HBT - Farming Outlook August 2020

FARMING

OUTLOOK

AUGUST 2020

Hawke’s Bay well placed in this environment P3 Hoof and Hook coming to Hawke’s Bay P8 Are you listening? Chief Executive Hort NZ Mike Chapman P13 Rural Advisory Group broadens drought relief fund criteria P14

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Are your dairy calves getting the best start?

By Kathryn Sigvertsen BSc, BVSc, Vet Services Hawke’s Bay

C

olostrum is the valuable first milk from the cow developed over the dry period. It is absolutely critical that calves receive colostrum to provide passive immunity, as they are unable to produce their own immunity until they are 3-4 weeks of age. Without colostrum, calves are open to any and all diseases that may come their way, are more likely to grow slowly, and are more likely to die prematurely.

By testing them of course! Blood tests done on farm are an excellent indicator of how well your protocols are working. This involves taking samples from 12 healthy calves, between 24 hours and 7 days of age.

If all the results are in the desired range, your calves are off to a great start. If the bloods show failure of passive transfer (FPT), we can work out a plan with you to improve the systems and test new calves the next week to see how the improvements are working.

There are three key points that ensure adequate transfer of immunity through colostrum:

If you are pretty sure you are doing everything right, getting some bloods done will show how well you really are doing.

1) Quantity – a calf must receive 10-15% of their bodyweight in colostrum 2) Quickly – the ability to absorb antibodies from that colostrum (vital for immunity) drops rapidly to zero absorption by 24 hours from birth

If you are selling young calves for others to rear, having proof of colostrum feeding and passive transfer of immunity will be a great endorsement to your farming practices and can offer a point of difference that will be valuable for the buyer. If you happen to be the buyer, requesting results of this sort of test will prove that the seller is doing the best for those calves.

3) Quality – testing colostrum for its quality is quick and easy with a Brix refractometer, and is done at the point of first milking.

Brix readings over 22% are considered adequate. Many factors contribute to quality, including cleanliness.But even if you are doing all these things, how do you know the calves are actually getting enough immunity?

Contact your vet to arrange for blood testing to be done and improve your calf health this season!

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Hawke’s Bay well placed in this environment

By Susan Kilsby ANZ Agriculture Economist

C

autious optimism is spreading through the Hawke’s Bay now that rain has fallen and lockdown conditions have been relaxed.

Hawke’s Bay is well positioned to take advantage of recent government support for the primary sector to transform into a higher value producer.

The value of water storage has been recognised by the government to drive higher and more consistent returns, with policy changes supporting the growth of horticulture and arable production more than pasture-based production systems.

Plus the need for further investment in water storage is well recognised locally.

While the region is greening up again, most farms are still low on feed as pasture remains short with feed requirements rising for lambing. Any feed purchased in autumn has been consumed and supplementary feed stocks are virtually non-existent. Mother Nature needs to be kind this spring.

The apple and pear harvest coincided with the trying conditions of Level-4 lockdown, but the fruit was picked and good volumes were exported early in the season. The subdued global market has impacted the pricing of some varieties of apples, but other markets remain

strong including China, where there is heightened demand for healthy foods.

Global economic conditions are challenging for all sectors with consumers more conservative about spending. This is having the greatest impact on the higher value products typically consumed in restaurants.

We have seen sharp falls with in-market prices for venison and lamb french racks, while prices for lower value products are holding up better. Beef continues trading above its 5-yr average supported by a tight supply of protein globally.

Internationally, several meat processing plants have been closed temporarily due to outbreaks of Covid-19 contributing to the reduced global supply of beef.

Pork remains in short supply too because African Swine Flu has significantly reduced the number of pigs being farmed in China.

Both of these scenarios support beef prices and provide opportunities for NZ beef.

The numerous outbreaks of Covid-19 in meat plants overseas are also causing some consumers to question the

safety of the products from these plants.

China has started testing food imports for Covid-19 as a way to counter concerns the coronavirus could potentially be spread through food. There is no scientific evidence backing this up.

Sheep and cattle prices are currently underpinned by limited supply, and we haven’t seen winter margins lift as much as they normally would at this time of the year. Prices are expected to ease further as supply increases again later in the season.

Returns for sheep and cattle have certainly come off recent highs, but in most cases are trading within 10% of the 5-year average.

The NZ dollar remains persistently strong and we anticipate the Kiwi will continue to trade near US$0.65 for the remainder of the year, which is tempering returns back to producers.

Despite numerous global risks, food producing regions like the Hawke’s Bay are well placed in this environment.

And while the ongoing economic impact of the drought continues to drag on the local economy, opportunities will present themselves for companies able to be nimble. .

Susan Kilsby

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4

FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Altogether East Coast team player

T

ony Rasmussen has a passion for the land and rural real estate which results in some excellent sales outcomes for the high achieving Bayleys Hawke’s Bay country salesman.

Born and bred on a Wairarapa sheep and beef farm Tony has never lost his passion for farming. Initially he gained a BAgr from Massey University majoring in rural valuation.

He probably never realised that this would stand him in good stead later on in his career. He went on to spend five years in the stock and station industry and then moved into rural banking for ten years. This thorough grounding in all things rural has given him a deep understanding of horticulture, farming, finances and what drives the rural property market.

After twelve years in rural real estate on the East Coast, five of them in Hawke’s Bay, Tony knows what it takes to maximise the value of his clients assets. In addition his knowledge, networks in the industry coupled with his background and relationship skills ensure he gets excellent results. He has been placed in the top 5% of Bayleys agents nationwide three times since 2013.

Tony has been approached by other real estate companies but knows no

other can match the reach that Bayleys does and the Bayleys Country team has a genuine work ethic. The team of eight, combined with the Bayleys brand and its reach, provide their vendors with maximum exposure that reflects in very good sales prices. The rural agents in Hawke’s Bay cover the area from Wairoa to Dannevirke.

A recent acquisition of Tony’s, in addition to his drone and video services, is a five seater, 1000cc Honda motorbike for comprehensive farm inspections. He has all the tools of the trade to ensure inspections are carried out safely and thoroughly.

“I focus on promoting properties with excellent photography, aerial footage, and superior marketing.”

“My aim is to maximise the value of my vendors rural properties. To do this I believe in exposing the property to a wide range of purchasers nationally and internationally,” Tony says. “I will find you the best buyer.”

After 27 years in the industry he still enjoys the people he deals with and also enjoys the opportunity to appreciate our beautiful rural properties.

Testimonials: “He put in long hours. His people and communication skills were excellent.”

Adrian Heays, Sarah Strawbridge and Annette Heays.

“Throughout the sales campaign Tony’s commitment shone through, nothing was too much to ask, his rural work ethic and attitude came to the fore.

He has a very communicable and easy-going personality which made the interactions between us and the prospective purchasers free flowing.”

John Poulton.

“I found him very approachable and enjoyable to work with. To sum him up he is simply just a good all-round guy, and right from the word go I felt I could trust him completely.”

Barry Newall.

Watch Tony on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=W0SoMeIN7YE www.bayleys.co.nztony-rasmussen

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Heyhoe your local custom engineering experts

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poles, making tandoori plates and repair work. The manufacturing team are very skilled, flexible and can handle anything from small to large projects.

The name Heyhoe, is synonymous to many, with gates and fences but they also undertake a huge range of custom work mainly using steel and aluminium.

But the main point of difference is that all their work is custom made which suits Hawke’s Bay residents who still prefer to receive personal service from a locally based business. Pippa and Will enjoy people popping into the office to discuss their requirements, and with their exceptional team behind them, projects are made easy.

eyhoe Engineering, owned and managed by Pippa and William Kitchin, have served the people of Hawke’s Bay with custom engineering for 22 years. They have a solid performance history and are totally dedicated to their work. Their designs encompass the traditional and the functional through to the contemporary.

A stroll around their large workshop in Omahu Road reveals the extent of the work they undertake besides gates and fences: fire guards, staircases, decorative work, and structural steel for domestic and commercial buildings.

They are also happy to do the smaller jobs like mending chandeliers, tent

Their steel or aluminium open style barred fencing can be powder coated to any colour and can be raked, tapered or

curved to suit a client’s landscape. They also offer advice on design and materials depending on the finish required. There’s a no obligation quote policy and the team take pride in their competitive pricing and quality.

The list of clients is impressive with dozens of schools being customers such as Hastings Girls High School and Lindisfarne School which had fencing and automatic gate work completed.

Other work includes gates for Craggy Range, fencing and gates for Windsor Park and fencing of the Hawke’s Bay Sports Park.

Covid naturally disrupted business although they still received orders and have realised that since then more people are turning to order products online.

While the Heyhoe web site offers plenty of visual information, they have developed Grand Gates which is another online presence that they offer for those more internet savvy. Grand Gates is relatively easy and guides users through each step to specify their ideal gate- design, height, posts etc. It then calculates the cost. It can be accessed at grandgatesnz.co.nz.

Please feel welcome to call in to the showroom to discuss your ideas and requirements.

We specialise in driveway/pedestrian gates, manual or automated, boundary/pool and security fencing, balustrades, commercial or residential jobs.

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Hoof & Hook coming to Hawke’s Bay

M

oving into its 15th year in 2021, Future Beef New Zealand (FBNZ) was established to encourage and promote youth involvement and interest in the Beef industry through the Hoof & Hook Competition, which is coming to Hawke’s Bay in May 2021.

Event Manager Isabelle Crawshaw says the move to the Hawke’s Bay Showgrounds in Hastings was an easy and exciting decision. It’s to be more central for competitors, stock and to be surrounded by an agri-hub of organisations that can be utilised to come in and run modules for the competitors.

FBNZ is a youth programme aimed at 8 – 24 year olds from all walks of life.

The main Hoof & Hook Competition is a weekend long event where competitors from across the country come together to compete in stock judging, handlers modules and the highly sought after Allflex NZ Ambassadorship. Prior to arriving at the weekend, competitors have spent time halter training steers that they lead around the show ring for judging on the hoof, and are then sent away to be judged on the hook.

The purpose of the competition is to ignite interest and passion in the beef industry, as well as educating youth from across NZ about not only the beef industry but the wider food and fibre industry as well. FBNZ aim to promote the vast range of different career pathways

Callum Woodhouse.

Cara Doggett, 2019,Allflex Senior Ambassador.

that are available within the sector, and provide an opportunity for youth to network and mingle alongside industry representatives and their peers.

The Intermediate and Senior Allflex Ambassador award is also competed for throughout the weekend which sees an Intermediate Ambassador win a trip around NZ to attend or visit something within the industry, and a Senior Ambassador win a trip overseas where

they might visit some farms or attend another competition and represent FBNZ. These highly contested awards involve an interview, an essay, a public speaking engagement and mentoring points. Points are then accumulated for all the modules completed. Over the years the successful Ambassadors have gone on to achieve amazing things within the industry and all give back to the competition as volunteers in some capacity.

Future Beef New Zealand and the Hoof & Hook Competition is about inspiring youth and the future leaders of the industry and wouldn’t be possible without a dedicated volunteer committee, passionate trustees and an extremely supportive family of sponsors.

The 2021 Future Beef NZ Beef + Lamb Hoof & Hook Competition is being held at the Tomoana Showgrounds Hawke’s Bay from the 7th – 9th of May.

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Their seat at the table: a new generation of local farming women

s the Agri-Women’s Development Trust celebrates its 10th anniversary, local facilitator Coral Buddo looks back on a decade of progress for farming women.

Year after year I’ve watched them change. As a programme facilitator for the Agri-Women’s Development Trust (AWDT), I have the privilege of seeing

a generation of Hawke’s Bay farming women come into their own.

Participating in my first AWDT programme in 2013, it’s fair to say my story was typical at the time. It had taken the kids leaving home for me to find the time and motivation to ask hard questions about myself and recognise the value I brought to the farm.

My first AWDT programme was a turning point in my life – it helped me refocus on myself and start a new journey in facilitation, driven by my goals and values.

The farming woman I coach today arrives at the programme at a very different part of her journey. She is younger and eager to answer those same hard questions about herself. She wants to understand the business of farming and be an active team member. She is more independent and backs herself. She might not have all the answers, but she knows how to find them and is open to doing things differently. She networks with likeminded women, not just for friendship, but to collaborate for positive impact (the ‘Hawke’s Bay Drought’ Facebook page and ‘Community Hug’ initiatives being wonderful examples). She might see a governance position in the distance and is marking out the steps to get there.

While most of the farming women I coach still arrive with nerves and a desire for more confidence, I can’t help but be excited for them and their farming future.

This generation of farming women are earning their seat at the table at a time when our industry needs their perspective, skillset and leadership

style. The future of farming lies in deep consensus-building and collaboration.

The big challenges ahead – like building provenance brands, reconnecting urban and rural Kiwis, navigating succession or telling the farming story – all depend on empathy and a desire to listen. Precisely the kind of skills I see local farming women bring to our programmes.

The recent KPMG Agribusiness Agenda is a case-in-point. The industry priorities cited by women emphasised “the connections between our communities, attracting and developing talented people and doing more to protect our land and water. It reflects a growing belief that placing purpose, people and planet on an equal footing to profit is becoming a necessity in building a longterm, sustainable industry.”

That’s a big goal and it’s my privilege to support Kiwi farming women to make it a reality.

Upcoming AWDT programmes in the Hawke’s Bay include Understanding Your Farming Business (Napier from Sept 23, Waipawa from Sept 24) and Future Focus. Programmes are free or subsidised by The Red Meat Profit Partnership. For more information visit www.awdt.org.nz..

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FARMING OUTLOOK

11

AUGUST 2020

Power Farming win prestigious award

L

arge scale conversion of sheep and beef farms to forestry as a result of the Zero Carbon Bill will have a significant negative impact on rural New Zealand, according to research released by Beef + Lamb New Zealand.

It’s been a challenging year for all.

However Power Farming Hawke’s Bay personnel were able to relax and celebrate recently as just before lockdown they were awarded the Power Farming Dealership of the Year trophy for 2019. It’s only since New Zealand returned to work that they have been able to share their good news.

Dealer Principal and co-owner Aaron White along with Sales Manager and coowner Ben Munford say it is a prestigious award and they were number one out of 17 dealerships in the country. They received the award for high performance in all key areas. They have a loyal team of eighteen hardworking staff.

Ben has been with Power Farming for five years and Aaron has been there for four. Both of them are passionate about Hawke’s Bay and their contribution to helping farmers and growers with tractors and machinery.

Towards the end of last year, Aaron and Ben went into joint ownership along with Geoff Maber – founder of the Power Farming group.

During lockdown there were a couple of teams working, although the retail side was closed down and the remainder of staff worked from home.

They still managed to sell a fair bit of equipment, including several orders of essential feedout gear to customers who were affected by the drought.

After Covid restrictions eased, all 18 staff were kept on and Aaron can confidently say there is no sign of the business going backwards in Hawke’s Bay. In fact, during July tractor sales exceeded expectations and as spring approaches they’re anticipating a busy spring drill season to re-grass after the drought.

“We sell from 26hp to 620hp tractors and everything to go on the back.”

Ben and Aaron headed to Canterbury a few weeks’ ago with clients to look at some machinery, tour several farms, and enjoy some sociable time. It was a great success.

Many farmers are taking advantage of the competitive interest rates Power Farming have to offer right now.

It’s important, though, that while they plan to expand that they still retain their high level of personal service.

“We’re always looking for new products that may help our customers.”Technology brings with it advances in products and

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Power Farming Hawke’s Bay are proud to sponsor many community events and organisations such as the Drought Shout at Tuna Nui station Sherenden, dog

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FARMING OUTLOOK

12

AUGUST 2020

Two dry years

By Georgina Griffiths - Meteorologist MetService

P

ersistent highs on the New Zealand weather map were a feature of 2019, and unfortunately have once again dominated our weather patterns so far in 2020. The only difference between the two years has been the primary location of the Highs. Last year, the Highs favoured the location west of, and over, the North Island (meaning westerlies for Hawkes Bay). This year, the Highs have favoured the region over, and to the east of, the North Island.

These persistent Highs have effectively blocked many of the rain makers from moving across New Zealand. Rainfall in the Hawkes Bay is only around half of what it should be, so far this year (56% of year-to-date normal, as at 13 August).

This is very similar to the very low accumulation seen at this time, last year (Figure 1).

EXTREMELY DRY JANUARY – AUGUST PERIOD To put the extended dryness of 2020 into context, let’s look at the driest January to August periods on record for Napier: 1983 : 293 mm 2020 (data 311 mm

only

2015 : 332 mm

until

13 August):

Depending on what rainfall is recorded at Napier for the remainder of August, it is possible that the January to August 2020 period ranks in the driest handful of years there.

However, as always, you should keep to date with the MetService long-range

forecast at http://metservice.com/rural/ monthly-outlook.Caption.

Looking ahead: SPRING There is a reasonable chance (60%) that La Nina develops in the tropical Pacific Ocean during spring. However, even if La Nina forms, any impacts for New Zealand are likely to remain minimal during spring. The most important factors that will influence our spring regime will be: • whether our persistent Highs hang around versus • whether the spring westerlies really wind up.

At the current time, MetService is monitoring a very strong signal for continued higher-than-normal pressure in the New Zealand region during spring.

What this will likely mean, in practice, is a mixture of both intense/intermittent Highs and some good old fashioned spring westerlies, for Hawkes Bay. In other words, the current forecast for Hawkes Bay is for a drier than normal spring.

Figure 2: Napier Airport annual rainfall accumulation (mm) for the last seven years (2014 to 2020-so-far). The annual average rainfall accumulation is shown in black.As at 13 August 2020, the year-to-date rainfall for Napier was sitting at only 56% of year-to-date normal. This is almost identical to the year-to-date accumulation seen in 2019 at the same time of year.

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

13

Are you listening?

By Mike Chapman, Chief Executive - Hort NZ

T

he different world we now live in requires us all to learn new skills.

It requires us to interpret what is happening in new and different ways. It requires us to listen to signals about the future in a way we have never done before. This is because what worked preCovid will not work post-Covid. Those that can adapt and change will survive

in the new world while those that are fixed in their pre-Covid ways will not.

New Zealand is in an “Indian Summer” phase at the moment. The first blast of Covid has gone but the next is coming.

Whether that be a resurgence of Covid illness or not, the real blast that is coming is the new world for our economy and lives. We are in many respects in a surreal existence at present, which will likely continue until after the election. It is after the election that the country will come out of the eye of the storm, and the going will get really tough.

So what we need to do while we are in the surreal “Indian Summer” phase of Covid is prepare for the next blast. We need to listen to signals of the future.

Healthy locally grown food will become even more important than it was before.

Planning for food security is a vital priority. New Zealand needs to plan so that it is self-sufficient with food supply, particularly with healthy food supply.

Mike Chapman

We need to have our immune systems at an optimum level. So, it was very pleasing and great news for the country on 5 August when the Government recognised the vegetable growing areas around Pukekohe and Levin in its freshwater reform decisions.

These areas are two of our key vegetable growing areas, which are thankfully spread around the country. The Government has recognised that we need fresh locally grown vegetables and, if we lost Pukekohe and Levin as growing areas, that New Zealand would not be self-sufficient in feeding the country healthy food.

But at the same time, the Government will continue in both Pukekohe and Levin to requite water quality improvements. It is very much a case of we can “have our cake and eat it too”. The balance will not be easy between vegetable growing and improving water quality, but we can do it.

The other key feature of this decision by the Government is recognition that the outcomes of healthy food and improving water quality are in fact, a partnership between central and regional Government, and growers. This decision listens to the winds of the future and understands that the only way real environmental gains can be achieved is by working with those on the land.

This new approach is very much a change from the heavy-handed regulatory approaches of pre-Covid days. Through audited Farm Environment Plans, our growers’ and farmers’ multi-generational

stewardship of the land will be further enabled, and environmental improvements will continue. Going forward, we need to continue moving to fewer regulations and more outcome-based programmes, which give ownership to those who can make the real differences: those on the land.

There is, however, one other area where the Government needs to be listening.

The winds of the future will require flexible immigration and working visa arrangements that enable New Zealand to feed itself and earn valuable overseas funds.

While we are in the lead up to the general election, this work will need to be undertaken, or we will not be ready for the next Covid blast. The Government has listened to the winds of the future with water quality and healthy locally grown food. It now needs to listen to the winds of the future with our workforce.

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FARMING OUTLOOK AUGUST 2020

Rural Advisory Group broadens drought relief fund criteria

he Hawke’s Bay Rural Advisory Group has broadened the eligibility criteria of the regional drought relief fund to support more farmers.

Lochie MacGillivray, co-chair of the Rural Advisory Group, says the fund was set up in response to one of the most complicated and prolonged droughts in living memory and to support the cost of transporting feed to farms.

“We are pleased the criteria has been expanded to assist more farming families who were impacted by the drought. We’ve increased individual grants and will be able to help those farmers who brought supplementary feed early. While the meteorological drought is over, it has been a long, and tough few months, and we hope this is seen as a welcome boost.”

hectares, and $3,000 (up from $1,350) for properties greater than 150 hectares.

Farmers are now eligible for a one off grant of $1,000 (up from $400) for properties between 20 and 150

Farmers can also claim for funding assistance if they transported stock to properties outside of Hawke’s Bay for grazing purposes and then back on farm, and the cost of transport will be covered for farmers who have received donated feed. Farmers will though, only be able to make one claim for either the cost of transporting feed or stock.

Farmers can now claim funding from March 12, 2020 when the Ministry for Primary Industries declared the drought an adverse event. This allows those who had bought feed in early to obtain the financial support.

The Rural Advisory Group will top up the individual grants of farmers who have already applied for the fund to match the levels under the new criteria, and they will receive notification by email.

“When we set up the fund in May this year, we wanted to make sure that we could support as many people as possible, and so made the criteria a little tighter than we needed to,” said Mr MacGillivray.

There is just over $481,000 remaining in the fund. Farmers have until September 30 this year to apply for a grant. If farmers have already applied for the fund, they can not apply again.

The fund secured $1 million from the Ministry for Primary Industries, Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Central Hawke’s Bay District Council, Centralines, and Hastings District Council. A Give a Little campaign has so far raised $15,000 that will also contribute to the fund.

To apply for the fund, go to the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council website and search #droughtrelief.

The group revised the fund criteria after a lower than expected uptake by farmers.

Stock feed from Wairarapa is unloaded in Hawke’s Bay on May 16.

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