The Labour Party says that Federated Farmers is squarely to blame for New Zealand agriculture being included in the Emissions Trading Scheme.

Labour agriculture spokesman Damien O’Connor told an agricultural conference in Wellington that a flat carbon tax, which Labour proposed in 2003, would have been much fairer and more efficient system than the ETS.

"Well effectively it would be a simple cost imposed right across the whole economy on all emissions.

"And it would give a direct incentive for everyone of course to be more efficient – whether it be the use of electricity, the use of fuel, and to see where the costs actually lie.

"So more efficient farmers would be paying less than the less efficient."

Back in 2003 Federated Farmers was furiously opposed to what it labeled the Fart Tax.

The lobby group gained international headlines after high-profile protests against the tax and getting nearly 64,000 rural people to sign a petition opposing it.

Labour eventually scrapped the proposed tax, which would have been used to fund research into reducing agriculture’s emissions, in the face of the farmers’ opposition.

However, Mr O’Connor says that when a National government announced two years ago that agriculture would be included in the ETS – Federated Farmers realized it had scored an own goal.

Damien O’Connor says the carbon tax would have been collected and managed by a New Zealand government rather than binding the country into the international ETS scheme where it’s hard for farmers to mitigate their costs.

Mr O’Connor says Federated Farmers clearly shot Kiwi farmers in the foot.

"Through what was political posturing and reaction, Federated Farmers lost the opportunity to sit down work out the best carbon tax regime." 

In 2009, former Federated Farmers president Don Nicolson told farmers it was time they ate some humble pie and worked with officials towards a low carbon charge.

Damien O’Connor believes it’s now far too late for this to happen.