US eggs go cheap, cheap
Lacklustre demand and big price cuts are hurting US egg producers still trying to recover from the worst avian influenza outbreak in North American history.
Poultry farms in the US have rebuilt hen and egg production supplies, but customers are not so keen to buy.
Egg prices are at 10-year lows in America, adding to profitability stresses caused during the bird flu outbreak two years ago.
The outbreak resulted in the culling of 34 million US layers in 2015.
The industry blames some commercial buyers and food outlets who moved to alternative products during the outbreak and have not returned.
US Midwest prices are 60 per cent below 2015 retail values, while average US prices are about half that of two years ago.
A winning $70,000 run
Ruralco managing director, Travis Dillon, has outpaced the rest of the 80,000-strong field after setting a cracking fundraising pace for Lifeline in last weekend’s City2Surf road race in Sydney.
Mr Dillon tallied up $70,600 in donation support after running the 14 kilometre race with a team of 40 agribusiness colleagues and family members from the farm merchandising and services company’s offices in Sydney and around NSW and Victoria.
He was the race event’s leading individual fundraiser, while the Ruralco Rapide team accumulated a total of almost $84,000 (fourth placed) for Lifeline Australia’s around-the-clock crisis support and suicide prevention services.
Another Ruralco team, with 55 members from the company’s Western Australia branches, will run Perth’s Chevron City2Surf, also in support of Lifeline, on August 28.
Fairfax profit nears $84m
Australian and New Zealand regional, agricultural and metropolitan publisher Fairfax Media has returned to profit after going into the red last year due to non-cash write-downs on its publishing assets.
For the year to June 30, Fairfax reported a net profit of $83.9 million, compared with a $772.6 million loss in 2015-16.
Revenue across the group was down 4.8 per cent to $1.7 billion, but underlying profit grew 7.6pc lifted to $142.6m.
"Today's result shows Fairfax is in great shape, said Fairfax managing director, Greg Hywood.
"The strategy we commenced five years ago has successfully maximised cash flows of our publishing assets and with that built growth businesses in Domain and Stan."
He said Fairfax's underlying performance, its asset mix and balance sheet strength put the company in great shape for the future.
Fairfax Media’s agricultural stable includes the leading FarmOnline website and associated state farm sector mastheads plus Australia’s biggest regional publishing network across all states and territories
Rural leadership opportunity
Applications have opened for Australia’s iconic leadership development program run by the Australian Rural Leadership (ARLP) Foundation.
“We are currently looking for leaders from rural, regional and remote Australia, who are willing to be immersed in a series of unique experiences to develop their leadership capabilities,” said foundation executive director, Matt Linnegar.
The course will take more than 30 people from different backgrounds, industries and communities on a challenging 15-month program over five sessions, in Australia and Indonesia.
“Generous sponsors provide scholarships of $55,000 for leaders from different industries to undertake this life-changing program,” Mr Linnegar said.
Scholarships are available for individuals involved in primary industries, agribusiness, the arts, policy and advocacy, health, economic development and the environment.”
Applications for the July 2018 to October 2019 program are open until September 30.
- For more information visit rural-leaders.org.au
Dairy Australia deputy
Peak dairy industry services body, Dairy Australia, has appointed Jeff Odgers as deputy chairman until its November annual general meeting.
Mr Odgers, also a Bega Cheese director, owns a dairy farming business near Shepparton, Victoria, milking 700 cows.
He has broad experience in managing large scale farm enterprises in northern Victoria and Tasmania.
He was first elected to the board in 2013 and served as a member of Dairy Australia’s human resources committee from November 2013 to November 2015, and became a member of the audit and risk management committee in 2015.