Kiwis upbeat over dairy business

12 May 2000



Kiwis upbeat over dairy business

OPTIMISM is growing in the New Zealand dairy industry, which is facing a cyclical upswing, reports the Financial Times.

This follows a gradual improvement in the world diary market following the last GATT agreement.

The last round of the General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade four years ago imposed steadily reducing limits on subsidised exports from Europe and the USA.

While many New Zealand farmers regarded the outcome with cynicism as it produced no immediate result, the timetable is now starting to bite.

The New Zealand industry expects further international price rises, and growing demand from Asia.

Sales of New Zealand dairy products to China have grown five-fold in the past five years and now total NZ$250m (79m).

The New Zealand Dairy Board also has high hopes for its aerosol butter, which sells at three times the price of conventional butter

• Financial Times 12/05/2000 page 32