Dairy direct murray june 2015 (low res) by McPherson Media Group

Country News PUBLICATION

MURRAY Issue 18, June 2015

Meet the couple driving change » page 16

Pasture focus for Yarrawalla farmers » page 48 Raising healthy calves » pages 30, 33, 34 Maize on the rise » page 22

Comparing apples with apples to get the best value feed

Castlegate James state manager Neil Cope and dairy farmer Merv Koch.

There is an old saying among farmers: ‘You can tell a lot about a farmer simply by driving up his driveway’. This is certainly the case for Tongala farmers Merv and Bonita Koch. One can only be impressed by the clean fence lines, well-presented dairy and the absence of 100 years of historical ‘artefacts’ that are usually collected throughout a farmer’s life. Fourth generation farmers from New Zealand’s North Island, Merv and Bonita have been farming in Tongala for more than eight years and have adapted quickly to the local area. Wet springs, dry autumns and high water prices are all things that Merv, like many farmers in the Goulburn Valley, have to deal with on a yearly basis. For the past 12 months, Merv has been searching for the right feed product to complement his expanding operation. “To me reliability and continuity are the keys when it comes to dairy feed. I don’t like to start and stop different feeds, which can

happen at times, especially with seasonal co-products and periods of unseasonal weather.” On the recommendation of a close neighbour, Merv eventually decided to try Castlegate James ENEGEL. By using ENEGEL, Merv has been able to not only increase his milk production levels but has also ensured a more consistent milk supply. “We had a wet spring and we couldn’t get our cows onto the paddock, so rather than lose production litres we simply increased the rate of ENEGEL.” At first glance ENEGEL can appear to be higher in price than traditional co-products and raw cereal mixes but as Merv says, “you have to compare apples with apples”. “Enegel has a high dry weight percentage which largely reduces the cost of freight which is often quite

high up in the GV.” Freight is not the only thing Merv takes into account when pricing up his stock feed. “If you’re paying $290 a tonne for grain and then you have to add extra protein to the mix, it becomes very expensive rather quickly, especially with low dry matter mixes.” At a time when farmers are striving for efficiency, ENEGEL is helping farmers reduce their reliance on costly grain-based rations, which is especially important when you are milking 550-plus cows a day, as is the case with Merv and Bonita. “Prior to using ENEGEL, I was feeding 7–8 kg of barley per cow in each ration but that has now reduced to just 1.6 kg (A net saving of $620 per day) and I am seeing better results for it.” Merv stores his ENEGEL supply in concrete pads

and unlike other products he has been able to feed 100 per cent of the load each time, without having to worry about the liquid mess that runs out the bottom of many a product mix. “If you’re feeding a cheaper feed and you’re losing 10–15 per cent in wastage, then how much is the so-called cheap feed really costing you?” Castlegate James Victorian state manager Neil Cope explained he now had a number of dairy operations using ENEGEL, ranging from 150 through to 700-plus cows, all of which were seeing a fantastic return on their investment. “It really is a game changer. I have a customer that was milking 3800 litres a pickup late in lactation that is now producing more than 5500 litres,” Neil said. Merv likened different

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“Prior to using ENEGEL, I was feeding 7–8 kg of barley per cow in each ration but that has now reduced to just 1.6 kg (A net saving of $620 per day) and I am seeing better results for it.” Tongala farmer Merv Koch

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Dairy Direct Murray Goulburn’s move to launch a capital restructure and list an entity on the stock exchange has been one of the most talked about decisions in the dairy industry in the first half of this year, but remains largely uncontroversial. Australia’s biggest dairy processor always finds itself as a talking point (if not the butt of a few jokes) just because of its culture and suppliers have made size. it clear they want this approach So you will always get the stories to continue, despite the going around about mistakes, temptation to shift to a publicly strange decisions or market listed company, similar to SPCfailures. As one farmer told me: “I don’t care if the managing Ardmona. director drives a Ferrari, as long The challenge ahead for the as he’s getting us the best price.” MG board is to demonstrate If there was any sensitivity, it how a co-operative can remain is over the suppliers’ ability to highly competitive and offer top retain control of the co-operative, rewards to its supplier owners, in and to stick to its long-term goal a 2015 environment. of delivering “the best price”. — Geoff Adams The co-operative structure is at the core of MG’s history and Dairy Direct 4

JUNE 2015

Overseas trips broaden knowledge

contents

There has been a lot of movement in dairy recently with two local groups from the Murray Dairy region heading overseas on international tours. One group headed up to China, and the other to the west to visit South Africa. While overseas trips can be difficult to consider when you’re running a dairy business in terms of time and dollars, spending time with farmers in a foreign dairying landscape is a great experience and an excellent way to gain a better worldwide perspective of dairying. It’s not only the experience of visiting other farms and cultures, it’s also spending time with travelling colleagues in discussing and debating the issues back in the region and how we can learn from the way other countries and each other operate. While some have been learning about foreign dairying systems on the other side of the world, it has been a busy few months for dairy in our region. Murray Dairy’s Young Dairy Network partnered with Rabobank to host four events in various locations spanning from Rochester to Tallangatta, outlining lending criteria for young farmers. More than 130 people attended the events in total and it was great to see so many young farmers and industry representatives eager to learn about pathways to farm ownership. Aimed at a different audience, Murray Dairy in conjunction with the Department of Economic Development have run two ‘Feeding in the Spotlight’ workshops offering those in attendance the opportunity to ask an expert panel any of their burning feed base and nutrition questions. With the Blighty Focus Farm’s first

Doing Dairy

Dairy news

Animal health

Farms to be focus for accelerated change

Research and technology driving production 16

open day already complete, we have three more ahead of us. These events are structured for you to see how your neighbours are running their dairy businesses while gaining take-home knowledge to apply on your own farm. In this edition you will have the chance to read some new information on calf rearing and transition feeding along with feature articles on the Tongala and Pyramid Hill partner farms involved in Murray Dairy’s Accelerating Change project. Feeding maize to cattle has been a hot topic recently and you will be able to learn more from an article by Dr Steve Little on the matter. Taking a look at the current situation for the region, we have continued to grow in milk production with a steady 2.5 per cent YTD increase. There is plenty of interest in the region for investment with us being ideally placed as a lower cost entry point for investment with the flexibility of our great irrigation systems. With a drier year forecast the water markets look to be at the higher end of where we would like, however compared to our colleagues without irrigation we can make really good informed decisions around how much water we buy (or sell), carryover and what feed sources we choose to feed our herds with.

Young farmers hear finance advice

Dookie Dairy Report

Maize grain good for milk production

Good advice is driving change

Dairy Fertility Investigator — a digital hub for farmers

Practical system raises healthy calves

Beware residues in calves

Attention to detail essential in raising healthy calves

Down but not necessarily out

Making the most from dairy waste

The right diet can reduce calving stress

Get transition right

Commercial benefits of genomics increasing 43 Calling for labour law changes

Swag of dairy awards

On the fast track to a more profitable future 48 Collars prove well worth their cost

Cutting costs by changing routines

Reminders for July

Auto fetching on the horizon

Talking about the bigger picture

Growth is main agenda

Calendar of events

— Malcolm Holm chairman, Murray Dairy

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Doing Dairy

with SOPHIE BRUNS

Sophie Bruns is a dairy farmer from Gunbower with a husband, two daughters and a mortgage.

Happy to have calving done and dusted No calamities and 50 heifer calves in the shed. It has been a busy few months on the farm and I can say I am pretty happy that most of the paddocks have been sown, most of the cows have calved and I am looking forward to life running at a slower pace. With autumn calving done and dusted with not too many calamities and more than 50 heifer calves in the shed, I can say it has been a pretty good one — and the only good thing about a dry autumn has been the fact the calves have thrived. I have only lost two calves this year and I have been pretty happy with that. I took the preventative approach this year — anything that looked sick or went off their milk got special treatment. It worked well and, as I said, I only lost a couple of calves. The cows are grazing the sub and milking well — looks like we will we be on track to send a few more litres too, which is always good. Chopper prices have been awesome and the cheques have made up for the sadness I felt when they went off on the

truck. I hate selling cows but that is life as a farmer; we have to do those things we don’t like, sometimes. Rob and I were lucky enough to have my cousin’s son do work experience with us for a week and it was so nice to see a young kid (and one from the city, too) come up and spend some time learning about our industry. I think my cousin was hoping that a week on the farm would deter him but I think that may have backfired and he left here as keen as he was when he started. I have been out and about a bit talking to famers and as usual their main concern at the moment, and mine too, is the temporary water price. Speculation and rumours of high pricing for next season do little for farmers’ confidence and it seems to me that there is something very dodgy going on somewhere when water-selling companies can come out and say next year’s price is going to be around $150 and lo and behold, guess what next year’s price is?!

Everyone feared once water went into the hands of people without an interest in agriculture this would happen, and it will have a severe impact on our industry, especially on young farmers and those who have struggled through the past few years. It is a shame we couldn’t just get a good rain every few weeks for the whole season and those ‘investors’ could lose money instead of us. On a personal note, the car is in overdrive as we ferry our youngest daughter around to her various netball commitments. My eldest daughter has just done her deb ball (and thank God that is over) and as usual I am trying to find a bit of time to fit some running in. I have booked in to do the Gold Coast half-marathon in July and I am thinking — and I emphasise the word thinking — about a full marathon in October. It is good to have an interest outside work and some sort of goal, although I am not sure if mine is a little too ambitious — we’ll see!

dairy news

Raw milk sale rejected Safety concerns foremost in voting down of motion to allow sale of raw product. The United Dairyfarmers of Victoria has rejected a motion by the West Goulburn branch to lobby for the sale of raw milk at its annual meeting. The resolution was voted down unanimously, citing “significant safety concerns to the general public”. The motion stated: “The UDV lobby to amend the dairy licence conditions to allow the sale of unpasteurised, natural fresh milk to be available for purchase by the general public for human consumption under regulated conditions”. Stanhope dairy farmer and West Goulburn branch member Alison Couston said she was disappointed the motion didn’t get voted through. “We think raw milk is a very healthy product 6

JUNE 2015

and we want it to be sold under proper regulations,” Mrs Couston said. “It’s another market for our farmers as well.” “We supported the state government and Dairy Food Safety Victoria’s management of the issue earlier this year that saw an unfortunate death of a young child from consuming raw milk,” UDV president Adam Jenkins said. Katunga’s Daryl Hoey spoke passionately against the resolution, concerned for general public safety. “Such a move could put the entire dairy industry at risk just like we have seen before,” he said. The West Goulburn branch also lobbied a motion to actively oppose the slur that “raw milk kills”, which was passed.

“We are very happy that the ‘raw milk kills’ slur will be actively opposed by the UDV,” Mrs Couston said. On another controversial resolution, UDV members passed a resolution to “phase out calving induction” with the amendment to drop the three-year timeframe — in line with Australian Dairy Farmers’ current stance. The resolution was carried unanimously at the Wannon Branch meeting on February 3. Mrs Couston said UDV member Guy Duncan, from Leitchville, raised a question to Agriculture Minister Jaala Pulford about Goulburn-Murray Water’s Connections Project, saying farmers were “operating with their hands behind their back” and that Mrs Pulford “assured” members the project was on track.

Winter fair plans to be big Following on from their success last year, organisation for the 2015 National Herd Development Victorian Winter Fair at is well under way. Organisers Stu and Claire Modra said the event would again be held at the Bendigo Exhibition Centre Prince of Wales Showgrounds Bendigo, starting with a gala dinner on Tuesday, June 30. This year will see a change in the program with judging to be held over two days to cater for increasing numbers and improve interaction between sponsors and visitors. “We are really looking forward to this year’s event. Last year we had a few teething problems but we have ironed them out for this year and things are looking awesome,” Mrs Modra said. “We are expecting around 250 head this year up from 210. The Australian Holstein Showcase Sale will again run on the Wednesday night and we are

expecting similar lot numbers of around 45 for that too.” Dry heifer classes start at 10 am on Wednesday, followed by the showcase sale at 7 pm. Thursday will see the in-milk classes get under way. World reknowned judge Perry Phend from Wisconsin will preside over the ring and he is looking forward to seeing what Australia has to offer. Mr Phend is an accomplished dairy cattle judge who has officiated at many state shows and fairs around the globe. He has judged World Dairy Expo three times and worked for many well-known herds including Carrousel Farm, Lylehaven, Rolling Lawns and Nabholz Farm. This will be his first time judging in Australia. Entry forms and more information can be found at www.victorianwinterfair. webs.com

Millions to be spent on dairy research Dairy Australia has been successful in receiving Federal Government funds in the first round of the $100 million Rural Research and Development for Profit Program. Dairy Australia’s three-year projects begin this year: MIR for profit, $927 273: The ‘Mid-Infrared Spectrometry for Profit’ project will develop new tools to help dairy farmers manage and select the most profitable cows by using technology to scan milk samples for genetic, health and production information. The results will inform breeding decisions to improve the genetic gain of the national herd. Co-innovation to increase the profitability and productivity of dairy, $1 595 000: This project will research

methods of increasing private extension services to primary producers in order to increase producer uptake of new technology and profitability. Smarter irrigation for profit, $4 million: A partnership between the major irrigation industries of cotton, dairy, rice and sugar led by Cotton Research and Development Corporation in conjunction with Dairy Australia, Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, Sugar Research Australia and other research partners. Waste to revenue, $862 693: This project will find ways to turn agricultural waste into feed, fertilisers and soil conditioners, thus reducing on-farm costs, enhancing sustainability and providing producers with new opportunities to generate income.

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dairy news Read keen to extend growth Murray Dairy welcomes new extension co-ordinator Ross Read. Murray Dairy’s new extension co-ordinator is former Toolamba dairy farmer Ross Read. Murray Dairy chairman Malcolm Holm said Mr Read was a welcome addition to the organisation. “Ross has previously served as a committee member on the Central Goulburn Water Services and held the deputy chair position of that committee in 2013 along with being one of Murray Dairy’s first focus farms,” Mr Holm said. Mr Read said he was pleased to join the Murray Dairy team and he was looking forward to taking on this extension role which enables him to facilitate growth within the dairy industry from grass roots family farms right through to large corporate dairy businesses. “I would like to see others within the industry succeed and take advantage of the development opportunities available through Dairy Australia, Murray Dairy and other institutions within the industry, as I have,” Mr Read said.

The extension co-ordinator role facilitates the development and co-ordination of extension activities that meet the priority needs of dairy farmers within the region. The role aims to engage and connect people, ensuring networks throughout the area are strong and effective. The role enables clear communication flow between farmers and key dairy service providers, ensuring regional dairy extension services are functioning at an optimal level. Mr Read brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role after operating his own dairy business for 25 years as well as most recently working for hay and grain company Feed Central Pty Ltd as a supply manager. “My experience in the area as both a dairy farmer and service provider has allowed me to gain a great understanding of the region and its needs, opportunities but also the challenges it faces,” Mr Read said. “I have developed and maintained relationships with many of Murray Dairy’s key stakeholders

Ross Read.

and look forward to continuing to build those connections through this new role to ensure a collaborative approach moving forward.” Mr Read has completed an Advanced Diploma of Agriculture — Dairy and an Advanced Diploma of Agribusiness Management through the local National Centre for Dairy Education. He has also participated in the Developing Dairy Leaders Program run by Dairy Australia and Australian Dairy Federation. “Ross’ understanding of farmer needs will ensure he can successfully co-ordinate extension activities in the region and make it easier for farmers to access the services available to them which will help drive farm profitability,” Mr Holm said.

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dairy news Not-so-healthy alternative Pregnant women who switch to ‘healthier’ organic milk may be putting the brain development of their unborn babies at risk, experts have claimed. Milk certified as organic contains about a third less iodine than conventionally-produced milk, according to a new study. The same was found to be true for ‘ultra-high temperature’ (UHT) long-life milk. Since milk is the primary source of iodine for people in the United Kingdom, the discovery is said to have potentially serious health implications. Iodine is known to be important for the healthy brain development of babies, especially in the early stages of pregnancy. Previous research has shown that mothers-to-be who are iodine deficient during this critical time can give birth to children with reduced IQs. Lead scientist Professor Ian Givens, from the University of Reading, said: “People are

increasingly buying organic and UHT milk for perceived health benefits or convenience. But our research shows that this trend could have serious implications for public health. “Iodine deficiency ought to be a health problem from the past. But unless this situation is carefully monitored, we risk sleepwalking into a new health crisis in the 21st century. “Organic and UHT milk is not bad for you, and drinking all types of milk has numerous health benefits. But to get the same amount of iodine as in a pint of conventional pasteurised milk, you would need to drink around an extra half-pint of organic or UHT milk.” Iodine deficiency was once endemic in parts of the UK, with hundreds of thousands of people in the 1930s and 1940s suffering from goitre. The condition, caused by a lack of iodine, is marked by abnormal swelling of the thyroid gland in the throat.

MG suppliers vote Shareholders in Murray Goulburn Co-operative unit trusts will be paid like farmers, with their dividends tied to milk price after the dairy processor’s $500 million capital raising plan was approved. The capital restructure to lure investor shareholders was opposed by former chairman Ian Macauley at the extraordinary general meeting of shareholders in Melbourne and the participation rate in the poll was 50.37 per cent. Managing director Gary Helou explained how the capital raised would be spent in areas such as consumer cheese, dairy beverages and nutritional powders in a strategy to deliver operational excellence and produce highervalue products. He later described the result as a strong vote of confidence in MG’s growth and value creation to transform the business and

improve farmgate returns. ‘‘Global demand for dairy foods continues to grow, particularly in Asia. All global dairy companies are racing to capture a share of these growth opportunities, and in this context MG does not have a moment to waste, ’’ Mr Helou said. Shareholders voted in favour of all items of business presented including the adoption of the new capital structure and related constitutional amendments, the consolidation and conversion of B Class and C Class Preference Shares to non-voting Ordinary Shares and the increase in the aggregate director fee pool. Chairman Philip Tracy said after the meeting: ‘‘The strength of today’s vote demonstrates that MG’s suppliers are not only overwhelmingly in favour of the new capital structure, but also see the growth that lies ahead for dairy foods.”

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dairy news Database to help farmers compare performance easily and know myself I am organised, and wether I compare myself to other farmers is my own business, but at least it gets me in an organised format.” Dairy Australia program manager Neil Lane said the key benefit of DairyBase was that it gave farmers and their advisors the information and analysis they needed to have well-informed discussions about farm performance. “This is about having a better understanding of the numbers in the farm business, particularly how the physical aspect of the business relates to the financial,” he said. “They can then discuss topics such as achieving short and long-term goals, opportunities to improve operations, how they stack up against other farms, whether their farm expenses are in line with similar farms and what decisions need to be made to improve their position.”

A new web-based system called DairyBase to help farmers assess their farm performance and compare it to others was expected to be launched by Dairy Australia in late May. DairyBase will provide dairy farmers, service providers and industry with a national database of Dairy Farm Monitor Project (DFMP) data and other datasets from consultants and other service providers. It will offer dairy farmers a free web-based system to allow them to measure their business performance, make anonymous comparisons and learn new insights to help their farms become more profitable. Ken Kimber from Bega who milks about 1100 cows believes it will be good for farms. “For years I have been trying to get my own figures in some sort of order so I can compare myself when I see publications about people’s cost per kg of milk solids,” Mr Kimber said. “At last there is a format I can enter very

What is DairyBase? DairyBase is a secure, web-based tool that enables dairy farmers to measure and compare their farm business. After entering their farm data, farmers can then create confidential and comprehensive farm reports to help them understand the overall financial performance of their farm. DairyBase will be of great benefit to dairy farmers who want to reduce on-farm costs, boost profitability and formulate annual business plans. All individual farm data remains confidential to the farm business owner. DairyBase helps farmers to: • Compare their own farm business over time • Identify opportunities to drive profit and reduce risk • Make more informed business decisions • Generate benchmarks according to farm size, region and production system • Create annual reports and forecasts. For further information go to: www.dairyaustralia.com.au

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animal health Maximise calf rearing

A regular column from Rochester Vet Practice

Whether you are raising calves as replacements or to sell to export you will want to maximise the number of calves you get through to weaning and beyond. By rearing your own replacement animals, you are less likely to buy in disease problems. In order to achieve the best results, it is vital to pay attention to detail — this may explain why women often do a better job of rearing calves, because they are generally more conscientious and patient. Colostrum This is the most important weapon against calf scours and all calves should be given good quality colostrum (contains lots of antibodies) ideally within the first six hours but certainly within the first 12 hours of life. After this time the calf loses its ability to absorb the antibodies, however there is some local protection given by the antibodies present in the gut and colostrum is still a good nutrition source. It is wise to assume that all calves have had insufficient intake of colostrum by suckling and supplement all calves by stomach feeder with 2–4 litres of colostrum. Taking blood samples from calves greater than 24 hours old and measuring the serum total protein is an inexpensive test that correlates well with the passive transfer of antibodies from the colostrum. You can test the quality of colostrum using a Brix refractometer. If there are a lot of antibodies (greater than 22 per cent on the Brix scale) then 2 litres will be sufficient but if antibody levels are low then up to 4 litres is recommended. Once a source of good colostrum is identified, adding potassium sorbate to it will allow it to be kept in a fridge for up to seven days. It is worth freezing some in 2 litre portions so that you always have colostrum on hand. Don’t freeze larger amounts because the cooling is not rapid enough to prevent spoilage, and preferably freeze in bags laid on flat trays so they will thaw more rapidly. The importance of colostral immunity cannot be overstressed because prevention is much better than cure. Vaccination of heifers and cows prior to

calving will put antibodies for specific pathogens into the colostrum thus protecting the calf in its early life. Vaccines are now available to cover a variety of pathogens. Discuss your needs with a vet. Housing Once the calves are brought in, the accommodation should meet three basic requirements: • Shelter from wet and wind; • Good ventilation; and • Clean, fresh and dry bedding.

There are many different designs of shedding and penning available and some may suit your situation better than others, but whatever system is used it must meet all of the above criteria. Hopefully the calf sheds will have been completely cleaned out after last season and possibly even covered with a thick layer (5–7 cm) of lime. The choice of bedding is important because if it is too dusty (rice hulls, sawdust) it can contribute to pneumonia and the smaller particle size provides a greater surface area for

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bacteria to colonise and live on. Whatever is used, it should be replaced regularly. There are now disinfectant powder products such as Stalosan F or Stable Plus that can be applied directly to the bedding even in the presence of calves. After an initial daily application over three days, treatment once weekly will reduce bacteria, viruses, fungi and coccidia as well as absorbing moisture and noxious gases. Sheds can also be disinfected by spraying with liquid disinfectants such as Virkon S. Calves should not experience draughts up to calf level though there must be good air circulation above calf height — look for large build-ups of cobwebs, indicating dead air pockets. Footbaths are recommended to prevent carrying infection in on the soles of boots and are a requirement of the JDCAP for Johnes control. They should be placed at the entrance to the calf shed and all personnel entering the area should be made to clean their boots and then disinfect them using the footbath. The disinfectant solution should be changed regularly. Hygiene and feeding routines This is where attention to detail will pay dividends. Buckets, teats and lines should be cleaned thoroughly and regularly to avoid

build-up and spread of bacteria between calves. If feeding milk replacer, it can be beneficial to add natural yoghurt to the milk powder in order to ‘seed’ the calf ’s gut with lactobacilli. These ‘good’ bacteria aid in the digestion of milk and compete for space with the ‘bad’ bugs. Ensure the powder is mixed evenly according to the directions. If one person is feeding the calves this helps to keep the routine consistent and by getting to know the calves, that person is more likely to pick up signs of sickness earlier. In order to stimulate rumen development, adlib pellets, straw and water should be available. The straw is for roughage so the rougher the better and pellets should be 12 MJ ME/kg energy and 20 per cent protein. Clean, fresh water should be available at all times. Treating calf scours Inevitably you will get some scouring calves so knowing what sort of bugs you are dealing with can be a huge help in deciding the most appropriate treatment. Faecal culturing should be discussed with a vet and there are now calf side scour kits that can identify certain pathogens in 10 minutes. In many cases, removing milk and feeding electrolytes will sort out the problem, particularly for viral or dietary scours.

Dehydrated calves should be fed electrolytes three to four times daily for 24–72 hours. There are many different makes of electrolyte solutions on the market and their properties vary considerably. We recommend using a solution that contains bicarbonate to counteract acidosis and preferably an energy source. Milk can be added after 24 hours but should not be fed at the same time as electrolytes because the bicarbonate (or citrate) will interfere with the clotting of milk in the calf ’s stomach. Milk and electrolyte feeds should be separated by two hours. A suitable daily treatment regime would be to feed 2 litres milk at 8 am and 4.30 pm with two separate feeds of electrolytes (2 litres) at noon and 6 pm. Antibiotic treatment is indicated only when there is blood in the scour or if the calf is sick and depressed. By paying attention to all the fine details in calf rearing you will maximise the return on all the time and money you spent getting the calves on the ground in the first place. Dairy Australia’s manual Rearing Healthy Calves: How to Raise Calves That Thrive covers all aspects of calf rearing. Available at www.dairyaustralia.com.au — Keith Fletcher JUNE 2015

Connections Project

“

To have yields sustained year in year out, you have to have irrigation

“

Speed and efficiency are the big benefits for Numurkah farmer Stuart Hodge, after he upgraded his irrigation system through Goulburn-Murray Water’s (GMW) Connections Project. More than 350km on a motorbike, two weeks spent getting up at night to open and close irrigation bays and 160ML of water was a usual watering for Mr Hodge. Now the Numurkah farmer can water the same 200ha parcel of land in about three days, the system is entirely automatic and uses half the water. The new system is making a difference to Mr Hodge’s cropping operations. “For us irrigation guarantees a good crop yield,” he said. “My grandfather knew that when he purchased the land in 1942.” “It also means I can stay in bed every night,” Mr Hodge joked. For more information, please go to the Connections website www.gmwconnectionsproject.com.au

Farms help accelerated change Project aims to apply latest knowledge and technology on-farm to help other farmers see what can be achieved. Tongala farmers Tim and Lyndal Humphris and Yarrawalla farmers Don and Meg Stewart and Kelvin and Shelley Matthews have been selected as the two partner farms in Murray Dairy’s three-year Accelerating Change project. The project focuses on the accelerated adoption of research and technology to boost home-grown pasture, improve pasture management and utilisation, and support the efficient application and use of irrigation water to reduce seasonal feed deficits. Accelerating Change project manager Amy Fay said the project would showcase how leading farmers are using the latest research and technology to grow feed. “The research and technology will be applied

directly onto the two partner farms, spottested on 30 performance innovation farms and extended to 380 participating farms in the Murray Dairy region,” Ms Fay said.

is an excellent example of a modernised system that has already incorporated the latest technology on farms, which many farmers in the region would aim for.”.

Farms participating in the performance innovation teams will get access to expert information and advice and will be able to take what they learn from the partner farms and apply it to their own farms.

Mr Stewart said their farm had been upgraded to a pipe and riser system with full automation.

“We are very excited to be working with these innovative farmers,” Ms Fay said. “Tim and Lyndal’s farm is an excellent example of a low-cost, efficient and well laid-out conventional gravity system with Padman outlets, which will be applicable to many dairy farmers in the region. “Don and Meg’s farm, which is operated with their sharefarmers Kelvin and Shelley,

“We hope that through this project we will able to expand our use of soil moisture probes and more closely align individual paddock growth and utilisation with irrigation and other input applications to drive efficiency and profitability,” Mr Stewart said. For more information on the Accelerating Change project, visit the Murray Dairy website at http://www.murraydairy.com. au/accelerating-change

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JUNE 2015

Feeding out rye-grass silage for the herd.

Research and technology

driving production

About eight years ago when Kyabram vet Tim Humphris had a yearning for a farm of his own, his wife Lyndal warned him: “You can get a farm but we’re not moving house”. It was fortunate for Mr Humphris and perhaps for dairying that an opportunity arose just over the road from their Tongala home and they were able to secure an established dairy farm, and make the career change without having to give up the house and its accompanying well-planned tree plantation. The Humphris farm was recently chosen to become a partner farm in Murray Dairy’s Accelerating Change program which is designed to disseminate the latest and best farm practices. The couple seems to be comfortable in sharing the job of becoming a ‘guinea pig’ in the brand new program. Mr and Mrs Humphris have been part of a regional dairy business group which involves sharing and discussing their farm performance with other farmers, and Mr Humphris admits to having a fascination for data and statistics. One of their main goals is to grow their business by increasing pasture production using research and technology. But they are also keen to reach their goals in a 16

JUNE 2015

lower cost farm system. “We grow about 1300 tonnes of dry matter annually and we would like to push that out to 1600 tonnes on the same area with less water,” Mr Humphris said. To do that they are going to have to grow more perennial rye-grass pasture during the summer, possibly by introducing more fescue into their pasture and grazing lucerne. “Our cheapest feed at the moment is not the most water-efficient,” Mr Humphris said. They are growing about 1.1 tonnes of dry matter per megalitre on their perennial pastures. The couple will now have the benefit of external input through the Accelerating Change project, and a host of general commentary which they say they won’t mind. “Over the years we have been farming we haven’t had hard and fast rules on how to do it,” Mrs Humphris said. “We are adaptable and flexible enough to take on new ideas.

“We’ve been part of the dairy farm monitor project so we are used to being scrutinised.” They are also part of the Goulburn Dairy Business Network Group where farmers analyse each other’s figures. Both are positive about the future of dairying in the northern irrigation region. “It’s great to be part of dairying,” Mr Humphris said. “People ask why I am not a vet and I say I get a great challenge out of trying to do a good job in dairy farming. “It can be a highly sophisticated job or career choice. “It’s highly professional. “And it’s a profession that everyone should be proud of.” Mrs Humphris said dairy farmers had a unique set of skills in analysing data, assessing agronomy, animal management and in finances. “Sometimes under extreme conditions and time pressures.” >> Continued on page 18

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JUNE 2015

Feeding out rye-grass silage for the herd.

Lyndal Humphris catches up on paperwork in the farm office.

Tim Humphris in the 44-stand rotary.

>> Continued from page 17 The mixed breed herd produces about 550 kg/milk solids/cow/year, with a volume of just under 7000 litres/cow/year, on an average butter fat test of 4.5 per cent and protein of 3.6 per cent. Although pasture is their major feed input they also feed 1.7 tonne of crushed barley in the bails for most of the year. About 120 ha of the 150 ha property can be irrigated. “It’s primarily gravity fed and we’re keen to stay that way,” Mr Humphris said. Three channel backbone connections to the farm give them flow rates of between 14 and 20 Ml. 18

JUNE 2015

“Our next step is to automate irrigation with Rubicon to take advantage of the available technology which will help us lift productivity on a paddock by paddock basis.” Run-off goes to a 20 Ml recycle dam and they also have a 14 Ml effluent holding pond which they shandy for irrigation reuse. They can monitor soil moisture through solar-powered moisture probes which they can access from computer or iPad. They would like to eventually see their 44-stand rotary be a one-person operation, but the 27-year-old unit requires more automation and a replacement would cost more than $1 million so it is further down the priority list at the moment.

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Young farmers hear finance advice Young farmers with an eye on the future were taken through the steps required to borrow money from a financial institution at a recent Young Dairy Network dinner in Nathalia. The guest speaker, Rabobank rural manager Peter Dobbin, said some dairy companies were offering strong prices despite the global market prices, but costs were also rising. “The challenge is to be profitable while costs are going up,” Mr Dobbin said. “A dream for many people is owning their own farm.” In his prelude, he noted that successful

Pictured at the Young Dairy Network dinner at Nathalia, are, from left, Bethany Daniel from Waaia, Nathan Lindsay from Picola and Ingrid Williamson from Kotupna.

farmers adapted to change, adapted to their markets, operated as resource managers rather than just producers, sought outside expertise, were open to new ideas, were continually learning, thought strategically, took calculated risks and fostered an optimistic outlook. When asked about the key challenges facing farm purchasers, the audience suggested they were land price, water and getting equity in the first place to make a purchase. Getting skilled and reliable labour was another. Mr Dobbin said banking was about risk management and he summarised the steps a bank went through to satisfy itself on risk.

In assessing applications, the bank looked at the people applying and discussed history, capability, capacity, goals, aspirations and integrity. “I can’t emphasise enough that banking is about trust — going both ways,” Mr Dobbin said. He said borrowers should see their banker as someone integral to the business, rather than an adviser of last resort. He took the young farmers through a case study of a million-dollar dairy farm and looked at how well-placed the business was to borrow. About 43 people attended the evening.

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Dookie Dairy Report The robotic milking system at the University of Melbourne’s Dookie dairy milks the cows up to three times a day. Cows move voluntarily between paddocks and the dairy either as individuals or in small groups. Milking times are currently 5 am, 2 pm and 10 pm. As a result of three milkings a day the farm is divided into three separate grazing zones. After each milking the cows are automatically

drafted into the next grazing zone. Cows are motivated to move around the farm by allocation of feed. This includes being fed concentrate during milking and fresh pasture after milking. Accurate pasture allocation is critical to achieving voluntary movement of cows. If too much pasture is offered the cows will stay in the paddock for too long and not return for milking. If too little pasture is allocated, then

cows will return to the dairy too soon. The stage of lactation also affects the movement of cows. At peak lactation in spring, cows were milked on average 2.9 times per day, declining to 2.4 times per day in late lactation. Over the same time the number of cows that have to be fetched because they have not come in for milking has increased from six to 17.

March 1, 2015

April 1, 2015

May 1, 2015

Cow numbers

117

126

110

Kg milk solids/cow/day

1.6

1.7

Kg concentrate/cow/day

6.4

6.3

5.4 *

Kg fodder/cow/day

5.6

7.5

9.1 **

Pasture (KgDM) /cow

6.1

4.5

5.0

Area in rotation

Av milkings/cow/day

2.4

2.3

2.4

No. of failures/day

No. of cows got/day

Litres/machine/day

860

780

Rumination minutes/cow/day

450

465

480

* 12.5 MJ ME/kg DM, 16% CP.

** 8.8 MJ ME/kg DM, 13% CP.

JUNE 2015

Maize grain good for

milk production

Grain is becoming a more significant component in cows’ diets

With maize grain now a similar price to wheat, there is increased interest in including it in dairy cow diets. This article briefly discusses how grains provide starch for energy, how maize grain compares nutritionally to other grains, and the possible applications for maize grain in dairy cow diets. As Australian dairy farmers have steadily intensified their operations over the past 30 years by increasing herd numbers and milk production per cow, grain has become a significant component of the diet for most dairy farmers. Today, grain and grain-based concentrates support about 25–30 per cent of all milk produced in Australia, with 95 per cent of dairy farmers feeding grain at an average of about 1.6 tonnes of grain or grain-based concentrates per cow per year. Larger herds tend to feed higher rates of grain and grain-based concentrates than smaller herds, and some dairying regions tend to feed more than others. In the 1980s and 1990s, barley and triticale were the predominant grains fed to Australian dairy cows. However, since the late 1990s, wheat has become more commonly used.

JUNE 2015

Other grains fed to dairy cows, particularly in the more northern dairying regions of Australia, are maize grain and sorghum. To understand how maize grain might play a greater role in Australian dairy cow diets in future, it is necessary to have a reasonable understanding of how cows consume, digest and absorb nutrients from grain. Dairy cows are ruminants Dairy cows are ruminant animals. They have a complex digestive system which enables them to digest fibrous plant material. Their stomach has four compartments (rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum), each of which has a specific role to play in the breakdown of feed. Most of the absorption of nutrients in the feed occurs after the rumen when digested feed reaches the small and large intestines. The cow’s rumen is a massive fermentation vat (200 litres) which is home to many populations of different microbes which specialise in breaking down different types of feedstuffs, and provide food for the cow in their own right. Some digest fibre, while others digest sugars and starch. Grains are digested more rapidly by microbes in the rumen than fibrous feeds (but not as rapidly as sugars).

The number and proportion of each type of microbe in the rumen varies in response to the cow’s diet. A stable temperature and pH must be maintained in the rumen at all times to maintain thriving populations of microbes and function efficiently. As ruminant nutritionists often say: a happy rumen; a happy cow. Grains provide starch for energy When dairy farmers buy and feed grains, they are really buying and feeding starch as a means to increase their cows’ daily metabolisable energy (ME) intakes, for milk production or body condition gain. The starch in grains eaten by cows is digested at three sites: the rumen, small intestine and large intestine. • Rumen: Starch digested by the microbes in the cow’s rumen is converted into volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and fermentation gases. The VFAs are absorbed through the rumen wall into the blood stream, transported to the liver and used as an energy source. • Small intestine: Starch which escapes microbial digestion in the rumen is washed down undigested into the small intestine. If digested in the small intestine, it yields glucose which the cow can use

Key points • Grains provide cows with starch for energy. • Maize grain is higher in energy density and starch content, and has a slower rate of rumen fermentation. • Maize may be useful as a complementary grain to wheat: – when grain is fed at high levels per cow per day; – when cows are freshly calved; – when cows are at increased risk of ruminal acidosis; and – in hot weather. • To optimise milk responses from maize grain, processing prior to feeding needs to carefully control particle size.

Figure 1. Example showing effect of grain type on rate of in vitro rumen digestion

Gas production (mL)

Source: Dunshea et al 2012

140 120 100 80

Wheat Maize

60 40 20 0

0 12 24 36 48 Time (h)

Table 1. Approximate nutrient specifications of grains Grain type

Energy density (MJ ME/kg DM)

Starch content (% DM)

Rate of rumen fermentation (+ = slow, +++++ = fast)

Crude Protein content (% DM)

Maize

13.5 (12-16)

70-75

9.5

Wheat

13 (12-14)

65-70

+++++

12-13

Barley

12 (11.5-13.5)

55-60

+++

12-13.5

Oats

11 (9-13)

45-50

11.5-12

Sorghum

11 (7-13)

65-70

10.5

Sorghum (steam-flaked)

12 (9-14)

65-70

11.5

DM = Dry matter

immediately (releasing more energy than if the starch was fermented in the rumen). Large intestine: Starch not digested and absorbed in the small intestine is subjected to microbial digestion in the large intestine. Any starch eaten which is not digested is passed out in the cow’s manure. Nutrient value of maize grain compared with other grains When comparing the nutritional value of maize grain to other grains, the key

parameters are energy density, starch content, rate of rumen fermentation and protein content. Maize grain: • has a marginally higher metabolisable energy (ME) density than other grains; • is also higher in starch than other grains; • ferments at a slower rate per hour in the rumen than other grains; and • is generally lower in crude protein (CP) than other grains. See Table 1.

Figure 1 illustrates how maize grain ferments in the rumen more slowly than wheat, as measured by the amount of gas produced during microbial digestion. The rate of fermentation of grains varies with cultivar. For maize grain, it depends on whether the endosperm is vitreous (slower digesting) or floury (faster digesting). If maize grain is fed at a high rate/cow/day, additional rumen degradable protein and undegradable protein supplementation will be required to meet cow requirements. >> Continued on page 24 JUNE 2015

>> Continued from page 23

Possible applications for maize grain in dairy diets Incorporating a slower digesting source of starch such as maize grain in milking cow diets may be potentially beneficial in several ways: 1) As a complementary grain to wheat when grain is fed at high levels per cow/day Research at Vic — DEDJTR’s dairy research centre at Ellinbank has found that at high levels of grain / grain-based concentrate feeding, replacing some of the wheat with a slower digesting source of starch such as maize grain can, in some situations, help cows maintain a more stable rumen pH, avoid the milk fat depression often seen when diets high in wheat are fed, and produce more milk. Maize grain is the preferred grain to be fed in combination with wheat. A grain-based concentrate fed to a high production herd at say 8 kg to 10 kg/ cow/day could, for example, include a mix of two-thirds to three-quarters wheat and one quarter to one third

maize grain, plus a protein supplement such as canola meal and other ingredients. 2) Whenever cows are at increased risk of ruminal acidosis Whenever a dairy herd has an increased risk of ruminal acidosis, and where a moderate to high level of grain/grainbased concentrate is being fed, replacing some of the wheat with a slower digesting source of starch such as maize grain may help mitigate that risk.

(and energy intake), reduces their ability to digest and absorb feed nutrients and requires them to burn more energy to try to keep cool. With its relatively high energy density and low fibre content, inclusion of some maize in the diet may help to reduce the risk of acidosis, reduce the heat load on the cow and maintain the cow’s daily intake of metabolisable energy and other nutrients to support milk production. Processing maize grain prior to feeding to dairy cow diets

3) For freshly calved cows If practical to do so, feeding cows a slower digesting source of starch such as maize grain in their first three-four weeks after calving may help them more easily overcome feed intake suppression experienced early in lactation.

With maize grain, as with other types of grain fed to dairy cows, the rate and extent of starch digestion in the rumen versus the intestines, and how much of the starch is lost in the manure, depend on the extent to which its particle size is reduced during processing prior to feeding.

4) In hot weather Hot weather reduces a cow’s appetite

— Dr Steve Little Capacity+ Ag Consulting

See page 26: “Good advice is driving change”

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• Located on McGrath Road, Teal Point is this outstanding dairy farm on some of the best soils in the district comprising of 395 acres. • Very good three-bedroom brick veneer family home, with air conditioning and wood heater sitting among well-established gardens. • Modern 20-aside double-up dairy with cup removers, stall gates, ADF teat care system, Delaval milking machines, 7000 litre vat. • GMW delivery share in place and connected to the backbone. Very well laid out with good access. • Recently resown to Italian rye and shaftal and growing well. • Currently milking up to 300 cows and producing 150,000 kg/ms. This is a great family farm, ACT NOW. • Call Les Cain on 0458 646 318. or Ken Trewin on 0428 531 887.

• 476 acre dairy farm situated on Langan Road, Cobram East in some of the North’s best country. • Very good 30-aside swingover dairy with cup removers, 8600 litre vat, 300 cow yard, grain feeding system with silos, roller mill, good calf rearing facilities. • Connected to main channel with GMW delivery share in place and 1400 megs of water including spearpoint Katunga Deep Lead Bore and MG irrigation water. • Refurbished three-bedroom brick family home set back off the road in its own treed surrounds. • Well laid out. The dairy is very central with excellent laneways. • If you are looking for water security and an outstanding layout, then this farm would have to tick all the boxes. With a combination of two ground water sources aligned with the MG waste water program you have access to a water goldmine. • Call Les to discuss your offer.

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JUNE 2015

Nanneella dairy farmer Russ McMillan has been using corn in his grain mix for the past two years and he believes there have been some significant benefits for his 180-cow herd. He is pictured with his daughter Emily.

Good advice is driving change Re-thinking cows’ diet has boosted herd health and milk production. Russell McMillan and his wife Rebecca activity resulting in fewer cows in calf. The haven’t been afraid to use advice from industry cows also seemed to feel the impact of the specialists to implement change on their extreme heat days quicker which resulted in a 130 ha dairy farm at Nanneella. decrease in milk production. Perhaps one of the biggest changes the couple “I will certainly be keeping corn in the mix has made is the introduction of corn into the year-round for as long as it is economically cows’ diet through their grain mix. viable to do so.” “We added corn to the grain mix under advice Being a relatively high producing herd at from our nutrionist two years ago and while it 8600 litres/cow and around 650 kg of milk remains comparable in price to wheat, it will solids, Mr McMillan is a fairly high user of certainly stay in our mix,” Mr McMillan said. grain at around 2.2 tonnes per animal. So he is certainly looking to get as much out of his The cows are fed 8 kg/grain/day which is grain mix as he can. reduced to 6 kg when there is plenty of grass around. While the mix contains many other goodies, a kilo of corn is added for every 2 kg of wheat. “Corn is a slower release energy that is kind to I will certainly be keeping fresh calving cows and I have found that since corn in the mix yearwe have added the corn we have a lot less acidosis-type problems,” Mr McMillan said. round for as long as it is “I believe it helps my cows handle periods of hot weather better and also helps with fertility. economically viable to I can only go on what I have noticed has do so. Russell McMillan happened in my herd over the last two years and I really believe these are some of the main benefits.” “We had a theory at the start that it didn’t Mr McMillan said in January his feed matter what we fed the cows but since our company ran out of corn and for the couple nutritionist has come on board in 2009, we of months that there was none in the mix, have changed the way we do things and he he noticed a significant decrease in animal 26

JUNE 2015

“

has really helped educate us. Our cows have improved, production has increased steadily each year and we are starting to see some of our hard work start to pay off.” Mr McMillan likes to feed his herd the best quality hay he can and would prefer to pay an extra $60/tonne to feed quality vetch hay over oats. The McMillans purchased their property in 2006 because they wanted to be involved in the agricultural industry and they felt dairying provided a great opportunity to grow wealth and expand their business. They have always worked on the theory milk is the core of their business but to help spread risk they are also continually improving the genetic merit of their herd. They have a goal to sell heifers through their Bronte Park prefix to other farmers and bulls into AI so they have been working hard on improving the genetic merit of the herd. They have been involved in flushing programs and have used sexed semen to fast-track this process. The cows currently graze 16 ha permanent pasture, 12 ha of lucerne, 16 ha of annuals/ millet, 24 ha of sub and 4 ha of winter barley in the sacrifice paddocks. The McMillans are looking to sow an additional 20 ha of lucerne over the coming years.

The McMillans are focused on increasing the genetic potential of their herd and have been flushing cows and using sexed semen to fast track this process.

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The extra care they could get used to.

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Dairy Fertility Investigator – a digital hub for farmers Blog helps farmers keep up-to-date with alternative ways of doing things. The Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources and Dairy Australia are introducing a new blog to help dairy farmers keep on top of dairy fertility and herd management, called the Dairy Fertility Investigator. DEDJTR dairy development specialist in animal performance Sarah Chaplin said the blog was the creation of DEDJTR dairy extension officer Ee Cheng Ooi. “Ms Ooi is a young veterinarian and passionate about dairy cow fertility. She is writing this blog to help farmers keep on top of new developments in the world of dairy reproduction, and to find out what other farmers are doing to improve their herd reproductive performance,” Dr Chaplin said. “This blog is a means of communicating new and relevant information directly to Victorian dairy farmers in a way that’s responsive, and can adapt to meet farmer requirements. “With so much information available, it can

be difficult for farmers to keep on top of new or alternate ways of doing things, exciting technological developments and the outcomes of recent research. “We encourage Victorian dairy farmers to take the opportunity to have a look at the new website and tell us what they would like to see in dairy digital communication in the future.” The Dairy Fertility Investigator features: • the latest research on dairy fertility issues; • ‘Featured farmers’ — stories of farmers doing reproduction right; and • industry news on breeding and fertility. Example articles and information available at the site include: • How the latest research on subclinical ketosis is revealing its effects on fertility; • One farmer’s experiences with a five-week weaning period — how to reduce your workload in the calving season without sacrificing heifer growth and healthy calves;

• Take-home messages from the most recent conferences; and • The latest news about Australian Dairy Herd Improvement Scheme’s new breeding objectives and links to its YouTube clip. Dr Chaplin said the Investigator website had also been designed for farmers to provide feedback. “We want to tap into the collective wisdom of dairy farmers everywhere. We’d like to hear about farmers’ questions and issues and get their views on tackling real-life situations,” Dr Chaplin said. “We aren’t seeking to replace traditional extension groups and networks, but want to push these further using the power of digital technology to connect farmers from all around Australia.” Dr Chaplin is encouraging all dairy farmers to check out the Investigator at www.dairyfertility.com.au

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Breeding efficiency as 100 calves a year go through purpose-built shed. Careful planning and attention to measured pellet feed. calf-rearing fundamentals has created a “The auto system is really good. It delivers practical calf-raising system for the Clarks exactly the right amount to each calf at Katandra West. (based on the ear tag identity) and alerts Laurie and Gayle Clark raise more than 100 calves annually on their pasture-based us if something is wrong,” Mrs Clark said. “The system also progressively weans them dairy farm as herd replacements and can have up to 70 in their system at any one as they get older.” time. Colostrum is the main source of milk, “We’ve got about 74 at the moment, and the Clarks also freeze some so they which is a bigger than normal group,” have an emergency supply on hand. Mrs Clark said in May. “We calve down three times a year, from mid-March to April, July to August and a smaller batch about November-December. It delivers exactly the “We’re milking about 380 and moving right amount to each towards about 400, and we raise all our own replacements.” calf (based on the ear tag The newborn calves first go to a shed to identity) and alerts us if learn to drink in the first 24 hours when they get plenty of colostrum and rest on something is wrong. rice hull bedding. Gayle Clark When they’re established with drinking they are moved to an auto-feeding shed Although the shed placement is above with access to a paddock, ad-lib hay, flood level, Mrs Clark believes with pellets and clean drinking water. hindsight that they could have designed The purpose-built shed has a 2 m-high the floor with more fall that would have rubber lining, patterned concrete floor allowed gravity to channel the waste to and three DeLaval auto-feeders which, as well as dispensing milk, also deliver a one point.

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Beware residues in calves Ten simple steps can keep your calves antibiotic residue-free.

It is important that everyone caring for calves on your farm understands how antibiotic residues may happen and ensures that all calves sent for slaughter are free from antibiotic residues. Any antibiotic residues in calves sent for slaughter are a major concern for the Australian dairy industry. Calves are frequently tested at abattoirs for the presence of antibiotics. Detection of antibiotic residues could result in loss of this valuable outlet for your calves. For the past two years Dairy Australia has run a program to help dairy farmers reduce the risk of antibiotic residues in their calves. The following advice is based on the findings of DA’s investigations on farms where antibiotic residues have occurred. Take these 10 simple steps to keep your calves residue-free: 1. Prevent disease: Develop a plan for colostrum management, and prevention and treatment of calf diseases. Ask your vet for

advice if you are unsure. mix oral antibiotics with milk. 2. Training: Make sure that everyone who 8. Identify treated calves: Make sure any cares for your calves understands and follows treated calves are highly visible and kept away your management plan. from other calves until the drug withholding period has elapsed. 3. Separate housing: Keep calves destined for sale separated from the calves you intend to 9. Keep records: Record every treatment, for rear. every calf, every time. 4. Dedicated equipment: Feed your sale calves 10. Avoid contamination: Buckets, feeders, with separate equipment that is clearly marked drench guns and syringes that have been in and used only for this purpose. contact with antibiotics are common sources of contamination. Mark them clearly and do 5. Fluid therapy: Use electrolytes as the first not use them for feeding or dosing your sale option for treating sick calves. Remember calves. many common causes of calf scours do not respond to antibiotics. For more detailed advice on managing antibiotic residues in calves, refer to chapter 6. Follow directions: Use antibiotics carefully six of the Dairy Australia publication Rearing and only after discussing the treatment Healthy Calves — How to raise calves that options with your vet. Always read the label thrive. This is available online at www. and observe the meat withholding period. dairyaustralia.com.au/healthycalves Don’t feed sale calves with waste milk from antibiotic-treated cows. For questions about calf antibiotic residues, 7. Manage treatments: Treat calves individually, phone Dairy Australia animal health manager Kathryn Davis on 9694 3723 or email preferably by injection to minimise cross kdavis@dairyaustralia.com.au contamination. It is risky and ineffective to

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Attention to detail essential in raising healthy calves Rearing healthy calves is like a jigsaw puzzle where all the pieces of the puzzle must not only interact, but also balance with each other. also be washed daily and have appropriate non-slip flooring such as rubber or straw. On some farms, a dirty calf trailer can be the source of infection for newborn calves.” Dr Chuck also recommends the following for optimal care and development of calves: • Solid partitions of a non-porous material, such as corrugated iron or tin, between pens; • Suitable bedding such as woodchips with adequate drainage to prevent accumulation of wet, soiled bedding; • A passive ventilation system to allow fresh air to circulate at the calf level without direct draught; • Fresh water at the front of each pen; • An individual milk-feeding system for each calf to avoid competition from other calves; • Raised grain troughs to help prevent contamination with manure; and II™ Afi Act ™ • Thorough cleaning calf pens Afi ActionIIsolut Theofnext-generat ion between groups of calves. for the accurateion heat detect Themost next-generat solut ion ion

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Australian Veterinary Association given an appropriate volume of good quality spokesperson Dr Gemma Chuck from the colostrum within 24 hours to ensure it can University of Melbourne says calf-rearing is a absorb enough protective immunoglobulins balance of attention to detail. to fight infection. This volume may need to be split into two feeds. “A deficit in one area means compensation in another area to avoid the system becoming The quality of colostrum can be easily tested out of balance,” she said. using a Brix refractometer. This is simple and easy to use on-farm and is robust and “The work of rearing a healthy calf starts inexpensive.” before birth. Accurate pregnancy testing is essential so that all cows have an adequate Dr Chuck said new calves should be collected dry period prior to calving. Shorter dry from the calving area at least twice daily and periods can compromise colostrum fed colostrum immediately. She said this quality — the first nutrient-rich milk would help ensure all calves receive adequate produced in the udder at calving. colostrum within 24 hours to reduce the risk of disease. “Strategic vaccination can be also be used to boost antibodies in colostrum if expected “A recording system should be set up to calving dates have been calculated. If vaccines ensure all calves receive their two feeds of are given too early, the peak antibody colostrum. This can be as simple as records response will decline before the calf is born on a whiteboard or stock markers on the and if given too late, the antibody response calves themselves,” she said. won’t occur in time. “The calf trailer, used to transport calves “It’s very important that a newborn calf is from the calving area to the calf shed, should

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Down but not necessarily out Good care is top of the list in the successful treatment of downer cows. and nerves. This is worse if the cow is Diagnosing and treating downer cows unable to swap sides by herself or isn’t rolled can be a complex management problem regularly by the farmer. for producers, but according to cattle veterinarians good nursing care is the key to “If the primary syndrome isn’t resolved successful recovery. quickly, with the animal being able to stand and walk, it will inevitably lead to more A ‘downer cow’ is typically defined as a cow problems. unable or unwilling to stand, and often happens in cows during late pregnancy or “If producers are unsure of the problem, it’s which have recently calved. important they seek veterinary attention to ensure the cows are either treated correctly According to Australian Veterinary or euthanased promptly for those unlikely to Association spokesperson Dr Phil Poulton, survive.” nursing of downer cows can be labourintensive and time-consuming — but without According to Dr Poulton, nursing strategies it, secondary damage will occur. for downer cows include: “Any cow that is down for any reason is at • Mineral treatments such as calcium, risk of developing secondary damage, which magnesium and phosphorus; often prevents them from recovering,” he • Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; said. • Physiotherapy; • Adequate amounts of soft bedding; “This damage occurs because prolonged lying • Rolling to minimise muscle swelling; down results in heavy pressure on muscles

• Barriers to restrict movement and avoid secondary damage from crawling; • Supervised lifting to aid blood flow and muscle movement; • Adequate shelter — particularly from cold environments; • Easy access to food and water; • Lots of tender love and care; and • Strategies for returning the downer cow to the herd. “Recent research has shown that the chances of success are strongly linked to the quality of the nursing care with cows eight times more likely to survive than those nursed poorly, Dr Poulton said. “The management of downer cows is an important animal welfare issue for the cattle industries and it must be done well.” A range of resources on downer cows are available on Dairy Australia’s website.

JUNE 2015

Story and pictures: Cathy Walker

Murray Dairy’s Scott Birchall stressed the importance of developing a nutrient management plan for dairy farms.

The nutrient value of effluent should not be underestimated.

Making the most from dairy waste The expression ‘money down the drain’ might have been coined for waste from dairy farms.

He explained how the potential A Murray Dairy information morning at Laurie and Gayle Clark’s Katandra West environmental impact of nutrients lost from property in May heard about the nutrients farming systems could be significant, and in effluent and how it can be reused for said lost nutrients were also wasted money. significant fertiliser savings. He said a better understanding of nutrient The session was presented by Murray Dairy’s management helped with the wellbeing of natural resources management technical our waterways and maintaining a healthier specialist Scott Birchall and agronomist environment. Andrew Sneyd of Murray Valley Rural & Another area with increasing interest is soil Plumbing. biology and soil health. Many dairy farmers Mr Birchall explained the Fert$mart system, recognise that productive soils are those a national program initiated by Dairy that are biologically active with good soil Australia in 2011 to increase the efficiency structure. and profitability of fertiliser use and to Mr Birchall said people’s definition of a improve soil health on dairy farms. nutrient management plan would vary from The program is funded by Dairy Australia farm to farm. and the Federal Agriculture Department “Why is that important? Because of market through the Caring for Our Country access; the target is for 80 per cent of farms program, along with additional resources to have a documented plan by 2020,” he from many other contributing individuals and organisations. It provides for whole-farm said. Mr Sneyd, who has worked with the Clarks soil and fertiliser management plans. to document their plan, introduced himself Mr Birchall said when farmers got soil and by saying: “My interest is in making money fertiliser management right, they could for dairy farmers.” produce more feed at no extra cost and use He said the use of effluent was becoming fertiliser as a strategic tool to boost feed when it was most needed. more common and in northern Victoria,

manure, compost, lime and gypsum was “really, really important”. He said under the nutrient management plan, the Clarks’ farm was divided into nine zones that were all soil tested; Fert$mart paid for six of those tests. “In this case it’s a pretty fertile farm; it was just a matter of topping it up,” Mr Sneyd said. He said good paddock records were essential to the Fert$mart program, which uses software that marries together grazing, production and fertiliser. Mr Sneyd said getting the best effect from fertiliser was a simple matter of the four ‘Rs’ — right timing, right product, right placement, right rate. “This property grows a lot of sorghum, which chews a lot of potassium. The better the crop, the more nutrient it uses. We’ve just started round two of grazing,” Mr Sneyd said. Mr Clark added: “It’s going pretty well.” He said later they were looking at a target of 2.5 cows/ha and full forage feeding. For more information, see www.murraydairy.com.au/fert$mart JUNE 2015

The right diet can reduce calving stress Improved nutrition in the three weeks before calving will benefit cows and farmers. Calving time is very stressful for the dairy cow’s body. From four weeks before calving to four weeks after calving (called the transition period), the cow undergoes a series of dramatic metabolic changes that allow her body to adapt to the challenges of calving, lactation and re-breeding. It is a stressful time for people, too. There are so many tasks to attend to at this time and cow health issues around calving just add to the load. Effective pre-calving transition nutrition can reduce this stress. We used to think of transition feeding mainly from the perspective of controlling milk fever, but we now know that an integrated nutritional approach brings many benefits. There are five key aims for effective transition nutrition: 1. Meet the cow’s increasing demand for energy and protein; 2. Maintain dry matter intake; 3. Adapt the cow’s rumen to the post-calving diet; 4. Minimise the risk of milk fever and other cow health problems; and 5. Minimise body condition loss and the risk of ketosis and fatty liver. If these five key aims are achieved, the benefits are considerable: • The cow is set up for a productive lactation. Milk production responses of 300 to 500 litres per lactation have been reported in research trials where cows were fed well-balanced transition diets pre-calving. Recent Australian research in commercial herds indicates the production benefit obtained is greatest when a well-balanced transition diet is fed for just over three weeks pre-calving. 40

JUNE 2015

• Almost no clinical cases of milk fever in the herd. In fact, if more than three per cent of your calving cows go down with milk fever within 14 days of calving, you need to seek help. • Very low incidence of other health problems soon after calving. Milk fever is a ‘gateway disease’ which leads to a higher risk of other diseases, including mastitis, ketosis, retained placenta, displaced abomasum and uterine prolapse. Therefore, controlling milk fever has the added benefit of reducing the incidence of other diseases too. • Reduced death and culling rates around calving. Health problems around calving can lead to poor outcomes — even if cows survive, they have less chance of getting back in calf early in the joining period so they have more chance of being culled. • Improved herd reproductive performance. Research suggests that reproductive performance improves when a wellbalanced pre-calving transition diet is fed — up to five per cent higher six-week/100-day in-calf rate and five per cent lower not-in-calf rate. • Improved animal welfare. A smoother transition with fewer health problems means that cows are coping better with this stressful period. • Less time and stress spent treating sick and downer cows. Not only is effective transition nutrition good for your cows and your bottom line, it also reduces calving hassles for people on the farm. Farmers who have implemented effective transition feeding find that calving runs more smoothly and appreciate not having to treat so many sick cows. Timing is important — aim to feed a transition diet for a full three weeks before calving. The longer cows spend on the

transition diets pre-calving, the greater the reproductive benefit and the lower the risk of cows dying or being culled. However, because transition feeding cows for more than 24 days has potential negative effects on the risk of milk fever and does not give any additional production benefit, three weeks is recommended. How much you have to gain from improved transition nutrition on your farm depends on: • which approach to transition feeding you are willing and able to use; • your current levels of milk fever and other cow health problems; • your current herd production and reproductive performance; and • how well you set up and implement your transition feeding program so as to gain the full potential benefit it offers. However, one thing is clear — the more done to help the cow successfully adapt to the challenges of calving, lactation and rebreeding, the greater the benefit. Depending on the approach used, a transition feeding program could cost between $20 and $60 per cow, but return a net benefit of up to $200 or more per cow (after additional labour and feed costs are accounted for). Successfully managing the transition period is a win for your cows, your people and your farm business. For more information, consult your nutrition adviser or visit the Dairy Australia website at www.dairyaustralia. com.au/TCM For more information on this article phone Dr Sarah Chaplin on 5833 5273 or email sarah.chaplin@ecodev.vic.gov.au — Steve Little, Capacity Ag and Dr Sarah Chaplin, DEDJTR

Get the transition right Correct feeding helps ease the way into lactation.

WHAT IS TRANSITION FEEDING? Transition feeding (also known as lead feeding) is an animal management strategy that ensures a smooth, hassle-free and healthy progression from the late stages of pregnancy through to lactation, which in turn helps to produce a successful lactation. WHY IS TRANSITION FEEDING SO IMPORTANT? Transition feeding is important because it provides exactly the right balance of nutrients needed by a dairy cow in late pregnancy so she can make the ‘transition’ to lactation without difficulty or complication during calving, without loss of body condition before or after giving birth, and very importantly avoid the debilitating and costly occurrence of milk fever and its many resultant complications, including mastitis and grass tetany. THE SCIENCE BEHIND TRANSITION FEEDING. The three weeks before calving are an important change and adjustment for a

dairy cow. The foetus is growing rapidly and major shifts in hormones and metabolism are occurring. By actively managing these metabolic changes to provide optimal dietary requirements, a dairy farmer can ensure the cow maintains good condition throughout this important phase. Manipulating dietary electrolytes with anionic salts is a vital aspect of the transition feeding diet. This assists calcium utilisation and reduces the risk of milk fever. It is achieved by optimising the balance of sodium, potassium and magnesium relative to chloride and sulphate, while also maximising the phosphorous and calcium available to the animal Calcium pathways also need to be mobilised pre-calving. This is achieved by feeding cereal hay or straw. These feeds are low in calcium and therefore help the cow to utilise her own calcium stores at calving. The increased salivation helps leave the system acidic, which also helps the bones to release calcium. It is also important to feed supplementary grain to help prepare the cow’s rumen for

the high level of grain in the post-calving ration, as well as feed bypass protein to help with the increased demand for protein at this critical phase of late pregnancy and foetal development. THE USE OF A SPRINGER PADDOCK DURING TRANSITION. Restricting access to lush pasture is vital during the transition feeding phase, as this can enhance the risk of milk fever. A springer paddock or relatively bare area is the ideal solution. It will avoid the unwanted high potassium intake from pasture. HOW LONG IS THE TRANSITION FEEDING PERIOD? Cows should start a transition feeding program three weeks prior to calving. This ensures they receive the required level of anionic salts. Start later than this and there isn’t time to achieve the necessary intake. Cease the transition feeding diet at calving and immediately move to the lactation diet. — Rivalea, manufacturers of OPtimilk.

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Do you want to see the results of how new irrigation and pasture research and technology is used on farm? Have you recently upgraded your irrigation infrastructure, or are you thinking about it?

Improving Sustainability and Profitability on Farm Murray Dairy is hosting three open days for its Focus Farms around the region. Each farm has been operating for nearly 12 months so come along to see how your neighbours are running their dairy farm businesses whilst gaining take home knowledge to apply on your own farm.

Kyabram: Tuesday 2 June 539 Sinclair Rd, Kyabram

Murray Dairy’s new project, Accelerating Change, is where you will see industry innovators in action and see the practical implementation of the latest research, showing you how good decisions are made.

The Wearden’s open day will have a major focus on different crop types, the cost of feed per kilo of dry matter and efficient water use. Speakers will include Farmanco’s Cam Smith, Luke Nagle and a Goulburn Murray Water representative who will provide an update on the Connections Project.

All farms in the Murray Dairy region are able to register to be kept up-to-date with the project through a communication and extension program that will share the lessons learnt and opportunities and challenges that come with trialling new research and technology on farm.

Strathmerton: Thursday 11 June 304 Maidment Rd, Yarroweyah

By registering you will have access to all the information, data collected and lessons learnt on the partner and performance innovation team (PIT) farms as well as opportunities to participate in field days and other project events. Accelerating Change is a three-year project that aims to help farmers increase their home-grown pasture production, efficiency of pasture management and utilisation, and efficient use of irrigation water. This project is funded by the Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport & Resources and Dairy Australia. To register and for more information visit the Murray Dairy website www.murraydairy.com.au/acceleratingchange or call Amy Fay, Project Manager, on 0400 911 286.

Brad Adam’s open day will focus on calculating the cost of production. Phil Shannon from Shannon Farm Consulting will discuss this topic and how it relates to Brad’s dairy farm business.

Gundowring: Thursday 25 June 1620 Gundowring Rd, Upper Gundowring The Glass family’s open day will focus on tax effective transition/ succession planning with Onfarm Consulting’s John Mulvany and Provincial Accountants’ Ray Carty both presenting on the topic. Young farmers looking for a way in to the industry, and those looking to transition out will be able to hear first-hand experiences from the Glass’. All events start at 10.30 am followed by lunch.

Commercial benefits of genomics increasing As the science advances, so do the practical uses of the technology in dairy herds.

Genomics continues to be a cutting-edge technology applied across a range of industries, but few industries can say they have capitalised off the technology as well as the dairy industry. The technology predicts performance based on the genes carried and how they have performed in other animals. In the 1970s difficult market conditions led to many dairy farmers leaving the industry, but there were also some major breakthroughs in science. Genomics, which has become a part of modern dairy breeding, had some of its first major discoveries during the 1970s. Genomics looks at an individual’s genes by extracting the DNA from cells, typically taken from hair follicles in cattle. This DNA is then examined and the genes which make up that individual’s DNA are interpreted. This allows Australian Breeding Values (ABV) to be produced which provide an indication of how the individual is likely to perform. This predicted performance is based on how those genes have performed in other cows, with the assistance of statistical analysis. Globally tens of thousands of animals are tested each year, contributing significantly to the type of cows bred into the future. Without genomics it would take seven years to get the same level of information genomics provides on an animal, if we were to physically collect data. What this means is that the rate at which gains can be made through breeding are significantly increased. Genomics has evolved a great deal since the 1970s with its commercial release to the Australian dairy industry in the late 2000s. This development has been driven by the great work of the Dairy Futures CRC, Australian Dairy Herd Improvement Scheme

and Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources scientists. Development of the technology has occurred in three main areas, with groundbreaking science being a key part of the improvements: 1. Improvements in the science and commercial application of genomics have been the driving forces behind both the drop in price of commercial testing and also the increase in value that can be returned from testing. 2. Recently the introduction of new traits and indices has had a big impact on the Australian dairy industry. Some of the biggest include the new fertility ABV, feed saved ABV, balanced performance index (BPI), type-weighted index (TWI) and healthweighted index (HWI). 3. A number of key projects have been undertaken to expand this reference population. Projects include the 1000 bulls project, 10 000 Holstein cow project, Jernomics and GINFO. Gains in breeding historically have been quite significant — a typical cow in the 1950s produced 1746 litres of milk compared to today where the average is 6890 litres/cow/ year. Genetic gain is responsible for about 33 per cent of this improvement, with the remainder coming from improvements in management and feeding practices. As the science of genomics has advanced in leaps and bounds, the cost to producers has fallen. The technology which previously was too expensive for the average commercial farm to generate a return from, has quickly become a cost-effective business decision to Australian dairy producers.

Today genomic testing costs as little as $65 for a basic test which will return ABVs on almost 40 traits. This offers a huge opportunity to return value to the farm through a number of ways: • Use of genomic sires: Farmers are able to use a proportion of young genomic sires to increase their rate of genetic gain. Rules of thumb suggest using two young genomic sires for every one proven bull that would otherwise be used. • Parent verification: The ability to verify the parents of an individual seems simple but has the potential to offer time-saving benefits to farms around data and herd management. • Herd bull selection: The use of genomics to identify elite herd bulls has the potential to offer big gains to the industry. InCalf found that almost half the average herd is bred to a herd bull, based on the average six week in-calf rate. • Heifer selection: Heifers are the future and a significant investment is made in getting them to milking and returning a profit to the farm. The ability therefore to predict up to seven lactations worth of information on a heifer offers a big opportunity to reduce the risk of having cows which don’t perform. With advances in the science continuing, the commercial benefits of genomics will only increase. Improvements in rates of genetic gain and management will ultimately fuel improvements in profitability and sustainability of farms into the future. For more information, phone Matt Reynolds on 0408 534 595 or 5561 9912 or email matthew.reynolds@ecodev.vic.gov.au — Matt Reynolds, dairy extension officer, DEDJTR, Warrnambool JUNE 2015

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Calling for labour law changes Shortage of skilled workers fuels push to ease restrictions on employing people from overseas. The Australian Dairy Industry Council has called for changes to current restrictions on employing overseas labour. Chairman Noel Campbell has argued that the supply of skilled local dairy farm employees remains lower than demand and proper access to foreign workers is necessary for the industry to be able to take full advantage of the many opportunities presented by emerging markets such as China and in South East Asia. Mr Campbell made the comments in a submission to the Senate committee on education and employment. He said many farmers relied on overseas labour to fill essential on-farm roles that could not be filled by the domestic labour force. However, accessing overseas labour through the subclass 457 Visa program is a frustrating and laborious task, leading to delays in recruiting skilled employees from overseas to fill skills shortage gaps. Some of the challenges with the current process involve Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) staff being unfamiliar with the skill requirements for many on-farm roles, and a lack of understanding about skills and training recognition from overseas training institutions. These issues are exacerbated by misalignment of the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) with the skills classifications used by the DIBP in assessing eligibility for skilled migration. Mr Campbell said the dairy industry was currently preparing a labour agreement to assist farmers in accessing overseas

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labour; however, our primary motivation is the difficulty farmers face in securing labour due to the disproportionately high skills level thresholds under the CSOL and the subjective skills assessments of applicants by DIBP case officers, rather than fraud (real or perceived) in the 457 Visa program within the industry. Mr Campbell said the current six-month limit for being employed on a farm under working holiday visas undermined productivity due to high staff turnover and the need to continually source, employ and train new staff. He said this time limit should be extended from six to 12 months. Another issue that hinders the industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ability to address its skilled domestic labour shortage through better access to overseas workers is that while dairy farming is a seasonal industry, it is not included on the list of eligible industries. The ADIC has previously discussed with policymakers its views around dairy seasonality, and it will continue to highlight this issue, which has a considerable impact on the dairy industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s access to overseas labour.

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Swag of dairy

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Awards recognise the skills of Fonterra’s teams. Fonterra Stanhope production manager Frank Di Fede with the award-winning milk powder.

Fonterra Australia has taken home 76 awards from the 2015 Dairy Industry Association of Australia (DIAA) Australian Dairy Product Awards. Fonterra’s Manufacturing Operations general manager Rob Howell said he is thrilled with the 12 gold and 64 silver titles pocketed by various Fonterra sites. Brands picking up prizes include Western Star butter, Perfect Italiano cheese and Tamar Valley yoghurt. Fonterra’s foodservice products also fared

exceptionally well, with the Stanhope site taking home gold in cheddar cheese varieties, and Cobden receiving the highest scoring salted butter of the competition. “It’s fantastic that our skilled teams can be recognised for the quality dairy they produce,” Mr Howell said. “We are extremely proud of the exceptional products made at Fonterra sites. “Congratulations to our exceptional people who strive to maintain the highest quality dairy, and our dedicated farmers who supply

us with the best milk for the job.” The competition is hosted annually by DIAA and acts as a gateway to the Australian Grand Dairy Awards. The competition is based on the entries’ technical merit and is judged by industry experts selected for their specific dairy product knowledge. The Stanhope plant picked up gold awards for semi-matured cheddar, mild cheddar and a silver award for buttermilk powder.

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Improving your herd health Vic Feeds is a new pellet mill situated in Colbinabbin, Victoria. It was commissioned in January 2014. The Vic Feeds team embarked on a project to build an innovative high tech pellet mill. The milling machinery was sourced from Europe with the German Multicracker along with the German pellet press and combined heat treatment equipment providing a fully gelatinised pellet for ruminants. The PLC controlled computer batching ensures exact addition of essential vitamins and minerals. Vic Feeds primary focus is on improving herd health and believe that a growth in production will follow, once we get the cows healthy and maintain their immune systems. Vic Feeds has an extensive nutritional advisory team available and provide many on-farm

services such as the Digestion Analyser Manure Screen, Vet MUN testing, PH Diagnostics and Ketosis testing. The benefits of maintaining a healthy immune system can include » Less incidence of mastitis » Lower cell counts (BMCC) » Better in calf rates » Fewer or no retained membranes (RFMs) » Less cows in poor health » Stronger cows in the herd » Increased milk production with a higher milk solids yield

CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS: KEITH PETERSEN – Girgarre Keith and Glenda Petersen of Girgarre started using Vic Feeds Dairy pellets in Spring 2014. Keith has been impressed on the improved health of his milking herd and also the gain in production. He has noted milk yield improved by 16%, fat test up by 17.2% and protein test up by 25.50%. Keith’s main benefit is a healthy milking herd, with improved conception rates since starting with Vic Feeds. NEIL & JANE WERNER – Ky Valley Neil and Jane started using Vic Feeds dairy pellets in August 2014 and have had very positive results. “Since adding Vic Feeds dairy pellets to our ration in the bail, we were pleased to see a significant rise in our production in both litres and total milk solids. Our cell count has also improved, along with the herd health. The cows are keen to enter the dairy and love the pellets. We have found the service and nutritional advice provided by Vic Feeds to be exceptional.”

MICHAEL WEARDEN – Tongala Michael started the 2014–15 season using Vic Feeds Leed Feed and then continued on to our dairy pellets. Michael has noticed a great improvement in herd health with reduced incidences of pneumonia, laminitis and no retained membranes this year. Michael has had improved in-calf rates this season and also an increase in the herds milk solids yield. PERRETT FAMILY – Kongwak “Quality feed for our dairy herd is the most important issue for high production and herd health. Having commenced with Vic Feeds from their inception in 2014, we have found the consistency of pellets excellent, dust free and very palatable for cows and heifers. Nutritional advice is there if needed and delivery is always on time.”

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No sweat when it’s wet

Kelvin and Shelley Matthews with their children Jacob (left) and Abraham.

The opportunity to participate in Murray Dairy’s Accelerating Change Project was too good to pass up for Yarrawalla share farmers Kelvin and Shelley Matthews. The couple is looking forward to gaining valuable information to boost home-grown pasture, improve pasture management and utilisation while also focusing on irrigation water usage to reduce seasonal feed deficits. The 200 ha farm is watered through a mostly automated pipe and riser system installed two years ago. Mr Matthews said he did 200 hours of watering using his phone last year. “My irrigation plan was plugged into the computer and while we were away things still got watered. It saves so much time and labour,” he said. Ten per cent of the farm is still watered using a channel system. The pasture is split into one third lucerne, one third perennial and one third annuals and the herd is 100 per cent spring calving. This season the business will milk about 600 cows with a goal to reach 700 in the future. Mr and Mrs Matthews are heading into their third season on the property they sharefarm with Don and Meg Stewart in a 50/50 arrangement. The couple owns 50 per cent of the cows and supplies all the labour and limited machinery. Expenses are split down the middle. They felt joining the project would be a win

for the business. “There is not many dairy farmers out this way so I am really looking forward to liaising with people and getting more ideas,” Mr Matthews said. “I don’t like to stand still and I am always looking at ways to improve our business and fast track our goals to one day own our own farm.” The couple has farmed in many different places over the years including New Zealand, but firmly believes northern Victoria is the place to be. “There is strength in our location, being able to source feed at a reasonable price, the land is relatively cheap while still enabling us to achieve our production goals, and it is also a great community. Access to irrigation is also a major strength although it can become a weakness as temporary water prices increase.” At the moment every blade of grass is fed to the milking herd and replacements. The business buys in all hay and silage requirements and will continue to do so providing there is a margin over feed costs. They have no plans to grow hay or silage in the future, preferring to milk additional cows if excess grass becomes a problem. “It is cheaper for us to eat grass rather than pitting or baling it,” Mr Matthews said. The herd will continue as a total springcalving herd. Any cows not in calf are joined and sold as autumn-calving cows. Additional stock is purchased if required.

“We are always looking to get the most value out of growing grass but things do change and we are always open to new ideas. At the moment a spring-calving herd suits us and is the most profitable system for us to operate,” Mr Matthews said. The business aims to produce about 580 kg of milk solids per cow and is on track to achieve that figure this year. Mr and Mrs Matthews both agree the dairy industry provides them with an opportunity to grow their wealth while providing them with a lifestyle that allows them to bring up their three children, Matilda, Jacob and baby Abraham. “Our goal has always been to farm in Australia. You have so much more control over your business then you do in New Zealand. “Our sharefarming arrangement works really well while providing us with an opportunity to grow ourselves and we have a great relationship with Don and Meg,” Mr Matthews said. The Accelerating Change Project consists of two partner farms that will be provided direct access to the latest research and technological information on farming systems, strengthening production and growing profitability. This information will be spot tested on 30 other farms and then shared with 380 participating farms. For more information on the Accelerating Change project visit the Murray Dairy website http://www.murraydairy.com.au/ accelerating-change JUNE 2015

Courtney and Jared Ireland among the first in the country to install the new MooMonitor+ technology in their 400-cow herd at Lockington.

Collars prove well

worth their cost

Cow monitors allow couple to know exactly what’s going on with their herd at any given moment. Lockington couple Courtney and Jared I knew I was going to be out of action and we had joining to do and we felt that this was our Ireland are making the most of technological best option,” Mr Ireland said. advances in the dairy industry by being one of the first dairy farming businesses in Australia While it is still only early days, he hasn’t been to install MooMonitors in their 400-cow herd. disappointed. The monitors keep an eye on the cows 24 “We probably won’t see the true benefit of the hours a day and send captured data back to collars for 12 to 18 months, but we are really happy with them so far,” he said. the computer on the cows’ daily behaviour, including feeding, rumination and wellness, “We did a short joining in January and the resting and restlessness periods and heat collars picked up 33 cows; I had only seen detection. 25, so there is an extra eight cows already and that’s a real bonus.” Mr Ireland likens the monitors to having another worker on the farm, which is the Mr Ireland said one of the most surprising things the collars had shown was the extent main reason the couple decided to install the that young cows were bullied by older cows. technology. During the hot summer days the cows were “I had to have a couple of operations on my fed in a shady paddock with silage up in racks. arm over a six-month period so we installed the monitors really as insurance to keep an eye “We started to receive a lot of stress alerts for on the cows 24 hours a day, seven days a week. the younger cattle and we soon realised they 50

JUNE 2015

were not being allowed to eat the silage by the older cows,” he said. “We decided to change the way we fed them and rolled the bales out which allowed them all to get a feed. “I always assumed the young cows were bullied — but just not to that extent. “In the future, as the herd gets bigger, we will probably end up running two herds based on the data we have received from the monitors.” Mr Ireland said during particular periods some of the cows were getting pink-eye and the monitors picked this up probably 24 hours before he could see any sign of the problem. “There really is a place for these collars in any herd size. Everyone has labour issues and I can see a place for them whether you milk 180 or 400 cows,” Mr Ireland said.

The collars monitor rumination, fertility, resting and feeding periods, restlessness and performance of each cow in the herd — 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“I went away for a week to South Australia and I could see from the data on my phone that a particular cow was going to calve because she had stopped ruminating and I was able to tell my mum to keep an eye on her.” The Irelands have been sharefaming with Paul Weller at Lockington since 2007.They own the herd so the decision to install the monitors was completely their own. They monitors cost the Irelands around $190 each and they have them on every cow, whether they are milking or dry. “It really was a no-brainer for us,

especially once you start adding up the costs of tail paint and bulling beacons,” Mr Ireland said. “Specialists say it costs you around $250 each time you miss a heat, so when you start looking at these types of costs, let alone any other benefits of the system, you soon realise it will start to pay for its self fairly quickly.” The Irelands intend on increasing herd numbers in the future to eventually hit 600, and they will buy more collars as they are needed. JUNE 2015

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Cutting costs by changing routines Milking cows during off-peak times can reduce the cost of power by a third. Electrician and energy expert Stephen Hill has delivered more than 200 audits in the Murray region and said farmers were not taking advantage of off-peak prices. “I get people telling me that’s easy for me to say — but off-peak rates are generally a third of the on-peak rate,” he said. Mr Hill discussed the results of the audits to dairy farmers at Nick and Jane Andrews’ dairy farm in April. The average cost to run a dairy farm per year in the region was $18 604; the highest bill was $80 855 and the lowest was $2691. The average energy cost per kilolitre milk production was $10.09, the highest was $34.75 and lowest was $3.59. Mr Hill said power bills across the region had avoidable costs due to not milking in

Katandra dairy farmers Nick Andrews and Stuart McNab in Mr Andrews’ new dairy.

off-peak times, inefficient plate coolers, inefficient cooling systems, dairy lights left running, faulty time clocks on hot water services, electricity bill imperfections and not negotiating better tariffs. He said it was important to ask electricity providers for the best possible deal because the first quote was “never gospel” and savings could often be made without new infrastructure. “The more you harass them, the better rate they will give you,” Mr Hill said. “If you’re a loyal customer, they will make the most of that and you could be worse off.” The audits, which were conducted through Dairy Australia’s Smarter Energy Use Project, found the lowest rate paid across on and off-peak times in the Murray region was 10¢/ kW per hour, the highest rate was 37¢/kW per hour and the average rate was 20¢/kW per hour.

Electrician and energy expert Stephen Hill conducted more than 200 dairy audits in the Murray region.

Mr Hill advised off-peak rates should vary from nine to 13¢/kW and on-peak rates should be in the lower 20s. The farmers also got to walk through Mr and Mrs Andrews’ new dairy, which was completed last year and designed to be more energy efficient. The dairy features natural sunlight during the day because of its large, open landscape and clear sections in the roof. The dairy shed also has 150 W lights instead of the older 400 W designs, an energy-efficient vat and a bigger plate cooler. Mr Hill said when planning a new dairy, farmers needed to consider a variable speed vacuum pump, preheating with solar or heat recovery, lighting, a variable speed drive milk pump, the correct sizing of water pumps while again stressing the importance of utilising off-peak rates.

Dairy farmer Nick Andrews said the new vat was energy efficient when cooling milk. JUNE 2015

REMINDERS FOR JULY www.dairyaustralia.com.au/Farm/FeedingCalves/heifers cows/Nutrition-management.aspx Calf losses are very expensive. Having a good planned system for calf • Having a plan for action when cows rearing is very important, so to avoid present with difficult calvings or the following may be useful: metabolic disorders. • Prevent disease by ensuring all calves • Making sure your calving area is clean receive good quality colostrum. enough for cows to calve without excessive contamination of teats, to • Disinfect calf pens on a regular basis, better avoid mastitis. including rails and bedding. • Preventing nitrate poisoning when • Ensure calves have a good supply of grazing forage oats, brassicas, or ryegood quality water, fibre and pellets. grass pastures containing capeweed • Ensure you have a good supply of drugs, or marshmallow by avoiding grazing vaccinations and drenches for calves on within 21 days of nitrogen application hand. and by including other low-risk feeds in In the busy period of calving it can be •easySoft floor properties reduces lameness increases profit the diet&before grazing these pastures. to forget about weaned heifers. • Making time to watch your cows •Heifers Flooring of choice by Australian Dairy Farmers require good quality supplements walking on laneways to check for sore or & good quality hay of 9 MJ/ & recommended •(pellets MLA RSPCA approved feet. If poor track surfaces are causing kg or better) to provide the energy and •protein Creates beast contentment which reduces anxiety lameness and foot problems, consider for growth, if the pasture diet •is less Patented ‘SureFoot®’ design adding sawdust, woodchips, even hay available during the winter. (e.g. at the lead in/lead out from the Cows dairy shed). The use of foot mats on Deaths of cows or losses of production the walk into the dairy in conjunction are expensive and can be avoided by: with copper sulphate can be an effective • Planning your transition feeding to solution to foot soreness in cows. minimise the risk of metabolic disorders People in fresh or calving cows. For more information go to If using staff, plan rosters to ensure you can

get through the spring calving and harvest without staff being too exhausted to pay a division of RPS Industries P/L attention to detail. Dairy shed and machinery www.surefootmat.com.au When the cows are dry or you have a Freenumber Call 1800 255 reduced of milkers, take943 the opportunity to carry out your annual shed maintenance tasks, e.g. check milking machine function and replace rubberware. Carry out preventative maintenance on fixed and mobile plant.

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Business Prepare cash flow budgets using the announced opening milk prices to see what your financial position will be for the year. Complete final quarterly BAS for the year and collate the year’s financials for the tax accountant. Consider assessing your business’ performance, calculate your pasture consumption using the DEPI online tool (www.dpi.vic.gov.au/agriculture/dairy/ pastures-management/calculator), calculate your per cow production and set new targets for the current year. Create a plan to reach your pasture consumption and per cow production targets.

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Auto fetching on the horizon Study results point to potential benefits of automatic fetching of cows overnight.

Imagine if your herd’ future productivi was locke in before weaning

FutureDairy postgraduate student Ashleigh Wildridge is investigating the potential value of autofetching for robotic milking farms.

Lock your herd’s future productivity in before weaning

still the most important tool for encouraging voluntary cow movement in a grazing-based AMS.

“

Automatic fetching technologies on the due for milking, quietly moved them into horizon might allow farmers with automatic the laneway and shut the gate. She was then milking systems to increase the number of able to track their milking times through data milkings that occur overnight. recorded by the AMS. FutureDairy project leader Associate Professor “I wanted to find out whether the cows Kendra Kerrisk said Australia’s grazing-based would take themselves up to the dairy to be AMS usually saw a dip in the number of milked or if they’d just hang around in the milkings that occurred between 2 am and 5 am, laneway; and if the time of fetching made any a time when grazing cows typically rested. difference,” Ms Wildridge said. Post-graduate student Ashleigh Wildridge “Most of the cows did in fact continue from simulated auto fetching to determine the the laneway up to the dairy to be milked, likely impact on overnight milkings and and the time of fetching didn’t make much the potential value of automatic fetching difference.” technologies for AMS farms. The trial showed a four-fold decrease in the The study was conducted on Grant and Leesa number of cows with a milking interval of Williams’ automatic milking farm at Hallora more than 16 hours (from 4.6 per cent of the in West Gippsland, where four AMS box units herd to 1.7 per cent). This has two benefits — milk 250 cows. it reduces the risk of udder health issues such as mastitis, and increases the potential number Conducted over three weeks, the study of cows milked per robot. involved two different fetching times: 11 pm and 1 am. Ashleigh visited a paddock of cows Ashleigh said accurate pasture allocation was

I wanted to find out if the cows would take themselves up to the dairy to be milked ...

Ashleigh Wildridge

“Autofetching technology may be an additional tool to enhance voluntary cow movement but accurate pasture allocation will continue to be critical,” she said. “For example, if too much pasture were allocated, the cows’ response to auto-fetching would differ; we’d expect them to be more likely to loiter or rest in the laneway.”

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Talking about the bigger picture Symposium to look at growth models to boost dairy businesses. Growing dairy businesses is the theme for the 2015 Dairy Research Foundation’s annual symposium comthat will be held in Camden, NSW, comin Junenext month. On June 17, speakers from Australia and overseas will look at growth from a variety of perspectives, including Israel’s professor Ephraim Maltz who will talk about how his country doubles Australia’s average milk production per cow in an ecologically sustainable way. Dairy Research Foundation organising committee chair and associate professor Kendra Kerrisk said the program also included a variety of farmer guest speakers.

‘‘The farmers will open your eyes to different growth models that you may not have condhsidered previously,’’ Prof Kerrisk said. Dairy farmer and footy legend Ian Hindmarsh will reveal his family’s spirit and determination in developing a greenfield site in Cowra, NSW, to build a successful dairy and beef cattle business. Greg Heffernan from Bega, NSW, will talk about the growth model that captured the enthusiasm and commitment of all members of the family, enabling them to acquire property, milk more cows and invest in improved facilities.

On June 18, the symposium will visit Sydney University’s Corstorphine dairy farm and cover topics such as feeding fats for fertility, links between milk protein levels and fertility, and improving disease detection using data that already exists on the farm. The Dairy Research Foundation conference is a collaboration with Dairy NSW, Dairy Connect and NSW Farmers Association Dairy Section. For more information on the program or a registration form, visit: http:// www.futuredairy.com.au/media/2015_ Registration-Program_-_Final.pdf JUNE 2015

calendar of events Export the opportunities Please check www.murraydairy.com.au for updates or phone (03) 5833 5312.

June/July 2015 Focus Farm Open Days (Murray Dairy)

Strathmerton — Thursday, June 11 Kyabram — Tuesday, June 2 Gundowring — Thursday, June 25 Innovations Tour — 5 Nights (NCDE)

Northern Victoria — Departing Monday, June 29 First Aid Level Two (NCDE)

Thursday, June 4 and Thursday June 11 National Herd Development Victorian Winter Fair

Bendigo Exhibition Centre Prince of Wales Showgrounds Bendigo, starting with a gala dinner on Tuesday, June 30. Heifer classes starting 10 am on Wednesday, July 1. Murray Dairy www.murraydairy.com.au

Phone: 5833 5312 NCDE www.ncdeagotafe.vic.edu.au Phone: 1300 468 233 DEDJTR www.depi.vic.gov.au Phone: 136 186

The opportunities to expand the Australian agricultural sector through increased exports are enormous, but the biggest stumbling block is complacency, according to Australian Farm Institute executive director, Mick Keogh. “The growth in demand for food and fibre amongst the growing middle class of Asia is spectacular, and unlike the minerals boom, the demand will persist indefinitely into the future. This presents great opportunities for agricultural exporting nations such as Australia, with more than 60 per cent of Australia’s annual agricultural production exported, and more than half of those exports already to Asian nations,” Mr Keogh said. “However, the greatest risk faced by the agriculture sector is complacency on the part of both farmers and policy-makers. Australian agriculture does not have a monopoly in Asia, and in fact over the past five years has lost considerable market share to other agricultural exporting nations, including the USA, Canada, Brazil, Argentina and Asian exporting nations such as Thailand,” Mr Keogh said. “For example, despite growing in total value, Australia’s share of ASEAN

agricultural imports has fallen from almost 25 per cent in the late 1990s to around 12 per cent by 2013. “There are a range of different reasons Australia has lost market share in these regions. Irrespective of the reasons, the statistics highlight that Australian farmers and policy-makers have no room to be complacent about future export success. “For policy-makers, it is essential to realise that securing a free trade agreement is just the first step, and is no guarantee of future export success. Improved trade access for Australian agricultural products requires constant effort, as technical barriers to trade — such as complex testing or paperwork requirements — can be just as much a barrier as tariffs and quotas. “For Australian farmers, it is essential to realise that Australia is a relatively high-cost nation, and many competing overseas agricultural producers enjoy much lower costs. In addition, sea freight costs from south and north America to Asia are often only marginally higher than freight costs between Australia and Asia, meaning Australia does not have a major geographical advantage in Asian markets.”

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