Farmers Weekly NZ October 10 2022

Farms

Spring flushed by cold snap

Neal Wallace & Annette Scott

FORECAST fine weather cannot come quickly enough for South Island farmers who endured two snow falls within 24 hours last week.

Weather Watch head forecaster Phil Duncan said the cold front, though bitter, was typical for spring in being a short, sharp event.

Temperatures were forecast to have returned to double digits over the weekend but he warned there would be frosts.

Duncan is expecting mild weather and warmer than average temperatures for the next three weeks.

Snow up to 20cm was lying at sea level on Thursday morning, predominantly on eastern parts of Southland, Otago and Canterbury but also the lower North Island, following lighter but more extensive falls the previous day.

Lambing has just started on hill and high country farms and farming leaders fear there could be significant losses.

James Edgar farms at Moa Flat in West Otago and had 25cm of snow on his farm on Thursday morning and 1m-deep snow drifts.

He is 80% through his lambing but said others in the area have just started.

Further south, Dean Rabbidge

said most farmers have finished their lambing.

His farm at Wyndham in Southland had 1cm. He said some farmers who made baleage last week may be feeding it to stock now.

Central Otago missed the worst of this latest front, with Omakau farmer Andrew Paterson saying they received a light dusting on Thursday and about 2cm on Wednesday.

He has just started lambing but has opted to leave stock alone rather than drive them from shelter.

Ettrick orchardist Stephen Darling said the cold snap arrived at the worst possible time with trees budding and fruitlets forming, and he was preparing for several nights of fighting frost.

Albury farmer Matt Simpson started lambing on Friday and was out strategically placing hay bales to provide additional shelter, which stock were using.

He had 8cm of snow on Wednesday morning but despite snow flurries, paddocks were clear on Thursday and the thaw had started.

It was cold and miserable, but grass cover is good on the lambing platforms with ewes looking happy enough, Mt Somers Station owner David Acland said.

“Snow at this time is not ideal when you are lambing, but we are

Herd heads for the house

West Otago dairy farmer Paul Henton was glad he put his cows in a feed barn late Wednesday night. He woke to 3cm of snow on his Heriot dairy farm on Thursday morning before putting them back on paddock to fossick for some grass.

Voice of real estate signs

Brian Peacocke is stepping down as the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand’s rural spokesperson after over a decade in the role.

AgResearch and Deer

New Zealand

50 years of scientific deer farming

the worst, wettest winter Steve Wyn-Harris can recall on farm in nearly 40 years.

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EDITORIAL

Bryan Gibson | 06 323 1519

Managing Editor

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Claire Robertson

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Neal Wallace | 03 474 9240

Journalist

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Gerald Piddock | 027 486 8346

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gerald.piddock@agrihq.co.nz

Annette Scott | 021 908 400

Journalist

annette.scott@agrihq.co.nz

Hugh Stringleman | 09 432 8594

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Richard Rennie | 07 552 6176

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ISSN 2463-6002 (Print)

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Contents

Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor is in Singapore for the Sixth Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership Commission Meeting, which New Zealand will chair from next year. The discussions will focus on collaboration on digital trade, strengthening supply chains, and promoting trade and investment in green goods, services and technologies through the commission.

News in brief CPTPP talks resume Award entries up

Organisers of the Cawthron Marlborough Environment Award say the large number of entrants this year reflects the region’s growing focus and commitment to improving the environment. Twenty-seven entries were received from Marlborough businesses and community groups across the seven categories. Judging starts this month and winners will be announced at an awards night at the Marlborough Event Centre in April 2023.

Aquaculture boost

Aquaculture New Zealand’s action plan to build a national workforce to support the sustainable growth of aquaculture in New Zealand has received a $210,000 funding boost from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Sector Workforce Engagement Programme. The plan takes a collaborative cross-government approach to growing the range of people and skills the aquaculture industry needs.

Berries recalled

Foodstuffs Own Brands is recalling various Pams brand frozen berry products as a precaution because of a possible link to recent cases of hepatitis A. The recall affects all batches and date ranges of Pams Frozen Mixed Berries 500g, Pams Frozen Two Berry Mix 1kg, Pams Frozen Two Berry Mix 750g, Pams Frozen Smoothie Berry Mix 500g, Pams Raspberries 500g, Pams Raspberries 350g.

Back in 1860, exporting meat to the other side of the world seemed about as easy as nailing gravy to the ceiling. But a few determined kiwis took the bull by the horns and now our grass-fed beef and lamb is sought-after all around the globe.

At AFFCO, we see the same pioneering spirit alive and well in farmers today. We’re playing our part too – exploring every opportunity to take New Zealand’s finest farm-raised products to the world.

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New Zealand’s most trusted source of agricultural news and information

Surprise dip mars rise in dairy demand

Hugh Stringleman MARKETS Dairy

GLOBAL Dairy Trade

prices have taken an unexpected downwards turn, raising fears that dairy demand may not be as resilient as analysts had expected.

The GDT price index fell 3.5% on October 7, including a slide of 7% for butter and 4% for whole milk powder.

The reduction halved the GDT market increase of 7% during September, which had arrested a six-month slide of 30% between March and August.

ABS economist Nat Keall said the supply side of the price equation hasn’t changed, being strongly negative.

“Globally, prices for key dairy inputs like grains, energy and fertiliser remain well elevated, acting as a key constraint on production for most farmers.

“And of course, many dairy regions are struggling with their own local challenges, from rising regulatory burdens and unfavourable weather to difficulty securing labour and tighter financial conditions.”

Keall said European milk production was woeful through its summer months and the spring production figures in New Zealand and Australia have so far been weak.

“The big risk to our $10/kg milksolids forecast is that demand might not be proving as resilient as we’ve previously expected.”

In the most-recent GDT auction China did not stand out in buying activity and it is possible the strong

US dollar is having a negative effect on demand.

But the high US dollar is a boon for the farmgate milk price as Fonterra hedges at favourable exchange rates.

“Ultra-tight supply and relatively resilient demand remain a recipe for a very strong farmgate milk price, but just how high remains the relevant question.

“Whether we hit that symbolic $10 mark or not, farmers can be

confident the 2023 season milk price will be one of the highest on record, even after adjusting for inflation,” Keall said.

Westpac senior agri economist Nathan Penny expanded on the strong US dollar theme, pointing out that the Chinese yuan has also fallen against the US dollar and therefore dairy commodity prices have become more expensive in NZ’s biggest market.

At this stage Penny expects the

GDT price fall to be temporary because of rising prices in local currency terms and a degree of cautiousness in the market following the broader financial markets nervousness in recent weeks.

“The question around just how strong or weak global dairy demand is remains,” Penny said.

“While financial markets are nervous about the global economic outlook, an outright recession is still only a risk at this stage.

“On the dairy front, we will get further evidence either way over coming auctions.”

Westpac has a farmgate forecast price of $9.25, right on the midpoint of Fonterra’s own wide prediction range of $8.50 to $10.00.

North Island gets a dusting but wet a bigger problem

Continued from page 1

70% through the ewes with the hoggets yet to start so we are okay at the moment, but usually the chaos is not known until the day after, so we are just hoping this is a short sharp blast.”

Acland said getting high-energy food and minerals up to the cows is the priority for his dairy herd.

“It’s not the snow that worries me, it’s the cold,” Acland said.

Further north, lambing is in full swing for the 3500 ewes on Redcliff’s Station in the Rakaia Gorge.

Station owner and Mid

Canterbury Federated Farmers meat and wool chair Ross Bowmar said snow has settled down to 500 metres and he is hoping it blows through very quickly.

Snow has come at a tough time for Taranaki farmers managing limited feed supplies after the dry autumn.

Federated Farmers provincial president Mark Hooper, a dairy farmer in North Taranaki, said he has been one of the lucky ones to escape the worst of the wintry blast that has left much of the region with a covering of snow.

“We have pretty much missed it in northern Taranaki but in the

Higher

higher altitudes of South Taranaki it has been intense and even down to the coast there has been a covering of snow.”

It’s not the snow that worries me, it’s the cold.

David Acland Mt Somers Station

On the back of an extended wet period the unseasonal snow and cold temperatures are putting pressure on pasture cover and feed.

In Wairarapa the snow is

Faster

their Commonwealth Games counterparts, Wairere rams are supreme athletes that produce:

conception rates

growth

constitution

proving more of a frustration for farmers than a problem, Feds national meat and wool chair and Wairarapa farmer William Beetham said.

“We have had a scattering of snow right up through Wairarapa and down quite low, but it has come in flurries and not really a huge concern.

“What is more of a problem is everything is so damn wet. The snow is more a frustration at this particular time, the wet is the bigger problem.”

Though she escaped the worst of the snow blast in Hawke’s Bay, sheep and beef farmer Mel Croad

said the wet is a major concern for the region.

“The snow has fallen mostly in the ranges and the coastal hills, but we are extremely sodden, we don’t need any more rain.

“When the sun is out, we do get a response, but it is just not consistent.”

Croad said a lot of farmers are struggling to even get docking done.

Cropping farmers are also battling the wet conditions to get crops in the ground with pea and onion plantings weeks behind, creating a lot of concern for both growers and processors.

Stronger

MOVING BACKWARDS: The GDT price index fell 3.5% on October 7, halving the GDT market increase of 7% during September, which in turn had arrested a six-month slide of 30% up to that point.

Many dairy regions are struggling with rising regulatory burdens, unfavourable weather, difficulty securing labour and tighter financial conditions.

Nat Keall ASB

All hands to the pump on climate action

Richard Rennie TECHNOLOGY Emissions

THE country’s biggest agri-sector corporations have thrown their support behind boosted greenhouse gas research, as the government moves to ratify its big budget play with industry.

The combined commitment over the first four years of $172 million is 50:50 funded by Crown and industry partners.

Those partners will also contribute $7.5m in the first year to June 30 next year, which will also be matched by the government.

Industry partners with the Ministry for Primary Industries include Synlait, Fonterra, Silver Fern Farms, ANZCO Foods, Ngāi Tahu and Ravensdown.

Fonterra’s plans for developing methane mitigation are already well down the track with its Kowbucha product in trial phase in herds around New Zealand, and a further $50m due to be invested over the next four years in methane reduction through the joint venture.

CEO Miles Hurrell said Fonterra knows that with the government on board it can achieve more by partnering with others, and is looking forward to working to find solutions that will benefit its farmers and the rest of NZ.

Fonterra’s head of sustainability, Lee Stewart, said the joint venture between the government and industry provides the horsepower to give NZ the ability to stand on the world stage and clearly declare

it is trying to tackle pasture-fed biogenic methane emissions.

“If we can crack this, it is a gift NZ can provide to the world. It is building on an environment that is already the world’s perfect dairy farm, but where others are catching up,” Stewart said. He welcomed the open, joint venture approach the centre will provide, enabling the inclusion of both northern hemisphere technology and locally developed technology in research.

He emphasised that working towards zero carbon is no longer a means to gain a premium for product but is now essential if farmers want to secure market outlets for their product.

“Two and a half years ago I would have had an inquiry about once every month on sustainability from a potential customer, now that is daily,” he said.

Stewart said large global customer brands now have funding and management incentives linked through to achieving sustainability and zero carbon targets, with the expectation greater than ever that it is being achieved behind the farm gate.

“Eighty percent of the questions are about ‘What are you doing behind the farm gate?’”

ANZCO Foods supply and sustainability manager Grant Bunting said farmers are being asked to reduce on-farm emissions, but outside of reducing stock numbers there are few tools or resources available to achieve that.

“ANZCO’s involvement in the joint venture is about being able to

achieve more by working together with government and others in the wider industry to accelerate R&D development into technology and tools to benefit farmers,” he said.

Two and a half years ago I would have had an inquiry about once every month on sustainability from a potential customer, now that is daily.

Lee Stewart Fonterra

Analysis by Beef + Lamb NZ on He Waka Eke Noa’s impact indicates it is medium to steeper hill country farmers in the North Island who will feel the greatest impact of gas mitigation costs, with fewer options available at present, other than to offset with trees.

Simon Limmer, CEO of Silver Fern Farms, said now agribusiness has skin in the methane reduction game it can help accelerate solutions into farmers’ hands, as quickly as possible.

The launch of methane inhibitors in NZ is still some years out, with regulatory changes

needed to ensure inhibitors can be used legally. Some northern hemisphere countries have pushed ahead, incorporating products in their rationed feeding systems.

Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said the government remains committed to reducing agricultural emissions, and to do so NZ needs to have tools and tech in the hands of farmers as soon as possible.

“NZ can be and should be a leader in developing innovative new tools and technologies to reduce emissions on farm, and be the one other countries look to,” he said.

SKIN IN GAME: From left, Simon Limmer of Silver Fern Farms, Joel Gabites of ANZCO Foods, Ray Smith from the Ministry for Primary Industries, Miles Hurrell of Fonterra and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor. On the screen are Dean Fraser of Ngāi Tahu Holdings, left, and Garry Diack of Ravensdown.

New Fonterra pricing makes a Difference

Hugh Stringleman

IN THEIR October final retro accounts and bank deposits, Fonterra’s dairy farmers have their first results of the Co-operative Difference payment within a 10c/kg range.

More than 6000 will be pleased to have achieved all or part of the full entitlement – but 2450 did not qualify and received only the base payment of $9.23.

Despite all of Fonterra’s preparation and explanation over the past 18 months, nothing speaks louder than payout numbers.

For the 2021-22 season, the average farmgate milk price is $9.30/kg for the co-operative’s collection of 1478 million kilograms, being $13.7 billion in total.

One cent of payout represents $15 million and 10c is $150m, which is the scope of the Cooperative Difference programme and its monetary outcomes.

Te Tihi, the summit of the mountain, was achievement level three, for which 638 farms qualified; Te Puke, the mid-point level two, was met by 4522 farms; Te Pūtake, the start of the journey, was the achievement level for 1155 farms.

Level one was worth 7c/kg for the sustainable achievements, across all milk supplied during the season, while level two was worth an additional 3c for milk quality excellence, for all milk supplied that met the milk quality excellence standard.

Across three levels, 6315 farms achieved Co-operative Difference, which Fonterra said was 72% of its total supply number of 8770 farms.

Therefore 2455 farms did not qualify in the first year and received only the base payment.

If all 8770 farms had achieved Co-operative Difference in

entirety, including the milk quality standard across all milk produced, everyone would have received pretty close to $9.30/kg.

In the same way that the cooperative makes unders and overs payments for fat and protein, the Co-operative Difference is about re-distribution of a small part of the total $13.7b available for payout.

Fonterra has not retained anything of that amount of money.

Michael Hide, general manager, sustainable dairying, said the Cooperative Difference payment is fully funded out of the farmgate milk price that is set under the heavily scrutinised milk price manual.

The co-operative approach is that all the aggregate milk price is paid out to farmers and therefore Fonterra is unable to pay incentives to just some of its farms in the way that Synlait and Miraka do.

Anything that isn’t paid out to non-qualifiers goes back into the base price and is therefore shared equally across all supply farms.

He said the Te Pūtake level of 7c contains the aspirational part of the programme, to encourage progress and compliance in the

four key areas of the environment, co-operative and prosperity, animal welfare, and people and community.

“This is the level containing the most impacts on farmers in terms of sustainability and we want to encourage early adoption and improvement.”

The Te Puku level of 3c is aimed at milk quality consistency, for a qualifying period of 30 days or more.

aligned to the expectations of customers and the community,” the report said.

“Those farmers who increase the average quality also improve the value of everyone’s milk.”

The 10c payment remains in the Co-operative Difference scheme for the current season and Hide said some improvements in reporting and on-farm assessing will be introduced, learning from the lessons of the first season.

“We want to make everyone aware of what they have to do and when to do it by,” he said.

“Last season’s achievement of 72% of our farmers is an outstanding level of participation and an encouraging indication that farmers are willing to step up and make changes on farm in a way our customers want.”

news of the low achievement was demoralising.

All Fonterra farmers have received Payment Summary Notes for the 2021 season, to explain their own payout variations based on the formula A + B +/- C +/- D.

A + B is the protein milkfat ratio, which is an average of 0.7820.

If a farm produced a higher proportion of protein to milkfat than the ratio then additional payment is made. A lower proportion resulted in a lower payment.

C is the volume adjustment, compared with the co-operative’s average 9.01% and 2.97c a litre.

A farm with a milksolids percentage that exceeded the average received an additional payment and for those below the average a deduction was made.

Michael Hide Fonterra

The highest Te Tihi level provides additional non-financial recognition for farms delivering excellent milk quality for at least 90% of their season. Their names are published in the Fonterra Annual Report.

“Co-operative Difference is designed to reward those who achieve milk quality excellence

A little Ultravac® goes a long way.

Among the measurements of the first season were 71% of farms with farm environment plans, 6651 animal welfare plans and a 12% reduction in purchased nitrogen surplus.

However, at a suppliers’ meeting in Northland, farmers learnt that only 40% of the region’s farms achieved the Co-operative Difference, including only 10 at Te Tihi level.

One farmer who attended said

D is the Co-operative Difference payment explained above.

Hide said the protein milkfat ratio and volume adjustment are relatively small in comparison to the Co-operative Difference payment.

Premiums for organic conversion, Stolle, A2 protein and winter milk are shown separately and if a farm had any milk quality issues there would be a negative adjustment or penalty.

Find out more at

Te Pūtake is the level containing the most impact on farmers in terms of sustainability and we want to encourage early adoption and improvement.

FEELING BLUE: News of the lower payment was demoralising, one farmer said.

Farms duck new EU tax – for now

Nigel Stirling MARKETS Emissions

NEW ZEALAND

agricultural exporters have been assured they will be excluded – at least initially – from a planned tax on the carbon content of imports into the European Union.

The bloc’s so-called carbon border adjustment has been designed to maintain the competitiveness of European businesses that have to offset their emissions with carbon credits purchased from the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme.

Exporters to the EU who have not paid to offset emissions in their own countries will be taxed at the border to cancel out any cost advantage they have over EU competitors.

A member of the European Parliament’s trade committee, Karin Karlsbro, told members of the International Business Forum (IBF), which includes major exporters Fonterra, Silver Fern Farms and Zespri, among others, that the EU has set itself ambitious climate targets and doesn’t want to see the impact of these undermined by climate change laggards elsewhere.

“There is a risk production moves from the EU to countries with lower climate ambitions and lower or no price on carbon emissions,” she said.

“Such leakage undermines our effort to lower carbon emissions globally.”

A top official in the European Commission’s tax directorate, Vincente Hurtado Roa, told the IBF members that the tax will initially protect the most carbon-intensive industries in the EU along with those at the

highest risk of moving production offshore to low or zero carbon tax countries.

These are makers of cement, iron and steel, fertiliser and aluminium.

They still only account for 45% of the industries required to buy credits from the EU’s ETS.

“There are some calls to extend to other basic products like chemical polymers and plastics.

“That is something that will need to be discussed [but] we prefer to concentrate on these sectors, check how it works and after that we will consider the possibility of extending.”

Exporters competing with European businesses not yet covered by its ETS are safe for now, he said.

“As long as we do not apply the ETS to those sectors we will not apply the [border tax].

“We will need to look at the carbon intensity of those goods and think in terms of impact in

terms of trade but the idea is not to extend the measure to forestry, agriculture or fisheries.”

European farmers do not have to buy credits to offset their emissions under the EU’s ETS.

While they are not as far along as the EU’s proposal, the executive director of the International Business Forum, Stephen

Jacobi, said other countries are considering carbon border taxes to level the playing field with competitors from countries without domestic carbon charges.

But a lack of globally agreed standards means there is the potential for them to be gamed by some countries using measurement systems that suit their own producers.

Jacobi said this was particularly the case for the measurement of agricultural emissions that officials in levying countries would use to calculate border taxes.

“Instead we are seeing a proliferation of a number of carbon foot-printing approaches around the world, some of which are designed to suit particular production systems or particular national characteristics of the country involved.

“The question is how do we ensure we have a genuine and objective level playing field in this area so that carbon border adjustment mechanisms are applied fairly and consistently?”

Former European Commission official Peter Vis said that criticism is not valid for the EU’s version, however.

“We would not put into the ETS something that we don’t think can be accurately and consistently monitored.

“So the capability to monitor emissions is a precondition to coming into the ETS and if it is not in the ETS the carbon border tax would not be applied to it.”

We will need to look at the carbon intensity of those goods ... but the idea is not to extend the measure to forestry, agriculture or fisheries.

Vincente Hurtado Roa European Commission

The commission’s Hurtado Roa said while international organisations like the OECD are working on common emissions measurements, these are unlikely to be ready by the time the EU begins collecting revenue from its border tax from 2026.

“Agreeing on a common methodology would be ideal. But I am not so sure we will be able to get that before 2026.”

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COMPETITIVENESS: A member of the European Parliament’s trade committee, Karin Karlsbro, explained the proposed European Union carbon border tax to New Zealand exporters.

NOT YET: Exporters to EU ports like Rotterdam, who have not paid to o set emissions in their own countries, will be taxed at the border, but New Zealand agriculture exporters are excluded for now.

Agri census boycott shy of a full point

emails and text messages, as well as calling some late responders.”

JUST 0.29% of farmers and growers have so far refused to submit their 2022 Agricultural Production Census, according to Stats NZ.

Lobby groups Groundswell and FARM have been calling for a boycott, but Stats NZ said only a small number of respondents have refused to complete their survey forms by emailing in a template letter citing the boycott or indicating over the phone that they will not be participating.

Boycotters so far represent less than 0.29% of those required to complete the census, a spokesperson told the Farmers Weekly.

“The 2022 Agricultural Production Census is still receiving completed survey forms, and Stats NZ is following up slow responders with reminder letters,

Stats NZ said the current level of the boycott will not affect the accuracy of the data.

In July Groundswell called for a census boycott until Stats NZ agrees to use an emissions metric based on what it called “sound science and a warming-effect approach”.

Stats NZ said the current level of the boycott will not affect the accuracy of the data.

“The emissions metric used by Stats NZ, called GWP100, overstates the impact of agricultural emissions by 400%, as found in a study by an Oxford professor, and is one of the main reasons cited by those who want to punish farmers and growers for their emissions,” Groundswell said.

Groundswell claims a different metric is needed to measure methane to reflect the methane replacement cycle and that if the sector were to meet the government’s 10% reduction target, it would equate to a net cooling effect.

Stats NZ said completing the census is a legal requirement and participation ensures representation in New Zealand’s national agricultural statistics. A widespread boycott would negatively impact the quality of the data provided from the sector.

“High-quality information from the field means highquality evidence to enable informed discussions and better decision-making on investment, programmes, policies, and support for the agriculture sector and rural communities, including for forecasting, planning, natural disaster assistance, trade negotiations, and national and international reporting,” Stats NZ said.

Commercial wool tile has the floor

Staff reporter TECHNOLOGY Fibre

WOOLS of New Zealand has developed a new wool tile range for the commercial sector.

“We are seeing companies and other organisations wanting to ensure their premises are more sustainable and looking after the wellbeing of their people,” Wools of New Zealand chief executive John McWhirter said.

“The many beneficial natural properties of our wool tiles make them ideal for using in commercial spaces.

“Wool is a natural product, it’s biodynamic and helps keep buildings warm in cold spells and cool during hot weather. Wool is biodegradable, naturally flame and stain resistant, it’s allergy free and naturally grown – rather than the fossil fuelbased fibres used in synthetics.

“Our tiles will be of interest to a wide range of organisations and commercial businesses, including the education sector, offices and retail.”

The price of the wool tiles is competitive in relation to the high-end synthetic carpet tile market, he said.

The first organisation to use the tiles is the Hillview hospital and retirement home in Te Kuiti, which has had them fitted in its care home and plans to also use them in new independent living and respite facilities.

Hillview is owned and run by a community trust.

Local farmer and trust chair Claire Grainger said that as part of a rural community, the trust is keen to support farmers and use wool carpets in an upgrade.

“A lot of our trust members and people living at Hillview have connections to rural communities.

“We wanted to support farmers, and the properties of wool carpets make them ideal for use in a rest home – it’s a great product.

“A problem in the past was that wool carpets were much more expensive than synthetics but now they have become an affordable option.”

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SQUARE DEAL: John McWhirter, CEO of Wools of New Zealand, says wool helps keep buildings warm in cold spells and cool during hot weather.

MARGIN OF ERROR: The number boycotting the agricultural production census so far is too small to affect the accuracy of the count.

Angus yearling bulls sell widely and well

Hugh Stringleman MARKETS Bulls

ANGUS yearling bulls

from Twin Oaks at Te Akau, Waikato, went to buyers all over the country with an average price paid of a season-high $6820.

The clearance was 48 sold out of 49 offered by Roger and Susan Hayward.

Top price was $21,500 for Twin Oaks S053 bought by Wyuna Station at Glenorchy.

Angus transfers were Twin Oaks S135 and S239 to Craig DavieMartin of Puketi Angus, Northland and to Dave Stuart, Komako Angus, Ashhurst, respectively and both bulls made $12,500.

The Haywards sold 12 bulls over $10,000 to boost the exceptional average.

Hallmark and Waiterenui Angus, Hawke’s Bay, had a full clearance of 45 bulls and an average of $4360.

The top prices were Waiterenui Justified S077 at $14,000 bought by Kenhardt Angus and Justified S124 at $13,000, bought by Leefield Station.

Maungahina Herefords and

Speckle Parks at Masterton cleared the two offerings with 25 Herefords sold, averaging $3300 and 23 Speckle Parks, averaging $4200.

The top price for Speckle Park bulls was $9500 for Maungahina S258 paid by Sarah and Martin Forsyth.

Steve Morgan paid the top of $6000 for lot 3 in the Herefords, Flyer 210059.

Takapoto Angus, at Maungatautiri, sold 38 of 40 offered and averaged $3352.

The top price of $10,000 for Takapoto Rainfall S11 was paid by Ranui and Ridgewood Angus and other transfers were two at $6000 to Hingaia and Abbotsford and one at $5500 to Hingaia.

Riverton Ezicalve Herefords, Whanganui, had a full clearance of 109 yearling bulls with an average price paid of $3639.

The top price was $7100 for Celtic 2131, paid by a commercial farmer.

Vendor Mike Cranstone said lot 77 sold for $4400 and the proceeds would be donated to Hospice, split between Whanganui Hospice and Arohanui Hospice, Palmerston North, being the choice of the purchaser.

Riverton also sold 35 twoyear-olds with an average of $3591.

Morrison Ezicalve Herefords, Marton, sold 89 of 95 yearling bulls offered with and average price of $3000 and a top price of $6000 paid by Bryce Heard, Hoko Herefords.

There was a full clearance of 32 two-year bulls and an average of $3300, plus seven yearling heifers that averaged $3000.

Puke-Nui Angus, Taumarunui, sold 24 of 26 with an average of $2337 and a top price of $3200

Bushy Downs Herefords, Te Awamutu, sold 60 of 63 two-yearold bulls with an average of $3342 and a top price of $5100 paid by a commercial farmer.

It also sold 22 of 30 yearlings, averaging $2845 and a top price of $4000, also by a commercial buyer.

Shrimpton’s Hill Herefords, Cave, sold 175 from 177 two-year, short-gestation bred bulls offered, averaged $2350, and had a top price of $3600 paid by Poplars Farm.

PREMIERE: Maungahina

Speckle Park S258 was sold for $9500 at the stud sale in Masterton.

LONG JOURNEY:

Twin Oaks S053 has a long trip ahead of him from Waikato to Glenorchy after the yearling bull sale and a $21,500 price.

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Glen R Angus, Sheffield, achieved a top price of $8500, paid by Hurunui Hills Partnership.

Vendor Peter Heddell said 25 two-year-old bulls were sold during and after the auction and the average price was $5600.

Timperlea Angus, Oxford, had a full clearance of 22 bulls and a top price of $10,500 for lot 3, Timperlea S944, paid by Will Jamison.

Rissington Cattle Company, Hawke’s Bay, sold 171 bulls with an average of $7324 and a top price of $14,500 to Lone Star Farms.

Ranui Angus had a full clearance of 32 and a top price of $9000 for lot 1. It was bought by Rotowai Angus.

Matauri Angus, Whangarei, sold 16 out of 16 offered with an average price of $3694 and a top price of $5000.

Angus yearling bulls from Twin Oaks at Te Akau, Waikato, went to buyers all over the country with an average price paid of a season-high $6820.

Matariki Herefords, Kaikōura, had a full clearance of 31, averaged $3045 and the top price of $4700 was paid by Mendip Hills Station.

On the same sale day and venue, Woodbank Angus sold 36 out of 37, averaged $3594 and topped at $5500 twice.

The Premier Cattle Company, Cambridge, had a full clearance of 25 Speckle Park bulls, averaging $3885 and the top price was lot 4 at $6500, paid by Warwick Mason, Waiotira.

Premier also sold 5 Murray Grey bulls, average $2360.

Celebrating 50 years of deer farming science

FIFTY years of deer farming science transformed a noxious pest into a highvalue animal producing quality product for export all around the world.

AgResearch and Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) last month celebrated the golden milestone of deer farming research that has advanced the industry since 1972.

The programme was established by scientist Ken Drew and veterinarian Les Porter half a century ago to help support the emerging deer farming industry.

At the time farmed venison overlapped with feral venison.

AgResearch scientist Jamie Ward said AgResearch’s Invermay campus near Dunedin and its predecessor organisations have always worked in close partnership with the deer industry and farmers.

In the early 1970s deer was a noxious animal and that’s legally described as an animal that should be exterminated.

Ken Drew AgResearch

“Fifty years ago, researcher Ken Drew and veterinarian Les Porter thought it might be a clever idea to put some science in behind the newly emerging deer farming industry.

“With incredible backing by early industry participants, innovation, positivity, and fantastic researchers, Invermay became synonymous with the evolution of the NZ deer farming industry and earned an international reputation for its science and research output,” Ward said.

“Fifty years has achieved a lot of

opportunities and essentially we are farming a new animal.”

The research has included major advances in understanding of deer nutrition, health, behaviour and genetics, and in the development of export products such as venison, velvet and milk.

Drew said he and his colleagues faced a huge challenge in the early days, taking what was a dangerous wild pest and turning it into an animal that could be safely and successfully farmed.

“In the early 1970s deer was a noxious animal and that’s legally described as an animal that should be exterminated. The concept of farming a noxious animal has obviously got political consequences, as well as biological ones.

“Initially we had 18 staff involved and we would have 1000 people turn up to field days as some of our knowledge was gained on deer biology,” Drew said.

Tony Pearse, who spent 19 years as a researcher at Invermay and later many years with DINZ as producer manager, travelled overseas often to share NZ’s leading expertise in deer farming with the world.

“It became an international community of a new industry. It was a real privilege, really exciting,” Pearse said.

Deer science over the 50 years has included farmers’ access to quality genetics through DeerSelect, NZ’s national deer recording database.

One of the outcomes is larger deer. Where it once took deer 20 months to reach 55kg, that time has now been cut to less than 10 months.

DINZ chief executive Innes Moffat said from the outset the deer industry did things nobody else did.

“The research at Invermay has always been done with industry

collaboration and focused on industry outcomes.

“As such, the impact of that science has been huge, and it has been key in developing the modern, sophisticated deer farming industry in NZ we see today,” Moffat said.

“While the early scientists developed methods for farming deer and progressed our fundamental understanding of them, the ongoing work in the programme is building on this to make us even better at what we do.

This ranges from feeding the animals right and having the tools to select the right genetics, to developing new products derived from deer that meet the expectation of our global customers.

“The scientists have helped us overcome many challenges in the last 50 years.

“We haven’t run out of challenges and look forward to continuing the collaborations between the passionate farmers in the industry and the equally passionate scientists to support them,” Moffat said.

Research is now underway into tracking deer foraging behaviour using GPS collars planned as a tool to phenotype deer.

The AgResearch team is developing and producing deer-specific wearable collars to characterise deer behaviours

like walking, resting, grazing and ruminating.

Key challenges ahead include addressing environmental impacts such as climate change and water quality that will require solutions specific to the needs and challenges of the deer industry.

BUCK STOPS HERE: A couple of legends, deer farming science co-founder Ken Drew and deer industry pioneer Sir Tim Wallis, flew in by helicopter for the golden celebration at Invermay. HOT was Sir Tim’s original helicopter identification code for aerial deer hunting and capture.

PEST TO PRIZED ASSET: AgResearch scientist Jamie Ward says 50 years has achieved a lot of opportunities and essentially deer farmers are farming a new animal.

Light and shade of signing on with solar

Richard Rennie TECHNOLOGY Energy

INTEREST in farmland for vast solar panel arrays is growing throughout New Zealand with farmers in the right locations being shouldertapped by developers keen to get projects over the line.

At present solar energy forms less than 1% of New Zealand’s electricity supply. But efforts to drive NZ’s energy footprint to 100% renewables by 2030 are fuelling projects aiming to get more energy out of the sun.

Joel Murphy, an associate with Tauranga law firm Holland Beckett, has returned to NZ having spent several years working as inhouse counsel with Lightsource BP in the United Kingdom, one of the world’s largest solar developers.

“In NZ we are tending to lag behind the rest of the world, where solar has been in play for quite a few years. But here hydro seems to be tapped out, nuclear is not happening and wind farms are limited as to specific areas, have complexities and are often controversial – solar is a lot easier to roll out and can often be hidden from sight.”

He said developers tend to be looking for farms within 10km of a sub-station but can extend beyond this if the developer is willing to

pay for additional infrastructure or a farm has a nearby high-voltage power line. The latter can be more expensive and technically more challenging.

Those projects already underway in NZ have been relatively low profile to date.

The one closest to commissioning is Lodestone’s Edgecumbe Bay of Plenty solar farm, covering 100ha and supplying 1700 homes and the nearby Fonterra factory.

It is one of five Lodestone projects aiming to generate 1% of the country’s electricity and backed by high-profile investors including Sam Morgan and Xero founder Rod Drury.

Murphy said whether land is being bought or leased, the developments put farmers in the box seat for projects demanding at least 100ha of flatter country to be built on. However, proposed solar farms as small as 45ha are being considered by developers.

The majority of projects are aiming at leasing land, and estimates are landowners can expect from $2500 to $6500 per hectare per year on lease agreements, significantly above the $1000-$1500 a hectare that maize or dairy land returns for lease.

One reported land sale specifically for solar is a vast 1000ha property on the NapierTaupō road that reportedly sold for

$30 million to Todd Energy. The property had a valuation of $18m.

Analysts believe it is feasible that solar may provide 10% of the country’s power before any limitations are hit.

Murphy outlined some aspects of the developments farmers and their advisors needed to be aware of at the early stages to ensure they get the best possible outcome, whether selling or leasing their farms for the arrays.

Typically, given the establishment costs of arrays, anywhere in the vicinity of $1.3$1.7 million per mW, developers will seek the longest lease possible, often 35 years with landowners.

“The development stage is the critical one for timing and agreement.

“It may require Overseas Investment Office approval first, but overseas ownership of these projects is not a bad thing, as they tend to have a bigger cheque book.”

Resource consent will then add further time. The panels take only six to 12 months to get up and running.

Landowners can initially expect any heads of agreement to include a letter of intent that ensures they cannot approach other developers,

often for at least two years. Much of the activity around NZ at present is on behalf of developers aiming to tie in potential sites that may or may not progress. Payments to secure an agreement can range from $5000 to $20,000.

Murphy said agreements typically include an annual CPI increase on the lease, and allowance for decommissioning and any failure of the company during its lifetime.

Cattle cannot be grazed around the panels that sit about 1.7m high, but sheep can.

“And you need to be aware that if you have converted from dairy farming to solar, you’re unlikely to be able to go back at the end of the lease under the new National Environmental Standard for Freshwater Management 2020 and the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 regulations.”

Like pine trees on hill country, the solar panel offers are likely to be controversial, but Murphy said the rest of the world is well on track to boosting solar investment, and they are not limited to sunnier locations.

“We established solar sites all over Europe, even including Ireland and Scotland, not known for being particularly sunny.”

You need to be aware that if you have converted from dairy farming to solar, you‘re unlikely to be able to go back at the end of the lease.

BRIGHT FUTURE: Holland Beckett’s Joel Murphy said solar o ers another land use option for farmers, but there are some shhooks to be aware of in the deals being touted around the country.

Joel Murphy Holland Beckett

SUNNY DAY: Most projects aim to lease land, at an estimated $2,500 to $6,500 per hectare per year.

Strength in numbers for farms of future

Neal Wallace NEWS

ROB Macnab believes New Zealand sheep and beef farming systems are on the cusp of an exciting era but warns that farmers need confidence – and assistance to collect and understand data to drive that change.

A consultant with Total Ag in the Waikato, Macnab was part of an online panel discussing how to match consumer expectation with farm business realities.

He said collecting data on greenhouse gas emissions is a new skill set for many farmers. They need to be given the tools and scientific support to ensure collection is accurate and the information applicable.

“Once a farmer gets data, then they can look at their farm system,” he said.

Organised by Farmax, the seminar looked at the challenge for farmers when it comes to collecting greenhouse gas emissions data, but panellists agreed that this information has a wider application for farm businesses.

Macnab said he sees this as an opportunity for farmers to tweak farm systems and make them more efficient.

“We are on the brink of significant changes. There are more opportunities than challenges, and I’m looking forward to the next period.”

The dairy industry has “lived and breathed data”, but for many sheep and beef farmers this is new, and the data that is collected has to be accurate.

For example, he said most sheep and beef farmers overestimate the effective area of their farms by at least 15%.

AgResearch farm systems scientist Robyn Dynes agreed, saying data-driven farm transition is a 15- to 20-year project.

to adjust and improve their farming systems.

Vernon said the key is not to be fixated on numbers but to look at mitigation options that make a farm overall more efficient.

Asked how farmers will respond to a levy on greenhouse emissions, Dynes said such a stance is important for the credibility of our exports.

“To me it’s thinking about the whole package.

Rob Macnab Total Ag

Synlait sustainable adviser Nick Vernon said suppliers to the dairy company provide 26 metrics to measure greenhouse gas emissions.

He said some have 10 to 15 years of data that they use

“We export globally and we need to front foot how we are addressing the global challenges.”

The data will have multiple additional benefits, he said.

Macnab agreed, saying farmers need to make the same or more from fewer animals.

“This is another metric on which we will be judged.”

HORIZON: Data-driven farm transition is a 15to 20-year project, AgResearch farm systems scientist Robyn Dynes says.

AgResearch seeks to trial GM ryegrass in Australia

Neal Wallace NEWS Arable

AGRESEARCH is applying to conduct field trials in Australia for its genetically modified high metabolised energy ryegrass.

AgResearch farm systems scientist Robyn Dynes told a Farmax panel discussing how to match consumer expectation with farm business realities that recent United States trials confirmed the promise shown in the laboratory by high ME

ryegrass.

The genetically modified grass grows at twice the rate of conventional ryegrass, stores more energy, has greater drought tolerance and reduces by up to 23% the methane released by animals.

Dynes said the US trials have confirmed that promise but research now needs to be scaled up to field trials to prove its efficacy, hence its application in Australia.

The Ministry for the Environment states that all

applications to field test or release a genetically modified organism in New Zealand must be publicly notified and go through a public consultation process.

Dynes said ownership and copyright of High ME ryegrass remains protected.

name behind

Once a farmer gets data, then they can look at their farm system.

Farmer gloom lifts, cost worries deepen

confidence had lifted marginally from a net reading of -35% to -31%.

CONFIDENCE among New Zealand farmers has edged up in the past quarter but, overall, sentiment remains deep in net negative territory, according to the latest Rabobank Rural Confidence Survey.

Completed last month, the survey found

The lift comes after confidence plummeted in June when sentiment dropped to its lowest level since the start of the covid-19 pandemic.

The latest survey found the number of farmers expecting conditions in the agricultural economy to improve in the coming 12 months has fallen from 13% to 12% – but the percentage expecting conditions to worsen is down from 48% to 43%.

A total of 44% are anticipating the agricultural economy to remain stable, up from 38%.

YOUR ON-FARM FEED WITH CERTAINTY

Rabobank New Zealand chief executive Todd Charteris said the small lift in optimism from the previous quarter came off the back of continued strong demand for NZ’s key agricultural products from overseas markets.

“Increasing demand and rising commodity prices emerged as the major sources of optimism identified by farmers with a positive outlook,” he said.

“And farmers will be really pleased to see demand and prices for their products holding up so well despite some of the economic challenges facing the global economy.”

The number of farmers holding a negative outlook on the prospects for the agri economy outweighs those with a positive view by more than three to one.

However, pessimism continues to be the dominant sentiment felt by farmers across the country despite the strong commodity prices.

“The number of farmers holding a negative outlook on the prospects for the agri economy outweighs those with a positive view by more than three to one, and farm input costs continue to be the major reason for this,” he said.

In the previous quarter there was the highest level of concern ever expressed about input costs in the history of the survey.

This number has gone even further north this quarter, with 71% of farmers with a pessimistic outlook citing rising farm inputs as a reason for apprehension.

“This is no surprise given the upwards movement we’ve seen in prices for fertiliser, fuel and feed since the start of the war in Ukraine earlier in the year,” Charteris said.

These increases are seen as the biggest threat to the agri economy in year ahead, he said.

Government policy is the second most prominent concern for NZ farmers, cited by 58% of those with a negative outlook on the coming 12 months.

Charteris said government policy has been flagged as a key concern by farmers for several successive quarters, and these concerns are now flowing through to the decisions farmers are making about their stock levels.

“In this survey we asked livestock farmers (dairy and sheep and beef) about changes to their stock numbers for the coming season, and we found 23% of livestock farmers are planning to decrease stock numbers, with only 6% looking to increase.”

Todd Charteris Rabobank New Zealand chief executive

SHELLING OUT: Rabobank’s latest confidence survey found that 71% of farmers with a pessimistic outlook cite the cost of farm inputs such as fertiliser as the reason.

Fonterra’s UHT plant trials green battery

Gerald Piddock TECHNOLOGY Energy

FONTERRA’S Waitoa plant is trialling a new industrial-scale organic battery that could support greater energy security and distributed electricity generation for New Zealand.

The battery – which is believed to be a world first – is made from electrically conductive polymers, an organic-based compound with the ability to act like metal.

It was developed by PolyJoule, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) spin-off, which Fonterra is partnering with for the project.

Late last year the battery was installed on a Fonterra farm at Te Rapa. The battery was cycled daily, supporting dairy shed operations for 10 months.

It has since been shifted to the Waitoa UHT site, which can be affected by power disturbances leading to downtime and waste.

Fonterra chief operating officer Fraser Whineray said Fonterra is a significant electricity user at about 2.5% of the national grid, making a sustainable and secure electricity supply vital to the co-operative’s local sales and exports.

“At Fonterra we have a strategy to lead in sustainability, and innovation partnerships are a critical ingredient to achieving this.

“The PolyJoule battery has a remarkable discharge rate, which may ultimately link with ultrafast charging our fleet, including Milk-E, our electric milk tanker.”

He said the trial is a significant milestone for Fonterra and he sees the technology having “big, gamechanging applications” for the co-operative.

New Zealand is the first place where this type of battery has been installed and he cautioned it is early days in the technology’s development.

The trial includes exploring how the technology can be applied within Fonterra’s business and manufacturing.

“It’s the creativity of the engineering teams and the creativity teams to see what we can do with it for New Zealand,” he said.

Building a manufacturing base in New Zealand could create hundreds of new jobs and a new green energy hub.

Eli Paster PolyJoule

While it will not assist Fonterra in reducing its coal usage, it could help Fonterra be more efficient in its energy usage, he said.

Its Waitoa site uses coal and it and Fonterra’s other coal-powered factories emit about 800,000t of carbon dioxide a year.

PolyJoule chief executive Eli Paster said he sees great opportunity for growth in NZ in terms of supporting energy security and job creation in the manufacturing and technology sectors.

“We both have sustainability front and centre of our strategy and understand the importance of a reliable, green supply of electricity for quickly chilling the raw milk on farm, processing and distribution,” he said.

The battery does not rely on lithium, nickel or lead to function, instead using easy-to-source materials.

The batteries are safer and easier to manufacture, anywhere in the world, he said.

He also hinted at the possibility of PolyJoule establishing a battery manufacturing base in NZ in the future.

“When you look at where the grid is heading and the number of batteries needed for the region, building a manufacturing base in New Zealand could create hundreds of new jobs and a new green energy hub.”

What is happening at the Waitoa factory is indicative of what is happening around the world where power quality issues affect businesses, he said.

“Power quality issues aren’t unique to Fonterra. They are very common in the semi-conductor industry and the pharmaceutical industry and very common in the manufacturing industry.”

Paster said PolyJoule recognises the role energy storage will play in the future and it set out to make the best possible battery.

Development of the battery began in 2018-2019 with Fonterra coming on board in 2021.

A prototype of the battery was sent to NZ from the United States in April of that year to be tested on the farm at Te Rapa.

Polymers are essentially a repeating unit of something. PolyJoule has scaled and commercialised conducting polymer energy storage – the only company in the world to do so, he said.

“Most people aren’t paying attention to it because they are obsessed with electric vehicles, whereas we are obsessed with the electricity sector,” he said.

The PolyJoule battery installation is the third decarbonisation project Fonterra’s Waitoa site has recently adopted.

Last month the co-operative announced the site will install a new biomass boiler and it will also be home to Milk-E – NZ’s first electric milk tanker.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION: The organic battery was first trialled at the Fonterra Farm at Te Rapa.

Tatua hits record returns for milk solids

sheet resilience in what remains an uncertain economic and global trade environment.”

WAIKATO dairy company Tatua has reported income of $444 million for the 2021-2022 year with $186m available in earnings for payout to its 101 farmer shareholders.

Those earnings equate to a record $12.65/kg milk solids before retentions for reinvestment, above the previous year’s earnings of $10.43/kg MS.

Milk supply from Tatua’s supplying shareholders was impacted by an extended period of dry weather during the autumn months. This resulted in the 14.71m kilograms of milk solids collected being 6% behind the previous season.

“We have confirmed a cash payout to shareholders of $11.30/kg MS supplied and have retained $1.35/kg MS, equivalent to $19.85m before tax, for reinvestment in the business,” the company’s chief executive, Brendhan Greaney, and chair Stephen Allen said in a statement.

“In deciding our payout, we were very conscious of the sharp increases in on-farm costs being experienced by our shareholders, as well as the requirement for continued investment in the business and maintaining balance

Greaney said the $19.85m being retained is for re-investing back into the business to keep the balance sheet resilient.

“We weigh that and try to strike the right balance, and the feedback we’ve had from our farmers is broadly supportive of what we have done there.”

and that’s mainly to do with shipping delays.”

He was confident this inventory will be worked down over the coming months.

Tatua’s products are split 50% between commodities/bulk ingredients – caseinate, WPC and AMF powders – and 50% value added including nutritional powders, foods and flavours.

Greaney said it has been a good year across most of its product divisions, with the market for its bulk ingredients particularly strong.

“Like the other processors, we benefited to some extent from commodity prices being where they are and the very strong prices for caseinate and WPC and, to a lesser degree, AMF, have been a good part in the lift in our result.”

He said they have offered an indicative forecast payout for the new season of $10/kg MS.

Tatua’s gearing (debt divided by debt plus equity) averaged 21% for the year, but was slightly higher at year-end, reflecting increased inventory holdings at balance date.

Like other exporters, Tatua was not immune to covid-related challenges around shipping, staffing and cost increases.

This shows in its inventory holdings, he said.

“We’re holding more stock at year end than we typically would

Its value-added divisions also performed well, with nutritional powders and flavours finishing ahead from a year-on-year perspective. However, its food service was affected by covid, particularly in China, he said.

“It’s no better example of why you want to be well diversified in products, markets and customers.”

In addition to achieving record income and earnings, good progress has been made in many areas of the business, including a number of significant capital projects and business improvement initiatives.

GOOD YEAR: Tatua’s cash payout for its 2021-2022 season was $11.30/kg MS for its 101 farmer-shareholders, chief executive Brendhan Greaney says.

These projects included a new hypoallergenic packing line on one of its nutritional powder driers, and increasing its capacity in its foods business.

Greaney was cautiously optimistic about the outlook for the season ahead.

“We are still seeing some pretty attractive global commodity price and that’s true as well for our product mix. We’re well contracted into this financial year, and on the

value-added side of the business we have some additional capacity now… and overall, the outlook is reasonably positive.

“We say that cautiously because we know stuff can change and one of the ‘watch outs’ for us is if that commodity price tide turns. It came in pretty quickly and if it was to go out, it’s going to put a lot more stress on people. We don’t see signs of that, but we’re aware of it.”

Buyback programme begins at A2M

Hugh Stringleman NEWS Dairy

AN ON-MARKET buyback of up to 5% of its shares will begin on October 5 for the a2 Milk Company.

A2 Milk may have a better day ahead

“Expect the price to trade up,” he said.

The buyback programme may run for 12 months and may acquire up to 37,180,621 shares within the company’s enormous 743.6 million securities issued capital.

The company said on August 29, when it announced its intention for the buyback, that the maximum capital return would be $150 million.

The 20-year-old listed specialist dairy company has never paid a dividend and always re-invested profits.

At balance date on June 30 a2 Milk Company had $887m cash and term deposits.

A share market favourite with institutional and retail investors before running into covid-19 difficulties in 2020, a2 Milk at one stage had the biggest market capitalisation on the NZX exchange, exceeding $15 billion.

Market capitalisation is currently $4.5b with a share price of $6.10.

Chief executive David Bortolussi asserted the right to

suspend without notice or vary the buyback programme.

“The company will continue to assess market conditions, its prevailing share price, available investment opportunities and all other relevant considerations and, with regard to these factors, will determine the timing, volume and pricing of any share acquisitions.”

He said that trading during the first quarter of FY2023 had begun positively and sales were marginally ahead of plan.

The impact of the lower NZ dollar was noted, both positively on revenue and negatively on the costs of sales and doing business.

A2 Milk was expected to fare better on the stock market after renewing its import and distribution arrangements with China State Farm Agribusiness Holding Shanghai Co (CSFA) for a term of five years from October 1.

The company’s shares fell 0.7% to $6.12 on Friday and have shed 7.3% over the past 12 months. That’s well off the 2020 peak of $21.50 as the company struggled when the covid-19 pandemic caused massive disruption to the daigou or reseller channel.

Peter McIntyre, an investment adviser at Craigs Investment Partners, said investors were expecting the announcement but it would be well received.

CSFA has been A2 Milk’s strategic distribution partner in China since 2013 and is the exclusive import agent for A2 Milk’s China-label products.

“The extension of arrangements with China State Farm confirms the strength of our relationship with key partners in China and our shared confidence in the future,” A2 Milk chief executive David Bortolussi said in a statement.

Zhang Lei, chairman of CSFA, was also upbeat.

“We are delighted and honoured to continue our relationship and partnership with a company that has achieved such unique success, as the pioneer of A2 protein products in the China market, with a strong brand and ultra-premium products,” he said.

Gerald Piddock

We’re holding more stock at year end than we typically would and that’s mainly to do with shipping delays.

Brendhan Greaney Tatua

RENEWAL: A2 Milk was expected to fare better on the stock market after renewing its import and distribution arrangements with China State Farm Agribusiness Holding Shanghai five years.

CREAM: A2 Milk company chief executive David Bortolussi says trading during the first quarter of FY2023 has begun positively and sales are marginally ahead of plan.

ASB gives $150m Auckland site to school farm

Neal Wallace NEWS Education

ONE of the last remaining, and certainly one of the most valuable, plots of bare land in central Auckland is to remain a farm.

Owned by ASB and valued at $150 million, the 8.1ha section of land next to Mount Albert Grammar School (MAGS) has for the past 90 years been used to teach agriculture and horticulture courses to students.

It will continue to do that, with the bank donating the land to the MAGS Foundation, coinciding with the school’s centenary.

Under the agreement, the vast majority of the land must remain farmland in perpetuity.

ASB rural manager Ben Speedy said the bank saw this as an opportunity to secure the future of an asset that promotes primary sector careers, helps address labour shortages and bridges

the urban-rural divide in New Zealand’s largest city.

Speedy said very few schools have access to a farm to assist with food and fibre education, so it was important to secure it for MAGS.

“ASB’s support of this facility is one of the ways we’re backing the future of these industries, by helping to inspire the next generation to take their first step into a career in farming or horticulture.”

Across the five year groups, about 250 MAGS students study agriculture as part of NCEA. The

I had always dreamed of becoming a farmer but living in the middle of Auckland city, I had never even set foot on a farm before I started at MAGS.

Sofia Skinner MAGS Year 13

CITY FARM: ASB MAGS Farm includes dairy cows, sheep, beef cattle, greenhouses, a native plant nursery and a Gold kiwifruit orchard.

co-educational school has 3000 pupils.

The facility, to be known as ASB MAGS Farm, includes dairy cows, sheep and beef, greenhouses, a native plant nursery and a Gold kiwifruit orchard.

The students rear lambs and calves, milk cows, drench animals and plant trees along with basic horticulture practices and other activities.

Plant and Food Research also assists.

MAGS headmaster Patrick

Drumm said the school is excited to continue the farm’s 90-year legacy.

“ASB’s gift of this land will allow us to continue futureproofing the facilities and further diversifying the farm and we have ambitious plans for the renovation of existing buildings and the construction of an experience centre to showcase opportunities in the agri-food and fibre sector,” he said in a statement.

MAGS Year 13 student Sofia

Skinner is planning to study Agricultural Science at Lincoln University next year.

“I had always dreamed of becoming a farmer but living in the middle of Auckland city, I had never even set foot on a farm before I started at MAGS.

“The courses offered at MAGS provide an incredible learning experience and have opened up new possibilities for me. I’m really excited to pursue farming further and to explore career pathways in the industry.”

Maria Bamford Hurunui Hills, North Canterbury

With SMARTSHOT ® we’ve found that the production and health of the animals has been amazing. They are bonny, healthy and productive sheep.

“

HOST: Dr Grant Davidson, CEO of Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network, says the new moves will encourage rural general practices to host junior doctors and share with them the fulfilment of rural practice.

Funding hike aims to boost rural GP ranks

Neal Wallace NEWS Health

NEW initiatives promoting careers in general practice announced last week are expected to help address the shortage of rural medical professionals.

Health Minister Andrew Little has announced dedicated funding towards GP training in what the Hauora Taiwhenua

Rural Health Network said acknowledges the position of general practice specialists and the role general practices play in training junior doctors.

In terms of the initiatives, developed by the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners, from 2023 salaries for firstyear GP registrars will be increased to align with other specialist registrars and their hospital counterparts.

Salary increases will be between 13% and 23%, depending on which year of training a junior doctor is in.

In addition, specialist GPs undertaking on-the-job training of registrars will receive more funded teaching time to dedicate to first-year registrars.

The third initiative will reward general practices that host postgraduate doctors undertaking community-based attachments, with a weekly hosting fee.

Currently practices receive no financial recognition for the time spent training junior doctors.

Little said a review published last week shows that trainee GPs are paid less than registrars working in hospitals, which he said is the biggest barrier to young doctors going into general practice.

We are glad that general practice is now being recognised as an equal pathway at registrar level.

“That pay gap will be closed, to bring the pay of first-year GP registrars in line with that of hospital registrars.

“Funding is also being increased to enable the Royal College to pay teaching supervisors for an extra two and a half hours a week, and GPs who host 12-week community training modules will be paid hosting fees of $3600.”

Little said steps are underway to make it easier for overseas-trained doctors to come to New Zealand and get registered and practising. These will, he said, increase the number of GPs working in communities.

Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network chief executive Dr Grant Davidson said this will make a GP career look more attractive and is a response to calls for action in addressing the dire shortage of GPs, which is most pronounced in rural areas.

Davidson said the initiatives will encourage rural general practices to host junior doctors in their rural communities and share with them the fulfilment of rural practice.

“We are glad that general practice is now being recognised as an equal pathway at registrar level,” Davidson said.

“This is a good first step, but we need much wider system-based changes if we are to see greater numbers of GPs choose to work in rural communities.

“There need to be more positions available in medical schools, with a good proportion of these targeted at students interested in rural general practice.

“At the same time there should be an immediate review of rural primary care funding so that rural primary and community care workers can enjoy pay, work conditions, and lifestyles that will make rural health a highly regarded and sought-after career, which it once was.”

Grant Davidson Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network

Westland told to resume Canaan milk run

six. The chief judge concluded that the work was laborious, often dangerous and for commercial benefit.

WESTLAND Dairy Company has been ordered to keep taking milk from Gloriavale-owned Canaan Farming Dairy after the processor said it would suspend collection over child labour concerns.

In granting an interim injunction against Westland, the high court in Greymouth said Canaan could not employ anyone under 18 on its dairy farms.

In June, Westland said it would no longer take milk from Canaan’s three West Coast dairy farms until it changed its practices.

That followed an employment court ruling in May that children working on farms owned by Gloriavale had been exploited and abused.

But Canaan countered that Westland had no legal or factual basis for refusing its milk, and sought the injunction to force collection to continue. The company also sought damages and costs.

The employment court proceedings were brought by three former members of Gloriavale.

That court found that they had been employees from the age of

They were hit for not working hard or fast enough, and one of the plaintiffs was once struck six times with a shovel handle.

In her October 4 ruling, Justice Jan-Marie Doogue noted that Canaan was not a party to the employment court proceedings, which had not identified the plaintiff’s employers. There had been no findings made against Canaan in the employment court.

There had been no evidence of illegal behaviour related to children under 16 since the employment court judgment. Westland had not produced any evidence to contradict that. Canaan had not denied that 16and 17-year-olds had worked on the farms. Whether that was a breach of rights had yet to be established, which was for a later hearing, Justice Doogue stated.

Westland filed an affidavit from a minor whose name was suppressed, stating that he worked at Gloriavale gardens or the Canaan dairy farms from the ages of six to 13 up to 2018 for about 18 hours a week.

When he was 13 he started doing morning milking from 3.30am on an ad hoc basis along with other

duties in the afternoon.

Westland argued there were growing obligations on businesses to investigate and require supply chains to comply with corporate social responsibility policies around modern slavery and labour exploitation.

It said at least two other companies had terminated or suspended contracts with Gloriavale-owned companies.

Justice Doogue rejected those

Canary move set to boost Westland’s global spread

Staff reporter NEWS Dairy

WESTLAND Milk Products has acquired Waikato-based dairy manufacturer Canary Foods to boost its expansion and access to global markets.

Under the deal, Canary Foods will become a subsidiary of Westland Milk Products, retaining its own brands and third-party manufacturing agreements.

Canary Foods exports 75% of the dairy products it manufactures for a range of applications.

Established in 2001, Canary Foods produces reworked premium butter- and cheese-based products such as butter sheets and medallions.

Its dairy products are supplied to a diverse range of businesses in the retail and food service sectors, including supermarkets, airlines, restaurants and bakery outlets.

Westland chief executive Richard Wyeth said Canary is a fantastic fit for their business.

It extends its long-term commitment to add value to Westland’s butter portfolio by playing a greater role in the expanding global consumer butter and spread market following a $40 million investment in doubling its butter manufacturing capacity at its Hokitika plant.

“Westland continues to go from strength to strength under our parent company Yili.

“Yili’s investment has helped us turn our performance across the entire company around and we’re now in a very strong position to capitalise on that,” Wyeth said.

Canary has developed a world-first,

compostable, individually sized butter squeeze pack in response to consumer demands for ethically responsible packaging and global calls for an end to single-use plastics.

“This is a great example of a New Zealand company leading the world in research and development and we look forward to getting behind this culture of innovation even further,” Wyeth said.

“We are very excited about the opportunity of joining with Canary and providing more jobs and opportunities for our sector.”

Canary Foods executive director and shareholder James Gray said the acquisition by Westland will give the Waikato-based dairy manufacturer more opportunities for expansion and access to global markets.

“Canary grew off the back of taking outstanding New Zealand dairy products to the world by catering for the airline and hospitality industries.

“We used the covid pandemic as an opportunity to reassess our strategy and now, after record sales last year and with international travel and the hospitality sector set to take off, we are already in a strong position as these markets continue to bounce back.”

Canary chair and shareholder Jeremy Curragh said the relationship with Yili will give the company even greater access to international markets.

“Being part of a wider group that shares our commitment to sustainability and innovation is incredibly exciting.

“Canary will continue to develop and expand our portfolio of Canary-branded products as well as working as a third-party manufacturer for other great New Zealand brands.”

All

arguments as irrelevant.

One factor in Justice Doogue’s decision was that Westland is the sole milk processor collecting milk on the West Coast. Canaan is one of the only farms, and possibly the only one, supplying milk to Westland in winter and has structured its operations to meet that.

She cited the financial hardship Canaan would suffer, and that it would have to dry off and break up

a nationally recognised herd, and start again from scratch.

Independent audit reports commissioned by Westland confirmed Canaan complied with the processor’s own farm excellence programme.

There was very little evidence to back up Westland’s claims it lost or would lose contracts from its association with Canaan.

Though Westland’s contract with Canaan allows it to reject milk if it is “not produced in compliance with any legal requirements”, and for “any other reason”, Justice Doogue ruled that the processor had not invoked those clauses reasonably.

Westland should have looked at Canaan’s current operations instead of relying on historical matters when it exercised its discretion under the supply contract.

In any case, by the fact that the injunction was granted to Canaan, Westland’s customers would know it was required by law to collect Canaan’s milk.

Canaan had to undertake that no one under 18 would work on its farms, with the exception that a sharemilker on one of the farms could employ people under 18 on suitable terms.

Court costs will be dealt with at a later date.

Bay Dolomite

premium calcium/magnesium carbonate

HERD: A factor in the court’s decision was that Westland is the only milk processor collecting milk on the West Coast, and failing to do so could result in Canaan having to break up a nationally recognised herd.

From the Editor

Climate science we can all get right behind

Bryan Gibson Managing editor

MOST conversations about politics these days seem to focus on what people oppose, rather than what they support.

It may be Three Waters, or co-governance in general.

Other government regulations, like Essential Freshwater and the pricing of emissions, also provoke strong opposition.

What’s often missing from the conversation is an alternative future – one that solves the problem in front of us.

The thing is, staying where we are isn’t an option. Choosing not to do something is fine, but what’s the plan to tackle these big challenges?

A movement based solely on what you don’t want to do has no future.

It’s rooted in the present or the past.

Those with their eyes open to what is

happening in the world know we can’t stand still.

That’s why some of our biggest food processors have signed up to the new Centre for Climate Action on Agricultural Emissions.

Fonterra, ANZCO, Silver Fern Farms and Ngāi Tahu are putting their own funds towards the research centre.

Every day these organisations talk to their customers overseas. They hear what those customers want and they work to get the best deal for their farmer-suppliers.

They all realise that this is the best way to expedite the technology needed to meet those demands.

They know that the demands they have to meet in this global marketplace are changing.

Food security – meeting the basic requirements of the world’s population – is part of it.

But for many of these big global players, doing business in a way that fits a brand and satisfies consumers is also vital.

The centre is part of the $338.7 million package announced in this year’s Budget to tackle on-farm emissions.

Our sector hopes to meet most of its future targets by developing new technologies to reduce emissions without having to greatly reduce production.

The partnership has come under fire from the likes of Greenpeace, which wants the dairy herd halved, because while the

government funding comes from the emissions trading scheme, farming doesn’t pay into it.

With He Waka Eke Noa, the sector has a chance to stand by its rhetoric on sustainability. It’s not a perfect model. That probably doesn’t exist.

But it’s a start, and as more data is collected and more research is completed, it can be moulded into something that drives positive change and creates more value.

The government has demands that have to be met as well. The European Union free trade agreement signed recently includes this statement in the accompanying documentation: “The FTA includes ambitious outcomes on climate action that have never been included in an FTA before, making our commitments under the Paris Agreement subject to binding dispute settlement.”

The climate action centre has a lot riding on it, but it’s off to a good start with the funding and industry backing in place.

We can talk all we like about past achievements. The farming sector has so many that all New Zealanders can be rightly proud of.

But we also need to talk about our future, with clear eyes.

Because if we don’t, those other conversations, the ones exporters have in places like London, Berlin and Shanghai, will get much, much more difficult.

Letters of the week Timely to think of war orphans

Jane Russell Bowen Rangitīkei

MY HEART leapt with pleasure to see the photo and comprehensive article “Flock House orphans tell their stories” (October 3). I immediately recognised the subject of the photo – not the person, but the place.

What a shame that the article not even once mentions that fabulous display in the Bulls Museum. And it is fabulous, because the photos, stories and memorabilia have been given to the museum by its ex-students, staff and associates and are displayed openly and simply. There’s a register as well for all those ex-folk who have heard of the museum’s collection and call in.

Thank you, Charlie Williamson, for the article, and best of luck to Alasdair BettlesHall for his work. War creates orphans –how timely to remember this.

PS: Bulls and Flock House are in the Rangitīkei district, not Manawatū.

Spot the real carbon villain

Terry Williamson Opuatia

I SOMETIMES wonder if my confusion is justified.

On one hand, we have New Zealand farmers being criticised, blamed, lambasted and taxed for doing the best they can to provide food (and fibre) to the masses.

On the other hand, we have tourism being touted (and promoted globally by our prime minister) as the holy grail to boost our economy.

I don’t play the numbers game, but surely all forms of tourism/travel must have a significant carbon impact due to the amount of fuel used etcetera?

Heroes versus villains: it’s all becoming a bit blurry.

Pricing of farmemissions made

Graham Pinnell

Retired Cambridge farmer who has

HE WAKA Eke Noa

proposed two options for pricing agricultural emissions. Feedback from farmers strongly supported farm-level pricing in preference to the hybrid option, so the former went forward for consideration by the Climate Change Commission and now the ministers.

This article is a result of having a “peek under the bonnet” at the algorithms used to calculate emissions. Remarkably, amid the complexity there are a few simple facts that inform how we could proceed from here.

The first is that the volume of methane emissions is solely dependent on how much dry matter is consumed by livestock.

What species, how old and heavy they are, how productive they are and whether milk, meat, wool or velvet is produced does not make a scrap of difference to the volume of methane emissions. That means the only way methane emissions can be reduced is by reducing the area of pastoral farming. It also means that, given that the area of pastoral farming is being eroded by carbon and production forestry, horticulture and urban spread, methane emissions must be reducing. The evidence points to stable emissions in the recent past, and the current carbon farming bonanza is yet to be captured in the statistics. On the other hand, there are very few opportunities to increase dry matter intake because our farming systems are dominated by pasture, being by far the cheapest fodder, thereby capping the amount of supplementary feed.

The other greenhouse gas

associated with livestock is nitrous oxide. Nitrogen from fodder is partially retained in product from the animal and cycled back to the land as dung and urine. A fraction of that is converted into nitrous oxide, mainly from urine patches. Again, the volume of emissions is dependent on how much dry matter is consumed – but is also dependent a little on production and a lot on the species. Emissions per stock unit are much less for sheep than cattle. Deer emissions are intermediate between sheep and cattle.

Now, let’s put some numbers on nitrous oxide emissions. Given that nitrous oxide is a long-lived gas and could be priced as for carbon dioxide, over time the price is likely to transition to that of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). Even using the current NZU price for a ton of carbon dioxide-equivalent with no discount means that the price of nitrous oxide emissions is trivial in comparison with market prices. For example, it is less than 0.5% of the meat value of a cattle beast or lamb, and even less in relation to the milk value from a dairy cow. Pricing of nitrous oxide emissions cannot be strong enough to engender change.

Putting these methane and nitrous oxide observations together means that farm-level reporting serves no purpose yet requires farmers to file data that cannot realistically be audited. That data is comprehensive, requiring tallies and liveweights for each class of stock as they vary throughout the farming year, taking account of sales, purchases, births and deaths.

Let’s breathe life back into the He Waka Eke Noa (HWEN) hybrid option. It does not have this data requirement yet incentivises

Low Input High Production

Waimai rams are bred

mitigations such as vaccines, feed additives and animal genetics as they are developed and approved. Auditing would be a breeze in comparison.

The HWEN farm-level option incentivises methane reduction by putting a price on all methane. Currently, there are no viable mitigations, so to be effective, the price has to be strong enough to force farm sales of the financially weak. What happens to the income from pricing methane?

The first call would be to fund the bureaucracy required to operate the scheme.

The Climate Change Commission, in considering the farm-level option, has proposed a refund based on production of milk, meat and other products. This is Robin Hood in reverse, whereby those on more versatile soils and having inherently higher productivity prey on the financially weak with less favourable soils or climate.

Even when mitigations become available and emission pricing is set to incentivise their use, financially stressed farmers will still be forced to sell if the HWEN farm-level option is adopted.

To what extent should emission pricing incentivise a move from pastoral farming? As pricing

will be by regulation under the Climate Change Response Act, it will have to comply with the Act, in particular its purposes. The relevant matters are the familiar 2030 target to reduce methane emissions by 10% and the 2050 target to be net zero for long-lived gases. Of key importance is the legislated requirement to develop policies in accordance with the Paris Agreement. In signing the agreement, our government, among many other things, recognised “the fundamental priority of safeguarding food security and ending hunger”.

Food production is part of our international obligations.

This dual legal objective means that changing land use out of food production should not be incentivised, whereas changing from producing one kind of food to another should be encouraged if the price can be effective in reducing emissions.

While there are no methane emissions associated with horticulture, nitrous oxide emissions associated with most crops are higher than for pastoral farming. The annual methane emission charge for dairying is about $35/ha, assuming the HWEN pricing of $0.11/kg. This is insignificant in comparison with

incentivised,

help

changing from

the market prices for horticulture. The price signal would be too weak to influence the decision to move to horticulture.

Furthermore, most pastoral farming is on rolling, hill and high country that is unsuitable for horticulture; and growing grapes does not safeguard food security nor end hunger.

Overall, it seems that with respect to land use change, emission pricing can only incentivise changes that result in reduced food production. Rather than the HWEN farm-level option charging for all methane, best be more targeted and just incentivise the desired changes using consistent prices and the HWEN hybrid model.

OPEN DAY

ELITE RAM SALE

Got a view on some aspect of farming you would like to get across? We offer readers the chance to have their say. Contact us and have yours.

INCENTIVE

Photo: Stefan Widua on Unsplash

An area of significant natural concern is in the spotlight

Alternative view

“If I don’t like it I have to appeal and that costs me,” Allan said.

“On the West Coast only 15% of the total land area is privately owned. It should be left alone.

“If this keeps going we won’t be able to maintain viable communities as we won’t have enough land to function. On top of SNAs, we’ve got Outstanding Natural Landscapes where the landowner gets another hammering.

“It is all an attack on democracy,” he said.

government owned and covered by natives. Why would you want to confiscate any of the remaining 15%?

What’s worse is the entire confiscation is done with no scientific rigour.

When Climate Change Minister James Shaw was questioned on the opposition to SNAs he said the grievance was from “a few pākehā farmers down south”. What a stupid, arrogant statement to make. He should get out of his office more often.

Alan Emerson

Semi-retired Wairarapa farmer and businessman: dath.emerson@gmail.com

THE proposed National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity is expected by the end of the year. I’m not looking forward to it.

We’re told that we have many native plants, birds and animals that are unique to our country and that some of these, along with their ecosystems, are under threat of extinction.

What I would like to see is a robust scientific research paper that tells me exactly what native plants, birds and animals are actually under threat and where they are located. Without that I strongly believe that we’re flying blind while giving local government unlimited rights to effectively confiscate private land under the guise of Significant Natural Areas (SNAs)

My position is that I am not in favour of SNAs as the law currently stands.

I hold the old-fashioned belief that if I own a parcel of land I own it to do what I will within the law.

I do not want some twentysomething person with a degree in conservation, a missionary zeal to save the planet and who believes they have a lifetime experience of ecological issues telling me what I can and can’t do on my property.

That person has tremendous powers over my land as the word “significant” is not defined by the Resource Management Act. Councils are responsible for identifying SNAs and they can and do apply different standards in assessing them.

That does not fill me with any degree of confidence, especially when councils say they will need “mini-Department of Conservation departments” to handle SNAs.

That in itself creates a problem as there aren’t enough suitably qualified people to do the job. In addition, the burden of those extra staff on ratepayers will be excessive.

It is actually worse than that.

Allan Birchfield, chair of the West Coast Regional Council, told me that councils are identifying SNAs “off aerial photos”. There’s no science or even a scientific requirement.

On top of that there are SNAs that are of significance to Māori. The burden of proof is light and if a farmer wants to do anything with that land he or she must get permission from Māori.

Masterton councillor and mayoral hopeful Tina Nixon is also worried about the impact of SNAs as they will be “hard and expensive for the council to administer”.

“It’s just another stupid policy that is not thought out. It will have massive consequences that haven’t been thought through,” she said.

“I don’t believe it will do anything for the environment.

Local government just doesn’t have the resources to administer it.

“It is fraught because of compliance issues and the imposition on property rights.”

Speaking to other affected farmers, there are some worrying trends coming from councils.

“The hearings with council were a waste of time.”

“They’re trying to confiscate 200ha of second-growth native. There’s no compensation and I still have to pay rates, control pests and fix fences.”

“It’s just a land grab by councils on behalf of government.”

“We went to a hearing and the council told us a decision had [already] been made.”

All of that is of some considerable concern.

As it stands councils and/or Māori can declare SNAs basically at whim. As has happened, a team of ecologists did a desktop evaluation using computerised topographical maps. That’s not a remotely credible way of effectively confiscating private land.

There’s no compensation for the farmer concerned who will have to go through a council-run resource consent process if they want to do anything with their land.

I know of many farmers, ourselves included, who have fenced native bush. I am also aware of many who have put land into QE11 covenants. They have been voluntary and completed without the interference of either central or local government.

It would be good if the government could then remove its jackboots and talk to farmers instead of promoting confiscation without compensation.

Further, as is the case on the West Coast, 85% of the land is

Rain clouds vex young and old

From the ridge

clears again.

The previous two autumns were droughts. Nasty ones.

Last autumn and winter I waited for moisture so that I could get a bit of nitrogen on to try and grow some feed.

It remained dry, dusty even, right through June and finally I had a fertiliser truck driving around on my heavy clay soils in the middle of July without leaving a mark.

lot of potential danger out there.

Not only have people found it tough but stock haven’t enjoyed it and it hasn’t been an easy start for lambs and calves with growth rates well behind.

Cropping farmers have spent six weeks waiting to work up paddocks to get crops in and now the window for various cropping options has begun to close. Some have already had to cancel pea contracts.

Steve Wyn-Harris

Central Hawke’s Bay sheep and beef farmer: swyn@xtra.co.nz

THE big wet. There is no other term I could use for these past four months.

It’s been horrible.

Other regions have had heavy destructive flooding, which we’ve fortunately missed. It’s the constant persistence of rainfall and no drying that has been difficult here.

We have already had our annual average rainfall of 850mm with three months to go, but it feels like much more than this. That’s because on the few days when it hasn’t rained, there has been no wind or sun and just no drying of the sodden ground.

This has made it difficult for everyone involved with the land.

It’s the worst winter I can recall in my nearly 40 years’ farming here. Others are saying it hasn’t been this sodden since the extremely wet winters in the late 1970s.

Ironically, I write this the day after the nicest sunny day of what feels like my lifetime, but surely of the past few months. It dawned clear, the sun rose and shone all day without a hint of any cloud or precipitation.

It was warm and, though it was calm with no wind, it dried things out a bit.

Spirits lifted everywhere and flesh was exposed to soak up a dose of ultraviolet B so that the vitamin D receptor cells could work their magic and manufacture a decent dose of the vitamin.

However, it was a brief respite as a cold snap is forecast bringing more rain before it hopefully

This July I couldn’t even get my two wheelers around much of the farm.

Pushing them up hills as the back wheel spun, I cried out my new favourite catchphrase: “I’m getting too bloody old for this!”

I’d even gone as far as inquiring about the availability of side by sides in June, but my motorbike dealer told me given the supply chain was depleted I could have a new or secondhand one at Christmas if I was lucky.

Good thing I didn’t get one as I’ve heard stories that, given their weight over four-wheelers, there have had to be quite a few helicopter retrievals of side by sides in hill country as no tractors could get to them. The story goes that one fellow had to hire a chopper on three separate occasions.

Four-wheelers have proven their worth this winter, but we have had to be careful as even they have limitations and there has been a

My brassica paddocks will take a long time to be dry enough to get worked and then I’ll likely have to wait for the contractor, so a summer fallow option is looking likely.

Ag contractors have had little opportunity to get any work done so they and their staff have had it tough.

Of course, there are few usable airstrips, so the planes haven’t been flying and there is no way that the ground spreaders have been able to do much.

The poor shearers and shed hands have had a lean time of it and must be struggling to pay bills.

Quite a few farmers have had to postpone their ewe hogget shearing as they are now lambing, and plan to do them with lambs at foot.

Getting lambs docked has been a major challenge as it’s been impossible to drag docking yards around farms.

I’ve heard reports of farmers bringing mobs into the woolshed for the night and docking them inside the next morning once they have dried.

A lot of terminal lambs are now permanently attached to their tails, and kids on holiday will be lifting big lambs next week if conditions allow.

I’m even selling a few store twoyear-old bulls at the beginning of October as I’ve run out of shift options. This is at a time when I’m usually fretting I don’t have enough cattle to control the flush of feed.

BOOTS ON THE GROUND: It’s the worst, wettest winter Steve Wyn-Harris can recall in nearly 40 years.

However, day length and more warmth does mean that when it decides to stop raining ground conditions will dry out quickly and the feed will bolt.

That day is a day closer every day that passes.

WETLAND: Many farmers have voluntarily fenced native bush without the interference of either central or local government, says Alan Emerson.

How to get more beef from a shrinking pot

Meaty matters

in 2012, and its associate New Zealand organisation, which was founded in 2019, pursue the achievement of sustainable production through animal health and welfare, 30% reduction of beef’s global warming impact by 2030, and ensuring the beef value chain is a net positive contributor to nature.

Beef + Lamb NZ, processors, producers and retailers, as well as the Worldwide Fund for Nature, are members of the roundtable and there is plenty of evidence the industry is moving towards rewarding suppliers for sustainable production, such as Silver Fern Farms’ carbon zero beef programme.

CONTRARY to the belief that demand for red meat will be satisfied by alternative proteins, these appear to have hit something of a roadblock with consumers finding the initial promise fails to live up to expectations.

At the same time the world’s appetite for beef in particular continues to grow, most notably in developing countries where production is nowhere large enough to meet demand.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations predicts global consumption of animal products, including dairy, meat and eggs, will double by 2050, with demand for meat from Africa alone doubling as a consequence of higher incomes, urbanisation and larger populations.

In case anybody doubts this prediction, they need only reflect on China, which has seen meat consumption quadruple since 1980.

Across the developing world milk consumption has doubled, meat has tripled and egg consumption has increased fivefold since 1960.

The implications of these patterns for global supply and greenhouse gas reduction are mind-boggling.

The Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB), formed

The local Roundtable promotes the vision of proving NZ produces the world’s most sustainable beef in ways that are economically viable, socially responsible, and environmentally sound.

There is a great deal of noise in the media, reflected in political debate and public reaction, most recently the Students Strike for Climate Change, which claims agriculture is almost singlehandedly destroying the planet.

So the message promoting the Roundtable’s view of sustainable and responsible beef production tends to get lost.

GRSB executive director Ruaraidh Petre, who coordinates the Roundtable’s work remotely from his Nelson home base, recently published an article in The Beef Central online newsletter assessing the opportunity for improving beef production in developing countries to satisfy the growing demand.

This increase cannot be met by extra production in the major beef-producing countries, where herd sizes are all declining, despite the fact that better productivity has compensated for the loss in volume.

In the present climate there is no likelihood traditional producing countries wish to reverse this trend, or are able to.

Large beef producers like the

United States and Australia have dramatically increased productivity in the past 20 years, with the US cow herd declining by 15% and cattle slaughtered down by 5 million since 2002.

In the past 50 years the US beef herd has shrunk by 25%, while production has actually risen by 6%.

Australia has 3% of global production, supplying 17% of world trade.

Petre argues it would be totally counterproductive for the world’s most efficient producing countries to limit their production, which would then have to be compensated for by the less efficient, resulting in increased production and higher emissions.

He claims the level of methane emitted by efficient producers is actually coming down by 0.3 % per year, equal to 10% in 30 years using GWP* as the measurement, which means these countries could be said not to contribute to global warming.

A similar claim can be made for New Zealand’s sheep and beef industry, though this is less credible for dairy, which has only recently passed its peak herd size.

He suggests an alternative would be to transfer developed-

world knowledge of genetic improvements, grazing and animal husbandry to developing countries where demand is growing and far outstrips domestic production.

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that in an ideal world the beef industry has the potential to reduce emissions by about 37%.

This percentage implies the reduction that would occur if all producers in a given region and agricultural system were to apply the practices of the top 10% of performers in respect of GHG emissions.

While this is a pipe dream, given the climatic and economic challenges in much of the world, it illustrates the opportunity for improvement that less-efficient producers could aspire to, if offered the necessary support.

Africa and Asia are regions with high livestock populations and fast-growing demand for beef, but many of the cattle are used for transport and cultivation as opposed to food production, while social and religious factors also influence the end use.

In parts of Africa cows may only have a calf every four years and deficiencies in grazing conditions

and animal husbandry imply a large supporting herd to generate relatively low and inefficient production.

NZ presents a stark contrast to the experience of developing countries because of its strong scientific and genetic basis for beef and sheep production.

The problem here is how to continue to extract more from a shrinking pot in the face of objections from environmental groups and the ill-informed public whose increasingly strident noise is in danger of unduly influencing politicians.

For example, He Waka Eko Noa is regularly decried as being too soft on agriculture, merely extending its licence to pollute, regardless of its critical importance to the country’s prosperity and standard of living.

The message about the industry’s success in reducing GHG emissions and the shorter duration of methane in the atmosphere often seems to fall on deaf ears.

The GRSB and New Zealand Roundtable have a huge job on their hands to help win the PR battle that will permit agriculture to continue operating responsibly and efficiently.

for LIC Directorship

TEACHING MOMENT: Ruaraidh Petre, executive director of Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, suggests agriculturally proficient nations help improve practices in parts of the world where large-scale production is just getting going.

Alan Barber

Meat

CLOSING: Brian Peacocke is stepping down as REINZ rural spokesperson, a role he has held since 2011.

Voice of rural real estate signs off

Brian Peacocke is stepping down as the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand’s rural spokesperson after over a decade in the role. Gerald Piddock spoke to him.

BEING a top rural real estate agent requires the ability to establish and cultivate relationships with people through integrity, professionalism and communication.

It’s also not a job for the faint of heart because of the pressure that comes with it, Brian Peacocke says.

“If you’re acute at each of those, you’ll do fine.”

As rural spokesperson for the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand, Peacocke’s stated opinions have had to walk a fine line between farmer morale and the marketplace.

Later this year he will step down from the role that he has occupied since 2011.

“It’s better to pull out that be kicked out,” he laughs.

His previous career as a farmer in Waikato, King Country, Gisborne and the Central Hawke’s Bay helped build up his connections and contacts. Over the years he has developed a large network of sources across the country to keep him informed of the issues – and every sale that takes place.

He studies that sales data and if it has a potential point of interest, he may comment on it in the monthly wrap, The REINZ Release. It’s a time-consuming process, but if there is something unusual, he may reach out for an explanation.

“We don’t know which company provides the stats when I get them, they come through en masse and the people I ring

will be representative of the industry. It could be any one of the companies,” Peacocke says.

This removes any perception of bias towards any of the real estate companies.

Peacocke set up Pastoral Reality, which he operated from 1992-2020, before selling it to Property Brokers and setting out on his own, operating as PRL Rural, working out of his home in Tamahere on the outskirts of Hamilton.

As an agent, he is also an independent operator rather than belonging to any of the major companies. This, he says, enables trust among other agents that he is not favouring one business over another.

He also, as a rule, never talks politics, referring to the government as “central government” rather than by its party name.

We’re very exposed to the consequences to the lack of due diligence. If you don’t disclose or if you’re incorrect then the exposure to litigation is dramatic.

So, we have a very demanding requirement for the collection of information.

Brian Peacocke REINZ

“My role as a commentator is putting forward an industry perspective, not a personal perspective,” he says.

It’s been a decade of huge change in the farming industry with the emergence of dairy and horticulture as major industries.

In recent years, the Overseas Investment Office has also been a major influence on the sector, particularly in recent years as more people and companies look to purchase land for forestry conversions to offset emissions.

Tighter land use rules from local and central government – mostly as a response to dairy industry expansion – means a lot of due diligence is required for every rural property sale.

It is also the main source of pressure that agents face because they have to ensure any data that may impact on the buyer’s decision around land use is transparent and verified in the sale process.

That data includes nitrogen leaching rates, production, biosecurity information (particularly related to Mycoplasma bovis), soil type, fencing and slope gradients, which could affect what class of livestock can be used.

“You learn to make no claims on anything. You get asked the question, you provide the information, you don’t provide the answer,” he says.

“We’re very exposed to the consequences to the lack of due diligence.

“If you don’t disclose or if you’re incorrect then the exposure to litigation is dramatic. So, we have a very demanding requirement for the collection of information.”

In future, that diligence will also include some form of data related to carbon emissions.

The degree of information required for a typical agency agreement is huge but is a necessity, he says.

“It doesn’t take much for a purchaser to turn back to a real estate agent, often at the prompting of a solicitor, for a lack of information or erroneous

information. Hence, the scrutiny the sector is under is much greater than it used to be.”

Agents also cannot sell any land that has not been scrutinised under anti-money laundering rules.

“This clarifies the source of wealth, in essence stopping farm sales from being a money laundering opportunity for criminal proceeds,” he says.

However, going through that process can be time consuming – particularly if the land has multiple owners. This is largely because the data collection process is antiquated and cumbersome.

But failing to follow the rules could mean the loss of the agent’s licence and fines.

The industry has also worked hard over the years to bring a higher level of professionalism into it, he says.

“This has improved the image of the industry – and the industry needed to have an improvement in its image.”

Land values have peaked three to four times during Peacocke’s time in real estate, with fluctuating farmer incomes having a big influence.

Farmers tend to hold onto their land when incomes are strong and look to sell if prices ease – but they want those peak prices.

The banks and their lending policies also have an influence on land values because they either approve a loan or they do not.

Equally, if a person has high equity, low debt levels and good cash flow, their security position might enable them to buy more property. This kind of transaction has resulted in neighbours absorbing neighbouring land and has increased dramatically over the years.

“Quite often you’ll hear farmers say they are never looking for land

to buy until a property that adjoins them or is within close proximity [goes on the market] and all of a sudden it triggers their interest and they realise they have the ability to purchase.”

It all makes first farm purchases much more difficult because of the level of equity required, he says.

In recent years there has been the emergence of exceptional cases where benevolent farm owners go into equity arrangements with younger farmers resulting in increased equity or a buyout.

However, this takes diligence and commitment from the farm employee.

Factoring through all of this is the issue of an aging farm-owner population, and succession. It’s an increasing problem where no solution has been found – and that solution has to come from the farming industry, Peacocke says.

Through it all, good agents focus on maintaining a relationships with the landowner.

Critical to the role is being fair both to the vendor and the purchaser – because today’s purchaser could be tomorrow’s vendor.

“Your priority is your vendor but you can’t do justice to your vendor without doing justice to your purchaser because in doing justice to your purchaser you create that climate of trust, and if you have that trust you be able to get a better price out of them.”

One of the biggest mistakes agents can make is blurring the lines between selling property and being a farm consultant.

Agents must be there to represent the interests of the vendor and in doing so they are fair to the purchaser, he says.

“Due diligence is the underlying factor – and total disclosure. That’s your basis of operation.”

Tests offer a timely heads-up on disease

THANKS to covid-19 and the RAT tests that have been used for its diagnosis, many people are now comfortable and familiar with home-based, quick tests to determine disease status. Dr Richard Winkworth says thanks to the high profile of covid testing, conversations around using his company’s quick DNA testing process to diagnose production diseases have become a lot easier.

Ampersand Technologies is a spinoff firm from Massey University, only one year old and partly funded with co-investment from Matu, a venture capital fund focused on early-stage science and tech. Investment has also come from Massey Ventures, the university’s commercialisation arm.

Winkworth was recently recognised in the KiwiNet research commercialisation awards when he was selected as a finalist in the Breakthrough Innovator section.

Ampersand’s offering revolves around a DNA technology that can be used to identify a wide range of organisms, including fungi, bacteria and viruses. Winkworth describes the testing as being on par with the infamous RAT test for speed, but with accuracy akin to the RAT’s gold-plated cousin, the PCR test.

At their simplest, Ampersand’s LAMP (loop-mediated amplification) tests can also be conducted without the need for expensive equipment or highly trained specialists to conduct and interpret results.

“By way of comparison, a highthroughput PCR machine could set you back about $60,000. We have just purchased a LAMP device for $1000, capable of doing multiple tests, with subscription software that ensures it can be regularly upgraded.”

The global wind-back in government investment in covid diagnostics means that there is considerable capacity and diagnostic tech looking for new

The M bovis response provided a very clear illus tration of just how quickly centralised testing facilities can become overwhelmed in New Zealand.

Dr Richard Winkworth Ampersand

While careful not to knock the long-proven PCR tests used for the detection of covid and many other diseases, Winkworth said a bottleneck for conventional disease testing is the centralised lab model so often used during large-scale disease outbreaks.

“The M bovis response provided

a very clear illustration of just how quickly centralised testing facilities can become overwhelmed in New Zealand. Not only does this slow our response to the outbreak itself, but it means other work also stalls.

“The beauty of low-cost, lowinvestment LAMP assays is the decentralisation of testing and result delivery. Testing can be conducted on site with the results used within minutes to make decisions about treatment or other actions.”

The company has conducted and proven tests for several diseases, but most recently has been focused on efforts to trace the organism responsible for kauri dieback disease.

“Essentially, if there is genetic material, DNA or RNA in the case of a virus, there is the potential to detect it with a LAMP test tailored to the needs of end users.”

LAMP tests offer an effective biosecurity tool for use at borders, and Winkworth can also see an array of tests that producers could use to make informed farming and growing decisions.

“One of the biggest drawbacks to our current testing approaches is the time it takes between sampling and having lab results back.”

For example, faecal egg counts are typically conducted well after nematode infection and require stock to be transported to a testing facility.

On-farm LAMP testing could be used to check for nematodes in a pasture so a farmer can avoid

grazing young lambs on paddocks with high nematode loads.

Likewise, on-farm testing to determine what bacterium is causing mastitis in a cow may allow treatment to be targeted – and limit the opportunities for the development of antibiotic resistance.

“For orchardists wondering whether to spray after a warm, wet period, a regular LAMP testing programme would tell them whether there are even any fungal spores present to worry about, and if not then they save on spraying, both financially and environmentally.”

In the coming months Winkworth and his team are keen to liaise with primary sector groups, identifying what their particular disease issues are, and beginning to develop bespoke tests that growers and farmers can use to dodge pest and disease bullets.

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Being able to test for the likes of Psa in an orchard, or for M bovis off the back of the farm ute, could provide growers and farmers with a streamlined, real-time, regular

affordable means to check for disease. Richard Rennie spoke to Dr Richard Winkworth, head of DNA testing company Ampersand Technologies.

applications, with New Zealand’s primary sector among the potential beneficiaries.

A spin-off from Ampersand’s kauri dieback work has been the development of a test for detecting phytophthora, problematic in avocado orchards and for various other horticultural crops. A test for myrtle rust has also been developed.

TESTED: Dr Richard Winkworth says LAMP testing delivers a prompt, accurate diagnosis of bacterial and viral diseases without the expense and logjams of centralised lab processing

Jaspal Singh came to NZ to study IT but ended up falling in love with dairy farming and now he and his wife are both living their dream in Southland. With plans in place to keep taking steps up the rungs of the ladder to eventual farm ownership.

Fonterra UHT plant is trialing a new green battery. The new industrial-scale organic battery could help strengthen greater energy security and distribution of generated energy here in NZ

To find out more head to https://www. farmersweekly.co.nz/fonterras-uhtplant-trials-green-battery/

1 Where was the battery first housed?

Why was it moved to the Waitoa UHT site?

2 What is the battery made from?

3 Where was the battery developed?

4 Will this help Fonterra reduce its coal usage?

Why or why not?

They are trying to improve their

What is

How can these things improve production

breeding

IHEART - TALKING DAIRY. YOUNG FARM MANAGER’S WINNING APPROACH.

Jimmy Cleaver won the regional trophy for Auckland/Hauraki Farm Manager of the Year as well as other awards including Dairy NZ People and Leadership Award.

In this podcast Jimmy talks about where he grew up and how he got to where he is now. The benefits of good leadership, getting through tough times, making improvements across the sector and his goals for the future. As well as his advice to anyone weighing up a career in dairying.

Follow this link to listen: https://www.iheart. com/podcast/269-dairynz-podcasts-forfarme-77105527/episode/young-farm-managerswinning-approach-102029875/

Then answer the following questions:

1 Where did Jimmy grow up?

2 Where did he study?

STRETCH YOURSELF:

1 Who were his mentors? What did they teach him outside of practical skills?

2 What made him want to enter the NZ Dairy industry awards? What did he take away from the process?

3 What are some things he has in place to maintain good mental health on farm, both for himself and others he works with?

4 What changes did he make on farm that helped reduce empty rates?

5 What is his advice to anyone contemplating a career in dairy farming?

1 Looking at the breed category percentage of breed by region graph what is the most prevalent breed of dairy cow across NZ?

2 Where are Jersey most prolific?

3 In the South Island what are the most popular breeds? Are there attributes that make these cattle particularly suitable for South Island conditions?

4 What is the least prevalent breed on this graph?

Looking at the graph of the trends of inseminations for breed categories for the last 40 seasons.

1 Which breed had consistently the most inseminations over the 40 seasons?

2 Through the 80’s and 90’s which breed was the second most popular?

STRETCH YOURSELF:

1 From the mid to late 2000’s Jersey inseminations declined. Can you think of three reasons that may have contributed to this?

2 Which breed has gained popularity since 2000? Can you think of reasons why these may have become more popular?

3 According to this graph inseminations pretty much plateaued or declined across the board from 2019/20 to 2020/21. Can you explain why this may have occurred?

READY FOR GREENER PASTURES

When it comes to rural property, Bayleys Country is altogether better at uncovering this season’s cream of the crop and the latest industry insights directly to you.

As the days become longer, we’ve dug deep to deliver you 153 of spring’s freshest farms, horticulture, viticulture, forestry, and lifestyle properties for sale across the country. Brought to you by Bayleys – New Zealand’s number one rural real estate brand – Country is the premier market-leading publication for quality rural and lifestyle property and the latest insights. In the latest edition, Country explores how as New Zealand aims for 100-percent renewable energy by 2030, farms could be in the box seat to harvest the sun’s energy. We also look at Happy Cow, a system that supplies technology and regulatory systems to dairy farmers to enable them to sell their milk locally and support their communities. For your copy of Country magazine, call 0800 BAYLEYS or visit bayleys.co.nz/country It’s altogether better in the country.

Large scale dairy operation with multiple options

The incline, Raumati and Huiarangi organic dairies

Mangawhai 168 Valley Road

Totara Park Farms - premium location, prime invest

First time on the market in 76 years this self-contained 356ha (STS) dairy unit developed to the highest standards is situated in one of Northland's prime locations. Currently run with a 50/50 sharemilker, 450 cows all Autumn calving with winter milk contract in place, consistent production is around 180,000kgMS. Featuring an excellent array of well-maintained improvements including 30ASHB shed, 300-cow feedpad, two silage bunkers, large cattle yards, and impressive shedding with calf rearing facilities, plus three well-maintained homes. The dairy platform comprises 227ha with an adjoining support unit of 129ha. Just 8km from Mangawhai village and handy to schools, east coast beaches with an easy commute to Auckland City. A special opportunity in a sought-after location ensures a very desirable acquisition investment for the future. bayleys.co.nz/1050745

356ha

Auction (unless sold prior)

10am, Thu 17 Nov 2022

41 Queen Street, Warkworth

View by appointment

Norris 021 959 166 lin.norris@bayleys.co.nz

Once in a generation sheep and beef opportunity

Rarely does an opportunity present itself to purchase a superbly maintained and faithfully farmed large scale sheep and beef farm. Home of the highly regarded Kokonga Hereford Stud comprising 160 m/a stud cows plus 4,300 m/a ewes and 650 18-mth steers. Originally two fully functioning farms that have been merged into 1,296ha, the property is operated efficiently with an central laneway and duplicate sets of improvements. The rolling to easy contour with excellent limestone and ash soils and long fertiliser history ensures quality pastures all year round. The farm also enjoys a 65ha QEII covenant block of stunning native bush. There are four well kept dwellings on the property to comfortably suit an owner, manager and support staff. Kokonga is an impressive farm that has been farmed faithfully yet conservatively and is a once in a generation opportunity. bayleys.co.nz/2313745

Tender (unless sold prior)

Closing 4pm, Tue 15 Nov 2022

Bayleys House, 30 Gaunt Street, Auckland

Te Araroa Whakaangiangi Road

Katoa Station - production and performance

Katoa Station presents your opportunity to acquire a performant finishing property, featuring appealing scale and healthy farming climate. Located on the East Cape of the North Island, north of Gisborne, Katoa encompasses a total of 595ha of which more than 150ha are flat to easy cultivatable contour, primed for intensive production. The current stock carrying capacity is 10.5 SU to the effective hectare, at a total of 4,475 SU. Whakaangiangi Rd frontage extends just short of 4km through the front of the farm flats, providing excellent access and workability. Rising from flat contoured land at 80m ASL to the top of the farm at 250m, the majority of the farm is flat to easy at lower altitude. Stock water reticulation throughout the flats, is sourced from a bore to the northern end of the property. A substantial opportunity to acquire very productive East Coast farmland. bayleys.co.nz/2752712

595.29ha

Tender (unless sold prior)

Closing 4pm, Wed 16 Nov 2022

10 Reads Quay, Gisborne

View by appointment

Simon Bousfield 027 665 8778

simon.bousfield@bayleys.co.nz

Stephen Thomson 027 450 6531 stephen.thomson@bayleys.co.nz

Matahiia Station - superior contour and scale

Station presents significant scale - capturing 1,816ha of strong hill country, supported by extensive alluvial flats and easy contoured, cultivatable land. Located north of Gisborne on the East Coast of the North Island, the farm's attractive contour is supported by

Well subdivided by a network of laneways connecting satellite yards, access often extends across all-weather metalled tracks. Presently running a sheep to cattle ratio 33:67, across circa 14,500 wintered SU, Matahiia Station has an excellent farming climate, with strong annual rainfall. Matahiia is a high-performing East Coast station, offering a superb combination of strong, sheltered breeding country and finishing land, rarely presented to market. bayleys.co.nz/2752710

bayleys.co.nz

Dairy farm with scale and location

Currently milking 700 cows, previous seasons have milked 800 plus through an immaculate 48-aside herringbone with a five year rolling average of 303,000kgMS. The milking platform is currently 280ha with the balance being used for grazing stock and approx. 30ha planted in trees. Contour is predominately rolling with steeper sideling’s. A central race system provides access throughout the property and water is supplied via three bores. The infrastructure and systems throughout the farm is excellent, including an in-shed feed system and a large calf rearing facility. There are three dwellings throughout the property with a large implement shed. Land comprises of six titles in total. This is a rare opportunity to purchase a quality dairy farm with proven production, multiple titles in a very desirable location. There will be various options to purchase, contact Derek today. bayleys.co.nz/2450977

342ha

Tender (unless sold prior)

Closing 4pm, Thu 17 Nov 2022 1092 Fenton Street, Rotorua View 11am-12pm Wed 19 Oct, Wed 26 Oct, Wed 2 Nov & Wed 9 Nov Derek Enright 027 496 3974 derek.enright@bayleys.co.nz

Pastoral and horticultural land use options

located, the much admired

to 200 hectares of fertile flats

diversified farm business income, only 34kms from Whanganui.

with well farmed and attractive hill country

flats only 40m above sea level with options from horticulture through to pastoral and carbon farming.

include livestock breeding and intensive

and green fodder

a microclimate with opportunities including kiwifruit, pip fruit or

offers a range of farm accommodation

a five-stand woolshed, two sets of covered yards plus excellent satellite yards, well maintained

and fenced to

bayleys.co.nz/2900521

bayleys.co.nz

main

Rotorua

Whirinaki Valley Road, Ngakuru

429ha self contained, award winning dairy farm

Located only 13km North East of Dannevirke in the popular Raumati area, Te Maunga Farm is an award winning self contained farm boasting mainly flat and easy contour. A very well set up farm, improvements include a large four bedroom homestead, three further dwellings, 50 bail rotary shed and a massive number of calf rearing, hay and implement sheds. Being fully self contained the profitability is very good, with the approximately 258 hectare milking platform and approximately 95 hectares of support land. Races are well maintained with the help of the red metal pit and lime quarry. A three year average production of 237,178kg/MS (once a day) as a result of an excellent fertiliser history and pasture renewal programme with 125 hectares irrigated via centre pivot and Bosch long laterals this is a consistent performer. This low cost farming operation is very profitable. bayleys.co.nz/2853055

Tender Closing

Napier Road, Havelock

1-2pm

by appointment

Rasmussen

High-performing, once in a lifetime opportunity

This highly-productive Burnham dairy farm boasts an exceptional location and a superior homestead designed to house your family in luxury. The 250.5828-hectare property has proven performance showing consistently with the average production over the past four seasons at 573,381kgMS, along with low costs, this is a very profitable property. The meticulous attention to detail on this farm sets it apart from others. Simple and efficient systems, environmentally sound with quality infrastructure and irrigation means it’s well set up for the new owners. The centrally located 70-bail rotary shed with Read milking plant has new automatic cup removers, Trutest auto draft system and includes large feed pads. The immaculately maintained farm is complemented by an equally impressive home, second three-bedroom home, and a further four-bedroom home. bayleys.co.nz/5519481

Multi use rural opportunity close

this multi-use rural property

location

longterm benefits. The property sits proudly on the border of the

town of Paeroa in the coveted Golden

on 66.515 hectares (more or less) in seven titles, the contour being a mix of flat to rolling land, ensures this is an easily managed grazing block. The infrastructure on this property is a key feature, with just some of the functional improvements including five + multi-use implement sheds, half-round barns, and yards + loading ramp. Call today to find out more! bayleys.co.nz/2313856

412ha self contained dairy farm

412.8139ha

Tender (unless

Hawke’s Bay

Road, Patoka

‘Ahunui’ reliable 232ha bull unit

An ideal first farm or additional finishing unit, do not miss the opportunity to own this fertile and productive property. Located 50km from Napier in the renowned Patoka farming district, is this intensively run 232ha finishing unit. Boasting fertile free draining ash soils, approximately 80ha of easy contour, 90ha easy hill and 40ha medium hill. Circa 500 bulls are finished each season to good weights and with excellent metal tracks through a lot of the property access and workability are a real feature. The property has the fertility and reticulated water system to ensure production is maximised. The four stand woolshed, sheep yards and cattle yards are centrally located. Improvements include a three bedroom home with views and a two bay implement shed. bayleys.co.nz/2853092

Tender (unless sold prior) Closing 4pm, Thu 3 Nov 2022 17 Napier Road, Havelock North View 3-4pm Wed 12 Oct & Wed 19 Oct or by appointment

Tony Rasmussen 027 429 2253

tony.rasmussen@bayleys.co.nz

Monty Monteith 027 807 0522 monty.monteith@bayleys.co.nz

Well located 2.4 hectare poultry farm and home

Kereru 1405 Mangleton Road

136ha dairy support/finishing farm

Located 60 km West of Hastings is this easy contoured sheep/beef finishing and dairy support property which boasts approximately 45 hectares of fertile flat land, the balance of easy hill country and bush clad gullies with access down to the river for trout fishing and hunting.

Improvements include a spacious five bedroom weatherboard home, implement sheds, four stand woolshed, sheep and cattle yards.

This opportunity to buy great contour, the potential in this block is fantastic. Trout fishing and hunting are a bonus. bayleys.co.nz/2853071

136ha 5 2

Tender

Closing 4pm, Wed 2 Nov 2022

17 Napier Road, Havelock North View by appointment

Tony Rasmussen 027 429 2253 tony.rasmussen@bayleys.co.nz

Monty Monteith 027 807 0522 monty.monteith@bayleys.co.nz

Kaikoura 3717 Inland Kaikoura Road, Stag and Spey

A statement property with upside

This 1,844.8074ha statement property is well-suited to sheep and beef breeding and finishing, and cropping on the flats. With great scale, balance of contour and huge development potential, it has large areas of workable country suitable for cultivation and regrassing, with steeper gullies providing forestry options. There is an existing consent (currently unutilised) for a 100 L/sec irrigation water take (expiring 2024). Additional benefits may be obtained by further subdivision of the larger hill blocks. There is an extensive laneway system, well-subdivided paddocks, excellent sheep and cattle yards, two woolsheds, covered yards, hay and implement sheds, two good homes and singles quarters. Around 20 minutes from Kaikoura, this opportunity is not to be missed. bayleys.co.nz/5519321

Deadline Sale (unless sold prior) 12pm, Wed 16 Nov 2022

3 Deans Avenue, Christchurch View by appointment

Ben Turner 027 530 1400 ben.turner@bayleys.co.nz

Peter Foley 021 754 737 peter.foley@bayleys.co.nz

Central

Superb location and proven results

For Sale by Deadline Private Treaty (unless sold prior) 12pm, Tue 15 Nov 2022

3 Deans Avenue, Christchurch View by appointment

Ben Turner 027

bayleys.co.nz

Advertise

Open Day

'Valley Run'

Located 28 km west of Otorohanga, 'Valley Run' is a well-presented hill country breeding and finishing farm.

A special feature is approx 290 ha of native bush which adds significantly to the indigenous biodiversity and recreational opportunities available on the property.

• Total area 689 ha with approx 400 ha within farm block, 38 main paddocks with natural stock water

• Rolling to medium hill contour with steeper sidlings and pockets of bush, all classified as LUC 6

• Wintering circa 1700-1800 MA ewes, 400 ewe hoggets and 70-80 finishing steers

• Three stand woolshed and covered sheep yards, good roadside cattle yards plus satellite yards

• Comfortable refurbished four-bedroom home with covered deck and internal garage

With recent investment in fencing, weed eradication and fertiliser, this property is a very tidy stand-alone unit that would also make a great addition to an existing farming business looking to create larger scale.

Rerewhakaaitu 206 Ash Pit Road

Premium property, prime location

A

been

as brought in

farm

a

property

Open Day

a

Tender closes 4.00pm, Wed 9th Nov, 2022, Property Brokers, 138 Arawata Street, Te Awamutu

View Tue 11 Oct 11.00 - 1.00pm

Tue 18 Oct 11.00 - 1.00pm

Web pb.co.nz/TWR103665

Dave Peacocke M 027 473 2382 E davep@pb.co.nz

Transport business and land & buildings

Open Day

River Run

River Run provides a dairy purchasing option in a central north island location seldom offered to the market. The 136.21 ha (more or less) of flat, well-draining dairy land could be an ideal two labour unit property or an extension to another farming business. Located just 11 km from Taumarunui township on the edge of the Whanganui River the 106 ha dairy platform has an excellent layout with short walks on flat to easy undulating contour and is under excellent management with the current sharemilkers producing an average of 100,000 kgMS from 300 cows. The 30 ASHB cow shed is centrally located and is supported by calf barns and further hay and implement sheds. The property has a high standard of paddock improvements with quality pastures, pumice lanes and tidy fencing along with underground hydrants for effluent disposal. The home is close by the cow shed and offers three bedrooms with some recent improvements. Dairy farms are not often offered in this area.

Taumarunui Stone Jug Road, Kakahi

Auction

Auction 11.00am, Mon 7th Nov, 2022, Taumarunui Golf Club, 165 Golf Road, Taumarunui

View Tue 11 Oct 11.00 - 1.00pm

Tue 18 Oct 11.00 - 1.00pm

Web pb.co.nz/TUR102767

Katie Walker M 027 757 7477 E katiew@pb.co.nz

Whakapapa trophy

This is an incredible opportunity to purchase a prime piece of land for deer or other livestock on the banks of the Whakapapa River. There is 25.41 ha (more or less) of land with approx. 9 ha of land that is cultivatable or could be used for mowing silage. As well as being a great farming unit, it's real uniqueness comes from the aesthetics of the property. You are greeted by a large pond that has been lovingly planted with specimen trees that show off their brilliant foliage during the warmer months and certainty stand out in the autumn. The center of the property offers a fabulous building site or sites and from here you can watch over the Whakapapa River. There is direct river access from the property offering world class fly fishing good enough for any angler! To top this off a small angler's hut is positioned to maximise the views of the Whakapapa river and the native bush in the background.

Auction 12.00pm, Mon 7th Nov, 2022, Taumarunui Golf Club, 165 Golf Road Taumarunui

View Thu 20 Oct 1.00 - 2.00pm

Sun 23 Oct 1.00 - 2.00pm

Web pb.co.nz/TUR108652

Katie

747 ha - Te Manga Station

Situated in the Mangaorapa Valley, some 50 km south of Waipukurau. The standard of improvements including the recently renovated four bedroom family homestead, four bedroom second home, shearers quarters/holiday accommodation, five stand woolshed, large tractor shed / workshop, fencing and all-weather access to the rear of the property are unquestionably first class. A feature of Te Manga are the large tracks of flat to very easy country. Areas of native bush with a trophy hunting block deer fenced and MPI accredited also exist. Presently utilized as a breeding and finishing block for both sheep and cattle with high fertility ewes and Angus cows run. Dairy replacements are also carried. The aesthetic appeal with the native bush, natural water, exotic and native plantings to provide shelter and woodlots will appeal to the discerning purchaser wanting their own stand-alone property or add to their portfolio.

Kowhitirangi

It does not get better than this

Well established 168 effective ha dairy farm located in

Kokatahi/Kowhitirangi

minutes from

proven performer with consistent production history from a low cost, pasture based system currently milking

property enjoys a full range of tidy infrastructure including a 28 ASHB shed, two well maintained houses plus additional staff accommodation unit and multiple sheds. A well laid out property

excellent lanes and subdivision combined with quality free draining alluvial soils. This well presented dairy unit

an excellent opportunity for share milkers looking for their first farm,

the astute investor.

4 2

Tender closes 2.00pm, Thu 24th Nov, 2022, Property Brokers, 98 Ruataniwha Street, Waipukurau

View By appointment

Web pb.co.nz/WR106438

Pat Portas

M 027 447 0612 E patp@pb.co.nz

James Butler

M 027 405 8930 E james.butler@pb.co.nz

Retiring vendor - says sell

Ashburton

351 Alford Forest Cemetery Road Tender

356 ha - Winterview Farm

Modern large scale dairy BCI irrigated farm with almost all cows

closes 12.00pm,

Brokers Ashburton

8th

(unless sold

kgMS average past five years), milking 880 cows and wintering majority on farm.

Total area flat combined with good quality soils, excellent rainfall, proven production

dairy shed

in shed feeding,

appointment

pond effluent, excellent range of farm

storage

Executive five bedroom homestead with a further three other homes. A great proven dairy unit

in the favoured foothills of Mid Canterbury.

A great opportunity to take control of your costs.

Tender

91 ha - Methven - Multiple farm options

Positioned close to the Methven Township, this is a farm holding primed for multiple land use options - arable, livestock, breeding or finishing. Well presented and achieving consistent production the farm is in great heart. A change of farming practice opens up an exciting opportunity for purchasers to add to existing farm operations or as a standalone / first farm. The potential is unlimited and set for further development with quality improvements including a modernised large family home with excellent rural aspect and views.

Irrigated 55 ha in two titles

Irwell Selwyn Lake Road

Together

Stonelea

traditional sheep and beef property of 155.96 ha, the property

a good balance of flat to easy rolling land and an area of steeper gullies, tidy fences with approximately 30 ha deer fenced.

property has a good three stand shearing shed, cattle yards, and plenty of other sheds. This is a well maintained solid brick home with four bedrooms, two living areas, and mature gardens.

water scheme throughout the farm with an option to

Opuha water shares.

Dairy support with capability

in the heart of South Otago, Awa-Hiwi, at 274.39 ha offers a versatile purchase opportunity. Presently a dairy support property, it offers high fertility levels, strong regrassing history & good water supply to the reticulated water system, providing a tremendous option to continue as a large dairy support option, beef finishing or feed-harvesting unit. Predominantly easy rolling, some river flats, gullies suitable for trees, as well as approximately 8 ha of established trees. An irrigation water-take consent is in place, taken from the nearby river. Complimented by a 4 bedroom family home, as well as a 3 stand woolshed with covered yards, cattle yards & 3 support/haybarn buildings.

closes 2.00pm,

8th

Solid dairy performer in South Otago

Located

quality soils at Wairuna, South Otago, this is a solid

modern design dairy unit. At 196 ha (subject to

on soils well known for their cropping capabilities, it was established in dairy just 11 years ago and operates as a dairy platform milking

cows. Featuring a 54 bail rotary with ACRs,

excellent effluent management system and well-designed farm layout, - all combining to produce the potential for a very peopleefficient operation.

on-farm

established

by an array of farm

supply, 5 bedroom main homestead

well as a modern 3 bedroom second

a solid dairy investment.

Pleasant

Taumata,

Paul

Wairuna 545 Clydevale Road

LEASE OPPORTUNITY

Tongariro Rd, Turangi

BakerAg Land & Leasing Ltd seek expressions of interest for the lease of Hautū-Rangipō Whenua LP Farm.

The property comprises a total of circa 905.8 ha of at to undulating land situated on Tongariro Rd & Rangipo Prison Rd, 1km east of Turangi.

The property has a managers dwelling, two other dwellings, woolshed, and a range of farm buildings and other facilities.

The property has most recently been run as a nishing and trading operation with bulls, deer and lambs nished each season.

The property is o ered for lease commencing January/February 2023.

Farm open days for inspection will be held in early November 2022 with dates advised to prospective lessees.

Rural

Immaculate Cambridge dairy farm

TENDER

Blueberry Success 5932 State Highway 27, Ngarua

With our current vendor ready to go and retire at the beach, the opportunity now exists for a new operator to step into this highly profitable business. This Blueberry orchard is located on some very fertile soils centrally located, 10 minutes from Matamata, Morrinsville and Te Aroha on State Highway 27. This 15.83 ha (approx.) property consists of 3.9 ha (approx.) of blueberries and raspberries covered with bird netting. Careful variety selection has meant that the orchard has fruit supply for most of the summer months with harvest commencing from late November and finishing mid-April. The operation is fully self-contained having its own packing and cold storage facilities while product is awaiting transport to markets. At present between 85 - 90% of this crop is exported, with the remaining 10 - 15% sold to domestic market and some going local. This orchard is fully irrigated from its own water supply, the packhouse has all the necessary equipment and storage capacity from fruit handing, post-harvest and there is ample room for trucks to load and unload safely. With the high returns earned from this orchard, there is still room for more development and growth. There is land available for future planting and the onsite pack house is not yet running at full capacity. This property comes complete with a stunning four bedroom home, with double garage. This can all be purchased as a going concern with discussions around this year's crop be to be negotiated.

matamata.ljhooker.co.nz/K01HR1

Centrally

Aroha

Tender Closes Wed 16th Nov, 4pm (unless sold prior)

View Tues 11th, Thurs 13th, Wed 19th & 26th Oct, Wed 2nd & 9th Nov 11.30am - 12.30pm

Glen Murray

LJ Hooker Matamata 07 888 5677 Link Realty Ltd.

bale

Wylie

RANGIWAHIA, MANAWATU

HIGH

ANIMAL HEALTH

FARM LEASE

Do you enjoy working with cattle but don’t want to milk cows?

We are looking for a talented individual to join our Fairfield Farms team. We operate a 2500ha mixed farming operation consisting of a beef finishing unit, mixed arable operation and wastewater farm used for cut and carry of grass and maize.

Reporting to the Farm Supervisors this role will provide an opportunity to work within our Beef finishing unit.

This will Involve mixing and feeding rations through a Kuhn mixer wagon, shifting stock, working with animals in yards, Irrigation, and general farm duties.

We operate a modern fleet of tractors and equipment.

The successful candidate will have: Attention to detail and take pride in completing tasks to a high standard Stock and animal husbandry skills

• Telehandler experience

Tractor operation experience including feed wagons.

Modern technology and GPS knowledge Basic computer skills and record keeping General farm maintenance skills

A can-do attitude Initiative and the ability to operate independently

The ability to multi-task and adapt to everchanging priorities

Basic pasture management skills

Ability to work autonomously In the supervisors absence In Return we can offer:

A challenging but rewarding work environment

Opportunity for individual growth

starting remuneration

on experience

• Plus on Farm housing

will need to be legally

have been

DOGS FOR SALE

FARM MAPPING

HORTICULTURE

LEASE

LIVESTOCK FOR SALE

PUMPS

GIBBOOST

sales@hydra-cell.co.nz

RAMS FOR SALE

WILTSHIRES-ARVIDSON. Self shearing sheep. No1 for Facial Eczema. David 027 2771 556.

HAIR SHIRE® Low input meat rams! www.organicstud. nz 027 225 5283. tim@ organicstud.nz MOISTURE METERS Hay, Silage dry matter, grain. www.moisturemeters.co.nz 0800 213 343.

STOCK FEED

SAWN

WHAT’S

STOCK WANTED STOCK FOR SALE

SALE TALK

This is a great exercise for people who are out of shape but either can’t afford to buy gym equipment or just can’t get there.

Begin with a five kilogram potato bag in each hand. Extend your arms straight out from your sides, hold them there for a full minute, and then relax.

Repeat this 5 times.

After a few weeks, move up to ten kilogram potato bags.

Then try 50 kilogram potato bags, and eventually try to get to where you can lift a 100 kilogram potato bag in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute.

Once you are feeling confident at that level, put a potato in each bag.

Here at Farmers Weekly we get some pretty funny contributions to our Sale Talk joke from you avid readers, and we’re keen to hear more!

If you’ve got a joke you want to share with the farming community (it must be something you’d share with your grandmother...) then email us at: saletalk@agrihq.co.nz with Sale Talk in the subject line and we’ll print it and credit it to you.

Conditions apply

Speckle Park Bulls & Females available for

sale

GENUINE DISPERSAL OF LONG ESTABLISHED FRIESIAN HERD

A/c LC + HD Greensill Family Trusts

Thursday 13th October 2022

177 Puniho Rd, RD 37, New

time: 11:30am, lunch

be

COMPRISING:

107 x Frsn In-milk spring cows

140 BW100 PW131)

Frsn In-milk/In-calf Autumn cows (NZMI 146 BW92 PW109)

Frsn In-milk MT Autumn cows

147 BW97 PW121)

DETAILS:

• Herd tested 27/09/2022

details from the herd test once received

Vaccinated

TB Status C10

MBovis

NOTES:

AUCTIONEERS

Due to a change in farming practice, 180 strong Friesian cows are being offered for auction. The herd has been owner operated for 42 years and a closed herd for 30 years. With one herd code this is a great opportunity to purchase top quality Friesian dairy cows with absolute confidence. These cows will shift well. Milked through both a Herringbone and Rotary shed.

The in-calf Autumn cows have been vetted to date to CRV and Semex straws and tailed with a homebred Hereford bull. Start calving 15/03/23. Feed system is predominantly grass based, summer crops (green feed maize) and maize silage fed on feed pad with a meal + mineral blend over the winter milking period.

PAYMENT/DELIVERY TERMS:

Payment date: 20/11/2022

Delivery date: Trucking from 14/10 onwards

OUR VENDOR:

Layne Greensill 027 241 3005

CARRFIELDS LIVESTOCK AGENTS: Daniel Crowley 027 215 3609

Tim Hurley 027 414 6756

VIEW OUR CATALOGUE AT www.carrfieldslivestock.co.nz

MAYFIELD SPRING

YEARLING

CATTLE SALE

Top quality, station bred Angus & Angus/Hereford Steers

TUESDAY 18th OCTOBER 2022

Fountaines Road

Mayfield, Mid Canterbury

Viewing from 12pm, lunch provided

at 1:00pm

VENDOR:

HARWOOD FARMS

CATTLE IN TOTAL

Angus Steers

Angus/Hereford Steers

AUCTIONEERS NOTES:

Great opportunity to purchase good quality, forward condition steers.

and Farm Assured Certificates for all cattle.

There will be some lines of cattle that are Angus Pure with tags.

For more information please contact:

CARRFIELDS LIVESTOCK AGENTS: Andrew Holt 027 496 3311 or Dylan Forde 027 255 4627

VISIT OUR WEBSITE:

Charollais

Sale Day -

KAAHU GENETICS

Markets

Lamb feels the chill of global winds

The post-lockdown festivities are over and shoppers around the world are cutting back on one of the more expensive proteins. All things considered, a price correction seems to be in the offing.

Reece Brick MARKETS Lamb

LAMB’S heyday on the export market is rather abruptly coming to an end, at least for the next little while.

Selling lamb overseas was child’s play through the first half of the 2021-22 season. Average export prices exceeded all-time record levels in three of the four months between December and March, maxing out at $13.60/kg in the latter.

Unlike similar years, it wasn’t the “China factor” driving prices, but more the traditional markets of Europe and the United States.

Overseas buyers played it a little too safe at the start of the pandemic, clearing out inventories to the point where they were running thin on supplies for an extended period afterwards. This kept orders coming in quickly. Production and supply chain challenges were just as much of an issue here, too. At

the same time, consumers were seeking out lamb more often due to a mixture of stimulus packages and more time spent at home, allowing roasts and similar meals to be cooked more frequently.

All these key drivers have since fallen by the wayside.

Inflation worldwide has consumers cutting back on spending, and since lamb is one of the more expensive meat options, it is often dropped off the shopping list in place of cheaper options such as chicken or pork.

Similarly, restaurants, especially those with more expensive menus, have noticed a decrease in foot traffic since the initial postlockdown rush, reducing lamb consumption via this market.

A few other nuisances are at play too, including ongoing lockdowns through China, plus the hot and extended northern hemisphere summer – warm conditions tend to lead to less lamb consumed.

It’s been all upwards in terms of supplies, too. Both Australia and New Zealand have reported an especially long tail to the old season kill, offloading a whole lot of lamb onto the market at a time when there’s usually not much to shift. The amount of sheepmeat exported from the two countries in August was a record for the month going back to at least the early-2000s.

Given Australia has limited access to Europe and China, markets like the US have felt the

brunt of their offloading. Several secondary markets such as Papua New Guinea and South Korea have also been leant on heavily by Australia, usually selling into these markets at discounted prices.

In other years, NZ meat companies may have been able to navigate this by storing product in NZ for longer, to simply wait out the market.

But those tactics have been too dangerous when everyone’s preparing for a small mountain of old season lambs to flood processing plants in October. So where to from here? Unfortunately, down is the only certain answer.

There’s too much up in the air to

In other years, NZ meat companies may have been able to navigate this by storing product in NZ for longer, to simply wait out the market.

say by how much. The exchange rate is helping to a point, but that is only really for product sold in US dollars. And even then, Chinese buyers are trying to get US dollar prices down as their own currency has weakened against US too. The one positive from all of this is that even as prices correct, they will likely land somewhere above historical levels.

TURANGANUI ROMNEYS

“The team behind the sheep”

Kieran

Ron

Mike Warren

Jayden

SNOW JOKE: All the key drivers that contributed to the highest lamb prices on record have since fallen by the wayside, and new nuisances have reared their heads.

Photo: Natwick

Weekly saleyards

It was all a bit wet and a bit cold this past week for much to be happening when it comes to stock trading. Store cattle prices have definitely hit a ceiling for now as would-be buyers either dial back buying numbers and/or wait until the grass really gets growing. Numbers yarded were below average through the bulk of the North Island yards. The cold snap was poorly timed for the South Island as this is usually when the spring cattle sales get into full swing. Snow blocked some lines from making it into the yards such as Temuka.

Kaikohe | September 28

$/kg or $/hd

2-year beef-cross steers 3.10-3.25

2-year Angus heifers 3.10-3.15

Yearling exotic-cross steers 3.6

Yearling Angus heifers 3.10

Yearling exotic-cross heifers 3.32

Store cows 2.00-2.15

Store beef-cross cows, in-calf 1310

Wellsford | October 3 | 606 cattle

$/kg or $/hd

2-year Hereford-Friesian steers, 438-443kg 3.44-3.52

2-year dairy-beef steers, 381-390kg 3.49-3.63

2-year Hereford-Friesian heifers, 408-493kg 3.29-3.40

Aut-born yearling Hereford-Friesian steers, 257-280kg 3.93-4.13

Yearling Hereford-Friesian steers, 199-219kg 3.65-3.76

Yearling Hereford-Jersey steers, 211-238kg 3.32-3.46

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 218-244kg 3.28-3.40

Pukekohe | October 1

$/kg or $/hd

Store cows & calves 1540 per unit

Store heifers, medium 900-1000

Yearling steers, medium 895-965

Yearling beef-cross steers & heifers, very light 600-800

Aut-born weaner steers, small 660-670

Aut-born weaner Angus-cross heifers, small 615

Aut-born weaner beef-cross heifers, very light 360-448

Prime steers 1430-1840

Prime heifers 1630-1850

Store ewes & lambs, all 127-136

Store hoggets, all 130-158

Prime hoggets, all 166-200

Tuakau | September 29 | 370 cattle

2-year dairy-beef steers, 350-550kg

2-year dairy-beef heifers, 380-450kg

Yearling steers, 250-350kg

Yearling heifers, 250-350kg

Tuakau | October 4 | 310 sheep

or $/hd

Frankton | October 4 | 630 cattle $/kg or $/hd

2-year Hereford-Friesian steers, 380kg 3.68

Yearling Hereford-Friesian steers, 283-294kg 3.70-3.85

Yearling Angus-Friesian steers, 303kg 3.86

Yearling dairy-beef heifers, 262-317kg 3.13-3.33

Prime dairy-beef steers, 615-755kg 3.49-3.60

Prime dairy-beef steers, 485-544kg 3.38-3.43

Prime dairy-beef heifers, 485-527kg 3.39

Boner Friesian cows, 468-561kg 2.23-2.43

Frankton | October 5 | 720 cattle $/kg or $/hd

2-year dairy-beef steers, 402-440kg 3.26-3.41

2-year dairy-beef heifers, 351-420kg 3.10-3.30

Yearling traditional steers, 195-230kg 3.38-3.48

Yearling traditional heifers, 285-302kg 3.07-.3.21

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 204-212kg 3.24-3.25

Prime steers, 525-610kg 3.41-3.57

Rangiuru | October 4 | 456 cattle, 58 sheep $/kg or $/hd

2-year Angus-Friesian steers, 450-503kg 3.38-3.54

2-year dairy-beef heifers, 396-470kg 3.28-3.34

Yearling Angus-Friesian steers, 270-277kg 3.29-3.33

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 254-260kg 2.95-3.00

Prime steers, 606-674kg 3.52-3.56

Prime dairy-beef heifers, 476-521kg 3.28-3.40

Boner Friesian cows, 404-530kg 2.00-2.20

Prime ewes, all 64-142

Prime hoggets, all 141-166

Matawhero | October 4 | 1302 cattle $/kg or $/hd

2-year traditional steers, 387-460kg 3.46-3.50

2-year traditional heifers, 345kg 3.58

Yearling traditional steers, 250-325kg 3.91-4.08

Yearling Charolais heifers, 313-330kg 3.74-3.83

Taranaki | October 5 | 304 cattle $/kg or $/hd

Store Friesian cows, 445-485kg 2.02-2.27

2-year dairy-beef steers, 492-565kg 3.52-3.58

2-year dairy-beef heifers, 400-417kg 3.10-3.19

$/kg or $/hd

Store hoggets, all 93-115

Prime ewes, good-medium 140-180

Prime hoggets, all 146-224

Tuakau | October 5 | 345 cattle

Prime steers, 500-750kg

heifers,

2-year Friesian heifers, 435-445kg 2.97-3.06

Yearling Hereford-Friesian steers, 240-310kg 3.42-3.61

Stortford Lodge | October

2413 sheep $/kg or $/hd

Prime ewes, heavy to very heavy

Prime ewes, good to very good

Prime ewes, medum to medium-good

Prime fresh 2-tooth

Prime hoggets, very heavy

Prime hoggets, heavy

very heavy

Stortford Lodge | October 5 | 584 cattle, 1526 sheep

$/kg or $/hd

2-year traditional steers, 453-480kg 3.71-3.83

2-year traditional heifers, 433-492kg 3.48-3.60

Yearling traditional steers, 318-343kg 4.25-4.29

Yearling dairy-beef heifers, 249-309kg 3.33-3.48

Store ewes & lambs 130-140

Store cryptorchid hoggets, heavy 149-179.50

Store male hoggets, heavy 178-190.50

Store ewe hoggets, very good 139-181

Dannevirke | September 29 | 114 sheep

$/kg or $/hd

Store ram hoggets 146-168

Store cryptorchid lambs 131-141

Prime ewes 114-196

Prime hoggets 120-230

Feilding | September 30 | 1369 cattle, 2825 sheep

$/kg or $/hd

2-year Angus steers, 406-531kg 3.60-3.70

2-year dairy-beef steers, 381-633kg 3.36-3.50

2-year traditional heifers, 334-390kg 3.14-3.36

Yearling traditional steers, 226-280kg 4.28-4.52

Yearling Friesian bulls, 300-373kg 3.31-3.46

Yearling traditional heifers, 235-355kg 3.10-3.24

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 223-287kg 2.94-3.13

Yearling Friesian bulls, 300-373kg 3.31-3.46

Mixed-age ewes & lambs, terminal-cross, docked 140-143

Mixed-age ewes & lambs, tails 121-129

Store male hoggets, woolly, very heavy 195-196

Store ewe hoggets, shorn, medium 150-169

Feilding | October 3 | 61 cattle, 4867 sheep $/kg or $/hd

Boner Friesian cows, 520-634kg 2.31-2.43

Boner Friesian heifers, 480-530kg 3.30-3.40

Prime ewes, very good 166-193

Prime ewes, good 149-161

Prime male hoggets, very heavy 232-251

Prime mixed-sex hoggets, heavy 190-234

Prime ewe hoggets, heavy 191-227

Rongotea | October 4 $/kg or $/hd

2-year Hereford-Friesian steers, 404-540kg 3.17-3.41

2-year beef-cross steers, 400kg 3.23

2-year Friesian bulls, 450-610kg 3.04-3.30

Yearling dairy-beef steers, 211kg 3.31-3.56

Yearling Friesian bulls, 213-233kg 3.18-3.65

Yearling Hereford heifers, 162-282kg 3.00-3.26

Aut-born weaner Hereford-Friesian heifers, 136-147kg 600

Boner Friesian cows, 455-540kg 2.15-2.36

Coalgate | September 29 | 231 cattle, 3450 sheep $/kg or $/hd

2-year Wagyu-Friesian steers, 293-367kg 2.62-2.63

Prime dairy-beef steers, 555-670kg 3.54-3.62

Prime dairy-beef heifers, 447-473kg 3.22-3.34

Boner Friesian cows, 585-678kg 2.40-2.50

Mixed-age ewes & lambs, tailed, all 130-150

Store hoggets, all 150-168

Prime ewes, all 140-236

Prime hoggets, all 160-272

Canterbury Park | October 4 | 638 cattle, 3284 sheep $/kg or $/hd

2-year traditional steers, 439-490kg 3.47-3.58

2-year Angus heifers, 376-452kg 3.31-3.46

Prime beef-cross cows, 530kg+ 2.44-2.56

Prime beef-cross steers, 530-680kg 3.36-3.55

Prime Angus heifers, 418-558kg 3.26-3.38

Mixed-age ewes & lambs, all 98-127

Store hoggets, medium-good 110-156

Prime ewes, good-heavy 178-260

Prime hoggets, good 199-236

Temuka | September 29 | 1081 cattle $/kg or $/hd

2-year beef-cross steers, 436-500kg 3.32-3.49

2-year dairy-beef steers, 411-489kg 3.33-3.47

2-year Hereford heifers, 309-401kg 3.04-3.22

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 227-293kg 2.91-3.10

Yearling Friesian bulls, 252-334kg 2.95-3.02

Temuka | October 3 | 407 cattle, 3264 sheep $/kg or $/hd

Prime traditional steers, 480-755kg 3.34-3.54

Prime Angus heifers, 490-600kg 3.40-3.51

Boner Friesian cows, 550-600kg 2.44-2.58

Boner Friesian heifers, 456-515kg 2.80-2.94

Store ewes & lambs, all 91-135

Store mixed-sex hoggets, heavy 148-221

Prime ewes, all 70-260

Prime mixed-sex hoggets, all 80-264

Palmerston | September 30 | 817 cattle

$/kg or $/hd

2-year traditional steers, 345-464kg 3.61-3.75

2-year Hereford-Friesian steers, 421-448kg 3.52-3.53

2-year Hereford-Friesian steers, 296-356kg 3.20-3.45

2-year Angus-Hereford heifers, 372-419kg 3.36-3.49

2-year Hereford-Friesian heifers, 401-459kg 3.40-3.50

Yearling Angus steers, 363-430kg 3.74-3.94

Yearling Angus & Angus-cross steers, 193-243kg 895-1190

Yearling Hereford steers, 234-285kg 3.87-4.26

Yearling Charolais-cross steers, 315-426kg 1340-1565

Yearling Charolais-cross steers, 232-279kg 1060-1160

Yearling Angus-cross heifers, 215-272kg 3.68-3.86

Yearling Charolais-cross heifers, 230-391kg 3.53-3.76

Yearling Composite heifers, 267-327kg 3.52-3.64

Balclutha | October 5 | 125 sheep $/kg or $/hd

Store hoggets, all

Prime ewes,

Prime hoggets,

Charlton | September 29 | 361 sheep $/kg or $/hd

Prime ewes, all 95-250

Prime hoggets, all 100-266

Lorneville | October 4 $/kg or $/hd

2-year exotic-cross steers, 360-411kg 1130-1550

2-year beef-cross heifers, 380kg 1200

2-year Friesian bulls, 392kg 1270

2-year beef-cross bulls, 458kg 1430

Yearling Hereford-Friesian steers, 238kg 800

Yearling Hereford-Friesian heifers, 298kg 950

Prime steers, 500kg 3.30-3.50

Prime heifers, 430-540kg 3.40-3.50

Prime other dairy heifers, 395-440kg 1.80-2.50

Prime cows, 400-500kg 2.00-2.30

Store ewes & lambs 120-138

Store hoggets, medium-good 130-155

Prime ewes, medium-good 154-242

Prime hoggets, medium-good 150-228

Feeder Calves | October 4

Feilding | October 3 | 150 cattle $/kg or $/hd

Friesian bulls 40-80

Hereford-Friesian bulls 40-200

Dairy-beef bulls 40-140

Hereford-Friesian heifers 30-125

Dairy-beef heifers 40-180

Rongotea | October 4 $/kg or $/hd

Friesian bulls 20-170

Hereford-Friesian bulls 40-190

Exotic bulls 80-155

Hereford-Friesian heifers 30-100

We’re

NZ’s

SOLID:

store hoggets

Temuka

hoggets

AgriHQ

Beef

North

North

North

South

South

South

Sheep Meat

Export markets (NZ$/kg)

Venison

Fertiliser

Fertiliser

Forestry

Exports

NZX market trends

Close of market

Listed Agri shares

Company

Dairy Futures

Canterbury feed barley

YTD HighYTD Low

ArborGen Holdings Limited 0.2350.270.205

The a2 Milk Company Limited 6.266.584.2

Comvita Limited 3.33.782.98

Delegat Group Limited 10.4114.4510

Fonterra Shareholders' Fund (NS) 3.083.782.75

Foley Wines Limited 1.441.571.37

Greenfern Industries Limited 0.1170.250.089

Livestock Improvement Corporation Ltd (NS) 1.351.731.3

Marlborough Wine Estates Group Limited 0.1950.260.155

NZ King Salmon Investments Limited 0.211.380.187

PGG Wrightson Limited 4.495.763.93

Rua Bioscience Limited 0.230.530.23

Sanford Limited (NS) 4.25.074.03

Scales Corporation Limited 4.85.594.07

Seeka Limited 3.955.363.75

Synlait Milk Limited (NS) 3.493.583.04

T&G Global Limited 2.73.012.6

S&P/NZX

S&P/NZX

S&P/NZX

128001429311724

111801315010588

108361272510291

Two-pronged attack on spring

WE STARTED last week with a southwest airflow, showers for the North Island and some about the eastern South Island.

On Tuesday there was a period of calm for most, though a cold front moved onto the far south from the afternoon.

On Wednesday we had a two-pronged attack as a series of vigorous cold fronts worked northwards over New Zealand.

The second of these fronts brought some super cold air with snow falling to sea level for some parts of the South Island in the south and east.

This was in line with our outlook last week in regards to timing but the air ended up being much colder, which brought the low-level snow.

The more important factor is there was some moisture for the lower South Island and in the east with these fronts, which would have been welcome as conditions have started to dry out a little.

The lower North Island would have seen some snow on Wednesday in the ranges to 200m or 300m also, especially overnight.

Thursday showers became restricted to eastern regions, still very cold with snow flurries to low levels in the morning then gradually lifting during the day.

High pressure for Friday with frosts,

Deficit 9am 04/10/2022

then mainly settled for the weekend.

A northerly airflow lies over the country at the start of this week with a front moving into the West Coast bringing rain.

Temperatures will warm up in the east.

This front moves northwards on Tuesday

Observed rainfall 9am 19/09/2022 to 9am 04/10/2022

but it does weaken a bit, Wednesday has quite a bit of high pressure and mainly dry weather but showers for the lower North Island thanks to our weak front.

Thursday and Friday have settled weather with high pressure but the North Island

Observed daily average bright sunshine 19/09/2022 to 03/10/2022

may have afternoon showers of the isolated variety about inland hills and ranges.

Dry for all on Saturday with high pressure. Northerlies pick up on Sunday with some rain eventually moving into the West Coast again as a front closes in.

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