Ashburton Guardian | Guardian Farming | June 30, 2020 by Ashburton Guardian

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Dairy Focus

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

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Farming GUARDIAN

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

TINY CO-OP

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A match made in heaven

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FARMERS TO BE HIT WITH NITROGEN CAP

o-operatives and New Zealand agriculture make a great match, it seems. While farmers are an independent bunch and like to make their own decisions, as individuals outside the farm gate they can make weak buyers and sellers. So it makes sense for farmers to join forces to get the best deal when processing produce, or buying farm inputs. A 2017 report showed that the co-operative economy is woven into the everyday lives of New Zealanders. Foodstuffs, Southern Cross Healthcare and New Zealand’s largest company Fonterra are household names. Others in the rural sector are Ravensdown, Alliance Group and Farmlands. Not surprisingly, given agriculture’s importance to the economy, agri-food cooperatives made up the biggest proportion of the country’s co-operative economy, worth 65 per cent of revenue and nearly 83 per cent of employment. New Zealand’s agri-food, retail and wholesale co-operative economy is worth twice as much as the global standard and three times that of Australia’s. However, like any business, being a cooperative does not guarantee success. Capital raising is a particular sticking point, with shareholders generally unable or unwilling to provide the extra funds needed when a co-operative is struggling financially. In 2016, Chinese company Shanghai Maling acquired a 50 per cent interest in meat processor and farmer co-operative Silver Fern

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Heather Chalmers

RURAL REPORTER

Farms as a way for it to strengthen its balance sheet and invest in its business. Staying independent from the mega-merger of dairy co-ops that formed Fonterra in 2001, Westland Milk Products’ shareholders eventually sold to Chinese company Yili, last year. Westland had been looking for outside capital after struggling to be profitable or to offer a competitive payout to its shareholdersuppliers. Fonterra has also wrestled for years with the question of how to raise capital, while retaining its co-operative structure. When well run, a co-operative can be a wonderful thing, enabling its shareholders to share the benefits and profits, rather than these being siphoned to an outside party. Co-operatives can also take a longer-term view and focus on social responsibility and sustainability. This issue features a profile on Ruralco, the Ashburton-based rural supplies co-operative which has resisted the trend to merge and remains a successful standalone business, albeit a small one.

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Punching above its weight A

Retiring Ruralco chairman Alister Body says its decision to develop online trading, rather than expand with bricks and mortar stores, is proving a winning one, with the co-operative extending its membership nationPHOTO SUPPLIED wide.

shburton-based rural supplies co-operative Ruralco may be tiny compared with its competitors, but it punches above its weight. While other similar provincial rural supplies co-operatives have merged over the years, Ruralco (formerly ATS) is the exception, remaining steadfastly standalone. Ruralco’s decision to develop online trading, rather than expand with bricks and mortar stores, is proving a winning one, with the co-operative extending its membership nationwide. Retiring Ruralco chairman Alister Body said that when many of the mergers were taking place in the past, it decided there was little benefit for its members in doing the same. “We have always been a strong business and still are. We are tremendously well placed with no term debt at present and a vibrant growing co-operative, albeit a small one.” With almost 3000 shareholders and three stores, Ruralco’s turnover for the 2019 financial year was $238.5 million. This is dwarfed by its national rival Farmlands Co-operative Society which transacts more than $2.5 billion worth of business annually and is listed in the top 20 companies by turnover in New Zealand. It has more than 70,000 shareholders and 82 stores nationally. While Ruralco lacked the size of Farmlands and Fonterra’s Farm Source, it was big enough to offer economies of scale, Body said. The business has always been very focused on being competitive and most of its pricing was “remarkably sharp” which was testament to its management under chief executive Rob Sharkie, Body said. Other rural suppliers had strategies around bricks and mortar and having a store in every town, but Ruralco had sought to expand its business in other ways. “We put a fair bit of time, effort and investment into our online store for farm supplies

Heather Chalmers

RURAL REPORTER

and we are getting a payback on that now, particularly during the Covid-19 lockdown. “Even though Ruralco is Mid Canterbury-based, its focus is national. Our webstore allows us to do that and we have shareholders throughout the country.” Its only stores are all in Mid Canterbury – Ashburton, Methven and Rakaia. “We tended to be an effective co-operative in Mid Canterbury, but when you start looking

“

Even though Ruralco is Mid Canterburybased, its focus is national. Our webstore allows us to do that and we have shareholders throughout the country

strategically at what the future may bring you do need a certain size and the way to do that is to look outside the province and what other business we can do. “It made no sense for someone in Taranaki to be a member when they had no ability to interface with us. Now they can.” Ruralco was originally a separate business to ATS, a joint venture with Ravensdown on the card business. continued over page

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Ruralco’s popular Instore Days, being held July 2 to 8, have had to go online this year.

From P3 However, a change of direction by Ravensdown meant this was sold back to ATS two years later. As part of the strategy to look nationally, it was decided that Ruralco was a good name for the whole business and it was rebranded in 2017. A director of Ruralco since 2011 and chairman for the past two-and-a-half years, Body stands down from the board at the end of June. He is being replaced as chairman by Mid Canterbury

dairy farmer, director and 2017 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year Jessie Chan-Dorman. As a rural supplies business, Ruralco’s fortunes followed the fortunes of farming, Body said. “The trick is to still have a good year, even when sales are down.” Co-operatives were a natural fit with the primary sector, particularly where producers could be weak sellers. By banding together, farmers could also gain market clout on retail purchases. When the Ashburton Trading

Society (ATS) was first formed in 1963 by farmers it was a market disrupter and innovator, Body said. “There was quite a tide at that time of buying groups starting up around the country, providing competition to the traditional stock and station agencies. “It started purely as a buying group which said to retailers: ‘you give our members a discount, we’ll point them in your direction and we will pay you religiously on the 20th of the month’.

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“So we do have a strong relationship with a growing network of suppliers who accept our card. “They are an integral part of the co-operative. So it is not just the retail stores. “I enjoy working with people to create great business and that is something I’ve been able to do at Ruralco.” The board, management and staff had a good working relationship, with staff ’s “willingness to go the extra mile to service members”, particularly

evident during the lockdown, Body said. Highlights during his tenure include the rebranding to Ruralco, development of its online retail store and the increasing popularity of its Instore Days. Last year’s 25th anniversary of Instore Days resulted in record revenue achieved, greater attendance and increased turnover. Due to Covid-19, Ruralco will run an online event this year from July 2 to 8.

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Body: It’s all about timing By Heather Chalmers

armers can adapt to new environmental regulations if they are given adequate time to implement them, says former DairyNZ director Alister Body. “New Zealand farmers are particularly innovative and, if you give them the opportunity, they can change and remain profitable. That is where the challenge is, making sure the regulations are based on science and are achievable. Farmers also need to be given a good length of time to adapt their businesses. “Changes imposed under a limited timeframe are the biggest challenge. “I’d like to think that commonsense will prevail. But something always comes out of left field when government gets involved,” Body said. Farmers face an increasing raft of environment regulations being imposed by central and regional government, including tighter standards for freshwater, greenhouse gas emissions and nitrogen loss. A third-generation farmer, Body’s grandfather moved to Methven in 1925. “My great-grandfather emigrated and worked as a livestock manager for John Grigg at Longbeach Estate before buying a small block at Huntingdon, near Lake Hood.” The Methven property, Midfield, was initially a mixed cropping farm before converting to dairy in 1981. “At 106 hectares, we were a small block, so needed something to facilitate me being able to go farming. It was the early days of dairy conversion. We were a bit unusual in that we had always had a few dairy cows, sending cream to Midland Dairy in Ashburton, as well as growing crops.” Development included flood irrigation and tree planting, both of which were eventually removed to install more waterefficient centre pivot irrigation. It was a wrench to remove the trees which had been planted by

Former DairyNZ director Alister Body has sold his Methven dairy farm.

family and farm staff. “It was one of the hardest things I had to do as I loved trees and creating a nice environment to live and farm in.” Leased land next door was eventually purchased, lifting the farm size to 184ha, milking 600 cows, predominantly jersey. The dairy ties have now been cut with Body and his wife Janine Peters, a graphic designer and typographer, selling the farm on June 1. They are now enjoying being close to family and friends in the Tasman district. Body said he was taking time out to look at business opportunities and openings in the governance area. Taking on leadership roles from a young age, Body progressed through NZ Young Farmers to become the national president in his late 20s. “I have always enjoyed governance.”

For 12 years until 2017 he was director on the dairy industry good organisation now known as DairyNZ. He also chaired the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards Trust which runs the successful dairy awards programme aimed at inspiring growth and leadership within the industry and at all levels from dairy trainees through to equity owners. Body chaired the dairy environment leadership group DELG, responsible for governance of the Sustainable Dairy:Water Accord, which led to virtually all dairy streams being fenced and culverted and significant adoption of nutrient budgeting and nutrient management plans. “It was an industry first for primary production in New Zealand and it was voluntary.

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“If you get everyone in the same room and decide on a plan that is what you can achieve.” There was a huge willingness within the primary sector to work with government on improving environmental outcomes, he said. “I don’t think you will find anyone arguing that we don’t need to look after our environment and farm sustainably for the future. All farmers and consumers want that. That is not up for debate; it’s about how you go about doing it. There are a lot of different ways it can be achieved.” Huge environmental gains had been made, particularly in the last decade. “If you think that once every freezing works, dairy factory, wool scour or piggery was on a creek or a river. “For people to say the environment is worse now than

the 1950s or 60s is completely wrong as virtually all point source pollution has been eliminated.” The big challenge now, particularly in Canterbury, was nutrient leaching from urine patches. Farmers were not being recognised for the improvements they had made and continued to make. “Some of it sits with the producers themselves; they need to tell their story and continually point out what gains they have made and the innovation that is out there.” This includes precision agriculture, treatment of dairy effluent, proof of placement of fertiliser and variable rate irrigation. “We need to continually tell the public our story and what we are doing. We shouldn’t expect people to somehow know this,” Body said.

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Alarmist views add nothing to debate I

â&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve read with interest this past week some claims made by Forest and Bird about water quality and health risks that in my view are nothing more than scaremongering and add nothing to an informed, rational debate around water quality and offer nothing constructive to positive outcomes for the environment. The comments were in response to the removal, albeit possibly temporary, of a national bottomline of 1mg/l for Dissolved Inorganic Nitrogen (DIN) in all waterways from the essential freshwater legislation. Several health claims were made and reference given to a muchdebated Danish study. The claims made were alarmist at best. So, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unpack this a little bit to give some context on what Forest and Bird are actually calling for. Firstly, it is best to give regard to the global advice of the World Health Organisation whose standards are implemented by governments across the world in setting health standards. The WHO has recommended a maximum nitrate content in drinking water of 11.3mg/l. It is of note that this figure is not recorded to have been exceeded anywhere in Canterbury during 2020.

David Clark

President of MC Federated Farmers

Environment Canterbury has set a very precautionary standard of 6.9mg/l for drinking water in our region and it is that standard that now forms the targets for the Canterbury Land and Water Regional Plan. A nitrate level of 6.9mg/l equates to a DIN of about 6mg/l. There is no doubt that the agricultural sector has work to do to reduce nitrate loss in some catchments to achieve that target. Those requirements are clearly set out in the Canterbury Land and Water Regional Plan and the use of Overseer as a predictive model and the implementation of Farm Environment Plans are key parts of measuring impact and informing management technic and farm system changes to achieve the required targets. The farming community is fully on board with these plans, is making good progress in achieving these goals and, in

many cases, are ahead of target. Community schemes such as Managed Aquifer Recharge are a key part of the solution. In some respects, the advancements in water use efficiency have amplified the problem as historically the borderdyke schemes lost so much water to leaching, any nitrate was diluted and washed away. Modern, highly efficient centre pivots now result in very little irrigation water being lost to groundwater. Forest and Bird seems to believe the Government decision to not include a DIN of 1mg/l was wrong. A national bottomline of 1mg/l on all waterways in New Zealand would be a blunt tool and in my opinion ineffective. The large alpine-fed rivers, such as the Rakaia and the Rangitata, have DIN levels of 0.2-0.4mg/l, so all of us would agree that a DIN of 1mg/l for a large flow river such as the Rakaia, or rivers on the West Coast of much of the North Island, would be totally inappropriate and would represent significant degradation. It becomes difficult for lowland streams and small-flow rivers and tributaries running through

fertile plains. Hinds River, for example, has a DIN of about 6mg/l as do many of the small streams on our eastern coast in Canterbury. So, what effect would a DIN of 1mg/l have on these rivers and why would farmers be opposed to such a standard? Simply put, it is a tough ask for us to be expected to be better than nature. We have water tests on farms from along the foothills, where spring water enters the farm from Department of Conservation land, with no agricultural activity upstream whatsoever that record a DIN level of 3.2mg/l. So, what is the impact for the farming sector and the community as a whole of a DIN level of 1mg/l? ECan prepared a report looking at the impact of a similar target for the Selwyn Te Waihora catchment in 2017 and concluded that to achieve such a level, land use in the whole zone would have to revert to dryland sheep grazing and that many farm businesses would be bankrupted. The report also observed that economic activity across the district would drop significantly. What does that look like for the Ashburton District? Those

of you who have lived here for 50-60 years would remember Ashburton under a sheep and crop farming system and very few would remember Ashburton pre-irrigation. Setting us on a 10 to 20year pathway to dryland sheep grazing would have a dramatic impact on the employment opportunities, economic activity and social wellbeing of this district. Along with bankrupted farms, many businesses would face a very bleak future. However, it would appear that this is the ambition that Forest and Bird has for our district. It is my view that setting completely unachievable targets or bottom lines have the result of achieving absolutely nothing, or, worse still, halt what progress was being made. Farmers in this district have a tough set of targets ahead of us, that is to meet groundwater standards across the district of half the recommended level of the WHO. We are fully engaged in achieving this, are investing in the best technology and infrastructure available and employing the best available management techniques, while also keeping the lights on in Ashburton.

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FEATURE

Boost should ensure warmer homes L

ow-income families and pensioners will receive a major boost in weekly payments under the Government’s $12.1 billion spending package to support those impacted by Covid-19. The package includes a $2.8b income support package, increased benefits and the doubling of the winter energy payment. The winter energy payment is an established way for the Government to support those who are the most vulnerable to crisis – for example seniors or low-income families. And, as we head into winter and people spend more time at home, this should ease the burden when it comes to heating homes and cooking. The measure is also intended to free up hospital resources for supporting Covid-19 patients if needed. Finance Minister Grant Robertson said there was no bargaining when it came to ensuring people had warm homes during the winter months. “The winter energy payment supports our elderly and I make no apologies for making sure that it will be easier for our elderly to heat their homes this winter,” he said.

Left – The winter energy payment will give our most vulnerable New Zealanders a better chance of staying warm this winter.

is an extra payment to help with the cost of heating your home over the winter months. People who are eligible for the winter energy payment receive their payment automatically along with the rest of their regular payment from Work and Income NZ. People who are eligible include those who receive the NZ Superannuation, Veteran’s Pension, Jobseeker Support, Sole Parent Support, Emergency Benefit and more.

“It also reaches other low income New Zealanders.” The package includes a oneoff doubling of winter energy payment to $1400 for couples and $900 for singles, likely to affect 850,000 people. It has been reported that

the winter energy payment, already provided to pensioners and people receiving welfare payments, will double to $40.91 a week for a single person and $63.64 a week for couples and families. The payments are issued

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Canterbury teens named top juniors A

Canterbury pair has outskilled 13 other teams, to take out the title of 2020 FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year. Jack Coakley and Mac Williams, pupils from St Bede’s College in Christchurch, were crowned the winners after a week’s worth of challenges. “It was an incredible result, we put a lot of hard work in this week so to come out with the result we got was an incredible feeling,” Coakley said. “It’s really rewarding to be able to compare your skills to others around the country, and prove to yourself what you can do when you put your mind to it and take your passion to the next level.” Guy von Dadelszen and Tristin Peeti-Webber from Napier Boys’ High School came in second, representing the East Coast region. Northern cousin duo Nick and Zoe Harrison from Okaihau College, were awarded third. Nicole Wakefield-Hart and Hannah White from Geraldine High School took out the FMG People’s Choice Award with their special video. Three South Island FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year regional finals and the grand final were all forced to either be cancelled, or moved online, when Government restrictions around events started coming into place in March. New Zealand Young Farmers chief executive Lynda Coppersmith said a quick decision was made to move everything online and deliver a contest for Teen Ag members, alongside the AgriKids contest for primary school children. Organising to host the event online for the first time created some new challenges to work through. “Working with two contests, 35 teams, 12 sponsors, 14 modules, as well as all the other tasks, was a huge logistical undertaking. It took a lot of things to fall into place, a lot of people to make it work and a really strict time frame,” she said.

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Left – Jack Coakley (left) and Mac Williams, pupils from St Bede’s College in Christchurch, are the 2020 FMG Junior Young Farmers PHOTO SUPPLIED of the Year.

“The events team has done the most amazing job to pull this off and I cannot thank them enough, along with our sponsor family and volunteers for all the hard work they all have put in to make both events happen and run seamlessly.” The FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year grand final started with the two teams in each region, going head-to-head creating a tumble composter from a barrel for the farmlet challenge. The lifting of alert levels and restrictions allowed

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this to go ahead, with help from Young Farmers volunteers who hosted and judged the regional challenges. Fourteen teams presented their speeches, undertook an exam and competed in a series of modules. These included soil science based modules, animal welfare, environment and farm planning, identifying risks with WorkSafe, studying the Future of Farming report and developing biosecurity plans for farms. The speech topic was based around carbon emissions and

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water quality relating to food production in New Zealand and in the innovation project, teams had to produce a business plan and five minute marketing presentation on how they would develop and diversify a 250ha property in the current Covid-19 local market. “The farmlet was pretty hard, we got a different set of equipment compared to others, but it was alright in the end, we found that very, very tough actually,” Williams said. He enjoyed the innovation

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you’d usually get to do as a teenager. They broke the 250ha farm down into 40ha of sheep milking, 170ha of lamb finishing and 15ha of market garden. “We came up with an idea of producing and selling our own meat for value add, an abattoir and our own sheep milking processes,” he said. “We learnt a lot actually, the biosecurity module made me think a bit more and I managed to use a farm that I work on as a base for it.” The pair thought the hardest part of the week was the preparation and time management. “We put so much work into it to try and make sure we got top marks for everything - that was the hardest part about it; the work we had to put in,” Coakley said. “I thought online was actually a really cool way of doing it, it was super smoothly run so we didn’t have any difficulties with any technological issues and it was different to how it was run in previous years which made it really exciting and new.” After finishing school, Williams plans to head to Massey University to study veterinary science, meanwhile Coakley wants to go to Lincoln University and was tossing up what agricultural-based degree to study. Coppersmith said nothing could replace the excitement and atmosphere of a physical contest, but it was still an exciting grand final with the face off and awards ceremony live streamed on Facebook and YouTube. “We are very thrilled we were able to reformat parts of the contest to be able to deliver some champions for 2020.”

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Award-winning crop no small beer C

entral Canterbury mixed cropping farmers Lyell and Val McMillian, of Alton Brook farm, have won this year’s Gladfield Malting Barley Shield, for a crop destined to become a key ingredient in a top-quality beer. It was awarded for a line of Tavern barley The McMillians run an extensive arable operation of over 680 hectares between Lakeside and Southbridge, growing a wide range of crops from wheat and barley through to small seeds such as radish, linseed and clover. They also breed and finish livestock all-year round. In addition to their farm manager Stu Macauley they have three other full-time workers and some seasonal staff. The shield is awarded each year to the grower who delivers the best malting barley sample for the Gladfield malting company in Central Canterbury. Dunsandel growers and maltsters Doug and Gabi Michael started Gladfield Malt about 15 years ago when they saw an opportunity to supply high quality malt into a niche market that was otherwise being supplied by multi-national giants and foreign markets. Development of their business coincided with the growth of the craft beer movement both domestically and overseas. “We like to think we have and are continuing to grow the local arable industry by creating new markets for New Zealand malting barley growers which would otherwise have been swallowed up by overseas suppliers,” Gladfield owner and operations manager Doug Michael said. Having long since outgrown its own supply, Gladfield now receives malting barley from more than 100 growers throughout the South Island, but predominantly Canterbury. Michael said the barley delivered from Alton Brook for the 2018-2019 harvest season stood out from the rest with exceptional test weights, clean

Above – Gladfield Malting Barley Shield winners are (from left), Alton Brook farm manager Stu Macauley and farm owners Val and Lyell McMillian. Presenting the award is (far right) PGG Wrightson Grain seed representative Rodger Sheet. Left – Part of the malting process carried out at Gladfield Malt, near DunPHOTOS SUPPLIED sandel.

bright colour, low nitrogen and good even germination. Another stand-out was the size of the line delivered. Alton Brook had

consistently delivered good even lines of malting barley despite some trying growing conditions over previous years, Michael said.

The 2019-2020 harvest crop which was currently being received in the maltings was looking magnificent with about one-third of the crop delivered so far. PGG Wrightson Grain trader Stuart Watt said this year’s harvest was a bumper one with few lines not meeting the quality specifications needed to make quality malt for Gladfield. PGG Wrightson Grain, who work exclusively with Gladfield managing the barley procurement, were a key partner ensuring quality and consistency. Michael said it was a great growing season last year followed by excellent warm dry harvest conditions. This has meant record yields right across the board in all the regions that Gladfield growers supply from. “It’s going to be tough

selecting a winner for the recent harvest once we have received all the barley at the end of the year, that’s for sure. “We noticed that it was the first time for a number of years where some of the new varieties stood out and showed their true ability to yield with the obvious absence of ramularia.” Ramularia is a barley fungal disease that has proved hard to suppress over recent times. The farmers needed a good harvest, Michael said. “You have a lot of unpredictable challenges and if you don’t have a win every now and then, it’s hard to survive. “Hopefully, the recent events will inspire people to get out and support local and appreciate the effort and sacrifice of all those involved from the grower right through to the shop, bar or restaurant owner.”

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Arable farming needs more airplay F

ederated Farmers Arable Industry Group’s new chairman, South Canterbury farmer Colin Hurst, is keen to lift the profile of the arable sector among consumers and fellow farmers. Hurst, the 2019 Arable Farmer of the Year, replaces Karen Williams, who is now Federated Farmers’ vice-president. As well as following his interest in science and innovation, driving improved production and a lighter environmental footprint, Hurst wanted to highlight the sector’s importance to consumers and the economy. Sales of arable production and spending generated by the industry contributed $863 million to GDP in 2018. “Most people know we produce cereal grains used in bread and a host of other staples, and all the malting barley needed by our brewers, but we also grow the pasture seeds essential to our livestock farmers, not to mention brassicas and other feed crops, and seed production for domestic and international markets,” Hurst said. The arable industry’s export receipts were forecast to hit $260 million in the financial year just

Left – Newly-elected Federated Farmers’ arable chairman Colin Hurst was awarded the 2019 Arable Farmer of the Year by Agriculture MinisPHOTO SUPPLIED ter Damien O’Connor.

ended, a 10.2 per cent increase. In her last annual report, Williams said it had been an enormous disappointment to many arable farmers that demand for arable feed had not increased in parallel with the feed demands of livestock farmers suffering

under drought conditions. “There are many reasons for this, but as an industry we will be focusing our efforts in this space in the coming year to ensure that all livestock farmers are well informed of the environmental, nutritional and economic benefits

of feeding New Zealand grain in combination with other feeds.” New Zealanders realised that in addition to meat and milk, flour, bread and baked goods were staple items in their shopping trolleys, with these under extraordinary demand during the Covid-19 lockdown. “This recognition has been a real positive for the arable industry as we seek to increase the demand for New Zealandgrown wheat products through our industry collaborative group the Arable Food Industry Council. “Market research funded by the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) has shown that many New Zealanders are prepared to pay extra for bread made from New Zealand-grown grain and we hope to respond to this demand. We will approach this in a way that ensures the domestic market continues to grow but will not compromise New Zealand’s position on the global export stage,” Williams said. Hurst has farmed at Makikihi with his family since the mid-

1980s. The 700-hectare mixed arable farm, including 250ha of irrigation, grows mostly autumn wheat, grass seed, plantain seed, radish seed, forestry, with heifer grazing, dairy wintering and beef cattle finishing. As well as serving Federated Farmers at national, regional and branch level, Hurst has put in countless hours for the South Canterbury Rural Support Trust, the Arable Industry Group’s Herbage Seedgrowers Subsection, United Wheatgrowers and the Foundation for Arable Research. He has been an advocate for farmers around the Seed Quality Management Authority table, on the Fertiliser Quality Council driving the development of a physical standard for fertiliser, and at local authority planning and hearing processes. Vice-chairs elected to the arable board were: grains, Brian Leadley; seeds, David Birkett; maize, Dion Fleming; and forage, Chris Dillon. The board also includes FAR chair Hugh Ritchie.

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Quinoa could be a Canterbury star Heather Chalmers

RURAL REPORTER

rowing of alternative grains and pulses would be more commercially viable if consumers supported New Zealand-grown over cheaper imported product, says Methven quinoa grower Andrew Currie. A new report, lists quinoa, along with soy, hemp, chickpeas, oats and buckwheat, as six “star” crops identified as having the most potential for New Zealand farmers. Currie said imported product was cheaper “and that is the case with many of these things”. It was also difficult to accurately know the size of markets. An ancient South American grain, quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) has been grown and marketed by Currie for several years. Known as a super-food, its popularity is increasing because of its nutrition-dense, gluten-free seed, which contains high levels of protein, vitamins, minerals and fibre. Currie said his quinoa was not heat treated, unlike imported product. “I would be one of the first to encourage the Ministry for Primary Industries to be much harder on letting in any imported seeds that we know we can grow ourselves. Once again we must support New Zealand-grown and made products and the country will be better off for it,” Currie said. In the Specialty Grains and Pulses Report produced by an Our Land and Water National Science Challenge research programme, Next Generation Systems, researchers looked at the opportunities presented by new and different plant crops in the grain and pulse families.

Above – Quinoa, grown by Methven arable farmer Andrew Currie, is one of six grain and pulse crops identified as having the most potential for New Zealand farmers. This is pink quinoa. Right – Quinoa is a whole grain that is rapidly growing in popularity due to its many health benefits. PHOTOS SUPPLIED

From a list of 22 possible grains and pulses, the research team narrowed their focus down to the six star crops. They noted that not only can these interesting and healthy crops be grown here, but they and other speciality crops have real potential as both raw ingredients and highervalue food ingredients and products. They also represent opportunities for farmers to create more value and diversity from their land. The goal was to expand the diversity of crops among the Leftfield grower group, on the way to an ultimate vision of 100,000 hectares of sustainable land use opportunities all over

the country. Since the report was released, Leftfield Innovation has been working on the next steps with growers, including a trial growing buckwheat in Canterbury for the Japanese market, trials with GE-free soybeans and trials and attribute testing of chickpeas. A similar project to identify opportunities for farmers in the Wairarapa was starting this year. The specialty grains and pulses research team, led by Susan Goodfellow at Leftfield Innovation, began by inviting farmers to a workshop to identify their needs. The farmers wanted help identifying sustainable land

use options that ticked three boxes: they had to fit within their current farm system, have potential to scale and a validated market. The research team gathered information on a wide range of crops and then applied six filters to assess them. This started with consumer insights to assess demand, identifying a range from food manufacturers who value local ingredients as part of their own brand stories, to a growing group of conscious consumers, who were prepared to pay more for foods that were sustainably grown in New Zealand. The researchers then looked at the grains and pulses imported

now and asked: is there an opportunity to replace these with New Zealand-grown alternatives? They looked at the risks to both biosecurity and food safety posed by importing these grains and pulses; the existing processing capability and knowledge; and environmental impact. The six crops identified as having the highest potential for New Zealand farmers were all foods for which there was strong demand from both consumers and manufacturers, as well as existing capability or strong potential for developing them into food products. They all have minimal environmental impacts, and, in some cases, environmental benefits. Goodfellow said the way these crops fit into future farms could be as part of sustainable, mixed farming systems that also include some animals. “In a way it’s harking back to the old days, where farms had a mix of plants and animals. “It’s not about plants versus animals. It’s bringing plants into animal-based systems,” Goodfellow said.

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Leasing proving a useful option Calvin Leen

PGG Wrightson Real Estate

oncluding a farm sale has proven difficult in recent months, resulting in a shift towards farmers coming forward to lease. This has been a trend for some time on sheep and beef properties, specialist irrigated vegetable production and irrigated arable farms. Recent enquiries suggest that dairy farmers are also looking at the possibility. With the current market’s low level of dairy farm sales, leasing out the farm has become a viable retirement option for those in the sector. Anyone considering offering a farm for lease can expect an enthusiastic market reception. Leases we are offering are keenly sought after. As with any other rural property market activity, early planning, careful preparation and thorough consideration of available information will

pay dividends. Ensuring prospective leaseholders have access to environmental compliance documentation, farm environment plans and a clear expectation on the duration of tenure is recommended. Specifying any land use exclusions, for example finishing two-year-old bulls, wintering dairy cows, or withdrawing the option to grow specific crop types also provides clarity to your leaseholder. Making this exercise a public

process will ensure a wide range of lease values are presented. Those seeking the lease will decide what business they can conduct on the property and table an offer on that basis. For example, with a dairy farm the value of the offer is likely to be based around the potential production per hectare, crossreferenced against a percentage of the milk cheque. Demand is strong and returns favourable. We are aware of recent rural offerings where

those seeking leases are including due diligence presentations within their applications to confirm their competence as farmers and outlining what measures they will take during the lease in order to look after the property. Clearly a symptom of a sellers’ market. Documentation needs to cover all aspects of the lease and, in particular, the intention of the leasee. Although there are several examples of how to make that work, professional advice is

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Stricter bank lending hits farm sales National farm sales are down 32 per cent, compared with the PHOTO SUPPLIED same three months last year.

ational farm sales are down 32 per cent, compared with the same three months last year, with Covid-19 and stricter bank lending being blamed for the brakes being put on deals being signed. Real Estate Institute of New Zealand rural spokesman Brian Peacocke said the drop was the result of 122 fewer farm sales for the three months to May 31 than for the corresponding period last year. Compared with the same three-months in 2018 the drop was even greater, with a massive 41.75 per cent reduction in sales. Overall, there were 258 farm sales in the three months ended May compared with 380 for the

same period in 2019. “The Covid-19 pandemic is one of the major reasons for the drop-off in activity. “But this situation has been exacerbated by the apparent restricted lending policy within the banking sector where obtaining finance for farm purchases is becoming an increasing frustration for the farming sector,” Peacocke said. “Drought conditions have continued to plague parts of the country, particularly Hawke’s Bay, whereas by comparison, reports from Southland indicate the region has experienced one of the best autumns for some time. “The very tight situation

relating to killing space in the meat processing plants has now began to ease, much to the relief of those who have been trying to move surplus animals off the farm pre-winter. “Forward signals for beef, lamb and the volatile dairy payout appear to be reasonably optimistic. Horticulture, the golden child in the agriculture sector, is going well with kiwifruit in particular looking set for record prices. “The exchange rate is solid, the Official Cash Rate is at a record low, as are interest rates albeit that issue is a moot point if the banks are reluctant to lend money, even to supposedly well qualified clients,” Peacocke said.

Grazing farms accounted for the largest number of sales with a 26 per cent share of all sales over the three months to May 2020, finishing farms accounted for 25 per cent, dairy for 13 per cent and horticulture 12 per cent of all sales. These four property types accounted for 76 per cent of all sales during the three months. In the year to May, 1132 farms were sold, 19.5 per cent fewer than in the previous year. In terms of farm type, 26.6 per cent fewer dairy farms, 27.8 per cent fewer grazing farms, 26 per cent fewer finishing farms and 1.2 per cent fewer arable farms sold over the same period. The median price per hectare

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for all farms sold in the three months to May was $23,221 compared to $22,244 recorded for three months ended May 2019 (+4.4 per cent). Two of the 14 regions recorded an increase in the number of farm sales for the three months ended May compared to the three months ended May 2019, namely West Coast (+4) and Otago (+1). Waikato recorded the most substantial decline in sales (-24) followed by Bay of Plenty (-22). Compared to the three months ended April 2020, eight regions recorded an increase in sales with the biggest increases being in Bay of Plenty (+6) and Taranaki (+4)

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Farming

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Winter grazing advice available W

ith Canterbury farmers facing a challenging winter, Environment Canterbury is supporting industry initiatives to ensure farmers follow good winter grazing practice and if needed, seek advice as early as possible. “Winter grazing can be a significant environmental issue if not well managed, and can be an issue for cattle, sheep and deer farmers. Done poorly, winter grazing can result in elevated nitrate leaching, sediment run-off, phosphorus contamination, and increased bacterial levels in water bodies. There can also be animal welfare issues,” ECan chief operating officer Nadeine Dommisse said. “Drought conditions are widespread in Canterbury, particularly in the north of the region, and delays de-stocking prior to winter due to Covid-19 have impacted on winter feed supplies, compounding the challenges farmers are facing. “We’ve worked alongside industry groups in developing support programmes, as we’re just as keen as industry to ensure farmers are able to follow good practice and know where to get help if they need it. “Farming sector groups are

Winter grazing can be a significant environmental issue if not well managed.

very aware of the issue and have provided support and clear guidance to farmers on best practice winter grazing including dairy discussion groups and online platforms. “It’s great to see the considerable industry-based support available to assist farmers, and we would strongly encourage any farmers struggling with winter grazing to seek advice to ensure they can operate successfully while remaining within the rules.”

ECan has implemented some of the strictest land use rules anywhere in New Zealand requiring farmers to manage a range of environmental issues, including those caused by winter grazing. The inclusion of winter forage crop grazing in the Government’s announcements on Action for Healthy Waterways reflects the significance of this issue nationally, Dommisse said.

PHOTO SUPPLIED

“Farmers, the industry and ECan are all committed to good environmental outcomes. We can’t use adverse conditions as a reason to lower necessary standards, but we may consider adverse conditions in any response to a rule breach, from education through to enforcement and prosecution. ECan has already allowed for delays in completing compliance tasks due to the Covid-19 lockdown,” Dommisse said.

ECan rules require good management practice on winter grazing to be implemented on all farms, including having vegetative buffers between any winter grazing and waterways – usually a minimum of five metres. Buffers around critical source areas, as well as paddock selection, strategic grazing, and post-grazing paddock management all need to be carefully considered and planned for. The Land and Water Regional Plan (LWRP) puts limits around discharges of sediment and contaminants to waterways, strict restrictions on stock access to rivers, lakes, wetlands and drains, and contains consent to farm requirements regulating winter grazing. Farms that require a landuse consent to farm need to prepare and implement a Farm Environment Plan (FEP), which is regularly audited, to manage environmental risks including those associated with intensive winter grazing. As part of their FEP, farmers need to plan how they are carrying out winter grazing to ensure they can meet requirements throughout the season.

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Catch crops after grazing a win-win H

ardy catch crops such as oats are showing major promise for mopping up excess nitrogen after winter grazing and could create a win-win for farmers in terms of their environmental footprint and profitability. Dr Peter Carey, a Lincoln Agritech field researcher, is leading a three-year Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Sustainable Farming Fund (SFF) research programme, in conjunction with Plant and Food Research, to apply the use of catch crops more widely in winter forage rotations. Carey, who completed a PhD at Lincoln University on the use of catch crops, found that they can reduce nitrate leaching by as much as 40 per cent. This study looks to extend his research and apply it directly to commercial farms in Canterbury and Southland. The project aims to adapt their use to the different soils and climatic conditions of each region. “Catch crop strategies are becoming more important, with the new Action for Healthy Waterways regulations coming into effect in winter, 2021,” Carey said. “These will prevent farmers from leaving paddocks bare for more than a month after winter forage grazing. Fortunately, the research is showing that catch crop strategies can be a profitable avenue. “Nitrate leaching, and nitrogen loss generally, is particularly problematic in winter as non-lactating dairy cows eat large quantities of feed over a fairly short period of time to build up their body conditioning. “Then they deposit large volumes of urine onto bare soil at a time when plant growth is minimal. “Usually, catch crops are sown in autumn between the harvesting of the previous summer crop and a new crop in spring to conserve soil nutrients

“

This study looks to extend his research and apply it directly to commercial farms in Canterbury and Southland.

over the winter, but in winter forage rotations they need to be sown at the end of the grazing period, which is often midwinter when soil and climate conditions are at their most difficult. “But with the frequency of warmer and drier starts to winter increasing, hardy cereals like oats can be successfully established in the cool conditions.” Carey said oats were tolerant to the cold and would germinate at 5 degrees and above, reducing water in the soil and removing

some of the nitrogen left when the cows had urinated on the ground. “Once the soil warms, catch crops can rapidly mop-up the excess nitrogen, reducing the amount available for leaching. “Even within a couple of months, we have seen catch crops take up as much as 40kg of nitrogen per hectare. By late November, early-sown crops for green-chop silage in both Canterbury and Southland are often reaching 8-10 tonnes of drymatter/ha and capturing 100-150kg N/ha.”

Dr Peter Carey, a Lincoln Agritech field researcher, is leading a threeyear research programme to use catch crops more widely in winter forage rotations.

The first year of the study has shown that the best results occur when the crops are sown as early as possible after grazing has been completed and are established using direct drilling methods. In Southland, researchers used a spader-drill, a relatively new piece of tillage technology, that enabled much earlier drilling than is usually possible. “Although there is often substantial soil mineral-nitrogen available to the developing cereal crop, the second year of the study showed that

PHOTO SUPPLIED

monitoring is advisable to ensure its nitrogen status remains sufficient to maintain quality and maximise yield, so a modest spring nitrogen application may still be prudent,” Carey said. The SFF programme was primarily funded by MPI for three years (2018-21) and co-funded by Ballance Agrinutrients, Ravensdown, Beef + Lamb NZ, Agricom, and Luisetti Seeds with a number of other farm and industry groups providing inkind co-funding.

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At EuroAgri, it’s all about quality A

family-owned business, for EuroAgri, it’s all about people doing business with people. All machines brought into New Zealand are top-level products in their own countries, which focus on worldwide research and development, and this, combined with the local experience and local knowledge of EuroAgri’s own team, becomes a recipe for success. For management and staff of EuroAgri, sustainability, and looking after future generations of farmers are major aims. With a belief that excellent service and support, along with competitive prices, are what New Zealand farmers look for, the small team of hands-on staff

are committed to ensuring the success of their products both now and into the future. Machine set-up, help and guidance are all part of the service and if the time arises, they’re only a phone call away to answer any questions or provide further support. EuroAgri carries a comprehensive parts stock holding, knowing how crucial it is to keep machines running around the clock. Parts are freighted throughout the country or can simply be collected from the

premises. Despite being located in the centre of the South Island, the client base is spread far and wide, from the tip of the South Island to the top of the North. Why? Because clients value their brands, designed for rugged European conditions, which are very

Right – EuroAgri’s client base is spread far and wide because people value their brands.

Keverneland CTC Cultivator

similar to those in New Zealand, but most importantly, they perform. While the Northern Hemisphere winters may be more severe, similar soil types and topography are experienced, and farming systems, methods and culture are compatible.

If you are looking for a good quality used machine of any make and model, EuroAgri is your place. With many years in the industry, their extensive contacts often mean they may just be able to get their hands on the machinery you’re after.

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By scheduling the event for Canterbury anniversary weekend, Farmlands AgFest hopes to attract Canterbury people that would normally attend the Christchurch A&P Show. PHOTOS SUPPLIED

West Coast AgFest shifted to spring T

he largest agricultural event on the West Coast is looking to take advantage of the cancellation of this year’s New Zealand Agricultural Show in Christchurch by providing an alternative option for the rural community. Farmlands AgFest will open its gates at the Greymouth Aerodrome on November 13 to 14, Canterbury anniversary weekend. The biennial event was postponed in March due to the Covid-19 lockdown. As other agricultural events were cancelled due to ongoing restrictions, the opportunity to shift the event to spring meant thousands of people could attend

the first major agricultural event re-confirmed for 2020, said coowner Andy Thompson. Farmlands Agfest has grown into a massive event, with 15,000 visitors through the gates at the last one. Farmlands has supported AgFest since its inception in 2012 and became naming sponsor in 2014. Farmlands chief executive Peter Reidie said he was thrilled to support the return of live agricultural events to provincial New Zealand. “Spring is a busy time for farmers and a weekend away on the West Coast is a great opportunity to refresh and relax. We are proud to support Farmlands AgFest and

congratulate the organisers for adapting to the current challenges all businesses face.” Thompson said that after a challenging, uncertain year, Farmlands AgFest provided a chance for businesses to reward loyal customers. “Visitors will be treated to an upgraded venue, the latest in on-farm technology, farm machinery, expert advice and much more. “Farmlands AgFest is proud to play a part in supporting the West Coast economy and giving back to the local community. The event will provide a great chance to reconnect with friends and local exhibitors,” Thompson said. By scheduling the event for Canterbury anniversary

weekend, it also hoped to attract Canterbury people that would normally attend the Christchurch A&P Show. “We know that Cantabrians do like to come to the West Coast on a long weekend. With the Christchurch Show being cancelled this year, it is an opportunity to spend a few days on the coast, going to AgFest one day and sightseeing the other days.” The revised November date had been made available by the postponement of the NZ Agricultural Show and was a one-off change with AgFest reverting to a March or April timeframe in 2022. “We are pleased to be able

to secure these dates and take advantage of the Canterbury anniversary day and long weekend, and we anticipate this will bring a boost to the West Coast economy,” Thompson said. AgFest started in 2012 in Hokitika, holding three events before outgrowing its venue and moving to Greymouth in 2018. Held every two years, it alternated with the South Island Agricultural Field Days in Central Canterbury. While it was a traditional agricultural field day event, it also doubled as a trade show for the West Coast, so included a lot of retail sites, Thompson said. Tickets will be available closer to the time of the event.

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Farming

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A helping hand on to dairy ladder W

orkers left jobless as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic are being urged to sign up to the 2020 GoDairy campaign, an industry and government partnership that smooths the pathway for Kiwis interested in taking the first steps towards a career on dairy farms. “This is a win:win for New Zealanders who want to work on the land and farmers who need to fill workforce gaps made worse by the pandemic restrictions,” Federated Farmers employment spokesperson Chris Lewis said. DairyNZ, with support from the Ministries for Primary Industries and Social Development, is offering a free three-week introductory course that is open to New Zealand citizens and permanent residents. The mix of online and practical on-farm training covers the basics of staying safe while working with animals, farm vehicles and machinery. “Dairying is not an easy job. It’s increasingly technical, requires a range of skills and at certain times of the season is quite hectic,” Lewis said. “But it’s also hugely satisfying for those who take to it and as the recent Federated Farmers Rabobank Remuneration Survey showed, it pays well. Across nearly 1700 respondents, the mean salary for a dairy farm assistant was $48,584, for an assistant manager $62,317 and for a farm operations manager, $85,986.” Federated Farmers dairy chairman Wayne Langford said for those who find their feet through the GoDairy introductory training, a next step could be the Federated Farmers’ dairy apprenticeship. “I’d encourage anyone who enjoys animals and outdoors work to think about this opportunity. I’ve worked my way up from dairy assistant to farm owner and it’s been a great lifestyle for myself and my family,” Langford said. DairyNZ’s GoDairy farm

Jobs are available on dairy farms in most regions, in particular Canterbury, PHOTO SUPPLIED Otago, Southland and Waikato.

ready training courses for newcomers are already underway, with 64 of an expected 500 participants receiving an online introduction to farming. This is followed by two weeks of handson training on farms. Jobs are available on dairy farms in most regions, in particular Canterbury, Otago, Southland and Waikato, with many an easy drive to towns and cities. Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said the campaign aimed to connect people with jobs in dairy, and more broadly in the primary industries “because we know these sectors will be key to our economic recovery. “GoDairy has a crucial role to play. The programme has a history of successfully recruiting and supporting people into dairy careers, over the past 15 years.

The Government and the sector are giving it a welcome boost to encourage new-found farmers, by investing $3.5 million to expand this crucial work during our economic recovery,” O’Connor said. DairyNZ chief executive Dr Tim Mackle said that although the new campaign was still in its early days, there was good interest from people wanting to pursue a dairy farming career. “Like all successful businesses, dairy farming needs good talent. Currently there are 1000 job vacancies on dairy farms nationwide,” Mackle said. “There are excellent career opportunities in farming – from doing the books, to working with machinery, caring for animals, and managing staff. Technology plays a major part in the business too.

“To date, GoDairy has interest from people across a range of career backgrounds – from tourism and hospitality to engineering, finance, and truck drivers. “While many people might not be familiar with the dayto-day of dairy farming, most have work and life skills that are readily transferrable,” Mackle said. GoDairy’s training module will be available to other primary industry sectors – outside of dairy - to adapt, such as sheep and beef and horticulture. Government aims to place 10,000 New Zealanders in primary sector jobs in the immediate term by rapidly retraining and absorbing workers displaced from other sectors. Other Government investment

into jobs and training includes: $1.1 billion to create 11,000 environment jobs in the regions. $100m worker redeployment package, announced in March, to create employment for people who have lost their jobs. This includes $6 million for MPI to develop and establish a national primary industries workforce package. $10m from the One Billion Trees Fund for large-scale planting to provide jobs in communities and improve the environment. $100m from the Provincial Growth Fund for waterway fencing, riparian planting and stock water reticulation. Anyone interested in a dairy farming career can learn more about GoDairy’s farm ready training and sign up at godairy. co.nz

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Welshy Agri Services – For all your farm maintenance needs

Fendt 924 with rut master.

elshy Contracting Limited are pleased to announce they have recently bought the Rut Busting side of Barry Whittaker Contracting. Welshy Agricultural Services will now be available for all your farm maintenance or agricultural work. Welshy Contracting Ltd has been a locally owned and family run company in Ashburton, Mid Canterbury since 2004. Starting off as Welshy Digger Hire, the company has grown substantially from one man with a digger and truck, to better describe the services offered, we began trading under Welshy

Contracting. At Welshy Contracting, we can manage all your contracting requirements large or small. With our main yard located in Ashburton we can service all of the South Island for our customers’ diverse needs. Welshy Contracting is pleased to have Colum O’Reilly come on board with his vast knowledge and experience in the agricultural industry to run Welshy Agri Services. Together, Welshy and Colum with a team of very dedicated and skillful staff, will be able to undertake any of your agricultural or farming needs.

With our two power-packed Deutz Fahr tractors, NC Engineering dump trailers and gravel trailers plus the recent addition of the Fendt tractor and Rut Master gravel trailer, we can fulfil any of your farm or agricultural jobs. We can offer any on farm cartage and bale or machinery haulage. We can help with the maintenance for your dairy tracks, new or existing, and calf shed clearing with our Bobcat. With our trailers we are able to sort all your muck spreading, rut busting and pivot ruts. Our Doosan Wheeled Digger

can easily sort out your mainline and drainage, as we are ECan approved we are able to sort any drain clearing needs. If you have any roots that need cutting or raking or your hedges could do with a tidy up, our brand-new McConnell flail, 8m reach hedge cutter with an adapted saw blade, we can easily sort that for you

Talk to us about your new jobs or if you need help deciding what to do, our experienced staff can help. Call Welshy on 021 369 483 or Colum on 027 369 4478

PHOTOS SUPPLIED

Rut busting after

Rut busting before

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Red meat exports benefit from pork D

espite the substantial impacts of Covid-19, African swine fever (ASF) remains the dominant issue in global animal protein markets, according to a new report by agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank. And with ASF expected to tighten global pork supply in 2020, the New Zealand red meat sector will continue to benefit from the resulting strong demand for alternative sources of animal proteins. In the report African Swine Fever: A Global Update, Rabobank says ASF is impacting pig herds and restricting pork production in a number of regions across the globe. “China has lost several hundred million pigs to the disease over recent years – following a major ASF outbreak in August 2018 – and the disease has continued to spread in 2020, albeit at a much slower pace than previously,” RaboResearch animal proteins analyst Blake Holgate said. “With a number of government policies released to encourage pork production, we expect the Chinese pig

herd will rebound strongly in 2020. But with rebuilding efforts reducing slaughter numbers, we maintain our view that China’s 2020 pork production will drop a further 15 to 20 per cent below the low level of production recorded in 2019.” The reports said pork

production in Vietnam and the Philippines was also forecast to decline due to ASF, while concerns over further spread of the disease in Europe remain high. “ASF outbreaks continue in both Vietnam and the Philippines and we expect to see a fall in pork production of close to 10 per cent in both these countries,” Holgate said. RaboResearch protein and sustainability analyst Blake Holgate says Chinese pork production will continue to fall “In Europe, the potential for ASF spreading is high as disease pressure has not yet eased in Poland and Eastern Europe. While Belgium is making good

progress in its efforts to contain the disease, there remains a risk of an ASF outbreak in a major European pork-producing country, such as Germany.” Holgate said in addition to lower pork production in countries impacted by ASF, Covid-19 was stifling pork production in other regions. “While we had expected pork production to increase in North America, Brazil, and some parts of Europe this year, the impact of Covid-19 means we now expect constraints in all major producing countries,” he said. “We also anticipate that Covid-19 will reduce global pork consumption, however, in our view, this fall in consumption will not be enough to make up for the reduced production.” Holgate said the ongoing influence of ASF will continue to underpin Chinese demand for New Zealand sheep and beef exports, helping to offset any potential decline in demand from other markets due to Covid-19 lockdowns and/or slowing economies. However, he cautioned that retail prices

in China had softened across all proteins and were likely to remain under some pressure for the remainder of the year. “Animal protein consumption in China has been weak so far in 2020 due to Covid-19 lockdown measures and, as a result, retail prices of all proteins have softened,” he said. “While consumption is expected to improve as foodservice sales recover, high unemployment and lower incomes are still likely to have some negative impact on prices of higher-priced proteins like lamb and beef.” Holgate said ASF outbreaks and reduced pork production in other regions outside China would have less direct impact on New Zealand’s red meat exports. “At present we don’t export a lot of sheep and beef products into Vietnam, the Philippines or the eastern European countries where concerns over ASF remain high,“ he said. “That being said, the outbreaks in these countries will mean there is generally less animal protein available on the global market.”

Left – Blake Holgate, RaboResearch protein and sustainability anaPHOTO SUPPLIED lyst.

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Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Nitrogen limit hits

FARMERS Page 22

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Farmers to be hit with nitrogen cap A

n estimated three-quarters of Canterbury dairy farmers will have to cut their nitrogen applications from next year after a new Governmentimposed limit on synthetic nitrogen fertiliser use. The cap of 190kg of nitrogen a hectare will be introduced next year as part of the Action for Healthy Waterways policy to improve water quality, despite it not being raised during the consultation process. AgFirst economist Phil Journeaux said that 75 per cent of Canterbury dairy farmers were applying at least 190kg’ N/ha and 32 per cent of dairy farmers nationally. Under the new rules, farmers were required to report the amount of nitrogen used every year. Arable and horticultural growers were exempt from the cap. Journeaux, who prepared an analysis for the Fertiliser Association on the 190kg/N/ha cap, said irrigated farms would be the most affected. “This is because nitrogen fertiliser is an integral component of irrigated farms, in ensuring sufficient pasture drymatter is grown to make the

Canterbury dairy farmers will be hit by a cap of 190kg of nitrogen a hectare, being introduced next year. PHOTO SUPPLIED

Heather Chalmers

RURAL REPORTER

system economic.” The rationale for the 190kg limit was not readily apparent and no analysis on it was available, Journeaux said. “It will affect a lot of farmers, it will be easy to circumvent and it will achieve minor environmental gain.” Modelling using Farmax and OverseerFM based on an average Canterbury irrigated dairy farm, applying 234kg’ N/ha and then restricting this down to 190kg’ N/ha, resulted in a 13.9 per cent reduction in earnings. The 18 per cent reduction in nitrogen resulted in a 6.6 per cent drop in nitrate leaching. The main driver of nitrate leaching was from cow urine, Journeaux said. “It is the total amount of nitrogen within the cycle which is important, rather than any one source.”

As well as applied nitrogen, the other main sources of nitrogen in pastoral farming were supplementary feed and nitrogen naturally fixed by legumes such as clover. While the cap applied to all pastoral farms, sheep and beef farms would be largely unaffected, as few if any would get close to the 190kg limit. For those that did, such as South Island mixed finishing farms, most nitrogen fertiliser usage was for arable purposes, which was exempt, Journeaux said. It was unclear if forage crops grown either on-farm or by specialist farmers was classified as either pastoral or arable. In many cases these crops required in excess of 190kg/N/ha to be grown. Jeremy Savage, a farm consultant for Ashburton-based

Macfarlane Rural Business, said that farmers having to cut their nitrogen application rates to meet the new limit would need to have a good look at their farm system. Farmers reducing nitrogen rates by 100kg/ha could expect feed grown to drop by 1 to 1.2 tonnes of drymatter a hectare. “If they don’t change their stocking rate they will end up with hungry cows, or have to buy 1 to 1.5 tonnes of supplementary feed a hectare, which is an expensive way to make milk. “Farmers have a year to get their heads around it.” Savage, who is also Lincoln University Dairy Farm’s supervisor, said that while the farm had targeted a nitrogen application rate of 160kg to 170kg/ha in the last three years

“it wasn’t just a case of dropping nitrogen use”. “There were a number of management changes that LUDF made going through that process.” It also dropped its stocking rate, increased per cow production so cows became more efficient, and reduced use of supplementary feed. “It was a complete renovation of the farm system.” Savage said that while LUDF was quoted by government as an example of what could be achieved with lower nitrogen application rates, “it didn’t have the full picture in terms of the management levers that were used to make those changes, which were quite extensive”. Not all dairy farmers had the management skills to do this, he said.

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Lake’s neighbour farms with care C

entral Canterbury dairy farmer Tony Dodunski is farming in harmony with a sensitive environment by carrying out extensive planting on the farm’s waterways and installing a feed pad to protect farm pastures and reduce nutrient losses. The farm borders a Department of Conservation reserve by Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere. It has heavy, poorly drained soils and an extensive drainage network which connects to an 11 hectare wetland on the farm. Dodunski purchased Beaumaris Dairies in 2017, and the previous owner had already worked on improving the farm environment and reducing the farm’s nitrogen losses. Dodunski wanted to build on that work and make further changes on-farm. “As we decided to farm in an environmentally sensitive area, our farm philosophy is to actively look for ways to reduce our footprint.” He joined DairyNZ’s Selwyn Hinds project which is supporting local dairy farmers to meet new environmental requirements for these zones while maintaining profitability, to help him consider his options. Due to the farm’s location close to the lake, the farm team have a responsibility to protect mahinga kai which includes caring for the waterways on the farm. All farms in the Selwyn Te Waihora zone also have to make significant reductions in their nutrient losses. In his first two years on the farm, Dodunski and his team planted more than 3500 native trees and shrubs along drains on the farm. The plants provide a barrier to run-off which can include sediment and phosphorus and use it for their growth. This improves the water going into farm drains and then onto the wetland. “We have planted a lot of flax and it does really well on the farm. We’ve also tried other native species like toetoe

PHOTO ECAN

To date, more than 3500 plants have been added alongside drains on Tony Dodunski’s Te Waihora/ Lake Ellesmere farm since 2017, with more planting under way this winter.

although it hasn’t done as well here. Planting trees on the farm is important to provide shelter for our stock.” Planting activity was still continuing – with another 750 plants being added this winter. A member of their farm team is studying Maori culture at Lincoln University. With an increased knowledge of traditional practices, the farm team now carries out a karakia to bless the plants before they are put in the ground. The farm milks 650 cows. The soils can be prone to pugging and mud when it rains and one of the ways Dodunski decided to help mitigate this impact was to develop a feed pad which can hold up to 700 cows. This was installed near to the effluent storage ponds for easy effluent management. When soil conditions are right, effluent is

PHOTO SUPPLIED

applied on-farm. The pad helps reduce pasture damage and pugging, reduces run-off and nitrogen leaching, and increases supplement utilisation. Cows are also wintered off-farm on a property better suited to winter grazing.

This past season Dodunski started using more fodder beet on the farm and reducing his use of imported feed which reduced the farm’s nitrogen losses. He has also reduced fertiliser applications at some times of the year – for example in February

when clover was active. Dodunski said that through being part of the Selwyn Hinds project he was being exposed to new ideas about how to reduce nitrogen losses and had found that making quite small changes can have a significant impact.

Genetics determine leaching rate

incoln University research is helping dairy farmers in the search for tools to reduce nitrate leaching, with the genetic disposition of the cows themselves delivering a big part of the solution. The Pastoral Livestock Production Lab is a key constituent of the university’s faculty of agricultural and life sciences department and the centre of excellence for designing future productive landscapes, where students, postgraduate researchers and academics are dedicated to creating and implementing more productive, resilient and sustainable agro-ecosystems

for the future. The latest findings show that grazing dairy cows with low milk urea nitrogen breeding values (MUNBV) have a 28 per cent reduction in the urinary urea nitrogen loading rate per urine patch than cows with higher MUNBVs. The lowest MUNBV animals in the study excreted 165.3 grams less urinary urea nitrogen per day than the highest MUNBV animals. As an example, at four cows per hectare, this difference equated to 241kg less urinary urea deposited on to pasture, resulting in 41kg less nitrate leached per hectare per year.

The research, completed by PhD student Cameron Marshall (recipient of the Lincoln University doctoral scholarship), also showed that the low MUNBV cows also yielded an increase in milk protein percentage. Lincoln’s Professor of Livestock Production Pablo Gregorini said the findings were significant for farmers and the entire agriculture sector. “Cameron’s work shows that the cows themselves are an important tool in helping to cut nitrate leaching and nitrous oxide emissions and in helping farmers meet their regulatory

reductions. To be able to do this and increase milk protein at the same time is a huge winwin for the sector. “Most farmers’ herds will naturally comprise a mixture of low MUNBV cows and higher MUNBV cows, with the trait being identified through testing the milk. Simply identifying the animals with low MUNBVs will enable famers to breed from their existing stock and change the makeup of their herd over time.” Research into the differences between low MUNBV and higher MUNBV animals will continue.

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Top holstein friesians in North Canty A

North Canterbury farm has Left – The North Canterbury clinched two awards in the holstein friesian stud of Olivia national final of a major dairy Cahill and her father Peter Shercow breeding competition. riff has bred two of the breed’s Almost 700 cows from 95 best cows in a national on-farm farms were entered in this year’s competition. Holstein Friesian NZ Semex on farm competition. Sherraine Holsteins, of Ohoka near Kaiapoi, won the two-yearBelow – Sherraine Fortune old class and the veteran cow Carra EX3, named the nationclass. al champion veteran holstein “We are thrilled. The line-up friesian cow, has produced 5312 kilograms of milksolids in her of cows in this year’s national lifetime. final was outstanding, so to take PHOTOS SUPPLIED out two classes was exciting,” Olivia Cahill said. Cahill runs Sherraine CUSTOMER CHRISTCHURCH VEIN CLINIC PUBLISHING 02/09/ Holsteins with her husband Jared and father Peter Sherriff. SALES REP BERNADETTE.CHRISTIE PUBLICATION STRAI Their heifer Sherraine Gold Charm-ET VG85 clinched the DESIGNER Unknown SECTION GENE CUSTOMER CHRISTCHURCH VEIN CLINIC PUBLISHING two-year-old class. Her full sister PROOFED 27/08/2014 1:31:18 p.m. SIZE 10X7 Sherraine Gold Charas-ET SALES REP BERNADETTE.CHRISTIE PUBLICATION VG87 placed third. ERTISING AD ID 6268508AA FAX 4528 “They are granddaughters of DESIGNER Unknown SECTION Sherraine Windstar Charm EX3, ROOF 1:31:18 p.m. SIZE only stud nationally to27/08/2014 win two who was a great brood cow of PROOFED PLEASE APPROVE THIS AD AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. NOTE THAT ANY ALTERA of the six classes up for grabs. ours,” Cahill said. 6268508AA FAX The AD results ID of the coveted “We did embryo work on one MUST BE FINALISED BY OUR MATERIAL DEADLINE. competition were announced of her daughters and ended up over six nights onSOON Holstein ROVE THIS AD AS AS POSSIBLE. NOTE THAT ANY A with four outstanding two-yearFriesian NZ’s Facebook page. old heifers sired by Braedale They were usually revealed MUST BE FINALISED BY OUR MATERIAL DEADLINE. Goldwyn.” at the association’s annual Another of Charm’s conference, but that was granddaughters, Sherraine postponed this year due to Fortune Carra EX3, was named Covid-19. the national champion veteran “It was quite nerve-racking cow. waiting until 5pm each day to The 11-year-old won the type see the results go online. Other and production class at the New breeders messaged to wish us Zealand Agricultural Show in luck,” Cahill said. Christchurch last November. “I found out we had won the She has produced 69,479 litres two-year-old class as I was of milk, or 5312 kilograms of walking the herd off the feed milksolids (plus excess days), in pad.” her lifetime. They also bred Sherraine old cow class: Tahora Aftershk using an automatic feeding “To see Carra take out the Charm-ET VG85, Sherraine Doorman Carrie EX, who was Tootsie EX, Huka View Dairies, system, using predominantly coveted veteran class topped off Holsteins, 1; Waipiri Solomon named national reserve champion whole milk. a great week for us,” Cahill said. Lakota-ET, D and P Fullerton, 2. 1; Kauri Glen Fever Prim-ET in the four-year-old class. VG89, Kauri Glen Ltd, 2. The HFNZ Semex on farm Sherraine Holsteins entered Comestar Leader three-yearThe national final was judged Conant-Acres JY Broker competition is run annually eight cows in the regional round old cow class: Waipiri Cain Kara by Glen Gordon from Australia. mature cow class: Oakdale across eight regions with the aim VG89, D and P Fullerton, 1; of judging, which attracted The North Canterbury farm Guthrie Miss VG89, Valendale of promoting holstein friesian 144 animals from Canterbury/ Belbrook Alonzo Jaime VG89, supplies Fonterra year-round and cattle. Ayrshires/Fusion Genetics, 1; Westland. Belbrook Holsteins, 2. produced 100,000 kg/MS from Bellview Lavanguard Di EX2, Peter Sherriff judged the Cows were assessed for their Townson Lindy four-year-old 144 cows in the 2019-20 season. Belbrook Holsteins, 2. regional final in Taranaki. structural correctness. cow class: Kauri Glen Atwod The 150-hectare irrigated farm Comestar Laurie Sheik veteran Full results from the Productive dairy cows with Duch1-ET VG89, Kauri Glen was self-contained with all silage, 2020 HFNZ Semex on farm cow class: Sherraine Fortune well-attached udders have the Ltd, 1; Sherraine Doorman maize and hay grown on farm. Carra EX3, Sherraine Holsteins, competition: potential to live longer and be Carrie EX, Belbrook Holsteins, Three-quarters of the calves 1; San Ray Goldwyn Toots-ET Maughlin Storm two-yearbetter for the environment. 2. born each season are reared EX2, Henley Farming Co Ltd, 2. old cow class: Sherraine Gold Sherraine Holsteins was the Hanoverhill Raider five-year-

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FEATURE

The do’s and don’ts of fencing repair

“

The decision whether to repair or rebuild fence lines will depend on affordability

ences don’t last forever, at some point they’ll need fixing or replacing. Catch problems early and you can repair them (usually cheaply), leave things long enough and replacement will be your only practical option (always more expensive). Regular maintenance extends the life of a fence. Over time wires get loose, they also slacken off/tighten up as temperature changes or the ground dries out then gets wet again during the year. Staples come out, wires break, electric insulators break, livestock put pressure on a fence – it all takes it toll. Autumn is usually the season to look at fencing maintenance. Start with a walk along all your fence lines. It’s a good idea to do this at least at least twice a year if you can. Re-staple loose wires to posts when you see them – stock might escape, or grazing pressure can increase the damage even further. A good way to work your way around is to carry a large bucket with some basic fencing tools – fencing pliers, chain strainer, Ezepulls, crimps, permanent wire strainers, staples, insulators, etc – that way you can fix minor problems as you encounter them and cart away any old staples and wire you take off the fence. The decision whether to repair or rebuild fence lines will depend on affordability. Generally speaking, replacing completely decrepit fences is usually less expensive than repairing them. Repair, rebuild or replace? If you want

to save money by re-using old materials, will the savings you’ll make outweigh the possible increased labour costs to incorporate them in the rebuild? If you’re getting a contractor to do the work it is often more expensive to

re-use old materials than to use new – particularly wire. It’s far quicker to run out wire off a new coil, tie it off and strain it up in one clean easy strain, than it is to fight with a tangle of old wire, join shorter lengths together,

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tie it off, strain it up, join it again where it breaks (as it invariably does) and clock up an extra hour of labour to re-use $15 worth of old wire. If you are reusing some wires – use new wire for your top and bottom wires and older wires second from bottom upward. Extra care needs to be taken straining up old wire – you should always wear safety goggles when working with wire, with old wire it’s even more important to protect your eyes. Re-tightening wires on a battened fence isn’t easy – if the fence is in really poor condition it often involves stripping most, or all, battens off the wires to re-strain the fence, then rebattening it. If all the posts and strainers are sound and reasonably in line it can still be worth the extra effort. An old fence can be brought right up to standard and good for another 10 or more years. Staples on line posts should be angled to the wire, that way the two points of the staple will be holding in separate grains of the post and you’ll reduce the chance of opening up a split in the posts. Don’t hit staples all the way in – leave them just clear of the wire – about 1mm. The wire needs to be able to slide through the staple.

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Left – Cows need to be able to lie down in a comfortable dry spot. Fred Hoekstra

PHOTO SUPPLIED

VEEHOF DAIRY SERVICES

Winter a risk factor for lameness B

efore we know it, we are back at calving time and things are about to get busy again. It is always a good idea to think and plan ahead. There are things we can do to minimise lameness before the season starts; lameness management does not start at calving, but when drying off the herd. What you do between now and calving has a big impact on the season to come. I have talked in previous articles about the effect of a lack of resting time on lameness. Make sure your cows can lie down in a comfortable, dry spot. I think this is an issue that is too often overlooked and must be taken seriously. I am strongly opposed to having cows on winter crop paddocks without access to a grass paddock. I am not a “greenie” and I am not unrealistic when it comes to cow comfort. Cows are not human beings and as such they can handle a lot more when it comes to weather conditions. But I do believe that we, as farmers, have a responsibility to provide an environment for our cows where they can function well. Muddy paddocks do not fit that criteria – but that is not what I really

wanted to focus on this month. Calving time is a risk period for cows. During this time, they undergo changes in diet, daily routine, environment, staff and on top of that, a lot of hormonal changes. Specifically influential here is a hormone called relaxin which has a big impact on the ligaments in the foot. This can result in significant haemorrhage as the pedal bone (the last bone of the cow’s foot that sits inside the claw) presses on to the live tissue which now gets damaged. You cannot do anything about this hormone; its production is necessary for the cow to be able to push her calf out. Instead, there is a heightened need to focus on other factors that have an impact on the health of live tissue. The key here is to minimise stress, especially for dominant heifers. They have never calved before, they have never been milked before and are now suddenly subject to the more dominant older cows. All those stresses add up. So again, try to control the ones you can. If possible, keep heifers in their own herd. Make sure you fully feed them with a sensible diet, handle them with patience and keep waiting time to a minimum.

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Effective solutions? Politics always wins Craig Hickman

almost nobody except dairy farmers in Canterbury where nitrogen use averages around 220kg/ha/year. Nobody can understand this synthetic nitrogen metric; there’s no difference between synthetic nitrogen and the stuff you find in chicken manure or bought in feed, large swathes of farmland are exempt as they are arable instead of pastoral and fertiliser itself isn’t usually responsible for the nitrogen that leaches in waterways. The culprit is mainly urine patches where highly soluble nitrogen is concentrated in one spot. It seems to me that the reason for the strange decisions around nitrogen, using toxicity until DIN can be revisited and imposing a synthetic nitrogen fertiliser cap, is simply that the minister had to be seen to be doing something. The policy statement carries some good wins for the environment when it comes to reducing sediment getting into our waterways, but little else. In an election year the minister needs to be able to point to his constituents and say “I did something”, and when it’s a choice between politics and finding effective solutions, politics will always be the winner.

ELBOW DEEP @dairymanNZ

uch has been written about the Ministry for the Environment’s (MfE) newly released National Policy Statement (NPS) on Freshwater; some groups are cautiously optimistic while others are outraged. Generally, when nobody is happy with a decision Government has made, it’s an indication they’ve got things pretty much right; I’m not so sure that’s the case this time. From a farmer’s perspective the NPS could have been much worse. We were faced with the prospect of tearing down thousands of kilometres of fences and putting them back up a couple of metres further away from waterways, and worse, the prospect of a “one size fits all” nitrogen limit for the entire country in spite of its potentially devastating economic consequences for diminishing

environmental outcomes. The majority of freshwater ecologists in the MfE science and technology action group (STAG) were arguing for this blanket nitrogen limit, 1mg of dissolved inorganic nitrogen per litre of water, or 1 per cent DIN. The remainder of the 19-strong STAG, the Cautious Five, wanted to use another method entirely to measure a river’s health, the macroinvertebrate community index (MCI); quite literally counting the creatures in the water to determine how healthy it is. In the end the Government

ignored both of these options and decided to stick with the current measure, nitrogen toxicity, something the majority of the STAG warned against as they see it as a poor basis for nutrient limits and it’s a measure no other country in the world uses. While the STAG were busy trying to define bottom lines, farming industry bodies were proposing an entirely different system based on nitrogen surpluses. They wanted regional councils to set nitrogen leaching limits on a catchment-bycatchment basis and then farmers

would report all their nitrogen inputs and outputs, something that is facilitated by the nutrient budgeting required by the now mandatory Farm Environment Plans. Farmers would then need to reduce their nitrogen surplus until it fell within their catchment’s limits. This wasn’t implemented either and instead the Government set a limit on the use of synthetic nitrogen on pastoral land. This came out of left field, an option that was never discussed throughout the entire consultation period, and the 190kg/ha/year limit affects

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A premium for sustainably-produced milk is being introduced in response to customer demand, PHOTO SUPPLIED Fonterra says.

Sustainable dairy farming rewarded F

onterra farmers producing sustainable, high quality milk will be eligible for a new payment from next season. From June 1, 2021, Fonterra is introducing a payment of up to 10 cents per kilogram of milksolids (kgMS) if a farm meets its on-farm sustainability and value targets. This was part of Fonterra’s strategy to add value to New Zealand milk and responding to increasing demand from customers here and around the world for sustainably-produced dairy, chief executive Miles Hurrell said. The payment will be funded out of the Farmgate Milk Price. “The total Farmgate Milk

Price will remain the same across the co-operative, but the amount that each individual farm is paid will vary depending on their contribution under The Cooperative Difference, in addition to the other variables, like fat and protein, which affect the amount that’s paid,” Hurrell said. “We’ve always paid our farmers based on the value that milk provides to the cooperative. “The reality is that the drivers of value are changing and we need to reflect that. Our customers want to know that the products they are buying are not only safe, but also produced sustainably. “This payment helps us meet

the changing needs of our customers, so they continue to choose our milk and enjoy dairy as a sustainable and nutritious choice. “We want to deliver the innovation, sustainability and efficiency needed to make the most difference to our strategy and our bottom line. “It makes sense to financially reward those farmers who go the extra mile to help our co-op differentiate its milk.” Last year Fonterra launched The Co-operative Difference – a straight-forward framework to help farmers produce high-quality, sustainable milk and prepare for any changes needed in the future.

The payment will replace the Farm Source Reward Dollars farmers currently earn through The Co-operative Difference and will work on a tiered system. The more a farmer achieves in The Co-operative Difference programme, the higher the payment will be. The precise payment structure will be confirmed over the next few months following discussions with farmers, but will be no more than 10 cents per kgMS. Nestlé’s Robert Erhard says, “At Nestlé how milk is produced matters. “Now more than ever, people expect farmers to act as good stewards of the land

– safeguarding the climate, enhancing animal welfare and carefully managing water and the health of soils.” Northland dairy farmer Terence Brocx said farmers put in a lot of effort to produce the best quality milk possible. “Over recent years, large numbers of farmers have spent a significant amount of time and money to improve their local environment and waterways to make their farms sustainable for the future. “It’s great to see these farmers distinguished and rewarded for their efforts to produce and deliver a product that Fonterra can capture the highest value from,” Brocx said.

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Do it once, do it right – GDC L

ocally owned and operated for 30 years, Greg Donaldson Contracting is a mainstay in the Ashburton District’s business realm. With an aim of building their reputation as the district’s first choice contracting company, GDC continues to deliver providing great service, delivering high quality, professional workmanship and working closely with their clients to provide innovative and cost-effective solutions. Specialising in siteworks, whether it be residential, commercial or civil,

excavation, demolition, heavy haulage transport, heavy supply transport or directional drilling and utility detection, there’s no job too big, or too small for the Greg Donaldson Contracting team. The business began as a one-man band back in 2001 when Greg Donaldson had a desire to provide a superior contracting service to customers in Ashburton and the wider Mid Canterbury region. That initial one digger has now expanded into an impressive 150 items of plant and equipment allowing the business to go further than it ever has

before. Combine that with a skilled team of more than 40 staff who excel across all areas of the business, each member of the staffing line-up is as valuable as the next. The experienced contracting team provides a wide range of contracting services to the district and is always available to come on-site to discuss any individual’s contracting requirements – with the key focus of working out the best solution for the customer and managing the project right through until completion.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE Air curtain burner The air curtain burner is utilised to minimise waste going to the landfill. This is reducing the carbon footprint of the company with low transport cost out of the area. This item of plant has full resource consent for greenwaste and other suitable material such as untreated timber. Mole plough – worldwide patented technology The mole plough was developed by the business to supply a quicker, more costeffective way of installing services in the ground. This has proven to be a popular way of getting the job done with minimal ground disturbance for electrical cables, water pipe and fibre installation. The Mole plough is capable of installing power cables underground that can be bedded or unbedded it also allows for fibre network installs and is capable of installing up to 150mm water pipes.

WHAT GDC CAN PROVIDE On property, whether it be farm or land GDC can handle: • Clearing sites • Lime capping • Grading tracks / lanes • Tree work • Mulching • Shingle supplies • Irrigation • Power design/installation • Services (water, sewer)

• Land preparation • Drainage • Offal pits • Cleaning races • Soak holes • All types of farm maintenance and development • Effluent storage and ponds • Stock water • Irrigation • GPS Projects • As builts

At siteworks, be it residential, commercial or civil they’re capable of: • Clearing / levelling sites • Foundations • Drainage • Soak holes • Water connections • Sewer connections • Sub divisions • Driveways (chip seal & hotmix) • Shingle supplies • Cart away rubbish / unwanted

material • Root raking • Ripping • Concrete / rock breaking • Augering holes • Grading • Trenching • Laying cables • Laying fibre • Irrigation • Traffic Management • Consented land fills • Vehicle entrances – rural and urban

“Do it Once, Do it Right”

● Foundations ● Driveways ● Trenching ● Cable laying ● Shingle supplies ● Root raking ● Farm work ● Mulching ● Siteworks ● Water & Sewer connections ● Demolition ● Hi-ab Hire ● Lime Capping

Office 308 8479 Mob 027 433 8003 Web www.gdc.net.nz Email office@gdcgroup.nz

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FEATURE

Rooney – A proven track record Local knowledge

he Rooney Group of companies is a leading New Zealand multidisciplinary company with branches in civil contracting, civil consulting, fibre cable laying, cartage and transportation, farming, irrigation scheme development, pond lining solutions and tourism operations. It all started with one man and his machine in 1976 but now there is almost 250 staff in five offices throughout Canterbury along with various farms and high country stations. The Group has one of the most extensive civil contracting plant lists in New Zealand and combined with a skilled and experienced team of managers, engineers and operators we consistently complete projects on time and within budget. The Rooney group also operates under Internationally Certified systems for Quality, Safety and Environmental management as well as ACC WSMP Tertiary level. We are a leading New Zealand civil contractor, specialising in earthmoving, irrigation, pipe and cable laying, cartage and transportation. Approximately 200 staff are employed in various companies and branches in Waimate, Ashburton, Christchurch, Timaru and Oamaru. Our skilled and experienced team of managers, engineers and operators, along with an extensive equipment list and internationally certified systems for quality, safety and environmental management ensure we Specialists in allontypes consistently complete projects time andof

Specialists in all types of earthmov •

Dairy conversions

•

Stock underpasses

•

Irrigation work

•

Pond design & construction

•

of Canterbury farmers.

within budget.

NZTA

• Rooney’s tender for and complete all size NZTA roading projects in the region and have completed two of the largest roading projects in the South Island in recent years.

Local council and ECan

• Rooney’s provide essential services for councils including river protection work, flood damage repairs and stockwater intake clearance and repair.

has been gained from constructing a large number of Canterbury irrigation schemes has been utilised and forms a template for the development of many new schemes currently in the pipeline.

Local knowledge that counts Special projects

• Large-scale projects requiring

heavy plant and manpower Specialists in all types of earthmoving & generalextensive excavation Irrigation Rooney

resources over long periods of up to Regional farm support Earthmoving Ltd three years. Some large scale irrigation • A team of experienced staff and • The limited company has developed a projects fall into this category as can equipment are employed • specialised Dairy conversions • Track construction unique ability with a turn key solution large mining contracts or canals. to provide a total on farm service to to irrigation scheme construction. an example the Rangitata South in the Canterbury region. • farmersStock underpasses Aggregate As supply From the complex • process of Irrigation project required 22 scrapers, From dairy conversions, ponds, achieving a Resource Consent through 6 excavators up to 85t, 5 65t dump upgrades through to to the delivery of water • to the Pipe installation • irrigation Irrigation work trucks and 4 bulldozers up to 75t as routine race maintenance and stock shareholders, Rooney Earthmoving well as many other plant items, all feed cartage, the Rooney operation can provide a true and model • testedBorderdyking – entirely laserfrom & within GPSREL. • continues Pond &excavation construction earthmoving &design general sourced to support a large client base for its clients. The experience that

Local knowledge that counts

•

Dairy conversions

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Track construction

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Aggregate supply

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Irrigation work

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Pipe installation

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Pond design & construction

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Borderdyking – laser & GPS

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Waimate 03 689 7881 I Timaru 03 687 4699 I Oama • • • • • •

Earthmoving / Excavation ADC approved contractor Grading farm tracks Dairy lane capping Race cleaning Farm maintenance

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Gravel supplies Mole ploughing Gravel and fertiliser cartage Tree and stump removal Tree grinding

E: enquiry@rooneygroup.co.nz I w

Ashburton 03 308 6011 www.rooneygroup.co.nz Waimate 03 689 7881 I Timaru 03 687 4699 I Oamaru 03 1246 I Ashburton 03 308 6011 E:433 enquiry@rooneygroup.co.nz I www.rooneygroup.co.nz E: enquiry@rooneygroup.co.nz I www.rooneygroup.co.nz office.ashburton@rooneygroup.co.nz

Waimate 03 689 7881 I Timaru 03 687 4699 I Oamaru 03 433 1246 I Ashburton 03 308 6011

ocal knowledge that counts

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Lincoln science building ploughs ahead L

incoln University has marked the beginning of the construction of its new fit-for-future science facilities with a sod-turning ceremony on campus. Construction for the new facility, known as Science South, started immediately following the sod-turning ceremony and site blessing. Acting Vice-Chancellor of Lincoln University Professor Bruce McKenzie said that the start of construction was an important milestone for the university. “Our journey towards our new science facilities started in September 2010, when a large earthquake hit early on a Saturday morning, beginning a very difficult and disruptive time for our people. “Now we can look forward to a new chapter for science at Lincoln that will strike another important milestone when our teams start moving into their new premises mid next year. “When our science facilities are fully completed, in late 2022, Lincoln University will be a modern, up-to-date centre for science where more students will come from all over the world to study, especially in the fields of food and fibre.” Located at the southern end of the campus, Science South is the first of the university’s two new science facilities that when completed will deliver modern, state-of-the-art teaching, research and collaboration spaces where new generations of students will learn the skills necessary to support New Zealand’s transition to a more productive, low-emissions economy. Due for completion in May, 2021, Science South will be home to more than 50 staff and

Acting Vice-Chancellor of Lincoln University Professor Bruce McKenzie says that starting construction of new science facilities is an important PHOTO SUPPLIED milestone for the university.

students from the Department of Agriculture Sciences, which is responsible for teaching and research in the animal sciences. An earlier $206m plan for a joint research facility with AgResearch on the site, which had been touted as critical to reversing the university’s fortunes, was shelved after Education Minister Chris Hipkins rejected a third business case involving an $85m

• • • • •

Locally owned and operated Locally owned

and operated T

contribution from the Crown. McKenzie said the project became too expensive to pursue, but AgResearch would continue with a building next to the new science facility. “These buildings won’t be jointly owned, but they will be right next to each other with a shared cafe and a wide range of collaboration spaces so our staff are going to be together, essentially, all the time.”

The university’s construction partner for Science South was Leighs Construction. Lincoln recently received ministerial endorsement of its business case for the construction of its other new science facility, Science North. The endorsement effectively releases $5m in Crown funding to progress that project to the next stage, allowing the university to go to market for a construction contractor.

Science North is the flagship project of a wider campus development programme for Lincoln University that has already seen the launch of new student social spaces, landscaping projects and a series of smaller general projects across campus that are designed to enhance the vibrancy of the campus and promote a positive learning, teaching and research community.

Stock Cartage Bulk Cartage Fertiliser Spreading General Freight Hiab Truck Hire

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Make kimchi and start a worm farm A

s I pen these words to you it is the shortest day – the winter solstice. The winter solstice celebrates the longest hours of darkness or the rebirth of the sun and is believed to hold a powerful energy for regeneration, renewal and self-reflection. How about regenerating your gut health by making some delicious kimchi? Start by gathering up any small scrawny cabbages or Asian greens, leaves from celery, silverbeet, parsley, daikon radishes – whatever you have or go and buy enough to make yourself a jar or two of fermented vegetables. Kimchi is a Korean speciality. I first tasted it when attending a zero waste event in Seoul some years ago. It is listed as one of the top superfoods in the world for gut health and is so easy to make. We enjoy a spoonful with our winter meals to help our digestion. Winter is the best time to regenerate garden soils. Most of the action in the garden happens under the

Sheryl Stivens

ECO EFFICIENCY

ground over winter. Under the blanket of mulch, the earthworms perform their magic and turn the organic matter into rich fertile loam ready to plant in spring. It’s so good to have a worm farm close to your kitchen in winter so you can feed your food scraps to the worms and they can recycle them for you. Worms are the ultimate pet They don’t bark at night and you don’t need to buy them pet food or take them for a walk. They eat up your leftovers and if you have the right system they reward you with both worm juice and vermicast – worm castings. So how can you get started? You can either buy a worm

Tiger worms are the ultimate composters. Why not set up a worm farm in the school holidays?

farm or make your own. Mitre 10, Bunnings and The Warehouse all sell various types of worm farms that all work well once you understand the

PHOTO SUPPLIED

principles. You can also make your own if you are into DIY. Next you will need to find some tiger worms (Einsenia

Homemade Kiwi kimchi (easy Korean sauerkraut)

The latest tasty jar of kimchi fermented vegePHOTO SUPPLIED tables.

1 head red or green cabbage or leaves of greens 1 bunch spring onions 1C chopped carrots 1T grated ginger root 3 cloves garlic crushed 1 1/2 t mineral salt. 2 chillis chopped or 1/2 t chilli flakes (opt) 1/4 C whey from the top of yoghurt (or buy a fermentation starter)

– Chop or shred the vegetables by hand or in a food processor, place in large bowl and mix the salt through. Cover and leave for 30 mins to let the salt pull the juice out from the vegetables. Pound with a potator masher to make the mixture juicy. – Spoon into glass jars with a clip-on seal

– –

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– – –

pounding into the jar as you go. Leave a space at the top and pour in the whey. Cover all with a cabbage leaf and weigh down with a tiny china bowl. Clip down the glass lid so it is sealed. Leave to ferment at room temperature for three to seven days. Make sure it’s on a plate to catch any fermenting overflow liquid. Be sure to burp your jar each day by lifting the lid to let the air out, then sealing again. Skim off any mould or fuzz that develops on top. (Everything beneath the brine should be fine.) After a few days the mixture will be bubbly and the vegetables will soften. Taste till you get the flavour you want. (We like ours in five to seven days. Transfer to the fridge and enjoy each day.

Fetida) for your worm farm. You will find them by digging in your compost heap or asking a friend who has a compost bin. You can also buy 1kg of tiger worms from Ashburton Meat Processors to get started. Once you are set up you need to create some bedding for your worm farm. Do not use bought compost as it may be too acidic or heat up and kill your worms. Rip up some newspaper and soak it in a bucket. Place it in the bottom of your worm farm and add a few handfuls of soil. Place your worms into this little nest and feed them with your vegetable scraps and leftover food. Make sure to cover them with cardboard, a piece of carpet or an old woollen jersey to keep out the light. Put the lid on your worm farm with a brick on top. Make sure your worms have adequate drainage in their new home and position in a sunny warmish place over winter. Drain any liquid regularly and water your container plants and garden with the rich juice. It will take many months before you have any vermicast as the worms reduce 10 buckets of scraps to less than one bucket of rich worm castings. We feed anything that was once living to our worm farms. All of your peelings, small bones, avocado seeds, wet paper, tea bags, leftover drinks and paper towels all go to the worms. It’s a great way to reduce waste in your home and it’s fun. My dad used to say he could tell what the weather was going to do when he lifted the lid on his worm farm. If the worms were all at the top it was tending nor’west and if they were diving down a cold change was coming. Enjoy your winter observations and take time out for self-reflection. It’s that time of year.

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FEATURE

Born from the need of sustainability L

ang Sustainability was formed in December, 2019, born from a need of a sustainable life – A clearer definition of a flexible work/life balance. With a young family and a vested interest in agriculture, Nicole has a passion for sustainable farm system development that can and will prosper in the future. A base knowledge of farm system management with experience in refinement of farm environmental systems allows the understanding of key management changes and regulation facing the agricultural industry. A continuous drive for improvement and seeking learning opportunities led to a boutique business with multiple service offerings; to ensure a critical depth of farm business understanding is cemented. Advice is formed to ensure productivity results drive the farm system refinement for business environmental sustainability. Constant training and upskilling is key to providing relevant and meaningful advice to our client base with no two farm systems or underlying assets the same. We are adaptable and able to offer tailored advice to you and your farm business.

What Lang Sustainability can do for you Lang Sustainability specialises in: – Independent nutrient analysis Soils, plants and water. Testing of the physical nutrient base of your farm and environment is critical in understanding change and focusing specific mitigation or sustainable farming activities

– Farm system compliance Creation of systems and processes to aid you in evidence collection of farm inputs for consent monitoring or farm environmental plan audits. Key experience in optimisation of farm systems within environmental limitations.

– Independent fertiliser advisory Ensure that sustainable fertiliser advice can be implemented to minimise potential environmental loss and maximise on-farm productivity. Annual agronomic fertiliser plan preparation can ensure nutrient use efficiency for a sustainable and profitable farm system.

– Nutrient budgets As a certified nutrient management advisor with critical farm systems knowledge, we can model OverseerTM budgets for compliance purposes, scenario measurement, due diligence, or baseline reporting. – Due diligence As part of a farm sale process,

ensure you have sufficient knowledge around the base system compliance or farm development potential of the property, including nitrogen baseline preparation. – Farm environmental planning Creation and implementation of sustainable farm practice through an effective farm environmental plan that exhibits your farm businesses commitment and focus to sustainable farm management and meets compliance requirements. – Biodiversity plans Preparation of key documentation to illustrate the biodiversity values of your property asset and adoption of

management to ensure biodiversity prospers alongside a profitable farming operation. Key input is required for the preparation of these plans from a suitably qualified ecologist. – Resource consenting Key knowledge and understanding to aid you in the resource consenting process whether its for regional or district consenting. Establishment of farm development consents to land use approval for buildings and associated infrastructure. – Agricultural workshop facilitation Approved Red Meat Profit Partnership action network group facilitator.

Let’s get proactive rather than reactive. Understand your farms compliance position and requirements Review your fertiliser plans and on farm record keeping systems Examine your waterways & wetlands to formulate fencing and riparian planting plans Introduce & implement a farm environmental plan today

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FEATURE

Finding the right advice for you consultant on the team. • Other farmers In addition to having an advisory team, connect with other farmers for advice and support. Seek advice from others who share the same challenges.

alk to experts, other farmers and people you trust. Good advice and support can make all the difference because ‘she’ll be right’ does not work when it comes to finances. • What do successful farmers advise? We talked to farmers. When it comes to seeking business advice and assistance, here is what they recommend.

• Getting communication right How, and how often, you communicate with your farm team and stakeholders will vary from farm to farm. Open communication benefits you, your business, farm team, and stakeholders.

• How can support people help me? Support people can provide an experienced, unbiased perspective and help you understand and plan how to guide your business to your picture of success. • How do I set up an advisory team? A huge amount of support is available in the dairy industry, but how do you go about setting up a

team who can support and advise you? Find out how to bring together • Business learning and training opportunities an advisory team for your business. Profitable farmers are often lifelong learners. Top farmers value • Rural lenders learning and attend conferences, Borrowing can be a major expense short-courses, discussion groups, for an agribusiness; you should be seminars and invest in their future prepared to invest time and effort by undertaking formal training. into ensuring you achieve the best possible arrangements to suit your needs and circumstances. Tips sourced from Dairy NZ

• Farm management consultants It’s important to have a great

Get the right software Accountants and Advisors for Mid Canterbury BDO is committed to supporting our Mid Canterbury Agribusiness Community As accountants and advisors with a dedicated Agribusiness team we pride ourselves on working alongside you to align your purpose for farming with the implementation of efficient systems and strategies to provide awareness of profitability and opportunities, driving for better outcomes.

hat do I need out of my farm accounting software system? Just like every other aspect in life technology is evolving quickly in the Ag administration space. Just like your fancy new phone or television there is often a lot of functionality that you never use or know how to use. However when choosing an appropriate system it is worth spending the time to understand what role this system might play in your business. There are a number of questions you need to answer before you can determine what software package is likely to be the right one for you and your business: • What are you wanting out of your software system? • Do you want to be able to budget? (hopefully you do) and if so to what level of detail • Do you want to monitor your stock or produce records?

• What sort of reporting would be useful? • Do you have a desire to go paperless and keep all your invoices in the cloud? • What functionality would you like out of your payroll system and do you want it to be fully integrated? • To avoid replication of data what systems might work together now or into the future? There is an appropriate program for everyone and not any one system is right for everyone. Contemplate your needs and talk to your advisors. Get them to share their views and have a test run to get a feel for what is right. Most importantly make sure they are listening and that the system you are directed to is right for you, not just for them. Give us a call if you would like us to review your requirements. Rod Hansen

We are a leading national full service accounting and advisory business with a strong presence and connection in Mid Canterbury, with offices in Ashburton and Christchurch. Some of the many services we assist with: f f f f f f

Accounting compliance Business plans Outsourcing and payroll Finance Succession planning Governance

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Budgeting Strategic planning Implementation and training support for rural based accounting packages including Cashmanager Rural, Xero and Figured

Please give us a call to meet and find out about how we could fit into your team

Frazer Weir

frazer.weir@bdo.co.nz 027 453 5831

Simon Wing

simon.wing@bdo.co.nz 021 867 585

www.bdo.nz/christchurch

Rod Hansen

rod.hansen@bdo.co.nz 021 823 875

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Above left – Global head of the Royal Barenbrug Group, John Thijssen, worked on a Waikato dairy farm in his younger years, and “fell in love” with New Zealand and its unique grass-based dairy systems. Above right – Managing director Michael Hales (left), and marketing manager GraPHOTOS SUPPLIED ham Kerr get ready for the new branding from July 1.

Seed company rebrand reflects global

“

These new technologies will allow us to identify plants that are more efficient users of nitrogen, more efficient users of water, and more tolerant to disease, and to do this much faster than we have traditionally been able to

Canterbury-based plant breeding and research company behind some of New Zealand’s best-known pastures and forage crops is rebranding. Thirty-three years after it first teamed up with a family-owned seed business in the Netherlands,

• Modern fleet • Experienced operators • Grain vac unit available • Bulk grain storage facilities

Locally owned and operated

Proud to service the farming community in Canterbury

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partnership Barenbrug Agriseeds will be known as Barenbrug, from July 1. Barenbrug is based on a 224-hectare breeding and research station near Darfield in Central Canterbury and has a staff of 60 throughout New Zealand. Its pasture and forage cultivars include several industry firsts, such as Trojan, Rohan, Shogun, Tabu+ and the new Maxsyn. Managing director Michael Hales said the Royal Barenbrug Group had been part of the New Zealand company since it was founded, providing unique access to plant genetics, science and knowledge. “This collaboration has been a key part of our success in the New Zealand pastoral industry – we would not be where we are today without it.” While the name on the distinctive yellow seed bags will be different this season, farmers can be reassured everything else will remain unchanged, Hales said. “Our people, products and strategy remain the same.” So too is the company’s long commitment to providing pastoral producers the best seed they can

grow and all the advice they need. “The Royal Barenbrug Group has always given us the scope here to tailor the business to the needs of New Zealand farmers. “As a result, we’ve been able to develop many innovative and successful varieties which are widely used throughout the country. We also export these varieties to several countries, including through our subsidiary in Chile.” Founded in 1904 by Joseph Barenbrug, the group was now a fourth-generation family business with 22 research programmes across six continents, and operating companies in 18 countries. John Thijssen, global head of the Royal Barenbrug Group, said this long history of stability was no coincidence. “We are proudly family-owned, and like their predecessors, the current owners Bastiaan and Frank Barenbrug have always been focused on further growing the company and investing for the future generations. Rather than try and satisfy short-term interests, like publicly listed

companies, which think quarter to quarter, we think generation to generation.” Likewise the group’s truly global footprint sets it apart, both in terms of seed production and research, he said. “Having a physical presence in six continents means we have our own people and our own knowledge and technologies developed in these different regions. It also allows us to use each other’s capabilities. “From a research perspective, for example, being able to share the insights gained from our work in in all these different continents within our global research group allows us to excel as a company.” Critically, as pastoral farming faces pressing new environmental demands, this scale gives the group more opportunity to pursue emerging technologies in plant breeding, such as genomics and phenotyping. “These new technologies will allow us to identify plants that are more efficient users of nitrogen, more efficient users of water, and more tolerant to disease, and to do this much faster than we have

traditionally been able to. “This work is high-tech, highcost, and high-risk. Because we are a global group, we can afford to invest in these rather expensive techniques to allow our breeders to make big leaps forward in finding ways to address the challenges staring grassland farming in the face.” New Zealand itself has much to offer the group in this regard, not least in its pastoral knowledge base, which was a key factor in the Barenbrug family’s decision to become involved in the industry here more than 30 years ago. “We look at New Zealand, the country, the farmers, and the institutes, as global champions of grazing grassland management. There’s a tremendous amount of knowledge and experience that we can both take from and contribute to, to further develop and grow our understanding of productive and sustainable pasture and pasture management.” Thijssen said Christchurchbased start-up Farmote was a perfect example of New Zealand’s ability to innovate in this area. The Farmote system combines

satellite-based hyperspectral technology with in-field sensors to provide farmers real time accurate insight into the amount of feed available in every paddock every day. “We are so intrigued by this development that we have taken an equity position in that company. “We see global potential there. In parallel with developing new plant genetics, we feel it’s also very important to find ways to help farmers get the best out their pastures and their grazing management.” Thijssen may be the head of a global business turning over in excess of $425 million a year, with more than 750 employees, but he has a close and personal interest in New Zealand, with the NZ Barenbrug business part of his regional responsibility. In 1988, he did an internship on a Waikato dairy farm, and “fell in love” with the country and its unique grass-based farm systems. “I’ve always stayed in touch with what’s happening there, and I have been back many, many times,” Thijssen said.

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The dangers of nitrates in drinking water C

lean drinking water is taken for granted in well-off countries like New Zealand. But in Canterbury we shouldn’t be complacent. There are two types of possible contamination of drinking water: from pathogens, such as E. coli or campylobacter, or chemical contamination, such as nitrates. Contamination from pathogens can cause illness immediately. Symptoms can be mild or extremely serious: the Havelock North campylobacter outbreak in August 2016 made over 5000 people violently ill and was linked to three deaths. Chemical contamination of drinking water is different: it can affect different people in different ways, and the effects may take a long time to show up. In Canterbury, many drinking water sources are high in nitrates. This is a dissolved form of nitrogen which enters the water supply through the soil. It originates from the urine of stock, septic tanks or fertiliser. The danger of nitrates in water is that it can be converted to nitrites in the bowel. It is nitrites that are the issue,

Mary Ralston

FOREST AND BIRD

not nitrates. Nitrates in water are dissolved and not able to be filtered out. There are nitrates in some vegetables, but these are not converted to nitrites to a great extent. Babies are affected more severely than adults by nitrate contamination. The presence of nitrite in the digestive tract of newborns can lead to a disease called blue baby syndrome, a condition that reduces the ability of red blood cells to release oxygen to tissues. This is potentially fatal to babies. If bottle fed, babies consume large quantities of water relative to their body weight and their immature digestive systems are more likely to convert nitrate to nitrite than adults. Until recently, it was thought that blue baby syndrome was the only health consequence of

If your drinking water supply is high in nitrates, installing a tank to collect rainwater is a wise idea.

nitrates in drinking water and the Maximum Acceptable Value (MAV) of 11.3g/m3 nitrate-N reflected this risk to babies. But a recent Danish study has found a link with nitrates in drinking water to an increase in colorectal cancer. This study of 2.7 million people found that nitrates at

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much lower levels than the MAV are correlated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. Levels over 0.87g/m3 gave a statistically significant increase in colorectal cancer and there was a 15 per cent increase in risk if over 2.1g/m3. For every 1g/ m3 over that, risk increased by 4 per cent.

Half of the groundwater wells monitored in Canterbury are over 3g/m3 – more than three times the trigger level of the Danish study and many community water schemes and private wells are over 7g/m3. It may be no coincidence that New Zealand has one of the highest rates of colorectal cancer in the world and Canterbury and Southland have the highest rates in New Zealand. This is not to say everyone drinking water high in nitrates will get cancer, but if you drink water from a groundwater well, it would make sense to find out the level of nitrates, and if it is over 1g/m3, then consider using rainwater. Rainwater has its problems too, but these are relatively easy to sort: thoroughly clean the roof, repaint if you need to and install a downpipe and tank. Occasionally disconnect the tank to clean the roof with rain after windy nor’wests. It doesn’t take much rain to satisfy drinking water needs – keep your regular connection for washing and cleaning and just use the rainwater for drinking and cooking.

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FEATURE

Prudent use of antibiotics for mastitis P

rudent use of antibiotics in animals helps minimise the risk of bacteria developing resistance. There’s also mounting evidence that antibiotic resistance is building in humans, which can be partly attributed to the use of antibiotics in animals. That’s why it’s important for farmers and animal health professionals to work together to ensure antibiotics are not over-used on-farm. Early identification and treatment of clinical cows can assist with this. Developing a herd health management plan with your vet, alongside your annual RVM (Restricted Veterinary Medicines) review, will help prevent some of the on-farm diseases and health conditions in the first place, which will reduce the need for treatment. It will also minimise the risk of antibiotic resistance in your herd and any flow-on effects into human communities.

Give it the green light

New Zealand Veterinary Association guidelines outline a ‘traffic light’ approach when using antibiotics (see diagram above right). This system helps you and your vet agree on the treatments to reach for first and identify those requiring more investigation before they can be administered. It’s an easy way to ensure the right cows are targeted with the right treatments, with the right doses and timing of doses, to support the cow to return to good health. Compounds in the ‘green category’ are generally the first choice or line of treatment, with compounds in the ‘yellow’ category used as the second line of approach, or certain conditions where the organism is more susceptible to these products. Compounds in the ‘red’ category are used only as a last resort, or where there’s enough diagnostic evidence to indicate its use. For most cases of mastitis, intramammary products will be used, as they deliver the smallest amount of antibiotic to the part of the cow

DairyNZ’s Jane Lacy-Hulbert (above left) explains how farmers can use a ‘traffic light’ approach (above right) to manage mastitis and help reduce antibiotic use.

where it’s most needed. But sometimes, injectable products may be preferred, such as treating multiple glands or where the cow is showing signs of systemic illness. Other situations may require the use of anti-inflammatories, to help make the cow more comfortable, and may lead to better outcomes in the long run.

Find, record and treat all clinicals

Rapidly finding and treating clinical mastitis cases in the calving period reduces the risk of affecting milk quality. It also reduces the likelihood of infection being passed on to other cows, and development of chronic, longer-lasting infections. Look for heat, swelling or signs of pain in the udder, and/or changes in the milk (wateriness, clots, discolouration) that persist for more than three squirts of milk. Only treat these cows – this helps avoid wasting antibiotics on cases that may otherwise clear up on their own.

Key points

Identifying and treating clinical cases of mastitis early will help reduce

Rapidly finding and treating clinical mastitis cases in the calving period reduces the risk of affecting milk quality.

infection and milk quality issues. Talk to your vet about updating or developing a herd health management plan appropriate for your farm, and support use of the ‘traffic light’ approach. This will ensure there is a: – Clear understanding on your farm about how to prevent and treat

different conditions. – Focus on cow comfort and a rapid return to good health. – Reduction in antibiotic misuse and waste. Jane Lacy-Hulbert is DairyNZ’s animal and feed team leader

Farming

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Rates money flows into unwanted race Chris Murdoch

PROPERTY BROKERS

don’t think anyone would argue that the Ashburton county stock water system that takes good clean water out of our foothill streams and delivers it across our beautiful Mid Canterbury Plains has been a real game-changer for farming successfully in Mid Canterbury. Prior to this system there was no way of developing Mid Canterbury into the bread basket it has become as there were few areas that held water for stock or households. The stock water race system in my mind was as big as the irrigation systems that exist today. It truly did change Canterbury and especially Mid Canterbury. It has only been since the introduction of well drilling that the use of the race systems has declined and been taken over by wells.

Some farms and I believe, lifestyle properties still rely on the county water race system, but I would suggest that 98 per cent don’t. So I cannot express how I felt when the Ashburton District Council aired the idea that those who had the system running through their properties (and I am one) will have a 600 per cent increase in costs to pay for something I don’t want, use, or need.

We don’t just say team. We promise it.

We have been on our property for about 20 years and have paid $93.38 per annum for allowing the council to take water through my property. The council then expect me to fence, clean it at least once a year and maintain it so I don’t know who on our race line can use it to provide water to a few sheep or cattle. On our road alone, there are about 17 eight hectare properties

and I suppose we are all paying about the same as me which means the council collect $1587 in county race rates. Under the proposed price hike our road will pay $10,200 a year. I would suggest that none of us use the race system at all and would be happy to see it go. In fact, about three years ago the council sent around a letter to ask if we wanted or needed the race but nothing ever came of it.

What really gets me is that the council believe that increasing the cost of the race system to people who do not want it or use it will fix the problem. Effectively I am paying for a service I neither want nor need. Maybe $100 per year I can accept, but not $600! I thought we had rural based and minded councillors to look after our interests, not rob us blind. I just hope for the council’s sake that the power line companies don’t cotton on to the fact that you can charge someone for allowing them to take a product across their land as the power companies use a lot of council roads to transfer power around the county and if they used the same method and reasoning as the council does with county stock water, the council is in for one hell of a bill. On the week that this idea was proposed, the stock water race that runs through our property was dry and stayed that way for a week. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the fish and eels that died during that time. Let alone the farmer that needed the water for stock!

When you list your farm with our South Island team, there are Property Brokers’ members across the country working alongside them to get you the best result. That’s because every one of them has signed a binding agreement to work together to sell your property. It’s a New Zealand first for the rural real estate industry that means we put your best interests first. Which is exactly where they should be. Find out more at pb.co.nz/trueteam

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So, did coming out of lockdown help? C

onversation with my city-bound friends has inevitably gone to the wet cold days and wishing for a return to warm sunny weather – like we had in lockdown. They don’t like my desire for more of the same and some! I must explain how important reliable groundwater supply is to the economy of the region, hence let it rain and let us catch up on the average. We got released into Level 1 after a pretty short time in Level 3, then 2. Everything that changes or happens seems to have some relationship with Covid-19. Since we went to Level 1 those warm and dry conditions have been replaced by some cool, damp weather with

Tony Davoren

HYDRO SERVICES

temperatures struggling to get much past 10°C. Irrigation in some places continued until the end of May, with some doing a little in June. So, has much changed in the groundwater reserve since my last article? June finally delivered a month of average rainfall. But we’re still a fair way behind (230mm) average rainfall since

December; 243mm compared to 474mm long-term. This is a significant amount of rainfall to get back close to the long-term average, especially when one considers mean monthly rainfall is around 5055mm. Being this far behind average rainfall, not exceeding average monthly rainfall and still feeling the effects of high irrigation demand in the first few months of the year translates into low groundwater levels. Water level in L37/0022 has continued an upward trend, has gotten into a more comfortable zone but is still 5.7m below the average high water level for around June 10. This translates into many millions of cubic metres, mostly from rainfall recharge. That means a month and

half of very wet weather. Last month I presented some data from a monitoring site near the Christchurch airport where soil moisture is measured down to 1.9m. Since the end of May the soil moisture content has increased down to 1.9m thanks to about 66mm between measurements. But there is still a very large deficit. As of June 20 (after the wettest of those wet days) the difference to field capacity was still 100mm. This means at least 100mm is required before any groundwater will occur on unirrigated soils – and time is running out. While groundwater levels are heading in the right direction, everything points to some large rainfall events needed before the end of July or mid-August at the latest.

Farming

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FEATURE

The make-up of fertiliser F

ertiliser provides the nutrients to grow and nourish pastures and crops. Plants require 17 essential nutrients to thrive. Fertiliser supports plant growth and replenishes nutrients after each harvest. Nitrogen, phosphate, potassium and sulphur are the four most important nutrients for crop yields and sustainable food production:

Nitrogen (N) makes up about 78 per cent of the air we breathe. It is inert and insoluble in this form. To manufacture nitrogen fertiliser, it must be removed from the air and combined with hydrogen to make ammonia, which is then converted to urea. This is applied directly to crops as a nitrogen fertiliser or used as a building block to make other nitrogen fertiliser products. Phosphorus (P) is present in all living cells and is essential to all forms of life. Found throughout our bodies, it is concentrated in our teeth and bones. The source of phosphorus in fertiliser is phosphate rock, which is typically mined from the earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crust then reacted with acid to produce different phosphate products. Potassium (K) is also found throughout nature and is found in our bodies in muscles, skin and the digestive tract. Good health requires sufficient

intake of potassium. Plants use potassium for functions like photosynthesis and protein formation. Potassium, or potash, is mined from naturally occurring ore bodies that were formed as seawater evaporated. The deposits are a mixture of crystals of

potassium chloride and sodium chloride. Sodium chloride is also known as table salt. After it is mined, the potassium chloride is purified into a granular fertiliser.

Sulphur (S) is essential to produce

amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins found in all living things. Sulphur also helps give crops like onion, mustard and radish their characteristic flavour. While it can be found naturally in the soil, it is not always in a form plants can use.

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FEATURE

Best way for fertiliser application M

ost agricultural fertiliser is spread by contract ground spreaders and aerial applicators following the applicable parts of the Code of Practice for the Placement of Fertiliser. Good communication between the contractor and farmer or land manager is essential for best value from fertiliser and to minimise environmental risks. The ideas listed below are also useful considerations for land managers who apply their own fertiliser. Clearly state the name of product and application rate. Use correct product names as stated on sales documents – common names and abbreviations can cause confusion. • Express all application rates in kilograms per hectare (kg/ha); lime

application may be stated in tonnes/ ha. Be sure your spreading operator is absolutely clear about the desired fertiliser application rate. • Give details of the application area. A map showing the location, boundaries and size of the area(s) to be treated is best. Pointing out easily identifiable ground features can help the contractor find the right paddock. • Describe any hazards present, such as power lines, trees, silage pits or hidden steep slopes that may be dangerous to the operator. It is also important to highlight any unusual activities that may be taking place on the farm, eg tree felling. • Note any areas and features to be

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avoided, such as streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands and riparian strips. It is helpful to mark these on the map, rather than rely on verbal explanation. Areas of high nutrient status may not respond to the fertiliser being applied • and should usually be avoided, eg stock camps. • Note any conditions to be avoided.Ashburton Avoid applying fertilisers, particularly those containing nitrogen, when • soil moisture levels are high (at or near field capacity) to avoid the risk of nutrient moving laterally rather than being absorbed into the soil. There is a risk that fertiliser applied on slopes will be washed downhill if the soil surface is hard and dry and/ or the vegetative cover is very short.

Delay spreading fertiliser materials if the wind is strong enough to cause drift away from the target area or if the wind direction is towards nearby sensitive crops or dwellings. Consult the fertiliser supplier for information about hazards to livestock from direct intake of fertiliser. Avoid application on blocks where livestock are grazing. Specify the accuracy and evenness required. The usual measure for evenness of spread is the coefficient of variation (CV%), in which the lowest figure represents the most even spread. Spreader operators should be given a clear indication of the evenness (CV%) required for the job in hand.

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STAY AND PLAY BANKS PENINSULA

A diversely beautiful playground

anks Peninsula is one of New Zealand’s most unique landforms. With endless hills, bays and hidden bush, this is nature’s playground right on Christchurch’s doorstep. The area is steeped in Maori and settler history, adventures and unique experiences. The crown in the jewel is the small settlement of Akaroa, which sits at the heart of an ancient volcano, stacked

with sparkling bays, green hills and an eclectic range of eco-experiences. This historic French settlement is the ideal basecamp for exploring Banks Peninsula. From there you can explore the beautiful deep harbour that is home to little blue penguins, marine birds and the largest population of hector’s dolphins in the world. With elements of Maori, French and

English culture, Akaroa is unique in character and one of the oldest and bestpreserved heritage towns in the South Island. The town celebrates its French links with a biennial French Fest, a threeday celebration including market stalls and entertainment, French games and evening cabaret. Those with a love of fine dining will find themselves spoilt for choice

Take a trip to Quail Island

Little by name, not by nature

eferred to as Tamahua by local Maori, meaning a place where children collect seabirds eggs. Iwi used the island to gather eggs and shellfish. From 1875 Quail Island was used as a quarantine station for people and later animals. The island was used to contain new immigrants who had contracted illness while onboard the ships that brought them to New Zealand. From the period 1917-18 the island was used to isolate those on the Mainland who had contracted diseases such as diphtheria, smallpox and Spanish influenza. Nowadays the 81 hectare island is used as a recreational reserve and can be easily explored in a day. A ferry service runs from Lyttelton to the island return and the island provides the perfect spot for a day picnic or to simply enjoy the many walks available.

with an abundance of award-winning local produce and top-notch bars and restaurants. From brunch spots in the sun to cocktails on the waterfront, beers at microbreweries to wines at hillside wineries, it’s a foodie haven. Banks Peninsula offers endless possibilities to immerse yourself in the outdoors and the unique history and culture of this special area.

ocated 30 minutes from Akaroa and 45 minutes from Christchurch, Little River is nestled in a deep valley surrounded by streams and springs. The streams and springs join to form the Okana and Okuti Rivers. Little River is not only home to the end of a historic railway line, it also marks the end of the Little River Rail Trail, a 45km scenic cycle trail beginning in Hornby. Little River boasts an interesting mix of cafes, craft shops and an amazing gallery where a fine selection of local and New Zealand art and souvenirs can be purchased. A unique range of accommodation can be found in Little River. Stay in silos, eco-friendly glamping in yurts or the more traditional B&Bs, holiday homes and camping ground.

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FEATURE

Cable Logging Geraldine run a fully mechanised crew.

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ased in the Geraldine forest, Cable Logging Geraldine carry out a professional logging operation, both in terms of health and safety and environmentally. In business for 19 years, it operates to best practice as well as being the region’s only steep terrain hauler loggers. Owners Tracy and Avrill Burrows and Michael and Helen May have five staff. Tracy and Michael run the logging operation, while Avrill and Helen run the administration side of the business. The staff includes Brittney Burrows (Tracy and Avrill’s daughter), who operates diggers and loads trucks. Foreman Glen Paul, its health and safety officer, joined them through the Gateway Programme (or work experience) over 15 years ago, accepting a job once he finished school. Health and safety has changed over the years for the better, the owners said. “We have worked hard to keep abreast and implement best practice, not only for the safety of our staff, but for our wider work community. “We are proud to be a Safetree certified contractor.” They were also a member of the Forestry Industry Contractors Association (FICA) which has worked hard this year to support all its members during these unprecedented times. Environmentally the company worked to Port Blakely sustainable practice guidelines and was certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Among other things, this meant operating in ways that take care of native vegetation and protects

waterways. FSC was an international association that promotes responsible forest management. By holding this certification, it recognises Port Blakely operations are being managed in an environmentally and socially responsible manner over and above regulatory requirements. Recently, while working above Te Moana Gorge, the company worked closely with Environment Canterbury and the Department of Conservation to ensure it operated at best practice, to protect the popular picnicking and camping area. Cable Logging Geraldine operate a steep terrain hauler and a falcon claw. The falcon claw replaces the need to put two men on the hill, breaking out for the hauler, significantly reducing the opportunity for accidents. Neighbouring farmers, John and Elaine Mallinson and Graham Carr, allowed the company to use their land to tie the ropes to, which ensured it could get the lift it needed. Port Blakey sourced an Iroquois helicopter to lift the extension ropes into the tread so they could be tied off to safely create lift to protect the stream and native vegetation. Felling is done by a tethered felling machine – which again is a safety measure to keep men off the hill. Its binwood recovery was also making the hills more secure from debris. Ninetyfive per cent of its waste wood goes to Canterbury Woodchip who come on site and chip it to be used for burning in boilers.

Farming

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FEATURE

steps to R

eady to remove that tree on your property that’s doing more good than it is bad? When felling trees, the correct working techniques are essential. Not only to create a safe working environment, but also to be more effective when working. So, to keep you safe; here’s the best advice possible on bringing down that tall piece of pine. 1. Plan ahead When it comes to tree removal by using a chainsaw, preparation is key. If you plan the felling and which forestry equipment to bring, not only are you in for a safer working session, but your post-felling work can also be a lot easier. First of all, ask yourself if there are any major obstacles – such as overhead lines, roads or buildings – in the area. Deploy warning signs if you know that a road crosses the forestry area or that a lot of people pass by on a daily basis. 2. Check the felling direction Continue by determining the felling direction by carefully studying the tree. How do the branches look and how do they grow? Also, take the wind direction into consideration. If you’re unsure of the tree’s natural direction of fall, step away from the tree and check with a plumbline. Clear around the tree in the intended felling direction. Also clear about 45 degrees behind the tree in both directions, creating your path of retreat.

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a successful tree felling 3. Prune the trunk When you have cleared the area, put up your warning signs and decide on the tree’s direction of fall and your path of retreat. You should check that you have enough fuel in the tank for the task ahead. Then it’s time to prune the trunk to get rid of all the branches and twigs that might get in the way when sawing the felling cut. The safest way to prune is to work with a pulling chain (underside of the guide bar) from the top down. 4. Decide on cutting technique Once the trunk is twig-free up to shoulder height, it’s time to make the felling cut. When doing this, it’s important to remember two things: the hinge should have a uniform thickness with the right dimensions and the felling wedge or breaking bar should be inserted before the tree can pinch the guide bar. Which technique you should use for making the cut depends on the tree size and slope, and on the size of your chainsaw. We have put together information about the different techniques here, so that you can find out for yourself which method best suits your conditions. 5. Check for diseases If you notice that the timber is discoloured and soft or if the lower part of the trunk looks swollen or diseased, you need to be very careful. This is an indication that the tree is infested with rot and that means the wood fibres are weakened. When this happens, fell in the tree’s natural direction of fall and use a winch if you are unsure.

Rot infestation usually subsides higher up in the tree, so one option might be to fell the tree with an extra high stump. 6. Choose your tool There are several felling tools to choose from when taking the tree down. The size of the tree determines which type of forestry equipment you need. For the smallest trees, you do not normally need the felling tools. Hand force is enough, possibly with the help of a long pole. The felling wedge provides greater felling

force than the different types of breaking bar. In extreme cases you can use a rope and a winch, which is the safest and most powerful way to fell a tree.

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