Canterbury Farming, June 2023

Better results: The Henderson family completing their most recent harvest on Limewood Farms near Mt Hutt. 30,287 copies distributed monthly – to every rural mailbox in Canterbury and the West Coast for over 25 years

Mongolian shearers p5 NAIT campaign p15 Celebrating 25 yrs p25 El Nino signals p44

] by Kylie Galbraith

Wet weather and lost days contributed to lower crop yields and quality, so brighter days and a drier growing season have certainly been welcomed.

James and Jo Doyle have 400ha at Mayfield, on the Canterbury Plain, about 45km inland from Ashburton, and have just finalised their harvest, both on their own place and on

Getting the right

advice early makes a difference.

other farms they service with their contract harvesting business.

On their own place, Eden Terrace, they grow milling wheat, seed wheat and seed barley, perennial grass seed, Cocksfoot grass seed, pak choi seed for Asia, Marrowfat peas that go to Korea and finished up with the harvest of radish seed at the start of April.

The Doyles started harvesting their grain crops towards the end of January, about two

weeks behind when they usually expect to start, but James said as they approached the finish line, the overall result was “average to good, not outstanding”.

Assessing insurance coverage

As we acquire assets of some value most people also acquire a raft of insurances to cover any loss suffered in the event of an accident, disaster, flood, fire or destruction however caused.

event of the destruction of the home. Contents cover is also essential to avoid any problems if appliances catch fire and cause damage to the home.

Prior to the earthquakes many home-owners had replacement insurance and some lenders required that type of insurance. That type of insurance is no longer available with most companies although there are one or two still providing replacement cover.

]

by Bessie

Paterson LLB

Ronald W Angland & Son

We can spend a lot on insurance premiums and unless we are very unfortunate we will not reap any rewards from the insurance companies.

Everybody who has a home with a mortgage will be required to have sufficient insurance cover to repay the mortgage in the

Replacement cover replaced the insured property no matter what the cost. Now, almost all companies have a maximum figure which they will pay on a claim.

Insurance on commercial properties is expensive and it is usually the tenants in the premises who pay the annual premium. Public liability insurance is also held by occupiers of commercial premises.

Everybody who owns a motor vehicle should have it insured even if it is third party cover only. Following an accident an uninsured driver who is not at fault has to recover

WE ARE BUYING!

the cost of repairs from the driver at fault and in many instances finds it an enormously difficult process to recover those costs. Recovery of the cost of repairs may be claimed in the District Court and enforcement of any orders made can take months or even years to achieve.

We can insure ourselves to cover breakdowns in our health. Recently I heard a doctor suggesting that people who generally have good health should put aside a weekly or monthly amount to cover their health costs. Health insurance premiums increase exponentially as we get older.

There is insurance cover available to cover

funeral costs, we can insure our pets’ health and many other risks. When we leave NZ for a holiday abroad it is prudent to have travel insurance to cover health, possessions, loss of deposits and the myriad of unexpected events on the journey.

Insurance is readily available for most risks but we should always consider whether we really need cover for remote risks. The major exception is motor vehicle insurance which is vital for our peace of mind.

This article has been prepared by Bessie Paterson a partner at Ronald W Angland & Son, Lawyers, 2 Chapman Street, Leeston.

Yields improving while input costs rising

FROM PAGE 1

“It was a lot better harvest than last year though because that was wet on and off all the way through. Everything’s up on last year even though it’s been a little bit stop/start –still, it was of a good quality but the growing season’s been a bit dull up here the last few years so that’s sacrificed some yield for us.”

They’re now turning their attention to sowing autumn wheat and barley, the grass seed’s already in, and prepare to welcome the 1900 dairy cows that winter on their property from four dairy farms in the region.

“The cows start arriving in June/July, and then all the ground with the winter feed for the cows goes back to crops in August and September; either spring wheat or barley or a radish or brassica crop,” James said.

“Hopefully the autumn stays dryish, don’t really need any moisture at the moment. But the winter, who knows. We’re probably due for a dump of snow which we haven’t had for a while.”

For the Henderson family – Roger, Jude and Aaron – in the Canterbury region, near Methven, harvest has been a similar story.

Limewood Farms is a 450ha operation, growing the likes of rapeseed, Cocksfoot, rye grass, heat, barley, peas, spinach, radishes, brown top and carrots, which this year will be

the final crop they take off.

“The yields have been okay, about average, but a lot better than last year when they were well below. The wheat this year was probably 3 tonnes better than the previous year,” Roger said.

“It works better for us to have our own gear – we found using contractors was too hard on the nerves. Farming is all about timing these days and you have to have everything on time to get the best results, and the equipment – and having it on hand when we need it – helps us do this,” said Aaron, who’s a fourth-generation farmer.

The Hendersons, too, are preparing for dairy cows to arrive for the winter, about 1500 of them, and are currently busy putting in the next round of crops. Roger and Jude hope the prices remain good, although rising input costs are currently eating into any rises in commodity returns.

“What we grow is contracted before we put it in, we don’t grow anything on the free market. Most of the small seeds are exported, half the wheat goes to dairy cows for feed and half for milling, the likes of the spinach, carrots and grasses are exported. The prices have been quite good, but it’s always a waitand-see process,” Roger said.

Strong growth in enrolments at Lincoln University

The number of students choosing to study at Te Whare Wanaka o Aoraki Lincoln University has increased again in 2023, continuing the University’s strong growth trajectory since the pre-Covid era, that is prior to 2019.

] by Kent Caddick

As of May, 3,288 students were enrolled at Lincoln, up 16% from 2,843 at the same time last year. The University expects its total 2023 enrolments to approach 4,000 students by the end of the year.

While international student numbers have returned to 62% of pre-Covid levels, the University has experienced strong domestic growth since 2019. The number of domestic students currently enrolled, at 2,534, is 57% higher than the 2019 number of 1,613.

The Lincoln University halls of residence are filled to capacity in 2023, including 64 newly refurbished self-catered units brought on-stream for the 2023 cohort.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Grant Edwards said the strong growth signals Lincoln University’s increasing influence in shaping the future of the land-based sector in Aotearoa and globally.

“Our world-class education programmes position our students to contribute directly and consequentially to industry when they enter employment, and our graduate employment rate of 85% is consistently the highest of all the New Zealand universities,” Edwards said.

“Increasingly the research we undertake at Lincoln is leading positive and impactful change in the land-based industries in an era where all sectors of society are demanding the application of more efficient and sustainable production practices that safeguard the environment and intergenerational wellbeing.

“And underpinning everything we do at Lincoln University is our outstanding student experience, where our students begin their journey to lifelong success within a thriving and inclusive student community and a vibrant, diverse and enriching campus environment.”

Also contributing to the strong popularity of Lincoln University’s education programmes is the University’s fees waiver scheme.

First introduced in 2020 amid pandemicrelated restrictions, the scheme has been extended to cover postgraduate study options until the end of 2024.

The fee waivers aim to help meet a growing demand for experts in the food, fibre, and environment management sectors, with the fees-free options including postgraduate certificates and diplomas, as well as taught master’s degrees and the taught component of research master’s programmes.

The most popular programmes for stu-

dents attending Lincoln University in 2023 are the Bachelor of Land and Property Management and Bachelor of Commerce (Agriculture).

Programme Director for the Bachelor of Land and Property Management, Professor Graham Squires, said the popularity of the programme reflects New Zealanders’ high interest in property matters, in both a personal and professional capacity.

“The reputation of our Bachelor of Land and Property Management is underpinned by the quality of the programme and our highprofile and highly regarded teaching staff, as well as our strong industry connections.

“The programme is accredited for five main industry bodies, which is a drawcard for

LET

Up

Returning: Student enrolments at Lincoln university have bounced back from the downturn caused by the Covid pandemic.

those in the industry or anyone seeking employment in the sector,” Squires said.

“Our close engagement with the property sector enables us to provide valuable practical experience, and the employment rate from the programme is extremely high, at pretty much 100%.”

Professor Squires said he expects the growth in domestic student numbers will soon be matched by the emerging international market for real estate/property studies.

“Skilled practitioners in the land and property management sectors will continue to be highly sought-after and well-rewarded going into the future, both nationally and internationally.”

in extra material.

Condensed root structure increases the soils weight holding capacity. Once compacted it then combines together to create a solid mass. The grass continues growing and will no longer hold water as it did before. This can be achieved even when irrigating.

Here is an example: If you drove into a wet fully worked up paddock you would simply sink up to your axles, yet if you drove into the same wet paddock with established grass you wouldn’t have a problem driving around on it. Ruts

Plus have clearly proven after years of development to have the answer to pivot rut problems by transplanting the already established grass root structure back into the pivot rut. Not only ending up with extra grass but the grass also absorbs water. It’s always about preventative maintenance.

As we all know traditional costs of filling in pivot ruts with foreign material over the previous and current years have been skyrocketing even more so due to the diesel price increases, so costs have escalated to at least $250 to $300 or even higher per hectare.

Ruts Plus are currently operating six machines, with each pivot rut filler filling in up to fifty hectares per day. Our charges range from $25 to $40 per hectare depending on conditions. This system provides immediate results with very little time and expense to the farmer, available all year round.

There is no need to spend a fortune on bringing in extra material.

Ruts Plus pivot rut filling machines penetrate through the grass and soil cutting out the sidewalls of the pivot rut, pulling in sods of the already established grass root structure planting it back into the pivot rut. The farmer then follows behind wheel packing the windrowed material, with their own tractor. Leaving no depressions or bare grass on either side of the wheel track, all without bringing

Backing the sector through the years

The Minister of Finance has delivered the Budget for 2023 and I wanted to talk about what this Budget delivers for our primary sector – and what has already been delivered by our previous Budgets.

] with Damien O’Connor ] Minister for Agriculture, Biosecurity, ] Food Safety and Rural Communities

This year’s Budget comes at a time where Cyclone Gabrielle has shown how challenged rural New Zealand can be in a changing climate. The experiences of Cantabrians during the earthquakes and the Ashburton floods have provided lessons for us all about resilience as we navigate decisions on Gabrielle.

Budget23 is focussed on the core infrastructure needs of rural New Zealand with a forward looking $6 billion fund for a National Resilience plan to focus on building back better from recent weather events. It will also include future-proofing road, rail, and local infrastructure wiped out by the extreme weather, as well as telecommunications and electricity transmission infrastructure.

In addition, the Government in May signed contracts to deliver 5G mobile services to 55 rural towns. The Rural Connectivity Group recently delivered the 400th new cell phone tower. These are great steps to keep rural people connected and school kids engaged; create access to health services; and get production data flowing as new technology comes to hand.

We’ve continued to focus on the recovery of a rural economy battered by Cyclone Gabrielle with over $180 million to help farmers and growers to re-establish their business-

es. The $100 million on flood protection and $450 million investment in roading and rail will also provide certainty for these affected regions.

Decisions on the recovery traverse complex issues and we’re committed to working as quickly as we can to help affected communities and businesses.

In the biosecurity space, Budget 2023 sees establishment funding of $42 million for a new state of the art Plant Health and Environment Laboratory in Auckland to help our multibillion-dollar plant-based sectors grow.

This new facility is a vital piece of infrastructure to safely import new plant varieties and species that are essential for ongoing growth and adaptability in our horticulture, arable and forestry sectors. I will be focussed on ensuring this 10 year project is appropriately funded to succeed.

Furthermore we’re on track to eradicate Mycoplasma bovis, now being five years into a 10 year plan that we committed nearly $900 million to in 2018. We were down to zero properties at the start of May and have since detected a new property in mid-Canterbury. We can expect this to happen over the coming years as surveillance moves us closer to eradication.

I would also note that Budget 2022’s $1 billion package for the food and fibre sector continues to flow through the sector for the next three years. Last year we established the Centre for Climate Action on Agricultural

Emissions as part of a $338 million investment in reducing agricultural emissions. As part of that vital work, we’ve secured $170 million in 50:50 joint venture funding with business over the next four years to get new emissions reduction tools into the hands of farmers.

In addition, our Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures Fund has now seen $555 million co-invested with business across 255 innovative projects.

Our strategy to position our food and fibre sector for future export growth dovetails with our trade agenda and is reflected in our investment decisions through consecutive Budgets.

Since 2017 we’ve worked hard to negotiate new free trade agreements (FTAs) and open access for food and fibre exporters. We’ve secured or upgraded seven FTAs in five years.

Our sector has hit record food and fibre export revenue in the past two consecutive years and in 2023 we’re forecast to hit a new record of over $55 billion.

The Government is also maintaining our commitment to work with the sector through He Waka Eke Noa to reduce agricultural emissions so we can capture market advantage abroad, where signals continue to strengthen.

In New Zealand we’re fortunate to have a passionate, diverse and world-leading food and fibre sector, where ideas get shared,

contested, adopted and innovated. My commitment is to continue to work with you to identify opportunities to grow value and tackle challenges together as we aspire to be the best farmers and growers for the world.

Playing its part

I want to wish Canterbury Farming a Happy 25th Birthday.

New Zealand’s standard of living is built on the export successes of our farmers and growers.What makes us world-leading food and fibre producers is our people.

If you think about it, our people are our competitive advantage. What we do well is cooperate and share ideas. It enables us to adapt and respond to market signals from abroad.

Our rural media are essential in this – delivering critical debate and also keeping our people informed of trends and innovation.

Thanks to Canterbury Farming for playing your part in weaving the fabric of our rural economy.

Damien O’Connor Minister for Agriculture

Mongolian sheep herders gain lifechanging skills

After three months working in shearing gangs across New Zealand, four Mongolian sheep herders will return to their homeland with new knowledge and skills which have the potential to change their lives and reshape the shearing scene in their native country.

Article supplied by Rabobank

The four Mongolians herders, Budee, Baaska, Ama and Khanda, arrived in New Zealand in early January having done all their previous shearing using scissors, a time-consuming practice which limits the number of sheep that can be shorn in a day to about 30.

After their New Zealand trip each of the herders is now shearing competently using an electronic hand-piece and all four have achieved shearing personal bests of more than 250 sheep in a day, a feat which has previously only been achieved by one other Mongolian.

The visit to New Zealand was undertaken as part of the Share Mongolia programme, an initiative to introduce modern shearing techniques and equipment into Mongolia that took flight following a chance encounter between Rabobank agribusiness manager Paul Brough and local Mongolian farmers in 2019.

“While I was trekking through Mongolia in 2019, I came across a group of farmers who were shearing a herd of about 900 using scissors and they told me it would take them about a month to complete the job,” Brough said.

“This really blew my mind given how much quicker this can be done with electronic equipment, and I thought to myself, there must be something I can do to help. So once I got back to New Zealand, I had a few discussions with some work colleagues

and clients, and we looked into running some training that would help develop Mongolian shearers skills with modern equipment.”

With additional help from Zoe Leetch and Enkhnasan Chuluunbaatar from Golden Bay, and Roy Fraser from Colville, who have previously lived in Mongolia and provided valuable local insights, the Share Mongolia initiative was established in 2020 and an initial idea hatched to run some courses with visiting New Zealand shearers in Mongolia.

“These courses first took place in 2022 and worked out pretty well, and then we figured it might also be of benefit to get some of the Mongolians over this way so they could develop new skills and then take these back home,” Brough said.

“With funding support from the Rabobank Community Fund, we were able to get the four herders over here and tee them up with work, lodgings and shearing gear. And it really has been quite phenomenal to see how quickly their shearing skills have progressed over the last few months.”

While the Mongolians were quick to adapt to their new role as international shearers, Brough said, there were some initial challenges given the language barrier and the significant differences between everyday life in New Zealand and Mongolia.

“They come from a region in Mongolia that is one of the coldest places on earth, dropping to temperatures as low as – 60 degrees

Celsius in winter, and is more than 1000 kilometres from the nearest coastline,” he said.

“Prior to the tour, none of the group had been on a plane or a boat, used modern appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine and only one had ever been in water above their knees,” he said.

“So the first few days here there was definitely a bit of a culture shock. But with the help of an interpreter as well as from local farmers who gave up their time to show them around and get them familiar with New Zealand woolsheds, they adjusted pretty rapidly.”

During the trip, the Mongolians spent time working as part of shearing gangs in Piopio, Hawkes Bay and Wairoa.

“The modern shearing gear, sheep size and wool quantity on the New Zealand sheep were very new to these guys, but they had great support from their fellow shearers and shed hands which helped them progress,” Brough said.

“At the weekends they entered shearing competitions, including the New Zealand championships in Te Kuiti and, towards the

last part of the tour, they achieved some really impressive results.

“Another highlight of the trip was their visit to west Otago in early February where they participated in Shear 4 A Cause, an event run to raise money for a host of rural communityfocused charities.

Brough said he was really amazed at the Mongolians resourcefulness and how incredibly focussed on learning to shear and making money they were.

“While here, they saved every cent they made with two giving up smoking when they found out the price of our cigarettes compared to the price they pay at home. They didn’t once complain and only one has missed a day’s work – due to a sprained ankle.

“With their families tucked up in their Gers (traditional Mongolian tent) back home in –40 degree temperatures, it was pretty clear at times they were terribly missing them. But they stuck with it, and they’re very excited about the opportunities their new skills will open for them and their loved ones once they are back in Mongolia.”

Learning curve: The Mongolian team in action at the recent new Zealand Shearing champs.

Celebrating 25 years of Canterbury Farming

A huge congratulations to Canterbury Farming for reaching the impressive milestone of 25 years marking rural excellence. A lot has changed over this time, yet one thing remains the same – farmers are still the backbone of the New Zealand economy.

] with Todd McClay ] National Party Spokesperson ] for Agriculture

So, what big changes have shaped rural life over the past 25 years.

The first is the rise of dairy. Dairy production took off in the mid-1990s leading to the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act in 2001, creating Fonterra. The world had a growing appetite for high quality protein and New Zealand farmers quickly gained a reputation for being the world’s best.

Later it was all about trade. The China FTA in 2008 further boosted agricultural demand and Kiwi farmers worked hard to ensure we were at the front of the queue to feed a growing Chinese population.

Other countries continued to protect and subsidise their food production making it harder for New Zealand in international markets. Kiwi farmers innovated, adapted, and helped get the country through financial and economic shocks.

The second big change was awareness of why agriculture is important. The connection between paying for schools or hospitals through what we sell to the world started to get lost.

From a country where everyone watched Country Calendar and had a family member on a farm to today, where too many children think milk comes from the supermarket or meat from the fridge – the truth has not yet made it to TikTok – a divide between rural and urban now exists.

The third major development is the rise of environmentalism.

The public have asked for greater environmental rules and governments have regulated for them. Lobby groups mounted campaigns against the rural sector because of genuine concern, or to raise money, and perceptions started to change. Headlines often laid blame and very rarely recognised the good. Farmers bore the brunt of this and with it came more rules and greater on farm costs.

New Zealand is a rural nation, our farmers and growers and rural communities contribute significantly. We forget this at our peril. A strong rural economy means a strong New Zealand economy. When a government punitively taxes farmers, they make all of New Zealand poorer.

The most recent five years has seen a mountain of red tape loaded onto agriculture by this Government – with little consideration of the consequences or interest in the outcome.

The Labour government has unleashed the full powers of the state against agriculture under the totally misguided view that farmers are the problem rather than the solution, and it has to stop.

The next 25 years will start with unwinding Labour’s wasteful rules and a return to sound government after this year’s election.

Last month, I launched National’s ‘Getting Back To Farming’ policy, a package of 19 measures to cut the regulatory overhead which Labour has lumped on rural New Zealand.

The measures include polices to cut costly rules, not make more of them, and to focus on outcomes that actually work. We have announced limits on foreign purchases of farms for conversion to carbon farming and said we will fix winter grazing and SNA rules.

We will scrap Labour’s Three Waters and reverse their punitive Ute Tax. We are focused on getting farmers out of the office and let them get back to farming.

I will be publishing more policy in the coming weeks and months in the run up to this year’s election to back farmers, to meet our climate and environmental obligations and grow the rural economy.

Come October 14 it will be clear that National and I back the rural community and that we will work with you to get New Zealand back on track.

Congratulations again Canterbury Farming for reaching this extraordinary milestone. Thank you for what you do and see you at your 50th.

Few highlights on Budget Day

The budget contained some really important steps that will make a difference to people’s lives, but we think it still falls short of what’s needed.

with Teanau Tuiono

Agriculture spokesperson

for the Green Party

Aotearoa needs a bold plan to make sure everyone has what they need to get by, and to face up to the climate crisis with the scale and urgency we need.

One of ‘the best’ things for me in this budget was extending free ECE to two year olds. The Greens have been advocating for

this extension since 2014. We are stoked it’s finally happening.

This is good news for mums and dads across the region who have to get up in the morning, put their gumboots on and go to work. I’ve got four kids myself and I remember well the pressure of trying to sort out childcare, while working to put food on the table and pay the bills. This is a big step for our littlest citizens. Early education is the foundation of a child’s learning journey.

Extending 20 hours free ECE to two year olds makes as much sense today as it did when we started advocating for it in 2014.

It will lift some of the childcare cost burden off families, and allow thousands more children to access the best possible start in life.

Another huge part of that is ensuring kids have the best education possible is making sure that teachers are paid properly.

I want to acknowledge the work of the

CHOOSE A SOLUTION. CHOOSE SUMO.

NZEI who have been campaigning tirelessly for pay parity. Teachers’ working conditions are kids’ learning conditions they deserve to be paid properly.

We have always been clear that supporting early childhood education is one of the best investments a government can make – both for their tamariki and their community.

If ever there was an example of how political choices impact people’s lives, this is it.

MOUNTED TRIO GLS SUBSOILER

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As its name suggests the Sumo Trio consists of 3 parts to help develop and create an ideal seed bed in all soil conditions.

First stage: Staggered row of subsoiler legs with a maximum working depth of 400mm.

(both hydraulic and shear pin protection systems available)

Secondary stage: Two rows of 500mm concave discs equipped with triple sealed bearings and Sumo’s famous double drive system giving unrivalled performance when working in adverse conditions.

Third stage: Sumo’s 760mm multipacker roller with replaceable shoulders leaves a weatherproof level finish in the most challenging soil conditions.

The Sumo Grassland subsoiler improves and revitalises compacted grassland that is suffering from the effects of continual livestock, rainfall and heavy machinery.

• Leading row of adjustable individually suspended discs allow minimum disturbance on the pasture surface.

• Hydraulic Subsoiler legs with working depths from 100-350mm to suit all types of compaction layer depths with quick change points.

• Rear flat packer roller with scrapers to leave an aerated consolidated level finish across the full working width.

Early start for UK free trade agreement a welcome boost

The New Zealand horticulture industry is welcoming the early implementation of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United Kingdom (UK), saying that for fruit and vegetable exporters, the agreement gives hope for the future at a time when the industry is under immense pressure.

] by Kent Caddick

The UK Parliament has ratified the FTA with New Zealand and the agreement now comes into force at the beginning of June.

HortNZ chief executive, Nadine Tunley said growers have been under the pump ever since Covid struck, and rampant cost increases and a succession of adverse weather events have just added to this pressure.

“Early adoption of the FTA with the UK provides hope for the future. We thank Government officials in New Zealand and the UK for bringing implementation of the agreement forward, and delivering on Fit for A Better World, a multi-year project to accelerate the New Zealand primary industry’s economic potential.”

Turnley said in the year to 31 March 2022, horticulture exports were $4.6 billion.

“Industry, the Government, Maori and research providers have a plan to increase the value of the whole industry to $12 billion by 2035.

“Among many other things, this plan involves eliminating tariffs and non-tariff barriers, and developing new markets. That’s why today’s announcement is a significant step in the right direction.”

Onions New Zealand chief executive, James Kuperus said it has been a tough year for onion growers, so once again, the news is welcome.

“Volumes have been down due to challenging growing conditions in key onion growing areas such as Pukekohe and the Hawke’s Bay,” Kuperus said.

“While our growers are a hardy bunch, they need as much certainty as possible about export markets, to underpin their considerable investment.”

Apiculture New Zealand is also delighted the UK Free Trade Agreement came into force at the end of May 2023.

The free trade agreement will see the removal of tariffs on all New Zealand honey into the United Kingdom. The current tariff rate on New Zealand honey to the United Kingdom is 16 per cent.

The United Kingdom consistently ranks as one of the top three export markets for New Zealand honey and was worth around $40 million in export revenue in 2022.

“The free trade deal is a great outcome for our industry and will improve our competitiveness in one of our largest export markets,” Chief Executive of Apiculture New Zealand Karin Kos said.

“We have strong ties with UK customers, with a long history of exporting high-quality honey products there. However, the current in-quota tariff rate of 16 per cent has been a significant barrier to trade,” Kos said.

“This deal will give New Zealand beekeepers and honey exporters a real boost at a time when it is much needed and provides a

platform to grow the UK market to the benefit of all parties.

“Apiculture New Zealand has been seeking the removal of these tariffs for some time and we extend our thanks to the government for persevering and progressing this on our industry’s behalf,” Kos said.

The UKFTA will also deliver a major boost to Kiwi red meat exports by eventually allowing tariff-free access for beef and lamb into the UK.

“New Zealand exporters and farmers are looking forward to tariff free access into the UK, something we haven’t enjoyed since Britain joined the European Economic Community in 1973,” Meat Industry Association chief executive Sirma Karapeeva said.

“This FTA is a high quality agreement that provides the red meat sector with greater ac-

Good news: Minister of Agriculture Damien O’Connor signing the nZ-uK Free Trade Agreement with his uK counterpart Anne-Marie Trevelyan.

cess to a key market for New Zealand beef and lamb,” Karapeeva said.

“It really opens up an opportunity for New Zealand’s beef exports in a traditional market, and creates new avenues for growth for the red meat sector.”

Under the FTA tariffs will also be eliminated on a range of dairy products including liquid milk and cream, yogurt, buttermilk powder, and infant formula. The phase-out of tariffs on milk powder, lactose, whey, and other dairy proteins will be completed on by January 2026, and the tariff phase-out on cheese and butter will be completed in January 2028.

Quotas will allow limited, but commercially meaningful, volumes of duty-free trade in cheese and butter during the transition period.

An eventful year thus far

While markets have had a constructive six months or so, we don’t expect plain sailing ahead. The chief uncertainty the market is grappling with remains the dynamic between inflation, interest rates, and recession risk.

] with Andrew Wyllie ] Forsyth Barr

Will inflation slow sufficiently for central banks to ease up on interest rates and allow the economy to touch down with a “soft landing”?

Or will it be more of a thud, with central banks engendering a recession (maybe unintentionally) to bring inflation back to within target ranges?

This isn’t an easy question to answer, and the weather and banking events of this year so far, only add to the challenge.

The New Zealand economy is widely forecast to fall into a recession in the second half of this year (if not sooner). Higher interest rates will weigh on consumer spending and business investment.

While recession might sound scary, it is a very normal part of a regular business cycle and should help reset some of the economic imbalances that have built up in recent years.

Recently we have seen the failure of First Republic Bank, the second biggest US bank failure in history. JPMorgan has stepped in to purchase the bank’s deposit book and most of its assets. First Republic had a market val-

Looking at off-farm investments?

ue of US$25bn in February before the banking sector jitters began, but all shareholders have been wiped out as part of the process.

To date, the banks that have failed all faced idiosyncratic issues that are not widespread across the industry. That doesn’t mean we won’t see more collapses, it’s likely we will, and that’s not uncommon. In the past 90 years there have only been five years in which there hasn’t been a US bank failure.

However, generally banks’ balance sheets are in a much stronger shape than they were heading into the GFC, and regulators are focused on limiting contagion. Market concerns about the banking sector have been reignited somewhat following the First Republic sale, but the orderly process that was implemented has meant market fallout has been contained thus far.

At times like these it’s easy to want to hibernate, batten down the hatches and wait for the environment to improve. Unfortunately, timing markets is (at best) extraordinarily difficult. As recent months have shown, when investors are fearful, hints of things being less bad can lead to positive returns.

Furthermore, while the headlines of recession risks and bank failings are alarming, the adjustments we are seeing are a reset of previous extremes caused by near zero interest rates.

Looking forward, it’s healthy that these imbalances correct. We see potential for inflation to moderate, and therefore concerns around

central bank tightening and market instability to ease through the year.

That said, we recognise just how challenging it is to predict the global economic outlook with any confidence. We certainly would not place all our investing bets on any single scenario coming to fruition in the months and years ahead.

An often used mantra of investing great Howard Marks is, “move forward, but with caution”. What Howard means is: to stay invested but to do so with a bit more caution than usual. We’re applying that philosophy today.

Ronald W. Angland & Son LAWYERS

When you are thinking about your investment options, talk to Forsyth Barr

To get personalised investment advice and portfolio management specific to your investing needs, talk to Investment Adviser Andrew Wyllie in confidence on (03) 365 4244 or email andrew.wyllie@forsythbarr.co.nz

This article was prepared as at 30 April 2023 and provides market commentary for the three-month period ending on that date. We appreciate that market volatility and economic uncertainty doesn’t make an easy backdrop for investors. To discuss your investment options please contact Andrew Wyllie, who is an Investment Adviser and is Forsyth Barr’s Christchurch Branch Co-Manager. He can be contacted regarding portfolio management, fixed interest, or share investments on 0800 367 227 or andrew.wyllie@forsythbarr.co.nz. This column is general in nature, has been prepared in good faith based on information obtained from sources believed to be reliable and accurate, and should not be regarded as financial advice.

Is Restraint of Trade a useful tool?

In recent times, employers have looked to include restraint of trade covenants in employment agreements on the assumption that the mere existence of the restraint of trade would protect their business.

are reasonable and in the interests of public policy.

For such clauses to be valid, they must be reasonable as between employer and employee, and in the public interest.

Two important ingredients feature in a common restraint – namely that the restraint is for a specific period of time and is in respect of a specified geographical area. The overall enforceability of a restraint depends on the following criteria being established by the employer, namely:

] with Grant edmundson ] Helmore Stewart Lawyers

It is important to note that the existence of a restraint of trade clause does not necessarily protect an employer from competition.

The employer needs to show that there is a proprietary interest or trade secret that lies at the heart of the rationale for the inclusion of a restraint of trade.

In common law, restraint of trade clauses are prima facie unenforceable unless they

• Whether the employer has a proprietary interest capable of protection and which aligns to the employer’s business;

• Whether it is reasonable that a specified activity be restrained;

• Whether the period of restraint is reasonable; and

• Whether the geographical limit of the restraint is reasonable.

The reasonableness of the length of time for a restraint to operate depends on the circumstances of each particular case. Restraints for periods of 2, 3 or 6 months have commonly been upheld as reasonable.

In Asiaciti Trust New Zealand Limited v Harris (2013), the Court declined to enforce a 12 month restraint against Ms Harris. Ms Harris’ level of employment did not warrant a wide restraint. The restraint was considered to be too restrictive upon Ms Harris’ future employment.

Asiaciti was found by the Court to have failed to provide sufficient evidence to establish a clear link between the proprietary interests needing protection and the duties and the responsibilities of the employee within the workplace.

The importance of having a proprietary interest or a genuine legitimate business to protect was underscored in Transpacific Industries Group Limited v Harris where two former employees successfully argued that the restraint was a mere non-compete clause without the necessary linkage indicating a proprietary interest that needed to be protected.

There have also been instances in the past, ie Gallagher Group Limited v Wally (1999) where the Employment Court has reduced the term of the restraint to provide a more balanced restraint of trade.

Overall, restraints of trade still provide a valuable level of protection for employers, provided the criteria of the restraint are reasonable in the circumstances relevant to the proprietary interest that the employer is trying to protect.

It will be important to customise the restraint period and geographical area of enforcement accordingly.

‘The overall enforceability of a restraint depends on certain criteria being established by the employer.

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Fashion or fame, looking back

As this month’s edition is about the 25 years of production, I drifted back to some of the highs that were going to make farmers rich beyond all expectations, but somehow missed the promise. I suppose the first one of note was deer.

Again, feral animals were being captured because a fourth cross with an angora the off spring were considered pure.

] by Rob Cope

Wandering around in the hills waiting to be captured by the mavericks of the day armed with choppers and dare devils who literally threw themselves out of the helicopter onto the feral animal, tied it up and scrambled back into the aircraft with the deer swinging below them.

That was really daring, and it is amazing how many people, helicopters and deer survived. Others who farmed close to the bush line used a safer method by tempting the feral deer onto pasture and erecting a fence behind them.

Terrified wild animals trapped and facing humans for the first time must have been a challenge to calm down.

However, prices were what it was all about. Hinds selling for $3,000 were enough to lure city investors into the industry, and many did get caught up in the hype.

History tells us that the industry did settle down and the animals sold for their meat value, and no doubt because the velvet markets suffering from scandals about pigs blood being added, and the birth of Viagra. Then came the goats.

Again, prices for buck getting into the $40,000 area attracted a lot of interest and investors.

Two problems, one was feral goats that cost several hundred dollars head could jump any fence they were put behind, and secondly, commercial shearing of the goats caused a few headaches. Comments like how you get them down from the shed’s rafters abounded.

Like the deer, angora goats are now filling a niche market and is working well.

Rabbits also hit the fashion stakes for a short time, but a lack of fur markets caused that to wither and die.

Ostriches then loomed into view with massive prices being offered for birds, and again investors were lured into the industry, and again when markets didn’t appear and the values dropped, they disappeared off the rich list and in fact off the farming scene.

So, it seems that our industry has come up with some amazing get rich quick ideas, but as the old saying suggests if it is too good to be true, it is.

Isn’t it interesting that after all the gung ho things have been tried, farmers end up where their forebears were and doing what they did.

] with John Arts

Do I need extra Magnesium?

Magnesium is one of my most frequently prescribed supplements. Before I supplemented with Magnesium, I remember getting cramp in my legs and having to get up and jump around the bedroom to unlock seized muscles.

Magnesium is involved in numerous body processes and can help problems in various body systems especially muscles.

I recommend it for cramp, restless legs, PMS, hypertension and heart rhythm problems. I usually recommend that Magnesium be taken before bed for maximum impact on muscles, nerves and to help with sleep.

I have many clients now largely free of night cramps and restless legs. In stubborn cases I also add an antioxidant complex and/or a multi-mineral complex to help with night – time circulation and improve muscle function. It is rare that we cannot get improvements with these problems that can disrupt our sleep.

Unfortunately, many Magnesium supplements are 1 a day making dose experimentation almost impossible. In my experience the required dosage differs

a lot between people with similar problems. Additionally, many supplements use cheaper low-grade ingredients which are harsh on the digestive tract. The only real downside of Magnesium supplements is they can cause temporary diarrhoea. However, this mild laxative effect can be helpful for those that tend towards constipation.

I prefer to use 3 different forms of Magnesium. I combine bioavailable marine (seaweed) sourced Magnesium with amino acid chelated Magnesium di-glycinate with Magnesium citrate. I deliberately formulated the capsules to have a dosage range.

Normally 2 capsules before bed will suffice but short-term doses of 4 capsules can be used. Please contact me for personalised advice.

John Arts (B.Soc.Sci, Dip Tch, Adv.Dip.nut.Med) is a nutritional medicine practitioner and founder of Abundant Health Ltd. For questions or advice contact John on 0800 423559 or email john@ abundant.co.nz. Join his all new newsletter at www.abundant.co.nz

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John Arts comments:

“Abundant Health rapid absorption Magnesium Triple can really help tight or stressed muscles and for a good night’s sleep. The 3 different forms of Magnesium mean you get fast results. The normal dose is 2 before bed.” (John Arts, Founder, Abundant Health Ltd)

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Beef farmers turning to genetic tools

Commercial beef farmers and breeders are increasingly seeking tools which provide more information on functional traits and enable them to better compare genetic traits.

]Article supplied by INZB

That’s according to research for the Beef + Lamb New Zealand-funded Informing New Zealand Beef (INZB) programme.

INZB is a seven-year Sustainable Food & Fibre Futures partnership supported by B+LNZ, the New Zealand Meat Board and the Ministry for Primary Industries. It aims to boost the sector’s profits by $460m over the next 25 years.

It is developing a beef genetic evaluation system that includes traits that are important to New Zealand beef farmers, supporting a sustainable beef farming industry

A recent annual industry survey of farmers, beef breeders and rural professionals, including agricultural consultants and facilitators, stock agents and vets, found farmers were becoming more aware of genetic tools.

The industry survey tracks awareness, knowledge and use of genetic tools in the New Zealand beef industry over time.

INZB programme manager Gemma Jenkins said the research highlights the importance of the work already being undertaken, such as the across-breed beef Progeny Test and development of a NZ-specific genetic evaluation.

“Farmers have told us the new areas they want to focus are traits such as fertility and Body Condition Score,” Jenkins said.

“These should be included in New Zea-

land-specific genetic evaluations and indexes to ensure we’re making genetic progress on them.”

However, the research also found that a lack of understanding about Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) limits farmer uptake.

“INZB has a strong focus on education and extension and is delivering resources to support greater understanding and use

of EBVs,” Jenkins said.

“That includes our field days, an online Beef Breeder workshop to discuss maternal productivity and reproduction, Better Beef Breeding workshops for commercial farmers and an online learning module.”

Jenkins said research respondents recognised that beef genetics have lagged behind sheep and dairy genetics and welcomed the

In the genes: InZB programme manager Gemma Jenkins says they are developing a beef genetic evaluation system that includes traits that are important to new Zealand beef farmers.

work being undertaken by INZB, with growing awareness among farmers of the tools the programme is developing.

There has also been an increase in the use of Artificial Insemination (AI). Sixty-seven percent of bull breeders and 17 percent of commercial farmers reported using AI in 2022, compared to 61 percent and 10 percent respectively during 2021.

Calibration at your fingertips

A new app makes it much easier to calibrate Giltrap Duncan electric drive and mechanical drive drills.

]Article supplied by Giltrap Ag

Not only does the free smartphone-based app make life easier for people running current model Duncan drills, it is equally effective on older model Duncan Renovator and Enviro drills.

Giltrap Ag national sales manager Matt Moodie says the Duncan seed drill app has easy-to-follow, step-by-step guides to calibrate and make mechanical adjustments to your drill. It is all done without fumbling through manuals or using the tractor’s in-cab controller.

“Once you have downloaded the app from the Apple App Store or Google Play, you can link your phone to your Smart Ag Wi-Fi enabled monitor in the tractor cab. You can then use your phone to do all the steps necessary to calibrate the drill,” Moodie says.

“This eliminates the need to jump out of the cab to take samples, weigh them and then jump back in the cab to punch in the results on the monitor. With the app you do the sampling and enter the results on your phone while standing next to the drill, outside the cab.”

Moodie says the app provides drop down menus which allow you to select the type of

crop you are about to sow and at what rate.

“When using it with a mechanical grounddrive drill with seed or fertiliser, it then tells you what all the settings should be for the gearbox, flaps and shutters. It also tells you how many turns of the handle to make in order to take a sample.

“Once you have weighed the sample and entered it into the app, it tells you what to adjust to get the right rate. You then take another sample and make any further adjustments required.

“When using it with a Smart Ag Wi-Fi enabled electric drive drill, once you have selected the type of crop and sowing rate using the dropdown menu, the app tells the drill to release a sample.

“You enter the weight of the sample into the app and if this is the correct amount, you are ready to go. All the details are automatically sent back to the drill monitor in the tractor cab.”

Moodie says the app also has diagrams that show each part of the calibration process and how to setup the drill.

“This is great if you have a new operator on the drill. Or if you have a 15-year-old Renovator sitting in the shed, you can go to the app store, download the app, set up the drill and calibrate it with ease.”

He says you can calibrate multiple machine models with the app.

“Another advantage is that once you have downloaded the app to your phone along with the corresponding drill model, it is not necessary to have a cellular connection to use it.”

• The product library stored in the drill monitor in the tractor is mirrored onto the phone app so you can select the product and rate using your phone.

• Multiple drill models can be stored in the app, great for contractors running several Duncan machines.

• It is free to download and use.

• The app is intuitive and provides a stepby-step guide to the setup and calibration of the drill.

Features of the Duncan Drill app

The Duncan Drill app has diagrams which show each part of the calibration process and how to setup the drill.

Revolutionising crop management with SureYield™

Introducing SureYield™ a New Zealand first in crop management.

Advertorial supplied by ] Catalyst Performance Agronomy

Traditionally, farmers have carried all risk associated with crop yields, investing significant time and money, without their agronomist taking accountability for poor results.

The consequences can be costly, with farmers forced to buy extra feed off-farm or import more supplements. But now, with its proven track record over the past four years, SureYield™ has become the go-to solution for farmers, placing the responsibility for success squarely on the experts’ shoulders.

SureYield™ was created to simplify the crop management process and eliminate the uncertainties associated with traditional agronomy services. With this innovative approach, your crop is grown and managed by our team of expert agronomists, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your farming business.

In short, we agree on a yield target, set a fixed price to grow that yield, that includes all crop inputs, and agree on an incentive and penalty for either surpassing or falling short of the yield target. This means we are motivated to grow the best possible crop, whilst working within a set budget.

In 2019, Frano Staub, the General Manager of Theland Purata Farming, partnered with Catalyst Performance Agronomy to find the perfect solution for guaranteeing winter feed availability for their nine dairy farms and two support blocks across Mid-Canterbury.

Adopting SureYield™ removed all risk and simplified the normally complex process of fodder beet agronomy.

Frano engaged in discussion with senior Catalyst agronomist, Derek Thelning and Catalyst CEO, Patrick Davis, focusing on the security of winter feed for Purata’s 13,000

MA cows and young stock.

The decision was made to introduce fodder beet crops to each farm, totalling 363 hectares, ensuring a reliable feed supply without compromising farm productivity.

Yield and budget targets were set for the fodder beet crops, and all planning elements were agreed upon before planting commenced. Every aspect of crop management, from groundwork and fertilisation to weed control, was meticulously handled to achieve optimal results.

The results from the 2021-22 season were exceptional. The average yield target of 24,800kg DM/ha for the 363 hectares of fodder beet was surpassed, with Catalyst achieving an impressive result of 27,700kg DM/ha. Derek attributes this success to the additional level of control provided by SureYield™.

The key factors that led Frano and the Purata board members to choose SureYield™ for their farm system included – the additional peace of mind that came with the written yield target, budget, and contract along with their confidence in Catalyst as a partner.

Frano enjoyed the ease that came with having a single point of contact throughout the entire process, ensuring clear communication, and streamlined operations.

The outstanding results achieved with SureYield™ have solidified the trust in this partnership.

Join the revolution in crop management with SureYield™. Experience exceptional results knowing that your crop is in the hands of our expert agronomists.

Let us shoulder the responsibility for success while you focus on other aspects of your farm business. Contact us today to learn more about SureYield™ and how it can transform your farming operation.

General manager of Theland Purata Farming Frano Staub with senior Catalyst agronomist Derek Thelning.

NAIT education campaign for Mid Canterbury

Following the resurgence of Mycoplasma Bovis ( M. bovis) in Mid Canterbury in late 2022, and concerns raised over poor NAIT record keeping and non-compliance with NAIT, OSPRI is increasing its level of education and support to farmers in the region to help improve biosecurity preparedness.

Article supplied by ] OSPRI New Zealand

OSPRI’s Head of Traceability, Kevin Forward said OSPRI is committed to supporting farmers to understand their NAIT obligations and the importance of adopting good on-farm traceability practices as part of their overall biosecurity preparedness.

“The ability to manage a disease outbreak, contain it, and work towards its eradication relies on accurate traceability records,” Forward said.

“Simply put, we all have a role to play when talking traceability and biosecurity, everyone must do their part for the system to work and for the industry to be protected.

“Poor NAIT record keeping can lead to delays in the response, increased spread of the disease, and increased cost to farmers and the country.”

Forward said OSPRI had launched a targeted support campaign to farmers in the Wakanui area to help get their NAIT accounts sorted and was launching a NAIT education campaign in the greater Ashburton district.

OSPRI’s local regional partner, Fiona Caldwell, will be running a series of NAIT workshops, drop-in centres, and webinars for farmers to help them understand their NAIT obligations and why traceability is important.

In addition to this, OSPRI and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) will be piloting an early intervention programme for those farmers in the region who are identified as not

meeting their NAIT obligations.

“The purpose of the early intervention programme is to reach out to farmers to offer support and education, so they understand what their NAIT obligations are, as a person in charge of animals, and know where to get help,” Forward said.

“We’re trying to support farmers so they can avoid getting to the point where they’re receiving infringements or being prosecuted for non-compliance with NAIT.”

“Now is not the time to be getting complacent, we need to be thinking not only about the diseases that we are trying to eradicate currently, but also about what could potentially hit us next.

“We’ve spent over five years working to eradicate M. bovis from New Zealand, that’s a lot of hard work that the industry and individual farmers have all put in. The same applies for bovine TB, except over a longer period.”

Be prepared: OSPRI is increasing its level of nAIT education and support to farmers in the Mid Canterbury region to help improve M. bovis biosecurity preparedness.

‘The purpose of the early intervention programme is to reach out to farmers to offer support and education.

Kevin Forward Head of Traceability, OSPRI

OverseerFM unveils major update

New Zealand’s comprehensive farm nutrient management tool, OverseerFM, has improved the software’s crop modelling capabilities.

] by Kent Caddick

The extensive crop changes incorporate new information available from New Zealand cropping specialists at Plant & Food Research.

The update includes the addition of new crops, adjustments to enable a better representation of what is happening in a farm system and software updates to make it easier for growers to enter farm information.

OverseerFM business development manager Alastair Taylor said the upgrade removed the ‘seasonal’ variations of crops to describe and estimate the impact of how crops are farmed more appropriately.

“Previously, one of the issues was that the growth of a crop was fixed in the model. The growth time was set at a national average value,” Taylor said.

“If you grew a crop for only three months when the national value was six months, the model would go through a six-month process, which would limit the accuracy of the model.

“Under the new model, crops now have a farm-specific growth curve and are more representative of what is actually happening in the farm system.

“Users can now also specify product loss occurring in the field. For instance, a broccoli crop might have five to ten per cent of spoiled

heads left in the paddock. These have grown and taken up nutrients. The model can now allow for field loss of damaged crops, which will be incorporated into the results.”

The update has also added four new crops, chickpea grain, pak choi, rape green manure and turnip green manure, and now allows for further additional crops to be more easily added.

An issue around the modelling of fodder beet has been resolved and modelling has been reviewed for crops of broad beans, green beans, cauliflower (winter/spring), cabbage (winter spring), spinach, oats and rye, broccoli (summer), turnips (leafy) cabbage (summer) and radish.

Overseer Limited and independent scientists have been assessing the tool’s reliability in a range of areas including deep-rooted plants, the effects of different climate data sets, multi-layer soil and sensitivity and uncertainty.

The work to update the crop model began in 2020 with Overseer Limited working with

Plant & Food Research. The first outcomes of that programme, updating crop parameters for some existing crops and significantly extending the number of crops that could be modelled, were added to OverseerFM in late 2021.

“We knew there were some ‘quick gains’ to be made in adding new crops and some cropping changes.”

Taylor said they then went on to do the longer-term work, with support from the Ministry for Primary Industries taking into account the findings of an independent science

review of the OverseerFM model, released in August 2021.

“It has taken some time, as it was complex work and difficult to incorporate into the model. However, as a result we now have something better for farmers and growers.

“Farmers may notice their numbers change but the main difference will be that the way crops are modelled should be more representative of what is actually happening in the farming system.”

Taylor said the updates also mean it is now much easier to collect data for incorporating new crops into the model. The update of the crop coefficients table enables easier of crop coefficients by botanical relatedness and/or similar crop end use.

“The ‘end N uptake crop’ function and the end use and/or planting time crop variations (seasonal variations) have both been removed, and the data entry required for crop selection updated. The changes do not include any update to how pasture or pasture crops are modelled.”

Further information on crops that can be modelled in OverseerFM can be found on the Overseer website www. overseer.org.nz or in the Overseer Knowledgebase.

Improved: OverseerFM business development manager Alastair Taylor says they have improved the software’s crop modelling capabilities.

West Coast Farming TourPathway to Farm Ownership

Anna Hart and Gareth Cox recently hosted a group of Canterbury Farmers interested in understanding the pathway into farm ownership on the West Coast. Properties are traditionally more affordable in this area and offer some of the best return on investment in the market, a great option for those seeking farm ownership. The local farming community is very supportive with several local farmers including some who have made the move from Canterbury hosting us on their farms, providing first-hand knowledge of West Coast farming systems along with inspection of some farms currently for sale. Representatives from Westland Milk Products also joined us on farm to provide some insight surrounding milk supply options. This tour followed on from a seminar held in Ashburton earlier in March covering case studies of different farming systems, question and answer sessions with local farmer champions, and our current farm ownership opportunities. Feedback from the tour has been very favourable with several groups already in planning to secure property on the Coast for the following season. We also have a number of retiring vendors willing to assist the next generation into land ownership. If you’d like to know more about the outstanding opportunities available in this part of the world, please don’t hesitate to call Anna Hart or Gareth Cox for more information. Anna Hart, Rural/Lifestyle Sales Consultant 027 294 9678 or anna.hart@pb.co.nz

Animal evaluation index could lift dairy farmers’ profit

Dairy farmers could unlock additional potential profit using a single national animal evaluation breeding index that incorporates genomics.

]Article supplied by DairyNZ DairyNZ, through subsidiary New Zealand Animal Evaluation Ltd (NZAEL), is working to help make that happen, and believes creating one animal evaluation index would ensure breeding decisions are made consistently.

This single evaluation will be co-ordinated by New Zealand Animal Evaluation Ltd (NZAEL) as an industry-good, credible source of data available to everyone to use. The sector is currently using three Breeding Worth animal evaluation indexes.

DairyNZ chair Jim van der Poel said this creates confusion in the sector, and sub-optimal outcomes.

“We believe the best way to help dairy farmers achieve the highest rate of genetic gain in their herd is to have one independent Breeding Worth (BW), including genomics and involving all the industry players.”

He said genomics allows for better and earlier predictions of the desirable and undesirable traits of bulls and cows.

“Early predictions mean identifying the best bulls sooner, so farmers can make better breeding and culling decisions. These are

Profitable: Genomics allows for better and earlier predictions of the desirable and undesirable traits of cows.

key in enabling the dairy sector to remain internationally competitive, and for increasing farm profitability and sustainability.”

Van der Poel said New Zealand’s genetic gain has remained steady for more than 10 years, but it can be better.

“We’re falling behind other countries, largely because we don’t have a whole-of-sector approach and because we’re not really using independently calculated genomic selection to identify and use elite young bulls.

“For example, Australia, the UK and the US have driven more accurate animal evaluations of young bulls using genomics, which has given farmers greater confidence to use genomic information and young sires.”

Farm Maintenance Done Right

He said a unified, sector-wide approach would help realise the full benefits of genomic information and close the gap between New Zealand and its international competitors.

“It will give farmers the most accurate data to compare bulls and cows, building their confidence and increasing genomics use in

New Zealand. Making this information available to all dairy farmers enables them to improve their herds, which will help lift the performance and profitability of the New Zealand dairy herd.

“Collectively, through better rates of genetic gain, we could unlock potential additional sector profit of $136 million every year.”

Protecting bees from killer mites

A survey by Landcare Research estimates that 6.4 percent of bee colonies are lost due to the Varroa Destructor mite, demonstrating that its destructive effects are escalating.

by Mark Ross

] Animal and Plant Health NZ

The annual survey attributed nearly half of all colony losses to the mite and related complications over the 2022 winter. This is a 20 per cent increase from the 2021 rate of 5.3 percent – the year that first saw Varroa become the leading cause of bee losses.

Varroa mites are small parasites that live on honey bees. They feed and reproduce on larvae which can spread viruses, cause malformation and shorten bees’ lifespans, eventually destroying colonies. Since the mite appeared in New Zealand in the early 2000s, more and more bees have been affected.

New Zealand has done exceptionally well trying to slow varroa’s spread over the past 23 years. This was in part by ensuring only effective treatments had Agricultural Compounds & Veterinary Medicine (ACVM) approval for use.

But it is now endemic and seems to be building momentum, making it more destructive for hive populations. The density of hives can exacerbate varroa’s spread, and failing to treat is fatal.

Bee colonies in the upper North Island were historically more likely to be affected due to hive density. Regional loss rates over winter 2021 exhibited enormous variation, but losses over winter 2022 hovered close to the national average, ranging from 11.5

percent in the middle of the South Island to 15.5 percent in the upper North Island and lower South Island.

One positive trend from the survey is that varroa management rates have markedly improved. Beekeepers who reported not treating for varroa at all in the 2021-2022 season dropped to 1.5 percent, compared with 4.4 percent the year before.

Informal record keeping among some small beekeepers may make varroa management more challenging, according to the report.

Pole Sheds & Hybrid Pole Sheds!

Vigilance needed: It is essential beekeepers remain highly vigilant for signs of varroa in their hives. Photo shows a varroa mite riding on a bee’s thorax.

It is essential that beekeepers remain highly vigilant for signs of varroa in their hives. Treating varroa with miticides – at the right time and with the right dose – then becomes vital for the survival of the hive.

The chemical treatment for the varroa mite involves placing miticide strips into the hive. They are highly toxic for mites yet totally safe for honey, beeswax, brood, and queen. They don’t leave any residue in hive products and will keep the hive healthy.

The bees walk on the strips and distribute the miticide around the hive. Eventually,

the mites will be unable to cling to their bee hosts and will fall to the bottom of the hive.

Varroa mites often hide in the brood cells of developing bee larvae, where they feed on the larvae and reproduce. Some miticide strips are designed to penetrate the wax cappings of the brood cells, allowing the chemicals to come into direct contact with the mites inside the cells.

This helps to target mites that are reproducing in the brood cells and can be more challenging to control using other methods.

It is recommended that beekeepers alternate treatment between the different chemical families to manage the potential for chemical resistance by the varroa mite.

It’s also important to get the dose and timing of the treatment right – generally spring and autumn. A good rule of thumb is to follow the manufacturer’s instructions and beekeeping best practices.

Animal and Plant Health NZ and its members are committed to supporting the New Zealand bee population by providing effective treatments for Varroa and continuing to support best-practice farming.

Bees are extremely good pollinators of crops and contribute substantially to New Zealand’s $6.7 billion horticultural sector. It is vital that beekeepers continue their essential work in protecting bee populations, producing honey, and helping to contribute to farming.

Fire suppression for farm machinery

Advanced, environmentally friendly Muster Fire Suppression technology has been installed by Hydraulink Mid Canterbury on one of the latest Claas 8800 Lexion harvesters of a type widely used globally in broadacre farming.

Muster Fire Suppression

The Muster technology is enabling Hydraulink Fire Suppression to deliver a gold standard of safety protection industrial risk management throughout New Zealand where it is installed on major machinery involved in agriculture, civil contracting, forestry, mining, quarrying, light and heavy rail, and road transport.

Hydraulink Mid Canterbury Manager Dan Bruce says the latest application involves one of the leading machines used in broadacre farming, a Claas 8800 series harvester used on barley, wheat, clover, and other agricultural products.

The Muster technology, backed by nationwide site-specific service, is particularly valuable on mobile and remote sites where fire prevention assistance could otherwise take some time to arrive.

“The installation of the Muster system on this advanced machine provides strong and sustainable protections for worker safety as an absolute priority, and strong risk management for the ongoing efficiency and productivity of valuable assets such as the Claas machinery. Valuable machines such as this represent a major investment in greater out-

put and efficiency, which must be protected,” Bruce says.

Market leaders in their field, the Class 8000 series feature engine outputs of up to 790 hp, grain tank capacities from 8000 to 18000 litres and Mercedes-Benz and MAN engines that provide reliable reserves of power, even under the most testing field conditions.

“A major advantage of Hydraulink Fire Suppression on such expensive machinery is that not only does the service offer advanced technology, training and experience, but also that the broader NZ Hydraulink Fluid Connectors Ltd parent business has some of the country’s best site-specific and industry-specific knowledge to draw on.

“This means the technology is backed by our fire suppression specialists, with the strength behind them of our country-wide supply and service network of Hydraulink companies, which are also dedicated to safety and compliance standards safeguarding against accidents and production breakdowns across diverse industries with unique needs,” Bruce says.

Hydraulink Fire Suppression is the sole New Zealand distributor for Muster Fire Suppression systems. Hydraulink Fire Sup-

pression teams also perform scheduled inspections and service for most brands of fire suppression systems operating in the NZ market.

Hydraulink Fire Suppression specifies Fluorine-free F3 foam on all new pre-engineered fire suppression installations because it is more environmentally friendly, and safer for workers and machinery operators.

Fire prevention: Hydraulink supplies, installs, and services fire suppression technology, to protect operators and machinery in the event of a fire

It also now utilises Linear Heat Detection (LHD) to further minimise costs and downtime for customers. The major advantage of using LHD, is that there is no leakage of gas through the system.

All fire suppression systems come with a recommendation to service them annually, with visual inspections at 3 or 6 month intervals.

Four Seasons Realty Four Seasons Realty

DAIRY LANE UNDER FENCE RETRIEVING

Up to 90% cheaper, quicker and better than traditional methods. Covering as much as 2km of fenceline per hour!

BASES IN CANTERBURY AND NORTH OTAGO

Our machines remove material from under dairy lane fences using the most efficient way possible, either windrowing the material into the lane ready for the farmer to pick it up or simply spreading it out.

We have the most advanced blade system available, allowing it to reach further under the fence wire as well as deflect around the posts.

Pulling in the shoulder

Thinly spreading out the material

Windrowing

Celebrating a major milestone

This month we celebrate 25 years of Canterbury Farming providing farmers in Canterbury and the West Coast with news, information on the latest developments in the agricultural sector, and opinions from primary industry experts.

] by Kent Caddick ] Editor

The first issue of Canterbury Farming rolled off the press in May 1998, and a quarter of a century later founders Kelvin and Jill Green are still at the helm.

Kelvin had an extensive and successful career in sales prior to the couple starting the monthly newspaper with original partner Mark Roden, while Jill’s experience saw her take on an accounts and admin role in the new publication. Mark took care of the graphics and design work, along with typography.

Kelvin says after working for another publisher they saw the need for an informative publication aimed at farmers and others in rural areas.

“There had been another couple of publishers give it a try and pull out, but we could see the need for a publication like this in Canterbury and had a few ideas on how to achieve it, although to be fair, we didn’t really know how we were going to put in place the ideas and plans we had.”

With 300 issues now behind them Kelvin and Jill clearly found the right formula, and along the way have accumulated a lifetime of memories.

“The highlights are all people based, but getting to know many of the clients quite well, and being able to call a few of them our friends has been really special,” Kelvin says.

“Without the ongoing support of our advertisers we would never have made it this far, although there is a core group that have been on-board for most of the journey that would agree they wouldn’t have stuck with it if it didn’t work.”

Kelvin says when advertising for the first

time, many of their clients have taken advice from them around how to go about building their ads and which formulas to take heed of, and which to ignore.

“It makes us proud to help our clients the way we do, it gives a sense of togetherness.”

While selling was second nature to Kelvin the other issue he and Jill faced when starting the publication was a little more testing.

“When we first started, we knew also content, that is the written word, would be important. So we talked a few experts in their respective fields into writing monthly columns. We’ve had wool guys, forestry guys, agronomists, dairy experts, lawyers, politi-

Canterbury Farming –Congratulations on 25 years

cians, and accountants (just to name a few) all write for the publication.

“The contribution of these two groups of people (clients and columnists) to the success of Canterbury Farming can never be understated.”

Reflecting on early contributors, Kelvin and Jill remember, among many others, Heather McCrostie-Little, and Lorne Kuehn who were part of the early days, while stalwarts Allan Laurie, Rob Cochrane, Bessie Paterson and Rob Cope-Williams are still contributing each month (what an effort).

“One of the characters of this group was Andy McCord who was known in the for-

Time passes: Canterbury Farming founders Jill and Kelvin Green look over their first edition which was published a quarter of a century ago.

estry industry as Mr Boron as he was continuously extolling the virtues of this wonderful product,” Kelvin says.

“Andy had a habit of ending his column with a risqué story or joke, and there was many a monthly contribution which was not printed as it crossed the lines of what you could or couldn’t print. In fact, Andy often reported that many readers started his column towards the end so they could read the joke first before then going back and reading the rest of it.”

Kelvin also pays tribute to the hugely successful relationships with Canterbury Farming’s two major suppliers Inkwise and Coural, who print and distribute the publication respectively, and of course the readers.

“The support from the readership has been immense with communication via email and phone calls ongoing. We often have conversations with readers along the lines of what they enjoy reading in the paper or why a certain column keeps them coming back for more.”

Another 25 years?

“The last six or seven years working with this current production and sales team has been an ideal experience and we count ourselves extremely fortunate to be able to do this. The formula just seems so perfect.”

Praise, accolades and reflections

Fantastic achievement

Vetpak would like to congratulate Kelvin and Jill and the Canterbury Farming team on reaching the milestone of 25 years in business, a fantastic achievement, a truly iconic publication for 25 years in the rural scene.

On a more personal note, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Kelvin for all the fantastic work he has done for Vetpak for nearly 20 years, over this time Kelvin and Canterbury Farming has become an integral part of our Marketing strategy for advertising to the rural sector.

Kelvin’s passion and enthusiasm for the Rural sector is always admired by all those that work with him, his professionalism, integrity, dedication are but just a few words that are well earned and deserved by Kelvin, for me personally there is one more word I would add to the list “friend”.

After many years of working closely with Kelvin and his team as one of our Advertising Business partners and them being totally invested in helping us grow our business you do develop a great friendship out of these working relationships, which I do truly appreciate.

Kelvin and Jill, thank you for all the support you have given to all your clients over the past 25 years, we wish continued success for the future and look forward to another 25 years.

To anyone looking for an advertising partner for your business, I would highly recommend getting in touch with Kelvin and his Canterbury Farming team to see how they can be part of your business.

Steve Atfield Director, Vetpak

Well done Canterbury Farming

The farming community in Canterbury is very lucky to have an excellent newspaper to keep up with the innovations and developments in agriculture.

All the very best for the next 25 years.

Bessie Angland,

Ronald W. Angland & Son Lawyers

Endurance and longevity

I guess most things agriculture are about endurance and longevity and to that end Canterbury Farming has certainly proved its worth despite today’s world of ‘touch screens’ and ‘AI’.

When Kelvin Green walked into my office more than 25 years ago and asked if I had any interest in a Canterbury and West Coast specific monthly farming printed newspaper there was some hesitation, however I agreed on behalf of my employer to advertise, and to contribute a few words about wool each month.

I can’t remember exactly if we discussed a trial period and I could not have imagined that 25 years later I’d still be contributing to something which had grown and adapted along with an incredibly changed physical landscape.

Congratulations to the entire Canterbury Farming team who, in my view, after 25 years continue to deliver an interesting and topical read to the rural community.

Rob Cochrane PGG Wrightson Wool

A constant in a changing world

Over recent times we have been bombarded by ever more headlines and the danger of overload is ever present.

We all require an anchor, information we can rely on, and over the last 25 years Canterbury Farming containing relevant, well researched and presented material has provided that. It’s a thoroughly professional rural publication, and a paper we feel privileged to contribute to and look forward to receiving each month.

Peter Burton Dolomite Co of NZ Ltd

A balanced and interesting read

A very big congratulations to Kelvin and the team at Canterbury Farming for 25years of serving the regions farming sector with an informative monthly recital of all matters farming.

The suite of contributions from across the spectrum of farming the land has ensured a balanced and interesting read, something for everyone and certainly one that gets my reading attention when it arrives.

My first contribution with a forestry market report was back in July 2010. Initially with some trepidation as to whether anyone would want to read this stuff. But I quickly learnt my time was well spent with must positivity and new business being the order of the day. For that I am hugely grateful

Well done again team, and please keep up the great work.

Allan Laurie Laurie Forestry Ltd

A grass roots company

JJ Limited has been a supporter of the Canterbury Farming since our company expanded into the upper South Island and Canterbury region just over 10 years ago.

As a publication their content is always interesting and relative to the rural community. Similar to JJ’s they are a grass roots company who always makes you feel like doing business with them is personal.

As we celebrate our 65th anniversary this year and Canterbury Farming celebrates its 25th anniversary there is no doubt that our partnership will remain strong, knowing that Canterbury Farming will continue to provide famers and agricultural leaders with the information they need and want.

In an industry that is changing and evolving constantly the publication has done a great job of evolving as well. Congratulation to the team and here’s to many more years of success to come.

Kari Graber JJ Limited

Well done team

Congratulations to Kelvin and the team at Canterbury Farming on 25 years in business.

You have been providing a top service in terms of giving farmers a quality read. It has been great to be able to talk directly to our current and future customers in this way. With a steady, consistent and pragmatic approach to your suppliers and to your customers, it’s been a pleasure working with you.

Andrew Neill CEO, Onfarm Data Ltd

DRIVING LOCAL FARMERS SINCE 1958

Twenty five years of getting on very well

I suggested to Kelvin and Jill Green that I should write for Canterbury Farming about two or three months after the first edition rolled off the presses.

farming information on TV.”

Trousers rolled up, I handed my shirt to the chap taking the photos and the shoot took place.

] by Rob Cope-Williams

I was still doing a bit on radio and starting off my TV programme with Canterbury TV, so why not go for the hat trick?

My first impressions were “Slow down Rob, this is a newspaper not electronic media”… low key but informative was the message. Instead of a variety of subjects, I was to write about one which meant delving into the issue myself rather than asking loads of questions.

How Kelvin and Jill got me to calm down and become a written journo is beyond me, but it was probably their laid-back approach and calm reaction to whatever they face.

I tried hard to get Kelvin to come onto my TV programme but was always met with a mumbled “It isn’t my thing, Rob.”

He, however, did allow me free space for an advert pushing my programme, and there is a story surrounding that.

I decided that I would have a photo of me, back to the camera, and facing a TV set on a post. I was to appear as though the only thing I was wearing was a raincoat. The caption “Expose yourself to the best

Sadly, my shirt fell off the chap’s shoulder and into fresh sheep manure, we were in a set of sheep yards.

So, back in town wearing nothing but trousers and a raincoat, I arrived home to realise I had a borrowed car and my car, complete with house keys, was still at the mechanic’s workshop in Christchurch.

The result, breaking into my house in a manner that certainly didn’t become a man of the media.

Just how many stories I have written over the 25 years is too scary to work out, but suffice to say I know from feedback that of the many free newspapers farmers get, this is the one that gets most attention.

I do want to thank my two shy owners, and of late editor Kent, for allowing me the chance to say what I think in my columns.

Over the years I swiftly moved away from news as such and unloaded my frustrations and views of the farming industry which is a privilege that I don’t take lightly.

I would like to think that I write what others are thinking and I hope so, but again, Kelvin and Jill, a huge thank you from me and your readers, 25 years in the media is something to celebrate, so don’t hold back in doing so.

Time to grow better, here’s how...

Recently, a major end-user in the UK specified that they would now prefer to buy products from New Zealand that were grown or raised on reduced nitrogen and phosphate land. We believe this is a start of a new trend that will be here to stay.

WE HAVE THE ANSWER TO MAINTAIN HIGH PASTURAL YIELD WITHOUT FERTILISER NITROGEN

PLEASE READ THESE TESTIMONIALS CAREFULLY.

Rolling to steep sheep and beef unit at Ballance. We first applied at Functional Fertiliser mix in 2010 and have applied to 85ha every year since.

We have enjoyed outstanding animal health with both sheep and beef animals regularly achieving top prices at the local sales yards. Independent analysis showed our soil quality to be second to none.

– GRAEME AND JUDY OLSEN

Functional Fertiliser applications over four years have transformed our rotationally grazed pastures into a highly productive summer dominant clover sward.

The “fertiliser’ soft carbon combination brought our soil and pasture to life with amazing alacrity.

Our spring pasture growth supported a stocking capacity of 40 su/ha with the pastures still requiring topping. The Functional Fertiliser wrap around support service has been exceptionally helpful.

– LINDSAY

This stuff is amazing. I have clover coming up where there was none before, thanks!

– LANCE UNSWORTH

We have a small organically registered farm near Otaki specialising in cattle finishing. In the 8 years since applying Functional Fertiliser no nitrogen has been applied and the changes have been exceptional with very strong clover growth providing all the nitrogen required.

It took a little time to kick in however our animal health has been exceptional with no lice or worms and very few vet bills resulting in a low cost easy to manage and profitable operation. The property is at least carbon neutral, and the pastures largely look after themselves.

The stock agent says we fatten cattle quicker than others with two year old carcass weights of 280 – 300kg with the meat having exceptional flavour.

Our costs are 30% less, with 30% less labour required. We run fewer animals with a 30% increase in overall profitability. It’s an easy-to-follow system that is equally successful on both large and small operations.

Functional Fertiliser really works. It sweetens the soil creating the ideal environment for mycorrhizal fungi and beneficial microbes resulting in strong growth throughout the year.

– STUART PRITCHARD

McIntosh gear is New Zealand made specifically for our tough conditions and operators. Heavy duty components make sure that their gear lasts longer and performs better. They have now teamed together with Power farming Canterbury to offer local farmers not only the best gear available but also the best service available. If you are looking for excellent quality and great support give us a call to see how McIntosh can make your life easier.

Multi

Awards on offer at the annual Groundspread NZ conference

The countdown is on for the 65th Annual Groundspread NZ Conference being held in New Plymouth this July.

] by Kent Caddick

The conference is a great opportunity for members of the Association to mix and mingle with new members and lifelong friends, in what is often a solitary profession.

Canterbury had a record number of finalists and winners in 2022, with 50% of the nominations coming from the region.

Canterbury branch chairperson Hamish Woolsey said he is hoping for another great year for the region and wishes all of those that are nominated all the best for this year’s Awards Gala presentations as part of the annula conference.

‘Navigating Change’ is the theme for 2023 and this year’s conference program is packed with speakers and discussions that will help ensure that your groundspread operators are ready for the change ahead and continue to support the rural community in meeting increasing environmental targets on their properties.

Traditionally, groundspreaders have been early adopters of technology despite change being something that human beings do not always look forward to.

However, constant change and adaption is the only way that rural businesses will survive and thrive, so bringing everyone

along on that journey is imperative.

The annual Awards Gala for Groundspread NZ rounds off the conference, the only agricultural awards specifically designed for the groundspreading industry.

In their fifth year, the four awards recognise and celebrate the people behind the spreader trucks and the hard work they put in.

“They encourage us all to consider and applaud the efforts that others make – the inno-

Servicing the Mid canterbury area

BOAGS CONTRACTING

Prompt and efficient service

Groundspread Certified

Bredal Spreader mounted onto a 4x4 isuzu mini spreader set up for tram lining in crops capable of spreading up to 32 metres.

Mark 0274 383 846

8 Rolleston Street, Rakaia

Spread mark

vations, the achievements and all the critical thinking that goes on in our industry” Groundspread NZ President Graeme Martin said.

“These awards also promote awareness and understanding of the importance of the groundspreading profession within the wider agricultural industry. After all, food production in New Zealand starts with ensuring that the right nutrients are spread accurately, evenly, and only in the right places. It’s a highly skilled job and we are proud to do it.”

Spreader truck operators undergo significant training. They use finely calibrated machines, sophisticated equipment, and GPS tracking software so customers can receive accurate data that shows proof of placement. Where groundspreaders are certified to the industry standard – Spreadmark –farmers, growers and regional councils can be assured that all environmental responsibilities around nutrient spreading will be taken care of.

‘These awards also promote the importance of the groundspreading profession.

Graeme Martin Groundspread NZ President

Traditionally, nominations have come from within the industry for these awards, but Groundspread NZ have opened them up this year to the valued clients using their groundspreading services and encouraged the rural community to step forward and nominate their groundspread operator when they notice a job well done, “being nominated for an award and being recognised by your peers is a huge honour and an achievement that finalists each year are extremely proud of”, Martin says.

Nominations have now closed and nominees will soon be notified of their nominations in one of the following four categories:

The Ballance Agri-Nutrients President’s Award

This award will be presented to a Groundspread NZ member who has been a positive supporter of the Association during the past three years, they impart their knowledge to others in the industry, and their contribution has helped groundspreaders in one of the fol-

lowing areas – business, economic, environmental, or social.

Previous winners: Gordon Dobbs (2019), Grant Anderson (2020), John Whitehead (2021), Tina Powell 2022).

The Keith Andrews Innovation Award

This award will be presented to a Groundspread NZ member who demonstrates a commitment to the exploration of technology and innovation in the groundspread industry during the past three years.

They will have encountered an industry problem or issue and have been able to solve it with their innovation.

Previous winners: Ted Usmar (2019), Ron Smith (2020), John Whitehead (2021), Jon Jackson (2022).

Proudly Sponsored by Keith Andrews

The Ravensdown Young Achiever’s Award

This award will be presented to a Ground-

spread NZ member who is under the age of 35 and is passionate about the groundspread industry (that they currently work in).

They will show vision and passion and contribute positively to the industry and Association.

Previous winners: Adam White (2019), Matthew Blomfield (2020), Toby Evans (2021), Nigel Nunn (2022).

The Graymont Health &

Safety Award

This award will be presented to a Groundspread NZ member who demonstrates a commitment to health and safety in the industry and has made a significant contribution in this area during the past three years.

This contribution will have benefited and improved health and safety outcomes for individual groundspreaders and/or the industry in general.

Previous winners: Nicola Goodwin (2019), Phil Johnson (2020), Nick Hyslop (2021), Kylie Stenton (2022).

Safety conscious: The Graymont Health & Safety Award Winner for 2022 was Mainland Spreading represented in the presentation by Kylie Stenton (second from right) who is pictured along with Groundspread nZ (outgoing) VP Grant Anderson, Kylie Owen (nZ Account Manager for Graymont) and Groundspread nZ (incoming) VP nick Hyslop.

Innovative: Keith Andrews Trucks Innovation Award Winner for 2022 Jon Jackson (far left) with erwin Stolze (Keith Andrews Dealer Principal – Hamilton), Groundspread nZ (incoming) VP nick Hyslop and Groundspread nZ (outgoing) VP Grant Anderson.

‘Being nominated for an award and being recognised by your peers is a huge honour and an achievement that finalists each year are extremely proud of.

Graeme Martin Groundspread NZ President

*Terms & Conditions apply

Choosing the right type of fencing

When deciding on what type of fencing you need for your farm or lifestyle block, there

and methods which can be combined to provide a suitable fence for any situation.

] by William Milnes

There are several types of stock fences commonly used in New Zealand:

7-9 Wire post and batten

Used commonly for boundary fencing and as a general all-purpose fence, as it is strong, durable, and secure. Posts are usually four metres apart, and five battens are spaced evenly between the posts.

Although one of the most expensive and labour intensive fences, it will contain sheep, cattle and horses adequately in most cases.

Multi-wire electric

Depending on the type of stock being contained, different number of wires can be used, which are then electrified. Posts are spaced further apart, sometimes up to eight or ten metres between posts. A wide range of both wooden and steel posts can be used.

Electric fences create a mental barrier to stock. The shock that they get from the fence acts as a deterrent in future escape efforts. This is opposed to the post and batten fence which simply provides a physical barrier.

Because electric fences require fewer materials, they are usually cheaper, easier and faster to erect, however security and longevity can be sacrificed.

Sheep netting

Sheep netting is wire netting, about a metre high, with wooden posts. It is ideal for sheep, and other small or young stock such as calves. It is also adequate for large stock when one or more outriggers are added to either the top or side of the netting. Deer fencing operates on exactly the same principles as sheep netting, except on a larger scale.

Post and rail

Used commonly with horses as it is highly visible. Spooked horses have been severely injured after running through wire fences, particularly fences using high tensile wire. Most horses are kept within wire fences however, so it comes down to a personal choice.

Post and rail fencing is also used around houses and driveways as it is aesthetically pleasing. Posts are usually two metres apart, with between three and four wooden rails. It can be difficult to get it looking straight and level without a high level of expertise.

Post and rail fences are very secure with larger animals, especially when accompanied

with an electric wire to prevent stock rubbing. It has a high cost per metre when compared to other fences.

Temporary and semi-permanent

Semi-permanent: There are a wide range of materials available, such as electric tape and poly-wires, varying in different sizes and thicknesses. As well there is a range of semi-permanent type steel posts, such as Warratahs and Kiwitahs. Often used on lease blocks, or as a quick fix option.

This type of fence is very cheap and easy to build. The disadvantages are the deterioration of the fence over a few years, and these

fences require more regular maintenance.

Temporary: Electric plastic tape usually wound up on a hand held reel. It is used mainly for cattle and horses to sub-divide an existing paddock, usually on a day by day basis. They are put up, and taken down, at the pace at which you can walk. They are the least secure of any type of fence and require a good electric current and stock which are trained with electric fences.

If unsure of the best type of fence for your situation, speak to other people and find out what works for them and what doesn’t. Over the long term, it can be more profitable to invest in good quality fences from the start.

More change needed to protect our environment

As you will be aware, in the coming months we will be working with farmers to help them meet new national regulations.

] by Peter Scott ] ECan Chair

I’ve heard from some farmers and irrigators that they are concerned about the speed and scope of further changes at a time when they are already being asked to do more to manage on-farm practices like winter grazing, managing wetlands and stock exclusion from waterways.

Canterbury/Waitaha is in its current state largely as a legacy of past practices. Market forces have incentivised more intensive farming, and the Resource Management Act has permitted it. Decisions made in the past have got us to where we are now.

Legacy environmental issues take time to change, and intensive agriculture is already managed through our audited Farm Environment Plan process.

But this is not just a rural issue. While many focus on our rural communities and farming practices, the actions of our town and city-dwellers have also affected our environment.

Regulation alone will not reverse everything that has happened, but we need to get the regulation right and do our best to improve things for future generations.

We all need to do more, and faster, to turn the tide of environmental degradation in some parts of our region, and protect our water, land, air and remaining biodiversity.

The changes we make today will have an impact in the future, and the more improvements we make, the faster we can see the results our environment and our community demands.

While these changes may seem onerous and unachievable, we need to reach – and in some areas, go well beyond – good management practices to reduce our effect on freshwater.

We are working in partnership with mana whenua on a Regional Policy Statement and targeted changes to the land and water regional plan to reflect the national legislative direction in the NPSFM 2020 that puts the needs of our environment and community first, applying the principles of Te Mana o te Wai.

We will be engaging with the community and catchment groups as we put together this important piece of work.

Support is available and our Farmers’ Hub is the best place to get clear information on what you need to do on your farm, or you can

contact one of our land management advisors for a chat.

I’m sharing this as I want you to get involved and also be able to make informed decisions for yourselves, your businesses and your communities’ futures.

Lastly, I’d like to acknowledge the changes already made and the hard work you’ve all done to improve our freshwater, but the fact is we just aren’t moving quickly enough.

If anyone would like to chat to me further then please email governance@ecan.govt.nz.

] by Allan Laurie MnZIF ] Laurie Forestry Ltd

Wharf gate prices lowest in five years

A cot case we most certainly find ourselves in with all planets falling completely out of alignment and May wharf gate prices NZ falling to the lowest in five years.

The market driver/indicator A grade log has dropped to between NZ$84 and $100 per JAS cubic metre at wharf gate NZ. The variation is a function of North or South Island, number of port calls, port cost and shipping fixture timing.

In China, the CFR rate (the selling price landed at port in US$) has dropped to US$112 to $115 per cubic metre depending on timing, with most market commentary suggesting May sales will see us at or about US$110. This again has us at a five-year low by a reasonable margin.

At a mid to high NZ$80’s wharf gate price in the South Island, this reflects just above the average cost of harvesting and transporting the logs to port. As a consequence, all South-Island Ports are seeing a dramatic drop in daily deliveries. Some are close to a mere trickle and only because some of the larger corporates need to keep harvesting to fulfill domestic mill contracts.

Volumes heading to North Island Ports are also slowing but to a lesser degree for some

as Central North Island Cyclone Gabrielle damaged forest harvest gets in to full swing. Some have suggested current volumes at 60% to 70% of normal.

A normal log export harvest month in NZ has been running at about 1.5 to 1.6 million cubic metres, mostly heading to China. Most commentary is suggesting in May we will head south of 1mil cubic metres, with June likely to be much less.

The impacts of this across our industry cannot be over stated and no less so for our people on the ground who do the real work.

I have stated many times, NZ Forestry Inc needs to get in a room and thrash out a strategy that includes a re-set on marketing behaviour parameters as well as finding new and more resilient markets. Our total dependence on China needs to be reviewed and quickly.

In China, the market bottom lip is certainly dragging close to the ground. In general terms nothing has changed since Q4 2022. Demand is weak, domestic prices are falling in many regions and inventory is well above what would be needed to see a swing in confidence.

Forest work and the Big Rigs

Callum aims to run his own forest contracting crew one day.

But the 18-year old’s immediate goal is to finish getting his tickets to operate the huge harvesting machinery, which is routine nowadays in a modern plantation forest.

Harvest mechanisation has rapidly increased during the past decade, making the work much safer for Callum and his mates.

There are harvesting machines with cabs to replace chainsaws and ‘skidder’ vehicles to haul the logs.

Callum got his job at Roxburgh Contracting, through the Year-13 Gateway Programme at South Otago High School.

Now he’s set to be a forester for life.

Across the eastern seaboard daily sales as at mid May running at around 50,000 cubic metres per day, down 35% on the same time last year. The softwood inventory is sitting at 4.1mil cubic metres not including stock sitting containers.

China wholesale log prices are also falling with one key Port for NZ logs, Lanshan, dropping a further ¥30 per cubic metre since early May (about NZ$5-6). This of course does not bode well for CFR settlements in June with the trader breakeven point being around the US$110-112. Thus, you will not need your abacus to work out what the future will look like.

On a brighter note, shipping costs have turned down, not surprisingly of course. An interesting development at present includes shipping fixtures timing dropping to around three weeks versus the normal five to six weeks. This leaves ship owners running a knife edge with short term options limited if they cannot secure a NZ cargo.

For most of us at the coal face, any sympathy for shipping companies is non existent with the gouging of the last 12 months still very strong in our memories. In fact, shipping costs, which are currently sitting in

the low US$30’s will have to go a lot lower for harvest to increase.

On another brighter note, a massive and devastating drop in harvest in NZ will very quickly see inventory drop in China. Some commentary has suggested it will be four to five weeks before vessel arrivals slow and therefore any reaction delayed.

But history tells me most of the larger players in China are very well informed on what is happening in NZ. Thus, I would expect to see a confidence swing sooner than some have been suggesting.

As always people, please remember the thoroughly important message, “it remains, as always, fundamentally important, the only way forward for climate, country and the planet, is to get out there and plant more trees”.

My prophetic words in last month’s report , “but May could be a cot case unless consumption picks up quickly in China and shipping rates do not continue to fall”.

‘

Ship owners are running a knife edge with short term options limited if they cannot secure a nZ cargo.

When it comes time to wean

Successful weaning based on calf weight and meal intake will help calves develop into healthy heifers.

Article supplied by DairyNZ

Making sure a heifer is fully prepared before weaning reduces the chance she will need preferential treatment post-weaning.

Preferentially managing small groups of animals to try and “catch them up” to the group is time-consuming and can be difficult to manage, so it is best avoided by good early management.

Factors to consider before weaning

Is the calf:

• Consuming the desired amount of feed?

Is its rumen sufficiently developed?

• Meeting its weight-for-age target, based on its breed and/or the rearing system?

• At the minimum age for the rearing system?

• Able to compete within a group?

Rumen development

A calf’s rumen development is the most important factor to consider when making the weaning decision.

The only way this can be assessed is by measuring the amount of concentrate or pasture they are readily eating, which should be at least 1kg/day of meal or 2kg/day of pasture.

Calves should be supplied with clean water and feed for rumen development. Calf meal and high quality herbage together provide the energy, protein and volatile fatty acids necessary for rumen development and animal growth.

Grain have different fatty acid profiles and higher levels of butyrate which stimulates papillae growth, papillae increase the surface area of the rumen and aids in digestion.

Good quality hay can be used as a roughage if a grain-based meal is also being used, and should be offered from birth.

Calves given large quantities of milk will have slower rumen development. This is

Wean right: Recently weaned calves are at particular risk as they will be undergoing changes in diet, rumen development, and moving from individual or small group care to larger mob management.

primarily because the milk satisfies their appetite, so they eat less forage and concentrates, which decreases the requirement for digestion in the rumen.

Any change to the quantity or type of feed needs to be measured. Just as it takes time to develop the rumen, time is key in transitioning from calf meal to a full pasture diet. Farmer experience indicates that two week gap between each diet change (e.g. weaning off milk with meal concentrate to full pasture diet) will help transition heifers to a full pasture diet.

New-born calves have high dietary protein requirements, this requirement declines as they age.

A higher crude protein intake should lead to higher growth rates. If using calf meal, look for products that contain 20% crude pro-

tein for calves on milk and 17% crude protein for weaned calves to meet total dietary requirements.

Sometimes animals do not thrive postweaning so weigh them within 7-10 days to make sure they have gained weight from weaning. If they’re not thriving post-weaning they may need continued access to calf meal, regardless of weight or age.

Weaning weight

Individual heifers should reach a minimum weight prior to weaning. No specific weaning weight has been defined by research. The type of rearing system will affect the target weaning weight.

Although, common weights used for weaning are 70kg for Jerseys, 80kg for Fr x J Crossbreds, and 90kg for Friesians. Relocating recently weaned calves Relocation can result in growth checks or be a trigger for animal health issues including pneumonia, scouring and parasites.

Recently weaned calves are at particular risk as they will be undergoing changes in diet, rumen development, and moving from individual or small group care to larger mob management.

Relocation adds to the risk; the younger the animal, and the more recently they have been weaned, the higher the risk.

Give your calves the best head start

If you are preparing to rear calves this season, then look no further than Milligans Feeds’ range of high quality milk replacers.

] Advertorial by Milligans Feeds

Milligans Feeds have four specialist products that are designed to fit any rearing system: from the ultrapremium ExcelPlus Calf Milk Replacer; Classic CMR, the original go-to replacer for over 25 years; GOcalf Boost, a high performing finisher; and GOcalf Whey for the alternative protein option.

Whether it be a traditional Twice A Day feeding system, or alternative Once A Day system you prefer, our products give you the flexibility and performance anywhere, every time!

We also have you covered for other animals too, with our ‘Multi Milk Replacer’ or ‘MMR’ product, which provides the convenience of having one milk replacer that can feed all animal types, including lambs, goat kids, foals, cria, piglets, puppies, and kittens.

We also have our GOwhey range which are specialised whey-based powders for lambs, goat kids and calves. These can be used as a stand-alone replacer or be fed in a program with other replacers depending on your needs.

Our whey products are sourced from a leading European manufacturer where performance and quality are the leading requirements for best animal welfare.

Milligans Feeds also has animal supplement products to assist with the early care and welfare of new-born animals, namely ExcelPlus Colostrum and ExcelPlus Electrolytes. These two supplements are key inputs to successful animal rearing and husbandry.

Whether you are a lifestyle farmer or large scale farmer, you will know the importance of being prepared for the times when you have an orphan or sick baby at hand.

Milligans products are available throughout New Zealand at leading rural supply stockists. To see our range further, go to www.milligansfeeds.co.nz or give us a call on 0800 786 253 to discuss products and what may be right for you.

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Milligans Feeds’ range of high quality milk replacers is available throughout new Zealand at leading rural supply stockists.

Tax relief measure a positive step

Farmers, growers and other businesses affected the cyclones will have one less thing to worry about following the Government’s announcement on depreciation roll-over relief according to Federated Farmers.

] by Kent Caddick

Federated Farmers national board member Toby Williams said it was a repeat of measures which Federated Farmers had advocated for in the wake of the Hurunui-Kaikoura earthquakes.

“We’re very pleased the government has seen fit to do the same for businesses hit by the severe weather events in January and February this year,” Williams said.

In 2011 the Government amended the Income Tax Act to provide taxpayers with property damaged or destroyed by the Canterbury earthquakes with the ability to defer a depreciation recovery income liability when property was destroyed and replaced using insurance settlements.

Similar legislative change happened after Federated Farmers wrote to the then Minister of Revenue after the Hurunui-Kaikoura earthquakes.

Where a depreciated insured asset is destroyed there is often depreciation recovered, especially where the asset is insured for replacement cost. This depreciation recovered, which is taxable, is a reversal of depreciation previously claimed.

“For taxpayers affected by the Auckland storm and the two cyclones this could have resulted in a big tax liability, which is the last thing that hard-pressed farmers and other business owners need at the moment,” Williams said.

“This seemingly dry technical change will be a relief to people and will make a difference to the recovery.”

Normally, the receipt of insurance proceeds for a destroyed business asset gives rise to depreciation recovery income. Rollover relief will defer the recognition of this income for tax purposes, provided there is a commitment to rebuild or replace the destroyed buildings or plant.

As an additional feature of the relief measures Revenue Minister David Parker has proposed there would be no requirement that replacement buildings be located in the same region.

Farmers and horticulturalists whose crops are uninsured should be able to separately claim deductions under existing legislation for the residual book value of destroyed trees and vines, and their removal costs, the Minister said.

As is always the case with weather events, the loss of uninsured assets (buildings, plant, crops vines and trees) is deductible. Inland Revenue will provide information to farmers on its website about the rollover relief.

Happy chappy: Federated Farmers national board member Toby Williams is pleased with the Government’s announcement on depreciation roll-over relief for farmers hit by the severe weather events in January and February.

Toby Williams

Federated Farmers national board member

‘

A big tax liability is the last thing that hard-pressed farmers need at the moment.

Managing inputs in a lower N environment

Fertiliser sales this autumn are well down on this time last year with the primary reason being lower incomes and higher expenses.

Fertiliser can be withheld, particularly when there is an abundance of feed and favourable growing conditions, without any immediate impact on feed budgets, however the focus now should be on spring.

In well managed situations the feed on hand in early May has an important influence on the feed available in the second half of September, the time when demand is high and peak pasture growth is yet to arrive.

Mature pasture can be carried ahead by lengthening the intervals between grazings. Successful farmers will often graze no more than 1% of the available area daily during June and July prior to lambing and calving.

Until recently there was an industry wide attitude that lower covers during winter could be addressed with the application of synthetic nitrogen.

That is steadily becoming outdated as nitrogen applied during winter is one of the reasons for unacceptably high Nitrate N levels in groundwater.

The price of nitrogen fertiliser products means the cost of the extra feed grown is currently as great or greater than bought in feed which has a higher nutritional value.

Comparative data shows that although farms applying nitrogen during winter experience earlier and stronger spring growth, they grow significantly less during late spring and summer than those where no nitrogen was applied during winter.

Winter is the time of rest and recovery for pasture plants. Having 90 days where there is no demand for extra above ground growth allows root systems to develop.

A deeper and larger root base ensures

stronger growth during the next growing season. The same rest and recovery phase is just as important for animals and people.

When changing to a lower synthetic N input system bear in mind that removing anything from an existing fertiliser programme will lead to lessened growth unless it is replaced by an input that provides as much energy.

There is somewhere between 5,000kg –15,000kgN/ha in the top 15cm of pastoral soils and only a small fraction of that needs to be made plant available for maximum growth over winter.

This is easily achieved by increasing biological activity in the soil. Adding calcium creates the conditions which favour beneficial microbes and earthworms, and only a small amount in the form of lime is enough to make a difference.

In the longer term the synthetic nitrogen can be adequately replaced by nitrogen fixed by clover and direct from the atmosphere, both free of charge with minimal leaching losses.

Functional Fertiliser first introduced DoloZest in 2003 as a soil improver that improved physical soil structures and increased the rate at which nutrient was cycled.

Based on Golden Bay dolomite it has the added benefit of supplying maintenance magnesium, an essential input on nearly all dairy farms and is a proven means of limiting calcium/magnesium related metabolic disorders in spring.

Part of its effectiveness is due to the increase in plant energy levels, particularly important in late winter and early spring aided

by the inclusion of boron which helps build plant sugars.

Properties where DoloZest is applied annually markedly reduce the amount of other magnesium supplementation. Pastures normally contain 0.22%-0.25% magnesium a level at which well fed cows receive their required daily intake.

Mature pasture, 3500kg+ DM/ha, also contains much of the long fibre necessary for

good rumen function, without which minerals and vitamins are not fully utilised. DoloZest treated pastures remain palatable even at a length where excellent utilisation is not expected and due to its rapid incorporation into the soil, it’s never too late to be applied.

For more information call Peter on 027 495 0041 or 0800 843 809.

] with Peter Burton

Helping out: DoloZest helps to produce beautifully mature autumn pasture.

Suzuki Trojan a benchmark for farm motorcycles

The DR200 Trojan has taken the benchmark for farm two wheeler motorcycles to new levels since its introduction over 20 years ago.

] Supplied by Suzuki NZ

When the engineering team at Suzuki New Zealand Ltd first set about making a purpose-built farm bike for our unique conditions, they literally started from scratch.

Listening to the needs of farmers meant Suzuki could add features that really made the Trojan a step ahead of the competition.

Using the already robust DR200 trail bike Suzuki custom built a list of accessories then packaged the bike and returned it to Japan for manufacture.

The result was a runaway success story rocketing the Trojan to the top of the farm two-wheeler sales virtually overnight.

Since that introduction, the Trojan has had several colour changes and many minor model changes but underneath the Trojan is still the farm workhorse of its predecessors.

One of the most popular features on the Trojan has been its large twelve-volt headlight; a real bonus if you ask any dairy farmer about those early morning starts.

From our discussions with farmers, we also found that when you do have the occasional slip or the bike gets knocked over you need something to protect vulnerable handlebar levers.

The fitting of quality aluminium protectors gives not only the levers a second chance but has also saved a few knuckles on the way.

Being built in Japan means a quality that has some competitor products looking less than value for money. For instance, the exhaust header pipe is stainless steel and the motor is not only a four-stoke for fuel savings but has an oil cooler and oil filter, meaning that engine problems should be the last thing on your mind.

Dual side stands are a winner on any farm when solid ground is hard to find and when the going gets really tough you can

rely on the chunky Bridgestone knobbly tyres front and rear for real traction.

Low gearing with quality O’ring chain allows slow speed riding to be completed with ease without continual stalling or heavy clutch use, and the fuel tank holds

Electrical

a massive 13 litres enough to last most farmers all week.

There are a lot more features we could list, but the strongest and most compelling reason why Trojan is a genuine Kiwi farm bike is the sales history it has

achieved since its introduction.

So, if you are looking for a new farm two-wheeler and need more information on the Suzuki DR200 Trojan please call 0800 SuZuKI for your local dealer or visit our website www.suzuki.co.nz

Bonus: One of the most popular features on the Trojan has been its large twelve-volt headlight which is a real bonus for those early morning starts.

Impractical water regulations need addressing

It’s been a dream autumn for our region and many of us are going into winter with plenty of feed on hand.

(EFW) regulations and while the Government did respond to collective industry feedback and removed the re-sowing dates and pugging depths, there are still aspects of the EFW regulations that have to change. These include the Freshwater Farm Plan and the Low Slope Map for stock exclusion.

The Government’s Freshwater Farm Plan was proposed as an alternative to a resource consent for farmers whose wintering practices did not meet the permitted activity criteria.

The Government has failed to deliver on the Freshwater Farm Plan and this has not been made available to farmers for this winter.

] by Kate Acland

]

Chair Beef + Lamb New Zealand

Stock is now being transitioned onto the winter forage crops which play an important part in many of our farm systems.

We know that intensive grazing carries with it some environmental risks, but farmers have responded to this challenge and have made significant changes to their wintering practices in recent years. It’s important we all continue in this way, including putting together winter grazing plans. There are some great resources for this on the Beef +Lamb New Zealand, website.

These farm level improvements have been noted by regional councils and other regulatory bodies.

Winter forage crops have been a focus in the Government’s Essential Freshwater

That said, we have to get the Freshwater Farm Plans right before they are rolled out. B+LNZ’s believes strongly that not all farmers should need a Freshwater Farm Plan. They should be focused on at-risk catchments and farmers undertaking at-risk activities.

It’s also vital that the Farm Plans are based on industry plans, are outcomes based and not prescriptive, requiring all farmers to take the same actions regardless of the risk on their farms.

Every farm and every catchment is different with different risks depending on soil types, weather, stocking rates, nutrients, biodiversity and many other variables.

In a year where we have increasing pressure on profit margins we need to make sure any actions required are for the right reasons and have the right impacts.

The Low Slope Map for stock exclusion is another concern, it’s a broad-brush, ineffective approach to protecting our water resources. This map is meant to be used to determine whether or not a farmer needs to build a fence to exclude stock from waterways.

It is, by the Government’s own admission, inaccurate and B+LNZ would like to see this map scrapped completely and replaced by general stock exclusion rules that are regionally based.

At a minimum, farmers need to be able to appeal if the map is inaccurate or there are circumstances where fencing may not be appropriate such as low stock rates, flooding risks or in many cases, pristine water quality.

These rules are supposed to come into effect for beef cattle in 2025, so farmers need certainty that these issues will be addressed and farmers can just get on with doing what we do best, producing high quality protein and generating export returns for our country.

Rules getting easier for small drinking water suppliers

Drinking water suppliers have a duty to ensure the drinking water they provide is safe, no matter the population size supplied.

] with Helen Rutter ] Aqualinc

If you own or operate a water supply that is being used as drinking water by people outside of your own home (for example a farm property with multiple dwellings supplied by a single source), you are a drinking water supplier and will have responsibilities to meet the Drinking Water Quality Assurance Rules.

These create new responsibilities for huge numbers of small suppliers who have previously not had any formal rules to follow.

The new regulations have caused a great deal of concern for many people who are, understandably, worried about responsibilities and costs. Whilst there are definitely new responsibilities, complying with the new regulations is actually going to be simpler than many people may realise.

The new drinking water regulator, Taumata Arowai, has worked with many water users and suppliers, as well as with industry bodies such as Irrigation New Zealand, to come up with solutions for small suppliers that are practical to implement.

There are four main options for most small suppliers in terms of the route they take to comply with the rules.

The first and simplest solution is for a

small supplier to register as a “very small supplier” under the drinking water quality assurance rules. Most suppliers will fall into this category which is for suppliers who provide water for less than 25 people (or < 50 people for up to 60 days/year).

In this category the primary requirement is that water is tested for microbes every 6 months. No treatment is required and there are no reporting requirements. However, the supplier does need to assess any risks to the supply and prepare a water safety plan.

There are also three “ready-made” options designed to provide straightforward solutions for some small water suppliers, called ‘Acceptable Solutions’.

Provided the identified criteria can be met, suppliers can opt to follow these pathways for any supplies serving less than 500 people. Sampling requirements are more rigorous than for the very small suppliers, often requiring sampling prior to establishing the water source as a supply, 3 monthly water sampling for microbes plus several additional parameters, and annual sampling for a range of parameters.

This is to ensure both water safety and suitability for filtration and water treatment, which are necessary for all acceptable solution options. However, there is no requirement for a water safety plan to be developed.

Acceptable solutions are available for:

• Small mixed-use supplier – where most of the water is for agricultural use, and some of the water is for domestic use (eg agricultural property with a house, workers cottages, milking shed).

• Bore/spring water – where the water supply uses bore or spring water as a drinking water source.

no

• Roof water – where collected roof water is supplied as a drinking water source.

Whilst your inclination may be to shy away from new responsibilities, there is now no option to do so. But the financial and time impacts may not be what you thought they were going to be.

The key is to find out the option that best works for you.

T H E S Y S T E M I N C L U D E S :

T h e l a r g e s t s o i l s a m p l e r e f e r e n c e a r e a o n t h e m a r k e t t o d a y

( 6 l t r s o r 3 7 0 c u b i c i n c h e s ) .

H i g h l y s e n s i t i v e T D T t e c h n o l o g y t h a t i s h i g h l y a c c u r a t e i n a l l s o i l c o n d i t i o n s

M u l t i p l e i n s t a l l a t i o n m e t h o d s t o c a p t u r e t h e r i g h t d a t a

U n i q u e l y a d a p t a b l e t o d i f f e r e n t c r o p p i n g , o r c h a r d , v i n e , a n d

i r r i g a t i o n s y s t e m s t y p e s

T h e l o n g e s t s e r v i n g i n s

Safe: Drinking water suppliers have a duty to ensure the drinking water they provide is safe,

matter the population size supplied.

El Nino signals a mild, dry winter

Winter has officially arrived and the NIWA seasonal climatic outlook is predicting a move from neutral to El Nino conditions.

] by Andrew Curtis

Primary Insight

For Canterbury this means a there’s a higher probability of a mild and dry winter. This is good news as warm, dry conditions generally make for easier winter livestock management.

Farm environmental compliance requirements are still front and centre with many farmers. I frequently find farmer discussions are dominated by the confusion around winter grazing requirements alongside the unknown of freshwater farm plan roll-out and greenhouse gases pricing.

When coupled with existing end of year environmental reporting requirements this can trigger more than the occasional expletive!

Good record keeping is key to minimising the impact these requirements have on the farm business. Data platforms such as Hawkeye, MyBallance, FarmIQ, Trev, Precision Farming, ProductionWise etc. can make data management much easier, as well as add value.

Having this information easily available also makes it cheaper to complete your Over-

seer nutrient budget and update your Farm Environment Plan.

Overseer budgets contain valuable information. A good consultant should be identifying and explaining changes in nitrogen and phosphorus loss to you, alongside greenhouse gas emissions.

Some regions of Canterbury such as Selwyn and Hinds have nitrogen reductions that will need to be demonstrated this season, so taking the time to ‘understand and get things right’ will provide peace of mind that your farm system is viable for the long term.

An advantage (yes there is one!) of this new compliance data is that it can be used to support farm financial decision-making. Overseer nutrient budgets and farm environment plans, used in conjunction with a Far-

max analysis allow operating costs to be scrutinised and the targeting of capital improvements.

Winter is also a good time of year for soil testing if you’ve free-draining soils. Winter testing allows next seasons fertiliser recommendations to be aligned with your actual needs, it also ensures pastures can be ready to maximise early spring growth.

Whether you test the same paddocks for representative trends over time, have a focus on paddocks going into crop, or paddocks which have underproduced, or test every paddock on farm, having good data with which to make fertiliser decisions is key.

The N-Cap regulations, farm environment plans and farm assurance programs all have requirements that you may also need to con-

sider for the upcoming season, like managing within the 190 kg N limit, wintering rules for crops, completing cadmium tests, and visual soil assessments.

Alongside water and irrigation management, Primary Insight are also specialists in nutrient and compliance management.

If you are wanting independent fertiliser recommendations, farm plans and consenting advice, need support with an audit, or want to work through a farm system change from a financial and environmental perspective, we can help.

We’ll also be running a couple of free workshops in June focusing on effluent and nutrient management. Check out the event listings on our website for more information on dates and locations www.primaryinsight.co.nz.

Updating national environmental standards for drinking water

To write this article I had to go back just over a year into our files of submissions made on proposed policy changes.

] by Stephen Mcnally

IrrigationNZ Principal

Technical Advisor

In March 2022 IrrigationNZ provided one of our more assertive submissions, pushing back quite hard on the proposed National Environment Standard for Drinking Water (NESDW). Why did we take a harder line than our usual approach?

Firstly, we know some irrigators and schemes provide drinking water to their staff and families and may fall under the Taumata Arowai regulations and we certainly support the safety of drinking water supplies to our rural communities.

But, in this instance, while the NES-DW already existed, we saw the proposed policy changes as introducing an unnecessarily heavy-handed and complex approach to issues already addressed by other freshwater legislation.

The development of a good workable policy takes an iterative pathway, a lot of goodwill, and good collaboration built on strong relationships. That’s a core role we have based here in Wellington built on the credibility of our knowledge and connections across New Zealand membership.

On a separate policy path running parallel to the NES-DW, I recently received a call from MfE thanking us for our contribution to a key piece of freshwater policy guidance; while not all our submission points were picked up by MfE, our constructive approach was complimented by their team, and I can see many of the edits we suggested appearing in their final document. This is a very rewarding outcome both personally and for our members’ interests.

With the Drinking Water regulations, our position was that there were already ade-

quate regulations and entities in place that were looking at the safety of drinking water for New Zealanders and that any additional MfE process was a duplication of effort or added complexity that did not respond to the level of risks at hand.

We strongly recommended that the Ministry for the Environment commit to the drinking water authority to manage drinking water standards and regulations to avoid scenarios where responsibility could be confused.

While we supported the need for freshwater national settings we see direction has been provided in the NPS for Freshwater under the Te Mana o te Wai priorities. The framework for managing freshwater, therefore, fell to the NES-Freshwater (NES-F) and the Water Services Bill under the authority of Taumata Arowai.

We felt imposing additional changes to managing catchments connected to drinking water points of take under the NES-DW for Drinking Water Sources would build con-

fusion over roles and responsibilities for water suppliers, Taumata Arowai, and Regional Councils.

So where has all this landed? This month we received notification that after a year of relative silence the NES-Drinking Water review has been progressing and substantive redrafting has occurred.

While writing this article I am still working through the amended document in detail but can already see some significant shifts in how land use and potential contamination activities upstream of points of drinking water take (including in groundwater) will be addressed through a somewhat more pragmatic approach.

Again, not all the points we asserted have been adopted but our stance on several issues was acknowledged in the summary of submissions MfE published in June 2022.

The MfE recommendation document we’ve just received shows a clear shift in the redrafting of changes to the NES-DW particular-

ly regarding Source Water Risk Management Areas, or SWRMA. In the report, the consideration of a more appropriate focus on contamination events and controls is discussed.

So, not a complete overhaul but certainly some significant acknowledgment of the necessity for clear and measured policy approaches that take into account implementation time frames and the nature of the risks involved. We expect to see a further iteration of this National Environment Standard later this year, we will be watching closely for the final outcomes.

Good things take time.

‘We expect to see a further iteration of the national environment Standard later this year.

] with Rob Cochrane ] Wool

Procurement Manager,

]

PGG Wrightson Wool

Auctions deliver better than expected results

Wool testing laboratories in New Zealand have been predicting colour measurements on greasy wool for more than 40 years on a commercial basis but for the past two years have reported higher than usual Y minus Z readings for coarse wool grown in almost all regions.

Yellowing of wool fibres while on the sheep’s back is mainly due to a combination of humidity, wool grease, and suint (sweat), and given that the past couple of years have delivered a more even spread of both temperature and rainfall across many provinces, perfect conditions for discolouration have existed.

Wool auctions held during late April and until mid-May delivered better than expected results for most coarse wool types in terms of clearance from the auctioneer’s rostrum, due in part to wool exporters who had significant quantities of their forwardsold wool stocks written off as a result of the Napier floods and subsequent crippling of the Awatoto wool scour, and whom were obviously active with requirements to replace their committed wool shipments, hence most average-to-good style body wools and bulky, good colour oddments were in demand.

Having said that, and whilst prices for good style, and good-to-average style second-shear and full length fleece certainly improved throughout that time frame, poorer style body wools only managed to tread water in regards to price, and many extremely highly discoloured fleece wool types eased further in value.

As earlier eluded, bulky oddments displaying average colour and even for fibre length (ie not contaminated by second pieces and lox) also drew better support than earlier in the year.

Shorter oddments, or those very mixed in length and/or very low yielding, and/or very poor colour, remained difficult to move.

Only limited quantities of Halfbred and Corriedale body wools came to market during April and early May, however a handful of good Halfbreds in the twenty, four to twenty six micron ranges were well sought. Similarly, very few Merino wools were sighted during April and May, however those which were offered out of season drew strong interest from the buying trade.

A good quantity of mainly second-shear Merino fleece types was being catalogued at time of writing for the 25th May South Island

auction, and solid traditional buyer interest was expected.

Across the ditch, Australian wool auctions resulted in a mixed bag with relatively high pass-in rates exceeding twenty percent experienced at a few sales, particularly during late April. Smaller daily offerings of around fourteen thousand bales during the third week of May saw slightly better clearances.

Traditionally, pre-lamb shearing conducted during the colder months has delivered a very good white wool type for coarse wools, however with the degree of yellowness evidenced throughout the past twelve months, pre-lamb shorn fleece this Autumn/Winter period may not be as good as hoped for.

With lambing not too far off in the northern

half of the South Island at time of writing, already visual reports have indicated that a few Autumn-shorn pre-lamb clips do not appear to be as good for colour as anticipated, however once those wools have been received in broker stores, sampled, tested, and catalogued, the trade will get a better understanding of whether or not there is any cause for concern.

It remains evident that off-shore users of New Zealand still require well prepared coarse wool of good colour and even fibre length therefore in-shed preparation remains imperative if growers are to continue to attract demand. I’d like to think there is a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

That’s my view.

‘

In-shed preparation remains imperative if growers are to continue to attract demand.

Deer industry descends on Canterbury

Around 75 people involved in the deer farming sector took part in a farm visit recently to the deer unit at Darryl Butterick’s farm on Staveley Road, Ashburton.

Delegates, deer farmers, marketers and allied interests, were given plenty of ‘Food for Thought’ in the packed and punchy oneday programme of 14 speakers, deftly MC’d by Sarah Perriam-Lampp of Perriam Media.

Plenty of deer farmers, feeling a degree of uncertainty around pricing, were in the audience to hear the sector is focused on plans for the future. They took the opportunity to connect with other farmers from elsewhere in the country for the first time since the last industry conference in Invercargill in 2021.

] with Ali Spencer

Two years after the devastating Canterbury floods, which had severely impacted the farm, they were keen to hear how Butterick had managed recovery for his deer operation.

It also gave an opportunity for North Island deer farmers to learn from their South Island counterpart’s experience and the deer community a chance for an engaged conversation about practical alternatives for fencing off waterways on-farm.

The field day followed on from this year’s Deer Industry Conference in Ashburton last month. Around 180 attended the event, hosted by the NZ Deer Farmers Association’s Canterbury-West Coast branch of the NZ Deer Farmers’ Association (NZDFA) and Deer Industry NZ (DINZ).

A show of hands, revealing a third of the delegates were under 45, was taken as a good sign of confidence in the future.

Highlights included DINZ chair Mandy Bell talking about the reasons behind, and progress made in, the new Deer Industry Strategy, ‘Thriving with Passion’ which is looking out to 2027, and “setting up for the future”.

Restructuring of the industry-good body Deer Industry NZ is underway to make it ‘Fit for Purpose’, DINZ CEO Innes Moffat outlined. He warned of “disruptions to some of the services we provide over the next few months as we bed in new faces and new ways of working.”

Marketers are working on new products for deer velvet in Korea and China, including new nutraceutical products in Korea. Some exciting new venison products for the US and China were shown by the five venison compa-

nies – Alliance, Duncan NZ, First Light, Mountain River Venison and Silver Fern Farms. All are working collaboratively to spread sales across three regions, the US, China and Europe.

Guest speaker Mark Adams, chair of the South Canterbury Rural Trust, talked about the importance of rural leadership and supporting those elected leaders.

Keynote speaker was the inspirational Sir Ian Taylor founder of Animation Research Ltd, whose message to “Bugger the boxing, pour the concrete anyway,” was well received by his practical audience and ended conference business on a high note.

The buzz continued into the industry’s annual awards dinner, sponsored by Silver Fern Farms. This celebrated the sector’s top people with Hotel Ashburton’s head chef Manali Patankar and DINZ executive chef Graham Brown working their magic on a delicious three-course meal featuring New Zealand venison.

Recovery: Canterbury Rural Support Trust’s Peter Swann addresses the crowd during a visit to Darryl Butterick’s deer farm near Ashburton which was badly affected by the devastating Canterbury floods of two years ago. Listening in are Darryl Butterick (centre) and nZDFA Canterbury-West Coast chair Lorna Humm.

Among the award winners were Otago deer farmers Richard and Sarah Burdon, who won the premier 2023 Supreme Elworthy Environmental Award, co-sponsored by DINZ and the Ministry for Primary Industries.

South Canterbury deer farming couple Lyal Cullen and Marion Neill won the NZ Landcare Trust award for “excellence in sustainable deer farming through actions on the ground”; while North Canterbury deer farmer Scott Hassall won the Duncan NZ Ltd Award “for vision and innovation whilst mastering a demanding environment”.

The 2023 Deer Industry Award went to Hawke’s Bay deer farmer and vet Richard Hilson. This year’s NZDFA Matuschka Award for “unsung contributor” went to Robbie Bruce of the NZDFA’s Taihape-Ruapehu branch, while the MSD/Allflex Photo Award was won by Gill McLean, with a beautiful picture of a curious fawn.

Well done to the NZDFA Canterbury-West Coast branch for a great conference.

Smartrace proves to be a great option

Giving ewes a slow-release dose of important trace elements makes sense to Jeremy Pitts.

So, he switched to dosing ewes with a Smartrace capsule of selenium, cobalt and iodine.

“I’ll definitely do it again this season.”

“We’ve had the best ewe survival rate over winter and lambing for several years.”

The extensive nature of Jeremy and Hayley Pitt’s 5500-hectare high country property, Mt Gladstone Station, means limited trips through the yards for ewes.

“I really like that we can give the ewes what they need with two capsule doses – prior to tupping and then at shearing in late pregnancy,” said Jeremy.

The property runs mediummicron Merino ewes, hoggets and wethers. Smartrace really fits the animal health plan for the ewes, and has potential for wether flocks who require long term supplementation.

The capsule is two pills of trace elements, held together with a biodegradable paper. The paper dissolves and the pills rub together.

As they scratch together the elements are released.

“I like the fact that there is no plastic going into the sheep.”

The Awatere property in Marlborough has a proven issue with low selenium soils. Cattle showed up with selenium

deficiency 15 years ago and resolving it made a huge difference to fertility. Ewes have always had selenium, iodine and cobalt supplementation, but Jeremy was

keen to try a product that gave a longer-acting dose.

“Selenised drenches are more short-term and we don’t drench often enough.”

“I decided against the injection as it’s another needle for ewes, when they are already getting two or three vaccinations.”

Jeremy read about Smartrace in the Vet Marlborough newsletter and grabbed a sample pack of capsules from the vets when in town. The capsules were given to ewes in

SMARTRACE ADULT SHEEP

Smartrace Adult Sheep is available in the following formulation (based on 48g bolus on sheep weighing over 40kg):

• Selenium (Sodium Selenate)

66mg

• Iodine (Calcium Iodate)

762mg

• Cobalt (Cobalt Carbonate)

146mg

Available from vetpak.co.nz

tucker still had the capsule inside after four months.

“It was still breaking down.”

“It was really interesting to see.” Like many treatments, proving the benefits of a supplement is hard to do, Jeremy said.

“But I feel that they are going better.”

“The lambing percentage in the ewes was the same but the ewe survival rate was much improved.”

“We only lost three ewes from ram joining in June to September.”

“Our wool clip was also up but that could also be the season too.”

Iodine regulates ewe body temperature and helps foetal development.

the race using an adapted capsule gun, and Jeremy estimates only 12 or so capsules were immediately coughed up out of 3200 ewes. Any ewes seen doing this in the race were given another.

Smartrace has released a new applicator that will make the dose process even faster.

Research by Agrimin (the manufacturer) shows the capsules deliver all three ingredients for up to at least four months, but potentially beyond. Jeremy noticed that a ram killed for dog

Jeremy said iodine is really important pre-lamb so this is probably the key time to give a capsule, if farmers just wanted to give one. His ewes typically graze high country oversown-top dressed pastures, which are of moderate quality for much of the year.

Giving long-acting selenium means the Pitts have to make sure they give only unselenised drench to the ewes.

“It takes a bit of planning to make sure staff know not to drench ewes with selenised drench, but we write it all on a whiteboard in the shed.”

Jeremy’s advice to other farmers is to give Smartrace a go, as it’s a great option.

Jeremy Pitts on his high country property. Photo: Hayley Pitts

“We’ve had the best ewe survival rate over winter and lambing for several years.”

Subaru’s all-new Crosstrek SUV

Article supplied by Subaru NZ

The all-new Crosstrek features a multitude of the latest infotainment technologies and intuitive safety systems, creating an enjoyable ride for all occupants no matter the destination.

The Subaru Crosstrek presents a compact body with a rugged and sporty design with a much bolder exterior than its predecessor. The dynamic styling, which conveys reliability as a crossover SUV, also retains the vehicle’s fun and versatile personality.

Subaru will offer three Crosstrek models for New Zealand customers, including two hybrid variants.

The Subaru Crosstrek Premium petrol variant will be powered by a sporty yet refined

direct injection 2.0-litre Boxer engine and a Lineartronic® transmission with 8-speed paddle shift manual mode.

The two Crosstrek Hybrid variants include a premium specification model and feature a robust Subaru e-Boxer lineartronic transmission with 7-speed manual mode.

“Eleven years ago Subaru put the best things they have ever done into pioneering the small SUV category, when we introduced the Subaru XV,” Subaru of New Zealand’s Managing Director, Wallis Dumper said

“Now we are creating history again – in an exciting redefinition of the category we created – with the launch of the all-new from the ground up Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive Subaru Crosstrek.

“It might be a small SUV but our Crosstrek still has mighty SUV creds. It features 220mm of ground clearance which is what separates it from most of its ‘pretender’ SUV competitors. Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive system then propels the Crosstrek into a different capability realm compared to its ‘townie’ rivals.”

The Crosstrek is the first Subaru model to debut the Digital Multi-View Monitor, which is essentially a bird’s eye view camera. Images from four separate cameras are used to create a 360-degree, 3D top-down view, improving visibility on all sides of the vehicle.

These images are displayed using the new-and-improved centre information display, which offers larger and more detailed imag-

es than previous multi-function displays for greater ease of use and viewability.

Every Subaru Crosstrek variant will feature smart key and push-start ignition, LED headlights (dusk-sensing), roof rails, power-folding door mirrors and 11.6 inch infotainment touch screen.

It also contains the latest generation EyeSight clever crash avoidance technology. It features an improved stereo camera and the addition of a new Wide-Angle Monocular Camera.

This newly adopted mono camera enables recognition of motorcycles and pedestrians at an even wider angle when traveling at low speeds. It can also initiate pre-collision braking in a greater range of situations.

Subaru’s XV has evolved, with the compact SUV reimagined and rechristened as the all-new, next-generation symmetrical all-wheel drive (AWD) Subaru Crosstrek.

New: Subaru will offer three Crosstrek models for new Zealand customers, including two hybrid variants.

What ever happened to Canterbury lamb?

I have just had one of those lightbulb moments thanks to a British comedy.

with Rob Cope-Williams

I watch Dad’s Army every night because I cannot stand the modern so-called current affairs programmes because they are either a group of ego type people covered in selfinflicted love bites, or are as plastic as airline cutlery.

I am sure you know the series, a wonderful mix of characters including Jones the butcher.

A recent episode had visits to his butchery. And there in the background were signs advertising Canterbury lamb.

Now it is set during the Second World War, and there for all to see was the promotion of our fabulous meat.

All those merchant ships risking U boats and goodness know what to get our lamb to those in the UK.

Fabulous, I thought, and then I wondered just what has happened to our Canterbury lamb branding.

I fly flags because I am probably slightly eccentric, and I note that the Christchurch flag there in full view is the Canterbury lamb.

It is, as you know, joined by the first four ships, and the river Avon, plus of course, the Church of England acknowledgement.

Simply put, sheep were certainly part of the development of our region.

OK, I as a child did think that the Archbishop of Canterbury lived here in Christchurch, but perception is a lovely thing.

It has been a long time since we exported frozen meat to Britain, and that has to be a good thing, but what about branding, and keeping branding alive.

Do you vacuum your carpets, or do you “Lux” them? Polish your shoes, or nugget them?

OK, I am living in the past, but seriously do the Brits know the name Silver Fern Farms, or do they still recognise Canterbury lamb?

I may suggest that I am wrong because the modern householder in the Northern hemisphere couldn’t give a damn about what came before them, but I still think that brand recognition is important.

Coke, McDonalds and car brands all sell on reputation. Canterbury lamb has decades of brand recognition, so let’s use it.

Opposition to ‘Ute Tax’ increases

Federated Farmers are opposed to increases to the so-called ‘Ute Tax’ which were announced last month.

Article supplied by ] Federated Farmers

According to the Feds changes to the Government’s Clean Car Discounts structure will increase the maximum fee charged on the registration of a new ute to $6,900 (up from $5,175 previously), and the registration of a used ute to $3,450 (up from $2,875).

Federated Farmers transport spokesperson Mark Hooper said this is just another cost on a productive sector already under huge pressure with rapidly increasing costs and slipping commodity prices.

“We’ve opposed the Ute Tax from day one because farmers don’t have viable or reliable alternatives to get the job done on their farms, and now the Government is increasing it,” Hooper said.

“Farmers aren’t driving utes as some sort

of status symbol. We have a genuine need for reliable four-wheel drive vehicles to tow equipment and get around our farms safely.

“Farmers shouldn’t be taxed on their work vehicles to subsidise wealthy Tesla owners in Remuera and Karori. That’s just wrong.”

Hooper said the announcement is a bitter pill to swallow for farmers who are already being hammered with all sorts of cost increases.

“Instead of heaping new costs on to a productive sector, the Government should be focusing on sorting out the state of our pothole-riddled rural roads.

“If they don’t get on to that soon, we might need a ute to go anywhere.”

New Zealand’s first electric ute, the LDV eT60 which qualifies for the government’s clean car rebate of $8,625, was unveiled last year.

Part of our history: The Christchurch flag with Canterbury lamb in full view.

Taxed up: Federated Farmers is urging the Government to fix the country’s roads before making increases to the ‘Ute Tax’.

THE WAIT IS OVER

THE RED REVOLUTION HAS STARTED BOOK AN 8S DEMO TODAY