1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,000 Speaker 1: With us now as Jamie mckaye, Host of the Country, 2 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:05,240 Speaker 1: he Jamie, hello cousin here that oh mate, It's tough 3 00:00:05,240 --> 00:00:08,360 Speaker 1: to be a sheep farmer, isn't it. Yeah? Wow, Maybe 4 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:11,039 Speaker 1: I dodged a bullet there, because if the Rural Bank 5 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:15,080 Speaker 1: had lent me ninety grand way back in about nineteen 6 00:00:15,120 --> 00:00:17,400 Speaker 1: eighty nine or ninety when I wanted to buy one 7 00:00:17,480 --> 00:00:21,560 Speaker 1: hundred acres forty hectares of the neighboring block to expand 8 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:24,560 Speaker 1: my farming operation, if they'd lent me the money heither, 9 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:27,200 Speaker 1: I'd probably still be a sheep farmer, and I might 10 00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:29,680 Speaker 1: be a bit bitter and twisted about doing that because 11 00:00:29,720 --> 00:00:33,680 Speaker 1: the returns are abysmal. Wait for this stat Southern sheep farmers. 12 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:36,239 Speaker 1: That's me if I'd stayed down in Riversdale, and I 13 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:39,680 Speaker 1: know you've been to the home farm there. They have 14 00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:42,280 Speaker 1: to be they're getting a six point nine percent increase 15 00:00:42,320 --> 00:00:44,920 Speaker 1: in propit And while that sounds wonderful, guess how much 16 00:00:44,920 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: they're earning for their whole year's work. Twenty thousand, two 17 00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:52,279 Speaker 1: hundred dollars. And that's before that's before they wouldn't even 18 00:00:52,320 --> 00:00:56,240 Speaker 1: pay you. You and barries like dinner. Well, I mean 19 00:00:56,320 --> 00:01:01,840 Speaker 1: ideas Ponsonby Road that is not far off like a 20 00:01:01,840 --> 00:01:05,760 Speaker 1: big family. That's the grocery bill, oh and more, I 21 00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:08,759 Speaker 1: would have thought, to be honest. So from your twenty thousand, 22 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:13,440 Speaker 1: two hundred dollars, you've got to pay for your drawings obviously, 23 00:01:13,520 --> 00:01:15,959 Speaker 1: you've got to live, and on top of that, your tax, 24 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 1: your principal repayments, capital expenditure obviously, and really tough times. 25 00:01:20,319 --> 00:01:23,279 Speaker 1: Not much of that happens, but it is really tough 26 00:01:24,240 --> 00:01:26,520 Speaker 1: for sheep farmers. And the further south you go probably 27 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 1: the worst off they are in some ways. And because 28 00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:31,800 Speaker 1: this is the new season outlook from Beef and lamb 29 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:35,520 Speaker 1: New Zealand and it's talking about sheep and beef, and 30 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:38,240 Speaker 1: the further south you go, the more proportion of sheep 31 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 1: as opposed to beef. So these are the lowest recorded 32 00:01:43,480 --> 00:01:47,520 Speaker 1: profits on record, inflation adjusted, and that goes back to 33 00:01:47,560 --> 00:01:51,240 Speaker 1: the nineteen eighties when we had rogenomics. So really, really 34 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,480 Speaker 1: tough times and they're not being helped much Heather by 35 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:58,480 Speaker 1: the banks. I did a totally unscientific poll today on 36 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:01,640 Speaker 1: the country and you know, it makes me almost makes 37 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:04,960 Speaker 1: you want to cry. Some of the lending rates and 38 00:02:05,040 --> 00:02:08,360 Speaker 1: mortgage rates and OD rates these farmers are paying. I 39 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:11,760 Speaker 1: had a contract milker who was paying thirteen and a 40 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:15,800 Speaker 1: half percent of an overdraft fee. This guy's getting up 41 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:20,239 Speaker 1: every morning milking two thousand cows, employing ten full time staff, 42 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:24,560 Speaker 1: four casuals. He's spending four months of his twelve months 43 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:27,639 Speaker 1: of the year in overdraft. It's killing his operation. These 44 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:30,320 Speaker 1: are the people we should be encouraging, you know, to 45 00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:35,880 Speaker 1: drive the economy. The floating rates, to go by my 46 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:39,840 Speaker 1: unscientific poll for farmers, between seven and eleven percent. But 47 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:42,880 Speaker 1: the OD rates, the overdraft rates are the real killers 48 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:45,360 Speaker 1: there between nine which is a pretty good deal probably, 49 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,000 Speaker 1: and up to fourteen or fifteen percent. Look, federated farmers 50 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:52,160 Speaker 1: are on the warpath. I'm on the warpath too, because 51 00:02:52,160 --> 00:02:54,519 Speaker 1: I reckon the banks are having us on. Is that? 52 00:02:54,680 --> 00:02:56,400 Speaker 1: How much higher is that than what you would be 53 00:02:56,440 --> 00:03:00,960 Speaker 1: paying as a towny with a residential loan. Well, heather, 54 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: as fate would have it. I went on to my 55 00:03:03,080 --> 00:03:05,840 Speaker 1: own personal bank website and looked at that I could get. 56 00:03:05,960 --> 00:03:08,240 Speaker 1: I could get a floating deal with my bank at 57 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:10,919 Speaker 1: eight point three nine percent. But no one's literally no, no, 58 00:03:10,919 --> 00:03:12,840 Speaker 1: no one's literally doing it. I can go out and 59 00:03:12,880 --> 00:03:16,520 Speaker 1: borrow for eighteen months at five point nine to nine percent. 60 00:03:16,800 --> 00:03:20,239 Speaker 1: I had the example today of a very well established 61 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:23,960 Speaker 1: farmer's worth. His equity would be in the tens of 62 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 1: millions and he has just helped his son in Dunedin 63 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:31,040 Speaker 1: into a house. This guy has been with the same 64 00:03:31,120 --> 00:03:33,919 Speaker 1: bank for thirty years and believe it or not, the 65 00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:38,080 Speaker 1: son who's got bugger or equity, dad's helped him into 66 00:03:38,160 --> 00:03:41,840 Speaker 1: the house, got a two percent lower deal than this 67 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:45,120 Speaker 1: guy has, who's probably one of the leading clients for 68 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:48,160 Speaker 1: his bank. You know, we've got something, We've got something 69 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: wrong here. We just need to we need to encourage 70 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 1: the productive sector. Yeah, Jamie, I think you're onto something man. 71 00:03:53,440 --> 00:03:55,600 Speaker 1: Thank you so much, appreciate it. Jamie McKay, Host of 72 00:03:55,640 --> 00:03:59,760 Speaker 1: the Country. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drave, listen 73 00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:03,080 Speaker 1: to News Talks it'd be from four pm weekdays, or 74 00:04:03,120 --> 00:04:05,200 Speaker 1: follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.