Climate change, regulation overload feeding a backdrop of anxiety for rural sector
Anxiety about the future of farming and agribusiness has emerged as an over-arching feature of consultancy firm KPMGs latest deep dive into the thinking of primary sector leaders, its Agribusiness Agenda 23 report. The significant levels of anxiety in the sector were driven by various issues, including changing perceptions of climate change following recent extreme weather events, and the prospect of increasing regulation impacting farmers and agribusinesses, the report found. KPMG global head of agribusiness Ian Proudfoot said anxiety permeated the discussions which underpinned Agenda 23, with established and future sector leaders; with particular concerns expressed about the speed of change, climate disruptions, costs of operation, and new and unconfirmed regulations. Leaders believe that there is significant anxiety about what the future holds across the sector and concern whether the sector and their organisations had the resources, capabilities and skills to respond to what lies ahead, Proudfoot said. Sector leaders felt that politicians did not provide enough certainty. The study surveyed leaders across a wide range of issues to gauge the sentiment and current thinking on these. While the level of anxiety and questions about the industrys resilience and preparedness to cope in an age of climate change was a notable feature of this years responses, there was also recognition of the massive opportunities in front of Aotearoas food and fibre sector. A critical challenge for the industrys leaders was to provide and connect farmers and growers to hope. ... there is a deep sense that people are struggling to connect to what that future looks like, and there is a need for a boost of hope and energy to move forward, Proudfoot said. The disconnect between the industrys ambition and opportunity, and the lack of pathways to achieve these, was reflected across a range of major themes. The industry has plenty of ambition to step into the future. There is a desire to plug into vibrant innovation systems, have certainty over the regulatory framework and have confidence that the necessary investment will be made into infrastructure that will enable them to realise their ambitions, Proudfoot said. What became very apparent during those three weeks of summer that saw the Auckland floods, Cyclone Gabrielle and a significant drought in the South Island was that our food and fibre production systems are not as resilient as they need to be if we are to live and operate in a world where destructive climate events become the norm. Amongst the 161 agriculture business leaders that KPMG interviewed, world-class biosecurity and signing high-quality trade agreements again ranked as their top two overall priorities, but the rest of the top 10 looked different from previous years. The need for careful and objective assessment of tree planting programmes, particularly plantations with the primary purpose of permanent carbon sequestration, was the highest of the new entries. The debate on gene editing was in the top 10 priorities for the first time this year, after it had been in the background for many years, the agenda said. Concerns have grown that failing to have the debate puts the industry at risk of irreversibly falling behind competitors. The industry was showing a determination to address that debate and to act on its outcomes whether politicians are with us or not. Another issue that stood out for its increase in priority amongst leaders was feeding the 5 million farmers providing food security for New Zealand ahead of export markets. Weve seen a rise in the priority of feeding our 5 million first. It is increasingly seen as critically important as it goes directly to the sectors operating licence, Proudfoot said. It is a clear equity issue that the sector can play an important role in addressing. I regularly argue that there is no more honourable role than growing food for people. However, when this purpose gets consumed in the anxiety and argument surrounding change, it can be easy to forget the bigger picture and lose the energy that fulfilling such a critical role can and should give to an individuals mana.