Neal Wallace

Job losses are possible at Port Otago as the company restructures in the face of an expected 42,550 fewer container movements in the coming year, and a likely $4 million loss in revenue.

Farmer shareholders will have to invest in Fonterra now the dairy co-operative has announced it will not be publicly listing any part of the company, a farming leader warns.

New Zealand Merino is willing to take a lead role to unite the fragmented strong wool industry.

As some of our biggest agricultural co-operatives review their capital structure, the common cry from farmer shareholders has been to retain farmer ownership. But as Agribusiness Editor Neal Wallace reports, this may not be realistic given the effects of earlier decisions.

After the 2007-08 drought, Fonterra paid out $600 million in net equity to its shareholders, showing just how vulnerable the dairy co-operative's model was to production fluctuations.

Fonterra has abandoned plans for an international launch of its branded products, opting instead to focus on selling ingredients and services to food companies which otherwise would have been its competitors.

Meat processor Silver Fern Farms has a central role in a new Angus beef burger range being launched by fast food giant McDonald's.

Sheep farmers have effectively walked away from the wool industry, voting to no longer pay a levy on the product which 60 years ago was New Zealand's largest export earner.

The United States dairy industry may shrink by more than 20,000 farmers in coming years due to low milk returns, prompting an American dairy leader to speculate the industry could also undergo major reforms.