Meat NZ Must Try Harder

Meat NZ Must Try Harder

If Meat New Zealand wants farmers' support for proposed future activities, it must provide clear details on the intended use of levy funds says Ian Corney, Chairman of NZ Meat & Fibre Producers.

"Unless Meat NZ rethinks its draft proposal on levy funded activities farmers are unlikely to vote yes for a commodity levy in the referendum.

"The current draft lacks detail and its late release has meant the timeline for circulation and discussion was extremely tight. A large number of farmers have not had a chance to obtain a copy of the proposal and consider it.

"This is a crucial issue for sheep and beef farmers and Meat NZ must allow farmers time to give the proposal the deliberation it needs. An issue of this level of importance deserves an appropriate timeframe to facilitate more thorough analysis and consultation.

"Meat NZ should delay going for a vote until a clear and coherent draft has been circulated to farmers. It is vital that Meat NZ gets this right.

"While one can see the efficiencies to be gained by Meat NZ going for a vote at the same time as SheepCo, this is at the expense of detail and input from farmers. If Meat NZ wants farmers to vote yes in the referendum they are going to have to try harder," Mr Corney concluded.

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