27 January 2000 PR03/2000
Farmers Investing Kiwi Bonus Share Payout On-Farm
Federated Farmers Sharemilkers' Section Chairperson Michael Pallesen said he is pleased that dairy farm owners are
choosing to invest their Kiwi Bonus Share issue payment in farm development, or passing a portion onto their
sharemilker.
"Many farmers seem to be putting this money back into farm development. There has been a rush of activity on many farms
within the Kiwi supply area as farmers spend on capital development to improve on-farm productivity. This is a win-win
situation. Both the farm owner and the sharemilker stand to benefit from this type of investment," commented Mr
Pallesen.
Mr Pallesen said that it was also very encouraging to hear that some dairy farm owners are choosing to pass on a portion
of the bonus issue to their sharemilker.
"This is great to see. The dairy farmers who are choosing to pass on some of their payment are doing this for a variety
of reasons. It is clear, however, that some farmers want to compensate their sharemilker for a projected lower payout
from Kiwi because of Kiwi's merger with Northland Dairy Company late last year. This reduction in payout will effect
sharemilkers as well as farm owners," Mr Pallesen concluded.
ENDS