Report Highlights Dairy Importance

Dairy giant Fonterra says the valuable contribution dairying makes to the New Zealand economy has been highlighted in a report that shows it accounts for a quarter of the country’s export earnings. The report, was prepared by Statistics NZ for Fonterra.

Fonterra chairman Henry van der Heyden said the figures for the year to May 2008 confirmed dairying and our dairy farmers as a true cornerstone of our economy. “While there’s an obvious contribution to our export receipts and the trade balance, the real benefits here are the contribution from dairying that starts on the farms of our shareholders and flows through local communities and the regions, and our cities.”

In the latest figures, dairying’s contribution has risen by more than three percent to 27 percent of New Zealand’s export revenues, and Fonterra’s contribution alone is 25 percent.

“Clearly much of this increase has been driven by record high commodity prices. If we hadn’t had the drought, which saw our milk production drop by around four percent, the figure could have been even higher.”

Mr van der Heyden said the dairying business touches every corner of New Zealand with direct employment and many thousands more jobs, and economic activity. Everything from professional services, consultancy and construction work, through to transport, technology and research, he said.

“At a time of slowing economic growth nationally, confidence has never been stronger in dairying, with a record payout to farmers in 2007/08 and a strong start to the new season”

(c) 2008 Evening Standard; Palmerston North, New Zealand. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.