MANAGEMENT
ANIMAL HEALTH
New crops offer opportunities. PAGE 22
The importance of iodine and copper in sheep. PAGE 25
NEWS Anzco turns the ship around in 2019 PAGE 14
TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS JUNE 16, 2020: ISSUE 703
www.ruralnews.co.nz
Hogan’s Zeroes! of-quota tariff makes it difficult, if not impossible, for NZ meat companies to form commercially meaningful relationships and build a stable trade in beef to the EU. She says it’s not credible for a trading part-
PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
A PATHETIC trade offer by the European Union has raised the ire of New Zealand politicians and farmer groups, which have strongly condemned the EU’s actions. Early last week, Trade Minister David Parker revealed that the EU had leaked details of the offer to other parties before passing the information to NZ negotiators. He described both the leak and the quality of the offer as “unacceptable” and that it reflected agricultural protectionism in the EU. Parker noted that presently the EU exports to NZ the equivalent of one kilogram of cheese for every New Zealander, but in return the EU is offering to take a mere three grams of NZ cheese per EU citizen. Phil Hogan is the EU Trade Commissioner and is ultimately responsible for putting together the deal with NZ. When he was in NZ nearly 18 months ago he told Rural News that he was optimistic that a “quality” free trade agreement (FTA) between the EU and NZ could be negotiated before the end of 2019. Federated Farmers president Katie Milne described the offer as “so insulting low” that she thought they had made a mistake.
ner like the EU, which purports to be a champion of free trade, to maintain small quotas and high tariffs. Chairman of the Dairy Companies Association Malcolm Bailey launched a withering
attack on the EU Commission for the ‘offer’ saying NZ has actually got better access now so why would it want an FTA that makes us worse off. “What they are offering is taking us backwards,” he says.
Bailey says the EU was all talk about an ambitious, high quality FTA, but says the offer is anything but, calling it a slap in the face. “It’s very hard not to see it that way,” he says.
Back in action EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan.
“Thanks to this ‘leak’, we are now aware the EU intends to continue to prevent Kiwi farmers from fairly competing in the EU market, while at the same time seeking to impose absurd obligations, such as not allowing NZ farmers to call feta cheese by its generic name ‘feta’,” she says. Milne says it’s disappointing to see the EU’s trade negotiators ignore the long-shared relationship between the EU and NZ. Beef+LambNZ (B+LNZ) and the Meat Industry Association have also hit out the offer and the poor diplomacy of leaking the offer. B+LNZ’s Sam McIvor says the leaked details suggests that the EU intends to continue to promote agricultural protectionism. MIA’s Sirma Karapeeva says the small quota and high out-
The small farming settlement of Rongotea in the Manawatu was the scene, last week, for one of the first cattle sales under Level 1. Auctioneer Richard Trembath was in full flight in front of a crowd of about 50 people at NZ Farmers Livestock’s yards in the town. Gone was social distancing as people wandered around the yards before the auction eyeing up the offering of mainly dairy beef animals. Trembath says the quality of stock on sale last week was good considering the drought. Saleyards manager Malcolm Coombe says the yards were closed during level 4 but were able to open during level 3, 2. The sale yards at Rongotea, which are over 100 years old, cater mainly for dairy beef and just a few pens of sheep. The yards receive animals from the lower North Island including Whanganui, Wairarapa, Manawatu, Horowhenua and Wellington, but the majority of stock that go through the yards are from the immediate district.
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