NZ Grain and Seed Trade Assn Inc AGM and Conference

Wednesday 22 November 2006

Good evening and welcome to Christchurch, the Garden City, and Canterbury, the arable crop capital of New Zealand. Canterbury is proud of its world class grain and vegetable growers. Your high value use of the land provides millions of dollars in exports to our economy every year.

My congratulations to those of you involved in bringing the International Seed Federation Congress to Christchurch in 2007. This is great news. I understand that Christchurch City Council gave some seed funding for this event which will bring 800 to 1000 visitors to Christchurch.

We need to be sending the message to the world that New Zealand is a very efficient producer of agricultural products. International events that bring industry leaders to our soil is one way of getting this message out. Your industry is high tech, and efficient and your products are of a high quality and not subsidised. This is a great message to be sending to the northern hemisphere.

We can’t ignore the messages of people like Al Gore and the Stern Review. The Government has suddenly put the issue of climate change to the top of the political agenda. Global warming and air miles are two topics that will not go away.

It’s up to all of us, citizens, farmers, business and government, to meet the challenge of climate change and find workable solutions. Each and everyone of us has a part to play in meeting the challenge ahead in preserving and healing our environment.

For Canterbury, one of our biggest challenges is water. There are a number of irrigation schemes being investigated at the moment. Irrigation provides farmers with certainty and enables them to grow a wide variety of produce reaching high value markets. Irrigation must be sustainable, farmers can’t just keep on digging ever deeper wells. Water storage and the distribution of water through surface water channels is one way forward.

Christchurch enjoys the best water in the world through its artesian water supply and the Council is committed to making sure it remains that way.

Canterbury’s economy was built on primary products. The proverbial, living off the sheep’s back. Today arable farming is proving its worth with businesses like the Darfield Seed Cleaning Company leading the way. We now have a diversified regional economy with growth across a range of “new economy sectors”, our biggest businesses remain agriculture based.

Christchurch has a great hi tech sector which the farming sector should be tapping into for ideas to improve farming efficiency.

Ours is a trading city, an outward facing city, based on real trade. The Canterbury economy is the one the economists all watch because we are the first to show any signs of impacts from the global economy.

Our efficient agricultural sector has kept Canterbury prosperous. It has given us our best event, NZ Cup and Show Week.

Politically and economically, we are in a time of huge global change. Technological change and the political and economic changes as the world centre of power shifts to China and India.

I have been to China on a number of occasions and as a city we are strengthening ties with Wuhan China. Last time I went I took Paul Tocher from Crop and Food along. The Canterbury Jockey Club has entered into a sister club relationship with the Wuhan Jockey Club. It is from exchanges like those that come from city to city relationships and your contacts with International Seed organisations that we can facilitate our trading opportunities and continue to prosper.

My best wishes for your deliberations on the International Seed Conference. Thank you for inviting me today.

ENDS