Farm direct won’t fix our food system. Could new retail entrepreneurs?

Farm direct won’t fix our food system. Could new retail entrepreneurs?
Just two food companies control around 80% share of retail food sales in NZ. (Image: Deposit Photos)
Nicola Harvey
“We need to cut a number of players from the supply chain,” says Amanda Langley, an experienced project manager who farms deer on 135 hectares in Hawkes Bay with her husband Ben Anderson. And, “we need to make it a shitload more efficient and streamline a whole lot more control back to the producer.” Amanda is just one of many New Zealand farmers developing their own direct-to-consumer product out of frustration over current returns. But the path from farm to plate is marked by regulatory and labour potholes because...

More Primary Sector

Dairy Goat Co-op chair Campbell Storey to step down
Primary Sector

Dairy Goat Co-op chair Campbell Storey to step down

He won't go until the annual meeting in September, however.

Riley Kennedy 02 May 2024
John Penno quits Synlait board as George Adams elected chair
Primary Sector

John Penno quits Synlait board as George Adams elected chair

Synlait Milk co-founder John Penno has quit the company’s board, and George Adams has taken over as chair.The debt-laden milk processor told the New Zealand stock exchange (NZX) on Wednesday that Adams, who joined the board in March as an independent director, would take over fro...

Riley Kennedy 01 May 2024
NZ startup Jooules is turning CO2 into protein
Primary Sector

NZ startup Jooules is turning CO2 into protein

Jooules’ fermentation tech aims to mitigate world hunger and climate change.

Ben Moore 01 May 2024
Restless farmers want change at the Dairy Goat Co-op
Primary Sector

Restless farmers want change at the Dairy Goat Co-op

The chief executive’s been replaced, now they want the chair to follow.

Riley Kennedy 30 Apr 2024