Our look at public perceptions of industry showed Kiwis being more confident in our primary producers than media trends often portray. We thought a deep dive into some of the media conflict points would be useful, the results are very interesting.

Public opinion falls on the side of farming. When compared with the management of environmental impacts from urban development and industrial activities, significantly higher numbers think the impacts of farming in NZ are well managed.

Put into a global context, the results are also positive: 44% of the public think NZ’s farmers and growers are doing better than the global average.
So, why don’t we hear the positives more?

Where just over half of our participants (57%) supported the notion that farmers and rural communities in NZ need a stronger advocacy voice, 25% thought they didn’t. This leaves a massive 18% of the sample that gave a ‘don’t know’ response.
This bulk of unknowns is a strong indicator that the public are aware that they are seeing a distorted reality through the media, some politicians and fringe groups. This group do not feel they have a clear picture of the situation those communities face and that they are not willing to pass a judgement without it.