A 24-year-old New Zealand sheep’s milk business manager has won this year’s Zanda Macdonald Award.
The award, a significant badge of honour in the agribusiness industry, recognises agriculture's most innovative young professionals in Australia and NZ.
Thomas Macdonald from the Waikato-based Spring Sheep Milk Company, was named at this week’s annual Platinum Primary Producers (PPP) Group conference.
The a network involves more than 150 influential agribusiness men and women.
One of its founding members was Queensland beef industry leader, Zanda McDonald, who died aged 41 in 2013, and in whose memory the award has been named.
Thomas Macdonald was one of six candidates originally nominated and three finalists, including fellow kiwi and vice chairman of the Franklin Young Farmers Club, Lisa Kendall, and Janet Reddan 33, an agronomist turned cattle producer from Roma, Queensland.
Mr Macdonald’s $50,000 prize package includes a trans-Tasman mentoring trip to farming operations and businesses, a place on a Rabobank's Business Management Program and $1000 cash.
“Thomas is a remarkable young man. To have achieved as much as he has in 24 years is quite something, and a great credit to him,” said award chairman Richard Rains.
TPG sells down Inghams stake
Inghams Group’s majority shareholder, the private equity giant TPG, has offloaded about 14.5 per cent of its $680 million stake in the feed milling and chicken production, processing and marketing business.
The block trade of 55m shares, worth about $200m, was picked up by sole underwriter of the purchase, CitiGroup Global Markets Australia.
TPG has owned 47 per cent of Inghams' since the company was floated by the private equity company in 2016.
It orignially acquired Inghams from its Sydney-based founding family in 2013.
TPG is expected to retain at least a 25pc, ensuring it continues to have a seat at the table should a trade buyer consider investing in the company.
Segal joins Rabo boards
Financial services company director and past deputy chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Jillian Segal, has joined Rabobank’s Australia and New Zealand Group boards.
Ms Segal’s extensive board experience across the private and public sectors, coupled with a background in governance and law, made her an “ideal fit”, said Australian and NZ chairman, Sir Henry van der Heyden.
“She is one of Australia’s most accomplished and highly-regarded directors, and sought after for her expertise in business, governance, banking, financial regulation and education.”
She fills a board vacancy left by retiring former Rabobank Australian chairman, Bill Gurry, who served on the Australian and New Zealand boards from 2005.
Ms Segal chairs the General Sir John Monash Foundation and the Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce (NSW), is deputy chancellor of UNSW Australia and on boards of Garvan Institute of Medical Research, the Grattan Institute and the Sydney Opera House Trust.
Here financial career has included past directorships on National Australia Bank and the Australian Securities Exchange and chairing the Australian Banking Industry Ombudsman.
Glencore reaps less profit
Conglomerate Glencore has recorded a 25 per cent drop in profits from its agribusiness division for 2017 as big harvest volumes, low prices and lack of market volatility continue to weigh on global grain commodities giants.
However, thanks largely to sales from bumper Australian and Russian grains harvests in 2016-17, the company’s $500 million ($US384) profit last year was considered a resilient performance compared to many of its grain sector rivals.
The profit fall included a higher depreciation charge, which meant adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) actually lifted 7pc to about $822m.
“This was an overall satisfactory result, given the general industry margin pressures, following a succession of global bumper crops,” said Glencore, which jointly owns Glencore Agri wiith two Canadian pension funds.
Last month Bunge posted a 48pc drop in its adjusted operating result to $752m.
While Glencore’s Viterra business in Canada was stung by Indian pulse import tariffs and slow market activity late last year record exports in Australia and Russia, where Glencore has significant market share, bolstered the grain handling and marketing opportunities.
What happened to Henry?
The Australian Shareholders' Association (ASA) is calling on politicians to undertake a comprehensive overhaul of the tax system as proposed in the Ken Henry review several years ago, and stop jeopardising the planning of self-funded retirees by tweaking the taxation process.
The call followed the federal Labor Party making plans to remove the refund of surplus tax paid on company profits, or franking credits, if it wins government.
“Retirees and future retirees have structured their investments to take into account the receipt of dividends from companies that pay the tax rate in Australia, knowing that the excess tax paid will be refunded,” said ASA chief executive officer, Judith Fox.
“The proposed changes will penalise investors who prefer high dividend-paying Australian shares where the 30 per cent corporate tax has been paid already.”
"The potential for ongoing tweaking throws retirement planning into disarray.”
US Fertoz contract
Australian-listed fertiliser minnow, Fertoz, has been selected to supply organic rock phosphate to AG Unlimited, a premier agricultural retail supplier in Northern California and the organic arm of the Lyman/Tremont Group.
Fertoz is aiming at North American sales of 10,000 tonnes this year helped significantly by the two-year agreement.
The Lyman/Tremont Group has a strong focus on adding value in conventional and organic agriculture.