NZ dollar falls as greenback rebounds from sell-off
,h3>NZ dollar falls as greenback rebounds from
sell-off
Fonterra Cooperative Group shareholders
have re-elected chairman John Wilson to the board despite
speculation there has been a campaign to remove him from
office after he and the dairy giant came in for criticism by
its farmer suppliers who’re struggling with low milk
prices.
Incumbents Wilson and Nicola Shadbolt have been
re-elected to the board while Blue Read was voted out in
favour of newcomer Te Awamutu farmer Ashley Waugh.
Wilson
said the result, which saw him re-elected with an increased
share of the vote from last year, was humbling.
“We all
know it’s very tight on the farm with low dairy prices at
the moment and it’s very humbling to have received such
strong support,” he said.
He wouldn’t comment on
whether there had been a campaign to see him removed and he
also refused comment on a proposal that will be voted on at
this Wednesday annual meeting in Waitao to reduce the board
by four members to nine.
Since farmers expressed
disappointment with the first-half result, the company’s
earnings improved for the full year and Wilson said last
week that the Auckland-based cooperative was on track to
achieve record earnings before interest and tax in the 2016
financial year. It raised its forecast available payout
range for this season by 5c to a range of 35c to 40c though
the farmgate milk price of $4.60kg/MS may still be under
threat as milk prices have continued to decline at the
GlobalDairyTrade auctions.
While welcoming Waugh to the
board, Wilson said it was a shame to see Read voted off
after three years on the board because he had made a
“huge” contribution during that time, and in his
previous leadership roles within the cooperative.
“When
you’ve got strong board candidates and other candidates
standing it’s very common in the cooperative over time to
get change as has happened this time,” he said.
Waugh
is an experienced company director and is currently chair of
Moa Group and a director of Seeka Kiwifruit and
Australian-based The Heat Group.
The other two
unsuccessful candidates were Greg Maughan from Marton and
Murray Beach from Marlborough who at last year’s agm lost
a motion that all Fonterra investment spending and New
Zealand development projects be put on hold until farmer
payouts hit a minimum of $7 per kilogram of milk solids.
Returning Officer Warwick Lampp has posted the results
of elections for the Fonterra board of directors, the
directors’ remuneration committee and Shareholder’s
Council on the NSX but refused to reveal voter numbers which
he said were only supplied to shareholders.
The voter
turnout for the elections was significantly up on last year
which Wilson said reflected the efforts of the
Shareholders’ Council in the regions and farmers wanting
to have a say on the running of the cooperative.
Newly
elected Shareholders’ Councillors Andrew Hardie and Sue
Brown will join incumbents Wilson James and Kevin Turnbull
on the council.
Shareholders’ Council chairman Duncan
Coull said 65 percent of farms, representing 73 percent of
milksolids cast their votes. He said it was great to see
shareholders, as owners of Fonterra, come out in numbers to
decide the direction in which the cooperative will travel.
“My view is that the healt of our co-op is dependent
on our shareholders and their willingness to participate in
the decision-making processes and based on the participation
rates in this election, I would suggest that our co-op is in
very good shape,” Coull said.
All successful
candidates will take office at the close of the company’s
annual
meeting.