More proof the dairy industry is climbing out of the economic despair of two years ago has come in the form of a fresh survey.The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's latest farm monitoring report suggests dairy profitability improved strongly during th
More proof the dairy industry is climbing out of the economic despair of two years ago has come in the form of a fresh survey.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s latest farm monitoring report suggests dairy profitability improved strongly during the 2009/10 season compared with the previous year but farmer confidence remains fragile.
MAF North Island manager Phil Journeaux said farmers were buoyed by Fonterra’s strong payout forecast.
He added that any optimism was fragile because of continuing fluctuations in the dairy industry over payout and debt servicing.
“Farmers are telling us that things are looking better but they are being cautious and relatively small changes in incomes or expenses could affect their spending plans,” Mr Journeaux said.
MAF monitors 160 farms throughout New Zealand. The monitoring revealed the average farm required a milk payout of $5.63 a kilogram of milksolids to breakeven.
Fonterra’s milk price forecast for the current dairy season is about $7/kgMS.
Last month Federated Farmers released results of its latest confidence survey, which showed that the dairy farmers expected their economic prospects to improve.
