Dairy News Australia Murray Region April 2021

APRIL 2021 ISSUE 126

MURRAY REGION

DAIRY HONOUR Jersey breeder Neville McDonald has been remembered with a mural at the Kyabram Showgrounds. Page 4.

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DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

2 // MURRAY REGION

Confidence-building year for our region AS THE saying goes with farming, timing

is everything, and wow — this time of year is certainly busy on-farm.

With most districts in the Murray Dairy region receiving widespread beneficial rain in late March it has certainly added to the urgency of working through the list of jobs ranging from harvesting summer crops, autumn calving and importantly getting winter pasture and crops sown and established.

The team at Murray Dairy has been busy running workshops and events, and one I would like to mention was the highly successful Young Dairy Network Study Tour.

This event was sponsored by the Gardiner Foundation and held over two days with 30-plus participants having the opportunity to learn from five really thought-provoking dairy businesses.

The pleasing thing for me was that not only are these world class dairy businesses within our region, they are all slightly different in the

style or system they operate, with the one thing in common being they all understand their individual business strengths and operate to maximise them.

The feedback from this year’s participants was really positive and all are looking forward to next year’s event.

With less than three months of this financial year remaining I would like to highlight the positives to a great season we have experienced to-date.

With better local rainfall and improved storage levels, the catchments are in the healthiest position we have seen for three or more years.

This is enabling a bank of on-farm fodder reserves, which ultimately result in feed input costs coming back to a more sustainable level — it certainly continues to be a confidence-building year for the region.

I know there are still many challenges within our dairy businesses, with the most common

Chair’s message

highlighted being the shortage of available staff.

Unfortunately this issue is not only dairy or ag-specific but widespread throughout the region and is certainly front-of-mind to most.

Let’s all hope that with stronger profits and confidence returning to dairy we can start to encourage more people into our great industry.

Finally, I am really looking forward to seeing everyone at our Murray Muster event ‘Digging Deeper’, to be held on May 26.

The event will feature soil scientists Christian Bannan and Cassandra Schefe and University of Queensland research scientist Dave Barber discussing soil structure, the importance of nutrients and remedying soil constraints to maximise your feedbase potential.

The dinner event to be held at the conference venue will feature VFF president Emma Germano.

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DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

MURRAY REGION // 3

Price of factory revealed GEOFF ADAMS

THE a2 Milk Company has disclosed it paid

NZ$16 million for a Kyabram factory, in its halfyearly report to investors.

The international company, which reported a half-yearly profit of NZ$178 million, purchased the land and buildings from Kyvalley Dairy Group in September last year.

The a2 Milk Company acquired the Kyabram factory for a total cost of NZ$16.3 million.

Under the agreement, the Kyvalley company will continue to operate the leased facility with a long-term supply agreement, and the a2 group will undertake a future expansion and upgrade of the facility, subsidised by increased rent.

Kyvalley Dairy has been a foundation supplier to The a2 Milk Company since 2003, supplying about 55 per cent of the a2 raw milk, and packing 100 per cent of a2 milk products sold in Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

In its half-yearly report, the company disclosed it had suffered a revenue decline and a 32 per cent profit decline for the first half of the financial year.

But the company is assuring investors its fundamentals remain strong.

The company’s performance was influenced

by COVID-19 disruption to the informal sales channels into China.

Sales into China of labelled infant nutrition products increased by 45 per cent to NZ$213 million.

The company reported no debt and a closing cash position of NZ$774 million, slightly lower than June 2020, affected by a capital raising move and the acquisition of the Kyvalley milk processing factory.

The a2 Milk Company is forecasting NZ$1.4 billion revenue for the full financial year.

The company’s new managing director, David Bortolussi, started in the role in February and will be based in Sydney. He starts with a base salary of NZ$1.75 million.

The Kyvalley dairy plant at Kyabram.

Mr Bortolussi succeeds Geoffrey Babidge who has been in the CEO role on an interim basis since December 2019.

The company processes a range of fresh and powdered milk from cows which only produce the A2 protein.

TOUR COMPARES FARM SYSTEMS A recent Young Dairy Network tour has been hailed a success by 45 young farmers.

This year’s tour, which included a visit to four farms and a virtual farm presentation, looked at the challenges faced by different farming systems from grazing to Total Mixed Ration and intensive-based systems.

Held over two days late last month, the tour is the eighth co‑ordinated by Murray Dairy and funded by the Gardiner Foundation, and are designed to connect farmers and service providers and assist in progressing their dairying knowledge and skills.

The itinerary was aimed at challenging the tour group and to present them with a specific focus, being a SWOT analysis of each farm business.

Through this analysis, with the assistance of Shane Byrne and Lachlan Barnes from Murray Dairy facilitating each of the visits with the host farmers, the focus drew attention to how each of the farms have adapted to a volatile water market, successfully transitioning from different feeding systems, or making new technologies pay.

The tour also encouraged participants to reflect on the application of what they see and hear to their own business.

Waaia dairy farmer Beau Walpole spoke about the farm visit to Don and Meg Stewart in Yarrawalla, saying it was very interesting.

“We at home have got dry-lot sheds, but we are looking at going into barns and it was good to see the decision-making process behind why the Stewarts have gone into dry-lot sheds instead of barns,” Beau said.

For Leitchville’s Brady Hore, a visit to the dairy farm of Dehne and Sarah Vinnicombe in Calivil left him with plenty to think about.

“It has been good to see the progression that Dehne has had over the years and to have evolved into an impressive set-up with free-stall barns,” Brady said.

“We have a compost barn, which is similar, but the way Dehne has tied everything together is impressive.”

Nick Minogue from Katandra West said he got a lot out of the visit to John Edwards’ farm in Leitchville.

“It is a simple system with high production and John emphasised the importance of keeping his cows fully fed at all times,” Nick said.

“It showed me you can push what you feed your cows and still keep it simple.

The 2021 Young Dairy Network Study Tour was a great success, with the 45 young farmers taking home a great deal from each farm visit.

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Jersey breeder recognised GEOFF ADAMS

JERSEY BREEDER Neville McDonald

has been immortalised with his name on a cattle shed and a 3 m high portrait of one of his favourite cows at the Kyabram Showgrounds.

The Kyabram Show committee decided early last year to recognise Neville’s support for the Kyabram Show, but before an event could be organised, Neville collapsed and died from a heart attack on July 3.

But on Saturday, March 13, family and friends got together at the Kyabram Showgrounds to witness the unveiling of the Neville (Nifty) McDonald cattle pavilion.

As the cattle superintendent for 30 years, Neville spent many hours in the shed, supervising the exhibits and organising the parading of the district’s finest cattle.

Show committee president Craig Matthews said Neville had served on the committee since 1984.

“He’d put a lot of time and effort into the shows, attending meetings and working bees,” Craig said.

Neville had been a president three times and was a life member of the Kyabram Show.

He was remembered with affection because of some of his quirky ways and his outgoing personality.

The cattle pavilion will carry a larger-thanlife photo on canvas of one of Neville’s favourite cows, Sunshine Farm Cherry 133, who was photographed by his wife, Janelle, at the showgrounds in 2019 after winning the All Breeds Intermediate Champion ribbon.

She picked up similar titles at every other country show she was exhibited at, and is now a part of the McDonald’s Sunshine Farms herd.

Neville chose the Sunshine Farms stud name in memory of a former cream boat that used to run down Richmond-Wilson River near Lismore.

His family operated a dairy farm on the banks of the river, and the boat would collect cream from the valley’s farms and transport it to the Norco factory.

Neville moved to Kyabram in 1979 to start sharefarming on land abutting the Allan St showgrounds and later worked on farms in Mooroopna, Waaia and Cooma before buying the Andrews Rd property and establishing the Jersey stud there.

In 1971 he paid $1 for a year’s membership of Jersey Australia and $1.20 for his first stud cow registration.

Neville is survived by his wife Janelle, daughter Wendy, sons Paj (Shane) and Paul, and two grandsons.

Janelle expressed her appreciation to her friends from the show society and the Kyabram community for their support after Neville’s passing.

Neville McDonald with Gemland Glenda 2 winning best three-year-old in-milk at the Kyogle Show in 1976. It was Sunshine Farm’s first champion.

Kyabram Show committee president Craig Matthews with Janelle McDonald, the widow of Neville McDonald, who is remembered in the naming of a cattle pavilion.

Janelle McDonald with a cake celebrating Sunshine Farms Jersey stud’s 50 years’ membership of Jersey Australia.

A champion McDonald cow, Sunshine Farms Cherry 133, features on a large canvas attached to the cattle pavilion door.

The cattle pavilion now bears a new name but one well known to cattle breeders.

Neville McDonald at the Numurkah Show in 2013 with Sunshine Farm Handsome 47 who won Supreme Interbreed Champion, Interbreed Best Vessel and Supreme Champion Jersey.

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

MURRAY REGION // 5

New sale system is a success GEOFF ADAMS

A NEW dairy cattle selling system, which

removes the show ring from the auction, was successfully run by Dairy Livestock Services in the Goulburn Valley recently.

While the cattle grazed on the farm — and could be inspected in the paddocks prior to the sale — photos of the cattle were screened on a monitor in the shed, where the auctioneer called in bids from the computer, through agents on the phone or from individuals attending.

The new approach was applied to the Vala Holsteins’ Autumn Feature Sale at Toolamba, south of Shepparton.

A one-year-old heifer with excellent genetic background sold for $26,000 at the sale.

Bidding for Vala Sidekick Cheers started at $18,000 and jumped in $2000 lots until the $26,000 figure was reached under the hammer of auctioneer Brian Leslie.

The buyers were the Royal and Towner families from Camperdown in the Western District.

Vala Sidekick Cheers is the daughter of Unique Dempsey Cheers, classified Excellent and with most recent production of about 14,000 litres. Her pedigree includes mostly dams classified as Excellent or Very Good, back to the 10th generation.

The sale averaged $4200,with some twoyear-olds selling for more than $5000. Five bulls averaged $3100.

Vala Holsteins joint manager Angela Varcoe said she was happy with the outcome and would consider using the system again.

“It required some more work leading up to the sale, but less hands were needed on the day, without having to set up the ring and run the cattle through,” she said.

“It was a bit easier on the cattle, too.”

The top selling lot, Sidekick Cheers, has two embryo sisters which were not offered for sale and Ms Varcoe said they would be breeding from them and may show them.

Mr Leslie said successful bidders included return buyers and cattle were destined for around Victoria and into NSW. Earlier in March, Holstein enthusiasts from all parts of Victoria along with NSW were active buyers at the Inaugural Autumn Opportunity Sale hosted by the North West Sub Branch of Holstein Australia at the Echuca Selling Centre.

Dairy Livestock Services reported a sale top of $7200 was paid by G. and J. Nicholas of Corryong, for the young cow Gorbro Robin Expander GP 84.

These same vendors also sold Gorbro Absolute Bib-Red VG 88 at $5250 to the Nicholas family.

The sale average was $2995, while the 81 registered Holstein cows and heifers averaged $3306.

Stock in the paddocks at Vala Holsteins did not have to be rounded up for the sale. They were represented by photos on large monitors.

No cattle in the auction shed for the Vala Holsteins Autumn Feature Sale. Bidders relied on the catalogue for information and the photos shown on a monitor.

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DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

MURRAY REGION // 7

Finding confidence to lead AS DAIRY farm numbers decline, leadership

program graduate Roisin Powles believes it’s more important than ever that farmers have confidence to step up into leadership roles.

Roisin, from Gillieston near Tatura, has had her confidence boosted after completing the Fairley (Goulburn Murray) Community Leadership Program in 2020 as a Gardiner Dairy Foundation recipient and hopes other farmers take up similar opportunities.

“It’s important for all farmers to improve their leadership skills to give them the confidence to step up,” she said.

“Farmers are clever people but one thing holding many back is a little bit of confidence.

“If they were involved in community leadership programs, it would improve their confidence and ability to voice their concerns or their ideas.

“As the number of farmers reduces, the risk is that our voice is harder to hear and decisions will be made by people who don’t necessarily understand farming.”

Roisin farms with her husband Ron and four children, and enjoys a great affinity with the land and her community.

Their dairy farm has been certified organic for the past 12 years and Roisin has maintained a lifelong passion for the environment and a healthy local community.

“It’s not a natural thing for farmers to be in opposition to the local ecosystems,” she said.

“In dairy we can encourage the wildlife; the birds in the tree belts help with the pastures.”

This passion has led Roisin to volunteer with Landcare and St Vincent de Paul and to help out where needed with other farming and community groups.

With her youngest child now at school, Roisin was keen to reactivate her community commitments, and the opportunity to undertake the Fairley Community Leadership Program was perfectly timed.

“I’d become a bit rusty in my community skills like public speaking, communications and IT, so getting involved in a course was certainly beneficial.”

While disappointed in some respects that much of the program had to convert to Zoom meetings because of COVID-19, Roisin found the change had an unexpected benefit.

“It was something we had to learn to use anyway so it gave us a push and from that I was able to take our St Vincent de Paul team onto Zoom, and help with meetings and communication for some other organic dairy families needing to band together through a tough time.

“Whilst there were losses in some things like public speaking and other in-person conversations, the skills given were put straight into use and they’re going to be incredibly useful going forward regardless of COVID.” Roisin described the leadership program as “a perfect learning environment” where people from different walks of life benefit from their interactions.

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“They did such a good job of creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable to learn and share.

“It broadened my knowledge of the different community sectors and the challenges they face, and I was proud to present the perspective of the dairy industry.

“It’s important to be confident to talk the talk with other sectors.

“One thing I kept coming back to was trying to recognise skills in other people and bringing out the best in them.

“That’s especially true of farmers who don’t always have confidence in their own skills so I want to point out to them that they do have really valuable skills and encourage them to step forward.”

The program has inspired Roisin to look at new opportunities to represent the dairy industry or the broader community.

She admits she hadn’t previously considered applying for positions on dairy industry boards, but that might change.

“That probably reflected my own confidence level, but after they talked about the structure of boards in the program, and the service board members provide, you look at things through a different lens.

“I thought board roles were outside my skills set but now I would look at opportunities.”

Roisin urged other farmers to consider applying for a Gardiner Dairy Foundation leadership program scholarship.

“When you’re farming, you’re constantly learning and improving; 2020 was challenging but being involved in Fairley made it a whole lot better.”

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DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

8 // MURRAY REGION

Balers perform to the crowd DANEKA HILL

BALER BRANDS were commended for their bravery at last month’s Fodder Festival by contractors and farmers alike.

The all-day event at Elmore kicked off with a two-hour field demonstration where the latest balers were pitted against each other and run at maximum speed over raked sorghum before a crowd.

While the nerves were high among the sales reps, the pay-off was worth it with nearly 300 attendees very pleased to see the equipment in action.

Organised by the Australia Fodder Industry Association and the Elmore Events Centre committee, the 2021 festival was the first big agricultural get together in northern Victoria since lockdown in March 2020.

Nanneella cropper and silage contractor Della Palmer said it was great to have the machines

The Haeusler’s Shepparton and Echuca teams who supplied the John Deere tractor and Kuhn baler. Echuca sales manager Richard Jardine said the COVID-19-caused break in field days meant this was the first time many of the new products were being shown, despite being on the market for months.

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baling something rather than on static display.

“It’s quite brave of the dealerships to put their products side by side,” Mrs Palmer said.

“I’m very impressed with the day — mind you, my son did help organise it.

“Having him here instead of working is something we have to wear but I’m sure the contractors can manage without supervision for a few hours.”

AFIA chief executive Paula Fitzgerald said there had been large demand for field tests.

“The AFIA likes a bit of healthy competition,” she said.

Waaia hay and silage farmer Ashley Williams had attended to have a look at the potential of big squares, which were the focus of the 2021 event.

“It’s all about big squares now, isn’t it?”

Mr Williams said.

Cowra baling contractor Rhys Trethowan said the industry was changing.

“Fodder is going further now,” he said.

The increased mobility of the fodder industry was obvious on the day, with the 2020 and 2021 balers weighted to transport easily on trucks and produce bales suited to freighting.

“A good bale is valuable, especially in drought situations where bales are going up to north Queensland at times,” Krone senior product manager Lars Pasedag said.

Nathalia contractor Brett Vallender owned one of the Krone balers used in the field display.

“I really like the weight on this one,” Mr Vallender said.

“Krone isn’t the cheapest overall but when you’re talking per tonne they are the most affordable.”

Retired fodder grower and current Pleasant Hills sheep farmer Ellis Jelbart said during the

drought he was buying fodder “by the roadtrain load”.

“It was about a four-hour drive to get here but I like to come to these things to see the way the industry is going,” Mr Jelbart said.

“What’s struck me so far was the steamer on the Massey Ferguson set-up, I’ve never seen one of those before.”

The presence of a steamer mimics a dew, allowing farmers to bale without having to wait for the dawn dew to condense.

Rural Group Shepparton branch manager Chris Pettigrove said as the baling window continued to shrink due to a changing climate, the pressure was on manufacturers to produce larger, faster and more efficient machines.

Nutrien Ag Solutions Shepparton branch manager David Daws said the gear being produced now was “all very impressive” and the balers were making short work of the sorghum crop Nutrien Ag had sown at the Elmore Field Days site.

The Massey Ferguson 2270 XD has its moment before the crowd. This baler was towed behind a Staheli West hay steamer which re-creates a ‘perfect natural dew’.

Barty Carver from Haeusler’s Echuca and Lockington dairy farmer Julian Pearce.

Mr Pearce said it was good to see the products in use rather than on static display.

Pleasant Hills sheep farmer Ellis Jelbart had a close look at the Krone balers because his neighbour has one just like it. “Fifty years ago you got to see machinery in action all the time but that seemed to stop once health and safety cracked down.”

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Krone senior product manager Lars Pasedag had to climb ladders, walk across the baler roof and open covers all while talking to the crowd.

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

MURRAY REGION // 9

Busting stereotypes AS A young female dairy farmer, Jane

Mann knows how hard she needs to work to be recognised by her peers within the industry.

Jane works on her partner Michael’s family dairy farm in Merrigum, starting out with a season of calving, moving on to the milking shed and after the first year she was hooked.

She knows the ins and outs of her farm, and the goals her family have for the business, like the back of her hand.

“We have three farm areas with over 700 acres (283 ha) between them,” Jane said.

“We use different areas for milking and cropping.

“We don’t grow a lot of our own feed currently, only a bit of silage and hay, but we are looking to do more of that in the future to help cut our costs of feed.”

Making tough choices for the future.

Jane is also a key decision maker when it comes to the farm’s future.

“Currently we’re looking at succession planning as my partner’s parents want to take a step back from f­ arming duties in the next five years,” she said.

“I’m hoping to continue to work on the farm with my partner and perhaps take over part of the farm with him.

“We have 300 cows and we calve in spring.

“We have a 34 swing-over herringbone in the dairy, and looking to install travelling irrigators to help us grow more feed.

“We’re hoping to cut the cost of bringing our own feed in by growing more of our own.

“My dream would be to start using some modern technology like heat sensing collars. I think that would really change the way we operate for the better.”

Challenges of a male-dominated industry Despite the experience and knowledge Jane has, being a woman in an industry like dairy farming hasn’t come without its challenges.

“Because we’re taking over the farm as a couple, I expect that people will be more inclined to seek out Michael, my partner, instead of including me in the discussions.

“I think that when we do work together and have contractors and advisers come in, at times I’d like to have Michael, my partner sit in and I’ll ask

most of the questions, depending on what we’re being advised on.

“I often feel like I have to prove myself a lot as a woman.

“For example we had a plasterer come to the house the other day and ask for help saying ‘Is there a man around here?’ and he needed just a few light things carried in. I just said ‘I can help with that!’

“People I speak to can assume that because I’m female that I don’t really know anything, especially as I’m relatively new to the industry.

“I have other skills that I bring to the table which I have learnt through a long career in hospitality that have been helpful on-farm.”

Despite its challenges, Jane said dairy farming was still the preferred career path for her.

“I would absolutely recommend a career in dairy farming for women.

“I think the lifestyle is great, and it’s great opportunity for people who want to pursue this kind of work.

“You do have to be strong-willed though, and be determined, it’s not an easy job.

“Sometimes women just have to say ‘I’ve got this’ when people question you, and just get on with it.”

FINAL SILAGE VIDEOS RELEASED With farmers heading into the start of the corn harvest season, Murray Dairy has released the final three videos as part of an eightpart series to provide tips and advice for the corn silage harvest.

Produced as a joint initiative of Murray Dairy and Lallemand Australia, the final videos range from three-and-a-half to seven minutes in length and cover tips and information on optimum time for harvest, dry matter testing, kernel process checks and assessing chop length.

“More corn is being grown in our region,” Murray Dairy regional extension officer Lisa Birrell said.

“Murray Dairy and Lallemand created these videos as we recognised the gap in the market to provide quality, practical information around time of harvest and checks that can be made in-field to ensure a quality product is placed in the pit to maximise the nutritional value for cows when

the silage is fed out,” she said.

“The first of the final three videos, Harvest Timing, follows Lallemand’s David Lewis through corn crops at different stages of maturity, right up to optimum time for harvest.

“Measuring and Managing Silage at Harvest discusses dry matter testing and kernel processing checks that can be carried out during harvest to optimise fermentation and silage quality.

“And our final video in the series, Chop Length and Kernel Processing, demonstrates how to use a Penn State Box to assess chop length and kernel processing.

“Getting the length of cut and processing right will help to pack silage for effective fermentation.

“These factors will also influence the digestibility of the mix and the way silage is used in the diet.”

To view the final three videos or the first five in the series, visit: tinyurl.com/ silage-videos

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

10 // MURRAY REGION

Calving smarter not harder SOPHIE BALDWIN

THE DECISION to completely overhaul the

A complete overhaul of their calf rearing system has resulted in a reduced workload for Cohuna dairy farmers Greg and Krissy Goulding.

calf rearing system, build a new shed and install an automatic feeder might have been a significant financial investment, but it was always about reducing the workload for Cohuna dairy farmers Greg and Krissy Goulding.

“We built the shed because we are not getting any younger and we really wanted to make things easier moving forward,” Greg said.

Milking about 550 Aussie Reds and calving twice a year means come calving time, there is always a significant amount of manual labour, predominately completed by Krissy.

“It had been on our radar for a while to improve our calf rearing set-up but we had been saving up and wanted to complete the job through cashflow, although as usual the cost did blow out more than we thought,” Greg said.

The development included building a 36.5 m long, 21 m wide and 5 m high shed.

Half the shed is cemented and there is a laneway running up the middle to allow for easy delivery of calves.

At the centre of the system is a DeLaval calf feeding station with four units, capable of feeding 120 calves.

Milk is pumped across from the dairy to a refrigerated vat in the shed.

“We started development last June and it has taken us almost 12 months to complete,” Greg said.

“We only calve around 200 cows in autumn so this has allowed us to iron out any problems before spring — when the big numbers come in and we calve around 400.”

New calves are brought in from the paddock and housed in single pens 1 m by 1.5 m where they stay for a couple of days and are taught to drink.

They then move out into a bigger pen and straight onto the automatic feeder.

The calves access up to eight litres of milk a day, two litres at a time so they cannot make themselves sick.

For ease of management the area around the feeder is cemented while the rest of the pen is covered in pine shavings over a sandy dirt base for good drainage.

Calves also have access to adlib pellets and hay.

“We used to rear our calves in an old piggery we converted a long time ago but it started to make the calves sick, so we moved outside with hay bales and sheep yards but that was no good when poor weather came in,” Greg said.

“Under the new system the calves are much more relaxed and content.

“We can turn up to the shed and there is no bellowing calves because they are all fed and happily chewing on pellets or hay.”

The new shed is 36.5 m long, 21 m wide and 5 m high.

The calves access up to eight litres of milk a day, two litres at a time.

The farm calves about 200 in autumn and 400 in spring.

The shed includes single pens where new calves are kept for the first few days.

The development of the new shed took almost 12 months.

The herd calves twice a year.

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA APRIL 2021

MURRAY REGION // 11 The bull calves are kept in a separate area in the shed in one of four bull pens on a cemented area, which can be easily washed and drained away.

Greg said they were expecting the time saved to be quite significant and well worth the investment.

“The work is now in teaching the calves how to feed and then basically letting the system do its thing and just keeping an eye on it and the stock.”

There were a couple of teething problems initially but most of those problems have now been sorted out.

“We had a few issues early with scours because we didn’t have the feeder set up correctly but we have ironed that out now and should be right to go for spring,” Greg said.

He said organising the project ahead of completion time meant they thankfully weren’t caught up in any COVID-related delays because they had most of their equipment before they started.

A recent rain of 40 mm has set their autumn up nicely and they are looking forward to a good season ahead.

“The seed in the ground is really starting to take off so we are off to a good start anyway,” Greg said.

The entire farm is sown down to annuals with the majority of feed stored in silage pits and fed out to the herd on a feedpad from Christmas through to May. “We are expecting a step-up to come through from the milk company and things are looking pretty positive — we are just getting older and more tired,” Greg laughed.

With 550 Aussie Reds, calving always takes a significant amount of manual labour.

Half the shed is cemented and there is a laneway running up the middle to allow for easy delivery of calves.

Milk is pumped across from the dairy to a refrigerated vat in the shed.

THE MURRAY MUSTER 2021 DIGGING DEEPER

Murray Muster Wednesday May 26

industry in northern Victoria and southern NSW.

This May, pull on your boots for our annual industry event.

Designed by farmers for farmers, The Murray Muster is a showcase of ideas and innovation for the dairy

The Murray Muster 2021 Digging Deeper will be held at the Moama RSL on Wednesday 26 May Conference: 9:30am to 4pm.

Dinner: 6pm to 10pm.

Gain insight into new research, on -farm trials and investment across a range of areas relevant to Murray region dairy farmers.

Guest speakers include lowtill cropper Grant Sims and soil scientist Cassandra Schefe.

HOW TO BOOK The Murray Muster is a free event for the dairy industry but bookings are a must!

For further information contact Murray Dairy at admin@murraydairy.com.au or call 03 5833 5312

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