Yeah, F&P Healthcare are pretty huge by NZ standards and a poster child for the ongoing debate in government circles about how NZ's economy can grow over the next few decades. NZ's exports are still mostly agriculture, but expanding agriculture further comes up against environmental limits - lack of land, water, and too much fertiliser. Instead, some of us have been pushing the high-tech manufacturing route - expanding that sector to produce more wealth without using more land and water, just more brains. F&P aren't quite Nokia yet, but a few more companies like that and NZ would be far better off.

Paul Callahgan has been pushing this line publicly. I find myself agreeing with him, as do plenty of Wellington policy people.