1
00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,360
Speaker 1: Food prices have gone up three and a half percent

2
00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:04,120
Speaker 1: in the last year. This is the year to March.

3
00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:07,560
Speaker 1: We had the stats and z numbers out yesterday. Inflation

4
00:00:07,720 --> 00:00:11,720
Speaker 1: on non alcoholic beverages and grocery items are the key drivers,

5
00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:14,800
Speaker 1: butter and as we've just seen, and chocolate being the

6
00:00:14,800 --> 00:00:17,880
Speaker 1: worst offenders. Chair of Vegetables in z John Murphy with

7
00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:21,520
Speaker 1: me this morning. John, Good morning, Ran. Good to have

8
00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:25,160
Speaker 1: you on the show. So interestingly, veggies actually were among

9
00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:26,200
Speaker 1: the group coming down.

10
00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,160
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think we've certainly done our part and keeping

11
00:00:30,160 --> 00:00:35,160
Speaker 2: that inflation low, which is good for consumers. And yeah,

12
00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:37,559
Speaker 2: I would say that it actually shows that it's a

13
00:00:37,720 --> 00:00:40,680
Speaker 2: pretty tough time out there for vegetable growers at the moment,

14
00:00:40,760 --> 00:00:42,640
Speaker 2: so we do have to keep an eye on that

15
00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:43,120
Speaker 2: for sure.

16
00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:44,480
Speaker 1: What's tough at the moment.

17
00:00:46,680 --> 00:00:51,239
Speaker 2: Look, I think the key thing there is consenting, a

18
00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:55,080
Speaker 2: lack of consistent consenting around various regions in New Zealand,

19
00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:57,920
Speaker 2: and that's really the thing that could have an effect.

20
00:00:58,440 --> 00:01:00,760
Speaker 2: The other way in these figures is to the future.

21
00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:06,120
Speaker 2: So we're working pretty hard to make sure that fresh,

22
00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:09,399
Speaker 2: healthy food is prioritized in the RIMA reforms that are

23
00:01:09,480 --> 00:01:12,920
Speaker 2: going on at the moment. We think that's really essential

24
00:01:13,080 --> 00:01:14,840
Speaker 2: so that we don't see a spike the other way

25
00:01:14,880 --> 00:01:15,480
Speaker 2: in the future.

26
00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:18,480
Speaker 1: Okay, let's put that to a side for one second.

27
00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:21,240
Speaker 1: But well, do you think we'll see these numbers keep

28
00:01:21,400 --> 00:01:23,399
Speaker 1: falling or will they stabilize? Here?

29
00:01:23,440 --> 00:01:27,520
Speaker 2: What happens for vegetables, they can't fall any further, To

30
00:01:27,560 --> 00:01:30,520
Speaker 2: be honest, I think we're at a point where we've

31
00:01:30,560 --> 00:01:33,600
Speaker 2: got really abundant supplies of fresh vegetables, and I would

32
00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:36,280
Speaker 2: say there's some really good buying it there at the moments.

33
00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:39,520
Speaker 2: Of course we're hoping people get out and for their trolleys,

34
00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:42,520
Speaker 2: But no, I don't see them coming down any further

35
00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:46,800
Speaker 2: for vegetables, that's for sure, and not going up. Look,

36
00:01:46,920 --> 00:01:51,360
Speaker 2: I think they could well go up, and particular, you

37
00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:55,400
Speaker 2: see the likes of a cyclone that's approaching that where

38
00:01:55,440 --> 00:01:59,120
Speaker 2: we see big spikes, and when we saw Gabrielle. It

39
00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:03,800
Speaker 2: seems like it's a distant past now, but we saw

40
00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:07,400
Speaker 2: fresh cut greens production go down by that fifteen percent

41
00:02:08,240 --> 00:02:11,480
Speaker 2: with that horrendous event. Now fifteen percent doesn't sound a lot,

42
00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,760
Speaker 2: but prices went up to three hundred percent because the

43
00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:16,080
Speaker 2: market tipped. So we don't want to see that in

44
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:16,839
Speaker 2: the future.

45
00:02:16,680 --> 00:02:18,919
Speaker 1: Certainly don't. Neither of us want to see that now.

46
00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:21,560
Speaker 1: The consenting issues the government made. If you've announced a

47
00:02:21,560 --> 00:02:24,280
Speaker 1: few changes to land use a couple of weeks back,

48
00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:27,679
Speaker 1: and that affects you know, it will affect your growers.

49
00:02:28,120 --> 00:02:30,480
Speaker 1: What do they think about them? Are they thinking they're

50
00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:32,760
Speaker 1: a good idea or are they thinking they're bad for business.

51
00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:36,120
Speaker 2: Look, there's no doubt that there needs to be a reset.

52
00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:38,359
Speaker 2: So it's good that we're looking at it. But when

53
00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:42,360
Speaker 2: it comes to highly productive land, having good soils, great water,

54
00:02:42,520 --> 00:02:46,040
Speaker 2: great people, great, but we need consent to actually use

55
00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:48,480
Speaker 2: the land for what we're doing, and that part of

56
00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:52,640
Speaker 2: the equation hasn't been solved yet. So particularly in areas

57
00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:56,360
Speaker 2: like hot Offena and Pokakoe, those areas are in a

58
00:02:56,360 --> 00:03:00,320
Speaker 2: major threat if they disappear from the national food that

59
00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:04,120
Speaker 2: we've got, If we don't have that supply, then that

60
00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:07,120
Speaker 2: will affect the number of vegetable growers who are in business,

61
00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:09,840
Speaker 2: and that would not be good for these figures going forward.

62
00:03:10,040 --> 00:03:12,320
Speaker 1: Good point, John, Thank you for that. John Murphy, share

63
00:03:12,360 --> 00:03:14,720
Speaker 1: of vegetables and Z with us this morning talking about

64
00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:16,640
Speaker 1: the price of wealth. What you put in your mouth

65
00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:20,360
Speaker 2: For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live

66
00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,480
Speaker 2: to news talks it'd be from five am weekdays, or

67
00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:25,440
Speaker 2: follow the podcast on iHeartRadio