How farmers vote will be the meaty issue for Silver Fern

The votes of about 9000 farmers – rebate-receiving suppliers in Silver Fern Farms – will cast a much wider shadow than the future path of their co-operative.

Their decision on whether the Silver Fern – formerly PPCS – co-operative should surrender control of its assets to a corporate board in a "partnership" with listed PGG Wrightson has implications for not only its big rival, Alliance Group, but also the dairy sector.

Fonterra's 10,000 dairy farmers are wrestling with the concept of handing over their own co-operative's assets and operations to a corporate.

They have threatened to veto a preliminary move as a protest against plans to later bring in outside shareholders.

In the case of Wrightson and the nation's biggest meat processor, Silver Fern, the proposal is for each to have four directors in the new hybrid Silver Fern.

The Wrightson directors will take their seats through the 50 per cent stake the rural services company wants to buy for $220 million. Much of the money will go for repayment of debt.