23 June
Changing dairy – more focus on governance, profit and environment
New Zealand’s dairy sector is strongly focused on building resilience to commodity price fluctuations, sharpening
business practices and taking care of the environment, ANZ’s annual survey of the sector reveals.
ANZ’s annual Privately Owned Business Barometer surveyed 368 respondents from across the dairy industry on how their
businesses were performing, the opportunities and challenges, and how optimistic they were about the future.
“This year’s Barometer showed that while confidence in the future of the industry remains high, dairy farmers are
grappling with a range of issues,” said Graham Turley, ANZ Managing Director Commercial & Agri.
“Some are short-term, such as managing costs and cash flow in response to the downturn in commodity prices, and the
flow-on impact on revenue.
“Others are much longer term, such as where future growth will come from given the constraints on land use, and the
complex choices to be made about succession and
ownership structures into the future.”
Key findings
43% of dairy respondents saw a reduction in profit last year compared to 27% for other agri sectors
Half responding farmers compared their actual spending to budget on a monthly basis
30% of dairy businesses have boards – or similar bodies - a much higher percentage than the commercial sector as a whole
Over half of respondents are planning to invest more in pasture renewal or forage; 45% into animal genetics, and 42%
feed budgeting
Over half of dairy respondents are aware of and have a plan to manage the environmental impacts of their business
46% of respondents said environmental management was a key factor in their business decision making
Succession is an issue for 60% in dairy – more than any other agri sector except red meat
ends