AginED
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FOR E FUTURIA G R R S! U PR EN E
Volume 83 I November 15th, 2021 I email: agined@globalHQ.co.nz I www.farmersweekly.co.nz/agined
☞ THE COVID CHAT
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No doubt you are all hearing, seeing, or reading so many different opinions regarding the covid vaccination situation. To vaccinate or not to vaccinate can leave some people feeling overwhelmed, stressed, pushed, confused and more. It is ok to be feeling these things as we are living in such a strange uncertain world at the moment. There are so many views to this conversation, and it may have left your head spinning. I made my personal decision to get vaccinated based on medical facts and to protect not only myself but my family and the community around me. I felt that there are plenty of vulnerable people who aren’t able to get the vaccination and how scary that must be for them. The thing that scares me the most is the influence that social media is having on people’s decision making, especially for our younger generations like you guys. If you are unsure what to do and the whole thing is causing you to feel worried or anxious or scared, then please go and see your local doctor or nurse for
some professional advice. Facebook and Instagram are NOT platforms we should be basing a potentially lifechanging decision off! If you are feeling pressured by friends to sway one way, then you are in your right to remind them that it is your decision and go and seek independent advice from a professional. We should not be losing friendships over this conversation, and you are allowed to make the best decision for yourself and your family alone. If you are not coping with the things happening around you in the world at the moment, please remember to talk to an adult who you trust, go to your doctor for a chat or simply contact any one of the following rural organisations:
a fishy tail
Approximately 450,000 tonnes of seafood excluding aquaculture is harvested from New Zealand waters each year? See if you can find the different species of fish in the word find below.
It is always ok to ask for help for yourself or to get some advice about how to help someone you may be worried about. The services above all are 100% confidential and professional. I recently turned my phone off for 24 hours while I went camping in the middle of nowhere. It's the best thing you can do for your mental health and wellbeing. Pop that phone on flight mode and get outside for some much needed fresh air and don’t base your decision making on a post you see on social media!
Farmstrong contact and support by ringing or texting 1737 (for free). Rural Support Trust Coordinator on 0800 787 254 Will To Live NZ, I want help, page https://www. willtolivenz.com/i-want-help
Cows prefer temperatures under 20degC and as we know in New Zealand our temperatures are often well in excess of this. Consequently, cows can suffer from heat stress, where like humans your body basically begins to shut down and not operate correctly. A collective called Tropical Dairy Group (TDG) has successfully bred a cow that is naturally heat-tolerant and produces good milk. After more than a decade of natural breeding they have a herd of 500, that are polled, are a2 milkers and are tolerant to heat. Follow the link to your right to read the full article and then see if you can answer the following questions. 1 What is the gene called that is linked to heat resistance in cows? When was this gene discovered? 2 What is the difference in body temperature between “slick cows” and regular dairy cows?
Harriet
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TARAKIHI HOKI BUTTERFISH MONKFISH
GEMFISH BLUE COD BLUENOSE TREVALLY
GROPER HAKE KAHAWAI ALFONSINO
SNAPPER CLAMS MUSSELS KINA
Play this puzzle online at : https:// thewordsearch.com/puzzle/3006368/
3 It has been found that slick cows drink less but still produce at least as much, if not more, milk than the average cow. How would this be of benefit to farmers on an emissions basis?
4 What is A2 milk? Why do some people have a preference for this type of milk? 5 Which countries currently provide key markets for TDG? What countries are they looking to distribute semen straws and embryos in the future? To read the full article head to: https://farmersweekly.co.nz/s/fw-article/cool-cows-producemore-milk-MCWGJ4HP3BIRHYDN65INWXHN2WWU?utm _ term=Read%20more%205&utm _ id=e6a05abf-08e5-4589-93b9-3f2db32b4ec7&sfmc _ activityid=c7a0a052-b415-43dd-9405a7dbe85168ef&utm _ medium=email&utm _ source=sfmc&utm _ content=19063
1 What volume of beef was exported from Australia in October? 2 How does this compare to year-ago and the five-yearaverage? 3 In what month and year on this graph have exports been at the highest level? 4 In what month and year on this graph have exports been at the lowest level?
STRETCH YOURSELF: 1 Overall, how do exports this year compare to the previous year and the five-year-average? 2 By looking at the five-year-average, what would Australian beef export volumes do for the remainder of 2021? Would they start increasing or decreasing? 3 Low export volumes are being caused by low supply of cattle at processors, in fact Meat and Lamb Australia expect slaughter forecasts to reach the lowest level in 36 years. Is this a good or bad thing for NZ beef exporters? Why or why not?
4 This has supported record highs for farmgate beef prices in Australia in the last month of AUS$7.21/kg at the time of writing for a 300-400kg CWT steer. What is the percentage increase compared to the same time last year when values were AUS$6.22/kg?