office in April. The …

Increased milk production and a higher forecast payout to dairy farmers for the upcoming season should bolster the New Zealand economy by $1.8 billion, according to AgriHQ. The AgriHQ NZ milk production predictor forecasts growth of about 2.5 percent to 1,930 million kilograms of milk solids for the 2015/16 season, following 3 percent growth in the 2014/15 season. The expectation …

The New Zealand government is still pushing for a shared trans-Tasman tax scheme recognising imputation credits on dividends, which it says is the single biggest step to a closer economic relationship, but is willing to give Australia time to bring it in. In a submission to Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s white paper on tax reform, the New Zealand government resumed its …

Fonterra Cooperative Group, the world’s largest dairy exporter, said it will be laying off hundreds of its 1,500 head office and support function staff in a major reshape of the business following the global decline in dairy prices. Chief executive Theo Spierings has fronted up to media today about the restructure following widespread criticism over the dairy cooperative’s management performance at a …

 Danone Nutricia, the French-owned infant formula maker, has reported a full-year loss it attributes to ongoing fallout from the Fonterra Cooperative Group’s botulism scare in 2013. The New Zealand subsidiary of the French food giant posted a loss of $1.19 million for calendar 2014, compared to a profit of $1.99 million a year earlier. Danone Nutricia ended its supply contract with …

The uncertain future of the dairy industry, seen as a bellwether for New Zealand’s primary sector and wider economy, is concerning many sector leaders, according to KPMG’s sixth Agribusiness Agenda survey. KPMG global head of agribusiness Ian Proudfoot said conversations about dairy have changed dramatically from a year ago when milk prices were at an all-time high and people thought price-setting on …

Fonterra Cooperative Group won’t confirm consulting firm McKinsey & Co is participating in a review of management performance at the world’s largest dairy exporter, even though its shareholders’ council has praised the appointment. The review was referred to obliquely in April as part of an announcement that Fonterra management team member Jacqueline Chow was being appointed to a new role – …

Murray McCully’s controversial $10 million deal to buy off an aggrieved Saudi Arabian investor and his Government and remove a block to a free-trade deal bypassed the normal Government control channels. It’s arguable that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Mfat) has simply been used as a slush fund. But it’s more complex than that. A close look at the …

Murray McCully’s controversial $10 million deal to buyoff an aggrieved Saudi Arabian investor and his Government and remove a block to a free trade deal bypassed the normal Government channels. It’s arguable that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Mfat) has simply been used as a slush fund. But it’s more complex than that. A close look at the …