New role for spin doctor
DairyNZ is hoping to step up its communications spin with the appointment of public relations company owner and former local body politician Jo Coughlan as an independent director.
An industry observer said DairyNZ’s failed challenge last year against Greenpeace to the
Advertising Standards Authority over an ad attacking ‘‘dirty dairying’’ pointed to the need for better communication decisions.
At the time DairyNZ chief executive Tim Mackle said Greenpeace’s attacks on dairy farmers amounted to scaremongering, and were unfairly blaming dairying as the single polluter of rivers and drinking
water in New Zealand.
Under the rules of the industry-good body, the board has the right to appoint a director. The appointment was ratified at the annual meeting last week in Invercargill.
Coughlan was a failed Wellington mayoral candidate in 2016, having been involved in
local body politics since 2007. She co-owns public relations company Silvereye Communications. Among its recent clients have been Irrigation NZ and Chinese-owned Cloud Ocean Water, which is hoping to bottle water in Canterbury for export.