With little fat for exporters VISUAL WORKPLACE by WELLS 10 NOVEMBER 2016 FT206 VISUAL WORKPLACES DELIVER INCREASED SAFETY & EFFICIENCY Designing and implementing visual aids is an integral part of any continuous improvement plan. Efficiency and safety are achieved by having the right tools to work with, within easy reach. Tools should be ergonomic, durable, colour coded, carry the correct approval and stored for easy, safe access. For example, don’t install stations where staff members have to cross a forklift path! Ideally workstations should be no more than 10 paces away. Call Wells now for a free site survey with one of their trained representatives… they offer fully customised 5S systems & signage, solutions for all types of cleaning equipment, engineering parts and tools. Wells Office 09 263 9332; Sean Bamford 021 0835 7477; John McIntyre on 027 313 1955. Competition in Asian milk markets will remain fiercely competitive next year as both international and local brands fight for market share and consumer spend, agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank says. While demand from China and ASEAN countries for New Zealand milk continues to grow, export margins have been squeezed and could potentially tighten further, the bank’s latest industry report warns. Liquid milk exports to Asia – avoiding the crush and senior dairy analyst Michael Harvey says the automatic premium that international brands had historically received-was unlikely to be repeated. “It wasn’t long ago that being an imported brand automatically provided a retail price premium but that is no longer the case,” Harvey says. “This has particular consequences for New Zealand and Australia, given the previously alluring retail price premiums combined with trade opportunities and relatively low capital outlays fuelled a period of significant investment in liquid milk processing capacity across Oceania. This increased capacity has been specifically geared towards Asia’s liquid milk markets, the short-term consequence of which has been a contribution to diminishing export margins. The flood of investment in the regions has resulted in capacity almost doubling across New Zealand and Australia, with additional investment potentially in the pipeline.” Dairy exporters are competing with their European counterparts as well; in particular Russia, which has been absent since the trade ban of dairy products in 2014, and Africa, which has been battling economic headwinds, especially in its oil economies, Harvey says. Local Asian brands are providing additional competition, pressured by increased import competition. “We’ve been seeing local brands in developing Asian countries look to maintain and grow their shelf space. They have several advantages over importers that they will be looking to leverage, including more extensive product offerings and widespread distribution networks.” Harvey says key areas of focus that dairy export businesses will be looking at to increase their margins will include ensuring processing efficiency, improving their distribution chains and building a premium platform. “For dairy exporters this is not just about product and packaging innovation, but also category expansion, R&D and behind the-border support to better cater to changing consumer demands,” he says. MILK MARKETS COMPETITIVE They have several advantages over importers that they will be looking to leverage, including more extensive product offerings and widespread distribution networks.
FT-Nov16
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