About this episode

The episode discusses New Zealand's deindustrialisation crisis and the lack of a strategic plan to address the decline in manufacturing jobs and output.

New Zealand is quietly dismantling the productive base that built its prosperity – and we’re doing it without anything resembling a plan. Over the past decade, the country has shed around 20,000 manufacturing jobs while the sector’s share of GDP has steadily eroded. Factories producing everything from pulp and paper to frozen foods and wood products have scaled back or shut down entirely, including household names such as Wattie’s and McCain.  For regional centres like Westport and Kaitāia, each closure is an economic shock that ripples through the whole community. The blow would be blunted somewhat if we had a plan B to revive manufacturing and offer employment prospects in the regions. But we don’t. Some economists and industry leaders now openly talk about the “deindustrialisation” of New Zealand. Manufacturing is responsible for roughly 60% of our exports and employs close to one in ten workers, yet it has slipped down the priority list in Wellington.  Other countries – Australia, Singapore, the UK and the US among them – have modern industrial strategies and long-term Industry 4.0 programmes. New Zealand, by…

Topics covered

• deindustrialisation
• manufacturing jobs
• economic impact
• energy costs
• industrial strategy
• New Zealand economy

Keywords

• deindustrialisation
• manufacturing
• New Zealand
• economic shock
• energy costs
• industry strategy

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Wattie’s, McCain

Places: New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, UK, US

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