Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will visit the United States from 9-12 July.
Mr Luxon will begin his visit by building New Zealand’s profile with politicians in Washington DC, meeting members of the US Administration and of Congress.
“The United States is the world’s largest economy and our second biggest trading partner. It plays a leading role in world affairs. It is imperative that we have good relationships with key American decision-makers, so they understand what New Zealand is trying to achieve in the world,” Mr Luxon says.
In Washington DC, the Prime Minister will also participate in the NATO Summit, an alliance of 32 North Atlantic countries that share our commitment to democratic values and to peace. He will also meet bilaterally with a range of NATO Leaders.
“Prosperity is only possible with security, with our discussions set to focus on our collective efforts to support the rules-based system”, Mr Luxon says.
“At NATO, counterparts from Australia, Japan and Korea will join me in a meeting of the Indo-Pacific Four.”
This is the third Summit in a row to which NATO has invited its four Indo-Pacific partners to discuss shared challenges.
The Prime Minister will use his time in the United States to expand New Zealand’s profile as a country with which to do business. He will visit San Francisco where he will drive greater investment links between New Zealand and the United States.
“If it were a country on its own, California would be the fifth biggest economy in the world, ranked between Japan and India,” Mr Luxon says.
"I look forward to building our positive relationship with this great State, and to forging stronger links with its businesses and investors as part of our wider plan to rebuild New Zealand’s economy.” Source: https://www.beehive.govt.nz/
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By RNZ
New Zealand sheep milk company Spring Sheep is vying for a slice of the US cheese market.
Chief executive Nick Hammond is at the Fancy Food Show in New York pushing the company’s products.
“We’re selling three styles - we have a pecorino, which is a harder cheese; we’ve also got aristee, which is a medium cheese; and then our new New Zealand version of a havarti, which is a really soft, buttery cheese.”
Hammond said the response to the grass-fed range in the US has been phenomenal.
“We feel the New Zealand brand resonates really well with consumers up here. The grass-fed system has also put us at a really high pedestal - it’s even considered higher than organic in terms of quality.”
Getting into the US market is a huge opportunity for the company because the market was developed and growing, he said.
“It’s far bigger than people would realise. The USA imports around 25-30 million kilos of premium sheep cheese annually. That’s a market that’s very stable and and growing.
It’s also not being particularly well-serviced by Europe - they have struggled to keep up with sheep milk volumes - so there’s a really amazing opportunity for us to come in here and build a major growth platform.”
Hammond said the first commercial volumes of New Zealand produced sheep milk cheese will go into US speciality stores later in the year.
- RNZ
Today, we at Yonder are thrilled to announce our official acquisition by TOMIS, a leading technology company dedicated to building cutting-edge customer experience and communication software for tour operators. Based in Montana, USA, TOMIS’ products are a natural fit with Yonder, providing innovative, data-driven marketing solutions and exceptional customer experiences for tour operators around the globe.
Individually, both Yonder and TOMIS have saved tour operators thousands of hours, generated millions in revenue for clients, and pushed the travel industry forward at every opportunity. We've navigated the ever-evolving landscape of conversational AI and created products to simplify and streamline all aspects of the customer journey for our clients.
Together, we know we’ll only make each other better.
Commitment to Customer Success
“We are excited to welcome Yonder into the TOMIS ecosystem,” said Evan Tipton, CEO of TOMIS. “This acquisition allows us to combine our strengths and deliver even greater value to our customers. With Yonder’s innovative technology and our industry expertise, we are well-positioned to support the growth and success of tour operators globally.”
Letitia Stevenson added, “With TOMIS’ support, we’re excited to take our innovative solutions to the next level and help more tour operators achieve their goals.”
For now, both businesses will operate as usual, ensuring tour operators don’t experience any disruptions. TOMIS and Yonder will continue to operate as standalone brands, ensuring continuity and stability for existing customers while benefiting from our shared resources and industry expertise.
Looking Ahead
The union of TOMIS and Yonder promises to deliver enhanced solutions and greater value to our customers. By integrating our strengths, we’re set to push the boundaries of what’s possible in the tourism technology sector. We’re deeply committed to listening to our customers and incorporating your feedback into future product developments. We encourage you to share your ideas, feature requests, and feedback to help shape the future of our offerings.
As we embark on this new journey together with TOMIS, the future looks brighter than ever for tour operators seeking innovative solutions to drive their success. Stay tuned for more updates as this dynamic partnership evolves and continues to make waves in the tourism industry.
Thank you for being a part of our community and for your continued support!
Source: https://www.yonderhq.com/
A-listers Sarah Jessica Parker and Graham Norton stopped by the Big Apple for a blending session with Kiwi winemakers, spending “hours” tasting New Zealand varieties.
This week, iconic Kiwi wine brand Invivo rounded up its stars Graham Norton and Sarah Jessica Parker in New York City for their latest blending sessions.
Invivo’s founders Tim Lightbourne and Rob Cameron took the best New Zealand grapes to New York to present to Parker and Norton, who have total control of the blending for their brands X SJP and GN for Invivo.
“With both Graham and Sarah Jessica, we spent hours tasting and discussing the latest sauvignon blanc vintage from New Zealand, sampling selections from both Hawke’s Bay and Marlborough,” Lightbourne tells Spy.
“Both of them expressed a strong interest in visiting New Zealand, so stay tuned for a potential upcoming trip!”
The brand, always trying to outdo itself in publicity stunts, last year creating the world’s first winery airline, which saw guests board an Invivo Air Saab 340 plane and enjoy a guided eight-step wine-tasting at 18,000 feet.
The boys, along with Parker, a New York native and star of And Just Like That and Sex And The City, commandeered the world-famous Mets baseball team’s famous Citi Field Stadium in Queens.
“The Mets loved the idea of the innovative use of their stadium, and Sarah Jessica and husband Matthew Broderick are renowned fans of the team,” Lightbourne tells Spy.
“The Mets had never done anything like it and we secured the stadium for private use.”
Parker and the Invivo boys blended their new vintage of X SJP right on the field at second base in the iconic stadium and took over the largest screen in baseball.
“We had the team’s mascot Mrs Met along for the ride, and Rob and I even had the chance to play on the iconic Mets field, borrowing a bat from marquee star Pete Alonso,” says Lightbourne.
They then hosted key customers, who have collectively purchased millions of bottles, and leading US media in the press room for an interview with Lightbourne, Cameron and Parker, and a tasting of the wine that was just blended on the field.
The publicity is working; after five years with Parker, Lightbourne says Invivo X SJP sauvignon blanc is currently the fastest-growing luxury sauvignon blanc in the US.
For the famous UK talk show host Graham Norton, a more refined location was chosen by Lightbourne and Cameron for their meet-and-blend.
“We met Graham to blend the 11th vintage of his sauvignon blanc together at the five-star Elm Suite at 1 Hotel Central Park, New York - with sweeping views of Central Park and the amazing Big Apple skyline.
“We had Invivo’s close friend, America’s Next Top Model judge Nigel Barker, shoot the blending and publicity shots.”
Again, publicity gold. Lightbourne says this year, their 11th with Norton, will see them reach production and sales of over 20 million Graham Norton bottles.
Source: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/
The newly-knighted Rocket Lab founder and CEO isn’t making anyone call him Sir Peter Beck.
“It’s just Pete,” he told The Front Page - ahead of his company’s 50th launch.
Not only is it a major milestone for Rocket Lab - but it will be the fastest any other company in history has reached 50 launches.
The “No Time Toulouse” mission is scheduled to launch from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in Mahia during a 14-day launch window that opens today. It is the first of five dedicated launches to deploy a 25-satellite constellation for French Internet-of-Things company, Kinéis.
“I think it’s quite significant. Everybody sees the rocket, but I guess what is less obvious is all of the infrastructure and everything behind it. It’s well understood that your first rocket is really, really hard. Your 20th rocket is 20 times harder than your first rocket because you have to be in full production at that point,” Beck said.
“So, reaching a milestone of 50 flights, not many rockets have launched as many as 50 times let alone to do it the fastest. I think it’s a real testament to the team and the company.”
According to Deloitte, in 2018 and 2019 New Zealand’s space industry contributed $1.7 billion to the economy. Space Minister Judith Collins told The Front Page our people, innovators, and creators in the sector are very well-respected.
And Beck agreed, saying there are some great start-ups in New Zealand and real potential for the sector here.
“New Zealanders are incredibly smart people, very innovative, and they have the ability to move across multiple functions and disciplines, which is really important in the space industry.”
In recent years, some of the world’s richest men have been investing in space - like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Richard Branson.
“We often joke our two biggest competitors, are actually the two wealthiest people on this planet,” Beck said.
“For us, we, we don’t have infinite capital, so we have to be very smart and we model ourselves after a famous Ernest Rutherford saying, and, and that was, he said, we have no money, so we, therefore we have to think.”
But, Beck said there’s no Holden v Ford rivalry between the world’s top players - who often are the first to call to congratulate a successful launch.
“We all know each other and we all respect each other, for what each other has achieved.
“We compete for contracts and for customers and all of that, but it’s a unique industry at the end of the day. When someone else does something truly amazing all of the competitors are the first to congratulate them.”
So, what’s next on the radar for Beck and Rocket Lab?
“I’m very passionate about interplanetary and interplanetary science.
“We have two satellites that are headed to Mars at the end of this year for Nasa to measure a whole lot of magnetic fields in space, information and data around the red planet.
“The findings of that are going to be not only just enormous to understand Mars but also how Mars ended up how it was, which we can then use to help Earth.”
Listen to the full episode to hear more about Rocket Lab’s US defence contracts and where Beck wants to see the company in ten years.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
The Associate Minister of Finance David Seymour has issued a new Ministerial directive letter to Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) to make consent processing timeframes faster under the Overseas Investment Act.
“New Zealand is currently rated as having the most restrictive foreign direct investment policy out of the OECD countries in the OECD Foreign Direct Investment Regulatory Restrictiveness Index.
“Processing times are currently too long, and this poses a barrier for investors. Budget 2024 started to get wasteful spending under control, but in order to have a strong growing economy New Zealand needs to be more welcoming to investment,” says Mr Seymour.
"Decisions on consent applications under the general benefit test take 89 days on average. This creates uncertainty and impacts the attractiveness of investing in New Zealand. This affects New Zealand businesses that rely on overseas investment for capital or for liquidity. With the new directive letter, we’re making things faster and removing bureaucracy.”
The directive letter sets an expectation that LINZ, the regulator for the Overseas Investment Act, will process 80 per cent of consent applications in half the statutory timeframes for decisions. LINZ will have the full statutory timeframe to process the remaining 20 per cent of consent applications to manage complex and higher-risk applications.
“To accomplish this objective, the directive letter directs LINZ to take a risk-based approach to verifying information and streamlining consent processes. This recognises that the majority of consent applications are low-risk and should be processed more efficiently.
“We’re introducing a principle that we welcome investment. In order for New Zealand to retain world class public services New Zealand needs to be the preferred destination for ideas, investment, talent.
“Reduced barriers to investment from people and businesses means greater prosperity for Kiwis. If we want world-leading businesses and public services, we need the money to pay for them. Today’s announcement is part of making this happen.
“These changes also bring balance to how applications are assessed by removing duplication across different parts of government. There’s no reason for LINZ to be assessing matters already covered by other domestic regulation, such as whether mergers will decrease competition, which is already assessed by the Commerce Commission.
“With the new letter, we’re removing bureaucracy to help make things faster. And with LINZ processing low-risk transactions more quickly, it can focus effort and resources on assessing higher-risk applications.”
“The new directive letter replaces the previous Government’s directive letter dated November 2021. Grant Robertson’s letter was 12 pages, ours is five pages. We’re getting out of the way.”
The letter is in force from today, and all applications assessed by LINZ from this date will be subject to the updated directive letter.
The Overseas Investment Regulations 2005 will be updated to include a new reporting requirement on the extent to which LINZ meets this new objective for timeframes.
The directive letter is part of a three-part process to better enable overseas investment. Firstly, fewer decisions be made by Ministers than before however, some high-risk decisions, including all national interest and national security transactions, will still be decided by Ministers. Secondly, the new letter has been introduced. The next step will be to rewrite the Overseas Investment Act.
The directive letter is available on the LINZ website: https://www.linz.govt.nz/our-work/overseas-investment-regulation/legislation-ministers-and-delegated-powers/new-ministerial-directives
Source: https://www.beehive.govt.nz/
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Trade Minister Todd McClay and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts travel to Singapore tomorrow to sign three Indo Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) agreements.
IPEF’s 14 partners represent 40 per cent of global GDP and account for 50 per cent of New Zealand’s exports. They include critical markets for Kiwi exporters in Australia, Bruni Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, The United States, and Vietnam.
Minister McClay will participate in the full IPEF Ministerial meeting which includes discussions on a Indo-Pacific wide trade agreement. He will participate in the formal signing of the overarching IPEF Agreement and the Fair Economy Agreement.
These agreements focus on anti-corruption efforts and labour standards across the region along with increased international tax cooperation to shape a secure and transparent investment climate in the Indo-Pacific region.
“The third IPEF pillar focuses on increasing trade efficiency. The negotiation of this pillar presents further opportunities for New Zealand to work with partners to reduce Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) and drive greater certainty for exporters.
Working with IPEF countries to increase investment flows and trade will help New Zealand meet the aspirational target of doubling exports by value in 10 years,” Mr McClay says.
While at IPEF Minister McClay will also hold bilateral meetings with Ministers from Australia, Canada, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, and The United States.
Ministers lead trade and investment forum:
Minister Watts will participate in a Clean Economies Investors forum including a signing ceremony for the Clean Economy Agreement to increases cooperation on climate goals by mobilising investment in technologies and solutions for energy, industry and transport.
He will be joined by a select group of New Zealand clean tech companies that have been invited to pitch to the region’s top investors at the inaugural Clean Economy Investor Forum.
“The IPEF agreements and the investor forum reflect a growing consensus that technology, trade, and investment flows need to feature explicitly in a concerted regional response to climate change,” Mr Watts says.
“Workstreams on hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel are among those already operating under the Clean Economy Agreement that have a lot to offer New Zealand,” Mr Watts says.
The NZUS Council has appointed Jonathan Mason as its Chair, succeeding Rosemary Banks who is departing to become New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States. Mr Mason is a professional independent director with vast experience in companies involved in the US market.
Mr Mason has extensive commercial experience, having worked in financial management positions across the dairy, forest products, oil and gas, and chemical industries in New Zealand and the USA. His experience in this field has been across a wide range of companies including Fonterra, Carter Holt Harvey, International Paper, ExxonMobil Corporation and Cabot Corporation.
Alongside his financial management background, Jonathan has ample experience in non-executive director positions on boards in both New Zealand and the USA, which have included Air New Zealand, Vector, Westpac NZ, Zespri Group and the World Wildlife Fund.
Jonathan also holds the position of Adjunct Professor of Management at the University of Auckland, with a focus on finance.
Mr Mason will soon be stepping down from the role of President of the American Chamber of Commerce in New Zealand.
Mr Mason said “as our third most important trading relationship supporting over $26 billion in two-way trade, the NZUS Council plays an important role in engaging with US government and business to protect and enhance our economic relationship with the USA.
“I’m happy to be appointed to the role and look forward to promoting better access for trade in goods and services and investment between the two countries”.
This change of Chair comes at a time when there is renewed focus on New Zealand’s relationship with the United States as a critically important trading partner, a source of investment, and new technologies.
The NZUS Council is a non-partisan and independent organisation committed to promoting all dimensions of New Zealand’s multi-faceted relations with the United States. The Council welcomes members from business, government, academia, and the expanding technology sector.
https://www.nzuscouncil.org/
Award winning New Zealand tech innovator, Fingermark, has secured a cornerstone investment from global water, hygiene and infection prevention leader, Ecolab. This investment includes a multimillion dollar capital injection that will support Fingermark’s rapidly rising global growth trajectory.
Luke Irving, Founder and Chief Executive of Fingermark, hailed the deal as transformative. “This is a true collaboration that will help both companies better serve global Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) customers and further establish Fingermark’s growing reputation,” said Irving. Fingermark is an industry leading computer vision and self ordering technology provider to some of the world’s largest Enterprise QSR brands. Their technology provides automation that supports restaurant processes to enhance profitability and competitiveness, reduce costs, mitigate labour shortages and meet heightened customer expectations. A trusted partner for millions of customers, Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) is a global sustainability leader with annual sales of $15 billion and 48,000 associates serving customers in more than 170 countries around the world. Ecolab’s innovative solutions improve operational efficiencies and sustainability for customers in the food, healthcare, life sciences, hospitality and industrial markets.
“For more than 100 years, Ecolab has worked to help our hospitality and foodservice customers achieve their operational and sustainability goals,” says Chris Loflin, Senior Vice President & General Manager Global QSR. “Teaming up with Fingermark will help us address modern operational challenges and begin delivering on the promise of AI and computer vision technology at scale for our global QSR customers.” “There is massive change in the Global QSR sector as the move to automation gathers pace,” Irving comments. “While this is just the start of our work with Ecolab, they see Fingermark as playing a critical role in the long-term strategies for the QSR market.” Irving says Fingermark’s growing success is also an endorsement of the New Zealand tech sector. “We may be on the edge of global markets but our work and that of others in the New Zealand tech sector are putting this country on the map,” Irving says. “The Prime Minister and Minister of Trade have both set ambitious goals around growing exports and attracting foreign investment and I believe our tech sector is going to deliver on those targets – look at what we’ve done here, and the best is still to come.”
At the latest AmCham awards, where Fingermark won the DHL Express Success & Innovation Award for Technology Exporter of the Year to the United States, the judges noted the company’s dedication, innovation, and capacity to succeed on a global scale.
The judging criteria included showcasing a deep passion for achieving business success, fostering innovation and harnessing marketing opportunities, with Fingermark exemplifying these characteristics, as well as the power of innovation, collaboration, and determination, said the judges. Source: https://fingermark.ai/
Auckland, New Zealand: Scott Technology (NZX:SCT) is to strengthen its expertise and drive further innovation in the North American protein market as it seeks to capitalize on the vast opportunities this region offers.
A key driver of this investment is the expansion of its world leading BladeStop safety bandsaw product line to include the T300, a saw specifically designed for the instore meat cutting of the supermarket sector. Independent research indicates that the total addressable market for the T300 retail saw in the U.S. is approximately 25,000 units which includes leading retailers such as Albertsons and Kroger.
In addition to the BladeStop expansion, Scott Technology's proprietary Poultry Trusser product has gained significant traction in the market. Sales have been secured with three of North America's largest poultry processors, demonstrating strong market adoption. Despite this success, there remains a substantial untapped market for this product.
“With Scott’s strong pedigree of bringing world-leading automation technologies to market, we continue see large opportunities ahead in the North American red meat and poultry sectors. The poultry trussing product is well into its commercialisation phase with orders building upon the early rollouts into the Costco processing network. Our recently released T300 BladeStop saw is now being launched into the leading US supermarket chains where retailers undertake meat cutting activities instore” commented John Kippenberger, Scott Technology Chief Executive.
To support Scott Technology's growth in the North American protein market, the company is pleased to announce the Executive appointment of Mark Host as Vice President of Sales – Global Protein. Based in the U.S, Mark will lead the global sales efforts for the protein sector, leveraging his extensive experience and expertise to drive growth and strengthen Scott Technology's market position.
“We are delighted to have Mark Host join the group executive team in this newly created role. Marks appointment will see an important injection of sales leadership and protein industry experience into North America.”
Mark brings a proven track record of sales growth, market and product development, and team leadership. He has over 25 years of experience across multiple food processing categories where he has helped processors implement solutions to increase worker safety, improve processing yields, and grow profitability.
Mark comes to Scott from Pearson Packaging Systems, a market leader in secondary packaging and robotic automation, where he was the VP of Sales. Prior to that, Mark served as VP of Global Sales at Bettcher Industries, a global protein processing supplier, where he led the acceleration of the business, the launch of new products, and grew both direct and distributor markets. These strategic moves highlight Scott Technology's focus on innovation, market expansion, and leadership in the North American market, positioning the company for continued success and growth.
Source: https://scottautomation.com/
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