NZ Dairy Sector: Organic boom behind push for organic dairy farmers
February 1st, 2010
Good news for North island dairy farmers. Taranaki based The Organic Dairy Co-operative wants to more than double its supplier base as it struggles to cope with booming offshore demand, opening up the possibility of more dairy farmers tapping into this high value niche market. CEO Patrick Geals says the co-op is looking for up to 20 additional suppliers for 2010 from Manawatu, Wanganui, Taranaki, Bay of Plenty and Waikato. The co-op has 25 suppliers at present. “Farmers don’t need to already be organic, just willing to give it a go.” Geals claims the venture is proving an instant success, despite the plant only being commissioned about three months ago “…there has been big international demand for organics. For example, the US has been growing at 20% per annum, and last year was still growing at 12% despite the recession.”
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