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Extra production does not necessarily mean extra dollars. PAGE 17
Earthquaker leaves its mark.
MPI’s new boss hits the ground running PAGE 9
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TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS DECEMBER 18, 2018: ISSUE 667
www.ruralnews.co.nz
Pamu playing politics
BIG TICK SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
DAVID ANDERSON
STATE FARMER Landcorp has raised the ire of Opposition politicians and Federated Farmers over its increasingly overt political behaviour. Landcorp – now known as Pamu Farms of NZ – has peeved former agriculture ministers Nathan Guy and David Carter over a previously secret submission to the Tax Working Group (TWG) led by former finance minister Sir Michael Cullen. In its submission, the state-owned farmer advocated for both a tax on water and nitrogen fertiliser and stated that it was not opposed to a capital gains tax. Landcorp’s pro-tax submission is in stark contrast to the views of Federated Farmers and many others in the
farming sector. Guy and Carter have described the submission as ‘a kick in the guts’ for rural communities. “Landcorp’s sneaky submission to the TWG proposing a water tax, nitrogen fertiliser tax and not opposing a capital gains tax proves just how out of touch the state-owned company is with farmers on the ground,” Guy claims. The former agriculture minister has
Something special South Canterbury grower Hamish McFarlane believes there is something about the climate that makes the region ideal for growing blackcurrants. “Some of the varieties we have here are the same as grown overseas but ours would probably be double the anthocyanins. We believe it’s due to our latitude.” About 100ha of his 550ha is planted in blackcurrants. McFarlane also grows barley, seeds, potatoes and variously coloured carrots for a Timaru company that juices them for export. He also grazes a few trade lambs and dairy heifers. – See the full story in the Hort News supplement of Rural News January 15, 2019.
also questioned why Landcorp could submit to the TWG more than a month after submissions to it were closed off. He believes the state farmer has been encouraged ‘behind the scenes’ by its political masters to present a pro-tax opinion from the farming sector to the tax working group. Guy is also asking why Landcorp’s submission wasn’t publicly listed on
the TWG website until it became public through the Official Information Act. Federated Farmers Andrew Hoggard has accused Landcorp of “throwing other farmers under the bus “. Federated Farmers rejects these new tax proposals, Hoggard says. “There’s already a lot of regulations TO PAGE 4
FORMER FONTERRA director Greg Gent says the co-op has made the right decision to change its external auditor. Gent told Rural News that he gave the Fonterra board “a big tick” for the decision. The co-op announced earlier this month that it was recommending KPMG be appointed its new auditor from July 31, 2020; shareholder approval will be sought at the coop’s annual meeting in November next year. “Fonterra’s current audit agreement with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) concludes at the completion of the FY19 financial statements,” the co-op says. At the co-op’s annual meeting in south Waikato on November 8 this year, Gent opposed the resolution to re-elect PwC as auditor for another year. Gent told the meeting that he felt the relationship between PwC and Fonterra had “become too close”. He says it was time to look at new auditors. Gent also noted that several PwC executives have ended up on the Fonterra board. Farmer-elected director Brent Goldsack was a partner in PwC for more than 12 years, and appointed director Bruce Hassall had a 35-year career at PwC, including seven years as chief executive of its NZ practice. Gent says PwC has been Fonterra’s auditor since its inception. “That’s a very long time and it’s time to change the auditor.”
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