For those with time on their hands and an interest in broader aspects of the global dairy scene, not just a2MC’s role in it, three worthwhile articles just published are worth a read. None of them mention A2 specifically, but all have some relevance to A2’s global strategy.
An article in the Herald by Fran O’Sullivan, one of the few NZ journalists who has a good understanding of trade issues, paints a gloomy but realistic picture of NZ’s fading hopes that anything useful to the NZ dairy industry will emerge from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. As one who has followed to some extent the TPP debate as reported by newspapers in the US, Japan and Canada, I can only say it has been fascinating to observe how these three big trading nations have begun painting NZ as the fly in the ointment, the country that is preventing a TPP agreement. This stance completely overlooks the fact that dairy is the only topic on which the TPP is failing to liberalise trade, simply because the powers that be in Washington, Tokyo and Ottawa lack the political guts to demand agricultural reforms from their powerful but antiquated farming lobbies.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/best-of-bu...ectid=11497432
O'Sullivan's view ties in with two articles by Prof Keith Woodford on his blog site.
In one piece, arguing that “It’s time for a breather on TPP” Woodford updates his longstanding view that NZ has always greatly over-rated the benefits that the Trans-Pacific agreement would bring to our dairy industry.
https://keithwoodford.wordpress.com/...her/#more-1323
And in a second column, focussing on Fonterra and China, Woodford argues that Fonterra is constantly way behind the ball in its strategising for China, and still is, while American and European exporters are rapidly overtaking us.
https://keithwoodford.wordpress.com/...ina/#more-1331
Happy reading.