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Uncertainty ahead for global market
THERE ARE a diverse set of supply and demand influences on global commodity markets, exacerbated with an uncertain geopolitical environment with risks of escalating wars and a pivotal United States election.
The European Union remains the strongest influence on the global market with the ongoing tight butterfat market, although the direction is fragile and uncertain.
A seasonal correction in butterfat prices in coming weeks may come as milk output increases, and cream and cheese demand falters. High EU prices are attracting NZ AMF imports but the impact of these is also unclear.
Diverse regional milk production conditions across Europe, with the effects of disease, feed quality and availability, make it difficult to forecast milk supply.
Favourable margins should produce a milk supply response, but that is less assured with sustainability pressures.
Milk output is growing in other regions.
Stronger New Zealand milk output and weak global WMP demand will sustain elevated SMP and butterfat output, although avoidance of commodity powder production will be a priority.
Full-season growth is heavily weather-dependent, but high milk prices and abundant feed supplies will spur producer confidence.
US milk growth will pick up into H1-2025
with attractive margins and expanding herds to support the needs of new cheese capacity.
Oceania cheese prices will come under pressure as more intense export competition looms.
US cheddar supply will increase at a faster rate than domestic demand as new plants fill.
NZ cheese output will also lift, reducing exposure to milk powders.
EU cheese values are strongly driven by the
butterfat market — while cheese prices are expected to ease with easing butterfat values, increased exports will be critical to the cheese market balance.
China’s efforts to stimulate spending and rebalance the dairy supply chain will be interesting to watch for the potential impact on ingredient imports, which remain well down year-on-year.
Australian exports continue to grow.
Australian dairy exports have grown yearon-year since December last year, reflecting stronger milk supplies and led by cheese, milk powders and fats.
August shipments featured increases across all major commodity products except dry whey and milk and cream.
Cheese exports rose 23.6 per cent year-onyear — this reflected stronger sales across all major markets.
August SMP exports were at a seven-month low, but still up 28.1 per cent year-on-year while WMP was +22.4 per cent year-on-year on relatively low volumes.
Fat exports rose 219.4 per cent year-onyear in August in commercial butter equivalents, AMF was up 132.6 per cent year-on-year and butter shipments were +45.5 per cent year-on-year.
– Edwin Lloyd, Maxum Foods executive general manager foods.
MILK PRICE CLOSER TO ALIGNMENT
Bega Cheese’s farm gate milk price was now closer in alignment to the commodity prices that the company could achieve, the company’s annual general meeting heard recently.
Chair Barry Irvin pointed to what he called the significant gap between the two figures, but he also noted that the two were coming into closer alignment.
“It is very straight forward to observe the significant gap that we had to deal with during financial year 2023 and financial year 2024,” Mr Irvin told the meeting.
“There has been a reduction in that gap in financial year 2025, which is more reflective of the long-term position for the industry.
“It is not so much what the milk price is, in fact we would love to pay a higher price for milk, with the limiting factor being the returns we receive in the market.
“Paying a significant price over the market for an extended period of time always ends badly and we have seen that time and time again in the Australian dairy industry.
“A greater alignment in farm gate price to market ensures companies are able to invest to improve efficiencies and improve returns.”
Bega Group reported $164 million in earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation.
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Bega Cheese chair Barry Irvin.
Edwin Lloyd is executive general manager foods with Maxum Foods.
Cows cross the Nullarbor
BY GEOFF ADAMS
WHEN WESTERN Australian dairy farmer
Colin Gilbert wanted to sell his award-winning Guernsey herd, he chose to take all 50 head on a 3000km road trip to Rochester in Victoria.
The result was an auction that achieved a total clearance and a second-highest average for a Guernsey sale in Australia, at $5271.
Two mature cows sold for $21,000 each, the top price at the sale.
Colin was motivated by Rochester’s history with Guernsey herds and a successful sale of his stud cattle in 2021 — that set a world record for average prices — staged in the northern Victorian town.
Conversely, Western Australia’s dairy industry is struggling.
“Nobody wants dairy cows in WA. The industry is ruined,” Colin told Dairy News Australia
The number of registered dairy farms in WA has decreased from 150 to around 120 since 2021, and the industry faces limited competition from processors, adverse weather conditions and rising input costs.
“Rochester was good to us three years ago and when I spoke to auctioneer Brian [Leslie] he said ‘why don’t you come back here?’,” Colin said.
“Rochester was traditionally a strong-hold for Guernseys. It has a history of sales here. It has good facilities, it has been good to us.”
Colin, who is looking forward to retiring, was supported by the Guernsey network in getting the cattle prepared.
Shifting the last of his dispersal herd from Dandalup, WA, and keeping the valuable
Guernseys in good shape for the impending sale was an epic task.
It was a 3200km journey, accomplished with just one B-double truck.
The group of 52 included three cows highly classified in the stud industry, known as EX, and nine more classified as VG.
“We stopped and unloaded them at the Dublin South Australian livestock exchange north of Adelaide at 11pm at night and spelled them for six hours,” Colin said of the journey.
“We milked them out with a single milking unit. We spelled them and gave them hay.
“Then we loaded them up about 4am and drove non-stop through to Stanhope.”
The cattle spent a month at Todd Brown’s farm at Stanhope (30km from Rochester) and in the week prior to the sale, they were moved to the pavilions at the Rochester Showgrounds to prepare them.
Dairy Livestock Services auctioneer Brian Leslie said the auction average was the second highest for a Guernsey herd in Australia.
“It was no mean feat to bring them across the Nullabor in such good condition,” Brian said.
He praised the offering as having tremendous capacity and strength, with a depth of pedigree.
Colin was the only breeder to show both a Guernsey and a Holstein to win the supreme champion dairy cow (all breeds) at Perth Royal Show, and exhibited champions at International Dairy Week in Tatura.
More pictures at: https://www. dairynewsaustralia.com.au/news/cows-crossthe-nullarbor/
Colin Gilbert and his wife, Elda, with one of the top-selling Guernseys at the Rochester sale.
Colin Gilbert addresses the crowd at the Rochester auction.
One of the top-selling Guernseys, Gilbert LM Hitette, sold for $21,000. The six-year-old cow classified EX90 is due to calve in January.
Three of the Gilbert Guernseys ready to go into the auction ring.
Cream of the quality crop
MORE THAN 200 of Australia’s leading dairy farmers have been recognised in Dairy Australia’s 2024 Countdown Milk Quality Awards.
Awarded by Dairy Australia annually since 2002, these awards celebrate farmers who have produced the country’s highest quality milk, based on Bulk Milk Cell Count (BMCC) data provided by processors each financial year.
The 100 farmers with the lowest annual BMCCs are presented with a gold plaque for their farm gate, while other farms within the lowest five per cent of BMCCs receive a silver diamond.
Dairy Australia’s national milk quality and biosecurity lead Zoe Vogels said the awards recognise farmers and farm businesses that make decisions on-farm to maintain and improve the health of dairy herds and the quality of milk that is produced.
“Australia produces some of the world’s best milk, not just in taste and nutrition, but also in quality,” Dr Vogels said.
“A low Bulk Milk Cell Count is indicative of good mastitis control.
“Over the last 20 years of the awards, BMCCs have significantly improved, benefiting cow health, farmer income and product yields, and shelf life.
“All dairy regions have been challenged by seasonal conditions in the past 18 months, so it is incredible to see these farms achieving consistently high-quality milk.”
The Milk Quality Awards are part of Dairy Australia’s national extension program Countdown, which aims to support dairy farmers and their service providers in achieving cost-effective, best practice milking management and mastitis control.
Countdown resources include industry-agreed farm guidelines for mastitis control, technical notes and training programs.
More information about the Countdown program can be found at https:// dairyaustralia.com.au/countdown
The full list of 2024 Milk Quality Award winners can be found at: https://www. dairyaustralia.com.au/milking/milk-qualityand-mastitis/australian-milk-quality-awards
The Countdown Milk Quality Awards celebrate farmers who have produced the country’s highest quality milk, based on Bulk Milk Cell Count.
OPINION | FRESH MILK FOR QUEENSLAND OR NOT?
Queensland’s former Premier called for Olympic athletes to eat the best of Queensland beef in 2032.
Must those Olympians drink imported UHT milk with their brekkie, along with the rest of Queensland?
Because the market for dairy products is inefficient and unfair, and our climate makes milk production more expensive, Queensland’s milk production has been sliding backwards for two decades; we now produce only 45 per cent of what we consume.
Unless this decline is reversed, we’ll more and more be forced into un-fresh options like UHT milk as in much of Europe. Queensland produces some of the best milk in Australia, and so much of our state is great for dairying.
Queensland’s best dairies are among the best in Australia, and our dairy industry can be prosperous, vibrant and resilient. Yet reliance on only the dead hand of the
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market is forcing the state backwards.
Continued production decline puts at risk the economic viability of both local dairy farming and milk processing, on which so many regional communities depend.
Even without further decline, importing our fresh milk from down south is less and less secure, with growing risks from disaster, import and supply chain failure, disease and more.
We rely too much on supply from Victoria, which might at any time be diverted to meet demand elsewhere.
Last year’s report to the Federal Parliament, Australian Food Story: Feeding the Nation and Beyond, demands a coherent plan for dairy product food security.
Trucking fresh milk the length of Australia adds avoidable greenhouse gas emissions to the dairy industry’s social license risk, and reduces milk shelf life.
None of this is news to government and industry, but leaving the Queensland dairy
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industry to market forces has not slowed milk production decline, nor improved farm prosperity.
If Queenslanders are to keep their milk fresh, change is essential, and the evidence of the past 20 years is that this will require governments and industry to go beyond reliance on the market to sort things out.
Governments and industry must acknowledge that need for conscious and planned change, and show leadership to reverse milk production decline, or they are committing Queenslanders to UHT and powdered milk rather than fresh.
There will be a dairy industry plan for Queensland on the table very soon.
It won’t be unrealistic or expensive, but must be truly supported, to get the dairy industry on track to a prosperous, vibrant and resilient future.
– By Mike Smith,
EastAUSmilk government relations officer.
Aussies take on the world
BY SOPHIE BALDWIN
THE 2024 Young Breeders School trip has been given the tick of approval by five young dairy farmers who travelled to Belgium to participate in the prestigious event.
The Young Breeders School provides participants with the opportunity to network with other industry professionals from around the world.
Ryan Barker from Tasmania, Bridget Liebelt from South Australia, Elly Simms from NSW and Hayden King and Patrick Anderson, both from Victoria, joined 180 other young farmers at the event in August.
The trip also included some sightseeing opportunities, including a visit to the Barenbrug seed research facility and a look around some dairy farms.
Callum McPhee from Denilquin took on the role of mentor, and the group had one of the most successful years yet, finishing ninth out of about 25 countries.
Ryan performed the best individually for the team, placing 18th out of all participants.
This was Bridget’s first time overseas and she wasn’t disappointed by the experience.
Bridget has been showing cows since she was eight, and she found the fitting, clipping, leading, parading and showmanship aspects of the school particularly relevant.
“The team and the trip were just awesome — I loved getting to know our team and working with everyone in it,” she said.
“The school was amazing and I learnt something from every single session I participated in, which was great.
“I can’t wait to put all these new ideas and skills I picked up from the school and my own team into practice moving forward.
“I have grown and learnt so much from this trip. It was such a great opportunity for me to meet people from overseas and I have made
close friends within my own team as well.”
Bridget said it was great to also check out some farms and see a bit of the countryside as well.
“I urge anyone interested in applying for the trip to have a go, it’s such a great opportunity and you won’t regret it,” she said.
Callum said the trip was a great experience for him personally and the team.
“The competition covers such a broad spectrum of skills — from the basics to the more experienced level and there was something for every participant to learn and pick up on,” he said.
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Callum said he was blown away by the camaraderie.
“Even though it was still a competition it was really great to see everyone helping each other out and there were people there from countries that I didn’t even know had cows.”
Callum found the school offered a really good insight into showmanship.
“Getting a first-hand view of the showmanship aspect has meant I can bring those learnings home and give myself a bit more of a leg up in that area when it comes to my own cows and future competitions.”
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The McPhee family has been running Hillview Park Holsteins since 1956, and Callum has been showing cows himself since he was a young boy. He urged any young farmers interested in the trip in the future, to keep an eye out for information for the 2025 trip.
The Young Breeders School is an annual, international event aimed at young people aged 13 to 25.
The main aim is to learn your way around a cow, improve knowledge and optimise show preparation.
The event was first established in 1999.
Dairy News Australia welcomes contributions from stakeholders in the dairy industry, and particularly from organisations wishing to advance the industry.
Contributions and photos can be sent to: editor@dairynewsaustralia.com.au
Letters to the editor on topical issues are also welcome.
Letters should be concise and carry the name and town address of the author, as well as a contact phone number, not for publication.
Australian participants in the 2024 Young Breeders School trip to Belgium were (back, from left) Patrick Anderson, Hayden King, Ryan Barker and (front, from left) Callum McPhee, Elly Simms and Bridget Liebelt.
The Aussie team checks out some lucerne on a Belgian farm.
Hayden King, Elly Simms and Patrick Anderson during a farm visit.
Standing proud were Bridget Liebelt, Patrick Anderson, Ryan Barker, Elly Simms and Hayden King.
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Our grandest dairy produce
THE NATION’S very best dairy products were recognised at the 26th Australian Grand Dairy Awards, held at the Melbourne Showgrounds on October 30.
Hosted by Dairy Australia and the Royal Agricultural Societies, the annual awards recognise excellence, quality and innovation, attracting entries from producers Australia-wide.
Two producers from Western Australia claimed the Grand Champion titles, with Dellendale Creamery being crowned the Grand Champion Cheese title for their Churchill Rd Raclette and Bannister Downs Dairy taking home the Grand Champion Dairy Product for their Double Cream.
The awards demonstrated the breadth of Australian dairy, with winners spanning from traditional cheeses to native and international flavours in categories for milk, cheese, yoghurt and ice-cream.
Among the champions were products such as khajoor (date) flavoured milk, masala lassi, Japanese-inspired yuzu custard gelato, and native Tasmanian pepperberry and leatherwood honey ice-cream.
International cheese judge Jill Allen praised this year’s entrants.
“This year we saw a wealth of products, all exceptional in high quality, everything spanning from beautiful yoghurts, wonderful milks and amazing cheddars,” Ms Allen said.
“This year, I’ve seen a lot of flavours that I haven’t encountered before, especially from my past judging in the US, which speaks to the characteristics and diversity of Australian dairy.”
After founding Dellendale Creamery in 2010, Grand Champion Cheese winner Chris Vogel could not have anticipated how the challenges and rewards of cheesemaking would lead to such prestigious recognition years later.
“This prestigious recognition reflects the knowledge we’ve built over 15 years and our small team’s passion and endeavour in handcrafting, washing and tending to every wheel of cheese in our cellar,” Chris said.
“We’ve always believed in the quality and tradition behind our cheeses, and this award is a testament to that commitment.”
Grand Champion Dairy Product winners Mat and Sue Daubney from Bannister Downs Dairy Farm have carried their family’s dairy legacy for the past 20 years.
The farm was first established by Mat’s grandparents, Edith and James Daubney, in 1924.
“Being recognised as the grand champion is a true honour, and it reflects the generations of hard work and dedication that have shaped
our farm, and the wonderfully abundant area we are so fortunate to farm in,” Mat said.
“We’ve seen the industry change, grow, and innovate each year, and we’re excited to be championing our family traditions, all while also embracing innovation to produce the highest quality dairy for our community and beyond.”
Dairy Australia’s Glenys Zucco said the awards were a testament to Australia’s unique and long-standing history with dairy.
“This year’s entrants into the Australian Grand Dairy Awards showcased a diverse range of flavours and aromas from every state in Australia,” Ms Zucco said.
“We are impressed by each of these individuals who not only uphold the tradition of high-quality Australian dairy, but also continuously push boundaries and ideas that resonate both locally and internationally.”
The awards featured 406 entries across 22 categories, with each product evaluated on its flavour, aroma, texture, body and appearance.
For products to be eligible to enter the awards, they must be produced in Australia
Bannister Downs Dairy won Grand Champion Dairy Product for their Double Cream at the Australian Grand Dairy Awards.
with 100 per cent Australian milk and have won gold at a state qualifying competition.
Products must also be available to be purchased by consumers in Australian retail markets.
This year saw new award categories being introduced, including: Novelty Ice-Cream,
Fresh Curd Stretched Cheese, and Other Goat, Sheep, Buffalo and Camel Milk products.
To see the full list of winners, go to: https://www.dairy.com.au/our-programs/ australian-grand-dairy-awards/2024australian-grand-dairy-awards-octoberchampions
AWARD FOR DAIRY NUTRITION
The nutritional value of two products from one of Victoria’s dairy producers has been rewarded by a nationwide food guide.
Saputo Dairy Australia (SDA) had one each of its light milks and yoghurts recognised at the Healthy Food Guide Awards
SDA’s Devondale light two per cent fat semi skim-milk won the best long-life milk award, while the company’s Liddells lactose-free plain yoghurt received top honours in the best lactose-free category.
SDA general manager of marketing and food service Zoey Saunders said the team was ‘thrilled’ to have the products recognised.
“Winning these awards embodies our commitment to providing high-quality, nutritious options for our valued customers and consumers,” Ms Saunders said.
“We are
The judges awarded the skim milk for having
and a
The yoghurt won for its
and
Dellendale Creamery’s Churchill Rd Raclette was crowned Grand Champion Cheese at the Australian Grand Dairy Awards.
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Norco scores big at awards
AUSTRALIA’S LARGEST and oldest dairy co-operative has been recognised for its role in driving economic growth, creating jobs and contributing to the overall wellbeing of the Northern Rivers Region at the 2024 Northern Rivers Business Awards.
Norco Co-operative was awarded the Excellence in Large Business Award for its third consecutive year and for the first time received the prestigious Business of the Year Award.
The latter is seen largely as testament to the company’s ongoing commitment to its farmers, employees and the local community.
The 2024 Northern Rivers Business Awards recognise and celebrates business excellence across its diverse regional economy with strong industries such as manufacturing, tourism, health and education.
The award judges commended Norco for its outstanding business practices and demonstrated excellence with safeguarding its community of 281 farmer members while continuing to build a robust, fully integrated business with outstanding expertise in food and rural retail operations.
The business also received the award for Excellence in Sustainability.
Norco sustainability manager Antene Seah said the award recognised Norco’s demonstration of its commitment to sustainable business practices and playing a vital role in reducing the impact of its operations for the environment across key areas.
“At Norco we are committed to becoming one of the most sustainable dairy manufacturers in Australia from our supply chain operations right through to the production and processing of our milk and other dairy products,” Ms Seah said.
“Therefore, it is such an honour to be recognised for the sustainability initiatives and projects we have.
“We couldn’t have achieved this without the dedication and commitment from everyone in the co-operative.”
Norco CEO Michael Hampson was recognised as an outstanding and inspirational leader, winning the Outstanding Business Leader Award
During his tenure, Mr Hampson has implemented major initiatives to support Norco employees and farmer members.
One initiative has been commissioning and launching the National Farmer Wellbeing Report to understand the scale of mental health in farmers.
The launch aligned with raising funds for the Black Dog Institute to fund research and resources for mental health in rural and regional areas.
Other initiatives included holding the farm gate milk price in line with last financial year, paying the highest price per litre in NSW and Queensland, and the Norco cow purchasing program designed to assist Norco farmers to rebuild their lactating herds post-floods and address industry-wide supply issues.
Norco was established in 1895 in Byron
Bay, NSW and is a 100 per cent Australian farmer-owned co-operative, with 281 active members on 190 dairy farms in northern
NSW and south-east Queensland. The co-operative annual milk production is 219 million litres.
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Norco Co-operative’s Antene Seah, Michael Hampson and Chandni Rathi with the company’s wins at the Northern Rivers Business Awards.
Adding value to dairy waste
ABOUT 710,000 tonnes of Australia’s on-farm milk production is discarded as waste each year but new research could see it transformed into a range of valuable products.
Researchers from the Dairy UP team are investigating fermentation opportunities to convert dairy wastes into value-added products with a commercial market appeal and say that early results are promising.
About eight per cent of Australia’s total on-farm milk production is discarded as waste, mostly post-farm gate, and researcher Juan Gargiulo says this has economic, environmental and food security impacts.
“Although some efficiency could be gained by reducing total waste, it is also possible to turn what would be wasted into a valuable product,” Dr Gargiulo said.
“Fermentation uses microbes such as yeasts to convert dairy wastes into valuable products.
“This is cost-effective and can generate new income streams for farmers and processors as well as reducing waste.”
Dr Gargiulo said fermentation could produce a range of compounds, including stockfeed supplements.
The project includes reviewing dairy food wastes to identify those with the greatest opportunity for reduction, pilot studies to develop yeast strains capable of producing valuable compounds from dairy waste, determining the commercial viability of products and potentially upscaling the commercial implementation.
Dr Gargiulo said the initial review identified
promising opportunities to use fermentation to reduce wastage.
“There are opportunities to use fermentation to create value added products from excess colostrum, milk with abnormal composition, and milk from cows treated with antibiotics (eg. for mastitis),” he said.
“For example, waste milk could be used to
produce microbial protein (also called single-cell protein) as an animal feed or ration additive to improve digestive efficiency.”
The Dairy UP team is focusing on fermentation using brewer’s or baker’s yeast, which is safe for humans and animals.
The project is a collaboration between Dairy UP, Macquarie University’s Australian Genome Foundry and NSW DPI.
Manufacturing waste makes up 70 per cent of all dairy food waste in the supply chain and Dr Gargiulo said there was potential to use microbial fermentation to convert expired milk, cheese whey and other by-products into bioenergy, enzymes, organic acids, biopolymers and biomass.
Dairy UP is investigating opportunities to convert dairy wastes into value-added products. Dairy UP researcher Juan Gargiulo.
Dairy sale is good as gold
BY JEANETTE SEVERS
MICHAEL AND Ash Rood and Steven and Joanne Mirtschin and families offered an outstanding line-up of cows and heifers at the White Gold Lyndema Park Dairy sale of pedigree cattle.
The sale was held on October 17, on-farm at Muswellbrook, NSW.
Cows sold to $10,500 and heifer calves sold to $3300, in the sale billed as Pedigrees in the Pecans.
Buyers travelled from Victoria, NSW and Queensland to the sale of Holstein and Jersey cattle.
The sale was a mix of black and white and red and white Holsteins and Jerseys. Cow families represented Australian and North American bloodlines.
“This line-up of cows represented true to type udders and dairy quality,” Dairy Livestock Services auctioneer Brian Leslie said.
“The depth of pedigree of these cattle will see them go on to do a great job.”
The top-priced cow was lot 25. This long open-framed five-year-old red and white Holstein, Whitegold Apple Crisp Satin-Red, sold at $10,500.
She calved in July and is AI bred and pregnancy-tested-in-calf to sexed Alpha.
This cow was purchased by Daniel Latham, of Latham and Hurrell, of Comboyne NSW. The same buyers purchased lot 24, Whitegold RedApple Satin-Red EX90, calved in April and also AI bred to sexed Alpha. She sold at $9000. Latham and Hurrell also took home lot 17, Whitegold Tatoo Satin, buying her for $7200. This five-year-old cow was sold fresh in-milk.
M. Robertson, of Maxmount Holsteins and Jerseys, Poowong North, in Victoria, paid $8500 for lot 8, Whitegold Diamond Satin Red.
This red and white Holstein was sold as a dry cow, due to calve in late November to Siemers Wolf Hulu 37006-ET.
Lot 40, Parrabel Whitegold Awesome Seisme-Red, also sold at $8500. This red and white Holstein was sold fresh in-milk to Mark Meyland, of Waaia, Victoria.
Her daughter was bought for $7500 by local breeder, Paul Schubert, from near Aberdeen, NSW. The yearling heifer, Whitegold Parrabel Redlight Siesme, was born in May 2023 and listed in the catalogue as lot 41.
The same buyer paid $6200 for lot 43, another yearling heifer, the red and white Whitegold
NEW LAB INCREASES IVF OPTIONS
Vytelle says its new state-of-the-art IVF lab in Melbourne addresses the growing demand for hormone-free genetic solutions in Australia’s largest dairy-producing state.
The Melbourne lab is Vytelle’s first facility in Victoria, its third in Australia, and 21st globally.
The new lab is designed to serve the increasing number of progressive farmers focused on optimising herd performance through advanced genetic technologies.
“We have been very happy with the response from the Victorian dairy community,” said Vytelle Australia’s commercial director Andrew Donoghue after a
successful first week.
“This surge of activity demonstrates the growing demand for reproductive solutions that allow farmers to enhance the genetic potential of their herds sustainably,” he said.
“In particular, producers and farmers are attracted to our hormone-free approach with no donor set-up, and the ability to keep high performing cows pregnant and in the herd while still collecting.”
Mr Donoghue said Vytelle had doubled the number of IVF embryos produced across Australia since the global company expanded its IVF offering here in recent years.
Supreme Heights RC, born in October 2023.
J. Cawcutt of Ripplebrook in Victoria purchased lot 9, Whitegold Allnight Satin-Red for $6500. The daughter of lot 8, lot 9 is a yearling red and white Holstein, born in October 2023.
Robert Wilson of Jamber Farms, Jamberoo, NSW, purchased lot 11, Whitegold Miss Chief Satin, a black and white yearling heifer, for $6000.
Lot 23, Whitegold Mirand W Satin Red P, sold at $5500. This red and white Holstein yearling heifer is polled and descended from a Satin foundation cow and International Dairy Week champions.
Lot 53, one of three EX cows in the sale, Whitegold Salt Maid EX90, sold at $5400. Born in 2019, this black and white Holstein calved in August this year and was sold fresh-in-milk.
“The Melbourne lab is opening up the option for fresh embryo transfers to southern customers, and that is particularly interesting allowing breeders to choose fresh and frozen work depending on their programs and needs for the industry,” he said.
Vytelle’s Brisbane lab has been open for 18 months, serving breeds including Holstein, Angus, Wagyu, Droughtmaster, Brahman and Shorthorn breeders Australia-wide.
“We’re excited to expand our services in Victoria and contribute to the state’s leadership in sustainable dairy and beef farming,” Mr Donoghue said.
Described as an honest brood cow that will provide value to any breeder, lot 10, the 2016born Whitegold Corv Satin, sold fresh-in-milk for $5000, proving that older cows retain value.
Another black and white yearling heifer, lot 4, Whitegold Tatoo Diamond, sold at $5500. Born in February 2023, she is due to calve in April 2025, to Kings-Ransom G Dylan-ET.
Lot 3, Whitegold Eyecandy Aubrey, a yearling black and white heifer, sold at $5000.
Among the heifer Holstein calves, lot 37, Whitegold Latenite Grace Red, born in January 2024, sold at $3300. She is the first red and white Grace calf to be born.
Lot 36, a black and white Grace calf, sold at $2500. This heifer was born in January 2024, from generations of VG and EX.
The top price paid for a Jersey cow was $5000, for lot 60, Whitegold Prime T Delight EX91. She was purchased dry and due in December to River Valley Victorious. She was purchased by Michael and Melinda Hassett, whose dairy farm is near Singleton.
Lot 66, Whitegold Webcam Delight, a threeyear-old Jersey cow, sold dry and due to calve in November to River Valley Victorious, was purchased for $3600.
The one-year-old (at time of sale) Whitegold Vic Delight, a Jersey heifer calf offered as lot 58, sold at $3000.
“The unjoined heifers will go on to do a great job,” Brian Leslie said.
Forty Holsteins averaged $4756, and 21 Jerseys averaged $2993, for an overall sale average of $4215.
Selling agents were Dairy Livestock Services, in conjunction with online bidding through Stocklive.
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Vytelle recently opened its first lab in Victoria.
Whitegold Apple Crisp Satin-Red, a five-year-old red and white Holstein cow, sold for the top price of $10,500. Photo: Dairy Livestock Services.
Master Breeder sells stock
BY JEANETTE SEVERS
THE AMBREWLEA Holsteins complete dispersal sale held at Colac Regional Saleyards on October 8 was well attended.
A large crowd showed their support for Master Breeder Brett Cirillo, of Bungador, who is leaving the dairy industry.
Brett was awarded Holstein Australia’s status of Master Breeder this year. He has spent a lifetime breeding and developing Holsteins.
Brett is the third generation of his family to be a dairy farmer, and started milking on the family farm when he was 15 years old.
The dairy farm is for sale, and he has received significant interest in selling the young stock privately.
“There’s two people interested in buying them,” Brett told Dairy News Australia
“I wasn’t expecting to sell them yet, but it looks likely they will be sold privately.
“If I can sell them into a herd and follow their progress, that’s satisfying for me.”
Some of the important cow families in the Ambrewlea Holsteins herd include the Pam family, the Rose family and the Emerald family.
At the dispersal sale on October 8, the red and white cows demanded a lot of interest.
“They were big cows, with good udders and had lots of type. They were quite big capacity cows,” Dairy Livestock Services auctioneer Brian Leslie said.
“All lots for sale were backed by tremendous lifetime production, with families featuring two generations of 100,000 litres.”
A recent herd production average was 8074 litres, 268kg protein and 317kg fat.
Many lots sold bred to sexed AI.
There were 30 red Holsteins among the 115 lots on offer.
The Ambrewlea Holsteins sale began well and steadily gained momentum.
The sale topped at $6750 for lot 32, Ambrewlea Unstopable Emerald-Red, after 19 bids.
She calved in May and was bred by AI in
August to Diamondback.
This three-year-old cow stayed local, purchased by Brad Salmon, Westmuir Holsteins, Bungador.
“She was a tremendous cow, and I think anyone wanting to invest in reds will do well by her,” Brian said.
Zac Anderson of Sun Vale Holsteins, Numurkah, selected two red and white cows that he paid $4300 each.
Lot 51, Ambrewlea Incredibull Leena-Red is
a five-year-old Holstein, calved in March, and rejoined in July by AI to Diamondback. Lot 82, Ambrewlea Harley Vicki-Red, is a two-year-old milking heifer with a fine udder. She calved in August and was ready to rejoin.
J. Hand selected lot 73, Ambrewlea McApple Jacinta-Red, VG86, paying $4100. The fiveyear-old red and white Holstein is due to calve in February to Aquaman.
The Ewing family of Tarrone paid $4100 after 11 bids for lot 59, Ambrewlea Rose LG
Register now for Australian Dairy Conference 2025 on the Gold Coast from February 12 to 14 and join the best in Australian dairy.
Australia’s premier dairy event is heading to the sun, sand and surf of Surfers Paradise at the Gold Coast Convention Centre, bringing together the latest in dairy knowledge, opinion and innovation.
The usual top-notch program combined with signature social functions, the biggest trade show yet and some extra Gold Coast vibes have been added to the equation in 2025.
Why not combine the conference with a family holiday for the ultimate dairy farmer getaway?
Subtropical dairy tour
Explore the dairy regions of southern Queensland and northern NSW with the 2025 ADC Tour operating the two days leading into conference, thanks to tour sponsors MaxCare and Terragen.
ADC is operating the tour as two day tours returning to the Gold Coast overnight.
ɋ Day one tour: Gatton Research Facility and Toowoomba Feedlot.
ɋ Day two tour: Northern Rivers region.
This is a much-loved pre-conference
71-Red. Born in 2020, this young cow was due in late October to Bodacious.
There were also a few Jerseys in the sale.
Lot 8, Ambrewlea Bella Rose, AI to Big Red in July, sold at $4800. Her two-year-old daughter, lot 9, and due in mid-October to Ambrewlea Phero Frisky, sold at $3200.
The sale average for the Ambrewlea consignment was $2785.
Guest vendors were Instyle Holsteins, the home of the current International Dairy Week Supreme Champion, Instyle Solomon Dahlia. Brenton and Ellie Thomas, Instyle Holsteins, Cooriemungle, sold a small consignment of young cows to a top of $5400, for lot 113, Instyle Doorman Tilly.
The white and black lot 108, Kaloola Solomon Folly, sold at $4000 after 17 bids Lot 104, Instyle Absolute Sunspot-Red, a red and white Holstein, sold at $3600 after seven bids.
“Buyers were from all over Victoria,” Brian Leslie said.
“This was one of the bigger crowds we’ve seen for a while at Colac.
“We think these cows will go away and do a good job for people.”
Selling agents were Dairy Livestock Services and Elders, with online interaction facilitated by Stocklive.
opportunity to get on-farm and check out different enterprises, models and operations in the subtropical part of the country. (Limited places remaining and full itinerary to be confirmed.)
ɋ For more information about ADC, go to: https://www. australiandairyconference.com.au/
ɋ To register for ADC, go to: https:// ccem.eventsair.com/2025australian-dairy-conference/ individual-registration/Site/Register
Master Breeder Brett Cirillo, Ambrewlea Holsteins, Bungador, sold his milking herd recently, to a top price of $6750. Photo: Holsteins Australia.
There were a few Jersey cows in the sale, that sold to a top of $4800 for lot 8, Ambrewlea Bella Rose. Photo: Brett Cirillo.
Andriy Dykun, president of the Milk Producers of Ukraine, was keynote speaker at the 2024 ADC, held in Melbourne.
The art of dairy farming
BY RICK BAYNE
Becoming a dairy farmer brought out the artist in Rachel Nicholson and now she’s sharing her visual love of farming with the world.
Rachel’s Ghinni Ghinni Studio is wall-to-wall dairy cow art, all inspired by her early morning routine of waking up at 4am to collect the cows for milking.
Rachel grew up in Grafton, NSW, with no links to agriculture, but a chance meeting through a mutual farming friend with Sam Nicholson changed the trajectory of her life.
Rachel, 29, and Sam, 32, are now raising their three boys on Jones Island on the mid-north NSW coast, where they farm with Sam’s parents Megan and Geoff.
Although she trained to be a teacher, Rachel knew she had an affinity with farming and moving onto the land with Sam was a perfect marriage.
“I’ve always been fascinated by agriculture and interested in it, even though I went into teaching,” Rachel said.
“I found the transition to farming really exciting and have learnt more than I could have imagined.
“There have been some challenging times, but mostly it has been a really positive experience that I really love.”
Some of the hard times led to artistic creation.
The farm, off the Manning River, was flooded in 2021.
“It’s a good place to be in a drought; not so much in a flood,” Rachel said.
“This is a rare thing for a dairy farmer to say but this year is perfect — but in 2021 we were completely flooded. There wasn’t a blade of grass out of the water.”
However, not even such a dramatic setback could dampen Sam or Rachel’s love of farming.
“We have a really positive outlook,” she said.
“Even after the flood, we didn’t have a negative view. We only look upwards and onwards.
“We put in a big feedpad that could keep cows out of any future floods. We’re constantly trying to future-proof the farm and make it more sustainable.”
Around this time, Rachel started to get interested in art, but it was a year later when the bug really took hold.
“I haven’t always been artistic; it’s only been in the past three or four years that I have been painting,” Rachel said.
“Lismore was flooded 12 months to the week from when our place was flooded.
“I was watching the footage of cows swimming down the river and it brought back all the memories. I felt helpless and didn’t know what to do.
“I had this image pop into my mind of cows as the heroes, helping us to get through those hard times. I sat down and painted it straight away — Jerseys with buckets, mops and umbrellas.
“It felt like a great way to express my emotions and to look at farming in a different way and to express how we feel about our land and our animals.”
Rachel Nicholson is inspired by her cows and environment.
Rachel Nicholson uses coffee to produce cow-related greeting cards.
Farming brought out Rachel’s dormant art abilities, and it shows no sign of stopping.
While she will return to teaching next year after maternity leave and continues to raise Albert, 5, Joey, 3, and Wilbur, 1, Rachel is also expanding her artistic pursuits and will continue to focus on her cows and farming life.
She has been selling oil paintings for a few years and has recently added line drawings and greeting cards painted with coffee.
“I thought making them into greeting cards would make my art more accessible and easier to share with people,” she said.
For Rachel, the best part of farming is the cows.
“I absolutely love the cows. They are the most beautiful, intelligent animals.
“The connection you can have with them is what makes it all worthwhile.
“When you wake up at four o’clock in the morning and get out into the paddock and see them all there waiting for you, it makes everything worthwhile.”
That 4am experience is a massive influence on her art.
“I recently did a series of works work around my love for 4am.
“At that time of day, I hop out of bed, go out into the paddock and it’s just me, the stars, the cows and the dogs. It’s just perfect.”
Apart from bringing in the cows for milking and giving them a pat, she also takes a lot of photos that become the inspiration for her art.
“I like moody photos that try to capture what I feel in the moment — the stillness and peacefulness.
“There was a moment last year when I went out to bring the cows in for the morning shift and I took a photo. It was so moody and captured everything I felt.
“That’s when it really took off and when I thought I really want to paint cows and share dairy farming with the world through this medium and share our story through my art.
“Dairy farming can be really hard and challenging but my art helps me to focus on the beautiful moments and the simple joys within dairy farming.
“I like to focus on the cows and their personalities and the land around us that we care for.”
Rachel hopes to buy a camera to start night photography.
“Photos help me to look for those beautiful things.”
Sam’s parents have been dairy farmers for 30 years. After many years of leasing, they purchased the farm eight years ago when Sam was ready to come home after university.
Their Boondabah Holsteins make up most of the 250-strong herd, although they also have some Jerseys and Ayrshires.
Rachel does two milking shifts each week and is also part of NSW Women in Dairy, helping to run the annual Bale Up Conference.
“That’s something I’m really passionate about,” she said.
“Sam and I really love the dairy industry and I just want to capture the simple joys and beauty within dairy farming.”
ɋ Rachel can be found on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/ghinni_ghinni_ studio/or at: http://www.ghinnighinnistudio
An early-morning photo of a cow on their Jones Island farm. The art of ‘hero’ Jersey cows that started Rachel Nicholson’s artistic pursuits.
Free to farm in a new world
BY RICK BAYNE
The first things the Pol family noticed about farming in Australia were the hills and open spaces. But it’s the freedom of farming here that has left a lasting impression.
Moving from a flat 43-hectare farm in The Netherlands to a 190-hectare property in Jancourt East, in south-west Victoria, was like moving to a new world and meant totally re-thinking their farming systems.
It’s a decision they’ve never regretted. Albert and Carin Pol and their children — Jacquelien, Nico and Harm-Jan and his partner Leonie — are now relishing the challenges and benefits of Australia’s open farming system.
There are still frustrations, but they no longer feel overwhelmed by the government reg-
the average 120) on 43 hectares using a barn system.
The weather is similar to south-west Victoria, though the rain is more evenly spread across the year and the winters tend to be colder.
“We never grazed cows because we had the barn system, but no farmers would graze their cows over winter,” Albert said. Everything is set up on the flat, low-lying land to quickly get rid of rainwater.
Dairying in The Netherlands is primarily barn-based, but about 80 per cent of farmers graze their cows during summer or spring.
Those grazing cows for at least 120 days of the year get a premium for their milk but the Pol farm wasn’t set up for that option.
However, they were self-sufficient with home-grown feed. “We made enough silage to
the difficulties of farming in a heavily-regulated environment.
When it comes to the problems caused by government regulations, Albert jokes that there are “too many to put in the paper”.
“When I was 18, we were on a different farm and the government would say you don’t have to leave but if you stay you have to follow the rules,” Albert said.
“All the farms in that area are now gone. At that time, we moved to the northern part of The Netherlands but five years later the same system started again. After a while you get sick of it.”
“They slowly push you out,” Jacquelien said.
“They make it more difficult and at some point, you will just go away,” Nico added.
“Land prices drop because no-one wants to move to your area, so if you’re the last one to leave, you’re not getting much. It’s a bit similar to what happens here with the blue gums — if they go up near your farm, your value drops.”
Harm-Jan added that the biggest problems
in The Netherlands happened after the quota system ended in 2015.
“Everyone started milking like crazy and then there were problems with emissions and the government put in rules that you had to cut back to the numbers you had two years earlier. Some farmers even had to go 20 per cent below their previous numbers.”
During those two years, there were farmers that extended their barns to allow for more cows but were then told that number wouldn’t be allowed, leaving new barns half-empty. The government tracks individual farm herd numbers.
While The Netherlands exports its top-quality milk, it relies on imports for the “cheap stuff” that people want in the supermarkets.
“The cost of exports reflects the costs of producing milk in the country,” Albert said.
“It’s hard because you have to compete with other countries in Europe where the regulations aren’t as tough, but the milk price you receive isn’t any different.”
Jacquelien, Carin, Albert, Nico and Harm-Jan Pol enjoy the freedom of farming in Australia compared to the heavy regulation of The Netherlands.
The Pol family had a flat 43-hectare farm in The Netherlands but now farm a hilly 190-hectare property in south-west Victoria.
The regulations generally target environmental concerns. Among other regulations, farmers have been told they have to cut back from using up to 250 kg of nitrogen to 170 kg.
In April 2021 the family moved to Australia. They had visited in 2018-19, travelling across dairy regions in NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.
With its green pastures and relatively reliable rainfall, they chose south-west Victoria.
“There were more farms available in this area and the prices were better than Gippsland at the time,” Harm-Jan said.
Nico, who is now based in Melbourne and training to be a helicopter pilot, added that they decided to stay on the mainland, eliminating Tasmania from the equation, but Australia was the stand-out option.
“Australia is self-sufficient and it’s a real market system and we like that,” Albert said.
“You’re free to make your own choices.”
“We know there have been hard times here — it was absolutely awful what happened with Murray Goulburn — but in terms of freedom you can do the things you like and not be told by government what you can or can’t do,” Nico added.
“Farming is a form of freedom, but you don’t have that anymore in The Netherlands.”
The family had planned to visit in July 2020 to select a farm but that was stopped due to the pandemic. Instead, they had to rely on photos and descriptions when bidding.
They were happy with the outcome.
“The first impression we all had was that it’s really hilly,” Jacquelien said.
“We’re used to it now and it’s not an issue but when we arrived and went on the motorbikes and saw some of the hills, we were worried about how we would farm it.”
It was like starting again, learning a new way
of farming in a new environment, but the support of suppliers and local farmers made the transition easier.
The farm, previously leased for 17 years, covers 190 hectares. They took 90 cows from the departing farmer, bought 150 from Timboon and gradually topped up numbers to hit 300.
In The Netherlands they used three-way cross Holstein, Jersey and Fleckvieh cows but are concentrating on Holsteins in Australia.
“We want commercial medium-sized cows, because we think they are stronger and pug paddocks less in wet times,” Albert said. Although they have noticed less lameness with the cows on grass rather than concrete.
Adjusting to a new way of farming involved some research and plenty of listening to neighbours, suppliers and the Port Campbell and Cooriemungle discussion group.
“It’s not the way we’re used to, but you’re in another country and you have to learn the way they farm and leave what you knew at home,” Albert said.
“We used to harvest the paddocks six times a year when they were ready, now we have to lock up paddocks and work around one harvest.”
Apart from paddock rotations, they have also been trying to get effluent on paddocks at the back of the farm rather than just near the dairy, which has been difficult with the hills.
They calve in autumn and spring, different to the year-round calving in The Netherlands.
“The first time you think it’s a bit much but you get used to it. It’s nice to get it done in just two seasons,” Harm-Jan said.
They’ve had to work with new terminology — for example, ‘milk solids’ isn’t a thing in The Netherlands — and another big difference is milk factory shopping and changing banks which rarely happens in Europe.
While they have had to contend with three “not normal ... according to the locals” seasons, the Pols have embraced family and farming life in Australia.
They have plans for a larger feedpad and a new dairy in the future, but they’re sitting pretty with the farming system.
When asked the best thing about farming in Australia, the answer is unanimous. Freedom.
“There will be more regulation here but there’s more space for farming. There’s enough space here so I don’t think regulation will be
as big an issue as it is in Europe,” Albert said.
“When we left The Netherlands there was enough milk, now four years later they’re asking for more farmers.”
“I think we came in at a good time with a rising milk price. It was a risky move as property prices were going up and to buy something without looking at it in person; but looking back it was the best decision we could have made,” Harm-Jan adds.
“You don’t have the pressure that you have in The Netherlands.”
The family moved to Australia in 2021, buying the property based on photos.
A real taste of Australia. The cows sometimes share their paddocks with a visiting koala.
Although initially worried about the terrain, the Pol family (from left) Nico, Carin, Albert, Harm-Jan and Jacquelien have adapted to the hills.
How fresh is milk?
RESEARCHERS AT UNSW Computer Science and Engineering have developed a smartphone sensor that can detect if milk is fresh or spoiled.
Named VibMilk, the technology uses a smartphone's vibration motor and inertial measurement unit (IMU) to assess milk freshness without needing to open the package.
The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation has estimated that 20 per cent of dairy products are wasted globally each year — and a huge part of that is made up of wasted milk.
Additionally, a lot of food-borne illnesses have been linked to the intake of spoiled dairy products.
VibMilk allows for real-time detection of whether milk is safe to consume, using a device that many people already own, and has the potential to reduce food waste and improve food safety.
Professor Wen Hu from UNSW Computer Science and Engineering leads the team behind the technology.
“You can smell or taste if milk is off, but that requires opening the package,” he said.
“Doing so exposes it to bacteria, and that accelerates spoilage. VibMilk is non-invasive, which means you can test the freshness of the milk without breaking the seal.”
VibMilk isn’t the first non-invasive way to test the freshness of milk.
However, previous methods require either specialised and costly equipment, a custom cup, or only work with semi-transparent or transparent containers; all factors that limit widespread adoption.
How does it work?
Milk goes off due to the growth of bacteria, which increases lactate levels and decreases glucose levels.
Milk changes from a colloid to a mixture of curds, whey, and water, affecting its density, viscosity, and surface tension. These different physical properties lead to different responses to vibration signals.
VibMilk captures vibration signals produced by the smartphone motor using the IMU sensor in smartphones. It then leverages machine learning algorithms to analyse the signals and classify the spoiling milk at 23 pH levels
Testing on four common smartphones showed that VibMilk can predict the pH values of milk with an average accuracy of 98.35 per cent and achieved a 100 per cent accuracy for indicating fresh milk.
But there’s a ‘use-by’ date
Use-by dates printed on packaging can’t accurately predict when milk will actually go off, says Prof Hu.
“The ‘use-by’ date represents an indication rather than a definitive expiration,” he said.
“When manufacturers set these dates, they make assumptions about factors like temperature and storage duration based on worst-case scenarios.
“If milk is kept at the correct conditions (eg. temperature), it could still be safe to consume a couple days past the labelled date. But if it’s not, it might not even be good until that date.
“That’s why we believe consumers should be able to test food items right around that date or even just past it before making a decision about consumption.
“This can help prevent unnecessary discards, which is crucial in areas facing food shortages. “In the future, we aim to collaborate with charities to promote this technology in areas where people don’t have enough food and it’s most beneficial.” Next
To
plans to investigate how different packaging materials affect vibration signals, as the signals pass through the packaging.
“While we have good results with our current methods, we can't guarantee the same with products from other manufacturers using different materials,” Prof Hu said.
“So, before consumers can widely adopt this technology, we need to work with more manufacturers.”
The team is also working with a manufacturer
of milk in NSW who is trying to find an efficient and reliable way to quality-check thousands of bottles of milk during production in their factory.
“While we’re looking for something similar, since it’s a factory environment, we don’t need to use a smartphone; we can use more sophisticated, yet non-invasive, sensors,” Prof Hu said.
“We’re developing a system with them to measure the pH values of their milk before it is sent to stores.”
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VibMilk uses a smartphone to assess milk freshness without needing to open the package.
Separating good from bad
BY JEANETTE SEVERS
ONE OF the challenges with dairy farming is separating the milk of those heifers and cows that are fresh-in-milk or being treated with antibiotics.
Lely has a solution with the M4Use, which enables colostrum and milk to bypass the vat and be collected from those heifers and cows.
The M4Use contains buckets where the individual cow’s colostrum or other milk is collected into.
This can then be disposed of, or in the case of colostrum, given to calves.
Dale Serong, from Lely Center Gippsland, said there is a lid on each bucket, which enables the quality of the colostrum to be checked.
“The robot unit’s software enables the farmer to identify the cow whose milk is bypassing the system, and the calf that should receive the colostrum,” Dale said.
“The farmer can also draft so all fresh-inmilk cows come through the one robot unit.”
This means only one tray of M4Use buckets needs to be installed in the dairy.
Peter Joyce had the M4Use installed when his two new Lely robot milking units were retrofitted, into what had been his herringbone dairy at Strzelecki in Victoria.
He feeds the colostrum to his newborn calves by carrying the buckets to the nearby calf rearing shed.
All other calves receive fortified milk powder mixed with water.
Peter also uses this system to separately collect the milk from cows that are being treated for mastitis.
“I used to hate when a cow got mastitis, but with this system it’s easy to monitor and treat her,” Peter said.
“If I had a cow that had a bit of a high cell count from a herd test, I’d probably treat her.
“I’m finding now, I draft her to this robot unit and collect her milk separately, and I can watch her cell count come down daily.
“I can check in the bucket, and if she’s got
clots, I might give her a dose of penicillin in the quarter.
“A lot of the time, the cow’s cell count will come back down on its own.
“And the system will automatically put the cow into the robot unit with the buckets, and the milk goes down the drain.
The bucket system can be automated at the receiving end, by installing pipes that convey the milk to the calf shed.
Alternately, the buckets of colostrum could be transported in a trailer.
“I can program into the system to keep doing drafting the cow to that robot unit and continue to dump her milk down the drain, until her cell count comes down to normal.”
The Lely M4Use unit is installed next to a robot milking unit to collect milk from cows that have been drafted through that unit because they are fresh-in-milk or being treated with animal veterinary products.
Each individual bucket is paired to a cow.
The milk in the bucket can be checked for clots or other irregularities, so the cow’s health can be monitored.
Each M4 Use unit contains three buckets.
Women celebrate solidarity
ONCE AGAIN, a group of rural women added their own brand of magic to the NSW Women in Dairy (WiD) Bale Up Conference in Sydney from September 9 to 12.
More than 100 women from throughout rural NSW and Victoria converged on Sydney’s inner city for the annual conference that has now been held in various centres around the state.
The conference has a focus on bridging the gap between the farmer and the general public, rural health, and personal stories of rural women who shared personal challenges and how they survived.
Keynote speaker, sports broadcaster Erin Molan, didn’t mince words on her own career challenges in a male-dominated world combined with the judgement of social media.
This conference continues to hit a nerve for some special reasons, according to its organisers.
Its Master of Ceremony June Tarlinton comes from the generation who “soldiered on” and found relief in humour. She was joined by the next generation who find solace in connection and expression.
“I think this year was more difficult to organise because it was in the heart of Sydney, but
I think the outcome was fabulous,” June said.
“The extra activities we could do because we were in the city included the harbour cruise and the Harbour Bridge Climb.
“For me, the speakers this year really resonated because they told the truth and shared their honest feelings.
“It was very emotional — but extraordinary at the same time.”
Creating safe spaces June says WiD continues to curate a “safe space” for women.
“I think it’s because women can come and be themselves and express themselves the way they actually do feel.
“The girls who plan this conference fully understand the experiences the guest speakers have had, because they’ve experienced some of those things themselves.”
NSW WiD president Renae Connell, from Dorrigo, NSW, together with her vice-president Gemma Otton, from Candelo, met at the conference five years ago when they first attended. Now, they lead the movement.
“We try and keep it authentic to us, and we’ve got a clear goal of it not being corporate,” Renae said.
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“There are other conferences out there that do that. In the early days a lot of feedback was that they want to come and learn, but they also need that connection with other women that were doing the same thing.
“They wanted this to be different, and that’s what it is.
“I’ve got lovely girlfriends who live in town, and I talk to them about my struggles with being on the land and having a dairy farm, and although they try, they don’t really get it.
“It’s really important for dairying women to all get together and realise they aren’t alone. That there are other women who go through similar things.”
Gemma agreed.
“We like to keep the conference upbeat, but we know that the dairy industry isn’t all fun and games, and cute little calf pictures. We try and keep that real,” she said.
“Because there are a lot of isolated dairy communities in Australia.
Bega is Bega ... it’s just Bega. Up the far north coast, farms are in little pockets.
“In Victoria, there is more dairy and they are all quite close together.
“Being able to link those Victorian and our NSW ladies and realise that we are all doing the
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same thing in different places and in different ways is important.”
The point of it all
Renae said whether they had 100 or 200 attendees wasn’t the point.
“We’re always happy to get whoever we get. Whether we’re helping 100 or 130 women, it’s still helping.
“It’s still really important, and we do the same amount of work for 30 people as we would for 130.”
Dorrigo plateau farmer Donna Darley came to the conference after the men in her family encouraged her to get off-farm for a break.
She was grateful they pushed her to take some time away from their 380-cow operation.
“I’m going home with more connection and the realisation that we are all in the same boat at the end of the day,” Donna said.
“You get all these things in your head that it’s too expensive, but you’ve just got to think of yourself sometimes.
“We’re all at different levels in our progress and stage of life.
“The older ones can learn from the younger ones and the younger ones have a lot of vibe and drive, but they’ve got families as well
Milk Cooling Tanks
Visiting Leppington Pastoral was a highlight for many.
Photo: Dianna Malcolm.
Erin Molan is an Australian television sports presenter – who is also a survivor of domestic violence – and didn’t pull punches in her address on either subject. Photo: Joanne Dickson.
The chance to climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge tempted this game group, which included an 81-year-old.
Photo: Bridgeclimb Sydney
Dr Ellen Downes is also a farmer and heavily involved in the dairy section of the Sydney Royal Easter Show. She spoke from her role as a rehabilitation physician with an interest in general rehabilitation, cancer rehabilitation, amputation, geriatrics, neurological conditions, spinal cord injury, acquired brain injury and orthopaedics.
Photo: Joanne Dickson.
Dorrigo plateau farmer Donna Darley talks with Daviesway DASCO’s Cindy Lucas. Donna said the conference was cathartic for her.
Photo: Joanne Dickson.
A gala dinner on the Showboat Sydney Harbour Charter gave everyone photo opportunities.
Photo: Joanne Dickson.
so it’s nice to encourage them through the system.
“I walked away thinking that maybe I can put a little bit more into my own system.
“Because you get to the point where you wonder, ‘What else can I do?’ But then you listen to some of the stories, and you realise that you have a heap more to give.
“It was great to get a reset and a new perspective.”
Sponsors behind the scenes
Daviesway DASCO has been one of the conference’s consistent sponsors, acknowledging WiD’s important role within industry.
Daviesway DASCO’S Keryn Nunan was impressed.
“It was my first time here personally since joining Daviesway, and I left feeling very reassured that we have so many great mentors, young and old, leading our industry,” Keryn said.
“The passion, energy and initiatives from the younger participants was so inspiring.
“The stories of hardship, tragedy and challenge highlighted how fragile life can be, but there is always a sisterhood who will believe in you, pick you up, and help mend the pieces.
“The true success of an event is when a committee — that are all volunteers — make it look so seamless.”
Changing outcomes
Once again, the conference included the Rural Adversity Mental Health Program’s Jennie Keioskie.
Jennie, who is based in Bega, has become a popular addition to the conference since its inception with her upbeat and fun programs that allow people to peel back layers in a safe space.
She said it was important to have consistency and familiar faces, because it took time to build trust in an industry that is incredibly demanding.
“The first time we did Bale Up, those conversations were really challenging for people,” Jennie said.
“Now, mental health is front and centre at every single conference because I think there is an acknowledgement that to be an effective person in life — particularly with all the challenges that dairy farming throws at you — if you’re not okay, there is no way you can be there for other people.
“You can’t make good decisions, you struggle to function day-to-day, and to make good life choices. That includes how you manage your farm and your animals.
“We’ve had people come to us this conference and thank us and tell us that our work here was a turning point in their life, where they had to acknowledge what was happening.
“People have implemented real change, and they have seen the results of their work, and so much so that they are confident to get up and talk about it. It’s been really lovely to hear all that.
“The other thing I’m so immensely proud of — and why I love WiD so much — is that they are an incredible bunch of really strong community-connected individuals.
“If one of them is down, the rest of them moo ... It’s bloody tough out there, and you don’t have to do it alone.
“The quicker you get in there and get the help, the easier it is. Mental health problems are really common, but they are also really treatable.”
Acknowledge the tough and embrace the fun
The secret sauce within this conference is the warmth and inclusiveness, which included a donation to the McGrath Foundation.
The final word went to Gemma Otton in her closing address.
“We’ve made new friends, rekindled old friendships, and hopefully made industry contacts that might actually respond to our messages,” she said.
“Make sure you stay connected in between Bale Up. It really does help in the tough times.
“And, remember life is like a unicorn. Magical, a bit mysterious and always better with a sprinkle of sparkles.
“So, go on out there and chase those rainbows, and may your days be filled with more glitter than a unicorn’s sneeze.”
Next year’s dates and venue are yet to be set, but if you are interested in being involved follow NSW Women in Dairy & Bale Up on Facebook.
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The success of the recent NSW Women in Dairy and Bale Up Conference in Sydney revolved around this team. Photo: Joanne Dickson.
Jessica Gavenlock, from Victoria, was one of the speakers who shared their personal stories for conference goers. Photo: Joanne Dickson.
Blind tennis player Courtney Webeck revealed that she is also an excellent barrel racer and national cricketer.
Photo: Joanne Dickson.
Rural Adversity Mental Health Program’s Jennie Keioskie (left) and Jamie Rose use humour to introduce some tough subjects. Photo: Joanne Dickson.
Ancret Shipton spoke about losing her husband to cancer and her decision to continue farming. Photo: Joanne Dickson.
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Get smart to check health
AS TECHNOLOGY continues to reshape the agricultural industry, dairy farmers are discovering the powerful benefits of advanced cow monitoring systems.
CowManager is a premium solution that uses innovative ear tags to provide real-time, accurate data on cow health, heat detection, and early warning signs of health risks — especially during the critical transition period around calving.
Dairy farmer Henry Bevan from Queensland said the system gave him peace of mind, as well as better results.
“For me personally, I don’t have to worry any more about catching heats or cows getting sick,” Bevan said.
“I get an alert on my mobile wherever I am, and I can attend to it immediately.”
CowManager’s ear tags track key health indicators, allowing farmers to identify potential issues before they escalate.
This is particularly useful during the transition period, when cows are most susceptible to conditions like ketosis, mastitis and metabolic disorders.
By detecting health problems early, farmers can take preventive action, reducing the need for costly treatments and improving overall herd health.
The system also excels at heat detection, helping farmers identify optimal breeding windows. This leads to better conception rates and more efficient breeding programs, ultimately improving farm productivity.
“We got an extra 14 cows in calf with CowManager, which at $2000 each adds up to $28,000,” dairy fitter Isaac Korpershoek from Tasmania said.
“We can trust the system. Tail paint or scratchies we could never trust completely.”
With CowManager, farmers gain access to continuous data on each cow’s behaviour and health.
Monitoring movement patterns, rumination rates, ear temperature and other key metrics helps farmers spot early signs of distress, ensuring they can take action before problems develop.
This proactive approach supports smarter decisions around feed, care and veterinary interventions.
Gippsland dairy farmer Scott Browne said the cost of things like CowManager “always threw me a little”.
“But there’s no comparison from no system to what we’re using now; it’s like chalk and cheese,” he said.
“Once you get it all set up and going you think ‘why didn’t I do this earlier?’.” – From CowManager.
Reaching every dairy farmer in the country
ISSUE: FEBRUARY & MARCH 2025
PASTURE IMPROVEMENTS
Dairy Farmers across the country will be preparing their pastures through autumn. They will be looking to produce high yielding and quality pasture to assist in improving milk production and quality whilst minimise feed costs throughout the year.
The February and March editions of Dairy News Australia will include an extensive Pasture Improvement Special Report to assist farmers in making the best decisions for their pastures. This is your opportunity to influence dairy farmers buying decisions nationwide.
This is your opportunity to influence the buying decisions of dairy farmers nationwide.
BOOKING & EDITORIAL DEADLINE:
AD MATERIAL DEADLINE: PUBLISHED:
February edition January 14, 2025 January 21, 2025 February 4, 2025
CONTACT: Max Hyde Mob: 0408 558 938 E: max.hyde@dairynewsaustralia.com.au
March edition February 11, 2025 February 18, 2025 March 4, 2025
More and more farmers are discovering the benefits of monitoring systems.
Learn to read all the signs
BY DR ROBERT BONANNO
RECENTLY, I was running some training on interpreting the data from herd health monitoring equipment.
The use of collars, tags or rumen boluses to capture information to assist with herd management and health monitoring is becoming more and more common and I am an unashamed fan of the use of technology solutions to assist with herd health decision making.
The data that is collected can assist with such routine tasks as heat detection, detection of sick animals, non-cycling cows and timing of insemination.
The different types of technology include collars, tags or boluses.
They are like ‘Fitbits for cows’ and there are multiple service providers who are selling or distributing the products.
There is also a great deal of variation that I see with the level of support and training provided in the use of the products, and also considerable variability in the ability of the monitoring equipment to integrate with other farm technology like herd management software, draft gates and milk metering equipment, so doing your homework prior to investing in this technology is advised.
The ideal set-up would integrate with all the other farm technology, be supported by a team of experts who can train and support farmers in their use, be robust and reliable and cost effective.
In seasonal calving herds, identifying non-cycling cows prior to, or as soon as possible after, mating start date is an incredibly valuable use of the monitoring equipment to improve submission rates and increase sixweek in-calf rates, and in year-round calving herds it can help to identify cows who might need to be on the herd health visit list.
Unfortunately, health alerts are often switched off, offered as an add on at additional charge or simply ignored by farmers because they struggle to interpret the health alerts.
This is an incredible shame to not harness the potential health benefit of this incredible tool just because no-one has taken the time to help you to understand what a health alert might mean, how to examine a cow to increase your likelihood of determining the cause and also what to do if you cannot identify a cause
for the alert while waiting to see if it develops into something that might need veterinary care.
Generally speaking, the health alert will be triggered if a cow shows reduced activity and reduced rumination, though some of the various types can also measure temperature, lying and eating time and rumen pH to help to accurately determine whether a cow might be feeling unwell.
In my experience with use of collars and ear tags to generate health alerts, I have noticed several things, one of which is that many cows will show a health alert when they have a case of clinical mastitis.
This is interesting because very few farmers recognise mastitis as being a disease that affects anything other than the udder, except for those occasional severe acute or toxic/black mastitis cases.
Over the past several years, there have been multiple studies published that have looked at the use of anti-inflammatories in mastitis and revealed that routine use of anti-inflammatory drugs when treating cases of clinical mastitis can have significant effects on reducing the risk of culling so that there is an economic return on this treatment, primarily due to the effect of improving fertility in cows affected with mastitis in early lactation.
Therefore, when I set a farm’s treatment protocols for mastitis, I routinely include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Ketoprofen, Tolfedine or Meloxicam with whatever antibiotic treatment I am prescribing.
Not just because it is good animal welfare to provide pain relief for a painful condition, but also because I have seen the evidence from collar and tag data that tells me that even cows who don’t seem to be systemically affected to the naked eye have reduced activity, eating and rumination and increased lying time.
For farms who have invested in wearable herd monitoring equipment but might not be able to capture the full benefits either due to lack of instruction in its use or lack of experience in undertaking a thorough routine clinical examination of cows showing a health alert, you can reach out to your local ProDairy herd health veterinarians as this an area of special interest for many of our team.
– Dr Rob Bonanno is ProDairy regional manager for Gippsland, northern Victoria and areas in NSW.
BIRD FLU FUNDING WELCOMED
Australian Dairy Farmers has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement of an extra $95 million in preparedness funding for the H5 strain of avian influenza.
ADF president Ben Bennett said biosecurity remained a critical issue for the viability of the dairy industry, with rare cases of cross-infection between birds and livestock having been reported.
Mr Bennett said losses to dairy farmers would be “significantly” less likely compared to the egg industry.
“However, given the crossover of a rare strain of the virus to dairy cattle in the United States, and in very rare cases a small group of workers with minor symptoms, we are taking the H5 strain of the virus seriously,” Mr Bennett said.
“We are pleased to see the Federal Government is on the front foot with additional funding.
“We know the arrival of spring migratory birds is increasing the risk of avian influenza arriving on our shores, making it more important than ever to make sure on-farm biosecurity practices and processes are up to scratch.”
ProDairy can assist you with the development of a tailored plan:
• On-farm visit by a ProDairy veterinarian.
• Review of the current biosecurity principles, the major risks and actions taken to reduce those risks.
• Development of a customised biosecurity plan.
Visit prodairy.com.au for more information.
ADF and the broader dairy sector have been working on an industry-specific response plan in conjunction with Animal Health Australia and other agriculture industries.
Mr Bennett said Australia had rigorous and robust biosecurity and food safety systems and regulations to protect industry and consumers.
“We have the added advantage of forewarning and learning from what has occurred in the United States,” he said.
“We are working closely with industry and government to further strengthen our biosecurity and ensure we’ve the right support in place.
“In particular, farmers need help to bolster on-farm biosecurity and surveillance measures to assist early detection and reporting.
“We also welcome support for increased testing to ensure strain variation identification and preparation for potential losses, including proper quarantine, decontamination and disposal of milk and impacted birds.”
Mr Bennett urged all farmers to keep the national biosecurity hotline number close to hand and immediately report any suspicious cases of sick wild or domestic birds.
“Australian Dairy Farmers will be continuing to keep a close eye on the situation, helping ensure the industry is aligned and prepared,” he said.
The biosecurity hotline is
Australian Dairy Farmers president Ben Bennett.
Right-to-repair on agenda
BY ANDY WILSON
PEAK FARMING bodies have applauded the Federal Government’s plans to limit repair monopolies as part of a $900 million red tape-cutting productivity reform package.
GrainGrowers, the National Farmers’ Federation and the Tractor and Machinery Association of Australia welcomed the plans to improve consumers’ right-to-repair and emphasised the need for such rights to extend to all large farm machinery.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers made the announcement in his address to the Australian Business Economists forum on November 13.
“I expect we’ll start by fast-tracking the adoption of trusted international product safety standards and developing a general right-torepair,” Mr Chalmers said.
Tractor and Machinery Association of Australia executive director Gary Northover said the association’s members across the agricultural machinery supply chain supported Australian farmers wanting to improve competition and productivity by having high-quality and safe agricultural machinery with less downtime .
“The TMA has already been working hard to advance collective industry efforts to join our global counterparts in providing right-to-repair for farmers,” Mr Northover said.
“(Some) members are already servicing the right-to-repair needs of farmers.”
GrainGrowers chief executive officer Shona
Gawel said broken-down machinery was “more than an inconvenience”.
“It’s (also) a significant financial loss for growers,” Ms Gawel said.
“Currently, restrictive repair rules limit growers’ choices, making them feel less like owners of their machinery and more like renters.
“This can delay critical repairs, impacting productivity and profitability.”
GrainGrowers has been working with the (NFF) on a select right-to-repair taskforce.
NFF chief executive officer Tony Mahar said a scenario where manufacturers and farmers could work constructively on a right-to-repair framework for farm machinery was something he was committed to.
He said the NFF also wanted a commitment for farm machinery to be included.
“What we need is greater flexibility for farmers to repair their equipment, like what other countries have achieved for their farm sector,” Mr Mahar said.
“We’ve been pursuing the right-to-repair to give farmers greater flexibility to use a suitably qualified repairer of their choice without fear of voiding warranties and travelling long distances — or waiting excessive periods — to access supplier repairers.
“We haven't been able to land any such arrangements so far.
“When machinery is out of action during harvest, it costs time and money.”
Mr Mahar said the right-to-repair would align with the recommendations from the ACCC, Productivity Commission and academics and
would also bring Australia in line with Canada and Colorado in the United States, where rightto-repair is law.
“This is a practical and sensible solution that will support farmers, boost the farm sector’s productivity and level out the playing field with our international competitors.”
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Ms Gawel said GrainGrowers would continue to advocate on the issue.
“With the accessibility and cost of parts and labour in the agricultural machinery space seeing little improvement in recent years, it is essential that the sector keeps pushing this agenda forward,” she said.
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers is under pressure from agriculture groups to include all farming machinery in new right-to-repair reforms. (AAP image/Lukas Coch)
Versatility and reliability
A FARMER and hay contractor of 35 years is predicting a short hay baling season with lower yields following dry conditions in the NSW western Riverina and northern Victorian Murray River regions.
Scott Douglas, of D&S Contracting, has 970 hectares at Barham and 120ha under irrigation at Leitchville, where he grows lucerne and hay and runs beef cows.
His contracting business has been producing bales for the region’s dairy and beef farmers for almost four decades.
“We produce a lot of round bales for dairy farmers because they often lack on-farm storage for square bales,” Mr Douglas said.
“In contrast, we do more square bales for beef farmers across the river, and they are also more efficient for freight.
“We also know that if the weather looks uncertain, we produce more round bales because they can tolerate slightly higher moisture levels.
“This makes them easier to manage compared to square bales, which need stricter moisture control due to fire risks in storage.”
During his time farming in the region, Scott has owned roughly 24 balers.
Ahead of this baling season he took delivery of two New Holland T7 tractors and two 1290 Big Balers, adding to a New Holland Pro-Belt Baler he bought last season.
All of his new machines were supplied by Rural Group Echuca, part of the AEH Group, which also has branches in Shepparton and Cobram.
Mr Douglas emphasised the need for versatile and reliable machinery to succeed in an
industry with so many seasonal variables.
“New Holland balers are a reliable piece of kit, have low maintenance costs, and retain their value should I want to sell them down the track.
“The 1290 balers are a long-term investment in the future of our contracting business.”
Mr Douglas said he really liked the technology in New Holland balers, especially the automatic start-stop feature of the Pro-Belt Baler.
“It ensures consistent bale quality, as it wraps each bale precisely without operator intervention, preventing any overruns.
great addition to the fleet. They’re versatile and ‘all-rounders’. “They’re big enough to get the job done, but still light and manoeuvrable for the smaller jobs.
“I’ve tried all the colours under the sun but have consistently returned to New Holland for their service, support, and price point.”
“The tube wrap turned out perfectly uniform, making all the bales look like a roll of lifesavers. Overall, the system works wonderfully.”
Rural Group general manager Sean Morey said machine uptime, no matter the season, was integral to the success of the dealership’s customers.
He said the winning combination had been the pairing of his new New Holland square balers and Pro-Belt Baler with his New Holland T7 tractors.
“As such, we pride ourselves on the support and service we have been able to provide people like Scott to ensure that their machines are meeting their needs and are performing during baling,” Sean said.
“The T7s from New Holland have been a
Farmer and hay contractor Scott Douglas will rely on the versatility and reliability of his New Holland T7 tractors and 1290 Big Balers ahead of a ‘quick, short’ hay season.
Scott Douglas relies on New Holland machinery.
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•Agglutinates and binds E. coli and Salmonella enterica.
• Agglutinate and bind E. coli and Salmonella enterica
•Reduces the incidence, severity and duration of mastitis and cryptosporidiosis infection.
• Reduce the incidence, severity and duration of mastitis and cryptosporidiosis infection
• Reduce blood stress markers during and after transport and temperature stress.
•Reduces blood stress markers during and after transport and temperature stress.
• Minimise cytotoxic damage caused by a variety of mycotoxins and carryover of aflatoxins in milk
• Improve weight gains and performance in calves and milk yields in lactating cows
•Minimises cytotoxic damage caused by a variety of mycotoxins and carryover of aflatoxins in milk.
•Improves weight gains and performance in calves and milk yields in lactating cows.
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