The 63% with that view is a significant increase of 9% compared to just eight months ago.
Dairy farmers also enjoyed a similar increase in positive support, now at 60% positive, up from 51%.
Horticulture continues to receive the highest positive rating of 65%.
Ratings for fisheries just clicked over into majority positive territory at 53%, up from 47% last August.
The main reasons people gave for feeling more positively disposed towards these food-producing industries included:
– Efficient and high-quality producers of food;
– Being an essential industry;
– Good for the economy because they provide exports and jobs and;
– Farmers worked through and will help us through covid-19.
UMR rural research director Marc Elliot said the research appears to show in a crisis New Zealanders are more clearly seeing the critical importance of their food-producing sectors.
“This should be a small shot in the arm for pastoral farmers who are facing droughts along with looming regulations and long-term uncertainty in the markets.
“I keep hearing from farmers that one of their main challenges is negative public perception.
“While there are pockets of hostility towards our farmers there is also a growing wave of warmth.
“When times are good critical aspects of our economy can be taken for granted, however, in the current crisis our food producers appear to be receiving the extra credit they deserve.”
