Issues facing seed industry analysed

A number of issues are facing New Zealand seed producers over the next 10 years, delegates to the International Herbage Seed Group workshop in Methven have heard.

Bede McCloy, of NZ Arable, said high yields of seed crops needed to be maintained and even improved, so that the return per hectare to seed growers remained competitive with other land uses.

That would require even smarter management techniques and the adoption of new technologies to keep New Zealand producers ahead of their competition.

The ''after harvest'' costs, which were paid for by the grower, appeared to be continually increasing, Mr McCloy said. Those included seed certification and dressing charges, which were often a direct result of increases in compliance costs.

He told delegates it would become more difficult to maintain varietal purity due to a more frequent changing of cultivars as a result of market requirements.

''The traditional use of livestock to control vegetative growth in seed crops is decreasing due to the shift away from suitable livestock types in the production areas and the requirement for later grazing in the late flowering type of ryegrass,'' Mr McCloy said.

A major issue would be the loss of certain herbicides, and with the heavy reliance on glyphosate for grass weed control, potentially resistant types were just around the corner. Increases in cultivation and new cultural practices would need to be developed.

Mr McCloy questioned what techniques were needed to reduce an average seed loss at harvest of 12%.

Some other limitations had also been identified, such as a lack of young/new personnel in the industry and how to maintain profitability, Mr McCloy said.

He told the workshop that New Zealand seed producers were part of an arable sector which produced gains and seeds on about 2000 properties of almost 200,000 hectares.

About 500 properties, mainly in Canterbury, grew the majority of the crops, apart from maize, which was predominantly grown in the North Island.

Mr McCloy said the New Zealand arable industry had a farm gate value of approximately $500 million. Seed exports hit a record $168 million for the 2012 year and were made up of grass and clover seeds, seed and dry peas, forage brassica seed, specialist vegetable seed and various oilseeds.

About 50% of the production was grown under certification and 80% of the grasses and clover grown for seed were exported.

- by Maureen Bishop 

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