5 minutes with Dave Maslen

General Manager Markets and Sustainability - The New Zealand Merino Company

What is your background and how did your involvement with The New Zealand Merino Company (NZM) come about?

After studying Natural Resource Management and Forestry at Massey University, I spent 6 years working in regional councils in the Waikato and Canterbury. I was particularly interested in supporting farmers in achieving positive environmental and social outcomes within their businesses, so when the opportunity at NZM came up, I leapt at it. I recognised NZM was a leader in connecting growers to markets and supporting long-term positive outcomes through market incentivisation.

What has been the biggest challenge for you since coming on board?

Keeping up with the rapid increase in awareness and expectation with regard to social licence to operate. It’s essential that we balance the values and requests of our markets with pragmatism on-farm. Equally it’s essential that we listen and react to these consumer messages, in order for us to remain in step and relevant.

What do you think the biggest drawcard for NZM products are?

Brands work with NZM because they value authentic and deep relationships. They want to be connected to the growers who supply their wool and to partner with them long-term. They are also seeking confidence that the wool will meet their consumers expectations with regard to animal welfare, environmental integrity, social responsibility and fibre quality. Our ZQ programme provides this confidence. They also work with us because we are able to offer forward contracts that provide visibility, price stability and certainty with regard to quality, season after season.

What are some of the challenges facing the New Zealand merino industry in the current landscape?

We’re seeing a lot of regulatory and consumer/social license to operate pressure being applied to growers, both domestically and internationally from a market access and consumerexpectation expectation perspective. This makes our certification programme ZQ and notably our newly launched

Over and above supplying the world’s best wool, this means providing leadership, advocacy and collaboration around innovation.”

ZQRX regenerative programme so important, to ensure our growers remain ahead of the legislative curve and extract market rewards by being able to deliver to consumer's increasing expectations. The current price of strong wool also presents a significant challenge. A core focus of NZM is working with our global markets to demonstrate the exceptional work our grower suppliers do and leverage this to achieve long-term contracts at premiums to the volatile commodity market.

Which international market has seen the most rapid increase in demand over the last 5 years and what is driving this in your view?

A large portion of our market is North America and this is only continuing to grow. We also have strong demand in Asia and Scandinavia. Perhaps more interesting is demand by market sector and sales channel. We have seen strong demand within the active outdoor markets as people are really starting to rediscover their backyards and perhaps now starting to move toward more relaxed attire, as a result of working from home. Correspondingly, we have seen more formal and luxury markets suffering. We’ve also seen a really significant shift to ecommerce and digital platforms, with sales being up across nearly all markets in this regard.

How is NZM contributing to the messages New Zealand is telling the world about our produce?

We work with our brand partners and with other leaders across the sector, to ensure the product and message we

are selling positions New Zealand in the premium space globally. This means a focus on value over volume, environmental sustainability (and now regeneration), animal welfare and social responsibility. Over and above supplying the world’s best wool, this means providing leadership, advocacy and collaboration around innovation and continued disruption of the status quo.

What is NZM doing in terms of sustainability initiatives, any future goals or target in this regard?

We have just launched ZQRX, the world’s first fully regenerative wool supply platform that celebrates and acknowledges all that our growers are doing to deeply understand the complex interactions between their livestock, soil, climate, ecology and community, while helping to set goals for the future. Continuing to on board our growers to this programme is a key priority for us. This helps ensure our products keep up with the growing market demand for regenerative products.

I recognised NZM was a leader in connecting growers to markets.”

Has NZM and your growers felt the impact of falling wool prices, or is premium merino holding strong?

We have been through a hugely volatile 12 months, with customers and brands experiencing an extraordinary amount of uncertainty and supply chain disruption. Despite this and as a result of the deep and long-term relationships that we have forged between growers and brands, all our brand partners have honoured their contracts. COVID-19 has been tough for everyone and we’re in awe of the resilience and grit shown by our growers and brand partners alike. We continue to actively pursue new business, write new contracts and bring on board new brands in both merino and strong wool, despite all that COVID-19 and 2020 threw (and continues to throw) at us.

What advice would you give Kiwis producing other premium farm products that might help them reach their sustainability targets?

Be very attuned to your markets, listen to them and customise your offerings specifically to delight them.

For farmers and growers wanting to produce wool for NZM, where do they start?

With a conversation. We work with merino wool, mid-micron and strong wool farms and would love to talk to growers who share a similar passion and vision for wool and its place in the market. Please get in touch with any of the NZM team and we can connect you to your local area manager.

What is the biggest barrier for NZ farm produce exporters that may be holding them back from making the shift to sustainable practices?

Recognition from the market and reflection of this in pricing and market access represents a high opportunity to drive change. When a grower is disconnected from their market or selling via commodity routes these signals and ability for recognition are lost.

What is coming up for NZM in the events and knowledge sharing space?

Usually we would have just come back from a busy season on the winter shows in Europe and the USA, but this year is a bit different! Keep an eye out on our Instagram pages (@nzmerinoco and @discoverzq) to stay in the loop on latest news and events. You will also be seeing a lot more about ZQRX in the media over coming months as our growers and markets lean into this programme. We have a full roster of grower events on during the year, just reach out to your area manager for more information on what we might have coming up.