Taihape deer farmer, and recently elected chairman of the New Zealand Deer Farmers Association, Mark McCoard, discusses his belief that the time is right for another surge in farmed deer numbers.
10 Better your best
The team at Melior is confident their nuts have the goods when it comes to delivering fast growing, robust venison animals.
11 Next wave of progress found in genetic gain
Hawke’s Bay deer farmer Richard Hilson outlines why he believes the use of Deer Select will take genetic gains to the next level for deer.
12 Poised for a new chapter
Are we on the cusp of a new chapter in the pioneering history of deer? Newly appointed DINZ CEO Rhys Griffiths thinks so.
14 Prove it with planning
Why a good farm plan can help provide proof of best practice for our markets – and it’s easier than you think!
16 I remember when
From culling to live recovery, Dick Deaker reflects on a wild time in the establishment of the deer industry.
Barbecue venison leg fillet.
ON THE COVER
Carried on the Wind by Ameila Guild captures the intensity and majestic beauty of one of our mighty red stags.
Annual 2yr sire stag sale Wednesday 13 December 1:30pm at 37 Pukenaua Rd, Taihape
Annual 2yr sire stag sale: Wednesday 11 December 1.30pm at 37 Pukenaua Rd, Taihape.
Completed during the roar, all Amelia could hear while painting was the macho, testosterone filled challenges echoing around the hills.
• 35 stags with 12mth BVs +29 to +35.7kg.
Annual 2yr sire stag sale Wednesday 13 December
• 35 stags with 12mth BVs + 38 to +30kg
• Highest average 12mth BV stag auction in NZ since 2011.
• Highest average 12mth BV stag auction in NZ since 2011
1:30pm at 37 Pukenaua Rd, Taihape
For more from Amelia visit ameilaguild.com
• 35 stags with 12mth BVs +29 to +35.7kg.
• Maternal reds selected on temperament and fully guaranteed
• Maternal reds selected on temperament and fully guaranteed.
• Auction on Bidr and freight paid
• Auction on Bidr and freight paid.
• Highest average 12mth BV stag auction in NZ since 2011.
• Auction on Bidr and freight paid
For further information contact Paul Hughes: 027 446 6309 • www.deerstud.nz
For further information contact Paul Hughes: 027 446 6309 • www.deerstud.nz
• Maternal reds selected on temperament and fully guaranteed.
For further information contact Paul Hughes: 027 446 6309 • www.deerstud.nz
Flip me over to read Country-Wide Summer
A return TO DEER
Getting deer back inside the many deer-fenced blocks on the country’s sheep-beef farms is a major priority for Taihape deer farmer Mark McCoard. Tony Leggett asks the recently elected chairman of the New Zealand Deer Farmers Association how it will happen.
Photos BRAD HANSON
HUNDREDS OF DEER BLOCKS across the country are stocked with sheep and cattle, and Mark McCoard wants to change that. He feels the time is right for another surge in farmed deer numbers as key markets for venison reset to pre-Covid levels and confidence returns to the sector right along the value chain from farms to consumers.
He’s hoping to connect members of the New Zealand Deer Farmers Association (NZDFA) with sheepbeef farmers who are interested in reconsidering deer again so they can provide support and information to help make the switch.
Farmed deer numbers have dropped by nearly 60% since the heydays of the early 2000s when venison schedules
were significantly higher than for lamb and beef, and velvet prices peaked at up to $300/kg for top grades, almost three times the current level.
Numbers behind wire peaked at more than 1.75 million head, before a steady decline each year to less than 750,000 head at the last Statistics NZ census in 2023. As farmed deer numbers dropped, there was also a big shift from venison to the more specialist option of velvet production.
McCoard says his focus is on encouraging sheep-beef farmers back to venison farming, either breedingfinishing or breeding for the sale of weaners, because it will be quicker, easier and less expensive to make the transition than for velvet production.
“You might need to tidy up the old deer shed but you don’t need a big yard area and it should be a lower-cost option and easier to achieve than going for velvet. Velvet operations require much more specialist infrastructure to meet the new export requirements.”
Two other game-changing events – a surge in sheep performance and the global Covid pandemic – also contributed hugely to the shift out of farming deer. “Big improvements in sheep genetics were starting to show up in the early 2000s. Lambing percentages typically went from 110% to 140% and even the best deer herds struggled to keep pace with that sort of gain.
“At the same time, the premium for venison over lamb at the farm gate
“The beauty of having more area in deer fence is we don’t necessarily have to run deer behind it. But it gives us the option to run the deer through it if we want to.”
MARK MCCOARD, TAIHAPE DEER FARMER
LEFT Velvet production averaged 6.5kg/head for Mark and Louise McCoard’s 200 stags in 2023.
ABOVE Taihape deer farmer Mark McCoard runs a low-cost operation, avoiding any hard feeding of his velvet stags by using autumn-saved pasture to feed his deer over the winter months.
“That’s where I think deer farming offers a lot. They are not immune to drench resistance, but integrating them into an existing sheep and beef operation gives farmers another species to break the resistance process and reduce worm burdens.”
MARK MCCOARD, TAIHAPE DEER FARMER
closed up and a lot of farmers just decided they should simplify their farming business and concentrate on sheep and beef. So, the deer went.”
When the pandemic decimated the food service sector, venison prices were impacted more than lamb and beef, and went into freefall.
McCoard says markets for venison have now recovered thanks to the superb efforts of all the country’s exporters and Deer Industry New Zealand staff, who have been working on rebuilding demand and developing new markets.
“It’s (venison price) still not high enough yet because just like every other sector, onfarm costs have gone up by 40% in the past three years. But there are promising industry initiatives underway that are looking to increase the prices paid to deer farmers.”
When lamb and mutton prices surged higher in China soon after the pandemic lockdowns ended, even more deer farmers left the industry.
Those deer farmers with top performing herds were saying they were still ahead, McCoard says, but a lot of average or below average operations fell victim to the lure of simplifying operations. “You don’t get the natural increase percentages with deer that you do in sheep, and although calving rates are up around 90% now, ewes are lambing up around 140% and higher now and that has had a big impact.”
McCoard says the premium for venison over lamb at the farm gate has helped to balance out the lower reproductive performance of deer.
LOW-COST FOCUS FOR DEER OPERATION
Keeping costs low is a feature of Mark and Louise McCoard’s deer and sheepbeef operation on 245 hectares in the Kawhatau Valley, 23km south-east of Taihape, Rangitikei. Half the property is flat-to-rolling and half is medium-tosteep. It lies between 350 metres and 600m above sea level and features a mixture of heavy clay alluvial soils and ash. There are 40 paddocks.
It’s a challenging environment to farm in with 1000-1200mm annual rainfall, regular summer droughts and wet winters, often with snowfalls.
They run three species of livestock – a mob of 200 velvet stags on 50ha of deer-fenced area, 1000 mixed age ewes all mated to terminal sires, 300 ewe hogget replacements and up to 100 heifers bought in for finishing each year.
Replacement stags for the velvet herd are bought in as two-year-olds from a nearby breeder who has been supplying them to the McCoards for many years from his velvet-focused breeding herd.
In 2023, the herd averaged 6.5kg/head of velvet, including regrowth, boosted by not having any yearling stags.
After six to seven seasons on the hill country at the McCoards, they are sold in store condition to another velvet producer who farms on much easier country and gets another two to four years of velvet production from them.
His biggest challenge is feeding the stags if spring is late arriving, which can have a big impact on weight of velvet produced. “Our system is different to most other velvet producing herds because we try to avoid any hard feeding and use autumn-saved pasture to feed the deer after the roar when their feed demand really soars,” he says.
“But once I’ve cut their regrowth, they can be tightened up and that opens up space in the deer paddocks for lamb finishing.
“The majority of our lambs are gone by March, so by late February I start closing up paddocks to save for the deer
over the winter months. That autumnsaved pasture means I can usually avoid any feeding of the deer over the winter, which keeps my costs down and reduces the damage to paddocks and tracks as well. Our easier country here is quite heavy and the hills are fairly steep for feeding out baleage or grain too, so this approach works well for my farm.”
No hard feeding and no need for machinery to do it helps keep costs to a minimum for the total farm business.
“We could probably double the number of velvet stags if we were prepared to hard feed during the seasonal pinch points, but I’m focused on what the property is best suited to and the net return to the farm business so that’s why we stick with no extra feeding and using autumn-saved pasture instead.”
He has calculated the net return from his velvet mob is about $150/ stock unit, about twice that achieved from his high-performance ewe flock. When profits allow it, the McCoards will expand the area fenced for deer to provide the option of tweaking numbers to suit. Recent damage from storms will curtail his immediate expansion plans. “The beauty of having more area in deer fence is we don’t necessarily have to run deer behind it. But it gives us the option to run the deer through it if we want to.” McCoard says even though the past
two summers have been wetter than normal, it’s not uncommon for the Taihape region, particularly the eastern side where they farm, to become dry or drought declared by mid-summer, making the deer unit a valuable additional finishing block for his lambs.
“We have planted forage crops in the past, and may return to that in the future, but I really treat the deer block as a crop for lambs. The stags are great at grooming up the clover ready for the lambs to come through and finishing lambs among hinds can provide the same benefit in favourable growing seasons,” he says.
Their 1000 ewes are all mated to terminal sire Suftex rams.
Replacements are bought in each year, initially as ewe hoggets but, in the future, McCoard says he will consider buying in two-tooths.
He’s very conscious of the threat of drench resistance and follows a strict quarantine drench policy when the stock arrives on the farm. They are drenched with one of the new active ingredient products, and not let out of their yard area until the following day to lessen the risk of them dropping resistant worms on to pasture. “That’s where I think deer farming offers a lot. They are not immune to drench resistance, but integrating them into an existing sheep and beef operation gives farmers another species to break the resistance process and reduce worm burdens.”
Maximising the size of his weaning draft is a big priority to reduce feed demand and also lessen the risk of resistance emerging in vulnerable young lambs. Everything is shorn pre-Christmas.
Their heifer finishing operation is based on buying them in as yearlings or more likely at rising 18-months in the autumn and slaughtering them 1215 months later. “They are effectively my cows so they are put to work at times to get feed under control and create finishing feed for lambs.”
ABOVE About 100 heifers are bought in as yearlings or at 18 months of age, and finished 12-15 months later.
ABOVE Integrating different species of livestock inside the deer unit helps to minimise the risk of drench resistance.
Challenges with getting competent staff to handle deer has not been a major influence on farmers exiting deer but McCoard says the successful Next Generation programme run by the NZDFA is vital to encourage young famers into the sector.
He wants to encourage more livestock agents, financiers and advisors to experience deer farming so they build their understanding of the sector. He is also promoting the benefits deer farming brings in the diversification of income and as an integration species to help stem the rise of drench resistance, particularly in sheep flocks and in lamb finishing systems. Deer offer a good
option for farmers looking to integrate different species into their livestock systems as a major tool to overcome drench resistance. “Deer are not immune to drench resistance, it’s there, but integrating the species works well.
“At home for example, I can usually shut half my deer block down and tighten up my velvet stags after velvet comes off, and that opens up the opportunity to finish lambs in there over the summer. It’s like having a crop and once the lambs are gone, I shut it up and save autumn feed, which is used for velvet stags through the winter,” he says. Breeding hinds can also be used in other ways to help reduce the larval challenge
“I think insulating yourself from drench resistance and diversifying income streams is really quite valuable.”
MARK MCCOARD, TAIHAPE DEER FARMER
for grazing lambs. “I think insulating yourself from drench resistance and diversifying income streams is really quite valuable.”
McCoard says it is almost impossible to quantify the deer-fenced area on sheep-beef farms that is no longer running deer.
Some has probably been planted in pine trees or lost to urban sprawl. Other areas may have been lost in the recent manuka honey boom.
He also expects that some provinces of the country will return to more deer farming than others. Southland and South Canterbury have growing conditions and a diverse terrain that
WILKINS FARMING CO – 45 YEARS IN DEER FARMING
Wilkins Farming Co continue to lead as early adopters of technology during our long and proud 45 years of deer farming. Innovation is in our DNA, as demonstrated by our commitment to fully record our herd for over 30 years! Being early adopters of key tools such as EMA ultrasound scanning, DNA EID, CT scanning and utilising Deer Select eBVs (since their inception), has allowed us to stay ahead of the pack consistently delivering premium red deer genetics with a priority venison focus.
For the last 15 years we have held annual on farm public auction stud sales. One of our main breeding lines is high growth “European” red deer that feature significant influence from Eastern genetics that we hand select for growth rate, meat yield, body conformation, fertility and temperament. This winning formula continues to deliver astonishing results like Jameson – 15 month weight of 219 kgs and EMA of 48cm2.
We also invest heavily in breeding our other main line of “Maternal” red deer with an English/German base, specifically targeting replacement hinds for venison production. Key traits such as hardiness, moderate body size, meat performance, calving date, body type and temperament are important, while not ignoring velvet. An example is Falco - 188 kgs at 15 months, EMA of 41cm2 and an impressive 9 kgs of velvet cut at 3 years of age. His performance pedigree features our matriarch dam 350 red and extraordinary sire Rock Me.
www.wilkinsfarming.co.nz
suit farming deer better than other provinces, but he would like to see other regions rebuild their numbers. “Word of mouth is likely to have a big influence on any decision a farmer makes to return to deer farming. We’ve got an active and well-connected network of 16 branches and members keen to talk anytime.”
Inquiry is building, McCoard says. Much of the early interest is centred on the costs involved, where they might source the breeding hinds and sire genetics, and the likely returns they can expect.
A farm consultant well versed in deer farming systems has been approached to model various venisonfocused farm systems to provide extra detail. “Rather than just compare deer breeding and venison production against a sheep and cattle operation, we’re keen to see how the model can incorporate the effects of an integrated multi-species system,” he says. “We need to have up to date information to encourage farmers to consider deer again. Time is of the essence to deliver the benchmarking data and modelling
in the year ahead to capture the increased interest.”
Given last year’s nosedive in lamb and mutton prices, McCoard says the returns from deer farming should stack up nicely, especially when its other benefits such as lower labour and the alternative drench resistance solution are included.
Deer farmers have always been good at helping each other, something McCoard says stems from the
pioneering nature of deer farming in NZ, and the support offered by the NZDFA branch network is a massive bonus.
“The financials will get people interested and most will be selling stock to buy deer, so the capital outlay should be okay.
“I’m saying they don’t have to go the whole hog; they can transition back to deer because the beauty of getting deer fence up is you can run whatever you like behind it,” he says.
LACK OF LONG-TERM SECTOR STRATEGY A BIG CONCERN
Deer farming is driven by several factors and is not immune to the same issues impacting the entire agriculture sector.
“So much of what is happening in farming at present is driven by government legislation. Forestry and carbon farming is grabbing our breeding and some finishing country, and urban sprawl is grabbing some or our best finishing country too,” farmer
Mark McCoard says.
In his role as the chairman of the NZ Deer Farmers Association, he is concerned about the longerterm impacts on the country and sees no agreed strategy on how the country will grow enough food and
pay its bills, and deal with the damage being done to rural communities, if the land continues to be lost from farming livestock.
McCoard says he is frustrated by the calls for greater leadership and collaboration across the sector when some groups put their own needs ahead of the overall agreed position on critical policy settings.
“It’s a bit like saying, yes, we will collaborate, but then adding, as long as it benefits my patch the most. The risk is that we lose trust in the process and each other.”
He feels the focus by governments on single metrics for agricultural
greenhouse gas emissions and freshwater quality settings lacks balance and commonsense.
“I think we just need to get some balance for what is right for New Zealand first. Everyone is promising methane mitigation tools will be here soon, but in the meantime we’ve got more and more trees being planted, and that could be changed by the government resetting its (Paris Accord) targets.”
He accepts the softening of the focus on emissions by the Coalition Government will give farmers more breathing space, but meantime, more land is being lost from livestock farming.
Better your best
It’s what’s in their nuts that counts. And the team at Melior is confident their nuts have the goods when it comes to delivering fast growing, robust venison animals.
HIGH SELECTION PRESSURE
IN a commercial environment, with a base of 2500 breeding hinds, coupled with extensive use of breeding values means stags from Melior are backed by both science and proven ability to stack up in the paddock.
Melior is located at Fairlie, in the Mackenzie District, with two properties, Stanton Station at Kimbell and the Kowhais, between Geraldine and Fairlie, on the south bank of the Opuha River heading up into the hills.
Melior managing director, Tom Macfarlane and wife Samantha, know genetics are a long play, which is why the stud is forward facing, always trying to understand what’s next, and how it can incorporate traits that will flow through to add value for its commercial farmers. “That’s why we use AI and embryo transfer, to accelerate genetic gain and find those curve benders.”
As a commercial farmer himself, Tom has always loved farm systems and understanding how genetics and feeding
can come together to take results to the next level. Having used Melior genetics on his own farm, when the opportunity came up to purchase the stud in 2017, he and Samantha jumped at it. Since then, they have grown the stud, and put their own stamp on it.
The emphasis at Melior is on high performing animals that have been tested and proven under tough environmental conditions. “Performance is key. No performance, no profitability,” Tom says. “I’ve always been a farmer by nature and training and I’m very systems focused. I enjoy getting to know our farmers, understanding their systems and what makes them tick, and how we can add value with our genetics.”
With 2500 hinds there is no room for average here, high selection pressure means only the cream of the crop are kept, and they have complete confidence in backing everything they sell. A heavy focus on the use of breeding values ensures the ability to select superior genetics, taking out the influence of environment and feeding. “It’s what’s in their nuts that counts and we know they will perform. We have the confidence to put the animal under pressure and know it can handle the commercial environment.”
Breeding values selected for include the all-important growth, maternal traits, health traits (including parasite resistance and resilience) and a focus on meat and carcase traits with the use of ultrasound scanning on the eye muscle
area. Next cab off the rank is extracting extra value from the carcase. They’re undertaking carcase assessment, looking at yield and exploring how that added value can be passed back to clients through genetics.
“I’ve always had a passion for genetics. It’s the constant improvement and seeing the progress in the paddock and bank account – you can’t do that just with feeding. It’s about how you incorporate those two factors, feeding and genetics. And I like working with deer, it’s enjoyable,” Tom says.
The Macfarlanes operate a diversified operation with 20,000 stock units across deer, sheep and beef. They understand the need for deer to integrate with other stock classes, and appreciate the varied income and benefits deer provide with parasite and pasture management, too.
Visit melior.nz
Next wave of progress found in genetic gain
Unruly and wild screeds of data in spreadsheets to maintain and make sense of breeding decisions is the reason Hawke’s Bay deer farmer Richard Hilson now swears by Deer Select.
Words SARAH PERRIAM-LAMPP
THE ENGINE ROOM OF Richard and Karen Hilson’s Takapau deer operation for the past three years has been the Deer Select database, which has helped them move beyond spreadsheets and identify opportunities for their breeding programme.
After 25 years of collecting data on velvet, parentage, weaning and yearling weights, they were able to import it all into Deer Select rather than starting from scratch, which has been the foundation of their intergenerational insights.
Deer Select is a database based on pedigree records and performance data
Richard is surprised how many options they have with the Deer Select data that assist them to cull the correct yearling hinds, spikers or hinds.
He’s found that he’s focusing less on the top or bottom end but rather what opportunities lie in the middle.
“We have gone from having a good idea of the better performing hinds but not knowing much about the middle in the bell curve, which was about 67%. We can now work out who is better than who in this category. Our culling and replacement selection decisions are also now about more than just the sire too,” he explains.
“The opportunity for growth rates will come if more deer stud breeders use Deer Select. Look at the dairy industry and the huge commercial decisions they make by selecting their annual genetics based on breeding values.”
RICHARD HILSON, TAKAPAU DEER FARMER
collected from performance-recorded animals in participating stud deer herds. Deer Select uses the SIL (Sheep Improvement Limited) genetic engine to calculate how much of the performance variation between individual animals is genetic. It then ranks these animals in order of their genetic merit for particular traits. The Hilsons have around half of their 650 hinds on Deer Select from their Tru-Test weigh scale files TSI data.
Richard sees the opportunities for commercial deer farmers to achieve genetic gain by using breeding values (BVs) as the next big shift in potential of the deer industry.
A BV is an estimate of the genetic merit of a deer relative to the average of all deer from 1995. The pedigree and performance of the animal itself, its relatives and its progeny are all taken into account. When farmers buy stags
from a breeder who is making genetic gain every year, they will make the same rate of gain as them.
“The opportunity for growth rates will come if more deer stud breeders use Deer Select. Look at the dairy industry and the huge commercial decisions they make by selecting their annual genetics based on breeding values,” Richard stresses.
He believes that culling the non-performers off the bottom is the low-hanging fruit and in the long-term it will deliver an improvement in the rest of the national herd. “With the pressure to produce more velvet from less animals and commit more hinds to venison we need to look at performance data more closely,” Richard encourages. “Stockmanship will not be lost, as you still buy on eye what you like the look of, but science will take us to the next level.”
ABOVE Hawke’s Bay deer farmer Richard Hilson encourages stag breeders to use Deer Select more for the benefit of the industry. Photo Holly Ormond
Poised for a
new chapter
Newly appointed Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) chief executive Rhys Griffiths (pictured) knows the industry has weathered some recent storms, but he believes it is poised to write the next chapter in the pioneering history of deer.
Words REBECCA GREAVES
DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM THE pioneering forebears of the deer industry, Rhys Griffiths is looking ahead to some exciting new projects and diversification in markets, as well as growing deer numbers. Despite recent challenges – Covid and its impact on the restaurant trade hit the industry particularly hard – he’s quick to point out that New Zealand remains the leading deer industry in the world.
“We’ve had our trials and tribulations … we’ve had retrenchment, but this could be phase two in the pioneering space. I think of the forefathers of our industry and what they did, and look at it with a lens of what might the next story be?”
Griffiths is no stranger to DINZ. He’s been in the deer industry for 16 years, coming up through the velvet ranks and then focusing on markets. He was interim CEO for a short while and says it’s an honour to be confirmed as the
new leader of DINZ. “I’m stoked that the board has put their faith in me. We have an ambitious plan to grow the deer industry, and there are some cool projects happening,” he says with his trademark enthusiasm.
NORTH AMERICAN RETAIL ACCELERATOR PROJECT
If Covid taught the industry anything, it was the need to have a more diverse market in the venison space, to not rely so heavily on the high-end restaurant trade. The move into the niche retail space in North America presents the perfect foil. Funding for the North American Retail Accelerator (NARA) project has been approved for Government funding through the Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures programme and is supported by all five New Zealand venison processing companies.
LEFT Stags ready for velveting – the velvet industry has grown to be worth $120 million to New Zealand
The programme, which kicked off on July 1, commits just shy of $5 million over three years, roughly split a third from processing companies, a third from industry and a third from Government.
“We had another programme through the Primary Growth Partnership, Passion2Profit, which focused on on-farm productivity and market-led initiatives. In its later stages Covid hit, and venison was overly reliant on the food service market. Overnight, the restaurants shut down, and that hit us hard, perhaps more than other proteins,” Griffiths explains. Sometimes adversity leads to innovation, he says, and venison marketers were able to pivot. Looking to the retail space in the US they saw proof of concept and strong indicators it was a good pathway to follow. Griffiths says there are two benefits. Firstly, it offers another channel diversification in market, and secondly, it presents an opportunity for a closer connection between the American consumer and the producer. “It’s great that the New Zealand provenance story is out there.”
The NARA programme aims to have $10.5m of venison going into retail annually. Griffiths says they hope to easily achieve that and have ambitions to upscale that value.
Other targets are to increase the amount of high value leg cuts from 50 tonnes up to 300t a year, to increase the amount of venison overall from 450t to 1300t/yr, to increase the number of states and provinces and retail outlets stocking New Zealand farmed venison, and to create stability for the venison market by reducing volumes sold into price sensitive commodity markets.
North America was identified as there is already a following for venison, and many of the companies had been working in the US for some time. “We had a history with Cervena, we know there is a wealthy highpaying market and there is familiarity with venison, so it ticked all the boxes.”
States identified to target for future growth include California, the New York Tri-State area and Florida.
VELVET ACCESS TO CHINA
Velvet access into China, an important market for New Zealand, has hit a road bump in recent times, but Griffiths hopes the issue can be resolved in time for this season’s velvet.
He describes it as a fluid situation and explains that in November last year, DINZ was contacted by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to inform them of the problem. “The Chinese Government had been in touch to say there was a misalignment with the way New Zealand frozen velvet was being exported to China.”
The frozen velvet is required to have a moisture content of 13% or less, so it needed to be dried rather than frozen.
Fortunately, MPI and the Chinese Government quickly agreed to allow the season, which was underway, to continue, and the focus immediately turned to finding a solution ahead of the 24/25 season. “These things can take a long time to fix, and it quickly became apparent there was a real willingness from both sides to remedy it.”
Griffiths says a new trade protocol has been agreed upon. All products exported from New Zealand need an MPI-issued health certificate, which is what they are waiting for to be approved. China is our number one exporting market for velvet, although not our largest consumer – that honour belongs to South Korea. The market has grown significantly in the last 10 years, from $30m to $120m. “The health food side in South Korea has grown really quickly,” he explains.
While two thirds of New Zealand velvet is exported to China and about one third to South Korea, roughly half of what we export to China is then processed and exported to South Korea as an ingredient product.
This means about two thirds of New Zealand velvet is consumed in South Korea.
“It’s vitally important to get this ticked off. MPI has kept us in touch every step of the way. I like to think we will look back and see this as a perfect example of a test case between government, industry and an overseas market. That’s my hope, that it will be something to be proud of. We are on the home stretch.”
Looking ahead, Griffiths sees great opportunity for velvet as an ingredient in contemporary health products in South Korea, China and further afield.
“It will help create more value we can capture, and more demand that lifts our profile, improving profitability and creating more sustainable demand for a product origin of New Zealand.”
ABOVE Deer Industry New Zealand’s Europe-based chef, Shannon Campbell, preparing samples at the National Restaurant Association trade show in Chicago earlier this year.
Prove it with planning
Farm planning for deer farmers must allow for flexibility and the unique challenges of farming deer, but a good farm plan can help provide proof of best practice for our markets.
Words REBECCA GREAVES
THE MAJORITY OF DEER farmers are undertaking solid farm planning, it’s just a matter of documenting it, says Luka Jansen (pictured), environmental stewardship manager - policy and research, for Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ).
Like other primary sector industries, freshwater farm plans are on pause for deer, but DINZ is still undertaking planning in the freshwater space and encouraging farmers to have a plan. “It’s about mitigating the risks onfarm and looking for ways to do best practice to reduce sediment loss and run-off from their farm, which is the main concern on a deer farm, as opposed to nitrogen loss,” Jansen explains.
Deer farmers understand the importance of undertaking mitigation actions or planning to undertake good practice to manage environmental risks. Maintaining accurate and auditable records within a farm plan is key to walking the walk without onerous government regulations, she says.
Industry groups, like DINZ, are leading the way when it comes to farm planning, along with local community groups, such as catchment groups.
Jansen says farm planning, which feeds into the Integrated Farm Planning (IFP) approach, is about taking a holistic view when looking at your farm and identifying actions that may have multiple benefits.
“Stream planting would help improve the environment and water, but could also have biodiversity outcomes or contribute carbon income, for example.
“IFP is a concept the Ministry for Primary Industries has been pushing, and industry bodies like Beef + Lamb New Zealand and DINZ have been given funding for it. It takes into account all planning, like health and safety, animal welfare, the environment, and climate. There’s a range of reasons why people might have a farm plan, and we’re still working out our priorities in different regions.”
DINZ has a survey out to farmers in each region to look for knowledge gaps, so farmers have what they need to elevate farm planning.
In the case of deer, much of the farm planning is done by observation by the farmer on a daily basis, informing management practices by noting the behaviour of the animals. Farm planning is a skill where farmers tailor their plan to the animals, and it is very reliant on observation and understanding feed requirements, she says.
“If they’re hungry or you’re weaning, they might pace the fence line, which could be a sign of stress. A farmer might move them to another paddock to reduce the impact of the animals creating a track, leading to sediment loss and runoff. Deer have very different behaviour compared to, say, sheep.”
While deer farmers all undertake some form of farm planning currently, it’s a matter of documenting practices. There are benefits from recording and collating data, too. “That’s useful if you’re away or need to share the information with staff
or a family member. It’s also good to have on hand if you need to show the regional council.
“Deer farmers are undertaking farm planning, and IFP is about streamlining everything so it’s in one place and easy to access and share with other parties.”
Jansen’s key message here is that it’s about proof of what is happening onfarm. Evidencing what is being done ensures farmers are both talking the talk and walking the walk when it comes to best practice. This proof is also becoming increasingly important to our markets and consumers.
She stresses that farm planning is always a case-by-case basis when it comes to deer farming, and each plan must be tailored to the individual farm.
“My message to the regional councils is that plans must allow flexibility and give farmers a range of tools to address an issue. Weather changes from year to year, influencing feed levels and crops, therefore mitigations may change from year to year. Rigid rules do not work for deer farms.”
The Deer Industry Environmental Management Code of Practice is the go-to resource for deer farmers implementing best practice and developing a farm plan.
DINZ also has a range of deer factsheets available that provide options for managing deer and all potential risk factors within their environment.
Bite sized learning to upskill Shepherds
The sheep, beef and deer micro-credential – Livestock Feed Supply and Demand – can be undertaken on its own or as part of the New Zealand Certificate in Agriculture (Level 3).
Completed over 5 months, there are six off-job workshops and on-farm tasks.
Topics and skills learned include:
• understanding how having quality feed at the right times is vital for good stock performance.
• calculating feed supply and demand.
• pasture and soil management practices.
It’s a perfect time to enrol with courses kicking off early 2025. To register your interest, or to find out about our other programmes, visit primaryito.ac.nz, phone 0800 20 80 20 or email info@primaryito.ac.nz.
HOW DID YOU GET INTO DEER CULLING?
My love of hunting started as a teenager when my job was to keep my mum happy by collecting rabbits for the family stew. My brother, a mate and I used to go up the Dart Valley (in Otago) and hunt deer in the school holidays. We would get about 20 or 30 deer and sell the tails for 10 shillings each – it paid for our whole trip. Then came my interest in flying: staring out the window of Taieri High School in 1959 as the DC3 and Neptunes came in from Antartica, all I wanted to do was fly. My mother went crook at me when I wouldn’t fill in the papers to teacher’s college and jumped on a bus with a pack, sleeping bag and a .303 rifle to Queenstown to go deer culling for the Forest Service in 1964. I was sent into the Takitumu mountains where I shot about 1,000 over my first two years. At £2/deer I was making huge money. With that, I saved up to do flying lessons at the Otago Aero Club and brought my Tiger Moth which I would fly and hunt when on leave. I would have got my commercial pilot licence but I couldn’t due to a hearing problem, so I just kept ground hunting and flying as my passion.
HOW WAS IT GROUND CULLING THEN MOVING TO CAPTURING DEER BY HELICOPTER?
It all started when Doug Jones and Tim Wallis funded my Piper Super Cub 1969 for $5,000 for meat hunting from remote airstrips to bring back to supply the factory at Te Anau. Tim asked me if I would like to learn to fly helicopters. I was trained by Don Spary in 1972. Deer recovery by helicopter didn’t require a commercial pilot’s licence until 1974 when the regulations came in. So myself,
From culling to live recovery
Legendary helicopter
pilot
and ground
culler
reflects
on a wild time in the establishment of the deer industry.
Words DICK DEAKER
TOP LEFT Dick’s first plane was a Tiger Moth that he paid £400 for in 1966 and used to fly out deer hind quarters and saddles to Te Anau to cover costs and build up hours. TOP RIGHT Dick flying deer out of the Dusky Sound area BOTTOM LEFT Dick as a young man in his Piper Supercub after just landing six deer at the old Te Anau airstrip where the current medical centre is in the early 1970s. BOTTOM RIGHT Capturing live deer in the Manapouri area with Jeff Carter in 1981.
Tim, Jim Kane and Allan Duncan sat our commercial licence until 1974 when the government changed the rules.
Don Spary spent a lot of time in Wellington and was able to get me an exemption for my hearing problem. The 1970s saw alot of helicopters around and sadly alot of avoidable accidents.
Bill Black spent alot of time hauling out loads of our deer. One day my brother Sid and I did 98 from the Caswell Sound to Te Anau. Then Tim wanted us to catch the live fawns and send them to Kay Brown’s in Te Anau and George McKay‘s at Luggate, who were raising hundreds for Tim Wallis’ fledging deer farming operation.
Tim saw more future in capturing and farming than shooting, as the numbers in the mountains were declining. We started with tranquillisers, which was frustrating work, so the net gun was developed by Ivan Wilson from Reefton and Nelson Thompson from Te Anau. You’d fly them to road ends at the Hollyford or Lake Hauroko out to a trailer
where you could stand them up within the hour.
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE TO CONSERVATION WITH THE RISE IN DEER NUMBERS?
Deer are not everywhere like it used to be. Key areas like the valleys around Fiordland where we would shoot hundreds of deer, you’d be lucky now if you get enough for a barbecue! Search and destroy is not the answer as you’ll never get rid of them, it’s about managing the numbers. But vast areas of DOC estates have been heavily hit with 1080. You are limited where you can go to get quality deer and the good ones are heading off the hills to private high country stations to eat the crops, and farmers don’t allow ground hunters like they used to. Helicopters are a very efficient way so the government just has to pay a bit of money to subsidise that, which is probably still cheaper than the three rounds of ammo we used to get for each deer ear tip in the 1960s!
Photos BARRY HARCOURT & GARRY HOLLOWS
INGREDIENTS
• 2 leg fillets (800g) of venison
• 1 large eggplant
• 1 punnet of cherry Italian acid free tomatoes
• 1 bunch of fresh asparagus
• 1 head of garlic
• 200ml of EVO olive oil
• 2 cups of panko breadcrumbs
• 50g of good Parmesan cheese grated fine
• 1 egg
• ½ cup of seasoned flour (salt and pepper)
• Fresh herbs - Basil, thyme, Italian parsley, oregano (handful of each) 50ml of Balsamic vinegar
• 100ml of vegetable oil for shallow frying the crumbed eggplant
• Sea salt and black pepper
BBQ venison leg fillet
with eggplant parmigiana grilled asparagus and tomato fondant
PREPARATION
• Remove stems from the Basil, reserve a few leaves for garnish and chop the remainder fine with the rest of the herbs.
• Marinade the venison in this mix with 50ml of olive oil for at least an hour before cooking.
• Place tomatoes in a small pan or heat proof dish with the garlic broken into cloves and de-husked, and cover with remaining olive oil and the chopped stems of the Basil.
• Place in the oven at 100 deg C for two hours until tomatoes are just softened but still whole. This can be prepared well ahead of time.
• Peel the asparagus stems at the bottom.
• Slice the eggplant lengthways about 8-10 mm thick, brush with olive oil and grill each side until brown and eggplant is just soft.
• Beat eggs with a little water. Season the flour with salt and pepper and mix Parmesan cheese with panko crumbs. Crumb the eggplant and set aside.
• On a hot grill or BBQ, season the venison with cracked pepper and salt and sear until well browned. Continue cooking until an internal temperature of 50 deg C.
• Remove to a warm place in a dish to rest, for about 10 minutes. Keep the juices from the pan once rested.
• Season the asparagus with salt and pepper and some of the oil from the tomatoes and grill on the same BBQ plate until just soft. Keep warm.
• Heat a heavy pan with oil and cook the eggplant until crispy and browned on each side.
• Put the reserved juices from the venison into a small pan with a tbsp. of Balsamic vinegar and the garlic cloves from the tomatoes, along with some of the tomato oil and heat until it’s well mixed.
• Reheat the venison either on the BBQ or in a hot oven before serving.
• Slice the venison fillet into 10 slices per fillet and place five slices on each cooked eggplant. Garnish with the grilled asparagus cut into lozenges (on the angle) and the tomato fondants. Dress with the Balsamic reduction and a few sprigs of fresh Basil leaves and garlic cloves.
Graham Brown is the executive chef for Deer Industry New Zealand.
