Disappointment at Save The Farms campaign

NATURAL DAIRY (NZ) HOLDINGS LTD

MEDIA STATEMENT
23 AUGUST 201O

While Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings Ltd welcomes the chance to debate the considerable value to New Zealand of its proposed investment in this country’s dairy industry, the company is disappointed in the recently launched Save The Farms campaign.

The group proposes what is effectively a closed door policy to any overseas investor who wants to invest in New Zealand farming. This would spell disaster for the economy, reduce export earnings, cost jobs and lead to the pastoral industry stagnating.

In the case of Natural Dairy’s plans to purchase the 16 Crafar farms, if the Save the Farms proposed “moratorium” prevented it occurring, New Zealand would miss out on substantial benefits.

It is worth remembering these facts, the Natural Dairy project involves:
• Just 8615 ha of dairy farmland out of a total of 1,519,117 ha in New Zealand. (and only a small fraction of the 180,000 hectares of NZ land already approved and sold to foreigners in the last 5 years
• Only 25,000 dairy cattle out of a national herd of more than 5,800,000 cows.
• More than 120 new jobs for New Zealanders.
• Boosting the country’s export earnings by $120,000,000 or more annually, once in full production.
• Providing an annual $5,000,000 fund for new sharemilkers to borrow funds from so that New Zealand can attract, train and retain young talent into the dairy industry.
• Establishing a charitable trust aimed at improving training in the dairy sector and encouraging new technology and research.
• Paying tax in New Zealand
• Promoting “brand New Zealand” to hundreds of millions of new customers in China.

We welcome a constructive debate on the issues but one based on facts not emotion.

ENDS

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