January 2014
VIEWPOINT
with John Barnes, Managing Director – January 2014
Welcome to another year!
I have to say not much has changed… Fonterra is grabbing the headlines for all the wrong reasons. It would be helpful for our long-term future if there was some good news on the manufacturing front instead of what appears to be a steady flow of negative stuff. At least the pay-out dairy farmers are getting this year is pleasing and will lead to some much needed spending in the agricultural sector.
Environmental issues are certainly alive and being discussed within farming circles. I have been receiving a massive number of phone calls since the new year asking about our products, especially phosphate.
It wasn’t on my mind to bring the subject up in this issue, but I do feel the need to comment on Fertilizer New Zealand’s point of difference. Most fertiliser companies have some form of long term phosphate which is sold to farmers; if… they ask for it and if… they cannot be sold something else. Our approach is different. We provide our clients with phosphates which have been proven to work in New Zealand conditions which will not leach into the environment and will be sustainable in all aspects. MAF trial work proved that conclusively. The one aspect that the RPR versus Super trial didn’t consider was the difference in animal health. We suspect that such a comparison would result in RPR proving to be better for stock health, however this trial work will have to wait for another day.
The various local bodies will soon be demanding a shift as they are being expected to stay within guidelines set by central Government on water control. The media is saying that farmers will lose production by complying with these new regulations but in my experience this is not necessarily the case. Quite frankly New Zealand farming has become a lot less profitable in recent years as on-farm costs have risen and it is time for a change. This is the reason Fertilizer New Zealand has worked so hard over the last ten years to come up with workable solutions that take farming into a whole new profitable direction. The farmers who run with our programmes are experiencing lower costs and better production.
Our range of sustained release phosphates are not acid treated and yet still work at the same speed as the acid phosphate products. At least 35% is available immediately with the rest being made available to the plant over the following months. We develop fertiliser programmes to suit individual farm types and it is possible to have a programme for every farming operation with gains in production and within present budgets.
This summer has been wetter and cooler for most of New Zealand which has made for a good start to 2014. Sales for January have been ahead of what we would normally expect. We will be at the Southern Field Days at Waimumu in February and look forward to seeing you there. Our site number is 113. Call in and say gidday!