Protect your water supply this summer

It’s no secret the warmest months are the driest months, so effective and easy water solutions are a necessity for both the smooth running of the farm and peace of mind for city-living.

Accessibility to water for the growth and development of a farm is an essential part of running the farm smoothly. Keeping your livestock and pets happy and healthy via the constant supply of water is a must. As a vital supplement to an animal’s wellbeing, water should always be accessible to promote healthy digestion, respiration and reproduction, which can be overlooked or neglected by some. Water troughs and water tanks should be in easy to access locations, not only for animals but also the people using them to promote cleaning and if required, relocating to different paddocks. Having products that reflect this certainly is the case for

| Water troughs should be in easy to access locations. | EasyFit water tanks are ideal for capturing rainwater.

Stallion who specialize in polyethylene plastic products. They take this into consideration every time a new water trough or water tank is designed. For summer, Stallion wants to not only reach the agricultural market but also the urban market via their range of water troughs and water tanks. They offer a complete range of water troughs for use in the pens and paddocks and easy to install water tanks ranging in size from 500 to 3,000 litre models. All products coming out the door at Stallion are impact resistant, strong, easy to install and UV stabilized for long outdoor life. Reliable water troughs are needed to avoid water contamination through contact with mud, waste or algae which may discourage livestock and animals from drinking. The same can be said for water tanks that can be used for a wide range of agricultural and domestic solutions. For example, in times of crisis, water tanks can be used for cooking and cleaning but on a normal day will most likely be used for gardening in water shortages. By using natural rainwater in the EasyFit water tanks, your water will be free of chemicals and chlorine and perfect for those opting to live organically. Out of sight and out of mind, the EasyFit water tank range comes complete with a bayonet-style lid, direct downpipe entry, a removable cover, and unique overflow system. The best part? They’re easy to install, hence the name, so it’s a win-win for all. Being one of the leaders in agricultural equipment in New Zealand is something Palmerston North based Stallion does not take lightly, always striving to create the highest quality products that go out the door with guaranteed strength, innovation, quality and ease. When it comes to water tanks and water troughs, Stallion provides a range that’s both accessible and easy to use for the agricultural, lifestyle and urban markets.

For further information, contact the friendly team at your local Farmlands store.

Article supplied by Stallion

Rural market update

As we embrace the New Year and our traditional Kiwi summer, our primary sector moves to a firmer footing in 2021 and our rural real estate market reflects this too.

Notably, the second half of last year achieved rural real estate sales volumes not seen since 2015 within our NZ Realtor network.

The events of 2020 have obviously been shaped by Covid-19. And, for New Zealand at least, the impact has been more of an economic shock than a health one. The global demand for healthy nutritional food with confidence in supply chains has now gone to the next level. In this sense, our NZ primary sector is very well placed to respond as global demand for our produce continues to grow. Our carbon footprint, environmental standards and the level of premiums captured within product categories all count in our favour. This is something we sometimes lose sight of with our daily NZ farming newsfeeds. Our rural property market, domestically, is evolving in tandem with these broader international themes. The outlier these last 4 years has been our dairy sector with rural property sales contracting by both number and value as dairy pay-outs continue improving year on year. I’m pleased to report this is now changing at last, but not necessarily all as a result of improved underlying earnings from our dairy sector. A trend particularly evident in the lower North Island is that beef producers are buying productive dairy units, and deconverting them to beef systems. This activity is occurring while returns from dairy generally remain head and shoulders above many beef production systems. Our view is that this trend will continue, while strict limits on dairy sector borrowing continue and beef producer balance sheets hold up, supported by favourable loan-to-value ratios. Beef producers are prepared to pay in excess of $40,000/ha for well-located dairy farms with quality soils, particularly in the North Island. The ‘dairy to dairy’ sale and purchase agreement these days is a hardfought document to make unconditional. By comparison, ‘dairy to horticulture land use’ is now often running at two times the dairy farm values! As we look forward to 2021, cash is still king and without it, life gets very challenging. On this basis we see horticulture remaining a significant influence this year on the rural property market, particularly for kiwifruit. Our dairy sector continues to offer a very stable risk-return profile and this is translating into more long-term lease agreements, more so than we have seen in prior seasons. The interesting point here is that in a credit-constrained dairy market, a dairy unit marketed for sale (with a farm environment plan in place, a long-term lease and proven operator) is actually very well-positioned to attract city investment.

Elsewhere in the economy, investors are striving for options in an overheated residential property market and very low rates on term deposit. So, never count a rural market out. The fundamentals of our primary sector remain proven and there is always something different to maximise the value of your asset. We remain committed to rural and provincial New Zealand and are focused as much on the long term as we are on the year ahead.

Conrad Wilkshire,

GM Rural for Property Brokers Ltd