Australian letter is a weekly newsletter from our Australia office. Register to get it by email. This week’s issue is written by Natasha Frost, a correspondent for the Australia office.
The pavlova topped the New Zealand holiday table. Named after Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, it is a towering pile of whipped cream, meringues, and fruit that bears a complete resemblance, accidental or not, to the tulle layer. effervescence of the flared dress of the same name. (Save yourself the trouble and don’t ask if this dessert originated in Australia or New Zealand.)
New Zealanders may have pav, as it is called, at a family gathering, to mark a special occasion or just because someone has some egg whites to use up. At Christmas meals, it’s all but imperative – one last treat after sizzling ham slices, or baked potatoes with a leg of lamb.
This year, many families didn’t have their Christmas pav because they simply couldn’t get the eggs.
Since November, New Zealanders have been struggling after an egg shortage hit the country. Supermarket shelves in some areas are empty and a pair of 12 are now priced at around NZ$6, up 16% year-on-year, according to the Stats NZ Food Price Index. In some places, supermarkets limit the purchase of two packs per customer.
Desperate for omelettes and chips, some people have thought about raising chickens. Searches for chickens and “chicken related items” on New Zealand’s largest classifieds and auction site recently increased by more than 75%. Animal welfare advocates have appealed to everyone Not to start their own backyard farms, say more chickens are sold each year than those coveted on-demand soufflés could expect.
Gabby Clezy, chief executive officer of SPCA, one of New Zealand’s largest animal welfare charities, said: “Please don’t buy a chicken unless you can take care of it for the long term. told The Guardian. She notes that these birds can live more than a decade but only lay eggs in the first two or three years of their lives.
But what caused this shortage?
New Zealand should have an abundant egg supply in a country where agriculture is an important part of the economy, with products such as lamb, wheat and cheese making up a large proportion. nearly 80% of the country’s export turnover. Demand is higher than ever: The average New Zealander eats about 237 eggs each year.
The story behind what appeared to be a sudden shortage goes back a decade. In 2012, the New Zealand government told poultry farmers that they will have 10 years to switch from hens to pin cages to a colony, free colony – a word commonly used to refer to larger cages – or a “barn” system. At that time, about 80% of the eggs were laid by pin hens.
The 10-year window is designed to give farmers enough time to get permission from local authorities to plan to adjust their farms, import equipment from Europe and make other necessary arrangements.
A third of these farmers switched to herd farming, sometimes paying tens of millions of dollars do like that. But in 2017, two New Zealand supermarket chains, Woolworths and Foodstuff, said they would not accept colonial-raised eggs from 2025 and 2027 respectively, citing animal welfare concerns. If farmers choose to abandon the colonies and move to another setup – again – money will not be the only obstacle. They will also need to find more space for the chickens.
Some have already started making that transition. Others, including some free-range producers, who have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic, have pulled out completely, which has reduced egg supply by about 9% between June. 2021 through June 2022. That’s the biggest drop since records began, said Brad Olsen, chief economist at Infometrics, told New Zealand publication Stuff.
However, the egg shortage is nothing compared to the “potato rush” of 2017, when heavy rain caused New Zealand’s potatoes to rot in the soil and made it virtually impossible to buy chips or fries. body. Speaking to the Guardian at the time, Chris Claridge, chief executive of Potatoes New Zealand, explained the gravity of the situation: “You can live a week without politics, but try living a week. without potatoes.”
Here are the stories of the week.
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