Dairy Farmer April 2021

APRIL 2021 | $8.95

Finding the sweet spot Waikato farmers’ journey to make their farm sustainable and profitable

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Giving farmers a voice ➜ Farmer representation matters ➜ Tackling climate change ➜ Milk may help fight against covid

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DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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CONTENTS NEWS 16 Milk Monitor Dairy market remains steady

April 2021 | $8.95 GlobalHQ is a farming family owned business that donates 1% of all advertising revenue in Farmers Weekly and Dairy Farmer to farmer health and wellbeing initiatives. Thank you for your prompt payment.

18 Fonterra results Fonterra posts positive interim results

ON FARM STORY 8 Doing the hard yards Waikato farmers Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton’s journey to building a profitable and sustainable business 20 Voice for farmers Canterbury farmer Cameron Henderson advocates for other farmers

FARMING CHAMPIONS 7 Guest column – Richard Allen 28 Dairy champion – Fraser McGougan 34 Women in agribusiness – Tina Armstrong

FEATURE 54 Health and safety

REGULAR FEATURES 32 Industry good – DairyNZ 38 Research

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46 Farmstrong 48 Technology

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COVER STORY Waikato farmers’ journey to make their farm sustainable and profitable

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GUEST COLUMN

Recognising, rewarding farmers

By Richard Allen

Fonterra’s group director of Farm Source outlines the new payment to farmers for producing sustainable and high quality milk.

I

n February, Fonterra released the details of how it will pay farmers for producing sustainable, high-quality milk as part of The Co-operative Difference framework.

From June 1, up to 10 cents of each farm’s milk payment will be determined by the farm’s sustainability credentials and milk quality.

Fonterra farmers are already among the world’s best in these areas and we’re really proud of that. The Cooperative Difference payment is another way we can recognise farmers, while also supporting our strategy to grow the value of our New Zealand milk by responding to increasing demand around the world for sustainablyproduced dairy.

The new payment recognises farmers who are already going above and beyond because they’ve innovated or invested early, and it also offers farmers more encouragement for taking the steps required to meet the changing expectations of customers and communities, both today and into the future.

The Co-operative Difference framework is a way for the co-op to ensure it is the dairy company of choice for customers around the world and for New Zealand dairy farmers.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

We want to reward the on-farm efforts that demonstrate our co-op’s care for the environment, animals, people and communities. It’s these actions which help ensure we’re the dairy company of choice for customers around the world and for NZ dairy farmers, for generations to come.

While the Co-operative Difference framework was introduced in 2019, the milk payment is new to farmers. It’s the first time Fonterra has recognised sustainable farming in this way. The payment is based on consumer research and customer feedback.

Today, 81% of consumers feel strongly that companies should help improve the environment.

Fonterra’s customers are responding to this by setting some bold goals to reduce their emissions profile over the coming years and there’s an opportunity for farmers to support them. For example, Nestlé has a target for net zero emissions by 2050 and Starbucks aims to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030.

When Fonterra first talked about this payment last year, Nestlé’s Robert Erhard came out in support and said how milk is produced matters.

Now more than ever, people expect farmers to act as good stewards of the land – safeguarding the climate, enhancing animal welfare and carefully managing water and the health of soils.

Understanding the Co-operative Difference payment The 10c Co-operative Difference payment is made up of: • 7c per kg MS for achievement under the Environment, Co-op and Prosperity, Animals, and People and Community focus areas.

Once these have been achieved: • 3c per kg MS for milk that meets the “excellence” standard under the Milk Quality framework.

• Effective from next season, or June 1.

• Current Farm Source Rewards Dollars in the Co-operative Difference will

Fonterra’s group director of Farm Source Richard Allen says Fonterra will reward farmers for good farming practices.

“The new payment recognises farmers who are already going above and beyond because they’ve innovated or invested early.” be replaced with the Co-operative Difference payment.

• The amount and targets will be set annually by the Fonterra board.

• The total amount available to be paid to farmers does not change, but a proportion of the Farmgate Milk Price will be available to be redistributed between farmers to better reflect individual farm’s achievement against the Co-operative Difference framework. n

7

Doing the hard yards Farming duos journey to sustainability puts them in the sweet spot.

Waikato farmers Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton contract milk 1000 cows for Southern Pastures in Manako.

Photos: By Christine Cornege

By Gerald Piddock

Taking on a farm during a conversion process and turning it into a sustainable and profitable business has taken several years, but hard work and good support have helped a Waikato couple succeed.

I

t’s been an eight-year journey for Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton to transform Southern Pasturesowned Manako Farm into a sustainable and profitable business.

With its owners’ guidance, it has swapped imported supplementary PKE for locally produced forage and silage, and increased the farm’s ability to grow more pasture.

The result is a farm producing grassfed dairy, which is more in balance with the local environment without major sacrifices in production.

The couple have operated the farm for

14 years, firstly under its previous owner, Carter Holt Harvey (CHH) and then for Southern Pastures after it bought the farm in 2012.

Manako was part of the 10,000ha pine to pasture dairy conversions CHH completed in late 2006.

The couple were sharemilking in Lichfield prior to shifting to Manako.

Their first season in 2007 was one they will never forget.

The farm was still being converted when they arrived on June 1.

Fences, the milking shed and even the loading ramps for their cows were still

being completed. As a result, their herd had to jump off the truck when they arrived, Brian recalls.

As the cows calved, they were walked to a neighbouring farm, where they were milked until the new machines were started on August 13.

The rest of the farm infrastructure was finished soon after.

Continued page 10

FARM FACTS • Farm owners: Southern Pastures • Contract milkers: Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton • Location: Tokoroa • Farm size: 429ha, effective dairy area – 357.1ha, bush/wetlands 48ha and forestry 12.8ha • Herd size: 1000 split in two mobs • Production: 2019-20: 469kg MS/ cow or 487,095kg MS • Production target: 2020-21: about 500,000kg MS The 1000 cows on Manako farms are producing 469kg MS/cow or about 488,000kg MS. It is hoped once the herd settles down production will lift to 500,000kg MS.

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Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton have operated Manako Farms for 14 years.

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“We call ourselves modern pioneers,” Brian says.

“When our cows came, they were break-fed on swedes and there was no fencing and no water and we had to ring fence everything. While they were grazing the crops, contractors were putting the water in.

“It was pretty challenging and when you look back, we think, ‘how did we do it?’” Despite the obstacles, the couple look back at the time with great fondness. Not only did they enjoy the challenge, but they formed a close bond with the other sharemilkers working on the new conversions in the district, with those friendships remaining to this day.

“It was a very tight knit group and we just bounced ideas off each other,” he says.

To their credit, CHH did a good job of building the conversion, leaving bush areas intact and ensuring there was plenty of advice and support for the farmers.

It provided Southern Pastures with a good base point to take the farm to the next level upon purchase.

The company’s goal was to create a farm capable of meeting its stringent 10-Star Certified Values program, which stipulates strict environmental, climatic, animal and human welfare requirements.

Over the next three years, it brought in new grass species to lift covers, incorporated a new fertiliser regime, further fenced off all of the waterways, improved the effluent system so it had at least 90 days storage and could now spread onto 106ha.

It also constructed a feedpad capable of holding up to 700 cows and four silage bunkers, each capable of holding 250,000kg.

A further 53ha on the farm was developed and two new houses were built for staff as well as a new calf shed to meet Southern Pastures’ requirements around allowing calves plenty of space for rearing. Overall, the investment cost around $500,000.

During CHH’s ownership the farm was run on a highly intensive system where at least 30% of the feed was imported, the bulk of which was palm kernel.

Brian says at times the farm was only growing around nine tonnes a hectare of feed. The infrastructure improvements made allowed Brian and Sheryl to utilise the supplementary feed as well as possible, the company’s general manager of farming Mark Bridges says.

“It’s taken a fair amount of time to get all of that infrastructure in place and

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Sheryl Hamilton tests milk samples for mastitis, which are diagnosed via the cloud and results sent straight to their veterinarian for recommendations.

“On a day-to-day basis we still get to enjoy what we do. We get to dairy farm, we get to work with leaders of the industry and work with a great team of people on-farm. I think we get the best of both worlds.”

Sheryl Hamilton

then to have the confidence and ability to move away from it,” Mark says.

“We always wanted to – we progressively moved out of PKE over the years and progressively moved up in forage, which is grass, lucerne and maize silage.”

The intensity of the farm system has not changed. Instead, over the course of the eight years, Southern Pastures phased out PKE in favour of locally or

homegrown forage feed to supplement the cow’s diet.

“We are feeding a similar amount of energy, the form of it has changed,” he says.

Bridges says they strongly support Brian and Sheryl’s long-standing goal of being able to feed the herd 365 days of the year.

“Well-fed cows perform well and they always look good,” he says.

“It reduces our animal health costs, improves fertility (and) all of those things.”

The company is driven to ensure that feed was high both in quality and quantity, and had developed close relationships with local contractors to ensure its supply not just to this farm but the nine others it owns in south Waikato.

“We have 10 farms in this location. To get access to all of the grass, lucerne and maize silage that we desire has taken a long time to build and maintain those

Continued page 12 11

Manako Farms has fenced off 48ha of bush and wetland areas for regeneration. These areas had been categorised as significant natural areas by the South Waikato District Council. Brian and Sheryl check out the wetland.

relationships with reputable sources of that feed,” he says.

“If 30% of the feed used to come in the form of PKE, then that 30% of the feed is still coming in as forage.”

Unlike many South Waikato farms that reside on pumice soils, Manako sits on more fertile Mairoa ash soils, which was a major incentive for Brian and Sheryl to take on the sharemilking job in the first place.

Since Southern Pastures’ took over, dry matter production has lifted to just under 12t/ha in 2014-15, peaking to 13.6t harvested the following season.

This is a result of the improvements in soils, pastures, grazing management and soil fertility.

“When Southern Pastures came to buy these farms, my view was that if we can harvest 12.75t/ha, then that would be good,” he says.

It also sits 640m above sea level, meaning it is generally summer-safe, with plenty of rainfall at around 2000mm a year. It also means Brian and Sheryl do

not have to sow any summer crops.

“We chose this place because of the rainfall and also because of the soil type,” Brian says.

All combined it meant the farm was Southern Pastures’ highest North Island pasture harvested farm.

“It was pretty challenging and when you look back, we think, ‘how did we do it?’”

Brian Vergeest With the infrastructure and plans in place to phase out PKE, Brian and Sheryl then focused on fine-tuning the system over the next five years.

For the first time this season they are milking a full A2 cow herd, having sold their herd the previous season to Southern Pastures.

It then sourced a new A2 herd from five different herds for Brian and Sheryl to milk, while at the same time, breaking up the old herd and utilising these cows on the company’s other farms.

The farm, along with all of the other Southern Pastures farms in South Waikato, supply Fonterra. Last season it milked 1038 cows, producing 469kg MS/ cow or 487,095kg MS. The supplementary feed changes were also the biggest challenge for the company if it wanted the farm to meet its 10-star rating.

That rating includes a grass-fed diet, being farmed outdoors all year round, no PKE, being free of growth hormones and GMOs, stewardship in antibiotics and animal and human welfare, environmental sustainability and climate change mitigation. The standard is audited by AsureQuality.

Once those changes and the other developments were in place, it made meeting many of those requirements a lot less challenging.

Team member Anurag Sharma brings the herd in for afternoon milking.

Brian Vergeest with one of the mobs of cows.

This season they are milking an A2 herd.

Its rules around antibiotic stewardship, for example, complemented the feed system because well-fed animals had fewer animal health requirements.

Brian and Sheryl also look at prevention before an issue potentially becomes a problem, such as ensuring raceways are well maintained to prevent lameness.

They also have mastitis diagnosis equipment in the dairy shed, which allows milk samples to be diagnosed via the cloud and results sent straight to their veterinarian who can advise them on the best course of action.

They also check the tails twice a year for injuries and staff are also randomly drug tested.

Brian says they were fortunate that the farm is well laid out and it was easily able to accommodate extra stock as they built up their numbers from 700 to the 1000 at present.

The 10-star certification also includes staff training around effluent management to ensure they are all fully competent to avoid issues.

LIC’s SPACE (Satellite Pasture and Cover Evaluation) technology is used in conjunction with plate metering to measure pasture growth and help them make better decisions about round lengths as they strive to get maximum use of the pastures.

The farm is also heat-mapped, which has allowed them to be more strategic with where and when fertiliser is used and each paddock has exclusion zones near water troughs and gates which the trucks avoid during applications.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton with some of the beehives on Manako Farms.

Across all of Southern Pastures’ farms, 4-7% of each farm was no longer getting fertiliser in those areas as a result of the creation of those zones. All of Manako’s paddocks are soil tested every three years.

The result is that the farm is at its optimum fertility. The land originally had an Olsen P level of 2-6 immediately after its forestry conversion. Today that is closer to 35-40.

Input-wise, about 40kg/ha of P is used, of which a third to a quarter is sourced naturally from the silage that is brought in.

Historically, around 270-300kg/ha of N was used in the first couple of years after the conversion.

Four seasons ago, Southern Pastures put a limit of 200kg/ha of N on their

farms. That has been dropped even further to 170kg/ha for the current season.

Overseer figures on the farm have steadily fallen over the years and sit at about 65kg N/ha.

They have fenced off 48ha of bush and wetland areas for regeneration. These areas had been categorised as significant natural areas by the South Waikato District Council.

The company has worked alongside the Waikato Regional Council to put in place a memorandum of encumbrance for that area, which would grant it protections and actions similar to a QEII covenant.

They have also just begun trialling

Continued page 14

13

Team member Gurpreet Singh in the milking shed during afternoon milking.

dung beetles on the farm as a way of further reducing effluent in the paddock.

Southern Pastures were early adopters of dung beetles, helping fund their introduction to New Zealand. Their use is more established on the company’s other farms as a way of increasing soil biology and fertility.

Mark says Southern Pastures has spent $550-$650/ha on soil fertility and the insect usage was starting to see a reduction in that costing on fertiliser and an increase in the beetle usage, When the farm was converted from forestry, about 10% of the land was cropped as part of its development for 10 years to help settle the soil in the aftermath of the process.

The 1000-cow herd is split into two mobs, with the younger/smaller cows in one mob and the older cows in the other.

In June, half of the cows are grazed offfarm with a grazier for 6-8 weeks.

The herd is condition scored four times a year, with the aim of keeping the cows at a score of four or above. Those cows who fall below that are subject to an action plan to get the animal up to condition.

Calving begins on July 25. During mating, they use long gestation bulls a week out from mating and short gestation bulls near the end of the mating period to condense the calving spread, both of which are A2 bulls.

They generally mate their lower producing cows – about 10% of the herd – to beef bulls, however, this was shelved

14

this season because of the need to build up their A2 herd.

Empty rate data for the new herd had yet to be finalised, but Brian and Sheryl are aiming for it to sit between 8-12%.

Sheryl oversees rearing the calves, with this season rearing 270 heifer calves and while Brian usually assists, this year he was busy training the new herd to become used to the farm’s 54-bale rotary, which was a time-consuming process.

“If you count performance by production, we’re at that level. We don’t desire to do more production off this farm, we want to enhance it and have it in a steady state.”

Mark Bridges Southern Pastures’ has a long-term strategy of bringing up its beef farms to also carry the 10-star certification as a long-term solution to bobby calves.

Ideally the male calves would be taken to these farms where they would then be finished for the beef market.

Mark says it was a concept the company was still working on. For now, these calves are collected as bobbies.

In spring, the pastures hit about 28002900kg DM/ha and are topped for silage

to maintain quality with 60ha cut this season.

After Christmas, supplements are introduced to the cow’s diets on the feedpad as pasture quality starts to wane.

The herds are milked twice a day through the season, indicative of Southern Pastures’ goals to feed the cows 365 days of the year.

Decisions around drying off are made based on the pasture covers and cow condition.

Brian takes a “hands-on” style of management on the farm, and says he is very fortunate to have four full-time great staff who have been with the couple for a long time.

“All of us really reap those rewards for having that consistency with our staff and that’s why on any given day, someone can come onto the farm and it’s always looking really good,” he says.

This was because the staff brought into their values and goals for the farm.

“Brian and I really could not be doing what we do without their support,” Sheryl says.

“That buy-in is massive,” Brian adds.

Mark says they bring new farmers to the farm every year for orientation to show them what good looks like.

On the financial side, this season it costs them $4.18 to produce every kilogram of milksolid.

Looking ahead, their focus now is on fine-tuning the business and further improving the farm’s environmental performance.

“On any given day we try to be the best we can be. That’s a value that (Southern Pastures co-founder) Graham Mourie instilled in Brian and I many years ago,” Sheryl says.

Brian and Sheryl also switched from sharemilking to being employed as contract milkers for Southern Pastures this season.

She says their decision to choose contract milking over farm ownership came down mostly to timing.

When they sold their herd, they took that equity and invested it into residential rental properties rather than look to purchase a small dairy farm.

“The way the world has gone, it probably hasn’t been a bad option,” she says.

“On a day-to-day basis we still get to enjoy what we do. We get to dairy farm, we get to work with leaders of the industry and work with a great team of people on-farm. I think we get the best of both worlds.”

Mark says they want the farm to keep

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

performing at its current production level while fine-tuning it to improve its efficiency.

“It’s about nailing it down and doing it better,” he says.

“If you count performance by production, we’re at that level. We don’t desire to do more production off this farm, we want to enhance it and have it in a steady state.”

That will mean consistently good mating performances and well-grown calves.

“We now sit there and focus on doing the very basics and just doing everything really well and driving those efficiencies,” she says.

“It’s about hitting that sweet spot and once you hit it, it’s about maintaining it,” Sheryl says.

Brian says they have really enjoyed the journey over the past 14 years.

“As a sharemilker, it was pretty challenging in those first few years. But staying on the farm has meant that we have seen the rewards from all our earlier hard work that we put in. We’ve treated it like our own (farm) and hence we’re still here.” n

Brian Vergeest and Sheryl Hamilton head off to check the cows after milking.

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MILK MONITOR

Dairy market unchanged – for now

By Gerald Piddock

Each month the milk monitor delves into the dairy industry and gives us the low-down on the good, the bad, the ugly and everything in between.

F

onterra dairy farmers with a sense of recent history will know that what goes up will inevitably come back down when it comes to the milk price forecast.

At $7.30-$790/kg MS with a midpoint range of $7.60/kg MS reaffirmed at the co-operative’s interim result announcement, the big question now is how far could it fall in the second half of the year?

By all accounts, it should be a reasonably soft landing and there certainly does not appear to be a return to the past where the milk price climbed to $8.65 in early 2014, only to steadily fall to $3.85 in August 2015.

Farmers would have been quietly pleased with the numbers that chief executive Miles Hurrell and chief financial officer Marc Rivers outlined on March 17.

Hurrell warned that he expected the co-operative’s earnings to come under significant pressure in the second half as high milk prices push up input costs.

This will be coupled with Northern Hemisphere dairy producers coming into its peak milk period.

ASB’s Commodities Weekly publication says that aggressive Chinese purchases were continuing to fuel the strength in prices, with much of the buying as a result of covid-induced food security fears.

The auction in early March, where prices spiked 15%, was on the back of shipping disruption fears, which saw buyers rush to secure product, bidding up prices in the process.

It has its new season milk price at $7.30/kg MS. The bank, however, remained cautious.

“At a certain point, there remains the risk that China will have built sufficient stockpiles and start to take its foot off the accelerator. The timing of such a

16

Fonterra chief financial officer Marc Rivers and chief executive Miles Hurrell reported interim results, but warn earnings may come under pressure in the second half of the year.

move remains highly uncertain, and the re-entry of other buyers into the market may help offset the price impact,” it says in its report.

Rabobank senior dairy analyst Emma Higgins says the global supply and demand dynamics still meant a strong milk price forecast, despite the recent 3.8% fall at the GDT. “Obviously, Chinese import demand is a key watching factor for New Zealand farm gate milk prices,” Higgins says.

“At a broad level, we think that the expensive cost of producing milk (and WMP) in China, overlaid with the complexity of global shipping disruptions, alongside modest global milk production growth lends itself to elevated WMP prices over the coming months.”

Westpac economist Nathan Penny pointed out that WMP prices jumped 13.5% during March, while overall prices lifted 10.7%. And since the start of the year, WMP and overall prices have posted gains of 25% or better.

He says the latest result has done little to change the overall dairy market, with the high prices a function of demand outstripping supply.

“Also, global supply chain disruptions and the approaching seasonal lull in

NZ production continue to add to the upward price pressure,” Penny says.

He expected prices to remain where they are, although he expected some volatility. Closer to spring he expected global dairy prices to gradually moderate as production started up again.

“However, with the global supply response likely to be moderate and ongoing solid global demand, we expect global dairy prices to remain firm over the 2021-22 season as a whole,” he says.

It had Fonterra’s forecast pegged at $7.25/kg MS. There are, however, two points worth noting. Firstly, Fonterra’s recent history of posting conservative opening forecasts for the new season, which came after facing the ire of farmers for having a high opening price and then having to downgrade it later in spring and summer.

The second factor is on-farm input prices. Obviously, this doesn’t affect the milk price but does it affect farm net incomes and inputs – fertiliser, rates, wages and palm kernel have all jumped over the past season.

What effect this has had on this season will become clearer in July-August and by then, it will also provide a clearer direction on its impact for 2021-22. n

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

NEWS

Dairy’s time to shine

T

hree North Island farms have been named as the finalists in the prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy award for the top Māori dairy farm.

The Ahuwhenua Trophy began 88 years ago, started by Sir Apirana Ngata and then-Governor General Lord Bledisloe. The objective was and still is to encourage Māori farmers to improve their land and their overall farming position with an emphasis on sustainability.

On a three-year rotational basis, the trophy is competed for by Māori in the sheep and beef, horticulture and dairy sectors. This year the competition is for dairy.

“Despite the fact that the country and the world is living in challenging and uncertain times, the three finalists are outstanding,” management committee chair Kingi Smiler says.

“Farmers and Māori in particular have come through adversity in the past and will do so again.

“I am full of praise and proud of our Māori farmers for entering the competition this year and showing the determination to showcase their very successful enterprises.

Finalists in the Ahuwhenua Trophy award for the top Maori-owned dairy farm gathered at Parliament with the trustees. From the back, Associate Minister of Agriculture Meka Whaitiri, Tunapahore B2A Incorporation chair Jack Mihaere,Tataiwhetu Trust chair Paki Nikora and Kaumatua Pouarua Farms’ Walter Ngamane. From the front, Minister of Agriculture Damien O’Connor and Minister for Māori Development and trustee Willie Jackson.

“This is in the true spirit and legacy of Sir Apirana Ngata and Lord Bledisloe.”

Kingi says the good news is that despite the pandemic, farm gate returns for dairy farmers remain solid and consumers worldwide are looking for the high-quality, sustainable products that our farmers and processing companies produce.

The three finalists are: • Pouarua Farms, located near the township of Ngatea on the Hauraki Plains. The 2200ha platform comprises 10 farms – nine dairy units and one drystock unit and is the largest single dairy platform in the Hauraki region.

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A total of 4600 cows are milked across 1775ha and produce approximately 1.65m kg MS. • Tataiwhetu Trust, located in the Ruatoki Valley south of Whakatane.

They run 432 Kiwi cross cows and carry 188 replacement stock on their two support blocks. Tataiwhetu is an organic dairy farm, milking once a day, and their herd produces 129,140 kg MS. • Tunapahore B2A Incorporation’s farm consists of 376ha, located at Hawai and Torere, near Opotiki on the East Coast of the North Island. The milking platform is 132ha, with 385 cows producing 125,940 kg MS. n

Covering critical times of the season, FIL Your Boots covers a range of useful and interesting topics, from teat sprays and mastitis, to treating bloat and hygiene grades.

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NEWS

Fonterra hones in on value-add

By Hugh Stringleman

C

hina’s appetite for New Zealand dairy products and its reopening after covid-19 restrictions provided 45% of Fonterra’s earnings in the first half of FY2021.

Presented for the first time split into world geographical regions as well as product channels, Fonterra’s interim results emphasised that dependence on China.

When covid hit in late 2019 and the Chinese government ordered its people to stay at home, restaurants, cafes, bars and bakeries took a hammering and what Fonterra calls foodservice dairy products stopped selling.

These are several forms of cheeses and creams, and butter.

In the six months ended December 31, 2020, those foodservice channels opened up again.

Foodservice customers in Greater China helped Fonterra earn $203 million, up 64% on the previous, locked-down, comparable period.

Chief executive Miles Hurrell called the bounce back phenomenal.

Because of the new presentation format, China foodservice was shown to have accounted for 27% of total earnings

before interest and tax (Ebit).

Soon after his appointment, Hurrell reorganised his top table of managers – not that they have since sat in the one room – into three world operating segments: Asia and the Pacific (APAC), Greater China, and the rest, being Africa, Middle East, Europe, North Asia and Americas, including Latin America (AMENA).

Judith Swales heads APAC, and she is stuck in Melbourne, Teh-han Chow is in Shanghai, and long-time Fonterra executive Kelvin Wickham is in Amsterdam.

The financial results also come in three product flavourings – ingredients, foodservice and consumer products.

When each geographical region discloses its results in the product channels, the cost of ingredients, processing and distribution must be deducted from the revenue, disclosing the gross margins and the added value.

In the past, especially when Fonterra sold base ingredients to itself to make further processed ingredients, and did so across international borders, it was hard to disentangle true market performances.

In the interim FY21 presentation, one Powerpoint slide captured the new transparency – a matrix of nine separate earnings results comprising three regions and three product channels, plus their respective totals.

For example, foodservice products in AMENA region made only $1m.

Consumer products in Greater China made only $13m, and that was up a whopping 225% compared with the previous corresponding period (pcp).

So, Hurrell provided some explanations for the highlights and lowlights in these segmented earnings.

Starting with the revenue line, APAC, AMENA and Greater China were shown to have very similar numbers – between $3 billion and $3.4b each.

Moving to the bottom line, the three regions disclosed different earnings and profitability.

As stated previously, Greater China led the way with $339m, up 38%, followed

by AMENA and $201m, down 7% on the pcp, and APAC on $190m, up 9%.

Going to the far right column, ingredients across the company generated $288m, down 23%; foodservice $258m, showing that excellent 80% improvement on pcp;

Fonterra’s interim results show demand for products from China is growing.

18

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

then consumer on $184m, up 56%.

Bear in mind that ingredients – milk powders, butter and casein, for example – still generate 65% of the $10b total revenue in the six months of trading.

Foodservice revenue is 15% and consumer goods 20%.

The base ingredients, however, have the lowest gross margin of 10%, while foodservice products generate 26% gross margin and consumer products 28%.

That is why they are called value-add products.

Hurrell says that the new presentation illustrated Fonterra scope and diversity and that milk was moved around to where the most value could be created.

As higher-value products like cream cheese from Darfield and mozzarella from Clandeboye took off in China, the foodservice gross margin in that market rose from 20% to 28%.

Consumer sales in Asia and the Pacific benefited from more people staying at home and cooking with dairy products, and a renewed focus on the Anchor, Anmum and Anlene brands.

Conversely, ingredient sales in the AMENA region were down as milk was

Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell says Fonterra remained on track to deliver its three core financial targets for the year, but conceded it was possible that earnings in the second half would be well down.

moved into higher returning markets and products.

Ingredients exports from Australia also suffered because of poor trade relations with China, contraction of the daigou channel and shipping delays.

Total revenue in the first half was $9.9b, down 5% on the pcp, normalised Ebit was $684m, up 17%, normalised profit after tax $418m, up 43%, and earnings per share 25c, up 41%.

The interim results disclosed that Fonterra made $8.14b revenue from NZ milk and $1.45b from non-NZ milk.

The gross margins on both milk sources were the same at 17%, but because of proportionally lower operating expenses, the earnings margin on NZ milk was considerably better, at 7.1% versus 4.8%.

Hurrell says Fonterra remained on track to deliver its three core financial targets for the year; return on capital of 6-7%, debt-to-Ebitda ratio 3-3.5x and the end-of-year gearing ratio 36-40%.

However, the second half was very challenging because high milk prices flowed through the value-add products, making margins harder to achieve.

In response to a media question, he conceded it was possible that earnings in the second half would be well down and that the 25cps would only reach the bottom of the earnings guidance of 25c to 35c for the full year. n

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April 2021

19

ON FARM

Voice for farmers Canterbury farmer rolls up his sleeves to help the sector navigate new government rules.

Sarah and Cameron Henderson with Annie on their Oxford farm where they milk 730 cows on 238ha.

Photos: By Tony Benny 20

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

By Tony Benny

With environmental and sustainability issues at the fore, it can be difficult to keep up and have a firm understanding of rules and regulations, but Canterbury farmers are being given a helping hand, with one lending his voice to other farmers and working hard to help them stay ahead of freshwater regulations.

A

Canterbury farmer says farmers should be proactive and not wait for regulators to impose rules that might prove economically disastrous for farmers.

“In essence, it’s taking ownership of the issue, realising that if we leave it up to regulators to fix these problems, we end up with some very poor outcomes for farmers,” Cameron Henderson says.

“We end up with politicians doing what’s popular, not what’s effective, (and) end up with science that’s got gaps in it because policy is delivered in a rush.

“Inaccuracy of 10 or 20% in models could be costing farmers millions of dollars because we’re forced to go further than we need to.”

Cameron and wife Sarah farm at Oxford where they milk 730 cows. He is well versed in the environmental issues facing farmers in the Waimakariri district he lives in, having served on the Waimakariri Zone Committee, now as deputy chairperson, and working his way up into a leadership position with Federated Farmers. He is also a member of the Dairy Environment Leaders Steering Committee and an associate directorship with DairyNZ. “Once you get into farming roles outside the farm gate you run into all sorts of opportunities. The networking is fantastic; you get to meet a lot of great people, spend a lot of time networking with other regional and national farming leaders and get involved in a variety of projects,” he says.

He joined the Waimakariri Zone Committee, one of 10 formed in different Canterbury catchments to formulate freshwater policy under the Canterbury Water Management Strategy, to help give farming a voice in the negotiations.

“The regulatory function of what the committee was delivering was a really critical three years for farmers in this district,” he says.

“There are water quality issues we need to fix, but we need fair solutions that respect farmers’ ability to keep farming, their financial viability and that decisions

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

are based on science and reason and not on a whole lot of perception and marketing, which can tend to dominate the conversation.”

Much of his time with the zone committee has involved working on what’s known as Plan Change 7, which was about water quality issues in the zone, particularly nitrates, as well as mahinga kai and biodiversity, changes to minimum flows and consenting how much water could be taken from various water bodies to maintain environmental flows.

The new plan called for reductions in nitrate leaching of up to 80% for some farmers, something he says would be impossible to achieve without land-use change or new technology, so there was huge concern in the farming community.

But before the new plan could come into force, the Government released a new National Policy Statement (NPS) that overrides regional plans.

“They shifted the goalposts. We’d written a plan based on certain targets and the Government said, ‘We don’t want those targets, we want to go harder’,” he says.

“Farming was what you did if you weren’t good at anything else, which is unfortunate because it’s definitely not true.”

Cameron Henderson He reckons the policy statement severely lacks detail and doesn’t take into account the fact Canterbury’s hydrology is different from other New Zealand regions. Whereas most water in NZ flows over the land, down from the hills, into waterways and out to the ocean, in Canterbury it’s more complicated. Much of its water soaks into the ground, down into aquifers and can then take decades to flow out to the ocean.

FARM FACTS • Owners: Henderson Family • Location: Oxford • Farm size: 238ha (221 effective) • Cows: 730 Kiwicross • Production: 2019-20: 335,000kg MS • Production target: 202021: 345,000kg MS

“The NPS probably shows the problems you create when you try to write one plan centrally rather than allowing regions to deliver what works best for them. The NPS was written without Canterbury’s unique hydrology in mind,” he says.

But rather than standing on the sideline complaining, Cameron is part of the newly formed Waimakariri Landcare Group, the aim of which is to add more science to the debate as well as help farmers cope with the proposed tighter environmental regulations.

The idea behind the landcare group is to be part of the solution and they have funding from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to help them trial existing technology, but adapt it to Waimakariri District’s unique environment.

“The group is initially focusing on science, monitoring and modelling so we know what’s going on now, what’s our current state and how the water flows through the district so we can have confidence where we need to make changes to create the right environmental outcome,” he says.

He believes some of the science behind computer modelling used to formulate policy is incomplete and

Continued page 22 21

Cameron Henderson says farmers need to be proactive when it comes to freshwater regulations, so they don’t end up with rules that don’t work.

untested assumptions were made.

“We want to go back and add a lot more accuracy to that model. Farmers need to have faith that the changes they’re making, if they have to spend money, are actually going to deliver the right result in the right space,” he says.

Cameron says their farm operates well within the environmental limits set by Environment Canterbury (ECan), but he’s still trying to do better and recently installed a fertigation system, applying nitrogen (N) through the three centre pivots on the farm, which he hopes will allow for a reduction in the amount of N applied, yet grow as much or more grass.

He’s still working out and trialling how best to use the system, finding the right balance, be it more frequent lower applications, or less frequent higher rates, to both maximise production and reduce nitrate leaching.

He’s also trying to reduce the farm’s environment footprint by using an array of solar panels to generate electricity. The power is fed into the national grid and the panels are owned by Canterburybased Kea Energy who give him a discount in return for free use of the ground they sit on. He says the deal

22

makes the land under the panels the most profitable land-use on the farm.

The zone committee is also investigating fertigation, as well as taking a closer look at plantain, touted for its ability to reduce nitrate leaching, but which is proving tricky to get it to persist in pasture beyond three years.

“We borrowed 100% of the money and it was set up internally that this farm owed all that money from the very beginning, so while there was family support, this farm always had to stand on its own two feet.”

Cameron Henderson

“Can we grow dedicated swards of it; say a quarter of your farm in plantain instead of trying to get it to persist in pasture?” he asks.

“If you had it on a dedicated part of your farm so the cows had a couple of hours on it in the morning and then were shifted to their grass and you turn those plantain paddocks over every three years, could you guarantee the cows are getting at least a third of their diet as plantain so you can start getting the benefits through Overseer?”

He says farmers in the landcare group understand the public concern, but they want to use science and collaborate with regional councils and rural industry groups to develop solutions that are both effective and economically viable.

“And we need to get the buy-in from farmers that the more we do this voluntarily, the less policy needs to chase us to deliver it and overall you end up creating a much better story about the impact of dairy or farming in general on the environment,” he says.

He intends to stand down from the zone committee, believing he has contributed all he can there, and his three-year term as local Feds president will end soon too, freeing up more time for the landcare group and his other offfarm interests.

He is also stepping back from day-to-

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

day farming to concentrate on the big picture, helping fellow farmers cope with the ever tightening regulations they face, as well as spend more time with his young family.

While he’ll retain strategic oversight of their 238ha farm and 200ha support block near Oxford, he plans to spend more time on off-farm roles and more time with wife Sarah, their nearly oneHFS ad - Mar 2020 - Dairy Farmer - 210x86mm-PRINT.pdf

Continued page 24

Team member Tarsh Cameron in the shed during afternoon milking.

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Cameron Henderson is well versed in the environmental issues facing farmers in the Waimakariri district and joined the committee to give farmers a voice.

year-old daughter Annie, with their second child due to be born this month.

Since he joined Young Farmers, coming second in the regional final in 2013 and then, too old to compete again, running the practical section of the Grand Final at Lincoln in 2014, he has been involved in rural representation.

As well as serving on the Waimakariri Zone Committee, which hammered out freshwater policy for the catchment, he is chairman of the local branch of Federated Farmers.

Not bad for someone who as a teenager didn’t think farming was for him.

“I grew up in the Waikato on a dairy farm, but probably bought into that rhetoric of ‘you only become a dairy farmer if nothing else works’ back in the late 90s,” he says.

“Farming was what you did if you weren’t good at anything else, which is unfortunate because it’s definitely not true.”

Instead, he studied robotic

engineering at the University of Auckland and then travelled before taking a job as a strategy analyst with Fonterra in Auckland, and that was when he started to think a farming career might not be such a bad thing.

“I started to look at farming from a different perspective around what else it could deliver in terms of lifestyle, the ability to run your own business, work outdoors and the flexibility and complexity of it,” he says.

He quit Auckland in 2009 and took a

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April 2021

The 730-cow herd produces 470kg MS, or 335,000kg MS, with the target of 345,000kg MS for this season.

job as a dairy assistant in Canterbury, a region he saw as a land of opportunity.

“At the time, I was looking at it from a business opportunity point of view.

Back then, all you needed was a block of land, put water on it and it just grew grass like you wouldn’t believe. There were managers down here at (age) 24 managing 1000 cows and it was tough to even find a 1000-cow unit in Waikato at that stage, so all the opportunity was down here,” he says.

He worked for Steve and Sharon

Schmack at Burnside, and when they moved to Mayfield to convert his parents’ dry stock farm, he went with them as 2IC. “That was a really good learning curve; coming in quite early in the conversion process and seeing how it worked,” he says.

In late 2010, he and his Waikato-based parents started looking for opportunities of their own in Canterbury and found a farm to convert near Oxford, but then considered a fringe dairying area, which has since seen a big swing to dairy cows.

Sarah Henderson started out as a lawyer working in litigation before transferring into more strategic projects and commercial management. She knew virtually nothing about dairy farming except for dry cow therapy through her work with a veterinary company.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

He led the conversion with practical support from his father.

“We borrowed 100% of the money and it was set up internally that this farm owed all that money from the very beginning, so while there was family support, this farm always had to stand on its own two feet,” he says.

He managed the farm for the first five years and then made his first attempt to step away from day-to-day management by taking a job with DairyNZ as a farm systems developer, looking at the feasibility of indoor dairying. When he took the job, the payout was at a recordhigh, but a year later it had plunged disastrously and nobody wanted to talk about barns anymore. Cameron was needed on the farm.

“Economically I couldn’t afford to be off-farm – there was no room for mistakes. We were still heavily in debt and it required very strict management to get through,” he recalls.

He met Sarah at a mutual friend’s engagement party in 2018, shortly before he left the country on a Nuffield scholarship.

“We met on the cusp of him taking off and I remember thinking ‘gosh, he’s not going to be interested, it’s a waste of time’,” Sarah laughs.

“But within the year, we had Annie on the way and we were engaged.”

Continued page 26 25

Contract milker Pete McPherson runs the dairy farm on a day-today basis and will soon take over the operations manager role. Pete brings the herd in for milking.

An array of solar panels to generate electricity are installed on Henderson’s farm. The power is fed into the national grid and the panels are owned by Canterbury-based Kea Energy who give him a discount in return for the free use of the ground they sit on.

Born in Christchurch, Sarah started out as a lawyer working in litigation before transferring into more strategic projects and commercial management. She knew virtually nothing about dairy farming except for dry cow therapy through her work with a veterinary company.

“When I found out that Cam was a dairy farmer, I slipped a dry cow line in there, thinking ‘God, I hope this doesn’t catch me out, I’ve just used all my material’, but it worked,” she says.

“It’s still a bit of a learning process I have to say, but I feel like I’m learning from the best. I’ve certainly had lots of exposure to different parts of farming and I guess having that business background, applying that to a farming context has been quite interesting as well.”

They bought a house in Oxford, less than 10 minutes from the farm, giving

26

them the advantages of town life, including restaurants, takeaways, a supermarket, service stations, swimming pool and park, all within walking distance, as well as giving farm staff the advantage of not always having the boss breathing down their necks.

Though he’s seldom in the shed, Cameron is hands-on when it comes to strategy, keeping a close eye on production, while striving to meet and exceed regulatory requirements.

The farm’s effective area, under irrigation, is 221ha and is in ryegrass, clover and plantain pasture, with 7ha of fodder beet grown every year for autumn feed. They milk 730 cows at peak, but are looking to push that up to 750 to take advantage of the high payout.

Per cow production is about 470kg MS and they aim to feed 300kg of supplement per cow per year. The plan

next season is to raise supplement to between 500kg and 600kg, and push production to 500kg MS per cow.

At present they feed palm kernel in the shed but are looking at alternative supplements to take advantage of the 8c a kilo bonus that Synlait will pay for not using PKE. They have a 10-week mating programme and mate their top Kiwicross cows to sexed semen for the first three weeks and then everything else goes to Hereford semen. In the last four weeks of mating they use short gestation crossbred semen to bring calving dates as far forward as possible.

They’re 100% AB, but do run bulls to clean up anything they’ve missed.

Calving starts on August 1.

They’re looking to rear the Hereford calves alongside their replacements and will likely sell them at weaning, not wishing to become beef finishers.

Cameron says they want to reduce their number of bobby calves.

“It is a trial to see if the economics are viable to be inseminating with beef genetics rather than just producing a low-value animal,” he says.

Though he’s keen to have fewer bobbies, he says it might not be a longterm solution if too many farmers get on the bandwagon and the market gets swamped.

“Currently the market is good at $400500 for a weaner Hereford, but if that dropped down to $300/head because there were so many of them coming on the market at the same time, that may not be as viable,” he says.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

They milk twice a day until the end of March and then change to 16-hour milking for a couple of weeks once production goes down to about 1.6kg MS per cow a day, before going to once-a-day milking “to lighten the load and fatten the cows up before winter”.

Today a contract milker runs the dairy farm day-to-day, while he looks after the support block where the young stock graze, their cows are wintered along with 900 cows from a neighbour’s herd and they grow barley and oats, some of which is sold.

The support block is owned by golfer Sir Bob Charles who has homestead there but leases out the farm.

“We have a really good working relationship with them and see them quite frequently. He’ll be out on the farm maybe once a month,” he says.

Cameron has plans in place for contract milkers Pete and Carly McPherson to become operations managers for both farms next year and to employ a unit manager on the dairy farm.

“It’s a decision to retain great talent.

Pete didn’t really want to milk cows anymore but he’s too valuable really for us to lose, so we just needed to come up with a way of keeping him involved and it’s got the bonus of releasing me from a lot of the day-to-day responsibilities,” he says.

That will allow him to spend more time on farming work outside the farm gate, as well as devote more time with his growing family. n

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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DAIRY CHAMPION

Team of 5 million

Whakatane dairy farmer Fraser McGougan is the new chairperson of the DairyNZ Climate Change Ambassadors and says a joint approach is needed to tackle the challenges ahead.

By Gerald Piddock

The new DairyNZ Climate Change Ambassador chairperson says New Zealand as a whole needs to work together to achieve climate

G

etting the dairy industry to achieve tough new climate goals is like running an ultramarathon, recently appointed DairyNZ Climate Change Ambassador chairperson Fraser McGougan says.

Both require small steps to get to the finish line and both are huge undertakings.

McGougan has already accomplished one of these milestones, having completed an ultramarathon in February.

It has made him believe the task the industry has in front of it is doable.

“It’s a challenge to run 102km, but that’s what we have got as farmers – it’s a challenge, but not impossible,” he says.

The enormity of the industry’s challenge was laid bare after the Climate Change Commission (CCC) recently released its draft recommendations on

28

how NZ could reduce its emissions.

The Whakatane dairy farmer says this is another step in the industry’s journey to lower its carbon footprint.

“The whole of NZ is going to be part of this journey. We’re all being asked to do our bit and agriculture in NZ has already started well along the journey of doing things,” he says.

The recommendations are not a finger pointing exercise because everyone has to play their part. It will mean a shift to electric vehicles, which could be a significant cost for many.

The commission’s targets will not be achieved if just one sector commits. It needed a collaborative approach across the entire farming sector and society as a whole, he says.

“We’re not a huge emitter in a world sense, but we still have an obligation to do better,” he said.

He says it, along with the freshwater

legislation, was setting the dairy industry on the road to further improving its environmental sustainability.

McGougan thinks the industry could make good progress on the commission’s targets once it was broken down into manageable aims.

He says NZ’s efficiency at producing milk in relation to its carbon footprint showed the good work the sector was doing.

“We are converting pasture to a product that the world needs and while we’re doing it in an efficient way, we can do it in an even more efficient way,” he says.

“In the past we have focused on production and developing land. Now our focus is on sustainability and working out how we are going to keep going forward.”

For farmers, the first step was to get a farm environmental plan (FEP) if they did not already have one.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

“If we start on that journey, we’ll start getting the results. It is kaitiaki – looking after the land. We’re only here for a short time and we want to make sure it’s here for the next generation,” he says.

McGougan was a climate change ambassador for three years before becoming chairperson of the group.

He sees the role as providing that link between government and the industry by ensuring both groups remain informed.

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach to this and small incremental changes on individual farms add up to big changes nationally,” he says.

This is in part being done already in respect to He Waka Eke Noa, the primary sector’s action plan to deal with climate change.

“Farmers are also now having to live and work through the effects of climate change,” he says.

“I’ve been farming for 25 years and my family has been farming for 120 years and in that time, we have seen so much change.”

The most noticeable of these changes are the inconsistencies of seasonal weather patterns within his district.

As the farm size has increased, the McGougans have upgraded its effluent system, fenced off all of the waterways and started the process of regenerating some of the original kahikatea stands.

“When you look at our farm, it’s come from a kahikatea swamp 120 years ago and we have developed it, but we developed it for our families and our communities and now that we have

more information, maybe we need to do things slightly differently and more efficiently,” he says.

Continued page 30

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The 550-cow herd on the McGougan farm produce 155,000kg MS on the System 2-3 property.

That has seen him be more strategic with fertiliser usage by using GPS-guided farm machinery and individually testing the soil from each of his paddocks on his 143ha farm.

He has also reduced his stocking rate to try to match pasture growth rates to demand. It all amounted to small steps that accumulated into larger changes.

“They’re not big and they’re not scary, especially for the younger generation. It’s about small changes on the farm and trying to learn,” he says.

It is not an exhaustive list because he felt he was always still learning ways to be more efficient.

McGougan decided on a career in farming while he was doing an OE after completing a degree in applied science at Massey University.

The primary sector allowed him to be his own boss and control his destiny.

He came back to NZ to Willowvale Farm, his parents’ 143ha property, making him the fourth generation of his family to work there.

This coincided with his parent’s decision to step back from the industry.

He and wife Katherine took a controlling stake in the farm and leased a neighbouring property.

“We had a lot of debt and we chased production and then profitability for a long time, like a lot of young people,” he says.

He bought the remaining shares in the farm in 2011, as well as the neighbouring lease farm.

Then starting in 2016, came three consecutive wet, miserable springs. Their cattle were causing widespread pugging

30

damage and he realised they could not keep farming the way they had in the past.

“The environment is changing and I was seeing it out in the paddock and I was thinking ‘what are we going to do?’”

Once he started looking into the wider data on climate change and seeing the trends, McGougan realised he wanted to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

“It is kaitiaki – looking after the land. We’re only here for a short time and we want to make sure it’s here for the next generation.”

That set him along the environmental journey which led to the climate change ambassador role.

As he has grown the farm size, he has upgraded its effluent system, fenced off all of the waterways and started the process of regenerating some of the original kahikatea stands.

“It’s a journey in that we are doing a bit each year as we can afford it,” he says.

That journey was far from over and he was excited at the prospect of new technology allowing the industry to be even more efficient.

He no longer chases the high production targets that he used to and the slightly lower production output has also lowered his costs. It has also

made the farm more robust to climatic conditions.

“We have become more sustainable financially and more resilient,” he says.

He also entered in the Bay of Plenty Farm Environment Awards in 2019, winning the Supreme award.

He and Katherine have three children – Emily, Isaac and Liam – and developing people was also a key focus for him, because the next generation will be the ones who have to deal with the brunt of climate change’s impact.

“They need to be part of this conversation,” he says.

He describes the farm system as “pretty standard”. It is predominantly pasture-based, sitting at around System 2-3. Production on the farm is around 155,000kg MS. Maize is grown as a summer feed crop and as a way of recycling effluent back into the paddock. He has also reduced the amount of imported feed, relying instead on the maize to supplement the cow’s diet.

Over the winter about 120 cows are sent to a nearby runoff block, which the McGougans lease, while the rest of the 430-cow herd remain on the farm to control the pasture surplus.

The farm is self-contained with the heifers and the calves also grazed either on the farm or at the runoff.

The Climate Change Ambassadors group was created in 2018 under the Dairy Action for Climate Change. New members have been appointed this year to maintain the diversity of the group, with a mix of locations, farm systems and experience.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

The other new ambassadors are Waikato farmers Graeme Barr and Melissa Slattery (Dairy Environment Leaders chair), Southland farmer Steve Smith and Canterbury farmers Ash-leigh Campbell and Phill Everest. n

Fraser and Katherine McGougan milk 550 cows on their Whakatane farm. They were the Supreme winners of the 2019 Bay of Plenty Farm Environment Awards.

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INDUSTRY GOOD

Join the farmers’ forum DairyNZ’s popular farmer’s Forum is a good place to catch up on what is happening in the industry and find out what may lie ahead.

Sharon Morrell DairyNZ general manager – farm performance

F

or Kiwi dairy farmers to continue leading the world, we need practical solutions and insight into future change.

This year, DairyNZ’s Farmers’ Forum has both, while being an exciting mix of great speakers, interactive workshops, livestream events and webinars for farmers nationwide.

This year’s forum is a one-day conference on Thursday, April 29, in Hamilton. The event is free to dairy farmers and their staff.

It is a great chance to hear about the latest changes on and off-farm, key global trends affecting dairy and some practical farming solutions too, as well as a chance to talk with members of the board and national and local staff.

On that date, Southland farmers will also be able to attend a Farmers’ Forum event in Invercargill. This will include a livestream of keynote speakers and topical local discussions.

I really enjoy these events, as it gives me a chance to catch-up with farmers and discuss what is happening on their farms, especially as we think toward the future and prepare for the new season coming.

I am particularly excited for this year’s theme of Sustaining Success – Strategies for New Zealand Dairy Farmers to Continue Leading the World. This event provides an opportunity to hear about how the world is changing and provide practical ideas to apply on-farm to stay on top of your game in our fast-moving world.

We also have some excellent keynote speakers at the event, with leading NZ economist Cameron Bagrie and bestselling author and television presenter Dr Michelle “Nanogirl” Dickinson.

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This year’s DairyNZ Farmers’ Forum has a great mix of speakers, interactive workshops, livestream events and webinars for farmers nationwide.

“I really enjoy these events, as it gives me a chance to catchup with farmers and discuss what is happening on their farms, especially as we think toward the future and prepare for the new season coming.”

Bagrie will give an overview of current and coming economic trends, and how these will affect farmers. Dickinson will discuss the role of innovation, science and technology in meeting the challenges we face and creating practical solutions.

We also have an exciting session planned, covering the journey to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the opportunities and challenges around that.

At the Hamilton conference, you can also join discussions at two of eight workshops.

Workshop topics cover the latest science, environmental change, genetic

with DairyNZ improvement, business skills, being a great boss and more.

This year, our Farmers’ Forum also includes two free interactive webinars available for farmers from across NZ, which will showcase the event’s economic insights and scientific solutions.

Webinar 1: Thursday, May 6, 7-8pm DairyNZ’s economics team will share insights on the competitiveness of NZ’s dairy sector when compared to key international competitors and how we can adapt to keep leading the world.

Webinar 2: Thursday, May 13, 7-8pm DairyNZ’s science team will share the latest science-based solutions to common farming challenges coming at you every day. n

MORE:

Our forums are always popular events, so don’t miss your chance to attend. You can see our programme and register at dairynz.co.nz/ farmersforum Forums are free for DairyNZ levy payers and their staff to attend. I look forward to seeing many of you there.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Tahau Jerseys “My family has been using VikingJerseys for roughly 30 years, it gives us the outcross genetics we need in our herd, we find the VikingJerseys have their health traits so well recorded what the data says they are going to do, they do.

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WOMEN IN AGRIBUSINESS

A different egg-perience

By Anne Boswell

A Whakatane dairy farmer’s dream of diversification on the farm has resulted in a business where chickens have free range alongside the herd.

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ou can almost see the ideas flying around inside Whakatane dairy farmer Tina Armstrong’s head before they tumble out of her mouth in quick succession.

She speaks passionately and with curiosity about our ecosystem and sees endless potential in creating a farming system that operates in harmony – as nature intended.

But in Armstrong’s case, don’t confuse her busy mind with erraticism.

She and partner Hayden Power, who milk 356 cows on his 128ha effective family farm at Thornton, are on track to reach organic certification in October, and anyone on that journey knows the commitment and focus that is required.

However, what’s really got her buzzing at the moment is her new business venture: Circular Eggs.

And it has certainly been a circular journey to get there. Armstrong, although raised on a dairy farm, studied chemical engineering and was contracting to a Brisbane company when she became pregnant with the couple’s first child.

Her contract came up for renewal and she made the daunting decision not to renew it.

Whakatane dairy farmer Tina Armstrong and her partner have diversified their farm to include free range chickens and now run Circular Eggs selling to the public.

Photos: Anne Boswell

“It was something I struggled with as I had always been financially independent,” she says.

“And although I am very involved in all aspects of the dairy farm, Hayden is the principal manager.

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“Circular Eggs is something for me to do on my own, and I’ve really enjoyed expanding my skillset. I have enjoyed the challenge of something different.”

She says once the couple had children Chloe, six, and Toby, three, their

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April 2021

perspective on farming – and life in general – changed.

“We were run down, stressed, working like crazy people following the industry’s ‘best practice’ and we were really starting to question if dairying was the right thing for us,” she says.

“We always felt on edge; pumping nitrogen fertiliser on and feeding palm kernel just didn’t feel right.”

Her brother introduced her to a book called Folks, This Ain’t Normal by Joel Salatin, which caused them to question the status quo.

“I read it, Hayden read it and we both had aha moments. Joel talks about the broken food system and how there is a better way to farm. By mimicking nature your farm can become a thriving ecosystem while being productive and profitable. It was time for us to change,” she says.

The overarching philosophy they have followed is to try to farm as close to nature as possible, growing nutrientdense food by farming in such a way that they don’t only sustain their environment, animals and community, but regenerate them.

Part of the plan to mimic nature included creating an opportunity for grazing herbivores to be followed by birds, so three years ago, they bought a small chicken coop for 50-60 chickens, selling the surplus eggs to the neighbours.

In May 2020 she decided to expand the operation. They purchased a larger trailer, or “Chicken Caravan”, expanded their flock to 400 chickens and Circular Eggs was born.

The “properly free range” chickens are moved onto fresh pasture every day, following the cows by two days and contributing to the circular ecosystem in more ways than one.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Son Toby Power, three, helps mum Tina collect the eggs produced by their 400 chickens.

“The chickens scratch up the cow poo and eat the maggots, worms and pests, which reduces flystrike on cows,” she says.

“They graze the grass too, which makes the egg yolks a really bright yellow colour.

“They are also great soil sanitiser and

leave behind their own fertiliser, which is really effective.”

The idea behind Circular Eggs – a subscription egg purchase and food waste collection service – was to share

Continued page 36

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the farm-fresh eggs produced by the chickens, achieve Tina and Hayden’s dream of their farm becoming a thriving ecosystem and help mitigate New Zealand’s unfortunate level of food waste.

“In New Zealand, 12% of food is sent to landfill,” she says.

“Organic matter in landfill initiates an anaerobic breakdown during which methane and a toxic leachate is released.

“Organic matter such as food waste should be composted instead.”

To ensure the chickens are being fed a diet that is appropriate for their optimum health, she further processes the waste by turning it into a highquality protein and compost through maggot and worm farming.

“It’s kind of gross, but flies are very efficient at reducing waste and their maggots are an excellent source of chicken feed,” she says.

“Whatever the maggots don’t digest is then fed to worms, creating yet another delicious food source for the chickens, and the byproduct is an excellent fertiliser for our farm.

“It is my goal to get to a point where we don’t need to feed any supplementary grain to the chickens at all.”

She believes the chickens’ excellent diet is already being exhibited.

“I plan to get the nutritional value of our eggs formally tested, but I believe the Omega 3 ratio and nutrient density of our eggs is already significantly better than average,” she says.

If you ask her, Circular Eggs is just one cog in what is becoming an efficient farming machine.

“Having a business exposed solely to dairy is short-sighted,” she says.

“Why not stack enterprises that complement each other? It doesn’t hinder the cows whatsoever.”

She has diversity firmly in her sights, and while she has dreams of farming pigs and creating a market garden, she and Hayden are already well underway with a comprehensive tree planting programme.

“When we bought our property there were basically no trees on it, so we employed a permaculture design specialist to create a tree planting plan for us,” she says.

“One of the permaculture principles is every tree you plant must serve at least five purposes.

“Our main purposes include stock shelter, aesthetics, ecosystem diversity and food for human consumption.

“Each year we plant 100 food trees,

36

Chickens scratch up cow dung and eat the maggots, worms and pests, which reduces flystrike on cows.

“Having a business exposed solely to dairy is short-sighted. Why not stack enterprises that complement each other? It doesn’t hinder the cows whatsoever.” along with thousands of natives. Last year we planted pine nuts, this year we are planting olive trees and next year we will plant macadamia trees.”

Tina says they also rely heavily on the trees being used as stock fodder.

“Our transition to organics means treatments available to our animals are limited and we believe that to be healthy, our animals need a diverse diet,” she says.

“All the trees provide different minerals that our cows are free to browse to make them strong and healthy.”

She says mineral cycling is another important consideration.

“Without the use of synthetic fertiliser, we need to get our minerals cycling how nature intended,” she says.

“That means lots of diversity. Every plant is higher or lower in different minerals; some have roots that go deep down, while others have roots that feed from the surface.

“Through leaf drop and cows browsing the trees then pooping, trees which are deep rooted are able to bring minerals from deep down up to the surface.”

She says the challenge of getting Circular Eggs up and running has been rewarding, allowing her to gain new skills including website design, marketing and refining the food waste processing method – not to mention the farming of 400 chickens.

She believes women make valuable contributions to land-based ventures, their nurturing traits significantly influencing how the farm is run.

“The creation of Circular Eggs, as just one part of a farm with a thriving ecosystem, has been rewarding beyond measure,” she says.

“The life in our soil has exploded from no worms to plenty every time you dig a hole.

“Finally, and very importantly, there has been a lot less stress on us and our animals.” n

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

ANIMAL HEALTH

Stay on top of data

T

he ever-increasing demands and requirements on farmers from various organisations is becoming greater. Now, with dairy companies asking for more information, data and benchmarking are even more important.

“With the increased scrutiny on our dairy sector to prove our farmers are operating sustainability,” WelFarm Ltd general manager Samantha Tennent says.

“And to continue our access to export markets, it is even more important we have the evidence that we are looking after our animals to a high standard.”

Tennent, who has a background in veterinary technology and has worked in the dairy sector across a variety of roles, recently as an animal developer for DairyNZ managing the InCalf programme, says that without these figures, farmers are in the dark about their performance, particularly when it comes to animal health and welfare.

“One tool we have available to collate herd wellbeing data and give us that benchmarking is the WelFarm programme,” she says.

WelFarm is an assurance programme developed by XLVets and has been used on-farm since 2014. It is available to all farmers and veterinarians and utilises data collected throughout the season to benchmark farms nationally and regionally. This helps identify areas where farm productivity and animal wellness could be optimised through effecting change.

It also supports farmers making improvements towards goals, tracks those activities and shows them whether their efforts are succeeding.

“We know small shifts in in-calf rates, reducing somatic cell counts, reducing mastitis and increasing milksolids all have significant impact on performance and profitability. And how we use antibiotics and other drugs is continually under the microscope,” she says.

“WelFarm helps farmers understand what good looks like.

“Animal health is also a big cost onfarm and good herd health is crucial to optimise performance.”

Greg Lindsay, of Franklin Vets, has been using the programme with farmers for several seasons.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

“Through the reporting at the end of the season I was able to have a valuable discussion with one farmer on how they were using lower levels of antibiotics, which was great, but they were also using significantly fewer antiinflammatories than others in the area,” Lindsay says.

“And, since anti-inflammatories are useful tools to manage pain it gave us the opportunity to talk about how they can be used on-farm to support animals, which can improve performance outcomes and animal welfare. They started using it for more procedures after that conversation.

“We know small shifts in in-calf rates, reducing somatic cell counts, reducing mastitis and increasing milksolids all have significant impact on performance and profitability. ”

Samantha Tennent “I think that’s a great win. I had the evidence to show them where they sat and they were receptive to discussing ideas.

“Farmers regularly come to us for advice and WelFarm reporting provides a great pathway to develop plans towards their goals.”

Tennent encourages farmers to discuss with their vets whether they are already offering the programme and vets to get in touch if they want more information and support to implement it in their clinic.

“It’s a great initiative and the only one of its kind in New Zealand. Without the data and benchmarking we don’t know what good actually looks like and whether our efforts to improve are having an effect,” she says.

WelFarm provides that platform and assurance across the sector and to the consumer with regard to food safety, animal health and wellbeing.” n

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RESEARCH

Regen fads v facts Misinformation about regenerative agriculture is irking Kiwi scientists who say it needs to be scientifically scrutinised.

Kiwi scientists have been studying various aspects of the New Zealand managed ecosystems for decades, specialising in soils, plants and animals, as well as the environment, but their work is being ignored.

By Tony Benny

P

rominent New Zealand agricultural scientists are worried the hype surrounding regenerative agriculture is allowing unproven theories and practices to take hold without sound scientific backup.

“For some time we have been disquieted by the ballyhoo in support of regenerative agriculture in the absence of scientific studies into the implications of applying these practices to farm practices in this country,” says Lincoln University professor Jon Hickford, who is president of the NZ Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science (NZIAHS).

Hickford and other scientists have written a series of articles in the institute’s online AgScience magazine, published at the end of last year, which raise critical questions about the benefits of regenerative agriculture.

“Before we choose to become too enamoured with regenerative agriculture, it needs to be subjected to rigorous scientific scrutiny,” Hickford argues.

“These articles lay the foundation

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for how we should start the process of thinking.”

Retired scientists Warwick Scott and Derek Wilson write that regenerative agriculture originated in the US in response to soils there becoming damaged by inappropriate landuses, notably exhaustive cropping in unsuitable situations, and then spread to Australia where poor soils with low fertility were also cropped exhaustively.

But they say soils in NZ are different.

“Recent advocacy of regenerative agriculture in this country is based on the presumption that our agricultural systems are degenerated. They are not and the current claims that regenerative agriculture is needed to rescue them are misplaced. It has little relevance,” the two scientists say.

Lincoln University professor Leo Condon adds that some of the practices promoted by regenerative enthusiasts, including the use of bio-stimulants such as plant growth promoting microbes, effective microorganisms, phosphate solubilising microorganisms, compost teas and humates have been subject to extensive investigation around the

Lincoln University professor and president of the NZ Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science Jon Hickford says there is a lot of hype around regenerative agriculture causing disquiet amongst scientists.

world and, for the most part, have been shown to have no significant impact on plant growth and soil biology under field conditions.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Massey University associate professor Kerry Harrington is concerned regenerative practices could see an increase in difficult-to-control weeds.

“Some regenerative agriculture proponents advocate highly complex pasture mixtures and grazing them less tightly than in conventional agriculture,” Harrington writes.

“But unless sowing rates are kept low, only the most aggressive species survive. If sowing rates are kept low enough to allow some of the more useful species to establish, weeds will also establish.

“Research funding is better directed toward improving the effectiveness of current weed control efforts than thinking that eliminating herbicides and moving to complex pasture mixtures will solve problems for farming and the environment.”

Article by article, the writers present scientific facts about NZ agriculture that they say are being ignored by many in the regenerative movement.

“These scientists have been studying various aspects of the New Zealand managed ecosystems for decades, specialising in soils, plants and animals, as well as the environment,” Hickford says.

“They are concerned that people from overseas advocating a change cannot appreciate the unintended consequences.”

Hickford says current NZ agricultural and horticultural systems are far from perfect and work must continue to make them environmentally sustainable.

“We have wrought considerable damage to the environment in our short occupation of this land, and issues such as water quality, greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity are important to all New Zealanders,” he says.

But he argues changes to existing systems must be backed by facts not romantic notions, citing one “appealing statement” as an example: “The cycle of life creates its own fertiliser”, but dismisses it as biological, chemical and physical nonsense.

“It is easy to state you have undertaken decades of scientific and applied research, but where is that research published, how accessible is it to the public (scientifically literate or not) and has it been peer reviewed?” he asks.

“The world is awash with attractive ideas but we need to see the hard evidence that regenerative agriculture will capture carbon in soil, reverse the atmospheric accumulation of CO2, increase yields and provide resilience to climate instability (just some of the many positive attributes claimed).

“And even if it does demonstrably do these things in overseas countries, will it do the same in New Zealand? Our production systems and climate are different in many critical respects.”

NZIAHS has welcomed a call by MPI for proposals that will investigate regenerative farming practices, with funding for successful proposals to be made available through the Ministry’s co-investment fund.

“It can’t happen soon enough,” he says. n

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Advocacy of regenerative agriculture in NZ is based on the presumption that our agricultural systems are degenerated, but Kiwi scientists say they are not.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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RESEARCH

Exciting space for cattle

By Anne Boswell

Genetic companies have been working together to produce genetics that will help farmers to meet targets in the Zero Carbon Act.

N

ew Zealand farmers may be able to purchase genetics to breed low-methane-emitting cattle by 2025, thanks to a collaboration between dairy genetics giants LIC and CRV. Following the success of a pilot trial in May 2020, the companies have developed a programme that will isolate and select genetics for breeding lowemitting dairy cattle – crucial to meeting the targets set out by the Zero Carbon Act. “The Zero Carbon Act – which aims to see methane emissions reduced by 10% by 2030 and up to 40% by 2050 – will require a multi-factorial approach, and breeding is just one of those,” LIC senior scientist Dr Lorna McNaughton says.

“Although we are at the beginning of the journey to breed for methane, genetic selection is a permanent and cumulative solution with an expected 0.5-1% gain each year.

“Over a 20-year period we will be able to make a reasonable breeding contribution.”

NZ’s pasture-based system has made it difficult to measure methane emissions because determining the exact amount of feed each animal is eating is difficult to achieve with grazing milking cows.

The team decided to take another approach and measure the methane emissions of the high-use LIC and CRV bulls set to sire around 90% of NZ’s dairy cows.

“As high-use bulls sire 10-30,000 daughters in a single season, the genetics can be quickly disseminated,” she says.

The pilot trial saw penned yearling bulls measured for methane emissions via the GreenFeed system, with animals placing their heads inside a hood to feed for at least one methane release cycle.

Methane and carbon dioxide was measured each time, with a target of taking 100 measurements per bull over 28 days.

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LIC research assistant Gemma Worth and LIC senior scientist Lorna McNaughton at the pilot trial seeking to identify the possible link between the methane cows produce and their genetics.

“The grams of methane per kg dry matter was consistent with the national inventory of around 21.6g methane per kg DM, with the data encouraging enough to go to a full trial,” she says.

This year, the team will measure all 300 bulls in the progeny testing programme used in dairy herds. Next year, the methane emissions of the extremely high and low-emitting bulls’ progeny will be tested in Portable Accumulation Chambers, or PACs. In 2024, the progeny will be lactating and more testing will establish whether the daughters of the high and low bulls are high or low-methane themselves.

In 2025, farmers should be able to purchase semen to breed low-methane animals.

AgResearch senior scientist Suzanne Rowe has spent over a decade measuring and ranking sheep in NZ-based on their methane emissions, and believes it is now time to turn their sights to achieving similar results in the dairy industry.

Having developed two research flocks with high and low-methane selection

“We have been selecting on methane solely, but the progeny have been healthier, more profitable sheep overall.”

Suzanne Rowe lines, they are now breeding the third generation of low-emitting sheep and results have been encouraging.

“We have been selecting on methane solely, but the progeny have been healthier, more profitable sheep overall,” Rowe says.

The low-methane animals are producing an average of 11% less methane per kilogram of feed eaten, as well as producing more lean growth and more wool.

It was also discovered that the gut microbiome had changed in lowmethane animals, which was not only found to be a predictor of key traits such as feed efficiency, but also has potential

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

to provide an alternative measurement method to monitor large numbers of animals in a high throughput way.

“Rumen Microbial Profiles is the most informative phenotype to date,” she says.

She says the next step is to transfer technology developed for sheep to help overcome the challenges involved with measuring methane and genetic variation in large numbers of animals.

“We’ve seen the cattle industry measure bulls via the GreenFeed devices, but I would urge us to take other samples such as rumen profiles, blood and genomic profiles, so we can screen a wider population of cattle,” she says.

“In the meantime, short-term measures include developing PAC chambers for calves, which have been successful for sheep.”

McNaughton says the genes selected for propagation would not be chosen on methane status alone.

“It will be a balance between methane production and other traits that are important to dairy farmers,” she says.

“We will not want to go down the single trait selection path as you could end up selecting for bulls with low-

Dr Suzanne Rowe with a Portable Accumulation Chamber, which tests methane emissions of the extremely high and low-emitting bulls’ progeny.

methane production, but undesirable other traits.”

Rowe says the economic impact of the programme on the industry is entirely dependent on the price set for carbon, the Global Warming Potential (GWP) and how the Government chooses

to account for methane emissions.

“However, the physical impact based on current studies could be a cumulative reduction in farmed livestock of around 1% per year,” she says.

“It is an exciting space for the cattle industry.” n

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RESEARCH

Milk may offer covid protection

By Gerald Piddock

Previous research showed milk may contain an ingredient that can help fight influenza A but now, researchers have found it may also help protect the body against covid -19.

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n ingredient derived from cows’ milk developed by New Zealand company Quantec has been found to be effective at protecting cells against covid-19.

The discovery comes after research commissioned by Quantec into the ingredient IDP (Immune Defence Proteins) found that it had the ability to protect cells from covid-19, but it may also reduce the severity of covid-19 symptoms, a key concern particularly for sufferers of “long covid”.

The research was completed by an independent US laboratory.

Quantec chief executive Raewyn McPhillips says the results suggested that IDP could play an important role in the global struggle against the rapidly evolving virus.

“We already knew IDP offered effective barrier protection and support for the immune system, so with covid-19 running rampant throughout the world we wanted to investigate how IDP may be able to contribute to addressing immune health concerns,” McPhillips says.

“With previous research under our belts showing IDP is effective at inhibiting and protecting cells against influenza A and herpes simplex, it’s exciting to see IDP could also protect against covid-19, both in constraining the viral infection of cells and potentially reducing symptoms.”

Quantec founder and director Dr Rod Claycomb says IDP is much more potent than its individual parts, such as pure lactoferrin or lactoperoxidase.

It is a milk protein complex containing over 50 bioactive proteins that are proven to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-microbial properties.

“The IDP protein fraction is extracted from fresh, pasteurised milk, in the same ratio created by nature to support the immune system,” Claycomb says.

The research compared IDP against pure lactoferrin with antiviral activity and

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investigated its potential to reduce the risk of covid-19 or provide therapeutic relief from symptoms.

In the covid testing, IDP achieved an IC50 based on 3.5mg/ml compared to spray dried lactoferrin’s 4.5mg/ml and freeze dried lactoferrin’s 6.4mg/ml.

IC50 is the concentration of a drug that is required for 50% inhibition of viral replication in vitro. The lower the measurement, the more potent the substance is.

“This result supports other testing we have commissioned, which demonstrates the efficacy of the natural IDP proteins to inhibit pathogens and support the body’s innate and adaptive immune systems,” he says.

While the respiratory tract is the primary portal of entry for SARS-CoV-2, gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea can also occur in covid patients.

“Ingesting IDP may help reduce gastrointestinal symptoms due to its anti-inflammatory effect on body surfaces such as the skin and lining of the GI tract, thus providing some therapeutic relief for those suffering from the virus,” he says.

“With previous research under our belts showing IDP is effective at inhibiting and protecting cells against influenza A and herpes simplex, it’s exciting to see IDP could also protect against covid-19.”

Raewyn McPhillips McPhillips says the company is now planning clinical trials with IDP and is actively working with commercial partners interested in creating consumer health products based on these results.

“As a milk-based functional ingredient, IDP provides a natural, safe and effective solution that is supported and backed by science,” she says.

“A principal part of our approach is working with strategic partners in key markets, who recognise this and the opportunities available to develop and commercialise products utilising the potency of IDP.” n

Quantec founder and director Dr Rod Claycomb and chief executive Raewyn McPhillips with some of its products that contain IDP, which has shown to be effective at protecting cells against covid-19.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

RESEARCH

Partnership to reduce emissions

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feed additive for cattle that has been shown in trials to significantly reduce methane emissions is now being developed specifically for New Zealand’s pasture-based systems in a joint effort with AgResearch scientists and the dairy industry.

Royal DSM, a Netherlands-based global health and nutrition company, has developed a product called Bovaer® – otherwise known as 3-NOP – and a trial of one formulation for pasture-based systems to date has demonstrated a methane reduction of more than 30% for up to six hours after the additive is fed to cattle.

The product is designed to suppress the enzyme that triggers methane production in a cow’s rumen, and is also aimed at reducing emissions from other ruminants such as sheep and deer.

The product offers a potential tool to help farmers and nations reduce their greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and combat climate change.

In NZ, DSM has been working with

Fonterra and Crown Research Institute AgResearch on how best to deliver the additive to dairy cattle in pasturefed systems as opposed to the farming systems typically operated in Europe.

“We’ve been working with DSM and Fonterra over the past five years looking into the development of a pasture-based model for Bovaer, investigating a number of formulations and feeding models,” AgResearch principal research scientist Dr Peter Janssen says.

“Otago University has also been involved. We are learning more and further trials are being generated as we move towards a formulation suitable for New Zealand farming systems, and we expect DSM will provide updates along the way.”

Fonterra has a long-standing working relationship with DSM, but says its new collaboration is based around the Bovaer product and whether it can achieve similar methane reductions in NZ’s pasture-fed cattle.

Fonterra group director for farm source Richard Allen says that finding a solution

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to the methane challenge requires more than just the hard graft farmers are putting in.

“We need to find a breakthrough in reducing emissions from cows and Bovaer could provide exactly that. This work with DSM is an exciting opportunity for the co-op.”

Fonterra chief science and technology officer Professor Jeremy Hill says Fonterra is working closely with DSM NZ to ensure that any innovation is well-tested and can easily be distributed and used by its farmers.

DSM Nutritional Products global programme head Mark van Nieuwland says the alignment with Fonterra means DSM has a partner to potentially commercialise Bovaer in NZ and globally.

He says NZ and Australia are priority markets for product development and gaining regulatory approvals, alongside Europe.

Bovaer has been featured by the World Resources Institute as one of the 10 global breakthrough technologies that could help to feed the world sustainably. n

RESEARCH

Lepto doesn’t differentiate

By Samantha Tennent

Research on leptospirosis in New Zealand and the United Kingdom shows the disease is not picky or restricted to one farming sector.

I

t doesn’t matter if you are a dairy farmer or a drystock farmer, the risk of contracting leptospirosis is on par according to a study from Massey University and the University of Warwick in England. And the flow-on effect puts meat workers at risk due to the poor vaccination uptake in drystock farming.

“Our main finding was that drystock farmers contributed approximately equal numbers of cases of leptospirosis as dairy farmers, but dairy farming was a more frequently recorded class of occupation,” professor of veterinary public health and lead author of the study Jackie Benschop says.

“People contract leptospirosis from infected animal urine, and knowing the patient’s occupation is critical to combating the spread of the disease, such as by using livestock vaccination to reduce human contact with infected animal urine.”

They have also uncovered meat workers are most often notified with the two serovars most frequently contained in livestock vaccines – Hardjo and Pomona – and they have no agency in relation to the vaccination status of the stock they process.

“The lack of vaccinating in drystock inadvertently exposes meat workers

to risk, as they come into direct contact through yarding, slaughtering and processing a large number of unvaccinated animals,” she says.

“Monthly data from our research shows that drystock farmer infections peak in August, which is likely due to increased animal contact at spring lambing and calving. The meat worker peak is in September and may be associated with the return of workers to begin processing the new season lambs after winter shutdown.”

Massey and Warwick Universities have been working on the research using routinely collected surveillance data from NZ’s notifiable disease database (EpiSurv) of cases from January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2016.

The new research has found the patient’s occupation was only recorded accurately in two thirds of cases in surveillance data taken between 1999 and 2016 when there were a total of 1557 cases. But when leptospirosis patients are interviewed to collect surveillance data and they identify their occupation as a farmer, there is a need to more finely differentiate their type of farming.

“This detailed occupational data collection is important as it has implications for leptospirosis prevention

Leptospirosis can cause disease and death in animals and can transfer to humans through direct or indirect contact with infected urine or contaminated water, resulting in anything from a minor flu-like sickness to admission to hospital and long-term illness.

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Massey University professor of veterinary public health Jackie Benschop says recent studies shows all farmers and meat workers are at risk of leptospirosis.

and control strategies. Livestock farmers, notably dairy and drystock, need to be differentiated as there are some specific risks,” she says.

Benschop says drystock farming encompasses the pasture grazing of beef cattle, sheep, deer for meat and wool and velvet production. In comparison, dairy cattle are often fed a pasture-based diet and supplement when required to balance their feed intake, are often milked twice daily for nine months of the year.

She says the dairy system relies on much more direct animal-human contact and although approximately 99% of dairy farms in NZ have a leptospirosis vaccination programme in place for their cattle, drystock vaccination rates are much lower.

“Although drystock farmers do not have daily contact with their animals, they are still exposed to the disease through calving cattle and deer,” she says.

“Our work provides important evidence for reassessing how little leptospirosis vaccinations are used in drystock.

Vaccination programmes applied to drystock should help reduce the high proportion of meat workers and drystock farmers being infected with the serovars in the vaccines.

“The effectiveness of such a vaccination programme has been demonstrated to reduce the incidence of ‘dairy farm fever’ in dairy workers in the past 40 years,” she says. n

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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FARMSTRONG

A wake up call A near-fatal accident completely changed Owen Gullery’s approach to life and farming. Now he’s alerting other farmers to the dangers of fatigue.

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Waikato farmer Owen Gullery, pictured with son Ryan, says working long days without a break led to a tractor accident that nearly killed him.

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wen contract milks 480 cows on a dairy farm near Cambridge. He’s been in the industry 20 years and loves “the daily challenges of farming – good and bad.” But a few years back a tractor accident almost killed him.

“I’d only been contract milking a couple of years in Manawatu. I was your typical ‘I’m gonna take on the world’ guy, working full-on hours. I wanted to make as much money as I could, bank every cent so I could buy a farm,” Owen says.

“That drove me to work 200 to 300 days in a row without a break. I was working from four in the morning till eight at night most days.”

That combination almost killed him.

“The night it happened I had a cow I knew would have problems calving, so I was waiting to calve her. I went out to check her late at night. We had a threepond effluent system and I knew she was in the paddock by the dry pond, but it was a pea soupy kind of night, with fog everywhere,” he recalls.

“By the time I got to her it was 11 o’clock at night in October, and I hadn’t had a day off all year.

“I drove the tractor up the side of the pond where I thought she was, went over the bank and before I knew it, the cab was filling up with effluent. I’d driven into the wrong pond because I was so tired.

Owen says he couldn’t get anything to open to escape the cab space.

“I ended up gasping for breath in the last couple hundred millimetres of cab space, managed to kick the back window open, grabbed the blade on the back of the tractor and hauled myself out. It was pretty scary,” he says.

After that traumatic experience, Owen completely changed the way he approached his job. He employed parttime help. He took his first break of the year and scheduled two afternoons off a week from then on. The family also reset their life goals.

“We changed from being prepared to go anywhere and do anything just to own a farm to concentrating on

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

being a stable, secure, happy family, no matter what it meant in terms of farm ownership,” he says.

“I don’t want to sound dramatic, but that’s what happens when you see your life flash before your eyes.”

Owen’s story is dramatic but not unique.

A study of 500 farmers who made an injury claim with ACC revealed 58% reported an aspect of diminished wellbeing had contributed to their accident. The most mentioned factors were fatigue/exhaustion; lack of sleep; not coping with the ups and downs of farming; needing a break from the farm; and having too much to do and not enough time.

these things. Sure, rain and fertiliser make farms tick, but farming is all about people.

“Farming can be a great lifestyle, but not the way I was working. Prior to my

accident I probably had no more than a week off over three years. Looking back, I realise there were near misses and close shaves all the time. But it literally took an accident to change my thinking.” n

“We changed from being prepared to go anywhere and do anything just to own a farm to concentrating on being a stable, secure, happy family.”

Owen Gullery Which is why Owen’s been helping Farmstrong raise awareness about the dangers of burnout. These days, as well as farming, he plays tennis and cycles to keep fit and coaches kids’ rugby. He also meets up with a group of other rural guys once a week to “solve the world’s problems over a beer”.

“Farming can be hard yakka. You’ve simply got to have downtime to stay healthy and safe,” he says.

“That’s why I think Farmstrong’s invaluable. In the dairy industry we talk about feed and milk, cows and grass. But there’s a whole area of farming that’s still largely untapped and that’s people’s ability to cope physically and mentally.

I think if people were in a better head space, relationships would flourish and properties would do better.

“Farmstrong makes it easier to discuss

Farmstrong ambassador Sam Whitelock says life can get really busy on-farm, so having a strategy to manage fatigue is vital.

Let’s leave the last word to Farmstrong Ambassador Sam Whitelock: “I know from having grown up on a farm that farmers are great at looking after their stock and pasture but, sometimes, not so good at looking after themselves,” Sam says.

“I like to think of my wellbeing as a bit like a bank account. Making small, regular ‘deposits’ by doing the things that boost my energy levels,

like scheduling time to catch up with mates and go hunting or fishing, means I’ll have something to draw on when I’m under the pump.

“Let’s face it, there are only so many hours in a day, so when life gets really busy on-farm having a strategy to manage fatigue is vital.

“On a farm no one is going to come and tell you to have time off. You have to prioritise it and make it happen yourself.”

MORE:

Farmstrong is an award-winning rural wellbeing programme that helps farmers and farming families live well to farm well. To find out what works for you and lock it in. Check out our farmer-to-farmer videos, stories and tips on www.farmstrong.co.nz

Under the pump?

For tips and ideas, visit farmstrong.co.nz

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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TECHNOLOGY

Tech to combat emissions

By Gerald Piddock

A new report suggests technology could be a big part of cleaning up and reducing emissions on the farm.

I

t is not only New Zealand dairy farmers looking at ways to reduce onfarm emissions as US dairy producers turn to technology and economic incentives for methane reduction.

The advances are paving the way for the country’s dairy farmers to make meaningful progress in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the sector, according to a new Rabobank report.

Within the report, called A ReducedMethane Future for Dairy: Meaningful Progress That’s Economically Sustainable, it cited manure and ruminant emissions from belching as the two main sources of emissions from dairy cattle.

Manure can be mitigated using anaerobic digesters that capture the biogas from manure pits or lagoons.

“The relatively recent ability to clean and upgrade the emissions captured in these digesters and turn it into biogas or renewable natural gas is driving a boom in investment and development,” the report says.

“The primary economic incentive for these projects is the value of the lowcarbon fuel standard credits that are generated by virtue of the renewable nature of the fuel.”

Cow belches, the report says, can be reduced through feed additives and supplements that impact the digestion process with the cow.

Methane makes up nearly 10% of GHG emissions in the US and agriculture accounts for nearly 40% of total methane emissions in the US. According to the report, methane

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Rabobank head of sustainable business development Blake Holgate says US and NZ dairy industries may have different regulatory policies, but all farmers are looking at ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

digester technology is well established and continues to evolve and improve, while feed additives to reduce enteric emissions are quickly developing, and progress is being made towards regulatory approval and scalability.

Anaerobic digesters have been in existence for two decades on US farms, generating heat and electricity.

“The relatively recent ability to clean and upgrade the emissions captured in these digesters and turn it into biogas or renewable natural gas is driving a boom in investment and development.”

However, developments allowing this technology to further clean the biogas captured by the digester and turn it into renewable natural gas was driving their expansion.

The report says US dairy brands are in a good position to reduce emissions within their supply chains through methane digesters, feed additives or both.

Milk could also get premiums where methane reductions are achieved to meet carbon reductions and to incentivise and pay for on-farm adoption of these practices.

However, eventually farms that

choose not to implement GHG-reducing technologies where possible, may have trouble finding a favourable market for milk.

Rabobank head of sustainable business development Blake Holgate says while the US and NZ dairy industries have different regulatory policies, available incentives and infrastructure, it showed there was common ground as both had farmers looking at ways to reduce GHG emissions in an economically sustainable way.

Holgate says while the developments related to anaerobic digesters had minimal relevance to NZ because of the lack of market incentives in the US, developments related to feed additives were of more significance.

“The active ingredients in these feed additives that aim to reduce enteric methane emissions range from synthetics to seaweed, garlic and lemongrass, and trials are showing some promise,” Holgate says.

“For example, trials of the 3-Nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) synthetic supplement developed by Dutch company Royal DSM, (marketed under Bovaer) are showing emissions can be reduced by up to 25%.

“3-NOP is expected to be approved for use in the EU in 2021 and is currently going through early investigational studies in the US.” The success of the Bovaer trials had caught Fonterra’s eye and in January it announced it was teaming up with Royal DSM and will be trialling the product in New Zealand. n

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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www.dairywellness.co.nz

Teatseal helps sort spring stress

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heavy soil underlain with ironstone can make spring calving a muddy, tough task for Hayden Thurston and his family, and often the problems managing the mud and wet would only add to problems in the farm dairy.

“We found over those wet springs we were having horrendous issues with early season mastitis, and our penicillin use was going through the roof right from the start of lactation,” Thurstan said.

The early calvers would often contract clinical mastitis at day four as they came out of the colostrum mob, and it was not unusual to have to hand strip the entire herd every two days.

“The monitoring, time and expense we were investing was over the top and very stressful at a busy time of the year,” he said.

Thurston had already been working closely with South Wairarapa Vets on the problem, including ramping up the potency of their dry cow therapy programme to try and nail somatic cell issues at the end of the season and avoid carrying them into the next.

“We had some success with this, but if you headed into a wet spring, three days later the same issue has appeared again,” he said.

“The change was remarkable. The clinical cases just disappeared.”

Teatseal had been on the market for a period, but Thursron admits he had been cautious about using the non-antibiotic treatment that demands a good standard of hygiene at administration.

“Teatseal has brought the single biggest improvement to our herd of any product I have ever used.”

Featherston-based farmer Hayden Thurston was reluctant to use Teatseal, but after excellent results, has since incorporated it into his spring calving system.

“But we have always been pretty strict on hygiene ourselves, given the issues we have had.

We milk through a 40-aside herringbone, and don’t dry off more than 80 cows on any one day, so we have the time and focus to do it properly,” he said.

They decided to give Teatseal a go, using it along with their dry cow antibiotic on all cows at drying off.

“The change was remarkable.

The clinical cases just disappeared. Our cell count, which sat around 300,000395,000, dropped down to 110,000-160,000 for the entire season,” he said.

Some fine-tuning after a few years’ use means today all cows with a cell count at drying off of over 350,000 get a longer acting antibiotic only, those from 150,000 to 350,000 get a moderate antibiotic and Teatseal in combination, and those under 150,000 receive Teatseal only.

The use of Teatseal has taken away a significant level of stress for Thurston and family

over springtime, and there is nothing he would change now about the use of it in his dry cow programme.

“Teatseal has brought the single biggest improvement to our herd of any product I have ever used,” he said.

Teatseal has a lengthy history of clinical trials that have proven its effectiveness in helping manage early season mastitis and reduce somatic cell counts in New Zealand dairy herds.

Zoetis veterinary advisor for the South Island Dr Kristen Baxter says a recent meta-analysis of data found Teatseal reduced the risk of new infections over the dry period by 52% compared to not treating at all at drying off, and by 23% when using an antibiotic.

Early season subclinical and clinical mastitis not only decrease milk production and milk quality, they increase the risk of poor reproductive performance. Cows which have had mastitis take longer to cycle, and have a lower conception rate when they do cycle. This means not preventing

and treating mastitis properly at dry off can have economic consequences over many seasons.1 Other research has also shown cows not treated with an antibiotic-Teatseal combination were also almost twice as likely to have a case of subclinical mastitis, compared to those that did receive such a combination at drying off.

Baxter says good practice by farmers like Hayden are doing much to help maintain the sustainability and efficacy of antibiotic treatment.

“Hayden’s approach, using selective dry cow therapy, is very much aligned with both NZ and global antibiotic use guidelines,” Baxter said.

“Choosing only to treat cows that are likely to have an infection means we are more likely to have effective antibiotics when we need them in future, and helps stave off the threat of antibiotic resistance.

“Using a non-antibiotic product like Teatseal provides better protection for cows without an infection, and lets NZ farmers lead the way toward a more sustainable future.”

Zoetis New Zealand Limited. Tel: 0800 963 847; www.zoetis.co.nz. TEATSEAL is a registered trade mark of Zoetis. ACVM No. A7294. RVM; Available only under Veterinary Authorisation.

1. Kumar, N., Manimaran, A., Kumaresan, A. et al. Mastitis effects on reproductive performance in dairy cattle: a review. Trop Anim Health Prod 49, 663–673 (2017).

TECHNOLOGY

Farming with invisible fences

By Richard Rennie

A Waikato farm is one of the country’s first commercial farms to use virtual fence technology, where fences disappear and cows guide themselves from paddock to the dairy.

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alking across Pete and Ann Morgan’s Te Awamutu farm demands a doubletake when looking at the fences in most paddocks – the posts are there, but the wire is gone, recently pulled out, never to return, and now replaced by the invisible wires of a virtual fence system.

Morgan has an almost child-like gleam in his eye, not often found in dairy farmers approaching their late 50s. It comes from discovering a new way to look at and run his farm and his two 300cow herds. A way that, in his own words, has given him a new lease of life in this late-stage of what has already been a very successful dairying career.

It comes at a time when many of his peers may have stepped out of farming altogether, be it dulled by conventional dairying’s repetition, the daunting challenges ahead or simply being physically broken by the job.

“I know that Ann and I would not be able to do another 20 years’ farming the way we have been. The physical challenges and the big issues dairying faces that will drive big changes in how we run our farms,” Pete says.

For the Morgans, that new way has come by adopting the Halter technology and is poised to turn conventional dairy systems on their head.

Morgan started following Halter founder Craig Piggott three years ago as he began developing a remote cow management system that could keep cows behind virtual GPS-defined “fences”, and prompt them to move unshepherded by staff between paddocks, “breaks’’ and the farm dairy at scheduled times.

The Morrinsville-born farmer’s son Craig, who left Rocket Lab to pursue his tech vision, soon made a mark in

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Pete Morgan is an early adopter of the Halter technology, which removes physical fences from the farm, and says the system has made the layout and management of his farm more fluid and flexible.

Silicon Valley with an investor pitch that included a demonstration via laptop of him shifting his dad’s cows back home in Morrinsville.

Halter’s GPS collars signal to cows via sound prompts when they have left their break defined via GPS and an app-operated farm map. The sound cues nudge the cow back to her GPS-defined break.

Cows can have scheduled shifts programmed into their collars, including when to leave the paddock via an invisible gate and head up to the dairy for milking or a new break, all without dog, motorbike or staff intervention.

Halter Business development manager Steve Crowhurst says the collars had to overcome some big tech hurdles.

“There were three key ones. One was developing algorithms for individual cow guidance, a second was having robust, solar-powered collars that were comfortable and durable on a cow’s neck, and the third was having communication ability, regardless of terrain, capable of transmitting to the cloud,” Crowhurst says.

All dealt with today, the company has begun deploying onto commercial farms and is now getting strong enquiry from farmers.

For Pete, the tech’s potential lay in helping him manage dairying’s big challenges while protecting farm profitability.

“For us as a System 2 farm, it is all about optimising feed utilisation, without

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

compromising water quality and animal welfare, while addressing our future emissions,” he says.

On a two-herd farm constrained by gullies, sidlings and a long 4km profile, achieving that optimum pasture use has always been challenging.

“You may have a paddock and know it’s actually 10% bigger than what you need, but more often than not you will just go with it, given location, labour and time to allocate the exact amount is too difficult.”

The new tech has enabled him to turn the entire 240ha farm into a blank slate, unconfined by anything other than raceways and farm dairy location.

On installation, the entire farm is mapped by high-definition drone and the imagery used as the farm map for defining the virtual breaks.

“As you adjust a break, it precisely allocates pasture on a dry matter per cow and square-metre per cow basis.” he explains.

“You can allocate to a far more exact amount. It ultimately reflects in cow production and behaviour.

‘They learn to trust you in terms of what you are offering them each day,

Halter-equipped cows grazing on Pete and Anne Morgan’s Pokuru farm. Both herds of 300 cows are now equipped with the remote farming collars, which give the cows a gentle nudge when it is time for them to move.

their grazing behaviour changes and becomes more relaxed.”

The Morgans are pulling out the fences on their farm, with wires gone and posts to go. They will ultimately have about 15 static blocks, rather than the original 60 paddocks.

Those blocks can be managed by any variable he chooses, including land contour, soil type and fertility, while proximity to wetland areas, waterways and sensitive land is considered. All breaks are capable of being easily readjusted on the Halter app.

Simple steps to remote farming Pete and Ann Morgan are early Halter adopters, having had the system on one of their farm’s herds for three months, and the other since midFebruary.

Perhaps not surprisingly, transitioning the dairy herd from conventional practice to Halter is usually easier for the cows to get their heads around than it is for their owners.

Each Morgan herd of 300 cows took only five days to replace their usual sensory cues with the sounds and vibrations delivered via the Halter collars.

“The best way to think about the collars is the sound the cows get on each side of their head are like reins, guiding them along, with a vibe signal to encourage moving,” Pete says.

In transition, the cues are superimposed over the cows’ usual cues. For example, a feed break will continue to have a portable fence in front of them for a few days after collars are installed.

“And cows are used to sound cues – the sound of the farm bike, the tractor

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April 2021

or the fence reel being wound up – you are really simply replacing one set of cues for another,” he says.

“It’s like they have a shepherd on their shoulder 24/7 encouraging when they are right, and guiding them when they go the wrong way.”

The resulting shifts, either between breaks or to the dairy, slow down to the cows’ natural pace.

With it lameness has fallen away, along with the very human frustration of trying to move hot cows on a summer’s day from the back of the mob.

Longer-term Pete is excited about the collar’s capacity for collecting data that can be used to help develop algorithms to manage behaviour, health and reproduction.

“To achieve the resilience dairying needs, as farmers we need to set a high bar for technology solutions, and Halter is meeting it,” he says.

“You still need to be a good farmer, it’s not that the system makes you a better one, it just gives you more tools, options and flexibility we have never had before.”

In the meantime, early morning round ups for milking are gone, thanks to a scheduling ability that will activate on the collars at a preset time, nudging the cows towards the dairy.

“So, by the time I get to the dairy at 5.00am, the last cow is coming into the yard and we can get straight into milking.”

The farm motorbike has become redundant, and the calm vibe of the farm is enhanced with his preferred use of an electric mountain bike to get around the property.

Cows are scheduled to move from paddock to crop mid-morning to have their 4kg DM per head strip of turnips, and head back to graze the next break before afternoon milking.

His staff appreciate the transparency the Halter tech is bringing to a pasturefocused grazing system.

“Instead of me holding that grazing IP in my head, they can see for themselves why we are grazing the way we are, and they are very engaged, often suggesting great options to me,” he says.

“This technology is something they get completely and really buy into.

They will soon enough run further than me with it and I can ‘see’ what is going on.”

With the farm’s many gullies, ponds and wet areas, he can manage the sensitive waterways, adjusting grazing near them depending upon weather conditions, pushing closer when dry and well back in the wet.

But ultimately the tech is opening up his mind to looking at the farm more broadly and without the usual constraints fences impose.

“It’s been a chance to be far more creative in our management, and I’m sure we will find more over time,” he says.

“Often you become frustrated because you don’t have the time or the tools to unlock that creativity, now we do.” n

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TECHNOLOGY

Top 5 in ag tech

By Tony Benny

American company Lux Research has crunched the data to come up with a list of top technologies that will help feed the global population in the future.

D

igital innovation is “shaking up the entire agrifood value chain”, says strategic research firm Lux, which recently identified the top five agricultural technologies it believes will shape the future.

“There’s been huge change in the past 10 years, so companies have to be very agile,” Lux Research senior analyst Joshua Haslun says.

“We help them understand the innovation landscape and help make those decisions that keep them able to compete in these diversifying markets.”

At first glance, the top-five list doesn’t sound much like farming, with no mention of traditional stalwarts like meat or dairy production, but plenty that sounds futuristic.

Top of the list is bioinformatics, which Wikipedia defines as “an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data, in particular when the data sets are large and complex.”

Haslun says it’s an effective way to reduce the high cost of innovation by

Lux Research senior analyst Joshua Haslun says agriculture and food companies will need to capitalise on the digital revolution to produce food for the world.

crunching the vast amount of biological data now being generated, which he says is now doubling every year.

Considered to be a top tech trend by Lux, biofertilisers are essentially microbes that can be added to the soil to stimulate microbial activity that can help regenerate the soil.

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“You can ingest that information and then use bioinformatics as a platform to organise it and identify the key factors of, say, the gut microbiome, that can be leveraged to develop products, but do so in a way that is targeted,” he says.

“We’re talking about terabytes and terabytes of information that you have to wade through and find something valuable in and that is tricky, so it’s one of the inherent issues with the data revolution, especially when we talk about biological systems.”

Second on the list of top technologies for food and agricultural leaders to consider in 2021 is alternative proteins – which Haslun describes as “a monster” – to feed both people and livestock.

“We’re thinking about how alternative proteins fit into those value chains and that includes everything from insect protein as a source of feed for non-ruminants to single cell proteins produced from microorganisms and to mycoproteins developed from fungi that can be used for both humans and livestock,” he says.

Next on the list is precision agriculture, which is not about GPS-guided hi-tech farm implements, but more about bringing together digital tools into an integrated system.

“You always hear how annoyed farmers are with getting calls from all of the startups of the world, all the digital platforms out there and how none of them necessarily have it all. The moment we’re moving into is where platforms are integrating in all sorts of ways,” he says.

“You can ingest lots of information, let’s say from livestock producers, but then what can you do with that data, can you find ways to monetise it?”

Number four is biofertilisers, something Haslun has expertise in, having worked at Michigan State University before joining Lux, studying greenhouse gas emissions from the soil, working out which microbes were responsible for producing what.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Biofertilisers are essentially microbes that can be added to the soil to stimulate microbial activity that can help regenerate the soil. As an example, Haslun cites US company Locus Agricultural Solutions.

“They sell a product that works indirectly; it improves root biomass and then overall microbial productivity and as those microbes function they release nutrients, they add carbon to the soil and as that happens they change the character of that soil, so you get all these co-benefits like improved water-holding capacity or improved access to soil nutrients,” he says.

He doesn’t predict that biofertilisers will replace conventional fertilisers, but says their use will most likely grow.

Last on the list is something called ingredients informatics, the application of machine learning to recipes and ingredients to produce new formulations more quickly.

Traditionally food companies wanting to develop new products would hire vastly experienced experts who understood flavours and manufacturing systems, but now it’s possible to shorten

Precision agriculture is about bringing together digital tools into an integrated system, making it easier to crunch numbers.

that process by ingesting data and using computer power to understand it all.

“Ingredient informatics is a way to say let’s ingest information like flavour profiles, basic chemical structures, how they work in different manufacturing systems, how they taste to different populations and use that information in a very similar way to bioinformatics to decrease the information burden and get our more targeted insights that allow

you to make better decisions on things like product development,” he says.

Haslun says trends like the impact of climate change, soil carbon sequestration, environmental impacts and increasing food production, while also decreasing some of the cost to growers, are aligning and driving change.

“Agriculture and food companies alike will need to capitalise on the digital revolution,” he says. n

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HEALTH & SAFETY Tractor accidents claims are over-represented in Canterbury, the West Coast and the top of South regions, as well as Otago and Southland.

Spotlight on accident-prone regions

S

ome regions in New Zealand fare worse for farm vehicle accidents than others, says FMG. “FMG insures over 50% of rural New Zealand and so we’ve been able to learn a lot about where and what causes tractor, side-by-side and quad bike rollover accidents,” FMG manager for advice services Stephen Cantwell says.

“Some regions are over-represented in the number of claims we see. By over-represented we mean that the percentage of claims coming in is higher than the percentage of farm vehicles insured, which tells us those regions

Over the past 3 years FMG has paid out: • • • •

$9.1 million for quad bike claims $4m for side-by-sides $37.6m for tractor claims Of that, accident claims are the highest claiming area.

• $5.5 million for quad bike accident claims • $2.5m for side by side accident claims • $17.5m for tractor accident claims.

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are prone to having more accidents associated with quad bikes, side-by-sides and tractors.”

Quad bike and side-by-side claims are over-represented in the Hawke’s Bay, Manawatu-Whanganui, Otago and Canterbury regions.

In the South Island, tractors are overrepresented in Canterbury, the West Coast and the top of South regions, as well as Otago and Southland.

“Interestingly in the Southland region, we see that tractors are highly overrepresented for claims, which could be the result of hilly countryside,” he says.

In the North Island, tractor claims are over-represented in the ManawatuWhanganui and Taranaki regions.

“As expected, we still receive claims from farm vehicle accidents from all regions, however, our insights are helpful to share with those regions where there seem to be more accidents than others.

We really want to help rural NZ to keep safe,” he says.

Based on the information from the claims coming through, FMG has taken these insights and worked with industry experts to develop advice to keep you and your team safe on-farm.

“There is a lot we can do to improve our safety and reduce the risk of accidents,” he says.

“As expected, we still receive claims from farm vehicle accidents from all regions, however, our insights are helpful to share with those regions where there seem to be more accidents than others.”

Stephen Cantwell How to avoid farm vehicle accidents: • Focus on the ground ahead – many accidents involve multitasking.

• Keep it low or keep it slow when using a front-end loader on a tractor.

• Use the parking brake or handbrake – many accidents happen when riders jump off the vehicle to open a gate • Watch your speed • Understand how different farm vehicles handle, and what they can handle • Avoid fatigue – stay well hydrated, eat well and take breaks. n

MORE:

More advice is available at www.fmg.co.nz/ advice

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April 2021

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HEALTH & SAFETY

Buckle up for the ride

By Anne Boswell

Newly released data analysis on farm vehicle safety shows we must and can do better to keep farmers safe.

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need for increased vehicle safety on-farm has been highlighted in a data analysis undertaken by WorkSafe New

Zealand.

The analysis revealed that not wearing seatbelts was the largest single factor contributing to fatal work-related accidents, with 40% of the four vehiclerelated fatalities on NZ dairy farms from February 2020 to January 2021 deemed avoidable had a seatbelt been used.

As illustrated in the latest instalment of WorkSafe’s You can sense it, You can stop it campaign, targeting workplaces with the aim of getting more people home safe, farmers are urged to ensure they and their staff buckle up every time they get into a farm vehicle – whether it is a side-by-side, ute or tractor.

“Putting on your seatbelt is the simplest task and one we practice easily when driving on the open road,” WorkSafe engagement lead for agriculture Al McCone says.

“If we can get people doing this onfarm as well, we will see lives saved.”

In addition to reducing fatalities onfarm, it is estimated that ACC claim costs could be reduced by almost $2 million a year if all agricultural workers wore seatbelts on the job.

With non-seatbelt use relevant in 27% of all 15 fatalities occurring on New Zealand farms in February 2020 to January 2021, McCone believes it’s time to change our “she’ll be right” attitude to wearing a seatbelt on-farm.

“Mistakes happen and your seatbelt might be the difference between a sore neck and a broken one,” he says.

The data analysis coincides with the launch of a new side-by-side vehicle simulator, which will spend the next six months touring NZ’s agricultural field days and featuring in the FMG Young Farmer of the Year competition.

Drivers sit in the retired side-by-side and navigate a series of farm tasks – the first of which is putting their seatbelt on – while driving an off-road course

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April 2021

Seatbelts fitted to farm vehicles will help save lives when things go wrong on the farm.

“We know that we need all of an industry to get on board with improving health and safety for us to see results,” he says.

“That’s why we seized the opportunity to get some of the city-based agricultural representatives on board at the simulator launch in Wellington.”

WorkSafe guidelines on seatbelt use in the workplace include the standards that workers should wear seatbelts whenever they are using a vehicle or mobile plant for work, where there is a seatbelt available and if a vehicle is not fitted with seatbelts, businesses should investigate if it is reasonably practicable to have a qualified engineer safely fit a seatbelt.

Also, businesses should promote and monitor the use of seatbelts by workers and engage with workers on the importance of wearing seatbelts.

Farmers are strongly encouraged to use fit-for-purpose vehicles for farm tasks, but if you have no reasonable alternative to using a quad bike, WorkSafe recommends getting a professionally designed and manufactured CPD installed.

CPDs, or Crush Protection Devices, provide a survivable space should a rider be pinned underneath the quad bike.

Quad bike accidents and fatalities are still high. An average of five people die in work-related quad bike incidents every year, with 81 people killed between January 2000 and October 2017.

“These accidents can happen on almost any part of the property – and to experienced and inexperienced riders,” WorkSafe’s general manager of better regulation and legal Mike Hargreaves says.

“In many of the incidents the worker is crushed or unable to escape due to the weight of the bike, contributing to fatal or life-changing injuries.”

In 2014 WorkSafe said fitting CPDs was a matter of personal choice, but a subsequent review of research and the lack of improvement in incident numbers have prompted the regulator to revise that position.

And although the use of CPDs is unenforced at this time, WorkSafe says in the future it is likely to require and enforce CPD compliance.

“It’s our view that CPDs are likely to prevent serious and fatal injuries,” Hargreaves says.

“It’s important that farmers and others don’t treat these as a fit-and-forget solution. The devices do not take the place of training, maintenance, protective gear, vehicle selection, or the careful use of quad bikes, but they can provide some protection in the event of rollover.” n

MORE:

For WorkSafe NZ guidelines about seatbelts at work, visit www.worksafe.govt.nz/topicand-industry/vehicles-and-mobile-plant/ seatbelts-at-work

57

HEALTH & SAFETY

Understanding ambiguous loss

By Ross Nolly

Farmers may be classed as an essential service, which allows them to go about their business during the covid-19 lockdowns, but they still have plenty of other worries.

F

armers are in a unique position amongst business owners in that they must cope with more uncontrollable factors than most other businesses. Weather, local and global economy and product prices, changing government regulations, and now covid-19 has thrown another spanner into an already crowded works.

We are living in a time of constantly updating information. It now seems that dancing on a moving carpet is the new norm for everyone, especially so for farmers.

Taranaki Rural Support coordinator Marcia Paurini believed that when farmers were categorised as an essential service business during the covid-19 lockdowns, it left no reason for them to be anxious.

Unlike urban dwellers, farmers’ income sources were still active. La Nina weather patterns meant healthy silage levels, production was and is still strong, the dairy payout is looking promising and meat exports are lifting.

Yet there is an underlying anxiety about the future and Paurini has found an appropriate term to explain it, “ambiguous loss”, a term coined by Dr Pauline Boss in 1970.

Ambiguous loss differs from ordinary loss in that there is no evidential endpoint or certainty of when or if life will return to feeling safer, more definite, or a return to “normal”.

“The covid-19 pandemic is an ambiguous loss,” Paurini says.

“New Zealanders have experienced three significant lockdowns and the recent Papatoetoe outbreak has raised community contagion fears, which are not helped by hourly national media updates.”

“All of this has us on guard and selfisolating in some capacity. Discussion

58

group numbers are down in some regions and event attendances have dropped away, possibly based on the fear of being in groups.

“We don’t know how long it’s going to take for herd immunity to develop, so it’s of little surprise that we’re grieving and experiencing ambiguous loss.”

Ambiguous loss is the uncertainty and fear of the unknown and the future with no end date. It’s certainly not an unjustifiable fear.

New legislation is an ambiguous loss.

Complex compliance and likely very high costs associated with implementation of essential freshwater policies and achieving greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets are uncertain and unclear, which adds to the anxiety that many farmers are feeling.

Generally, things are going along fairly well for most farmers and Paurini feels that they should want to attend and participate in events. But she knows that’s not the case.

“I do wonder what’s causing this, but think it’s the underlying anxiousness and fear of the future,” she says.

“I was told of a farmer who hadn’t been off the farm in four weeks. That really scares me. Isolation is one of the worst things for your mental health. You need to get out of your own head, and connect and have conversations with other people.”

A farm can be a semi-isolated location, which can exacerbate the problem and cause it to go unnoticed. Farmers know which of their ilk are isolating because they usually haven’t seen them for quite some time.

“There’s often a cone of silence surrounding mental health issues. We recently ran a farm finance seminar with Baker Tilly Staples Rodway and only seven farmers turned up. They were the

Taranaki Rural Support Trust coordinator Marcia Paurini believes some farmers may be suffering from ambiguous loss, in which there is uncertainty about when or if life will return to normal.

ones who had their finances in order.

The ones that didn’t know their numbers didn’t attend,” she says.

“I’ve been to discussion groups where participants have said ‘it would be great if Farmer X was here, we haven’t seen him for a while’. They need to go and pick up that farmer because they’re less likely to say no when asked to attend face-to-face.”

Paurini also feels that it does not bode well for the industry if farmers continue to operate in this long held “cone of

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

silence”. That silence contributes to continuing and condoning the bad behaviour, which often masks an earlier traumatic incident in someone’s life.

Bad behaviour often stems back to incidents such as being badly bullied at school, parental divorce, sexual violation when young, or fatal accidents and loss. Marcia has recognised that there is always a reason for a person to exhibit unhealthy behaviour.

“There is the underlying uncertainty of whether farmers are going to be hit again. Is the payout going to stay high or drop? What’s the weather going to do?

This is all part of the grief process and I’m seeing that anxiety play out in the form of bullying and anger,” she says.

“Calls to the 14 Rural Support Trust’s 0800 number mostly relate to young people. Usually it’s farm workers or employees losing their confidence and questioning their ability. This results in increased levels of anxiety and them becoming scared to turn up for work.”

Federated Farmers are worried about the loss of good people from the industry and Paurini is seeing ever increasing numbers of passionate lovers of the land and animals exit the industry.

New unemployment data for the December quarter (down to 4.9%) surprised everyone. Yet Taranaki experienced the largest month-onmonth increase in job ads for December (up 14%).

“There is the underlying uncertainty of whether farmers are going to be hit again.

Is the payout going to stay high or drop?

What’s the weather going to do? This is all part of the grief process and I’m seeing that anxiety play out in the form of bullying and anger.”

Marcia Paurini

Currently, more than 45 farm staff vacancies are advertised in the Taranaki dairy sector. A net 35.8% of Farmers Confidence Survey respondents reported that it has been more difficult

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

to recruit skilled and motivated staff, an increase from July.

The large pool of labour looking for cross-sector opportunities isn’t at expected levels and with the sixmonth December-issued migrant visa extensions expiring just prior to the next dairying season, access to quality labour will be at a premium.

Paurini usually sees the results of farmer behaviour change affecting farm workers in the 20-year old to mid-40’s age bracket.

The typical scenario she encounters is of a farm owner continually telling their worker that they aren’t doing their job correctly. Often the worker is in their second or third season on the farm and knows the ropes and how the jobs must be done.

“Those workers go home and ruminate on the situation until their self-confidence begins to wane and they begin doubting their abilities. Yet the farmer keeps chipping away at them. All the worker wants is a simple ‘thank you’,” she says.

“The worker’s loss of confidence increases until they become anxious and too scared to get up in the morning and get out onto the farm, because they know they are going to get another strip torn off them. They then ring us and say that they aren’t doing well.”

Often, the end result is a medical certificate for time off work, and sometimes the need for prescription anxiety and depression medication, and often the worker isn’t keen to go back to that job. Unless the trust is able to change that farmer’s communication style the farmer and maybe the industry, will likely lose a competent worker.

“What I’m saying is that there’s something wrong with the farmer.

There must be some underlying reason for someone to be so angry. If a staff member is not working how you want, walk beside them. Don’t abuse them,” she says.

The Rural Support Trusts have a strong focus on mental health and try to nip stress in the bud with active help from all GP clinics and DHBs. The percentage of mental health percentage of the Taranaki Rural Support Trust’s total inquiries (around 40%) has stayed static since 2018.

Nationally, the construction industry represents 8% of the total suicides, with 7% for forestry and 6% for rural.

Those stats tell Paurini that the farming sector is not alone in having to deal with serious mental health issues.

The Top-Six Inches created by Taranaki artist Paul Rangiwahia for the Rural Support Trust. It is hoped farmers will buy and hang it in their sheds to get people talking about mental health.

Greater numbers of farmers are putting their hands up and publicising the stories of how they deal with their own mental health issues, which in turn “gives permission” for others to reach out too.

“Maybe it’s not anger, but frustration?

Only those who are close will recognise how ambiguous loss is playing out in their husbands, wives, partners, bosses and colleagues,” she says.

“What are they sensing or seeing that is different? Has there been a change in communication or management style?

Has there been an increase in anger? A loss of appetite? Less sleep than normal leading to higher irritability?

“I encourage anyone to seek support for family and colleagues who are displaying any changes. The bottom line is to give the Rural Support Trust a call to help out with any stressful farm situations.” n

MORE:

Suffering from depression or stress, or know someone who is? Where to get help: RURAL SUPPORT TRUST: 0800 RURAL HELP DEPRESSION HELPLINE: 0800 111 757 LIFELINE: 0800 543 354 NEED TO TALK? Call or text 1737 SAMARITANS: 0800 726 666 YOUTHLINE: 0800 376 633 or text 234

59

HEALTH & SAFETY

A new safety device may prevent farm vehicles from rolling over.

Mission to prevent a roll

By Samantha Tennent

A safety device being developed by a Hamilton student will ensure farmers return home safe each night.

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hilling statistics from ACC on farm injuries and fatalities have inspired a Waikato student to try and find a solution to keep farmers safe.

Vehicles and machinery are the number one culprit for farm fatalities.

During the 2017-18 season, quad bikes alone were responsible for 2187 injuries on-farm, costing $13.4 million in ACC claims. There are roughly five deaths per year due to quad bikes in New Zealand and two of these are related to bikes rolling over.

Hamilton student Lachlan Coleman designed a safety device that could prevent rollovers from happening in the first place, and save more lives if a vehicle did roll.

“I have family who are farming, and we have been affected by the devastating effects of a quad bike accident,” Lachlan says.

60

“My idea was to design a device that could preempt harm and stop rollovers before they happen. There are plenty of products on the market that can reduce harm during an accident, but I couldn’t find any that prevent them from happening in the first place and get help to an accident as fast as possible.”

Lachlan was attending St Paul’s Collegiate in Hamilton at the time. He had grown up on a horse stud in Bay of Plenty and moved to town before starting secondary school, but he has family dairy farming in Manawatu.

The Prevent-A-Roll device he has designed monitors the angle, acceleration, g-forces and other factors that a vehicle is exposed to and if it approaches a dangerous level, an alarm sounds to warn the driver to take corrective action.

It can be retrofitted with vehicle-

specific operating parameters to warn of an impending/possible rollover.

“While I was gathering information, farmers explained that any device they used had to be non-invasive, it couldn’t interrupt their usual daily activities and create frustrations,” he says.

“So, when I was working on the initial device, I took it four-wheel driving to give it a good test run, making sure it only reacted when it needed to, when the risk was high.”

He continued to build on the device’s functionality before entering it into the NIWA Waikato Science and Technology Fair. He won the top spot, which came with $1100 in prize money. He also won the NIWA Work Experience Scholarship, which gave him an unique opportunity to work alongside NIWA Hamilton scientists during the 2020-21 summer break.

His work was recognised at the Kudos

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

“While I was gathering information, farmers explained that any device they used had to be non-invasive, it couldn’t interrupt their usual daily activities and create frustrations.”

Lachlan Coleman Science Awards Dinner, held in Hamilton in November, receiving accolades among the science community. And he has plans to continue to build on the features of the device, including incorporating GPS and a system that sends alerts to a designated safety manager and an online portal to view asset information and operator performance.

“Farmers said a device couldn’t rely on cellphone coverage, so currently there are features that you can call and text through a mobile modem in the device, but I want it to have service and connectivity no matter where it goes,” he says.

“That would give it another communication protocol, as well as the mobile, so no matter where a farmer is on their farm they would always have some way to message for urgent help if anyone tipped over. Every minute counts in an emergency,” he says.

If the device is fitted to any farm vehicle, it would be a two-way system so people can locate and track them at any time. And to reduce risk and prevent accidents, Lachlan envisions the device being able to monitor driving technique and send alerts if there are any concerns which could lead to targeted training.

The data could also be used to increase

Hamilton student Lachlan Coleman has designed a safety device that could prevent rollovers from happening in the first place and save more lives if a vehicle did roll.

efficiencies and reduce running costs.

“There are so many features I’m working on that could benefit farmers. I want to make a fully-integrated system that could connect to a central network and have things like water flow sensors and sensors for gates (for example) connected as well, so everything could be managed simply and easily across the farm,” he says.

Other feedback he gathered for the design stated it had to be retrofitted easily without any electrical knowledge, it must be self-sufficient and run off its own battery, and not need any human intervention as that can be difficult with cold hands or gloves or if someone was stuck under an overturned vehicle.

It could also have a panic or SOS button for emergencies when someone

is feeling threatened or unsafe and be able to send GPS coordinates and corresponding messages to seek urgent help.

Lachlan is now studying Mechatronics Engineering at Waikato University and his project is taking a backseat, but he is still chipping away at it. He taught himself how to build everything using YouTube and Googling techniques.

“If you ever have an issue to fix or want to learn something, YouTube and Google have so many tutorials, but you need to be patient, it takes time to learn things,” he says.

Prevent-A-Roll will eventually be available to farmers and help reduce those frightening statistics of farm accidents and fatalities due to vehicle rollover. n

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April 2021

61

HEALTH & SAFETY

Better safe than sorry

By Ross Nolly

Health and safety on the farm is an obligation which many farmers are meeting but an online tool is helping to simplify their recording practices.

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n ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. And never is that saying truer than when it comes to Health and Safety (H&S) protocols on a farm.

Being proactive with H&S is always better than reactive and can potentially save you money. But more importantly, it could save a life or prevent a serious injury to family and employees on the farm.

With this in mind, Megan Owen started her business Orange Cross.

Created by farmers for farmers, it is a tool to help farmers fulfil their H&S obligations. She and husband Jason are 50:50 sharemilkers on a 185ha dairy farm near Hamilton, Waikato, where they milk 520 cows.

The Orange Cross tool has a number of templates and can include things such as a farm map to identify potential hazards.

Megan says Orange Cross was born from a belief that New Zealand farmers want to keep their people safe and healthy. However, historically it has been regarded as “too difficult” to document.

“The entire premise of Orange Cross is that the vast majority of farmers are already undertaking the process of keeping their workers safe and healthy,” she says.

“They warn people about the various hazards on the farm but aren’t very good at recording it. Historically, H&S recording has been a difficult, complex or expensive to implement paper-based system.”

She decided that with modern technology at most people’s fingertips

there must be an easier way to go about the task.

Orange Cross comprises a number of online customisable templates that allow a dairy farmer to generate critical induction information. It is designed to work on any internet-enabled device and documents what farmers are already doing, which is usually a great deal more than they realise.

“If a farmer has already assessed the risk and banned ATVs, then that risk now only has to be documented in the template. Yet if you’d asked them previously their answer would’ve been that there were no health and safety protocols in place,” she says.

“Farmers are continually thinking about H&S, and most are doing the best

2480RE86X210

they can. We provide the tools to make it easier to prove that they have.

“It’s a bit like going to school and being told that there’s an exam scheduled. You panic but are relieved when you’re told that it’s just ticking boxes. Our templates are really just a case of ticking the appropriate boxes and are very simple to complete.”

Owen estimates that there are around 150 potential hazards on every farm, and that 80% of them are identical on all farms. The remaining 20% are unique and they are the ones she focuses on.

Many of the templates are pre-populated and then personalised to each individual farm.

Many farmers think that the documentation process is going to entail a great deal of hard work. This sometimes has a tendency to put them off due to it being unfamiliar.

“If you can send an email or write a reply to a Facebook post, you can use Orange Cross,” she says.

Many are already observing 90% of their compliance issues as they aim to keep people safe and sometimes it just takes 10 minutes to review their protocols around keeping people safe.

“People often say that it’s just common sense and it is, but documenting your common sense makes it become a policy.”

Megan Owen “Many farmers are vulnerable because they don’t document H&S issues. We can help them with that, but they’re the ones who must implement it,” she says.

Megan Owen of Orange Cross developed an online tool to help farmers record and simplify their health and safety protocols.

“People often say that it’s just common sense and it is, but documenting your common sense makes it become a policy. Sometimes you need an independent person to come along and ask ‘are you sure about that?’” she says.

There is also the need to appreciate that some of the factors that farmers think are common sense are actually a risk. Tasks and situations that they have been doing for many years and think are commonplace and simple, are often something entirely new for a recent employee. Farmers need to take a step back and think what it was like when they were learning the ropes.

“There’s a genuine belief that H&S compliance is harder than it actually is.

It’s seen as being this big, bad bogey.

We record what they’re already doing and tweak the rest to suit each farm’s

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individual requirements. Over time as it evolves, the system can evolve too,” she says.

There is an onus on farmers to get faulty equipment repaired and sometimes they just need a reminder of this. Using Orange Cross, a worker can record repairs that are needed, as well as informing their employer of the potential hazard protecting them both.

“We can load a farm map with the hazards located on it. We go through the risk register and tick off those that are applicable and then bespoke those templates around each farm’s individual requirements,” she says.

Her aim is to simplify H&S protocols for farmers and make it easier and accessible for all those working on the farm.

“There are three ways to pass an audit. You say what you’re going to do, implement it, and then prove that you’re doing it. If you’re doing it, we’ll help you share it, and prove that you’re implementing it. By sharing it, recording incidents and sharing it with staff and getting them involved, you can prove that you have implemented a working system,” she says.

Recently, a client was visited by WorkSafe and the farmer simply took his phone from his pocket and said “it’s all on here”. WorkSafe, Beef + Lamb NZ and DairyNZ all provide good H&S resources.

Farmers pay for this through their levies so should take advantage of those resources.

“WorkSafe provides world-class resources. If you want something free and paper-based, don’t pay three-grand to a consultant, talk to WorkSafe,” she says. “WorkSafe are very helpful. They’ve gone from being the policeman who wants to rap you on the knuckles, to being coach-based and proactive.” n

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DAIRY FARM MANAGER

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DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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One last word …

W

hen you consider where the country was this time last year, in lockdown, we have certainly come a long way.

While farmer’s kept on working, along with other essential services, major events were cancelled, offices closed, many people worked from home and the rest of the country stayed home to help stop the spread of covid-19.

We succeeded and we have kicked covid’s butt not once, but three times and are keeping it confined to new arrivals.

Covid-19 threw a spanner in the works for many, especially major events such as regional and National Fieldays, Industry Awards evenings, conferences and more, resulting in a number of quicklyimplemented online events, which were a roaring success.

We had a bit of an oh-no moment a few weeks ago when covid got out into the community somehow and the alert levels went up, but it is heartening to see that the regional fieldays and other industry events are all-go.

It is also that time of the year when farmers swap their overalls and gumboots for a suit and tie and the ladies pull out their posh frocks and high heels for a night of glitz and glamour.

It is the annual awards season on the dairy calendar with the Ahuwhenua

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Trophy finalists being announced, Dairy Women’s Network Women of the Year finalists named and the Regional Dairy Industry Awards evenings being held across all 11 regions.

The Ahuwhenua Trophy is on a threeyear rotation with sheep and beef and horticulture, and this year it is the dairy farmers’ turn to shine.

Congratulations to our three finalists: Pouarua Farms on the Hauraki Plains, Tataiwhetu Trust of Whakatane and Opotiki farm, Tunapahore B2A Incorporation.

The three young Maori finalists in the The Young Māori Farmer Award are Anahera Hale from Whakatane, Ben Purua from Tokoroa and Quinn Morgan, also from Whakatane. The award recognises up-and-coming young Maori who are making successful careers in the dairy sector.

The 33 finalists from 11 regions in the Dairy Industry Awards are competing for the honour of winning either the 2020 New Zealand Share Farmer of the Year, 2020 New Zealand Dairy Manager of the Year or the 2020 New Zealand Dairy Trainee of the Year title. The regional winners will go on to compete at the national event on May 15 in Hamilton.

A Dairy Business of the Year recipient, a contract milker and farm consultant have been named as this year’s finalists

for the Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year award.

Belinda Price, a sharemilker based in Whanganui, joins Ashburton dairy farmer Rebecca Miller and Chevon Horsford, a contract milker, farm consultant and Maori farm advisor in Whangarei, in the running for the respected industry award, managed by Dairy Women’s Network.

All three finalists have a strong focus on people and highlights their work in leading and mentoring others through their farming journeys.

The recipient will be announced at a gala dinner in Taupo on April 8. Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell will be presenting the award that celebrates leadership inside and outside the farm gate.

Congratulations and good luck.

Thanks to Lisa Olive from Mataura Island in Southland for this early morning photo taken from the milking shed. She tells me farmer’s always take the best pics because “we are up at all times and work through all events”.

Very true.

Sonita Like us: farmersweekly.co.nz Follow us: @DairyFarmer15 Read us anywhere: farmersweekly.co.nz

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

Dairy Diary April 2021 April 7 – DairyNZ Explore your options in Bay of Plenty with steps to a futurefit farm system. Understand the targets and direction of travel for freshwater management and emissions reductions, and what it means for you and action you can take now.

Info at www.dairyevents.co.nz April 8 – Dairy Women’s Network Step up together at DWN2021, Taupo. The annual conference will feature keynote speaker Gemma McCaw and various workshops. The winners of the 2021 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year and DWN Regional Leader of the Year awards will be announced at the Gala Dinner.

Info at www.dwn.co.nz/events April 8 – DairyNZ Terrace Farm is sharemilked by Mick and Kirsten O’Connor for Dairy Holdings Ltd. The property in the Selwyn Catchment milks 1100 crossbred cows on the 278ha milking platform, with low levels of imported supplement. The farm achieves a good level of profit and has already achieved a significant N loss reduction from the baseline period.

Info at www.dairyevents.co.nz April 14 – SMASH Field day, Palmerston North Info and details at www.smallerherds.co.nz April 14 – SMASH Sharpen up your system in Palmerston North. Hosted by DBOY finalist Robert Ervine, we look into improving your reproduction results, keeping a lid on costs and strategies for successful regrassing.

Info at www.smallerherds.co.nz April 14 – NZ Farm Environment Trust Ballance Farm Environment Awards dinner in Lake Karapiro, Waikato. The evening celebrates some of the region’s amazing food and fibre producers, and recognises this year’s regional award winners. It also marks the launch of the new Waikato Catchment Group Award.

Info at www.nzfeatrust.org.nz/waikato-region

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021

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20 April – DairyNZ and LIC Traits other than production and genetics workshop in Northland, in association with LIC This informative workshop will be led by genetics product specialist Taylor Connell.

Info at www.dairyevents.co.nz 29 April – DairyNZ DairyNZ Farmers’ Forum 2021, Hamilton. Farmers’ Forum 2021 is focused on providing insights into future change and practical solutions to help you sustain your success onfarm. This year we have a mix of great speakers, interactive workshops, livestream events and webinars.

Info at www.dairyevents.co.nz April and May – LIC MINDA Roadshow, various dates and locations. LIC will be hitting the road until July 2021, holding free MINDA LIVE and MINDA app training sessions, as well as a Protrack session to show you how to get more out of your Protrack system’s software from MINDA LIVE. Info at www.events.humanitix.com/tours/mindaroadshow-2021 May – Once a Day Group Conference This time we are going to the beautiful Nelson region – a great excuse to get off-farm and maybe stay a night or two longer. We have an excellent line-up of guest presenters, including our farmer panel and after-dinner speaker Doug Avery.

Registrations will close on April 19 Info at www.dairynz.co.nz/events/lower-north-island/ national-once-a-day-conference/

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One thing that isn’t a pain in the arse to move.

We’ve got your back this Moving Day with a $400 moving credit* for your dairy shed.

68*Terms

and conditions apply. See meridian.co.nz/movefarm for details.

DAIRY FARMER

April 2021