Country-Wide July 2017 (DL) by NZ Farmlife Media

GROWING NZ FARMING

Eye in the sky Brett Sanders uses drones to muster sheep and cattle on his Central p60 Otago farm

$12.00

incl gst

July 2017

Country-Wide July 2017

Calf-rearing systems 1

MODERN, FUNKY & FABULOUS WIN one of 7 $150 VOUCHERS

from

To check out the Oli & Gus range turn to pg 77 and at www.oliandgus.co.nz

TO ENTER: Be a Country-Wide subscriber before July 31 2017 Already a subscriber? Go to our website to enter

RMING G NZ FA GROWIN

www.nzfarmlife.co.nz/competitions

Steepry countks

stac up

from just

115

s Mary i farmer Wanganu offit with son n Pr and Beva achieving their e Falcon ar p30 l goals. financia

incl GST for 12 mon ths (saving 20% )

New subscriber to Country-Wide? Go to www.nzfarmlife.co.nz/shop or call 0800 2AG SUB (224 782) and we will enter you into the draw.

$12.00

incl gst

April 2017

2017 ide April

Country-W 2017 ide April

Country-W

Terms and conditions apply go to www.nzfarmlife.co.nz/terms-and-conditions

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to subscribe: WEBSITE: WEBSITE: 2

nzfarmlife.co.nz nzfarmlife.co.nz

EMAIL: EMAIL:

subs@nzfarmlife.co.nz subs@nzfarmlife.co.nz

PHONE: PHONE: 0800 22 47 82 or 06 280 3161

MAIL:

Post this coupon to: 0800 224 782 or 06 280 3161 between 7.30am NZ - 5.30pm Farm Life July subscriptions 2017 Country-Wide between 7.30am - 5.30pm PO Box 218, Feilding 4740

EDITOR’S NOTE

Reward in the challenge

alving always seems such a challenging time of year. From the many calves dropping to the farm clothes that never seem to get dry and seem to have a permanent layer of mud of them. But out of the challenge of this time of year comes rewards in the form of a successful mating season – being that step closer to reaching your genetic goals in your herds. Perhaps there’s even just the reward of having a few cute calves to admire out the window with your cup of coffee in the morning. Central Otago farmer Brett Sanders had his fair share of challenges in his early days of adopting drone technology for his farm. From soldering together parts to make his own drones to the many crashes he had while learning to operate one. Brett’s early adoption of drone technology has seen his farm reap the rewards. Despite crashing many of his earlier models, he’s experienced major savings in time, accurate mapping and a safer way to shift stock around the hill country (p60). This month we delve into some top tips from top calf-rearers like Rob

Kirk whose 10 “demandments” for calf-rearing might help you out this calving season (p39). While our editor Terry is facing his own challenges at the moment, I’m stepping in to look after the magazine. Learning to manage a team of journalists and getting them to get their articles in on time will be a personal challenge for me over the coming weeks. Although I’m hoping my reward will be in the form of a pay rise I won’t hold my breath. Away from work life doesn’t relent in providing challenges. Come August I will officially be an army wife. My soon-to-be husband is 10 years deep into his army career and I have discovered its many challenges during our courtship. From the long deployments, the many field exercises and constant coming and goings that is the norm in military life. But the reward of that first hug and kiss upon the return of my army man, is the best reward of all.

Cheyenne Stein

Got any feedback? Contact the editor direct: terry.brosnahan@nzfarmlife.co.nz or call 03 471 5272.

NEXT ISSUE Country-Wide August includes: • SPECIAL FEATURE – CROPS 2017: A look at choosing the best crops for your farm, best practice from the soil through to crop and feed utilisation, and latest agronomic research. • CALF-REARING: Our series continues with more stories from seasoned calf-rearers. • DEER FARMER: The Tuatahi partnership and its diversification venture into deer. The partnership’s Moerangi-Oraukura Station is now the largest breeder supplying First Light Venison.

My holiday starts the day I set stock to lamb “We have consistently produced 150% survival to sale for the last ten years, with at least half sold prime, and the balance sold store, due to our very short season. The ewes are shorn and set stocked, and I leave them to it. We have a very simple system where all ewes, including two tooths, are run in one mob from February onwards. Any light ewes are mated to a terminal, but that’s only about sixty two tooths and a few mixed age ewes”. Dougal and Mary Cottier run 2200 ewes on 980ha near Albury, South Canterbury. The property runs from 480 to 850 metres above sea level, and consists of mainly tussock hill paddocks.

“The Wairere sheep are just easy to farm”.

www.wairererams.co.nz | 0800 924 7373 Country-Wide July 2017

More: p32

BOUNDARIES Damp test for dogs.

The shed that Bob built.

HOME BLOCK Amy Hoogenboom scrubs up for surgery.

8 9

Paul Burt ponders some of the costs he’s charged.

Nick Loughnan has a cautionary tale to tell. David Walston is waiting for the rain.

Gaye Coates takes a casting role.

Charlotte Rietveld in praise of Wonder Boy.

NOTEBOOK

What’s on when and who’s doing what.

FACTS

US beef market remains strong, Reece Brick writes. 15

BUSINESS A farmer invention weighs in. Meat company rewards suppliers.

Contents

Home safely, every night.

Healthy farm, health profit.

It’s not all about production, says Nuffield scholar.

Vet Dave Robinson gets a world view of sheep.

Managing Editor: Tony Leggett, ph 06 280 3162 mob 0274 746 093, tony.leggett@nzfarmlife.co.nz Deer Farmer Editor: Lynda Gray, ph 03 448 6222, lyndagray@xtra.co.nz

LIVESTOCK Dairy beef funds development for Mike and Karen Smales.

Short-gestation bulls for the beef industry.

Performance drives the Buddos’ business.

Sub Editor: Andy Maciver, ph 06 280 3166, andy.maciver@nzfarmlife.co.nz

Editor: Terry Brosnahan, ph 03 471 5272; mob 027 249 0200; terry.brosnahan@nzfarmlife.co.nz

DIY keeps TopNotch costs under control.

Country-Wide is published by NZ Farm Life Media PO Box 218, Feilding 4740 General enquiries: Toll free 0800 2AG SUB (0800 224 782) www.nzfarmlife.co.nz

Reporters Andrew Swallow ph 021 745 183 Anne Calcinai ph 07 894 5069; Lynda Gray ph 03 448 6222; Gerard Hall ph 03 409 8386; Jackie Harrigan ph 06 280 3165; Robert Pattison ph +64 27 889 8444; Marie Taylor ph 06 836 7018; Sandra Taylor, ph 021 1518685; Tim McVeagh 06 3294797; James Hoban 027 2511986; Russell Priest 06 328 9852; Jo Cuttance 03 976 5599; Amanda Bowes 0274 998 421; Cheyenne Stein, 06 280 3168. Account Managers: Warren McDonald, National Sales Manager, ph 06 323 0143 John McMaster, Auckland/Northland, ph 0274 443 143 Janine Gray, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, ph 0274 746 094 Donna Hirst, Lower North Island & international, ph 06 323 0739

Shirley Howard, real estate, ph 06 323 0760 Debbie Brown, classifieds & employment, ph 06 323 0765 Nigel Ramsden, Livestock, ph 06 323 0761 David Paterson, South Island, ph 03 382 6143 Designer: Joanne Hannam Production Planning: ph 06 280 3167 Subscriptions: nzfarmlife.co.nz/shop ph 0800 224 782 or subs@nzfarmlife.co.nz Printed by PMP Print, Riccarton, Christchurch ISSN 1179-9854 (Print)

ISSN 2253-2307 (Online)

nzfarmlife.co.nz

Country-Wide July 2017

More: p74 Calf-rearing tips from a veteran.

Transition to a grass-eating adult.

Buying-in those beef calves.

Money in driving genetic improvement. Genetalk: The last step.

Body condition scoring drives productivity and profit.

Trevor Cook recommends a focus on lighter end.

FORAGE New brassicas a star performer.

ARABLE Farming from the ground up.

PLANT AND MACHINERY Drones promising as pasture tool.

What does a drone cost? Lifting fodder beet a drought saviour.

Work together on water quality.

Denis Hocking on the versatility of radiate pine.

YOUNG COUNTRY

Success for Smedley graduates.

Madison Taylor has the gift of the gab.

COMMUNITY South Africa: Shooting the animals.

A winner in the writing game.

SOLUTIONS Touring with Molesworth.

Clothing designer draws huge Facebook following.

ESTATE

West Hills primed for trophies.

Leasing: Getting the term right.

Matawai Stationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s healthy hill country.

FARMING IN FOCUS More photos from this monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Country-Wide.

67 68

StockManager makes NAIT compliance simpler.

TECHNOLOGY

Kirstin Mills signs documents.

Getting the stockyards right.

Keri Johnston writes a ministerial letter to councils.

WannaCry: Alan Royal explains ransom ware.

ENVIRONMENT

Farmers baulk at Marlborough rules.

More: p72

OUR COVER

More: p24

Brett Sanders sends his Phantom 4 drone aloft at Matangi Station, Central Otago. Photo: Lynda Gray

More: p58

Country-Wide July 2017

Taranaki competitor Lloyd Bishop and his heading dog scope out the hill on the dog trial course. Photo: Robyn Stephens.

BOUNDARIES | DOG TRIALS

Damp test for dogs

looding on opening day didn’t put a dampener on the 2017 Tux North Island and New Zealand championships. Despite some wet weather, the week-long competition at the end of May was an event for the host centre Poverty Bay to be proud of. Centre president Brett Loffler says it took a huge effort from the committee and volunteers to run the event on the picturesque grounds at Whangara. Loffler says the deciding run-offs were an impressive show, with all except one of the final runs completed. As an extra highlight for the Poverty

Bay centre, four of its members made it to the final run-offs, earning themselves a top seven placing in the NZ championships. To top that off, two Poverty Bay competitors were then named in the NZ team to compete against Australia at Taupo in November. NZ has won this test the past three years running. The NZ team are: Leo Edginton (Poverty Bay), Merv Utting (Poverty Bay), Murray Child (Maungakaramea) and Eion Herbert (Tapawera). Bob Bruce is the reserve. NZ championship winners: • Long head: Bob Bruce and Cheat from

Te Aute club. • Short head and yard: Eion Herbert and Storm from Tapawera. • Zig zag hunt: Dave Stuart and Gus from Rangiwahia. • Straight hunt: Vaughan Marfell and Torque from Masterton.

Shoe some kindness John Cosgrove It started out as a simple act of kindness back in the early 2000s. Today the Shoe Fence has grown into an amusing roadside attraction for travellers along SH1 south of Waihola near Dunedin. The owner Peter Allison, dairy farmer and cattle breeder, says one of the

previous owners, Shirley Weir, was wellknown for walking up and down the stretch of SH1 bordering the property picking up rubbish thrown from cars. Peter Allison “She found a nice near the fence. pair of shoes and thought they might have been accidently blown off a car trailer or deck.” Shirley hung them up on a fence nearby hoping the owners might be looking for them. The next day she found several more pairs had been tied to the fence and so it began. Allison says she was advised by the local council that she couldn’t hang objects on a fence parallel to the State Highway without the proper consents so she simple moved the shoes over to the fence bordering her land on a side road. The shoes kept on

Moss covered boots and shoes hang from the fence near Waihola.

coming, even bags of shoes mysteriously appeared. Locals even donated a hi-vis jacket to Shirley to keep her safe while walking along picking up rubbish. Allison says since they took over in 2006, the fence has been vandalised a couple of times but he just keeps putting the shoes back up. “The fenceline is now on Geo-Cached and on Google maps, and featured in a children’s story book that was recently mailed to us.”

See Drones promising p58

Country-Wide July 2017

BOUNDARIES | HOBBIES

Out-takes Deer winners

Bob Swann in the Bloke’s Shed built for his collection of tools and gadgets.

A place to head for Lynda Gray Centre stage in Bob Swann’s Bloke’s Shed is a giant moose head. Bob, a retired South Canterbury farmer and stalwart of the deer industry, had the corrugated iron shed built six years ago to house his huge collection of tools and gadgets. The stud of the kitset shed had to be raised to nine feet to accommodate the moose that Bob shot somewhere north of the Arctic Circle in 1985. Next to the moose on the back wall are other hunting trophies including the skins of a grizzly and black bear, and the mounted heads of caribou and stone sheep. The trophies are but one category of a carefully curated collection spanning rulers, egg beaters, mincers, peelers, bits and braces, scales, shoe lasts, weights and so much more.

Appealing: a Steampunklooking apple peeler

All are neatly displayed either on the walls, in viewing cabinets or in chandelier formation from the ceiling. Bob says his penchant for preserving relics from the past probably stems from retrospective guilt at palming off a lot of the old tack, tools and gadgets from his father’s farm. “Dad had lots of saddlery, fencing gear and stuff that we got rid of, so I decided to start collecting it back again.” From clearing sales, second-hand shops and TradeMe the collection grew, so when Bob and his wife Frances moved to their retirement home on the outskirts of Geraldine the shed was built to accommodate it all. The contents of the Bloke’s Shed are not for public viewing although invitation-only visits might be on the cards once the shed is extended.

Birthday honour Nick Pyke has been made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2017 Queen’s Birthday Honours, in recognition of his services to the arable industry. Pyke was appointed research director of the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) in 1995. Under his leadership, FAR has developed into a nationally and internationally recognised research and extension organisation.

Country-Wide July 2017

Deer industry 2017 Elworthy Environmental Award winners are Steve and Chris Borland, and Bob Sharp of Shabor Limited, which featured in Country-Wide, December 2015. The partnership took over 982 hectares of Waikato hill country at Oparau in June 2014 and development had included a 200ha deer block primarily for breeding velvet stags. Judges said that from an environmental perspective there were many challenges, such as the steep erosion-prone hills, but excellent thinking, planning and a lot of hard work had created an environmentally sustainable and productive farming system. There had been excellent protection of native areas and a good understanding of animal requirements and how they fit the farm environment. Steve Borland said he was proud of what had been achieved, but the physical graft had taken its toll – especially on his knees – and he was looking forward to taking a step back.

Are Australians smarter than Kiwis?

Not according to former Prime Minister Rob Muldoon who said every Kiwi heading across the ditch to live raised the IQ of both countries. Bruce Cotterill, guest speaker at the deer industry conference, wasn’t quite as direct, but the business guru and former chief executive of both NZ and Australian companies questioned some Australian logic. Why, for example does the Yellow Cab company in Brisbane run a fleet of orange cars, why is the Australian Women’s Weekly published monthly, and why are both businesses successful despite some fundamental faulty thinking. Attitude, Cotterill says. Aussies have a big picture, can-do attitude and don’t get caught up in finicky detail whereas Kiwis suffer from a “crisis of attitude” and are prone to being a “bit grizzly” and defensive. So there you go, smart Aussies are defined by their dumb logic, which for some reasons brings to mind that classic one liner: What do you call a field full of Australians? A vacant lot.

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

All scrubbed up ready for surgery Amy Hoogenboom

Vet student, Massey University

ou know you are a vet student when you are looking forward to the weekend. Not because you have an amazing, carefree, alcohol-fuelled, fun-packed extravaganza planned but because you have lecture notes and assignments that you are eager to get finished and on top of (the same plan as you had last weekend but sometimes it’s just easier to sleep in). Another six months of late night study, early morning lectures, too many exams, plus a party on a hillside with a water slide in the pouring rain and many a happy hour at the Masonic have been had since I last wrote. Fourth year is the year of vet school where it all (supposedly) starts coming together. The number of practical classes we have has greatly increased compared to earlier years of the degree which is both motivating and slightly daunting. The most exciting part of the year is getting to do our first live animal sterile surgeries. The critical part of sterile surgery is staying sterile (surprise) and the most difficult part of sterile surgery when you’re a green fourth year student is… staying sterile. It all starts when you start scrubbing in; you bump the tap with your hand as you rinse the scrub solution off – start again, you drop your scrub brush part way through scrubbing – new scrub brush needed. And at the end of having your

hands above your elbows trying not to touch anything while scrubbing your hands for 10 minutes till they’re almost raw you no longer need to do that arm work out you had planned at the gym this afternoon. Then there’s gowning and gloving; the gown must be picked up from the sterile pack and dropped to unfold without touching anything, also you can’t touch the outside surface of the gown or you’ll need a new one. I won’t explain gloving because that’s just too complicated. Now we are ready for surgery. Staying sterile should be easy now, all the drapes are laid out and the surgical site has been prepped. But then your face mask moves half a centimetre so it rests uncomfortably on your nose, there’s any eyelash in your eye and you just need to scratch behind your left ear. Over the mid-semester break I spent a week at a local vet practice on placement. I really enjoy being out on placements because being in a real practice teaches you a lot of things vet school can’t. Vet school can teach you all the theory and a lot of the practical skills necessary to remedy the sick animal or herd health problem but what it doesn’t teach you is how to confidently interact with clients,

Amy Hoogenboom geared up to do some pregnancy testing.

Playtime: Vet students take a break from studies with a party on a hillside with a water slide in the pouring rain.

how to have a yarn with a farmer about the weather and how the family is before delving into this season’s dry cow therapy plan or why the ewes scanned poorly this year. Don’t get me wrong, we have lectures on how to structure consults, communicate effectively and run through simulated scenarios on dealing with clients but they can’t teach you how to do it. You either have it or you don’t and ultimately the best learning experience comes from being able to observe and engage in a true consult.

Then your face mask moves half a centimetre so it rests uncomfortably on your nose, there’s any eyelash in your eye and you just need to scratch behind your left ear.

July marks the beginning of my final traditional classroom semester of vet school and also the first semester in a while that I will only be studying four papers instead of the standard five per semester – what a treat. July also means year four “Spring” calving placement at the end of the month and into the beginning of August, when 96 vet students will be dotted about the country experiencing all the weird, wonderful ways a calf cannot come out and cow metabolic problems while freezing their fingers off in the icy wind and sleeting rain. It is amazing to think that in just over four months I will be beginning the final year of my degree, that I will be on the home stretch towards the finish line of the vet school marathon. Bring on the last 8.5km of late nights, early mornings, exams, sterile surgeries and almost being a real vet.

Country-Wide July 2017

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

Paul Burt and his neighbours only need a small bridge.

Now here’s the bill ... Paul Burt

Matata, Bay of Plenty Did you know there exists such a queer fish as a privately owned structure on council land. I’ll get back to ordinary fish later but we became aware of this unique variety when the district council threw their arms up in horror and threatened to close the cockies’ bridge (some substantial log stringers plus decking) that we and two neighbours had been using quite happily for years. From their reaction you would have thought the very next person to cross the structure (even on foot) would collapse it and fall two metres to their doom. This bridge, which is within the road reserve and services three titles at the end of the road is apparently “different” from the other crossing 1km downstream that services an additional two titles and is owned and maintained by council. It’s different in the fact that we three end-of-road ratepayers have to replace “our” bridge with a new consented crossing at our own cost with no contribution from council. The only way to find out why this disparity exists is to spend countless hours talking to bureaucrats who have long forgotten that they are public servants and where their wages come from. It appears that in exchange for

Country-Wide July 2017

demanding rates the council is bound to provide legal access to a property boundary but not necessarily physical access unless there is a public benefit. Being the end of the road I presume they presume there is no public good. The last time I checked my neighbours and I were still members of the public but for all sorts of reasons the project proceeded as per council protocol. This little tributary that we have thoughtless crossed for years hardly ever runs taller than my Redbands. We have done the right thing for its native inhabitants and kept 99% of its 100-hectare catchment forested. Now it is going to cost us dearly as I’ve learned with projects like this that if no-one concentrates on the economy of it all things quickly get out of hand.

Only a few years ago this job would have been sorted in an afternoon and no-one would have been the wiser or the poorer, not even the fish. And rightly so, to cross a streamlet with less flow than that produced by a healthy draught horse.

The council didn’t seem worried when the first estimates of about $50,000 arrived. They weren’t paying. We squealed loudly (privately anyway) on the grounds of unreasonableness. In a dark and frustrated mood I

researched the regional council land and water plan and discovered that in our location with such low water flow we could build a concrete ford as a permitted activity. It wouldn’t have cost much, would be flood-proof and safe, and would have kept the fish happy. But the fish had more clout than we did so we are back to engineering and consents. We may still be able to save some money and do the job ourselves (to spec of course) but it will mean a trip to the classroom to get tickets in digger-driving, culvert-laying, and traffic management. Only a few years ago this job would have been sorted in an afternoon and no-one would have been the wiser or the poorer, not even the fish. And rightly so, to cross a streamlet with less flow than that produced by a healthy draught horse. While we are talking about the costs of running a farm business have you had any instances lately that make you realise you are in the wrong game. If you have even a mild form of iron disease you can expect to haemorrhage money sooner than later but what is reasonable. A recent busy day saw a blown hydraulic hose on the bulldozer. Following much swearing, panels were removed to access and locate the breakage. It looked a little tricky so I called a hose doctor. All that was needed was half a metre of 20mm reinforced hose, one joiner and two couplers but after two trips from town and five hours of labour I was presented with an invoice for $1046.00 plus gst. This got me thinking about how much I would be worth if someone required my expertise. It’s only ever happened twice and in the first instance I did the work for free. I had been asked to be part of a regional council interview panel to fill a land management officer position. There was a little homework to do but it was an interesting day with a worthwhile outcome. The department head offered to pay me but as we had had a good working relationship over the years I declined. Sometime later the process was repeated but required more time and travel so when they suggested I send in an invoice I did. Therein the dilemma, how much was my experience worth? The farm had recently employed a good consultant and his rate was $150/hr. Tradesmen are anywhere between $50 and $100/hr. Lawyers and doctors are on a different planet so we won’t go there and if you ever need the services of a professional who has only “Mr” in front of his name you had better extend the OD. I solved my problem by using the salary of the position we filled as the basis for my charge-out rate. I fear I may have priced myself off the market because I’ve never been asked back.

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

A CAUTIONARY TALE

Nick Loughnan Alexandra, Central Otago

The often daily surprises life throws at us are what gives it all a bit of spice and what makes the whole business require a fair amount of adaptability at times. Indeed, the unpredictable nature of what faces us all every day can often draw us into a contest of quickly changing our priorities and plans to adjust. From the short and exciting fun of playing any form of competitive sport, to simply surviving another year on the farm unscathed from an occupation that is high on the ACC watchlist for accidents and injuries – quad bike rollovers, unintended mishaps with farm machinery, injuries from livestock or even rolling an ankle in a damned rabbit hole – we can take all the care we think is necessary. But we really don’t know just how the day is going to pan out when we get up in the morning, let alone what tomorrow will dish up for us. And we do tend to rate our chances pretty well as we age – I think it is called confidence, however misplaced that might be. The families we are born into, the upbringing we receive, the friends we

grow up with and the choices we make all help define who we are. In my case, there has always been a fair degree of optimism and willingness to try new ventures. And I have a great wife and have had plenty of good luck along the way. So the hints that something was not quite right with me as I hit 60 were ignored. I am of slight build, as fit as a fiddle, have regular doctor check-ups, a huge veggie garden, haven’t drunk for almost 20 years and enjoy life. However, as 2016 was closing off, I was struggling with lack of energy which I regrettably put down to just getting a bit older. Along with that had been a very minor discomfort in the tum for a couple of years which came and went and was certainly not enough to cause any alarm. Things started to change after a couple of very painful stomach bouts, and an eventual bleed from the bum. I knew I was in trouble and was admitted to hospital in January where scans told the tale – suspected bowel cancer. Bugger. Next was a colonoscopy to view the reality and some very quick surgery soon followed. It was a nasty tumour and had begun to spread. Another few months and the horrors of an incurable cancer could well have been my lot. Excuse the subject of this column, but it is an increasingly growing problem for Kiwis. New Zealand has among the highest rates of bowel cancer in the world and, for some unexplained reason, the lower South Island is the standout hotspot. And it is a real killer once it has started to move through the body. It’s taking more than 1200 people a year (more than double our road toll) and tragically we are

Cancer, the insidious killer.

Common signs and symptoms of bowel cancer may include: • blood in your bowel motions (this may look like red blood or black bowel motions) • a change in bowel habits • diarrhoea, constipation or feeling that your bowel doesn’t empty completely • bowel motions that are narrower than usual • general abdominal discomfort (frequent gas pains, bloating or cramps) that can be confused with indigestion • unexplained weight loss • tiredness • anaemia. Although symptoms are often caused by other conditions, it is important to get them checked by your doctor without delay. Source: Cancer Society of New Zealand.

ow? ou kn Did y

seeing more of it in younger people. Its early stages are often not recognised, or are sadly misdiagnosed as just indigestion or irritable bowel syndrome. Early detection is vital, where a very unobtrusive half-hour surgical procedure will remove, where it typically starts, any small polyps in the colon.

I knew I was in trouble and was admitted to hospital in January where scans told the tale – suspected bowel cancer.

I feel just so incredibly lucky now. The surgical team got on with the job proficiently, the hospital staff were excellent, and many of the nursing staff were just outstanding with their kindness and care. The public health system has saved me. I have dodged a bullet and after completing an unpleasant session of chemo which will end in spring, I will be good to go again. Meanwhile, I have a wonderfully supportive family and live in a great community where offers of help have plugged the gaps. We all must take our dose of mortality at some stage, however that lurking thief called cancer is not high on the menu for anyone. Every day, 60 more Kiwis are told they have got some form of cancer. So, try to avoid stress, listen to your body and live happily. Life is short enough anyway. And spare a thought for our Country Wide editor who always fronts each month with a very readable magazine. He is going through some even tougher times with his health. Best wishes Terry. Hang on in there buddy.

Country-Wide July 2017

Results have been mixed with the sugar beet.

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

Waiting for the rain

David Walston

Thriplow Farms, Cambridgeshire, England Early spring was fairly normal here, unlike the last couple of years which have been so cold that it was difficult to get any of our crops to grow away quickly. We started planting sugar beet in the middle of March using a one-pass system which combined strip tillage with the drill. Results have been mixed, with the light soil field working reasonably well, but the heavier areas range from mediocre to disastrous. It’s looking as if we will probably have to write off around a quarter of our crop

Following the sugar beet we drilled all our peas, oats and barley.

Country-Wide July 2017

and try to get something else planted there in autumn; either oilseed rape or beans if we can get them to work after the sugar beet herbicides that have already been applied. I’m very disappointed that we are in this situation, as I was pretty optimistic that it would work well – third time lucky. I think the problem has been that where we grazed with sheep over winter, the shallow compaction layer they leave behind meant the seeds were covered in a hard layer of soil which dried out into concrete and didn’t let them emerge consistently. The answer would probably have been to strip-till the ground in late winter, then come back with a second pass in spring – but then it can be very difficult to match the different passes with enough accuracy. Anyway, we live and learn. Perhaps next year we will try again? Following the sugar beet we drilled all our peas, oats and barley, finishing in the early part of April. It is a bit of a balancing act, as to get maximum yields we should really be going around a month earlier, but then our weed control, particularly for black grass, is very compromised. Luckily we are owner/ occupiers, so it’s possible to take a longerterm view, but not everyone has this luxury. After a little bit of rain towards the end of March, we then received effectively none at all in April or the first half of May. We expect this sort of thing in the east of the country, but even Wales, where it is normally too wet, was suffering badly. Easter Sunday looked very promising, and every farmer in the United Kingdom woke with a smile when they saw the forecast for that afternoon, but as the day went on, nothing came. It would be almost exactly a month after this until we had rain – a nice 45mm – but by now crops on lighter land, about half our farm, were really suffering. Large areas of wheat started to turn yellow, and although they greened up quickly within a couple of days of getting wet, a lot of tillers had been lost. They don’t look terrible now, but it is way too thin to make a good crop come summer. The one saving grace from April and May was that the weather stayed fairly cool, which limited how much of a

problem the drought was. Now, at the end of May, we are up into the high 20s and are already starting to worry about when the next drink will come. What a strange business we are in; so reliant on the weather, but never happy with it for more than a few days at a time. Changing the subject slightly, we are lucky enough to live on a farm which has great environmental credentials. We have three Sites of Special Scientific Interest with populations of rare plants and animals, like meadow orchids, grass poly and fairy shrimps. On top of that we have high numbers of ground-nesting birds and plenty of archaeological sites. Why is this lucky? Well, it means that the government is keen to have us in their environmental schemes, which are very competitive to get into these days. Our old programme expired in October 2016, and we were supposed to start a new one on January 1, 2017. Unfortunately, there was no sign of our agreement papers for months, until they finally turned up in the middle of May, with a note asking for them to be checked and returned within a couple of weeks. This would have been fine if there were not several mistakes in there which meant the payment was around 25% less than it should have been. Will there be enough time for the civil servants to get it fixed before the deadline? Who knows, but anyone who thought Brexit was a good idea because it would free us from inefficient European bureaucrats really needs to open their eyes and see that ours are probably even worse.

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

Casting for the right people

Gaye Coates Haupiri, West Coast

Winter is here and we have almost packed up and filed away the 2016/17 dairy season in the archives, hopefully wedged away somewhere out of sight never to see the light of day again. It really has been a year of some relentless challenges – financial and climatic – with many of the outcomes being completely out of our control. Ironically, after the dismal summer and the disastrous effects of too much rain, we have had one of the best autumns ever. Good cow condition, continued pasture growth and some sound management have combined to give us some bonus milk production. Hopefully the extra milk should offset the diesel used and R&M on the tractor doing all the hours rolling to try and restore the paddocks after the damage done from our summer wet. The focus now can be on getting ready for the start of this next season. The biggest hurdle is completing the team of staff. We are still one member short and it does feel as though we are running a bit close to the wire on this but I could honestly take up a career as a casting agent for Coronation Street based on our experiences and false starts in attempting to fill this position. On our farm, people matter. They

matter because quite simply we could not farm without them. But, it is more than a reliance on people to get a job done. People matter because we genuinely care. We care because people underpin the infrastructure of our farm where the boundaries between the job, our homes and the wider community extend, blur and blend. We are a small workforce, we live in a reasonably remote area and the people on our farm are not just employees. They are our tenants, our neighbours, they provide the friends for our own and the wider team’s children, they are the people we call on for help if something happens and they are our workmates – the people we graft alongside each day. They make a difference to how our day at work goes and how we feel about coming home each night. In short, the impact of the team on our lives and the other staff members is huge. But arguably, people are one of the toughest aspects of running a dairy farm business. On one side of the coin, recruiting capable staff is a struggle simply because there does not seem to be a sustainable number people out there who are genuinely passionate about the industry and who are realistic about their abilities. Those that do exist are a scarce commodity highly competed for. Within the minority of skilled candidates applying for our position, there were an alarming number who were hamstrung by their “recreational habits” or other factors in their past that merged their abilities with some complicated limitations. And, disappointingly there were suitable people who we could have employed but who had decided to exit the industry because the conditions of their previous jobs had quite simply worn them out. And that is the other side of the coin.

Relief staff or part timers don’t tend to be close by in Murray and Gaye Coates’ district, especially people as good as Kirsty Price, pictured, whose smile, sense of humour and practicality are an awesome contribution to the team, Gaye says.

Balanced against the lack of able people to fill our staff vacancies, there seems to be a degree of ineptness in the area of people management that has rubbed off in the wider context of encouraging and retaining good and talented people in our industry. Many of us as farm owners or managers can probably put our hands up and acknowledge that people management is not always something we have given priority to learning how to do well. It is often something just tacked on to our job descriptions by default as a result of our good practical stock and farming skills being recognised and promoting us to management or ownership. But people management skills and providing legal and quality employment do not necessarily simply happen by having good stock and pasture management. And, sometimes caring about people just isn’t quite enough when it comes to leading and managing a team effectively or to a level that showcases dairy farms as quality workplaces. So, like many things in farming it sometimes takes some adversity to ground you on what to focus on next in the business. The list of compliance and quality aspects to work on both as a farm and as a workplace seem to grow longer every season, but for us this year there is some fine tuning and some formal learning planned in the people management aspect of our business.

Country-Wide July 2017

HOME BLOCK | COLUMN

Mt Hutt ready to open for another season – chilly winter scenes at Middle Rock.

In praise of Wonder Boy

Charlotte Rietveld Rakaia Gorge, Canterbury

While we’re now well into winter, autumn in inland Canterbury’s Rakaia Gorge is always keenly awaited. Our infamous nor’westers generally take a welcome break, giving way to rain, with warm temperatures still allowing for some pre-winter feed banking. The Boss has always informed me it’s our most crucial time – if conditions for growth don’t arrive, the flow-on effect will last well beyond winter. This year the mallards have lined up, with ample rain falling early enough to meet warm soil temperatures. Winter feed crops are still nothing to write home about, but will provide adequate feed nonetheless. This is helped by the fact that we have once again sold the 1500 normally wintered wether lambs. Despite feed being available, prices easily averaging more than $100/head made this a logical decision, though if I’m entirely truthful, I must admit to being against selling them. With baby #2 due inside of a fortnight, I have long ago been relegated indoors. To add insult to injury, my rotund,

Country-Wide July 2017

waddling self has been replaced by a 24-year-old fit, strapping lad. This young man, with his long limbs and endless enthusiasm has turned up, pilfered my job and never looked back. Naturally, I want to make sure that Wonder Boy is put through his paces and giving him one less mob to feed all winter was certainly not part of my boot camp plans. As it has turned out, I needn’t have wasted my breath. Wonder Boy has taken Middle Rock by storm. These days I’m lucky if I get included on even the biggest of tasks. His long limbs motor through any job at hand, while still coming up with suggestions to save time, money and resources. Naturally I find this all most distasteful but it seems he can do no wrong. Despite having to provide meals for yet another mouth, the Chief

The Boss, Bruce Nell with 16-month old Lucy, Wonder Boy Adam Dickey and Charlotte Rietveld.

Inspector simply can’t extend vowels to rave enough – “he’s briiiiiiilliant, just amaaaaaaazing” is all I hear. Even The Boss, in true laconic fashion pulls out all the stops when reviewing Wonder Boy’s performance; “he’s very good”. After eight years of farming with The Boss, I never remember hearing anything about my performance being “good”. I recall a few “very” comments though. With responsibilities now barely extending beyond firewood, I can’t help but wonder if this is what farming retirement feels like – begrudgingly shuffling off farm to make way for younger, more agile limbs and fresh ideas. Hopefully not everyone’s retirement involves washing nappies and reading Hairy MacLary five times a day but I suspect I am not alone in realising there is only so much satisfaction to be gained from a well-folded pile of washing. Fortunately I can remind myself this is but another phase – a most worthwhile one at that – and that it too shall pass. While we’d all love to think of ourselves as irreplaceable and that the ship would fall to pieces without us, it seems that is not the case. This is probably a lesson learned easier at 35 than 65, but a hard lesson at any age.

With responsibilities now barely extending beyond firewood, I can’t help but wonder if this is what farming retirement feels like.

The deeply entrenched satisfaction of practical rural work means any change, be it from retirement, physical impairment or merely circumstantial, leaves people questioning their sense of identity and purpose. While my waddling self can’t help but feel rather lucky to have this brief maternity sabbatical, I can’t help but think complete retirement is to be avoided. Now before I receive hate mail from every frustrated Gen X and Y farmer in the nation, all you Gold Card-holding Once Were Wonder Boys take note – I am not for any second suggesting that you do not let go of the reins to give the next generation a chance. By all means step aside, pick your jobs and your weather, just don’t entirely switch the slip-ons for slippers in any great hurry. But rest assured if Wonder Boy and the many other younger people in the Rakaia Gorge area are anything to go by, farming’s future is in good hands.

NOTEBOOK The Big Deer Tour Final year BAgCom, BAgSci, Environmental Management or related degree students are invited to apply for an all-expenses paid get-to-knowthe-deer-industry course from August 26-September 3. The three chosen are guaranteed a full-on week learning from high country deer farmers, deer researchers and scientists, agricultural consultants working with deer clients, venison marketing companies and attending farmer workshops. Applications close on July 7 so be in quick.

Hard workers Got a barking good idea for a working dog research project? Applications for the next round of funding from the Working Dog Centre close on July 14. Visit the Massey University website to learn more about The Centre for Service and Working Dog Health and Research and to download an application form. Go to www.bit.ly/2rcOGTq

More? www.deernz.org/thebigdeertour

Working for the Environment FAR (Foundation for Arable Research) holds Working for the Environment events at Waipukurau and Palmerston North on July 5 and 6 where presentations on research will include: Lessons from the Fluxmeter sites with Diana Mathers; Precision Ag – variable rate seeding; Variable Rate Fertiliser Decisions in Maize with Adrian Hunt; cover crops and slugs. More? www.far.org.nz/events

Talking chimpanzees The series of Evenings with Dr Jane Goodall wraps up in Auckland on Saturday, July 1 at Auckland’s Logan Campbell Centre. Goodall is considered the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees and is a noted conservationist. The Auckland event follows similar evenings in Dunedin, Wellington and Christchurch. More? www.bit.ly/2rkSUfV

and short film, Number One Field Punishment is on daily at Wellington Museum, 3 Jervois Quay, Queens Wharf, Wellington. More? www.museumswellington.org.nz/ wellington-museum/ or ww100.govt.nz

Testing time

Wapiti work

Remembering WW1

Southland Elk Wapiti Advance Party holds a regional workshop on July 12. More? www.ap.org.nz/regionalworkshops 14

In July 1917 Otago farm worker conscientious objector Archibald Baxter was marched from his Wellington prison cell up the gangplank of the troopship ‘Waitemata’ and taken to the Western Front in France. There he was tied to a pole with his arms behind his back and his feet off the ground. This was Field Punishment Number One. An exhibition

Early July sees the long-awaited British and Irish Lions rugby tour of New Zealand wrap up with the second and third test matches against the All Blacks. Second Test at Wellington’s Westpac Stadium on July 1 with the Third and final Test on July 8 at Auckland’s Eden Park.

NOTE BOOK

If you have something you think might be suitable for the Notebook page please send it in a word document (.doc) to andy.maciver@ nzfarmlife.co.nz along with any pictures as jpgs. Country-Wide July 2017

FACTS

US beef market surprisingly strong 230

Reece Brick

210

US buyers were eventually forced to buy again at higher prices or risk finding themselves short-stocked in the lead up to the Memorial Day holidays, one of the major periods for beef consumption in the US.

Those anticipated volumes of product never arrived in significant volumes. The NZ peak cow kill began very slowly, while exporters also forward-sold much more beef than usual. US buyers were eventually forced to buy again at higher prices or risk finding themselves shortstocked in the lead up to the Memorial Day holidays, one of the major periods for beef consumption in the US. Country-Wide July 2017

190 170 13-Mar

230

13-May 13-Jul 5-yr Ave Last Year

13-Sep This Year

US imported 90CL

210

USc/lb

n a usual year the United States imported beef market tails off. Increased supply out of New Zealand and Australia following their respective peak dairy cow kill periods usually outweighs demand and exporters are made to accept lower prices. This year’s been different. Lean grinding beef, otherwise known as 90CL and 95CL, accounts for a major share of NZ’s beef exports. The vast majority of 90CL and 95C beef is sold straight into the US. It wasn’t surprising when US lean grinding beef prices eased through April. US buyers were anticipating the market to become saturated with NZ cow meat and subsequently sat on the side-lines until it arrived. What was surprising was the rally in prices since.

US imported 90CL

USc/lb

AGRIHQ ANALYST

190 170 13-Mar

13-May 13-Jul 5-yr Ave Last Year

Since the beginning of May imported 90CL prices have risen 13c/lb or 6%. You have to look back at least eight years to find another time when they rose at all through this period as prices nearly always stabilise or fall away. As of midJune, imported 90CL and 95CL were at their highest-ever prices for this point in the year. It was not only supply influencing the market though. Although this may seem counter-intuitive, lower retail beef prices in the US have underpinned prices too. US retail indicator prices for grinding beef eased since the end of last year as more supermarkets ran more promotions involving beef versus other meats like

13-Sep This Year

chicken and protein, increasing consumer demand for beef. The outlook from those involved in the industry is for more of the same. Short-term offerings out of Australia and NZ are likely to stay tight, while solid exports out of the US should keep the market relatively tight on product. However, given its volatility in past years, no-one is willing to say with much certainty what will eventuate by the end of the year.

BUSINESS | DATA

Farmer invention weighs in James Hoban

Kiwi farmer and American software experts have developed what is claimed to be a high-tech, low-cost, easy-to-use weigh indicator. Dan Shand is not the average farmer. Like most sheep and beef farmers he has been frustrated by the ability to collect and use data to create real value onfarm, disappointed in the communications services in remote farming communities and confused by the complexity of NAIT compliance. Unlike most farmers, he has done something about it. For the past four years Dan has been working with technology experts from around the world, led by American Jim McCormick to create a system he says could transform the way farmers use data. Instead of focusing on the data, they have focused on the important decisions farmers make and where and when they make them. Shand’s 2014 Nuffield project was based on the opportunities to utilise mobile technology on New Zealand farms and throughout the value chain. Four years on he has successfully developed Stock Manager – an Android tablet application. It was officially launched at National Fieldays at Mystery Creek in June. Shand, a North Canterbury high country farmer and Country-Wide columnist, said they have turned a common Android tablet into the most advanced, intelligent, easy-to-use weigh indicator in the world.

‘StockManager is about the farmer’s reality of working on your business while in it,’ developer and farmer Dan Shand says.

His 2014 Nuffield scholarship injected Shand with a new enthusiasm but also frustration at what he could see as obvious opportunities for NZ’s primary industries. Shand and McCormick, his business partner, have, after extensive development work and a successful search for the right developers, largely done it themselves. StockManager was a native application – meaning it does not require wifi reception to be used. It is able to provide all the information needed on the farm at the right time but still has the functions to access the cloud when required for tasks such as downloading tag orders, NAIT reporting and syncing data with the web or other tablets on the same farm. Shand saw potential in cloud-based farm information. A huge amount of valuable benchmarking data is sitting on weigh indicators on farms across the country. If this type of information was in an intelligent database the opportunities are huge.”

Cannot talk Traditionally, livestock recording has been centred on single-purpose weigh indicators. Farmers have been weighing animals for decades. The complexity of recording has increased due to developments such as EID (electronic identification) and auto-drafters. As complexity has grown, developers have continued to focus on using the weigh indicator as the key ingredient. This has made stock recording complex and usability difficult. Shand said existing weigh indicators operate on sessions files, meaning files have to be manually transferred from one device to another in order to use them effectively. In modern information architecture, the traditional weigh indicators that hold all the information cannot ‘talk’ to other platforms. This approach is perpetuated by the largest livestock weigh indicator companies in the word – who continue to base new ideas in this space around weigh indicators. “Persevering with this file or session based approach is restricting the industry’s ability to use and share data across multiple platforms and is limiting farmer adoption.”

The flow-on effects of this information in the value chain were significant, he said. The finisher could pay a premium to the breeder of the best-performing lines. They could also improve the consistency of their own business by targeting higher growth rate animals, with factual evidence as opposed to subjective assessment of stock. Consistency with kill dates and weights is beneficial to the processors in managing plant capacity and they too can pay a premium for the finisher’s stock. “All three parties can benefit through improved cost efficiencies, development of long-term relationships and product premiums.” It aims to provide farmers with the ability to increase their understanding of their farm’s performance. It specifically targets breeding, feeding and sales decisions with the aims of seeing farmers rewarded for quality and creating a real transparent value chain which that will create product premiums. “StockManager is about the farmer’s reality of working on your business while in it – and not having to farm in the dark, at night, when you should be with family and friends – or in the field while trying to understand your stock performance.” It can be used to record and manage multiple feed and animal attributes, depending on what the user wants to know. The user can target any attributes they wish. It is not limited to simply measuring liveweight or EID animals, in isolation, at one time but allows users to understand multiple attributes over many years and the associated cost benefits of feeding.

More on StockManager p68 Country-Wide July 2017

BUSINESS | MARKETING

Charlie Pattison’s Waiwhero Station is an Atkins Ranch and GAP Step 4 supplier.

Meat company rewards suppliers Russell Priest From small beginnings in 1989, Atkins Ranch has grown into a successful New Zealand lamb niche-marketing company. Its chairman Rob Buddo believes it was the best marketing model in the NZ lamb industry. The Hawke’s Bay farmer is also chairman of Lean Meats, the company that supplies and processes the lambs for the United States market. Atkins Ranch markets the branded product of the same name in the US. Last year farmer suppliers in the Atkins Ranch producer group pool received a pool payment of $7.43 (previous year $5.50) above the competitive schedule on the day. Shareholders also received a dividend last year. Buddo said both pool payments and dividends are forecast to increase as the benefits of product differentiation kick in. Atkins Ranch was originally established by the Phil Guscott and the late John

Atkins to supply heavy, lean, chilled lamb into San Francisco to consumers many of middle-eastern ethnicity. It is now a major lamb supplier to Whole Foods Market Company one of the largest supermarket chains in North America. Buddo attributes a lot of the early marketing success to Atkins, a man with boundless charisma and energy who wore out countless pairs of shoes pounding the streets of San Francisco selling the product directly to the consumer. “He took the message about what the NZ farmer does at home on the farm to the American consumer.” In the late 1980s John Morris, an expat New Zealander, alerted Atkins and Guscott to the existence of such a market. Morris was senior vice-president of supermarket Safeway. A consumer survey was undertaken confirming this and also that a premium could be expected if market specifications were met. Atkins and Guscott returned

to NZ and set about organising a supply chain. Farmer meetings were held in the lower North Island and interested parties asked to make a capital and supply commitment to set up the company and supply lambs. Starting with one container a month the market gradually grew on the coat tails of Whole Foods’ rapid expansion across the US. Supplying lambs particularly in the tail of the season was a major impediment to expansion and still is. Atkins’ daughter Karen is involved in farmer-liaison work in NZ and son Andrew is president of Atkins Ranch based in the company’s Freemont plant in San Francisco. The company’s focus changed briefly in 2006 when it bought the Abco processing plant in Oamaru before selling it in 2014 and returning to its core business of inmarket promotion. “We took our eye off the ball with the decision to buy this facility, but now

Protect now to prevent a Salmonella outbreak. Salvexin®+B is a proven vaccine against enteric

Don’t wait until it’s too late. Protect

and Brandenburg salmonellosis that helps prevent

against unnecessary ewe deaths

infection, reduces the impact of a disease outbreak

by vaccinating with Salvexin+B.

and minimises production losses.

AVAILABLE ONLY UNDER VETERINARY AUTHORISATION. ACVM No: A9927 ®Registered trademark. Schering-Plough Animal Health Ltd. Phone: 0800 800 543. www.msd-animal-health.co.nz. NZ/SALB/0616/0001

01661_MSD Banners 70x186mm_Salvexin+B.indd 1

Country-Wide July 2017

1/02/17 2:10 PM

BUSINESS | HEALTH AND SAFETY

Home safely, every night Rebecca Harper Creating a team culture and getting staff buy-in to your farm’s health and safety policy can be easier said than done. The Agri-Women’s Development Trust’s latest programme, Protecting Your Team, teaches women about how they can successfully lead health and safety change in their business. While it’s important to know what needs to be done to comply with health and safety laws, this one-day course focuses less on the letter of the law and more on hearts and minds – how to change attitudes towards health and safety on farm. AWDT developed and piloted the programme last year and partners with ACC and Worksafe to deliver it. This year five courses were run, in both the North and South Islands. The recent course in Masterton, delivered by AWDT founder Lindy Nelson and her husband David, explored how to create a positive health and safety culture in your business, in turn improving the results of formal processes. The workshop gets to the heart of how to make changes so farmers make it home each day to their families, reducing the emotional and financial costs of loss of life and serious injury. They outlined how the cost of not

we’re back on track and making good progress,” Buddo said. Meat industry innovator Craig Hickson was instrumental in achieving this and is now the major shareholder. Rob said Hickson brought financial stability to the business. More importantly he provided the vision and disciplines required to future-proof the company ensuring it remains true to its founding principles. North Island-produced lambs are toll-processed at Progressive Meats in Hastings and the South Island ones at Oamaru Meats. Carcases are exported in a broken-down form to Freemont to be processed into cuts to suit American consumers. The facility also processes other locally produced products like chicken to supply Whole Foods or other outlets. Buddo said Atkins Ranch was focussed 18

taking health and safety seriously is high – and it’s all about productivity. In 2013 more than 21,000 injury claims were made to ACC, resulting in $26 million of costs. Of those injuries, more than 2100 resulted in more than five days off work. There were 175,000 days of lost or limited productivity. If you lost a key person in your farming business, what would the impact on productivity, and ultimately profitability, be? A good health and safety policy could be viewed as a proactive form of key person insurance. Participants ranged from those starting out on developing a health and safety policy, to those with active policies keen to learn how to lift staff engagement. The objectives for the day were for participants to leave with a desire to become agents for change in their farming businesses, the tools to create, develop and implement a positive health and safety culture, knowledge of where to go to get information, and the confidence to change culture around health and safety. The course addressed values and how they are the key drivers for people – the things that motivate them. This is a key difference of the AWDT course, which is about understanding the behaviours that sit behind how people respond to and approach health and safety.

‘We’re back on track and making good progress,’ Rob Buddo says. Picture John Cowpland

on finding out what consumers wanted then relaying this to farmer suppliers and the processors. “We have a number of innovative marketing ideas in the pot at the moment all aimed at achieving this.” The company has adopted an AusMeat Australia-audited food safety, quality assurance and animal welfare compliance programme called Global

Lindy Nelson

Participants learned how to identify different personality profiles and think about how to frame health and safety messages to appeal to that person’s values. If we don’t understand how someone approaches and assesses risk, we can’t understand how they will respond to our farm’s health and safety plan. It also discussed resistance to change, common causes of resistance and tips for dealing with resistance. As well as values and helping change attitudes, the programme gave practical examples of how health and safety programmes are successfully working on real farms through a series of short videos. It also took participants through a series of exercises to identify strategic focus areas in their own business to work on e.g initiating regular team meetings about health and safety or creating procedures for visitors and contractors, and the key actions required to achieve these goals. For more information about Protecting Your Team visit: www.awdt.org.nz/ programmes/protecting-your-team

Animal Partnership (GAP). AR is the first lamb business in the world to join this programme. Buddo said it was another indication of the growing number of consumers who want to be sure where their food comes from and how it was handled from production to plate. More than 70 of the 100 regular supply farms have already attained four of the five steps required to achieve full accreditation by GAP. Suppliers are also geneticallymodified organism-free (GMO) further differentiating their product from those of competitors. Being a shareholder was not a pre-requisite to supply lambs to the company at the moment however it is an advantage when space becomes limited.

More page on Rob Buddo p32 Country-Wide July 2017

Compact

But with all the productivity of a much larger machine.

ON NEW .95 AVAILABLE PLANTING

FINANCE

EQUIPMENT

We can help you maximise your planting performance with the 1725NT Stack-Fold Planters from John Deere. Especially designed for smaller paddocks and narrow transport, this 8-row (6 m) model offers all the productivity and accuracy you’d expect from a larger planter. Fast road transport is not a problem for this compact package – it rapidly folds to just 3 metres in width. Choose ExactEmerge™ or MaxEmerge™ 5e row units and benefit from all the agronomic advantages they offer. ExactEmerge is the planting solution that can maintain accurate singulation, population, spacing, and uniform depth…all at an unprecedented 16 kilometres per hour. The “e” in MaxEmerge 5e stands for electric drive, equaling more precise, easier access to row-units and simplified maintenance. New FT180 front tank and frame mounted fertiliser openers are optionally available to place dry fertiliser alongside and below the seed trench. The 1800 kg hopper is electrically metered to precisely control fertiliser rates. If you expect proven performance from a compact planter − plus a good deal to match, then talk to your nearest dealer today. *Conditions apply. Finance available through John Deere Financial Limited to approved commercial applicants only. Offer is based on 30% deposit, GST back and 36 month term with 36 monthly repayments. Fees and charges apply. If not amended or withdrawn earlier, the promotion expires on 31 August 2017. Country-Wide July 2017

JohnDeere.co.nz 19

BUSINESS | OPINION

Healthy calves, healthy profit Joanne Leigh Dairying farming is our livelihood. We are driven by the profits we can make to support our lifestyle but in order to achieve this we must consider the wellbeing and care of our “providers”. As in child-raising, calf-rearing is the beginning of nurturing those good genes. What do we say? “We are what we eat, we are what we do.” To raise healthy calves profitably there are two main things to consider. First, let’s look at output. Output (or the number of calves that reach 100kg) equals income. Secondly, let’s look at costs. Higher output and less costs equal more profit. I challenge you to spend time before the start of calving reviewing your setup and planning for calf-rearing this spring.

MAXIMISING OUTPUT Let’s look at increasing the output first. Good facilities are the cornerstone. There should be enough room to house all your replacements and any calves for sale (calves for sale should be kept separate). “Hospital” pens should also be provided for sick calves. Here they can be isolated from the main calf pens and reduce the likelihood of disease spreading, they can also be treated more easily. Feeding calves colostrum is another cornerstone. First, tubing calves with two litres of warm first-colostrum on arrival at the calf shed is vital. Calves need 4l of first-milking colostrum in the first 12 hours. Great staff who really care about calves are vital too. Attention to detail is also important, it’s all the little things that make a calfrearing system profitable, as is having good systems in place to make feeding and caring for the calves easy and enjoyable. Timely vaccinating, dehorning, weighing and drafting; the correct timing 20

of weaning off milk and later off meal for each calf is very important. Attention to these details will keep death rates down and growth rates up, increasing output and profits.

Calf-rearing is the beginning of nurturing good genes, Joanne Leigh says.

MINIMISING COSTS The two biggest feed costs in a calfrearing system are milk and meal. Milk costs: To keep the cost of milk down utilise as much of your own colostrum as you can. Have good storage facilities, keep it stirred and free from bacterial contamination. Feed the older stored milk to the oldest calves (it may need to be mixed with some fresh milk or milk powder to improve palatability) and feed the fresh milk to the youngest calves. The question of when to buy milk powder or take milk out of the vat, is a simple one to answer; when you know the cost of each. For example, a bag of Ancalf milk powder may cost $74 and mix up to 135l, this is 55c/l. Compare this to the value of milk in the vat. If we use $6.00/kg MS, average of 8.4% MS, this equates to 11.9l/kg MS – $6/11.9 = 50.4c/L. The cost of taking milk out of the vat is 50.4c/l, then if it is during the peak, there may be another 50c/kg MS deduction to take into account. This equates to 4.2c/l. So the predicted cost would be 50.4c/l – 4.2c/l = 46.2c/l. Note this is only a prediction. In this scenario it costs less to take milk out of the vat to feed your calves than to buy milk powder. Meal Costs: Meal is the other big feed cost. Meal helps calves (pre-ruminants) develop their rumen so that they can digest pasture. The cost of the meal is only part of the equation, as the quality of the feed and additives also need to be taken into account. Most meals are 16%-20% protein.

In general, the higher the protein percentage the more costly the meal. If you are feeding 4l milk/day to your calves they will only need a 16% protein meal as they are receiving adequate protein in their milk. Animals need a minimum of 16% protein in their diet for growth. Once weaned off milk and on good quality pasture and meal, 16% protein meal will again suffice as the protein percentage in the pasture will be higher meeting the minimum of 16% over both feeds. The other factor is the energy content of the meal (ME). Good quality meals should be 12MJ ME/kg. They also need to have a coccidiostat e.g. Bovatec (to reduce the chance of your calves getting coccidiosis), a mould inhibitor and appropriate minerals (to meet the NRC guidelines).

CALLING IN A CONTRACTOR In some circumstances it may be more profitable to contract out calf rearing. A number of commercial calf rearers are available. If you go down this path, choose one that has a very good reputation and weigh up the cost versus the result. `Often this can be a good option for a portion of your calves, or the whole lot if you are short of staff, or don’t have adequate facilities. What changes are you going to make to improve the profitability of your calfrearing system? • Joanne Leigh and her husband Jonathan run Top-Notch Calves see p36 Country-Wide July 2017

BUSINESS | EXPORTS

It’s not all about production To continue being globally relevant in agriculture, New Zealand needs to be locally connected in key markets. During her 2016 Nuffield scholarship, Jessica Bensemann set out to learn more about NZ’s role in the future of global agriculture. In a summary of her final report, Bensemann wrote that for such an export-dependent nation, NZ seems comparatively disconnected from global agricultural trends and news. “Conversations at an industry level are primarily focused on behind-the-farmgate or processor-level issues.” There is an opportunity to better utilise our international networks of industry body representatives, export company staff, and government officials to raise awareness of, and engagement in, global issues that will impact our farming community, she says. Bensemann questions the push in NZ to increase production. “Why do we set that as the goal and should we have something slightly more nuanced that reflects a balanced perspective of sustainability – social, economic, environmental?” Instead of pushing production increases, leaders in agriculture need to be standing up for the resources we so heavily depend upon and attempting to create systems that better support sustainable agriculture. “We produce enough already. There are other ‘less-sexy’ things that need to

be done, including education about the impact that current food production is having, that it is not an endless resource and that people are therefore required to change their behaviour.” NZ is very good at creating value through selling produce into the most competitive market on the day, but this model will maintain our position as price takers, rather than price makers. Investment in onfarm production research, development and farm systems means we are at the top end of the productivity frontier. NZ should use this time of advantage to develop a sustainable set of activities that fit together as a distinctive strategy, she says. Bensemann says developing goods and services that are valuable to consumers, differentiated and can’t be easily replicated requires a move towards a global agribusiness strategy rather than just a marketing strategy. During her studies, Bensemann visited

South America, seeking an understanding of how NZ businesses (farming and agritech) are operating there and what the opportunities are for expansion. The success and integration of NZ farming systems into local farming communities is important. Any failures cause damage to our reputation. This means moving the relationship beyond transactions and short-term wins and thinking more long term. There is more potential to do this with differentiated products such as premium products, brands and those with a story that is different to other similar products. “This again comes back to understanding the culture of our international partners, and what resonates with them with regards to a story – either around a lamb or dairy product, or the benefits of pasture grazing systems.” Read Jessica Bensemann’s full report at www.nuffield.org.nz

NEW ZEALAND MAIN EXPORT MARKETS Year ended June 2016, New Zealand dollars, Source: Statistics NZ

New Zealand’s five main markets attract 65% of total exports by value.

DRIVE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN AGRICULTURE THE 2018 NUFFIELD NEW ZEALAND FARMING SCHOLARSHIPS APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN Scholarships are awarded each year to those involved in farming and growing, who aspire to influence the future of their industry. nuffield.org.nz | admin@nuffield.org.nz STRATEGIC PARTNERS

Country-Wide July 2017

BUSINESS | ANIMAL HEALTH

Global solutions to local problems Dave Robertson As a vet in New Zealand it is a privilege to work with some of the best ruminant production systems in the world, even if we don’t have half the exciting diseases other vets around the world deal with. I recently attended the International Sheep Veterinary Conference, 2017, held in Harrogate, England, where more than 300 papers were presented on numerous angles of sheep and goat health and production. I presented a paper on the Beef + Lamb Genetics-funded research into commercial ram health and husbandry in NZ. It was a great opportunity to learn and to network. Principles of veterinary health planning was one main theme. Neil Sargison, professor of farm animal production at the Royal Edinburgh Veterinary College, delivered a compelling case for the role of proper health planning – “modern pharmacueticals alone are not the solution for global animal health and welfare changes”. Whether it’s a global or farm-specific disease issue the discipline of how to proceed should be the same. Collecting data, defining the problem, putting a plan in place and doing the follow-up are the basis of veterinary investigation. Making sure the recommendations have the right social and environmental context is important. A number of examples were given where western genetics or modern medicines given in a different context have had very poor outcomes. It is easy to find an expert for advice, but their use depends on their experience of the environment you’re in. Back to my context as a vet in NZ, it is common that when a problem is perceived, we reach for a solution without much definition, monitoring or follow-up. I sat through two sessions on footrot control strategies from around the world. It was clear antibiotics or vaccines alone were not the sole solution to dealing with lame sheep. Indeed there were some promising developments 22

with drugs and genetic solutions available, but the countries that had the best systems and understanding of the disease process in their context seemed to get the best results. A study in the United Kingdom compared footrot success rates. Farmers were 30% effective in achieving control without any advice, whereas farmers who sought advice and developed a plan were 70% successful.

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT A key aspect of a planned approach to animal problems is the engagement between the farmer and sources of advice (if any). For example, as a veterinarian concerned with delivering sustainable worm control messages this area takes many forms.

A number of examples were given where western genetics or modern medicines given in a different context have had very poor outcomes. It is easy to find an expert for advice, but their use depends on their experience of the environment you’re in.

Changing habits around drenching to ensure the practice is sustainable and effective takes many angles. Science and data are important, but farmers need to see it working in their environment and often are more convinced when their peers have adopted a practice. Many talks were on various sustainable worm control programmes around the world, as drench resistance is a global issue. Since drenching has only been around for 30-odd years, current practices obviously do need to change to have any future. This conference has motivated me to

be more structured and disciplined about the follow-up and reviewing of client issues and encourage more monitoring of key areas.

SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DYNAMICS Sheep and goats have had a long association with human civilisation. Their requirements and our needs have been intertwined for thousands of years. The conference highlighted this with some amazing examples of how sheep and goats act as the bank of the developing world. A passionate talk from Antonio Rota, the lead technical specialist on livestock development of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), focussed on small ruminants as “tools for poverty reduction and food security”. Policies that improve sheep and goat production around the world has the potential to impact more than half of the world’s poorest people, he said, showing examples in India, Afghanistan and African countries. NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND IDEAS Numerous speakers covered development of new technologies to benefit small ruminant production. Areas such as new generation vaccine development for internal parasites and footrot control were among these relevant to NZ. Research into eliminating genetic defects and finding the superior traits for disease resistance and production always interests me. When comparing global approaches to small ruminant issues, I got the impression NZ research is geared towards finding genetic solutions for our production systems. Substantial investment in this area from Beef + Country-Wide July 2017

Lamb Genetics NZ is evidence of this. Even though many NZ breeders have reservations about SIL it is envied by many other countries.

The sustainability of global livestock production is influenced by the efficiency of conversion of primary crops to food and fibre.

NZ has efficient, safe and sustainable sheep production systems. We are in the position to really leverage off this food security and production message. I am encouraged that sheep farming in NZ has a bright future if we do not under-value our unique advantage over the rest of the world.

Farmers, scientific researchers, politicians, and every New Zealander, urban and rural, have a part in working together on this message. • Dave Robertson was sponsored by Oamaru Veterinary Centre and Beef + Lamb Genetics New Zealand

02045 WPABMCW

NEW ZEALAND – A WORLD LEADER AND PRIVILEGED POSITION On the international night every country had to do an item. There were more than a dozen New Zealanders up for our Fred Dagg version of Monty Python’s four Yorkshireman finishing with a few raucus lines of “we don’t know how lucky we are”. Although this was just for a bit of laugh, the conference constantly made my Kiwi colleagues and me aware of the extremely fortunate status of NZ in the world sheep production. In the UK diseases account for 17% of production losses. In developing countries this is 30-50%. I’m not sure what the rate in NZ is, but listening to all the other countries’ talks on various diseases like blue tongue, louping ill, schmallenburg abortion, contagious ovine digital dermatitis, pulmonary tumours – to name just a few – that we don’t have, we are very fortunate. I may now have less sympathy for Kiwi farmers that complain about “turning their twotooths into pin cushions”.

Livestock are kept to convert primary resources into marketable products.

“He’s not the money provider guy. He’s the benchmark guy and the ‘what do you think of this’ guy.” Justin King, Brookwood Station, Takapau

At Westpac, our Agribusiness bankers know farming. And they bring all that accumulated knowledge and expertise to your business. So when it comes to making things happen they’re in a good place. Usually yours. It’s why we’re putting on more Agribusiness bankers. We’re backing farming and we’re backing farmers.

To find your local Agribusiness banker, visit westpac.co.nz/agri Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | ONFARM Mike - developing land has been his life challenge.

Dairy beef funds development Northland farmers Mike and Karen Smales have always raised dairy beef calves, Sheryl Brown writes. And it has paid for their farm development.

airy beef calves have always been a healthy supplement income for Maungaturoto farmers Mike and Karen Smales. The couple operate a mixed dairy and beef system on their Northland farm, half of which they developed from scrub into pasture. Selling Angus and Hereford calves from their crossbred dairy herd over the last 43 years has helped pay to clear the land and grow their business. “We’ve always done dairy beef. It used to be a dirty word, but we called it our development fund,” Mike says. “The first 10 years there were not a lot of farmers doing it. People used to put their dairy beef calves on the bobby truck.” But the dairy beef market has continued to grow and only get stronger. There is a historic beef schedule at the moment which sets the scene for it to continue, Mike says. The key for Mike and Karen during

Key points: A couple making the most of the dairy beef market: • Mixed dairy and beef system • Breeding beef from crossbred dairy cows • Working with the land you’ve got • Flexibility in your operation

their lives has been to stay in a position where their business can adapt to market demand. They have tried to ensure their business has enough flexibility to be able to sell or hold stock where necessary. Farmers can get burnt by trying to chase the dairy beef market, Karen says. “Farmers are always a season behind the eight ball getting into it.” When the rush comes on and prices go down they are usually in a better position because they haven’t given up anything else in their business to chase the market.

“We drop back too, but we’ve always done it and never changed our farming policy to swing with the ups.” They typically rear all of the calves and finish them through to two-year-olds. However, will sell stock depending on market prices or feed supply on the farm. They sold 80 R1 calves in February to account for the drought that was hitting Northland earlier in the year. They’d had no rain since the start of December and the schedule was buoyant in the Waikato and King Country at the time so they made the decision to get some stock off the farm. The weaner steers averaged $750 and the heifers averaged $630 for an average weight of 207kgs. “All your decisions in farming are weather-driven,” Karen says. “We try and be proactive rather than reactive – you’ve got to go by your gut and your experience. “There is no good in saying we should have done this, or should have done that. You make a decision and go with it.”

Country-Wide July 2017

Farm facts • Owners: Mike and Karen Smales • Location: Maungaturoto, Northland • Area: 330ha • Average rainfall: 1500mm • Milking Operation • Milking Platform: 186ha • Milking Platform stocking rate: 2.4 cows/ha • Cows: 480 Crossbreds • Record production: 144,000kg milksolids 2013/14 • Supplements; 20ha maize grown onfarm, 120t PKE bought • Farm dairy: 30-aside herringbone • Effluent irrigation: 20ha • Stock onfarm Autumn 2017 • 251 R1 steers • 238 R1 heifers • 113 R2 steers • 278 R2 heifers • 25 bulls • 480 Crossbred dairy cows

Clearing the scrub The couple both grew up on sheep and beef farms in Northland. Mike worked on Karen’s family farm for eight years before they were able to go out on their own. They bought their first 280 hectares at Maungaturoto in 1968 for $7000, with a $1000 deposit. They ran beef cows and once a year did an annual roundup having to go nearly to Waipu to find all the cows and calves. The calves were then sent to the calf fair. In 1974 the neighbouring dairy unit came on the market which they bought with 85% borrowing from Marginal Lands and the balance from inherited money. Karen and Mike had never milked cows before and on August 8 they moved in milking 108 cows. It was a very wet winter and on the first night they got into bed, looked up at the ceiling which was painted the colour of calf shit and said “what the hell have we let ourselves into?” Money was tight so the couple used old milk liners as insulators and manuka poles for posts.

Country-Wide July 2017

MAUNGATUROTO

Mike and Karen – dairy beef calves have been their business development fund.

“We learnt that if you didn’t have money you couldn’t spend it.” In 1979 the next door runoff came on the market. Around this time a strong interest in pine trees was growing so they were able to sell off the steepest country of their original block to buy the runoff – which was again mainly scrub and gorse and the soil had very low fertility. “We were fortunate enough to have Hugh Kirton as our Dairy Board consulting officer at the time who guided us through a development programme along with government assistance by way of the Livestock Incentive and Land Development Loan,” Mike says. They were able to make reasonable headway. Mike was starting to listen to others telling him to stop and leave until next year as the weather was closing in, but Hugh came up and looked at the development and said “this is coming up well now what’s the problem”. “A lot of farmers who we respected told us it would always be gorse. That was a very motivating challenge for me,” Mike says. The land bought was in 1984 which was a block along the road that had been developed under the Livestock Incentive and Land Development Loan. The owners had not been able to pay back the loan so Karen and Mike were

able to buy it for what was owing. Again the land was covered in gorse. “It was an expensive piece of dirt really. It’s taken 30 years to really grow good grass,” Karen says. Through all of this they couldn’t afford to buy a herd of beef breeding cows so decided to breed beef bulls over their dairy herd. “Mike always wanted to be beef farming. We couldn’t afford to buy the beef cows, we had no money so the best thing was to rear the calves,” Karen says. They found the dairy beef calves worked well for their budgets, giving them additional income to keep developing the land into pasture and building infrastructure. The recent environmental move back to fencing and replanting a lot of gullies and marginal land has gone a bit against the grain of what the couple have always done. “My challenge in life has been to develop land. It’s been a way of life,” Mike says. “As young farmers we were lucky to have the opportunities we had. We had good support from government to put everything into grass.”

They have fenced off all waterways on the milking platform and done riparian planting in some of their gullies, also donating 50ha to the QE Trust. One of the real positives from the environmental push has been the asset of the updated effluent system. They now irrigate on 40ha of the milking platform which has significantly lifted soil fertility, Mike says. “I call it liquid gold, that’s been a really good investment.” Compliance costs and increasing regulations are a challenge for farmers, particularly with how children grow up on farms, Karen says. “We’ve had a good family life. The kids were both heavily involved in the farm growing up, but with the new rules and regulations it’s not quite as simple as it was. “Farming used to be a way of life, but now it’s million-dollar businesses.” As such the business decisions have to be with the head not the heart. They constantly look at their income against expenditure to see how they are tracking every month rather than doing an annual budget. They sold their 1000 ewes two years ago because the economics no longer stacked up for the amount of work required. There is a lot of work in doing a budget, and it could go out the window the next week, Karen says. “I have a rough idea of what’s coming in and what has to go out. If we are lean on the income side I will go talk to Mike about where we are and what we can sell.” Mike has a passion for trading stock, so enjoys the opportunity to buy and sell dairy and beef cattle to take the opportunities in the market.

Dairy beef used to be a dirty word.

Merit in crossbreds breeding beef Today the couple continue to breed both Angus and Hereford bulls across the entire crossbred dairy herd. Mike admits Holstein Friesian cows adapt better on the hills than straight Friesians and by using good beef bulls you get a good calf. “Crossbreds adapt a lot better, they fossick.” Breeding the beef calves from a crossbred herd can sometimes result in calves that throw more dairy, but they are still worth more to rear than putting them on the bobby truck for $20. “We rear everything, When the Jersey steers come up to two-year-olds and we sell them, there is not a lot of difference. Most of them grade, we can usually buy a good dairy cow for what we get for them.” They buy dairy replacement in-milk cows instead of breeding and rearing their own which means they don’t have to try and calve down and milk heifers on the hill country, which can be pretty tough on young heifers, Mike says. When buying cows he doesn’t worry too much about cow records. “I back my judgement. We’ve never tried to be a top-producing herd, because we never will be on this country.” When it comes to selecting bulls, easy calving and lameness are two of the more

important breeding values. They run bull mobs of six during mating, revolving the bulls out of the cows every three days. “If you breed for ease of calving and manage your cows well you eliminate most calving problems,” Mike says. “As far as fattening is concerned I’m swinging more to Angus, they seem to fatten quicker, where the Herefords start growing and keep growing.” However, the strong premium for black white-face calves at the sales is good enough reason to keep doing both at the moment, he says. The hills help to keep the cows active to keep them fit for calving the beef breeds, Karen says. They shut up the top hills in April and May to have enough grass to winter the spring-calving cows. “On this sort of country we set stock in the winter. The minute you go near cows they make mud. “Wintering cows out back, you could never take supplement out to them.” They have been split-calving the dairy herd for six seasons, milking 250 cows through the winter, calving the rest of the herd in spring. The winter milking premium is a good incentive, but it suits their Northland climate and their property, Mike says.

Country-Wide July 2017

“The winter cows do better than the spring cows. You can supplement a cow through a bad winter, but you can try and supplement a cow through a hot, dry summer but she might not eat.” They have a stand-off pad to feed maize and palm kernel to the cows on the milking platform. Although winter milking suits the cows better, Mike wants to keep a mob of spring-calving cows so they can control the surplus grass in spring. Controlling the kikuyu grass is key on their property. The kikuyu needs to be managed to be able to let the ryegrass and clover come through – which is where the beef cattle come into their own, he says. The beef cattle and dry cows typically follow behind the milkers to eat down the pasture. “You’ve got to keep on top of the kikuyu otherwise it takes off and rye and

clover don’t get a chance.” They undersow the milking platform with annual species which can grow through the kikuyu. The hills are a good leveller when sorting out good beef cows. Mike and Karen had a Murray Grey stud with 60 breeding cows for a number of years and did a trial during that time rearing calves from different properties to look at the performance of the bulls. The smaller calves at weaning often caught up easily to the bigger calves once they got on the hills, Mike says. The ability of breeding and the importance of getting good rumen development in calves to be able to finish them on the hills shone through. “I never go along to a sale and buy milk fat calves. Calves that have been fed on meal and grass have a more developed rumen and they catch the other calves through the winter.”

STEEL-ING THE SHOW

Tougher than timber, steel is the obvious choice for the progressive farmer. With tight health and safety regulations you need to trust your equipment and the Te Pari steel yards will give you that comfort. NZ Steel manufactures a custom profile rail exclusively for Te Pari. The deeper profile rail provides optimal strength in the cattle yard when you need it most. For more information, go to www.tepari.com and download the Yard Catalogue or give us a call on 0800 837 274 and speak to one of our knowledgeable sales people.

Country-Wide July 2017

Concentrating on beef

Mike the avid hunter, with Tane Mahuta and her foal.

Animal health Lameness can be a real issue on the farm in winter, with hooves getting soft so cows are pulled out and treated immediately. Once a cow is treated for lameness and mastitis, if she comes back with a reoccurring problem, she goes, Mike says. “If a cow has a problem, no matter what she’s producing, she’s out. “If they’re not sound we don’t milk them. To me that’s a way of getting to a healthier herd. People have to be happy milking cows and that means not having slow milkers, or cows with health problems. Those are the

things that can frustrate staff.” Rather than sending them to the works, if a cow is not milking well, Mike will often pull her out of the herd and put a calf on her – putting her to use until the market is right to sell her. In terms of animal health their main routine is injecting calves and cows with an annual dose for trace minerals. “I believe in cobalt, selenium and copper. This country is deficient in it. We operate on a preventative rather than reactionary approach.” They also leave Crystal Lyx drycow mineral blocks around the farm for the milking cows all year long. The cows constantly have access to them and prevents most issues, including milk fever, Mike says.

Mike is the stock manager and also manages two drystock blocks for other farmers. He has a general farm manger helping to oversee the properties and a couple of farm assistants. This year Mike and Karen employed a contract milker for the milking platform as a way of pedalling back some of the daily responsibility. “I’m trying to get it operating without us,” Mike says. “As long as the farm is going forward we are happy. Now we’ve got the dairy ticking over, I want to concentrate more on the beef. Maybe buy some beef cows to put on the hills for another supply of calves.” Mike does a lot of hunting and trekking and has ridden in every hunt in NZ and would like to spend more time riding. “I go hunting twice a week when I can. I have been known to go four times a week.” Karen teaches learn-to-swim classes and likes to travel frequently and they are both keen to get off-farm to spend more time with their children Richard and Vikki and their five grandchildren. “The kids are keen for us to keep the farm, so I’ve told them they can take on the mortgage too so we can do what we enjoy,” Karen says. sheryl.brown@nzfarmlife.co.nz @sherylbrownnz

Milking cows on tough country in Northland

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | GENETICS

LIC short gestation length Hereford marker bulls.

Short-gestation bulls for beef cows Andrew Swallow

calving which translates into more live calves and better initial growth. Much has been made about the However, if all you achieve use of short-gestation bulls in the is earlier but lighter calves and dairy industry to keep calving there’s a corresponding drop patterns tight, but is there a place in 200-day weights then the for them in commercial beef herds? benefit of earlier-born calves Massey University associate is going to be less than professor Rebecca Hickson if calves maintain or thinks there is, provided it’s even improve on not at the expense of other 200-day weights. important traits. That said, “It can let you get there would be away with a later mating a compound date for some cows and effect, yearhelp shorten the calving Shorter gestation can be a on-year, of spread.” positive trait, particularly for breeding That could be particularly use across heifers and late shorter useful with calved down calvers, Massey University’s gestation into heifers, a class of cow which Rebecca Hickson says. a herd in that can be difficult to get back it becomes easier to in calf, she suggests. maintain a tight seasonal calving pattern “It could help you retain more secondas, on average, the herd has a fraction calvers.” longer to recover from calving to mating A challenge in selecting bulls for each year. gestation length is that only herds which Hickson’s views are, unsurprisingly, use artificial insemination can generate supported by breeders of such genetics. an index for it because exact mating date “I think beef farms need to look at has to be known. The next best thing, every angle to make their herds more which is included in most indices for efficient and this is one of them,” John bulls designed to make buying decisions McKerchar of Shrimpton’s Hill Herefords, easier, is days to calving. South Canterbury, says. Indices will also account for the known He’s been at the forefront of association of shorter gestation with selecting on gestation length for 17 lower birthweight. years, admittedly with the dairy sector Up to a point, that is a good thing, increasingly the target market, but Hickson says, as it makes for easier

Country-Wide July 2017

that’s taken nothing away from their performance as beef producers, he stresses. “Whether you’re using them across a beef cow or a dairy cow, the objective’s the same: you want the best-possible calf for rearing, while using gestation length to bring that cow’s calving date back into line with the rest of the herd.” In the dairy industry earlier calving means more days in milk; in the beef sector it means more days’ growth before autumn calf sales, or transfer into the farm’s finishing system.

If all you achieve is earlier but lighter calves and there’s a corresponding drop in 200-day weights then the benefit of earlierborn calves is going to be less than if calves maintain or even improve on 200-day weights.

“We’ve never focussed solely on gestation length and have maintained improvement in other important traits: growth, eye-muscle-area, milk.” McKerchar suggests an obvious place to

Earlier calving means more days in milk. In the beef sector it means more days’ growth before autumn calf sales, or transfer into the farm’s finishing system.

use a short-gestation bull in beef herds is as a sweeper, going in for the third cycle of mating. “Put across Angus cows they’re going to mark the calves with a white head so, if you want to, you can avoid them as replacements, while the mother gets that little bit longer to recover from calving and you might get her back into conceiving in the second cycle the next year.” Another breeder focussed on short gestation is Yvonne Lee of Bluestone Herefords, also in South Canterbury. She says beef clients at Bluestone’s

spring sale of yearling bulls are typically using them across heifers. “It’s notoriously difficult to get what will be your second-calver cows back incalf in good time so every little bit helps. If the heifer’s calf is earlier it means it has more time to grow and the dam has more return time before going back to the bull.” Birthweights are, on average, slightly lighter making for easier calving too. “But they still have the ability to grow: it isn’t a single-trait selection – we have been measuring for all the growth traits and scanning for muscling – it’s another

Careful interpretation Breedplan’s breed average gestation length EBV for Angus is -3.7; Hereford’s is -0.2. The reference year for Angus EBVs was 2007 when the average GL was 280.3 days, Angus NZ general manager Craig Mitchell says, but as Breedplan’s Brad Thomas explains, that does not mean the breed average is now 276.6 days. “The population may be changing favourably at the genetic level, as indicated by changes in EBVs over time, but the average phenotypes might not show the same rate of change over time unless all the non-genetic effects either remain constant or change systematically and constantly in a favourable direction.” In reality, many non-genetic effects cause random fluctuations and reporting average GL for a year and a breed would be misleading, unless the herds were all run as one and subject to the same non-genetic factors, he says. “The reality is that a particular GL EBV won’t directly translate into a particular phenotype, because there’s more than just direct genetic effects involved in determining the phenotype.” In other words, how many days earlier your calves will be born isn’t as simple as taking the bull’s GL EBV and halving it to allow for the dam’s influence. Thomas says heritability of gestation length varies by breed, from 0.39 to 0.68 among the five main New Zealand beef breeds. Within breed, Breedplan’s percentile bands give an indication of the variation available. For example, the 1% of Hereford’s with the shortest GL have a -10.1 days EBV, to the longest at +7.3 days, with a fairly even spread between. The range of Angus GL EBVs is -14.2 to +8.4, with 98% negative, suggesting there are just a few outliers with unusually long gestation within the breed.

tool that can be utilised when selecting a bull.” Compared to the Australasian average for Herefords, most of Bluestone’s bulls have three to eight days’ shorter gestation. Put across a cow with a breed average gestation length, such bulls’ progeny will, on average, be born one-and-a-half to four days earlier. Shrimpton’s Hill’s bulls have similar or even shorter gestation than Bluestone’s. Some of the very shortest are committed to LIC’s short gestation length (SGL) programme for the dairy industry, as are some cows, including three heifers used as embryo donors last year which had 2530 days shorter gestation. Lee says gestation length is a reasonably heritable trait so rapid progress could be made if it was the sole breeding focus, but because performance in other areas has to be maintained or improved at the same time, it’s a much more gradual process. Tim Brittain, a past president of the Angus Association, echoes the Hereford breeders’ suggestion that short gestation can be particularly useful across first calving yearling heifers, buying them a few more days to get cycling after their first calving. “There’s also a benefit in reducing dystocia because calves get a lot bigger in those last few weeks of pregnancy. In our own breeding programme we’ve put a fair bit of emphasis on it.” Since 1997 he’s taken his Storth Oaks stud’s average GL EBV from -1, a touch above the breed average at the time of -1.5, to -6 today, well below the breed average of -3.7. “Last year the lowest gestation length bull we sold was -7.4.”

Country-Wide July 2017

WAVE23662_297x210

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait and see what spring will bring. Apply PhaSedN Quick Start this winter.

QUICK GROWTH EARLY Our unique blend of nutrients gives your pasture an early spring boost. SMART GROWTH LATER Ensure you have a high quality pasture supply throughout your busiest season.

Order PhaSedN Quick Start by calling Ballance quick smart on 0800 222 090 or talk to your Nutrient Specialist. Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | FARMAX Rob Buddo in his fodder beet crop.

POUKAWA

Farm facts

Performance DRIVES BUSINESS Russell Priest Hawke’s Bay farmers Rob and Coral Buddo believe they have found help to achieving their financial goals. The Poukawa couple have used the farm management support programme, Farmax to increase their financial return by more than 50% a hectare over the past 15 years. “For me farming without Farmax would be like driving down the road with my arms folded,” Rob says. Their goal is an average business growth of 5% a year which they are achieving. Rob says performance not financials drive their business. “If our performance is on target the financial aspect will take care of itself.” Rob became an avid user of the

computer programme after completing his consultant’s training and realising what a powerful decision-making tool it is. He wanted to fully understand the programme so he could maximise its use.

‘We definitely wouldn’t have had the confidence to change to lucerne without the support of Farmax.’ “There’s no way you could do these calculations manually to determine the best financial result and enterprise fit for your farm.” The Buddos have spent many hours

• Four blocks totalling 825ha, Poukawa, Central Hawkes Bay • Contour: 295ha flat/rolling, 530ha hill • Finishing 13,000 lambs and 600 bulls • Production: 404kg meat and fibre a hectare (last five-year average) • Rainfall: Kinburn (home block) 700mm • Irrigation: 90ha coverage • Growing 55ha plantain/clover, 30ha Lucerne • Winter crops: 5ha fodder beet, 15ha kale • Gross margin of irrigated forage crops $3000-$4500/ha over 20 years collecting data and analysing it with the programme. “A lot of personal discipline is required in gathering and inputting data,” Coral said.

MODEL CHANGE In 1912, Rob’s great grandfather bought Kinburn, a 232ha summer-dry farm, 22km south west of Hastings. Over the intervening years Kinburn’s versatility with its balance of flats and hills and dry and moist soils has seen it used for sheep and beef farming, running a Limousin stud, cash-cropping and growing forages for finishing lambs and bulls. Rob took over in 1990. Initially cash crops were grown on the fertile, cultivable soils to maximise the farm’s potential. However Rob struggled with the sustainability and resource use of cropping so challenged Farmax to come up with some answers. The lucerne lamb and bull-finishing model showed that it could almost match the financial returns from cash cropping without the concerns Rob had about the latter. “We definitely wouldn’t have had the confidence to change to lucerne without

Country-Wide July 2017

the support of Farmax,” Rob said. Since 2006 the Buddos’ business has more than doubled in size from 371ha, 3500 hoggets and 700 cattle to 825ha and around 13,000 lambs and 1050 cattle producing 404kg (net) of meat and fibre a hectare. Four farms are involved in the business, all within a 15-minute drive of one another. Farmax has been instrumental in aligning the four blocks to ensure they work in sync and achieve the best financial result.

Rob Buddo and Hamish Yule in a new stand of plantain/clover.

Country-Wide July 2017

The home farm, Kinburn (232ha) a balance of fertile flats and dry mediumto-steep hills is the hub of the business and is where most of the high-value forages are grown. Being able to irrigate 90ha during the traditionally dry summer means the 30ha of lucerne and 55ha of plantain/clover are able to support large numbers of weaner Friesian bulls with quality feed during a critical period of their development. Kinburn’s summer-dry hills are in grass/clover although Rob is considering trialing plantain on some easier areas. Their primary role is to support high stock numbers over winter to ensure enough mouths are available to fully utilise the spring growth. Buddos’ second farm, the 139ha College Road block – all rolling claybased country – has a higher rainfall than Kinburn, grows 30% more grass and has been the site of a Harry Weir-designed bull techno system for the last 20 years. Two other leased blocks (90ha and 356ha) complete the 825ha farmed area. The 356ha Middle Road farm is

predominantly hill country with only 20ha of flats. These are planted in kale and Moata (this year) for wintering bulls and also support a plantain/clover sward. Of the 825ha farmed 295ha is flat and 530 hilly with approximately 100ha in forage crops (lucerne, plantain, kale, Moata, fodder beet) and the rest is in permanent pasture.

THE HIGH-OCTANE PERFORMERS The jewels in the crown of the Buddos’ business are the irrigated stands of lucerne and plantain/clover. Between them 17-20 tonnes/ha/year of high-quality finishing feed is produced returning a gross margin of $3000-$4500/ ha. While these are impressive figures Rob stresses these forage systems are able to perform at a very high level because of near optimum growing conditions and they are being fed to animals generating high returns – winter lambs and bulls at a little over 30c/kg drymatter (DM) and 20c/kg DM respectively. The message that these forages can

Lambs being finished on lucerne for Atkins Ranch.

Rob Buddo with Kinburn block manager Hamish Yule.

make a huge difference to the bottom line is one Rob is very keen to get across. As a member of the Future Forage Systems group he is familiar with some of the Farmax modelling being done. He cites some of AgFirst consultant Lachie McGillivray’s initial work which depicts a 500ha dryland hill country farm with a 40ha plantain/clover stand consistently producing $80,000- $100,000 GM more than a grass/clover sward. “In our business we can’t average more than 200g/day with lambs on grass/clover however on plantain/clover we can get up to 350g/day.” Plantain (Tonic) stands are established with both annual (Arrow Leaf and Balansa) and perennial red and white clovers. Weeds are controlled by mowing, weed wiping with MCPA and spraying with Dictate herbicide once the stand is established. While plantain grows better than perennial ryegrass over the winter there is a noticeable slowing of growth particularly when frosts are experienced. Good lamb growth rates are maintained over this period however. Paddocks

Coral and Rob Buddo in their homestead grounds.

are subdivided with temporary electric fencing into 2.5ha blocks. Lambs spend two-four days in each block which is carefully monitored to ensure the plantain is not overgrazed. “We’re still learning how to maintain the vigour of our stands.” Rob finds their plantain stands are running out after three years. His

approach is to spray the existing stand in the spring with a litre of Glyphosate/ha and direct drill a plantain/annual white clover mix into the sward. The results thus far have been promising. The second type of “rocket fuel” comes in the form of lucerne. It suits Poukawa’s dry climate and is an efficient user of Kinburn’s irrigation water, producing 60-70kg DM/ha/day in the middle of summer. A grazing management system is used to harvest the lucerne with some occasionally being conserved as balage. “It’s one thing to grow lucerne and another to put a good grazing management system around it to capture the benefits,” Rob said. A 15ha-paddock rotational grazing system similar to that used for the plantain/clover swards is employed. A 42-day rotation length is critical for the welfare of the lucerne stands. Two main lucerne cultivars are grown; Kaituna and the winter-active Supersonic which is sown with prairie grass. On Farm Research is trialing 12 different lucerne cultivars on the farm and Rob says there are no standouts thus far. “What we are finding is that the winter-active cultivars don’t last as long though.” Kinburn’s oldest stand is seven years and while the plant density is not as good as it was Rob still feels it is worth persisting with. When the soil temperature starts to drop grasses tend to invade the stands but this is of no great concern to Rob as he believes it gives the animals a bit more variety in their diet, especially if bloat is an issue. Haloxyfop is used to spray out the grasses in the spring after which lucerne dominates the sward. Stands are given a compulsory rest in the winter from the last week in June to mid-August when they generate covers

Lambs on lucerne with Kinburn hills in the background.

Country-Wide July 2017

Rob Buddo in one of his lucerne stands.

of about 2000kg DM/ha. Bloat can be an issue on lucerne. Older bulls are given a bolus as a means of addressing it while trough treatment is used for younger ones. Salt, roughage and grass in the stands also help. Certain rules are applied when bloat conditions are present – no animals are allowed on stands until 10.00am especially if dew is present and animals are closely monitored if hungry.

THE ANIMAL PROCESSORS Farmax is used to optimise the number of animals wintered and utilise the maximum amount of spring growth. Contracted 100kg weaner bulls (600) start coming onto the farms in October and spend most of their next six or seven months on lucerne and plantain/clover growing at about 700kg/day. Being able to feed these young calves on quality forage over this period is pivotal to the success of the bull operation. Over late autumn/winter they are split into two groups – the fast-trackers (the best 240) and the rest. The 30ha Techno system becomes the home for 120 of the fast-trackers until the late spring when a decision is made, based on their weight, feed covers and forecast rainfall either to sell them store

Finishing lambs on lucerne.

or take them through to slaughter in December at about 250-270kg CW. Last year they were sold store in November for $1200. The other 120 fast-trackers are breakfed on fodder beet and supplement (mainly grass) and their fate in the spring becomes the same as for those on the Techno system. The aim is to grow the fast-trackers at an average of 1kg/day over winter however only an average of 700g/ day has been achieved. The remaining 360 R1 bulls go on to a slower-growth programme (400g/day) over this period on 15ha of kale and grass before being released on to the spring flush. Over summer they perform the important role of pasture groomers on the hills. Following a period of restricted intake over their second winter they are killed in the spring/summer at an average weight of 300-320kg. The earliest of about 13,000 store lambs are bought in late January-early February. Grass, lucerne and plantain/ clover are used to finish the lambs over the autumn/winter/spring with all killed by the beginning of November at an average weight of 21kg. Most are ewe lambs and all are killed at Progressive Meats and marketed under the Atkins Ranch brand.

Blocks of plantain/clover are subdivided and rotationally grazed.

Nilvax®. The specialist pre-lamb 5-in-1. Nilvax combines a powerful 5-in-1 with a powerful immune booster. The immune booster increases the 5-in-1 immune response, increasing the antibodies available to the lambs for longer. The vaccine gives higher levels of clostridial protection for your lambs for up to 16 weeks. That’s why it’s the specialist pre-lamb 5-in-1.

ELE-01874-CW

Order Nilvax from your vet clinic or farming retailer.

ACVM No: A3977 ®Registered trademark. Schering-Plough Animal Health Ltd. Phone: 0800 800 543. www.coopersonline.co.nz NZ/NLX/0316/0001

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | CALF-REARING

DIY

keeps costs under control In a large scale calf rearing, as in any business, the emphasis is on making a profit. In a fluctuating market where margins are small, Sheryl Brown talks to a couple rearing up to 8000 calves, who do their sums and watch their costs. People can venture into calf-rearing because they see an easy way to make extra money, but the reality is after a few years a lot of people go broke or lose interest. The main cost factors are the cost of the calves and cost of milk powder which can alter from year to year and people can become unstuck very quickly, Jonathan Leigh says. Jonathan and Joanne Leigh own TopNotch Calves in the Waikato where they rear anywhere from 1400 up to 8000 calves every season. Joanne works part time as a farm consultant helping farmers improve their calf-rearing operations. They used to buy their own calves and sell them on contract, but a few years ago switched to only doing rearing contracts. They now rear predominately heifer replacements for dairy farmers with contracts based on meeting weight targets. This season they are also rearing Wagyu cross beef calves on contract for the first time. Many dairy farmers have expanded their business, buying the neighbouring farm, milking more cows and ultimately rearing more calves, all while making do with their original calf-rearing facilities. “I think 50% of farmers probably should do a review of their facilities. A lot of farms haven’t changed or upgraded their calf pens for a long time and they might not have enough space,” Joanne says. Rearing their dairy replacements out is something many farmers may not have considered, but it’s a good option

Farm facts: • Farm owners: Jonathan and Joanne Leigh • Farm 63ha, Okoroire, Tirau • Milk 200 cows • Production ranges from 43,000kg MS to 121,000kg MS – if cows are sold in September or at the end of the season. • Meal is fed in-dairy, maize silage in paddock. • A 24-aside herringbone, in-dairy feeding, building covered feedpad • Grow 5ha maize

for farmers in a position where they haven’t got enough room for all of their calves and don’t have capital available to upgrade their facilities, she says. “It’s releasing some of that pressure off their system. It can be a stressful six weeks in the peak of calving and it doesn’t take much for that system to fall over.” For calf rearers or dairy farmers, having adequate facilities is fundamental to keeping a clean environment and preventing disease, she says. When the couple set up their calfrearing operation they had the advantage of being able to start from scratch. Joanne and Jonathan bought their original 40-hectare calf-rearing block at Okororie, near Te Aroha 14 years ago. They bought two second-hand calf sheds that they pulled down and reassembled. They hired a trencher and put drainage

Joanne and Jonathan Leigh – calf rearers need to be in control of costs.

in all the pens, along with waterlines for troughs and built all the pens themselves. They’ve since built another shed, with a plastic roof that lets 30% of light through. The pens are half under cover and half outside giving the calves plenty of room with room for 3000 calves to be housed. It’s important calf pens have good ventilation and to make sure there are no drafts at calf height, Joanne says. There are corrugated iron barriers between the pens to prevent drafts and also helps prevent disease being spread between pens. Each pen has its own water trough which gets cleaned out every day. John and Joanne made their own calf feeders using recycled 200-litre plastic drums and peach teats, which stay in the pens, custom-made their own vat to heat milk, installed a spa pump to heat the water and built all their own vat platforms with drainage. Making their own gear and building the majority of their facilities has probably cost them a fifth of what new equipment would have set them back, Joanne says. “It’s all about cost control. You just can’t afford to spend a lot of money, the margins are just not huge.” They’ve also turned an old dairy on the farm into a custom-made milk feeding station for calves out in the paddocks to come in once a day for their milk. They also designed a weigh station with a three-way drafting option at the old farm dairy where calves are dehorned and vaccinated.

Country-Wide July 2017

01687MSDMCW

Having good facilities will decrease disease spreading through calf pens.

Water-based MAGNUM® Off-shears. Tough on lice. Easy on you.

Hygiene is paramount Their worst-ever death rate was 9.6% which was when they reared a huge number of calves and were getting up to 700 calves dropped off in one day. Last year their death rate was 0.9%. They have a ceiling death rate of 5% in their contracts and if they go above that they have to replace the animals. In the 14 years they’ve been rearing calves they have never had a serious disease outbreak. “We’ve never had a major outbreak of disease. We have a system in place, calves aren’t moved, feeders are not used between pens, people are the only thing moving between pens and there is a good barrier between pens,” Joanne says.

“We’ve never had a major outbreak of disease.”

Any visitors or truck drivers don’t go into calf pens. Staff wash and disinfect boots and change gloves after being in hospital pens. They never spray the main pens, but spray the isolated sick pens weekly. For the main pens they water blast them at the start of the season and keep them topped up regularly with fresh sawdust. Hygiene is critical and farmers should be able to prevent a disease outbreak if they have enough space and have a plan in place and guidelines for staff to follow, Joanne says. When there is a disease outbreak

Country-Wide July 2017

on a farm there is always a reason why, whether it’s the facilities, staff, or something happening in the herd that’s been transferred to calves such as salmonella. “There is always a trigger or something fundamentally wrong.” One of the most important things is to have designated hospital pens, she says. With their large numbers they have seven sick pens, a new pen for each day of the week. Because their calves are only fed once a day staff have one opportunity to spot them. Their policy is if in doubt, take the calf out of the pen. “We tried twice-a-day feeding but the calves aren’t as hungry and don’t always run out to get their milk so it’s harder to spot a sick calf.” Staff will check any calf pulled out, including its navel, nose, breathing and only treat calves with antibiotics that genuinely need to be treated. The calf’s number is written up on a whiteboard along with feeding and treatment details for staff to follow. If it’s just nutritional scours they will feed electrolytes for two days. On day three and four they will get milk in the morning and electrolytes at night, then back on milk morning and night for two days then back on to once-a-day milk in a recovery hospital pen. Electrolytes are key to keeping calves hydrated if they’re scouring. John and Joanne make their own, which they make in a concrete mixer. They also use Trubond which is great for scours to bind calves up.

For best results use MAGNUM off-shears within 24 hours.

ACVM No:A7704 ®Registered trademark. Schering-Plough Animal Health Ltd. Phone: 0800 800 543. www.coopersonline.co.nz NZ/MAG/0415/0003A

Building your own calf rearing gear and facilities will save money and increase profit margins.

Key Points: • Large-scale calf operation rearing up to 8000 calves • Cost control is king • Having efficient facilities • Preventing disease spread

weight are brought back in and fed milk for another 1one or two weeks before being weaned again. Depending on space, calves will either stay in their pen until weaned, or put outside after two to four weeks old if shed space is required for other calves. John and Joanne employ John van Gog who oversees the calf rearing unit and dairy farm, with Richard Smith as their dairy farm manger. Their two main calf rearers Samantha Palmer and Karyn James are employed on a 10-month fixed term contract and they employ casual staff as required, working on one staff member to every 600 calves. They run a six-on/two-off roster, try to keep jobs simple and clear and give employees specific roles they’re interested in whether that is feeding calves, treating sick calves, fixing water leaks or cleaning out pens. With any calf rearing operation, attention to detail is key and having good staff is vital, and it’s no different in their operation, Joanne says.

Colostrum is King

Calf meal recipe for success All calves are weighed on arrival and calves are fed the following morning, they are graded on drinking ability and sorted into pens of 22 calves. They don’t have compartment feeders so any slow drinkers are pulled out and put in a pen for slow drinkers. Calves are weighed again at three weeks and sorted into weight ranges. Calves are fed 4l milk/calf once a day which is warmed up in a vat. They feed whole milk or milk powder or a mixture depending on what is available and most costeffective. Supply of product is one of the main risks to their business so they get in early to order their bulk products. “We have to be proactive to ensure there is enough milk powder, sawdust,

vaccines available for us during the season.” They also buy whole milk from local dairy farmers. They’ve designed their own calf meal recipe which is 50% pellet, 50% whole grain. A calf is a pre-ruminant and can digest whole grains, which is their fibre rather than feeding hay or straw, Joanne says. They feed meal adlib when the calves are young and once weaned and out on pasture up to 2kg/calf/day. Calves are weaned at 75kg for Friesian calves. They are weaned over an eightday period, gradually reducing their milk, as a result their concentrate consumption increases. They weigh calves 10 days after weaning. Any calves who have lost

At Top-Notch they get calves dropped off at four days old and can only hope those calves have had the right care, and soon see the result when they haven’t, Joanne says. “This autumn we blood tested and found that one out of every six calves have not had enough colostrum. “We quickly see which farms are doing a good job feeding colostrum. It’s easy to see trends.” Anybody who is rearing calves needs to ensure they have first milk colostrum to feed those newborn calves. “A newborn calf needs to be treated like a baby. It needs a warm bed and good colostrum.” They are still learning every day on the job, Jonathan and Joanne say. This season the Wagyu cross beef calves they are rearing have proved to be challenging and they’ve had to adjust their system. “Calf rearing takes a lot of time and commitment and you really need to love calves to do it,” Joanne says.

Country-Wide July 2017

01687MSDMCW

LIVESTOCK | CALF REARING

Calf-rearing tips from a veteran

Tap into Rabobank’s Local & Global Network

Russell Priest Dairy-turned-sheep-and-beef farmer Rob Kirk believes he knows a thing or two about rearing calves after being in the game for 40 years. “I love the stockmanship challenge of rearing calves,” Rob says. “It gives me a lot of personal satisfaction but it is hard yaka – I work from dawn to dusk and beyond some days.” Rob, who farms in the Manawatu, uses two rearing systems – a traditional milk powder and meal-based system and a multiple-suckling regime. Calves are sourced locally from dairy farmers and occasionally from the fourday-old calf auction in Feilding. An average of $170 was paid for calves last year.

Want to connect, share Water-based ® farmers to MAGNUM and grow? We have a huge network of progressive farming clients across the globe. By connecting to our community of farmers, you can tap in to their knowledge and learn from their experience to help your business grow.

‘I love the stockmanship challenge of rearing calves,’ Ashhurst farmer Rob Kirk says.

system. Milk powder is manually mixed and the 1-2 tonnes of meal fed each day is man-handled in 30kg bags. The large rearing shed was built in 12308_AD Brand NZ Country Wide Connect.indd 1 three days by Rob, his brother-in-law and three friends from wind-fall timber from his other farm. It features 16 bays each accommodating 12 calves fed once a day on milk and with access to clean water, hay and bentonite clay. Rob is an avid fan of the latter as a feed supplement and also of hydrated lime as a disinfectant. “Bentonite is full of minerals, binds the calves up and is an antioxidant,” Rob says. “Calves have a massive craving for it and newly arrived four-day-old calves waste no time in developing a liking for it.” Diseases (rotovirus and A long-time disciple of Northland vet cryptosporidium) are a challenge in the Basil Schuten, Rob sticks as closely as rearing shed and Rob maintains hydrated possible to Basil’s 10 “demandments” lime is the best disinfectant available to when hand-rearing his calves. These are: counter these and it costs very little. Not • Healthy calves from healthy herds. only does it disinfect but it also dries • Adequate colostrum as soon after birth excrement left by the previous batch of as possible. calves and reduces the incidence of navel • Good housing infection. • Early disease detection. Taking scouring calves completely off • Strict disease treatment protocols. milk is not something Rob advocates. • High quality electrolytes. Calves receive electrolyte for their first • Use of sodium bentonite. day of treatment along with 0.75 litres of • Good quality meal/pellets. milk a calf and are then returned to their • Quality clean pasture. normal feeding regime. • Good staff. Rob maintains calf losses are a function Hand-rearing takes place on the of the number of calves reared in relation Kirks’ small Ashhurst farm using a nonto the size of the rearing facility – the automated, capital-extensive rearing

No fumes. No solvents. No lice.

If you’d like to connect with Rabobank call 0800 722 622 or visit rabobank.co.nz

‘Bentonite is full of minerals, binds the calves up and is an antioxidant. Calves have a massive craving for it and newly arrived four-day-old calves waste no time in developing a liking for it.’

Country-Wide July 2017

For best results use MAGNUM off-shears within 24 hours.

ACVM No:A7704 ®Registered trademark. Schering-Plough Animal Health Ltd. Phone: 0800 800 543. www.coopersonline.co.nz NZ/MAG/0415/0003B

higher the stocking rate, the higher the losses. In an average year he would expect to lose less than 5%. Rearing costs per calf vary between $120 and $180 depending on the length of the rearing period. Each calf consumes on average 90kg of meal and 0.7 of a bag of milk powder during rearing.

MULTIPLE-SUCKLING CALVES With the beef market being very buoyant Rob mated some Friesian heifers to easy-calving Angus bulls and fostered additional calves on to them. A few carryover cows not sold the previous year were also multiple suckled. These cows ended up rearing three batches of calves (up to nine calves each) while the Friesian heifers reared between two and three. The Kirks’ sheep and beef farm is well set up for fostering calves with its 145 paddocks and large hay barn where the initial fostering process takes place. “Fostering calves is a relatively straightforward process,” Rob says. “There were very few cows that would not accept foster calves.” After birth the calf is removed from its mother and penned under cover with two foster calves. Calf feeding occurs

Once multiple-suckled and hand-reared calves attain a sale value of $700 they will be sold but Rob has the flexibility to carry them on if he chooses.

twice a day for four or five days when the cow is brought in from the paddock and introduced to the calves. After this the cow together with her three calves is placed in a small paddock and monitored to ensure all calves are feeding. Generally seven cows go through the fostering process at a time achieving a success rate of about 90%. As is the case with hand-reared calves rotovirus and cryptosporidium provide

the main fostering challenge. To try and mitigate these health issues Rob intends to foster older hand-reared calves (4-5 weeks old) on to the cows. He believes this will significantly improve the survival rate. This year once multiple-suckled and hand-reared calves attain a sale value of $700 they will be sold but Rob has the flexibility to carry them on if he chooses.

Country-Wide July 2017

Milk needs to be fed in sufficient quantities to meet the calf’s total nutritional requirements for at least the first three to four weeks of life.

LIVESTOCK | CALF REARING

Transition to a grass-eating adult Cheyenne Stein Young ruminants are functionally monogastrics for about two to three weeks post-birth. A ruminant’s stomach has four parts: a reticulum, rumen, omasum and abomasum. All four parts are present at birth but only the abomasum is fully developed and functional. Their rumen is small, sterile and underdeveloped at birth. This all needs to change in order for calves to go on to be grass-eating milk-making adults. Dr Sarah Pain, senior lecturer at Massey University says that when a calf is born it needs to be fed milk in sufficient quantities to meet its nutritional requirements during this early life period because, until the rumen is adequately developed, milk (or milk replacer) is what the calf is physiologically set up to digest and utilise. The calf’s digestive system has a mechanism which allows milk to bypass the rumen and go straight into the abomasum (acidic stomach). “Sucking and the presence of milk proteins triggers a reflex closure of the muscular folds of the oesophageal groove allowing milk to go through to the abomasum (the gastric stomach), bypassing the rumen altogether.” “This allows the milk to be digested more efficiently and therefore optimises

the utilisation of the energy provided in the milk.” The initial drink of first-milking colostrum is the key to optimising the health and immune function of the calf. Ideally the calf should drink about two litres of colostrum within the first six hours of life. “They need it that early because the wall of the gastro-intestinal tract (GIT) is not completely closed off until the calf is about 24 hours old and it is at its most permeable in the first six hours.” The immunoglobulins (antibodies) in colostrum transfer through the wall of the gut intact so it’s important to maximise intake of colostrum when the GIT is at its most permeable. “Calves really need to be fed firstmilking colostrum in the first six hours after birth, or at least within 12 to 24 hours, if you want to maximise the immune defence from colostrum.” A ruminant needs to have a developed and functioning rumen in order to change from a diet of liquid milk to that of solid feeds. A number of things are needed for a rumen to properly develop. It needs to increase in size and volume. When a calf is born its stomachs account for about 20% of the total gastrointestinal tract volume, while in an adult ruminant, the stomachs account for about 50%.There needs to be an increase

Stages of development of the rumen as the calf transitions from milk to grass.

Country-Wide July 2017

in the musculature to allow the rumen to contract. An efficient absorptive surface needs to develop which involves growing papillae and of course, the rumen needs to accumulate a microbial population in a water-based environment. “Milk won’t stimulate the development of the rumen. It’s the combination of both concentrate meal or grain and roughage or pasture in the calf’s diet that will,” Pain says. Concentrates and roughage stimulate different aspects of rumen development so offering both to your calves is important. The fermentation of concentrates in the rumen create lots of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) which are responsible for developing the inside surface of the rumen, they stimulate the development and growth of papillae. Papillae are finger-like projections on the inside surface of the rumen that create more surface area for absorption of digestion end-products. Roughage, on the other hand, won’t really stimulate growth of papillae but is important for increasing rumen volume and musculature as well as stimulating saliva production. The presence of roughage in the rumen also creates an abrasiveness that improves papillae integrity and stops them clumping together which would decrease the efficiency of nutrient absorption from the rumen. “Feeding roughage alone you won’t see the papillae growth, you need the grains/ concentrates for that. It’s a beautifully co-ordinated system really in terms of its physiology with multiple aspects working together.” However, you should not expect

concentrates and roughage to start contributing significantly to dietary requirements before about three to four weeks of age. Calves are not able to eat or digest sufficient amounts of solid feed at this early age to meet their nutritional requirements. Milk needs to be fed in sufficient quantities to meet the calf’s total nutritional requirements for at least the first three to four weeks of life. “You can allow calves access to roughage and concentrate from one week of age or even earlier. The small amounts consumed as they experiment with the feeds will start stimulating rumen development but they still won’t be able to consume enough solid feed until about six weeks of age to depend solely on it.” The solid feeds offered to calves need to be high quality, ideally fed fresh every day and kept clean and dry. Free access to clean water is also important to establish the fluid environment in the rumen. The degree of rumen development of individual calves fed milk, meal/ grain, and hay or pasture will vary from calf to calf depending on how much of these feeds each calf eats. Pain says it’s important to spend some time with your calves when they are fed to keep an eye on how much of each feed calves are eating (or not eating) to give an indication as to when best to start reducing milk. Making sure a calf’s rumen is developed in time for weaning on to pasture is important to avoid any setbacks in meeting growth milestones. Offering concentrate meal for one to two weeks after turn-out to pasture may help. “If you remove milk from the calf’s diet before the rumen has adequately developed you will see reductions in growth. “If the rumen isn’t properly developed at weaning they won’t be able to effectively digest and utilise sufficient quantities of pasture and there will likely be a lag in growth while rumen development catches up.” The reticulum, rumen and omasum are by-passed by milk fed in the first weeks after birth.

Milk needs to be fed in sufficient quantities to meet the calf’s total nutritional requirements for at least the first three to four weeks of life.

Optimising the oesophageal-reticular groove When a calf drinks milk it bypasses the rumen and it is directed into the abomasum (the acidic stomach) through the reflex closure of the oesophagealreticular groove. The groove is at the lower end of the oesophagus and extends to the reticuloomasal orifice. It consists of muscular folds that come together to form a tube-like structure that allows milk to be channelled into the calf’s abomasum. “When milk enters the abomasum it is essentially curdled by the acid and enzymes in the stomach. The milk protein and fat form a solid clot, while the liquid whey, lactose and other milk components leave the abomasum and move into the small intestine where they are digested,” Pain says. Enzymes in the stomach will then slowly break down the milk clot and gradually release the nutrients into the small intestine where they will either be further digested or absorbed. Optimising milk feeding in calves involves maximising the efficiency of both groove closure and clot formation. If the groove fails to close, either partially or entirely, milk will leak into the rumen where, rather than clotting, it is rapidly fermented. This can lead to ruminal acidosis and bloat, impairs the development and function of the rumen, and of course, results in poor calf growth and health. If the milk in the abomasum doesn’t clot properly whole milk can enter the small intestine where it will provide substrates for bacterial growth leading to nutritional scours.

When too much milk is fed or when calves drink milk too fast, the large quantities of milk rapidly entering the abomasum do not clot efficiently and this can lead to bacterial growth and fermentation occurring in the abomasum resulting in abomasal bloat. “There are a number of things that you can do to facilitate groove closure and milk clot formation,” Pain says Feeding milk through a teat will allow calves to suckle which helps to stimulate groove closure. The teat should be positioned below the level of the calf’s eyes and care should be taken to ensure teats are kept in good condition. “You can feed calves milk directly out of a bucket as well, but it’s best to have the bucket raised about 30cm above the floor the calf is standing on.” Groove closure can be reinforced by routine and environmental conditioning. Allowing calves to see and hear their milk being prepared, and things like feeding milk at the same time of day and at the same (warm) temperature, will all encourage good groove closure. Having a comfortable housing environment and a consistent milk feeding routine will help to reduce stress. Stress responses inhibit groove closure. You want to make sure to remove any leftover milk so that it doesn’t get consumed cold and avoid letting a calf drink too much milk or drink milk too fast, Pain says. Also avoid letting the calf drink lots of water right after feeding milk as the groove is still formed and water in the abomasum will weaken the milk clot. “Ultimately consistency in your milk feeding routine is the key. What we want is for the nutrients in milk to be used for growth, rather than being used by gastrointestinal bacteria leading to digestive upsets and scours.”

When a ruminant is born, their gastric stomach (abomasum) is the largest of the four stomach compartments, representing about 50% of the total stomach capacity while the rumen is only about 20%. As the ruminant matures, this switches and the rumen becomes the largest of the four stomach compartments. This reflects the transition in importance of these parts of the stomach.

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | BUYING CALVES

Tips for buying weaners Anne Hughes When buying weaner calves, make sure you ask the right questions and consider what you want to achieve with the animals after purchase. Marcus Paterson of Independent Cattle Brokers says buying decisions should be based on whether you plan to finish the animals or sell store and how long you can carry them on your farm. Paterson, who is based in northern King Country and buys weaner calves on behalf of beef farming clients, says that while more buyers target spring-born calves, calves born in autumn are a good fit for many systems. Numbers of autumn-born calves are increasing, as dairy farmers target winter milk prices and strong beef prices lift demand for these earlier weaners. Autumn-born calves can be a good fit in warmer climates, where farmers are able to carry them through winter and kill at 20-months old. These earlier-born

calves are older and often able to come through a dry summer better. “They can take a little bit of a check and they can still kill them as a 20-month-old animal.” When sourcing weaner calves, ask the rearer about their animal health background and their diets in the lead-up to sale – the proportion of pasture they have been eating to meal will impact how well they transition on to your pastures. Make sure they are dehorned, as having to get a vet in for dehorning will add to your costs. Even if the calves have reached the typical sale weight of 100kg, Paterson says it pays to check their age in case they are older than usual and have been a bit slow growing.Whether you plan to finish the cattle onfarm or sell as store, and how many winters you want to carry them through, are important for deciding what type of calf and breed you should be buying and what date you need them by. “That’s one of the reasons people like

autumn calves because they grow very quickly in that first spring and can be killed earlier,” Paterson says. “For a beef farmer there’s quite a premium in being able to kill a bull after the first winter, but if you’re selling store you might be happy to keep them longer.” If your policy is to carry the cattle through two winters, buying calves later in spring might be a better option. For calf rearers, he says, it is important to deal with reputable buyers who will pick up their weaners on the agreed date and pay the agreed price. Contracts help prevent problems, but many buyers prefer to buy on the spot market. This gives them a chance to see how the season pans out – feed and market-wise – before deciding how many calves they need. Contracts can include sale price, pick up dates and sometimes the calves’ animal health programme. Paterson says about one third of the clients he deals with buy on contract.

Finish first with your finishing stock AgriHQ in partnership with Heartland Bank have launched a new tool to help improve your store stock purchasing decisions. Using historical data and seasonality trends from AgriHQ’s expert team of analysts the Finisher tool calculates the implied trading margin you could expect to make in a few simple steps.

Calculate your potential trading margin today at

2313_1/2CW

agrihq.co.nz/finisher

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | GENETICS

The money’s in driving genetic improvement ‘Selection intensity is largely driven by the sires,’ Ian Locke says.

Russell Priest Australian Poll Hereford breeder Ian Locke gave a timely reminder for both stud and commercial breeders of the main drivers of genetic improvement at the annual B+LNZ Genetics Tru-Test Beef Expo seminar in Feilding. Ian, chairman of ABRI in Australia, the company that does the numbercrunching producing EBVs for most of our cattle breed societies in New Zealand runs his 875-cow Wirruna stud with a strong commercial focus on a 1400-hectare farm on the Victoria-New South Wales border. In 1995 Ian was awarded the coveted Australian Beef Seedstock Producer of the Year award immediately propelling his herd into the limelight after being under the radar since his father stopped showing animals. Ian addressed the four things that influence the rate of genetic improvement – selection intensity, accuracy of the genetic information, genetic variation and generation interval using his own herd as a case study to demonstrate the gains that can be made. He explained selection intensity by stating that the fewer and genetically the better the animals used in a breeding programme the more genetic progress will be made. Using animals with high indices and targeted EBVs as well as elite animals in annual artificial insemination (AI) and

embryo transplant (ET) programmes he has achieved more than double the annual rate of gain (compared with the breed average) for the Australian Hereford Grain-fed index ($7.59 compared with $3/cow mated) over the last 15 years. “Selection intensity is largely driven by the sires,” Ian said. “In any drop of calves the sires of the last three generations contribute 87% of the genetics. “Accuracy of genetic information is driven by what percentage of the EBV is controlled by genetics and the quantity and quality of the herd information being collected and genetically evaluated.”

‘Breeders must have a breeding objective to establish where their breeding programme is heading and to determine what traits to select for to achieve change.’

A large number of quality records (phenotypic data) lie behind the Wirruna herd (records on 14,000 cows is just a start) and for this Ian has achieved the gold standard for completeness of information going into Breedplan.

Breeders must have a breeding objective to establish where their breeding programme is heading.

Country-Wide July 2017

‘In any drop of calves the sires of the last three generations contribute 87% of the genetics.’

Genomic information enabling him to determine how closely his herd is linked to the trainer (benchmark) population has also been heavily invested in. He advised breeders to measure as many of the economically important traits in their breeding objective as possible. “Breeders must have a breeding objective to establish where their breeding programme is heading and to determine what traits to select for to achieve change,” Ian said. “However there’s no point in making

change without achieving genetic improvement.” The more genetic variation there is in a population the greater the opportunity there is to make genetic gain, he said. Using AI, for example, gives him access to a much more genetically diverse range of sires than he would have in his own herd. By utilising genetic variation Ian was able to all-but eliminate a calving ease problem (15-18% of heifers assisted) in just five years inherited from his father single-trait selecting for growth.

“If my father had used index selection this situation would not have occurred as the EBVs would have been more balanced,” Ian said. Shortening the generation interval (GI) or the average age of the parents in a herd will speed up the rate of genetic progress, Ian said. He puts this into practice by running a young herd (80% of his 875 cows are four years old or younger). Trade-offs are not uncommon in genetics, he said. For example, a high percentage of his heifer-calf drop (98%) is mated at 14-15 months, shortening the GI but resulting in some loss of selection intensity. However this is more than compensated for by using high-index bulls. Also yearling bulls are used to tail up after the AI programme reducing GI but losing some EBV accuracy. Using AI and ET more than compensates for this loss. Genomic information will in the future enable Ian to assess animals earlier and speed up genetic gain. In spite of Ian’s strong focus on genetics he is equally fastidious with structural soundness issues collecting a lot of records from which no EBVs are currently generated.

From consultancy to farming Leaving a farm consultancy career to take over a third-generation family farm, Ian Locke immediately introduced his computer skills to the business by modelling and benchmarking his herd on the financially best-performing commercial herds owned by his exclients. Ian found these herds had certain things in common. They were all tightly managed – heifers were mated at 15 months for two cycles as were the cows with any empties being culled. High stocking rates were run and when cows were not producing a maintenance diet was fed. Financially focused and productiondriven by kilograms of beef a hectare these businesses were very dependent on genetics that suit their environment. “The seed stock industry is confronted with a real conundrum,” Ian said. “It can afford to change the environment to suit its genetics, however the commercial man can only afford to have the genetics that suit the environment. “One of the problems in getting the genetic message across is that the environmental influences swamp the genetics and this can be very confusing for many people,” Ian said. “In some traits like colour it’s easy to

Country-Wide July 2017

Trade-offs are not uncommon in genetics, Ian Locke says.

see the genetics but in many of the production traits it’s very difficult.” The decision was made to expose the Wirruna herd to the rigors of a commercial production system. “We thought that by running and screening our herd under these conditions it would result in better genetic outcomes for our clients. “We now focus totally on what the commercial man needs.”

The result is a bull-breeding production system that is run at a stocking rate 50% above the district average and a disciplined screening process involving certain hurdles that have to be jumped to remain in the herd. The 14-15-month heifers must get in calf in two cycles (42 days) as do the cows otherwise they are culled and females calving must bring in a live calf at weaning otherwise they suffer the same fate.

LIVESTOCK | GENETALK

Is this the last step? Sharl Liebergreen New Zealand does many things well, but the fact is a big chunk of our greatness lies in our primary industries. We produce a relatively large amount of food, despite being a small portion of the world’s population. That places us in a unique global position and we must make the most of it. Fortunately, we have tended to be good at making food and exporting various forms of it. But we need to constantly remind our export markets that what we produce is special, tasty, safe and better than substitute products from other parts the world. If competing was a breeding value, we’d bend the curve. But we can’t rest on our laurels. We must keep pace with advancements in difficult areas, like production and technology, as well as soft areas, like the environment, social consciousness and animal welfare. NZ Sheep Inc and its international partners are close to delivering a stepchange technology. It will allow those who design our export lamb seed stock to be better than ever and, I believe, better than our international competitors. “Single-step genetic evaluation” is being adopted in livestock species throughout the world. It builds on

another innovation, genomics. While genomics itself is complicated, the principle is not: It simply involves examining an animal’s DNA in great detail. This creates a lot of data, allowing much to be gleaned about an individual animal.

More accurate breeding values in young animals enable more reliable use of breeding younger animals in seed stock breeding programmes.

However, handling all that data has been a challenge, to date. Until recently, genomic enhancement of breeding information has involved a “multi-step” process – a clumsy mix of computing technology and architecture of yesteryear that hasn’t extracted all the data’s value. “Single-step” evaluation is faster, more specific and accurate. It tackles significantly more data – genotype, pedigree, performance and

progeny information – and it does so simultaneously. Sheep breeders will benefit in several ways: Single-step evaluation will continue to provide traditional breeding information, whether an animal is DNA tested or not. Where an animal is DNA tested, however, this information will enhance the animal’s breeding values and increase breeding value accuracy, especially when the animal is young. More accurate breeding values in young animals enable more reliable use of breeding younger animals in seed stock breeding programmes. The use of young animals reduces generation interval and therefore speeds up genetic gain. Genomic testing can incorporate parent verification, overcoming any errors in an animal’s pedigree. (The current rate of pedigree error is about 8%.) Genomic information improves the breeding value accuracy of the tested individual. Single-step will also influence the accuracy of its relatives. But sheep breeders are not the ultimate beneficiaries. Commercial farmers are. How? Farmers can have more confidence when purchasing genetics from breeders using single-step genomic technology. Rams with more robust information behind them will perform more reliably. Those farmers following seed stock breeding programmes with accelerated genetic gain will – in turn – benefit from improved production, reduced costs and more profitability. It’s critical that commercial farmers do receive the financial benefit of technological advancements, because the technology itself is not the last step. It is a means to an end. Genetics – and its flow-on to livestock production – is an industry of continual improvement where change is not only constant, but increasing. That means increased cost for those seed stock producers who embrace the technology – and increased ram and bull prices. However, if commercial farmers don’t get a return on their genetics investment, they will be less inclined to pay more for higher-performing, technology-driven genetics. Seed stock producers, in turn, will find it difficult to justify investing in the next technological advancement. Ultimately, this may impact NZ’s ability to compete on the global stage. Dramatic? Perhaps. But a simple reminder that, to succeed, we all have a part to play. • Sharl Liebergreen is Beef+Lamb NZ Genetics technology and extension manager

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | CONDITION SCORING

Keeping score Sandra Taylor Maintaining the body condition scores of breeding cows to within a limited range throughout the year will help drive the productivity and profitability of the herd. While breeding cows have long been valued for their ability to “winter off their own back” and recover body condition in spring and summer, if this is taken to an extreme it will impact negatively on reproductive performance and feed-use efficiency. AgFirst farm consultant Bob Thomson says breeding cows should be maintained within a Body Condition Score (BCS) range of 5-7 plus throughout the year and threshold levels put in place to ensure animals falling outside of this range are identified and managed strategically. Unlike sheep, cow body condition can be assessed in the paddock using a

Want to connect, share and grow?

scoring system that runs from one to 10. One being extreme starvation while After calving, the cows should be able to recover body condition on 10 is extremely fat. spring pasture so they are being mated at BCS 6 Traditional beef cows are seldom seen below Mixed-age cows that fall below a BCS 5 BCS 4 or above BCS 8. over winter are the most vulnerable and Thomson says body condition scores likely to suffer from metabolic disorders are a far more accurate measure of body and mishaps- such as falling down gullies fat reserves than liveweight which or off cliffs – resulting in the death of doesn’t differentiate between frame both cow and calf. size. This means a small-framed, wellIf these lower-conditioned cows are conditioned cow can weigh the same as a identified, removed from the rotation larger-framed, lean cow. and preferentially fed, then it will Thomson says ideally, cows should improve their chances of surviving, be at a BCS of 7-8 at weaning and this thriving and getting back into calf the provides a buffer allowing for a drop of following year. 2-3 BCSs over the winter months, where After calving, the cows should be able traditional-type beef cows are typically to recover body condition on spring required to winter on hill country or pasture so they are being mated at BCS 6; survive on very little feed.

100,000

farmers to connect with worldwide

Tap into Rabobank’s Local & Global Network We have a huge network of progressive farming clients across the globe. By connecting to our community of farmers, you can tap in to their knowledge and learn from their experience to help your business grow.

If you’d like to connect with Rabobank call 0800 722 622 or visit rabobank.co.nz Country-Wide July 2017

sheep, cows don’t need to be handled to measure BCS, rather this can be done off a horse or vehicle and cows drafted through a gate. The book suggests initially honing visual BCS skills on yarded cows and gives a clear outline of what parts of the body need to be assessed. Thomson stresses that condition scoring should only be applied to mixedage breeding cows and not heifers. Growing heifers should not pose a body condition score issue for farmers – these heifers will be in body condition score 6 or more provided they are achieving target weights for mating and calving. While the BCS system will work on dairy cross cows, their scores will be 0.5 less than those used for the traditional beef breeds. The Beef Cow Body Condition Scoring book is available in hard-copy by emailing resources@ beeflambnz.com or you can download a PDF version via the Beef + Lamb New Zealand website www.beeflambnz.com

Cow body condition can be assessed in the paddock.

this condition can then at least be held – and preferably increased over summer. Where late summer feed supply is short and cows are competing with their calves for feed, Thomson recommends early weaning. This benefits cows, calves and makes the most efficient and effective use of feed resources. However, this practice is not recommended for those marketing weaners. If cows are not lactating, then their summer feed requirements are minimal – provided they have plenty of water, he

says. This allows feed to be partitioned into calves or carried forward into winter and spring.

GUIDE TO BODY CONDITION SCORING With the help of funding from Beef + Lamb New Zealand and Landcorp, Thomson, along with Dr Rebecca Hickson from Massey University, has put together a Body Condition Score guide. This illustrates and describes the condition scoring system and outlines how it can be used to maximise beef cow performance. He says unlike body condition scoring

• This book is a re-launch of an earlier publication that arose out of two projects “Beef Cows 4 Profit” and a Beef +Lamb New Zealand Farmer Initiated Technology and Transfer (FITT).

Breeding the difference

34TH ANNUAL ELITE HIND SALE – TUESDAY 25TH JULY 2017 @ 1PM OVER 70 HINDS ON OFFER WITH EXCITING NEW GENETIC COMBINATIONS INCLUDING:

MUNRO Figjam x Discombe, 515 IOA @ 3yrs

CANE McCaw x Huneric, 504 5/8 IOA @ 2yrs

MCCAW Odysseus x full sister to Kane, 692 IOA @ 7yrs

WALTER Davidson x Morpheus, 401 IOA @ 2yrs

Henry VIII x Prince Philips dam, 664 IOA @ 6yrs

FITZROY

ORLANDO Nixon x Scipio, 668 IOA @ 4yrs

Also featuring:

INFINITY, APEX, ADIDAS, RIGBY AND KALLIS.

Catalogues will be posted out in July

ALL ENQUIRIES: Barry Gard 021 222 8964, after hours 03 431 2803 bgard@foverandeerpark.co.nz | www.foverandeerpark.co.nz

Country-Wide July 2017

LIVESTOCK | STOCK CHECK

Condition score management is just one of the short list of factors that have big impact on flock and herd performance.

Focus on the lighter end STOCK CHECK Trevor Cook Just as I can get tired of promoting a very important message about sustainable worm management, getting condition scoring in place as a standard procedure can deliver the same frustration. This is because condition score at key times is one of the most influential factors on ewe and cow performance yet it is still not done enough, despite being promoted for years. It remains a significant factor limiting flock and herd production on many farms. That is, too many animals in too light condition at mating and at birth. On a farm in England in February I was told how much difference it had made to their flock performance by focussing on the light end of the flock. Over the next week or so I got the same message from three other farmers. This level of farmer response to such a message was not what I would have expected in New Zealand. Many farmers in NZ manage the light end of their flocks by taking out the visually lighter ewes and this is capturing a big chunk of the opportunity. Also, for these UK flock managers the task of physically condition scoring the whole flock of 500 is not daunting, not like facing 3000 or so. Resorting to visual sorting is understandable, but will never give the same production responses as selecting them by feel. But help could be on the way through technology that will put

Country-Wide July 2017

condition scoring monitoring in the same league as weighing. Condition scoring dairy cows has a lot more formality and cost-benefit data attached to it than is the case with beef cows. In beef cows the rules and benefits are the same but the application is quite different. For a start the huge flex in cow weights over the year that occurs in some herds, yet still supports good herd performance could not happen in a dairy herd.

Resorting to visual sorting is understandable, but will never give the same production responses as selecting them by feel.

Much of this flex is the outcome of doing a lot of winter work meaning that there are other benefits elsewhere through higher pasture quality, benefits that are never attributed to the cow value. This huge flex works because the cows take plenty of condition into the winter and still calve with enough still on board despite the loss. But cow condition and performance can very much be where per-hectare performance and per-head performance come into conflict. Really working cows hard over the winter at the expense of ideal cow condition at calving to set up prime spring pasture quality for lambing sheep cannot be discounted as a valid approach. Wintering more cows at lighter condition

could also deliver more production per hectare. Such an approach though needs careful management to not risk high losses. The key to any underfeeding of cows in winter is to ensure that for the month before they calve they are fed enough to not lose any more condition. Condition score management is just one of the short list of factors that have big impact on flock and herd performance. Obviously the management of feed allocation is on that list, being another issue that has been hammered in advice to farmers but which still remains a weakness. Quick and simple frequent calculations of the feed demand and feed supply as a standard monitoring tool to help with grazing decisions would be a big step forward. Yet there is often a perception that such monitoring is either of little use because of the variations in feed supply, or that fancy spreadsheets or computer programmes are needed. The first concern has some validity but we can have reasonable certainty about what to expect in pasture growth rate and if it is not as expected then it is important to know and make adjustments. Just taking what is delivered is the ultimate in not being in control. The second excuse for not going through this process is just not valid. Those fancy tools are good and can offer value, but do not change the influence of the variables that we have to live with. Grazing pastures is not a precise science due to the variability in pasture growth rates, weather impacts on intakes, the level of utilisation being achieved and the inaccuracies of assessing the feed supply. But despite these variabilities, some of which can be accommodated for in any calculations, farmers who go through this process run out of feed much less often than those who leave it to chance.

FORAGE | RAPHANOBRASSICA

NEW BRASSICA a star performer Russell Priest and Terry Brosnahan

Manson Bell holding a Raphanobrassica plant. Pallaton seeds cost about $300/ha. A Raphnobrassica flower head.

The Bells’ farm name is “Grenaa” (named after a Danish seaport) and is inherited from a previous farm owner.

he past two seasons couldn’t have been better for comparing a new brassica crop grown on a North Island farm. Manson Bell is in his second season of growing Pallaton, a raphanobrassica. Raphanobrassica is the scientific name for a plant from a radish and brassica cross. Pallaton is from kale crossed with radish and the first of what may be a number of cultivars PGG Wrightson Seeds will market under the trademark Raphno. Even though the farm was gripped by drought in 2016, the four hectares of Pallaton put on a stellar performance. Manson put 500 lambs on the crop in early February. The first 150 were drafted off the crop after 28 days at an average carcaseweight weight of 18.7kg, a yield of 47.3% from 39.5kg liveweight. The remainder were drafted at the end of March at an average weight of 17.9Kg. “The whole finishing process was so easy.” All they did was drench them before they went on to the crop then ran them straight on to the truck to the works when they were prime, he says. “We didn’t even have to dag any of them.” Manson was impressed by the way the lambs immediately began eating the brassica when first introduced to it. “They started eating it much earlier than they do rape or pasja.” Lambs will usually eat all the grass around the outside of the paddock before they touch a brassica crop, he says, but they got straight into the Pallaton. “They would have taken it right down to the ground if I had let them.” This year (2016-2017) was wet and growing conditions completely different. Even though the drilling date was similar to the first year, November 20, he says the crop should have gone in quicker. This year 130 lambs/ha went on in February but another 6070 lambs/ha were then added for 10 days to keep growth under control. He was told if he didn’t control it he would lose it. The lambs were drafted off in mobs of 300 at similar weights to last year. Grazing finished at the end of March. The crop only had a 10-day break from grazing out of the two months In 2016, Titan, a lambfinishing rape crop was grown on the farm. In 2015 only 70 lambs/ ha could be grazed on the Titan. Both crops achieved similar lamb • New brassica performs well in growth rates. drought and wet In 2016, once all the • Needs to be managed in growthy 500 lambs on the 4ha season trial block had been • Very hardy, handles bulls well, finished, the crop was regrowth 6500kg/ha shut up and allowed to • Can run over crop with tow-behind regrow for winter feed for fertiliser

Key points

Country-Wide July 2017

Manson Bell with a new 1500 litre trough on a development block surrounded by regrowth Raphanobrasica.

Regrowth Raphanobrassica with a stand of native trees in the background.

Farm facts • Owners: Manson and Celia Bell • Farm 340ha (320ha effective) • At Rangiwaea Junction, 35km northwest of Taihape • Runs from 540 up to 740m ASL • Predominantly volcanic ash over clay soils • Average soil fertility levels: pH 5.8, P 30, S 29, K 12, Ca 10, Mg 21 • Sheep and beef finishing, 35004000 stock units

the R1 bulls, break-fed behind a hot wire. It had been grazed heavily by lambs and Manson was amazed by its regrowth. The regrowth meant he didn’t have to re-cultivate the area to establish another winter crop for his bulls. Further regrowth of 6500kg drymatter (DM)/ha for the bulls gave 14 tonnes DM/ha Manson says the crop has to be managed so it doesn’t go stalky. “You are doing it by eye so you can’t go away for a couple of weeks. “

CROP SETS UP TOP PASTURE The main reason the Bells are double cropping is to grow good pastures. Local contractors using a Cross-Slot drill sowed 4ha of the brassica on November 20, 2015, in a development area Manson is converting to a bull-finishing unit. “At $165/ha I believe the drilling cost represents good value for money.” Three days before drilling the area was sprayed with Roundup, Pulse and Lorsban to kill the grass and springtails. The Pallaton was sown at 8kg/ha with 50kg N/ha, 56kg P/ha fortified with boron, 3kg S/ha and slug bait. Soon after germination cutworm appeared in the crop so this had to be sprayed as it has been known to decimate brassica crops. “In some ways we’re very fortunate farming in this cooler environment because we don’t get the bugs they get at lower altitudes.” The first year he had a helicopter

fly fertiliser on the crop. This year he decided to save his money and used a spreader behind the four-wheeled motorbike. There was little crop damage as it sprang back after the bike and spreader had been over it. The way the crop hung on during the drought impressed Manson. He attributed this to its large tap root. There was no scouring, scald or any other problems associated with forage brassicas with the Pallaton. The lambs appeared to drink very little water from the dam in the paddock in spite of the very high temperatures. “I can only assume they were getting a lot of moisture from the brassica.” In that drought year they added $32/ head to the 500 lambs in just under two months, he says. They also possibly avoided facial eczema in some of the lambs by finishing early.

Manson Bell is developing up to 15ha of his farm each year.

Country-Wide July 2017

Raphanobrassica regrowth will be fed to R1 Friesian bulls during the winter.

In an average summer Manson normally finishes 60-65% of his lambs and the rest are sold as stores. The lamb growth rates on native pastures are very poor after weaning so you spend most of the summer trying to finish them. This year 1400 lambs were finished on 11ha of Pallaton. Pallaton has a high tolerance to club root particularly the Pukekohe, Hawke’s Bay and Southland strains. So the trial and Titan areas were able to be resown. Manson says there were no real downsides with the raphanobrassica. Guidelines are that lambs should be transitioned on to the crop off grass, which he did. He also tested the crop for nitrate levels before introducing the bulls to eat during winter. “I would have thought that if there were any chinks in its armour they would have been exposed.” Grenaa is hit by regular heavy frosts and occasional snow falls from autumn through to spring. It used to be regarded as summer-safe but this tag is rapidly disappearing. In recent years the area has experienced some very dry summers. Manson is married to Celia. One daughter Emma is a product specialist with PGG Wrightson Seeds hence the Pallaton crop. Their son Kieran and other daughter Laura are actively involved in the farm. About 11-14ha goes go through a rotation of two brassica crops then into pasture. The following spring, he cultivates the bull-wintering areas using his own equipment and sows them down in young grass using Excess and Base ryegrasses and Bounty and Tahora II white clover.

Manson Bell with some of his R1 Friesian bulls.

BULLS FINISH WELL The Bells have been finishing Friesian bulls for the past 20 years. Normally they stay on the farm for a year they can be quit at any time if they run short of feed. Spring-born weaner bulls weighing up to 150kg LW are bought at auction in Feilding in November/December and wintered before being killed at about 15 months. Brassicas help carry the R1 bulls through the long winter, then they are cell-grazed on improved pasture in a specially designated 40ha bull unit at four bulls/ha before going to slaughter. Once the paddocks are out of brassica

and into grass bulls are run at 4/ha from September to March at weights 280-315kg CW (try for 600kg LW) The aim is to return at least a $900 margin per animal. In an average year they have been making $1000/bull. Manson says the Pallaton stems are a little harder than when the lambs grazed it however this wasn’t a problem for the bulls. He found it a tough plant which stood up to tramping by the bulls when strip grazing. If they got out they didn’t destroy it like rape. If they managed to gorge themselves there isn’t the same risk of killing themselves as there is with fodder beet.

Manson Bell among a stand of regrowth Raphanobrassica expected to yield at least 6500kg DM/ha.

Country-Wide July 2017

Faculty of Agribusiness & Commerce

ARABLE | ONFARM

Farming from the ground up Rebecca Harper

oils come first for Wairarapa farmers Nathan and Kate Williams, who are successfully proving intensive cropping doesn’t need to be at the price of the environment. The Williams farm at Otahuao Farm, the 335 hectare family property, just east of Masterton, and were supreme winners at this year’s Greater Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards. Three generations of the Williams family live at Otahuao. The property was purchased by Nathan’s parents, Jim and Jill, in 1968 when it was several large paddocks containing stumps and rushes. They still own the 100ha mainly hill portion of the farm. Nathan and Kate lease this part of the farm and own the flat-to-rolling 235ha part of the property, running the whole farm as one unit. The operation is arable and sheep and beef finishing, with income split roughly 50-50 between crops and livestock. The Williams are flexible about what they grow, basing decisions on the market, contracts available and climatic conditions, but core crops in recent years have been ryegrass and red clover for seed, barley and peas. About 35ha is cut for silage annually and turnips are an autumn feed crop for lambs.

There has been no cultivation on Otahuao for 20 years. The farm was a site for some trialing of the Cross Slot seed and fertiliser drill and this no-tillage system has been used exclusively there since they purchased a Cross Slot drill in 1998. They have just bought their fourth Cross Slot Drill and the reason for replacement is to up spec and increase capacity. Repairs and maintenance is low on their soil types and a set of discs and blades usually last one year before they need replacing. “Everything revolves around the soil, it is the essence of our lives. We are pretty proud of our soil structure now,” Nathan says. “We believe the Cross Slot drill covers all bases for us. It will do the job all the time, sowing arable crops and coming out of grass.” As the saying goes, it’s hard to be green when you’re in the red and the Williams are running a highly profitable business. Their Economic Farm Surplus (EFS) has averaged $1378/ha over the last three years. Judge Grant Perry said this result put the strength of the business in context. “They are able to keep returns stable and increase EFS every year… expenses are very stable, they have been able to drive their debt down, invest in new silos and an underpass under the road. It’s no secret that

Key points • Soils come first, no tillage policy for 20 years • Inter-generational family effort to transform and continue improving the property • Highly profitable business, average $1379/ha EFS for the last three years, income split roughly 50/50 between crops and livestock. Nathan is in a really good position to go again, when the opportunity arises.” While many cropping farmers are known for having metal disease, Nathan and Kate have been measured in their decisions to invest in machinery. They have always owned a harvester in partnership with their neighbour, Peter McKenzie. The harvester was upgraded late last year and it was decided to buy a Claas Lexion harvester, with tracks instead of wheels, to minimise soil compaction and damage. “Sound profits mean they can build up a bank, a depreciation fund if you like, so if they have to replace plant it’s not a major imposition on the business,” Grant says. This also means the business is in a strong position for Nathan and Kate to starting thinking about farm succession for their children.

Country-Wide July 2017

Soils come first at Otahuao and the Williams have operated a no tillage policy for 20 years

Soils come first

OTAHUAO

The Williams family farm at Otahuao, just east of Masterton, and won the supreme award at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards for the Greater Wellington region

Everything at Otahuao revolves around soils, with a focus on farming from the ground up. The flats are prone to flooding – they flooded twice in April this year – and retaining top soil in these flood events is a priority. They mitigate the effects with their no-tillage policy, minimising run-off and grazing management. Stock are quickly moved and spread out on the hills in wet weather. “We have seen our soil go from strength to strength. We have become more aware of our soil and the damage you can potentially do. Dad remembers cultivating and having to do 13 passes to get a seed bed, the lumps in the soil were that solid. It has taken a lot of time to change our soil structure, but in the past four or five years it has noticeably improved,” Nathan says. “We had got to a situation with continuously cultivating that the soil structure had gone downhill and degraded, declining crop yields, along with flood erosion – we couldn’t crop what we crop now under the previous system.” The Williams are constantly aware of their carbon levels, natural drainage, organic matter, the quality of the soil structure and worm numbers. A spade is always carried on farm bikes so soil can be checked, especially in spring. They dig a lot of holes.

No-tillage cropping Despite the high levels of cropping, tests show soil quality is not being compromised under the no-till system the Williams operate. Soils at Otahuao have 5% carbon and 8.6% organic matter, about 60% higher than the average in soils under cultivation, something Nathan is proud of. “As the soils have been built up over 20 years they are becoming more resilient, natural drainage is better and we can get on them earlier, and they’re less-prone to pugging.” Bill Ritchie from Baker No-Tillage explained the soils at Otahuao were not inherently good cropping soils and could be challenging. “Carbon levels here are impressive, they’re essentially the same as what we normally see under permanent pasture. “This (farm) is a classic example of the fact you do not get soil degradation as a result of cropping, you get soil degradation as a result of cultivation…continuous cultivation here has resulted in severe soil degradation, we know from history,” he told field day attendees. “We have an opportunity to bring carbon that is in the atmosphere back into our soils. Soils can be a huge carbon sink and these guys are living proof you can put organic matter back into the soil.” With the no-till policy Nathan is able to continuously crop the country, while building soil structure and organic matter.

Country-Wide July 2017

The Williams family, Hugo (7), Kate, Sophie (9), Nathan and Toby (11), missing is the youngest, Monty (3).

A no tillage system has been used exclusively on Otahuao since the Williams family purchased a Cross Slot drill in 1998.

The Williams buy in 180 to 240 weaner heifers each autumn, which they aim to finish before the following May

A colourful sign at Otahuao Farm

Sticking to their knitting Nathan is not one for rushing into things. He prefers to look over the fence and be a fast follower, rather than a pioneer, when it comes to crop decisions. While not necessarily the highestvalue crops, they consider their four staple crops of ryegrass and red clover seed, barley and peas to be the most consistently profitable and kindest on the soils. “We could have higher-value crops, but that doesn’t fit with our ethos. We’re spreading the risk with these crops and they suit our climate. “Ryegrass seems to be the most stable crop and barley is our next go-to crop. It has a reliable yield, we averaged eight tonnes of barley over the whole farm this year. Peas have been a good crop for us, they really suit this farm, we are late sowing because of the winter wet

and they fit our growing pattern well. Red clover is a riskier crop but it’s an important one and good to have in the rotation, but in a much smaller area because of the risk.” Nathan explains that the risk with red clover is mainly due to climatic conditions, but starts with pollination through to harvest, which can extend to late in the season as the days are short and harvest windows are small. “A lot of other crops you need irrigation or cultivation, a lot of reps require you to till the soil and that’s not where we want to go. I’ve found some crops come and go from the Wairarapa and, if we get some more reliability, we might consider those crops. These four crops are pretty reliable year in, year out.” Crops are rotated through the paddocks on a five to six-year cycle. Nathan says the key to successful crops is attention to detail and timing. “We get really itchy feet in the spring when everyone else is out driving around in their machines, but it’s just being patient and getting the timing right – you only get one chance to do it properly.” In spring they spend a lot of time driving around on bikes digging holes to see if the soil is too wet, or nice and crumbly and ready to sow. As for pugging, Nathan says they just don’t go there. “We avoid pugging at all costs. We don’t have heavy cattle on when it gets wet, we spread them around or put them on the hills.” The Williams have invested in two silos, one can hold 200 tonnes of barley and the other, which has stirrers, can hold 180t. “One has stirrers and a drier. We felt that was a risk to our business, as there are very little drying facilities in the Wairarapa, so it made sense to have our own drying facility.”

Livestock policy Sheep and beef finishing is an important component of the Otahuao operation, but not at the expense of the soils. All arable crop land goes back into an Italian ryegrass over winter for livestock production. Each winter they take in 1500 to 2400 ewe hoggets to graze until late spring on contract. Last year hoggets came on from June 20 to July 1 weighing 37-40kg and were sent home in mid to late November with a gain of 22-26kg. Between 3000 and 6000 lambs are bought and finished throughout autumn, winter and spring annually. “We have a few lambs on turnips through summer and continually buy once we grow grass.” They buy all lambs at the price on the day and process everything through Ovation. Lambs are purchased at about 30-35kg, depending on availability, and are drafted on potential to try to maximise in-spec grading, which generally varies from 19-22kg carcaseweight. They also buy in 180 to 240 weaner heifers each autumn, which they aim to finish before the following May. This policy helps ensure soil compaction is avoided, with heavier animals gone

Country-Wide July 2017

Farm facts • Otahuao, Masterton • 335 hectares • Contour varies from flats to steep hills • Annual rainfall: 900mm • Winter wet/summer dry – flats can be flood prone Stock: 3000-6000 lambs traded annually 180-240 weaner heifers purchased and killed prior to the second winter • 1500-2400 ewe hoggets grazed on farm in the spring • Cropping (2016 harvest): • Barley – 125ha, 8.6 tonne • Peas – 32ha, 5t • Ryegrass – 32.5ha, 2.3t Field Dressed • Red clover – 21.2ha, 526kg Machine Dressed.

before the second winter. Heifers are killed at 250-280kg. “We try to maximise live weight gains and match feed supply with demand. Because of the proportion of the farm in crop and the new grass growing, we have to be on the ball when it comes to purchasing. Soils are everything to us, if it gets too wet we will make a decision and spread everything out over the farm, to minimise damage. If it dries out again we will move them back.” Nathan says there is no great secret to weight gain with the heifers, simply good feeding. Cattle are killed through Silver Fern Farms and about 40% of heifers meet the BeefEQ standards. To achieve this they are continually working on temperament from the day the heifers arrive on farm. Conventional hay bales are fed each morning, with the aim of quietening them down so they are friendly. They also feed them well through the year, which includes balage in summer if it is dry. Nathan says handling in the yards is also very important when it comes to meeting the BeefEQ standards. All sheep and cattle receive a quarantine drench on arrival.

Careful fert application Employee Phil Clout has been a valuable addition to the Otahuao team. The Williams did everything themselves before Phil came on board two and half years ago, with the help of a casual worker in summer. When they heard Phil, who was their neighbour and worked in the fertiliser industry,

Country-Wide July 2017

A recent focus has been establishing natives along the Whangaehu River, on the western boundary of the farm.

The harvester and silos, there are two silos on the property and one has a drier

was looking for a more hands-on role in farming they were keen to secure him. Phil explains that the fertility and fertiliser programme at Otahuao is simple. All crops are core-sampled in September and the fertiliser programme is made up from the results of the tests. “As the soil tests are all in the optimum range we rarely have to put capital fert on, but they will get it, if it is recommended.” They apply 25kg of nitrogen/tonne of expected yield on cereal crops, down the spout and broadcast. This rate takes into

account N soil reserves. New grass sown in the autumn gets 100 to 200kg Crop 20, depending on the yield of the previous crop. Grid testing is carried out and they use variable rate application with a spreader. “The main aim behind the grid testing is to put nutrients where most needed, to increase the value of the fert.” They use urea on the shoulders of the spring and autumn to help increase pasture production and apply it to the silage and balage paddocks when they are shut up. Urea is applied themselves, using GPS in their tractors and a new spreader with border control to ensure accurate application. Lime is applied annually to selected paddocks, identified through soil testing, and if the previous crop has required higher rates of N. They have undertaken a nutrient budget for the farm, which shows nitrogen loss of 14kg/ha/year and phosphorus loss of .7/ha/year over the whole farm. BakerAg consultant, Sully Alsop, facilitated the day and commented the losses were very low, which showed nutrients were going to the right places. “They’re being put on as and when needed, which is pretty efficient.”

PLANT & MACHINERY | DRONES Nick Hoogeveen launches his Phantom 4 drone to check winter crops.

UAV promising as pasture tool Andrew Swallow

orget the platemeter, or even motorbike-towed pasture meter: before too long drones will be how data on covers is collected across the farm, says a tech-savvy Canterbury farm

manager. Nick Hoogeveen is general manager of Kintore Farm, Mid Canterbury, and was a speaker at February’s New Zealand UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) Conference in Auckland. “On the one hand, farmers think drones are toys, while on the other, the people with the technology have no idea of the potential it holds to assess feed on farms every week,” he says. Highly sophisticated drones capable of flying programmed courses over a farm, automatically taking pictures at predetermined points, are already available for a few thousand dollars. Smart software links the images at the

Acronyms and regulation UAV stands for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. UAVs are also known as drones, a generic term spanning the spectrum of fixed and/or rotary wing unmanned flying machines from insectsized micro-drones to large missilecarrying military aircraft. RPAS is another acronym to recognise, standing for Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems. RPAS is the term for drones used by New Zealand’s Civil Aviation Authority, the body responsible for enforcing rules governing the use of such machines. Parts 101 and 102 of New Zealand’s Civil Aviation Rules (NZCAR) relate directly to drone use, and operators should be aware of and follow other rules affecting them, such as Part 91 of NZCAR: General Operating and Flight Rules, says the CAA. See www.caa. govt.nz/rpas for more.

click of a button to give high resolution aerial images of entire paddocks or farms. Hoogeveen’s using such a drone to assess pasture and forage crop establishment, winter feed stocks, and to pin-point pasture problems a traditional farm walk could easily miss. “We use it to gain a different perspective.” His latest drone, a Phantom 4, is used weekly to measure areas of winter feed crops remaining, volume of silage stacks, and length of bale lines left. The job’s done in a matter of minutes in the paddock plus maybe 10 minutes back in the office to download the images and tell the software to measure the areas etc. With nearly 5000 cows and young stock wintering across a range of crops, such tasks would take hours manually and would be much less accurate. “If you’re a little bit out every day it can make a big difference at the end of the season. We can manage things a lot better with this weekly stocktake.”

‘We could see the extent of patches was a lot worse than we could pick up from the ground so the drone gave us an early warning of a developing problem.’

Besides visual spectrum images (“RGB” - Red Green Blue) taken with the standard camera on the Phantom 4, Hoogeveen’s spent $4000 on a Near Infra-Red (NIR) sensor to mount on either the Phantom 4 or one of his older drones. “NIR allows you to pick up problems with crop or grass health a lot sooner than you would with the naked eye or a normal RGB camera.” One use, already proven on Kintore Farm, is scouting for grass pest-affected patches. Having found a couple of suspect circular patches on foot in a recently renewed pasture last summer the drone was sent up to get a better look. “We ran it over three other paddocks of new grass and found a whole lot more patches. We could see the extent of patches was a lot worse than we could pick up from the ground so the drone gave us an early warning of a developing problem.” With about 10% of the farm affected by grass grub every year spotting areas needing treatment sooner should save thousands of dollars in lost production and hopefully reduce the area needing treatment. That grass grub application alone

Country-Wide July 2017

Nick Hoogeveen’s hoping to crack pasture cover monitoring with his drones on Kintore Farm, Mid Canterbury.

justifies the cost of the NIR sensor, he says, but he’s confident there will be other ways the drones and cameras earn their keep, notably with pasture yield monitoring. Combining RGB and NIR images produces what’s known as a Normalised Digital Vegetative Index data, he says. NDVI images are known to correlate with drymatter yield so, once calibrated for grass, the drones could replace and improve on current standards such as the Platemeter or CDax. “In the US they’ve got algorithms for all sorts of crops but because New Zealand’s a small market and grass isn’t a high value crop, no-one’s been focussing on it.” With his new drone he’s already able to survey the whole 482-hectare dairy platform in a little over an hour, including battery changes. That compares to five hours to do it with the C-Dax, which only measures paddock transects whereas the drone surveys every square metre to produce yield maps. On many farms, the time required to measure pastures by Platemeter or even motorbike-towed meters means it doesn’t happen as regularly as it should, if at all. That’s despite Dairy NZ research showing a $520/ha net benefit from doing so, Hoogeveen says. The ability to survey the whole farm quickly with a drone could break down

Abacus Bio on the case; Dairy NZ and B+LNZ not In December Abucus Bio started an AgMardt-supported project to develop practical uses of UAVs for New Zealand livestock farmers. It said it would be working with farmers and stakeholders in NZ, the United States, and Australia to better understand the opportunities and limitations for drones within pastoral farming systems. “Ultimately, it’s about understanding the farmer’s needs and developing applications that are of benefit, rather than the drone being a cool toy and not much more,” Abacus Bio managing director, Anna Campbell said. An update on the project would be available in two or three months, Abacus Bio said in early June. Dairy NZ said it was not investing in any current drone/UAV related research, either in-house or externally. “At the moment because of the technology limitations and [CAA] rules we don’t see much of a use for them,” Callum Eastwood, a scientist in the Advice Management and Technology team said. Dairy NZ’s position was to facilitate rather than develop technology itself, he added, for example by providing guidelines as to what good pasture management tools should achieve. “We’re leaving it to the companies and individuals to do the development.” A Beef + Lamb New Zealand demonstration farm project involving Southland farmers Neil and Mark Gardyne, Aeronavics and AbacusBio looked at drones for stock counting and other monitoring tasks in 2014, resulting in a field day in April 2015 where it was reported the drone could save the Gardynes $15,000/year in travel costs and boost productivity $35,000, with up to a $200,000 increase in output possible in future. B+LNZ says it isn’t funding any current drone-specific projects.

that barrier to more regular pasture monitoring, he believes. The reason his new drone can do the job so quickly is thanks to it running Drone Deploy software, which costs US$99/month. Hoogeveen says it is to small quadcopter-type UAVs what Windows operating system is to personal computers. “It allows the drone to do aerial surveys and stitch the images together so you have a seamless image of the whole paddock or even farm. I used it for a few free one-month trials before I was comfortable it added value [and subscribed].” Battery life of newer drones is also vastly improved so only two battery changes (three fully-charged batteries)

are needed to survey the whole farm. In practice that fits with the Civil Aviation Authority requirement that the drone must be kept within sight of the operator at all times, which means he surveys the farm in quarters. “Doing it in quarters also means if anything goes wrong and you lose the data you haven’t got to redo the whole farm, just the quarter where you had the problem,” he adds. CAA rules (NZCAR – see panel) limit operating altitude to 120 metres but if the drone was at 300m Hoogeveen reckons he could cut the survey time to less than 30 minutes. Consequently he’s considering applying to the CAA for certification which would permit him to fly the drone higher.

Smart systems mean the drone can be ‘parked’ mid-air, and it automatically avoids obstacles.

Back in the office the images are downloaded, spliced by the software, and an aerial picture of the whole farm is displayed.

Country-Wide July 2017

PLANT & MACHINERY | DRONES

Farming

FROM ABOVE Lynda Gray Every farmer who has come to see Brett Sanders’ DJI Phantom 4 drone in action ends up buying one. The Central Otago farmer from Matangi station, near Alexandra, reels off the names of at least six who have bought into the remote-controlled flying technology after visiting for a demo and chat. The main drone use at Matangi is for mustering sheep and cattle. “We still use dogs but send the drone to the difficult spots which saves us time and is safer than having to climb down or take the four-wheeler.” Brett stations himself at a high viewing point and using line-of-sight and remote control sends the drone to hunt out sheep and cattle from the steep rock and Matagouri-filled gullies. He observes progress in real time on his Apple iPad, and alters the flight path accordingly. Brett was an early adopter of the technology. He started investigating drones for mustering four years ago when the most suitable model had a $25,000 price tag. Instead of forking out thousands he bought a basic frame, shopped online for the extra parts and soldered one together for about $600. He built about a dozen and had lots of interesting times learning to fly them. “I had a lot of crashes early on. It really was trial-and-error work.” But since buying a DJI Phantom 4 in August last year the homemade drones have largely sat redundant in the corner of the kitchen pantry alongside several shelves of parts and accessories. “The out-of-the-box technology has

leaped forward so much I couldn’t build one to that standard now.” Most recently the Phantom has been used to accurately map irrigation at Matangi. Photos and data logged from each flight has been downloaded and sent to Drone Deploy, a cloud-based software, which produces incredibly detailed photos, overlaid on a Google Earth map. The maps give Brett important information on the slope and drainage of land which will be supplied as part of the water renewal consenting process. Drone Deploy provides free basic information beyond which other add-on apps can be used at a very reasonable cost. An example is the AgriSensPlant Insights Brett used to count the number of wilding pines on a block, which cost 9c/ha. He’s also trialled another app to assess the plant health in a lucerne crop. The report, based on the supplied photos, isolated the areas of stressed plants. “We would never have picked them otherwise so it gave us a head start on trying to work out what was needed.” The potential for more precision agricultural applications are endless although not something Brett feels the need to push on an extensively farmed system such as Matangi. Even though, the Phantom 4 is something he wouldn’t be without. “We find it’s a major timesaver predominantly with stock movement but with precision agriculture there’s a lot happening.” Brett makes drone control look easy and says after four years of flying them it’s difficult to explain how to do it.

What does a drone cost? • A Phantom 3 (P3) Standard with extra battery and a softshell backpack retails for around $1200. • A Phantom 4 (P4) Advanced with extra battery and a hardshell backpack retails for around $2850 • The P3 does not have crash-avoidance features. The flight time is less and the camera not as good as on the P4 models but is still very capable for the price. • A package deal with the extra battery is a good value option because a single battery for a P4 is around $300.

The Phantom 4 is now an essential stock mustering tool at Matangi station.

Key points • Get familiar with Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) Part 101 drone operating rules. Go to caa.govt.nz/ rpas/index-2/ or airshare.co.nz/rules • Check out airshare.co.nz, a NZ UAV and drone hub with useful information. • Join Drones on Farms NZ, a Facebook page with useful discussion and pointers about onfarm use. • There is a range of cloud-based drone software available such as Drone Deploy, Pix4D, or Sentera AgVault. “It’s a bit like trying to teach a learner driver to change gears in a car.” Lots of practice is required, outdoors preferably. Brett says a local farmer discovered the perils of indoor training and tried (unsuccessfully) to hide the evidence – propeller divet marks down the leg of the kitchen dining table – by repositioning the said item of furniture. Brett has become a go-to person for drone advice and footage. There have been numerous international media enquiries and stories, most wanting to see how NZ farmers are using the technology. Recently he was asked how to use a drone to map an endangered plant species on Lord Howe Island. Brett’s biggest drone problem is making enough computer storage space for the data and images collected. An eight-terabyte external drive sits on the home office desk but it’s likely more storage will be needed before long. Country-Wide July 2017

PLANT & MACHINERY | BEET BUCKET

Lifting fodder beet a saviour in drought James Hoban For Mark and Gill Forrester, lifting fodder beet proved a saviour in drought. The Forresters farm inland from Waipara, North Canterbury. Two years ago, with autumn proving record-breaking dry, the Forresters came up with a novel way to get the most out of their six-hectare fodder beet crop. The crop was 22 tonnes/ha and by far the most feed they had available on any part of the farm. The challenge was how to utilise it for their deer, with the paddock situated outside their deer unit. The drought had limited growth of other options inside the deer-fenced paddocks so the Forresters decided to lift the fodder beet and take it to the deer. They ended up

The homemade beet lifting bucket

feeding it to weaners, hinds and also yearling cattle. The fodder beet was lifted into a second-hand silage wagon they bought specially and was fed out on its own. Stock were given a daily break of grass as well but Mark points out that there was very little grass available at the time. The stock wintered well on the fodder beet and even feral pigs turned up in one paddock for a feed on a regular basis. “We considered buying a lifting bucket but the cost was an issue and we thought ‘this might be a one-off’.” A 2.6m lifting bucket is about $8000 new to buy. Steve Carr, who worked for Mark and Gill at the time, was known for being handy in the workshop. He spoke to a number of people about how best to lift beet and eventually spent a morning in the workshop fitting a normal sheep gate to the bottom of a tractor bucket. Mark says they tried a netting gate for a start and quickly ruined it. A barred gate came next and was perfect for the job. Lifting the beet worked well because it was during such a dry period. Mark is quick to point out that he would never

The paddock on the Forresters’ North Canterbury farm where the beet was lifted.

entertain doing it in a wet year but the conditions were perfect during drought. The bulbs popped out of the ground nicely without too much soil ending up in the silage wagon. “The Claremont soils are a bit like plasticine and when it’s wet they’re really sticky. We certainly wouldn’t be able to lift it this season.” Mark is grateful that so far lifting fodder beet has been an isolated exercise but he says they would not hesitate to do it again in a dry season. • More on commercial fodder beet buckets in the August issue

Droning-on in Southland Lynda Gray A Southland drone use discussion group has attracted a diverse bunch of farmers. At the first meeting, organised by Dunedin agribusiness consultants Abacus Bio, were sheep, beef and dairy farmers of all ages, facilitator Luke Proctor says. “It was a get-together to see how they were using drones and the applications they would like to see developed.” The majority were using them for stock mustering and monitoring, and the main application they wanted to see developed was for the accurate and consistent measuring of pasture cover. “Many also said they wanted the drones to be fully autonomous so they

Country-Wide July 2017

Mark Gardyne launches the 3D Robotics hexacopter could be set drone back in 2013 on a mission to check on the hoggets. and left to do a regular task…the The family took delivery of their first biggest challenge is keeping up with the drone, a $4000 3D Robotics hexacopter, technology because it’s moving so fast.” in June 2013. The meeting was at Neil and Pip The Gardynes’ son Mark was the chief Gardyne’s Otama farm, near Gore where drone IT person but almost four years drone use has been a regular part of on the 16-year-old is kept busy with their farming since 2013 as featured in school and extra-curricular activities Country-Wide, December 2013. leaving little time for drone-related tasks. “We’re using it for normal farming However, Neil has kept up onfarm drone stuff. We’re still very interested but have use and three months ago bought a pulled back a bit,” Neil Gardyne says. $2500 ready-to-go Mavick to replace an The “normal stuff” farm tasks include Aeronautics BOT. looking for cast sheep and checking stock “It’s more convenient. It folds up into for shifting. a camera-sized case and we can have it “This morning I used it to check the going in 20 seconds.” cattle. It took five minutes.”

ENVIRONMENT | PLANS

In Marlborough most farmers are close to the sea or rivers.

Hazard Overlays was another oversight. McGregor says 1365 significant wetland sites, many on farmland, were notified in the plan. Farmers had the opportunity for council staff to visit and assess wetlands. Many asked for this to happen but only 219 sites were visited, McGregor says.

‘A farmer wants to know if he can take stock across a waterway and a rule like that is not practical because there is no easy way of knowing if they’re breaching the standard.’

Farmers baulk at Marlborough rules Lynda Gray

he overly prescriptive nature of the proposed Marlborough Environment Plan has not gone down well with some local farmers. “It’s humungous, complicated and has so many rules,” Federated Farmers regional policy advisor Kristy McGregor says. The Feds compiled an almost 450-page submission, following eight meetings attended by almost 250 farmers. It listed as one of the major concerns the onerous nature of permitted activity standards, a classic example being the half-page exposé on cultivation. One of the hard-to-easily-understand rules states that on all slopes greater than 20 degrees cultivation must be parallel to the contour of the land; except that up to 15% of the cultivated area may be cultivated at an angle to the contour. Another moot point was in easily understanding whether some farming activities would comply with standards. A good example was the livestock-throughwaterway rules which used the Munsell scale and a level of reflectance to define acceptable water clarity. While such measures and indicators might be well known to water quality 62

experts neither was widely known nor understood by farmers. “A farmer wants to know if he can take stock across a waterway and a rule like that is not practical because there is no easy way of knowing if they’re breaching the standard,” McGregor says. The lack of landowner consultation and inaccuracies in the mapping of Significant Wetlands and Natural

The Feds said in their submission the only winners from the proposed plan were resource management consultants reaping financial reward from the steady stream of farmers forced to employ professional help in preparing consent applications. Provincial president and Picton dairy farmer Sharon Parkes says that in its current form the plan simply isn’t practical. “It’s not workable but we’ve got to get it right because we don’t want it to end up like the Horizons plan.” New flood and environment zones, many much more extensive than what farmers considered necessary, would seriously restrict practical and necessary management, she says. Farmers have also questioned the practicality of proposed excavation

›› continues bottom p63

The rules regarding stock and waterways needed clarification to make them workable.

Country-Wide July 2017

ENVIRONMENT | WATERWAYS

‘The first thing to understand is the challenge for different water bodies varies,’ Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

Work together on water quality Lynda Gray Don’t get defensive; get engaged and work together to get on top of water quality, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith told the deer industry conference in Wellington. The sharp end of the water quality debate in the election lead-up was: is it possible to have both clean water and economic growth? he said. Naysayers argued it was either one or the other whereas Smith said both was possible with good water storage and onfarm management. But he acknowledged defining water quality was complicated because there were multiple contributors – sediment, pathogens, nitrogen and phosphorus – the levels and impact of each varying on a case-by-case basis. “If we’re to get on top of the issue the first thing to understand is the challenge for different water bodies varies.” The Resource Management Act since its inception in 1991 had done a good job of reducing point source pollution – contaminants that flowed out of a pipe and into waterways – by 90%.

The bad news was that these gains had been overwhelmed by diffuse pollution such as run-off from roadways, commercial and built-up areas in towns and cities, and in rural areas overland run-off, animal manure and leaching of nitrogen. He had assumed solving the problem would be a relatively straightforward job of adapting an existing overseas policy or model for New Zealand conditions. The problem was there was none and NZ appeared to be leading the charge. But he made it clear that dealing with diffuse pollution would mean putting limits on stocking rates using tools such as Overseer. A particular challenge for deer farmers was the fencing of stock from waterways, but he believed the timetable for progressive implementation by 2030 was fair. “You should be of no doubt that of all the things the farming community can do to make a material difference at reasonable cost around water quality is the progressive fencing of waterways.” Debate had been about the need for national regulations around

riparian planting but he felt that was unachievable because of the vastly differing characteristics of waterways throughout the country. Part of the water quality debate was about how much should be driven at a national level and how much left to regional councils. There was not an easy answer although Smith felt reforms of the 1980s had left local government taking on too much responsibility with little or no government directive. However, the Government had taken steps to address the situation through the National Policy Statement in 2010, and the Land and Water Forum. Water quality in urban waterways and streams was, on average, worse than that in rural waterways. However, the rural pastoral area covered a much larger area. Over the last 25 years farming intensification had contributed much of the diffuse pollution so farmers needed to do their bit in reversing the situation but the urban community also needed to do their fair share of “heavy lifting”, Smith said. lyndagray@xtra.co.nz

rules which prohibit work within eight metres of a river, significant wetland and stopbank or within a designated Level 2 or 3 flood hazard area. “In Marlborough most farmers are close to the sea or rivers so a lot of sediment is washed into creeks and rivers and has to be cleared.” In her own submission Parkes pointed out that the Canadian Water Quality Index being used throughout the region is, to her knowledge, used by no other council. She thinks all NZ waterways should be measured under the same index. “Why can’t I compare my river with the Waikato, or Manawatu rivers?” Not all farmers share the Feds’ level of

concern about the plan. Fraser Avery of Grassmere is reasonably comfortable with what he heard at a meeting last year. “There’s a bit of wording that needs clarification but a lot of it is about good practice which is what a lot of us are doing anyway.” But he said the rules regarding stock and waterways needed clarification to make them workable. “For farmers in the high country especially; if we had a flood (the proposed rules) would more or less make it impossible to shift the stock.” He commended the council for holding off release of the plan so observations could be made of how other plans

throughout the country unfolded. The plan was publicly notified in June 2016 and the close-off for the first round of submissions was on September 1. The deadline for further submissions closed on June 23, and on June 8 1302 submissions had been received from which there was a three-way equal split for support, support in-part and opposition to aspects of the plan. Parkes’ hope is that mayor John Leggett will follow through on his promise. “He said this is going to be ‘our’ plan, so that to me means it has to relate to everybody, not just the council.”

Country-Wide July 2017

lyndagray@xtra.co.nz 63

ENVIRONMENT | WATER QUALITY

Otago setting a region-wide water quality limit for rivers such as the Taieri of 30kg/ha/year (with the exception of a few areas) is not scientifically robust or defensible, Keri Johnston says.

A ministerial letter to councils Keri Johnston On a theme of pretending to be someone I’m not (eg: the prime minister of this fair nation), Country Wide’s editor, Terry Brosnahan suggested I put on the Environment Minister’s hat this time and write to those councils still to dip their toes into the complex issue of setting water quality limits with some advice and lessons learnt to date… so here goes. Dear (insert name of CEO of relevant council), With the recent OECD report (March 2017) stating that New Zealand’s economic growth model is approaching its environmental limits, I thought it timely to contact councils who are yet to undertake the process of setting water quality limits. Many have gone before you, and I sincerely hope that you have been watching and learning from their successes and failures. I would like to provide you with what I consider to be key lessons learnt.

ENGAGE AND INVOLVE This may seem rather obvious, but it is actually very difficult to do well. You need to engage everyone, urban and rural and it needs to be communicated right from the outset that any process to set water quality limits is a community issue – again, everyone. You will create an even larger divide between the urban and rural factions of your communities if you focus solely on one as the cause of the region’s issues. And, everyone needs to be involved. It is important to emphasise that these processes will potentially impact on livelihoods but also expectations on water quality outcomes. Therefore, they must be involved in 64

the process. I must also emphasise that everyone includes stakeholder groups and iwi. Every person, body or group with an interest in the outcome needs to be engaged and involved. All it takes is one to derail the entire process.

You need to engage everyone, urban and rural and it needs to be communicated right from the outset that any process to set water quality limits is a community issue – again, everyone.

OVERSEER Overseer appears to be the tool of choice for ensuring compliance with water quality limits at a farm level. Please remember that Overseer is a model that estimates losses at the root zone. It in no way is capable of determining how much nutrient actually makes it to water (either groundwater or surface water). Please also remember that it is subject to frequent change and therefore, should you opt to use it, you must allow for this fact – a lesson Horizons has learnt of late and Otago is in denial about. SCIENCE Again, an obvious statement I would have thought. And I’m not suggesting the Dr Mike Joy type of science, but robust, defensible science. Water quality is a multifaceted topic and every water body will be different – it is not “one size fits all” and there is

constant failure by councils to recognise this. For example, Otago setting a regionwide water quality limit of 30kg/ha/year (with the exception of a few areas) is not scientifically robust or defensible. I cannot believe that the Clutha River is the same as the Lindis River and that one water quality limit will achieve the same outcome in both water bodies. I completely understand that getting the science right will take time, but again, allow for this.

ADAPT AND REVIEW The expression that springs to mind is: best-laid plans. Despite best efforts to create robust, defensible limits and a rule framework around these, be prepared to review in the event that we are proven to be wrong, or simply does not work. And, then actually carry out the review. This will require you to adapt. ACCEPT WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW You may not have all the answers, or the information available to determine the answers. Accept this, and take whatever steps necessary to get the answers. Plucking limits out of thin air is not an acceptable alternative – again reiterating that livelihoods are at stake, but also that water quality outcomes will not be met. It affects everyone. If you are not able to determine the answers, get help. I thank you for taking the time to read this letter, and I hope my advice puts you in good stead for the future. Kind regards and best wishes, Keri Johnston (wannabe Environment Minister) • Keri Johnston is a natural resources engineer with Irricon Resource Solutions, Timaru. Country-Wide July 2017

ENVIRONMENT | FARM FORESTRY

The versatility of radiata pine Denis Hocking Stocking rate is a term familiar to pastoral farmers and foresters, and both live with changing fashions. Recommended radiata pine stockings have varied significantly through my 40 years in the business with the “Silmod” era recommendations of 200 stems per hectare (sph) for pruned stands being a notable low, literally I might add, not metaphorically in my opinion. The pendulum seems to be swinging back to higher stockings, especially for unpruned, framing or structural regimes, aided in part by improved genetic material. A recent paper by John Moore and other Scion researchers suggests an optimum stocking rate, using best genetics, of around 600sph for structural regimes. The main gain is in total recoverable volume at a specified age, which along with straightness and branch size/habit is a key determinant of value for these regimes. Higher stocking rate recommendations also seem to have drifted into pruned, clearwood regimes but I don’t think these trends/arguments give the full picture that forest growers need to consider. For pruned regimes diameter is also important. At this year’s New Zealand Farm Forestry Association conference Peter Martin from Waverley Sawmills emphasised this, showing some planks through several pruned logs. What he is after is a wide sheath of clearwood but with small-diameter, pruned logs he is inevitably buying more low-value defect core than for larger-diameter logs. A 40cm average-diameter pruned log with a defect core of 20cm. has 25% low value, knotty wood, whereas a 50cm average diameter pruned log with the same 20cm defect core only loses 16%. With a not-uncommon 25cm defect core, the 40cm log loses 39% in defect core compared to 25% for the 50cm log. Add the extra handling, higher losses in outside slabwood plus the need for smaller logs to be straighter and you understand why clearwood sawmillers prefer bigger logs – to a maximum of about 90cm. They drool at the prospect Country-Wide July 2017

The pendulum seems to be swinging back to higher stockings, especially for unpruned, framing or structural regimes, aided in part by improved genetic material.

of 60-70cm logs, always dependant on respectable defect cores. A 60cm log with a 20cm defect core has only 11% core. Thus there are advantages for structural regimes in having high stocking rates for maximum volume and for pruned regimes in having lower stocking rates and larger-diameter trees. So what is the effect of lower stocking on productivity? Well it’s not quite what might be expected. In the 1980s, with Rogernomics, I started production-thinning my teenage pine plantations to generate an early cash trickle. At the time Forest Research was advocating 200sph for pruned regimes, but I carried on and with multiple thins went down to 100-150sph. In 1992 Forest Research installed some permanent sample plots (PSPs) to measure performance at these “very low” stocking rates. The results were interesting. Eight PSPs were measured for between three and eight years (two to seven increments). Stocking rates ranged from 90 to 133sph on sand dunes and flats that had rather modest site indices between 22.8 and 29.4. This was before the introduction of the P300 productivity index.

The pendulum seems to be swinging back to higher stockings, especially for unpruned, framing or structural regimes, aided in part by improved genetic material.

The average annual volume increment, the amount of wood added each year on these plots, was a very respectable 25 cubic metres per hectare with a range of 16 to 30. And this was with 1960s genetics. This increment is exactly the average found by Moore et al for PSPs measured around the country within the last five years at higher to much higher stocking rates. Certainly they measured some sites

at up to 40, and one near Hawera at 60 cubic metres/ha/year, but the averages were the same. There were some other pluses for my stands. Early confinement meant good branch control on second and third logs while continued good diameter increments through their 20s meant these trees had a higher proportion of stiffer, denser, adult wood. The downside was relatively low volumes at harvest, but since they were still adding plenty of valuable wood I should perhaps have left them longer than the 28 to 31 years they had.

SO WHAT ARE THE LESSONS? Radiata pine is a versatile species that responds very well to thinning – remaining trees can pick up much of the growth lost by removing some, perhaps many, of the original trees. Wink Sutton recognised this in trials from the early 1970s but also found this virtue was not shared by most other species. However cypresses also respond well. The timing of the thinning is important. Too early and the trees will branch heavily, downgrading the second and third logs; too late and there will be insufficient green crown to maintain productivity and the trees don’t seem to grow new crown as vigorously. For me, thinning in the teens, 13 to 20, perhaps early 20s, has worked well. The Tikitere trials, where radiata was grown at 50 to 400sph, differed in that trees were planted at final stockings and low-stocked stands suffered very heavy branching. Production thinning is not an option on many sites and is not a big cash generator, but I found it useful. On difficult sites the questions are about timing and extent of thinning. Since floating these arguments I have heard that resin pockets have also been a problem in some low-stocked stands, though not in my plantations. This all adds up to the need to understand the principles and trade-offs and manage your trees appropriately for your situation, in my opinion. This year’s recipe may not be best for your site. 65

TECHNOLOGY | SIGNATURES

Just sign here... Kirstin Mills

t a time when you can do so much online, it can be frustrating when someone emails you a document that requires your signature. “Just print it out, sign it, scan it, and email it back to us” the instructions often say. As the woman in the famous meme, said: ain’t nobody got time for that. Thankfully, there are other options. If someone sends you a pdf then you can use Adobe Acrobat Reader to electronically sign it – no need to print or scan it. There is other software that lets you do this too, but Acrobat Reader is free to download. Once you have Acrobat Reader, use it to open the document you need to sign. Then go to Tools and choose “Fill & Sign”. At the top of the page you’ll now have a menu that lets you add text (this is useful if you need to add the date or your name), marks (eg: crosses, ticks, strikethroughs etc) and your signature and initials. To add your signature, click on the “Sign” button and it will ask if you want

to add your signature or your initials. Select “Add Signature” and then it will give you three options to choose from. Regardless of the method you choose, make sure the “save signature” box is ticked before you click “Apply”. Signature via typing: I don’t recommend this option. You type your name and it gives you a few options for a handwritten signature, but it’s unlikely to actually look like your signature. Signature via drawing: You can use your mouse or a touch screen to create your signature. It might take a few goes to get it looking like your signature. Signature via image: Lastly, you can sign on a piece of paper, take a photo of it with your phone and email it to yourself. Once you’ve saved it to your computer you can add the image in Adobe Acrobat (and it will keep it there so you only have to do this once). It’s a bit fiddlier, but it does mean you’ll have your actual signature. Once you’ve applied it, the signature will appear on your document and you can move it about the page and make it smaller or bigger. Then just save your document to your computer, ready to send it back.

If you only have a phone or tablet, there are various apps that will help you do something similar. In fact, if you have an Apple device, there is a “Markup” feature in your email app that will let you sign any attached pdf document and email it back. Just open the pdf by tapping on it and when it opens click the bottom right icon that looks like a suitcase. That will open the Markup page. You can click on the pencil to add your signature for a one-off. Or, you can click on the signature icon on the bottom right to add a signature that you can use repeatedly. There is also a “text” icon second from right that lets you add text (eg: your name or the date). The Electronic Transactions Act allows for electronic signatures in New Zealand where it clearly identifies you and is reliable. There are some exceptions – talk to your lawyer if you’re signing something important to establish if an electronic signature is acceptable.

Country-Wide July 2017

TECHNOLOGY | SECURITY

Ransomware – what is it? PROTECTION AND REMOVAL Alan Royal What is ransomware? It is malicious software that locks a device, such as a computer, tablet or smartphone then demands a ransom to unlock it. Where did ransomware originate? The first documented case appeared in 2005 in the United States, but quickly spread around the world. How does it affect a computer? The software is normally contained within an attachment to an email that masquerades as something innocent. Once opened it encrypts the hard drive, making it impossible to access or retrieve anything stored on there – such as photographs, documents or music. How can you protect yourself? Antivirus software can protect your machine, although cybercriminals are constantly working on new ways to override such protection. How much are victims expected to pay? The ransom demanded varies. There

The ransomware encrypts your data and locks it until you pay a “ransom”. It has become the largest ransomware attack in history, within a few hours. There is no guarantee, even if you pay the ransom, you will get your data back.

is no guarantee paying will get your data back. Read about the latest ransomware (WannaCry) at bbc.in/2r3fdpw. The ransomware encrypts your data and locks it until you pay a “ransom”. It has become the largest ransomware attack in history, within a few hours. There is no guarantee, even if you pay the ransom, you will get your data back. It is recommended you do not pay the ransom. Country-Wide July 2017

The ransomware hits older Microsoft operating systems and those that have not been updated with a March patch from Microsoft. According to Intel malware watch at bit.ly/2r2ATCi, the ransomware has gone worldwide and has hit New Zealand.

TAKE THESE SEVEN STEPS ASAP TO PROTECT YOURSELF: • Update all your software, especially any Microsoft Windows programmes. Microsoft has made emergency updates available for Windows XP and 8, Vista, and other programmes it had previously stopped supporting. The update is at bit.ly/2pOWrOY. Windows 10 is OK, providing it is up to date. • Backup your files. If you have an alternate or external backup drive disconnect it meanwhile. It can also become infected. Take advantage of the free cloud backup services such as Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, Mega and iCloud, among many others. These are easy to use, and can save you a lot of angst if you get hit with a ransomware attack. Back up all work and personal files to the cloud. You have access to them from any place or device. • Don’t open attachments or click on links that seem even the slightest bit fishy or unusual. • Install the free CryptoPrevent programme from bit.ly/2r2Cisy, designed to identify and block ransomware.

• Run the latest version of SUPERAntiSpyWare bit.ly/2pQaQdw or Malwarebytes bit.ly/2pQ4PgV free editions. Also • Try these removal tools Trendmicro’s Ransomware Removal Tool at bit.ly/2pS2t17 - a ransomware targeting removal tool available for Windows-based PCs. Kaspersky’s Ransomware Decryptor Site at bit.ly/2pRWwRO is able to decrypt some types of ransomware. View the tools at nomoreransom.org, an initiative by the National High Tech Crime Unit of the Netherlands’ police. • Use EMAIL Rule to confirm that an email is dangerous. EMAIL means “examine message and inspect links”. Check the From line to show the email’s sender. See if the subject line, is trying to create fear (eg: Your Account Will Be Closed) or entice you through curiosity (any subject line about payments, gifts or invoices) that grabs your attention. Look for spelling, grammar, or awkward wordings. Hover your mouse over every link in the email to see its real destination. If in doubt, the safest thing is to just delete any suspicious email. Anyone with serious business to conduct with you will persist to get in touch via social, phone, or snail mail. • For a copy of this article, with active links, email Alan Royal at a.royal@paradise.net.nz. 67

TECHNOLOGY | DATA

NAIT compliance made simpler James Hoban StockManager makes NAIT compliance simpler. It allows fully automated NAIT reporting and the ability to register tags in a single step process (as opposed to the multiple steps in the system). Subscribers will pay a monthly fee relative to the number of stock they run. They will also need a compatible EID reader, weigh cells, tablet and weigh indicator. Because the tablet and mobile data platform changes the way data is stored and related, the required weigh indicator is more basic than would be needed to use other programmes with EID. If similar use of data was planned on existing models, users would need a laptop or PC instead of the tablet, identical weigh cells and reader and a higher end weigh indicator. StockManager is compatible with a range of currently available devices as long as they have Bluetooth capability. The developers have found some cases which they say are promising for using StockManager in outdoor environments and difficult weather but only time will tell how robust these are.

“Single-purpose devices are not the future. For this reason we have deliberately designed StockManager to work through multi-purpose devices.” While it is the sheep, beef and deer sector Shand has focused on, he and McCormick are also applying StockManager’s development principles to offer a similar tool in the honey sector.

THE RIGHT TEAM

One of Dan and wife Mandy Shand’s major breakthroughs came about when they met Jim McCormick an American IT management consultant, in 2013. McCormick was convinced Shand was on to something and spent several years of his own time, as well as a considerable amount of money, with the Shands turning an idea into something useable. At times McCormick has shaken his head at the lack of vision and support from some NZ industry bodies but overwhelmingly StockManager has been met with considerable buy-in from farmers and commercial industry businesses. TruTest, Prattley, Allflex, Ztags and Virbac have all bought into the StockManager opportunity and were helping it gain momentum, Shand said. He enrolled a number of Canterbury farmers to trial it to ensure the final product met farmer needs. “Every element of it has been included in response to the questions: what do farmers need to know, when and where do they need to know it and will understanding it make a difference to their financial StockManager is an Android tablet application focused on: performance?” • Making the collection, management and use of livestock Shand’s practical data and feed requirements simple and efficient skills and industry • Providing simple data-driven decision-making tools that understanding along impact farm businesses with McCormick’s • Feeding decisions technical expertise • Breeding decisions made them a successful • Sale decisions team. However, working • Providing NAIT, health treatment and stock reconciliation together from different reporting while farming. parts of the globe has

What it does

IT consultant Jim McCormick, left, and developer Dan Shand.

provided some logistical challenges. It has not been unusual for Shand to spend days working on the farm before staying up most of the night talking to the development team in the US and Europe on Skype or email. McCormick made several trips to NZ before StockManager was finally ready to go.

CHEAP AND CHEERFUL StockManager had the potential to improve the timing and quality of decisions made by any farmer and it removes the reliance on instinct alone, says one of its inventors, Dan Shand (see p16). “Understanding the things you just can’t see with your eye like previous scanning results or condition scores.” Shand said it provided real time, factual information in a format which is able to be used at the time a decision is best made. This allowed instant decisions ‘in the yards’ instead of hindsight decisions made at a later time after several more, often complicated, steps to interpret and analyse available data. This is difficult for livestock decisionmaking because most recording systems require third party software on a computer or other device. It means leaving the yards and most farmers do not use the data to its full value as a consequence. Shand said unless a tool like StockManager was easy to use and provided real financial value, it would not be adopted. “It needs to be able to be learnt in 20 minutes rather than six months and it can’t cost a lot. This philosophy is reflected in our design and price.” Allowing for the average farm running 2000 animals at an annual subscription of $250, StockManager was a cheaper alternative than competitors. Country-Wide July 2017

Gift of the gab WORK HARD, PLAY HARDER

Bareback rodeo rider Madison Taylor is making his mark at the auction yards

Winning shepherds Two young graduates of the well-regarded Smedley Station cadet training programme have taken out the Wairarapa and Tararua Shepherd of the Year. p70 Country-Wide July 2017

Hamish Duff works as a shepherd for Jeremy Davies at Glen Elgin, just out of Dannevirke

SHEPHERDS

Success for Smedley grads Two young shepherds, both graduates of the well-regarded Smedley Station cadet training programme, have taken out the Wairarapa and Tararua Shepherd of the Year competitions for 2017. Rebecca Harper went to visit them.

oung shepherd Hamish Duff is on track to achieve his ultimate goal of farm ownership, winning this year’s Tararua Shepherd of the Year competition. Hamish’s farming aspirations were briefly side-lined by a serious car accident, but he hasn’t let that stop him pursuing his chosen career. Growing up in town Hamish, 25, knew from a young age that farming was the job for him. “I loved being outdoors, hunting, that sort of stuff. I knew I wanted to be on a farm.” Local farmer Willy Philip lived next door to Hamish’s nana and when he was 13, he rang Willy and asked for a job. Despite having no experience, Hamish started working there after school, at weekends and during the holidays. Hamish was accepted to Smedley Station in his seventh form year and attended Smedley from 2010 to 2011. “It was good. You get a grounding in everything. The big thing for me was I hadn’t gone to boarding school and all of a sudden you’re living with 21 other fellas, but we

all got on and I still catch up with them. I enjoyed the horses, it was something new that I’d never done before. “You can go out and be confident, Smedley sets you up to be able to go out and do a job, and do it well.” Hamish had a job lined up when he finished at Smedley to work on one of the Massey University research farms, but a major car accident put paid to that.

“I had eight months where I couldn’t work. The worst thing was I had such a bad head knock, my brain got shaken up and I lost all my balance. I ended up getting plates in my face. “After eight months I had recovered and was cleared to return to work, but physically I wasn’t ready (to go farming).” Instead, Hamish got a job as a customer service rep at the PGG Wrightson store in Dannevirke, where he worked for two years. “I found it was good because I was still interacting with farmers and in the ag industry.” Eventually, he accepted a job on Kia Ora Station at Waitahora, where he stayed for two years. “It got me back farming and building up a team of dogs.” The operation at Kia Ora was focused on lamb finishing and breeding thoroughbred horses. “The horses were good, but they’re such a tie with mares foaling and getting them back in foal. You go to some of those stallions like Savabeel and O’Reilly, they’re really impressive. It was fun but it wasn’t for me, long-term.” Hamish was after something focused on sheep and beef hill country and 10 months ago started working as a shepherd for Jeremy Davies, just out of Dannevirke. Hamish and his partner Jenna Thomas live at Glen Elgin, Jeremy’s original farm. Jenna works three days a week in Palmerston North as a kitchen designer and the couple have a son Carter, 3. Jeremy now has three blocks, Glen Elgin (260 hectares), Tuturewa Hill (325ha) and Mangatoro (110ha). Jeremy lives at Mangatoro and he and Hamish talk on the phone each evening to discuss the plans for the next day. “Mangatoro is really intensive in winter. We have about 90 bulls behind wires on fodder beet and kale and have 850 winter trade lambs. It’s a good mix of intensive and extensive farming,” Hamish says. They lamb hoggets at Glen Elgin as well as

The Davies run 90 Hereford/ Friesian cows, which go to a Simmental bull

Country-Wide July 2017

‘YOU GET A GROUNDING IN EVERYTHING. THE BIG THING FOR ME WAS I HADN’T GONE TO BOARDING SCHOOL AND ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU’RE LIVING WITH 21 OTHER FELLAS, BUT WE ALL GOT ON AND I STILL CATCH UP WITH THEM.’ running a small mob of 800 ewes. Generally, Hamish will do stock shifts at Glen Elgin in the morning, before heading to one of the other blocks to help Jeremy. “There’s nothing better than being outside with your dogs on a really good morning. Hopefully I’ll get to farm ownership one day. I’ll have to work hard to get there.” Hamish hopes to step up to a managerial role, like stock or block manager, in the next 12 months and would like to manage a place within the next five years, while building his equity. “I would look maybe at an equity partnership, that’s what Jeremy has done here. Part of my prize for winning the competition was $500 with the accountant and $500 with a lawyer and I’m thinking about putting that money towards a business plan – what I need to know and how to get into a position to take advantage when a good opportunity comes up.” Competition judge, Jed Murphy, said Hamish impressed with his technical knowledge of animal health, pasture covers, and target feeding levels. “Hamish was able to share a lot of detailed information about mob sizes, current liveweights, and rotation lengths and had a clear view of what these details would look like in six months’ time. Hamish also impressed with the calm and quiet manner in which he and his dogs worked with stock.” Hamish entered the competition at the encouragement of Jeremy. “It’s definitely a good thing to have on your CV. “Jed’s been great and I can ring him any time, he’s going to help me set up the meeting with the accountant and lawyer and try to get the bank manager involved too,” Hamish says. “I was surprised (to win) and at the same time I was stoked as. When they introduced all the finalists everyone sounded pretty impressive. I was apprehensive about entering but now that I have done it I would say to others, definitely go for it. Even if you don’t win you will get something out of it.” Country-Wide July 2017

Tararua Shepherd of the Year, Hamish Duff, and his son Carter, 3.

Ticking all the boxes

rowing up as a young boy helping his father weigh lambs in the yards, there was never any thought that Jono Tod would choose a career other than farming. Jono, 22, works as a shepherd for Simon and Rebecca McKay at Namoi Farm in Alfredton, and won this year’s Wairarapa Shepherd of the Year competition. Competition organiser Kurt Portas said judges were impressed by Jono’s clear goals, wanting to move up the ladder within the industry and his practical skills. “He had a good grounding. He was very capable in his practical skills and showed a real understanding of the farm he was working on. He also communicated very well.” Jono grew up in Takapau, Central Hawke’s Bay, on an 80-hectare lamb finishing block before attending boarding school at Lindisfarne College and then Smedley Station as a cadet from 2013-14. “It (Smedley) is probably the best training in the country. It’s a real hands-on experience covering everything from top to toe. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to go farming and is passionate about farming,” Jono says. “It sets you up for wherever in the ag sector you want to go, covering all the practical skills as well as theory with the Level 3 Certificate in Agriculture and Level 4 Applied Rural Production through Telford.” After Smedley Jono went straight to

Jono Tod won the 2017 Wairarapa Shepherd of the Year competition. He works for Simon and Rebecca McKay at Namoi, Alfredton.

Namoi, where he has been for two and a half years. “I had heard a lot about Simon and what a good operator he was, and that I would learn a lot from him. The farm has decent hill country and flats for finishing. It’s a good balanced property and ticks all the boxes in terms of mating hoggets, mating heifers, lamb finishing and cropping.” Namoi is a 1200ha breeding and finishing property, finishing all progeny. The farm comprises 15% flats and the balance medium to steep hill country. As well as Simon and 71

AUCTIONEER Words by Anne Hughes

t f i G e h t of gab Madison Taylor says bareback rodeo riding is a big adrenalin rush. Photo: www.stephenmowbrayphotography.com.

Jono, there is a fencer general who also helps with stock work at busy times. They run 6200 ewes, 2000 hoggets and 200 breeding cows and Jono has had the opportunity to take on more responsibility within the business. “When I got here I was employed as a shepherd general under Simon’s charge. In the second year I was given the block at the end of the farm where I live to be in charge of.” The block is 340ha and Jono is responsible for setting ewe rotation lengths and ewe numbers, measuring pasture and ensuring stocking rates are right for the covers. He also organises animal health plans and makes sure they are implemented at the right time. “I’m always keen to spring out of bed in the morning. It’s a passion to see stock perform and grow, reaching targets. There was never any other thought on what I wanted to do from being a young fella in the yards with dad weighing lambs. “I want to see the industry go forward and improve what we are doing with our product and where it’s going. It all starts with us, the farmers, making a good product.” Jono and his partner Danielle Bolton, who is a qualified vet tech and works fulltime in a clinic in Masterton, are looking for their next opportunity. “I’m looking for the next step in my 72

adison Taylor has found his niche in the fast-talking, quick-thinking world of livestock auctioneering. While many teenagers struggle to decide on a career path, Madison set his sights on becoming a stock agent from an early age. He left high school after year 12 to work in a rural merchandise store, spending time at local sales, hoping to get a foot in the door with a stock and station firm. When he heard Peter Walsh & Associates were looking to hire a trainee agent, Madison phoned them, convincing Peter he was the person for the job. “He was just one of those bright-eyed and bushy-tailed fellows who sold himself and what he couldn’t do wasn’t worth doing,” Peter says. Just before his 18th birthday, Madison went on the road, travelling with other agents for the first six months to learn the ropes. He was the youngest agent with the company until only a few months ago. The opportunity came up to work alongside an established agent, also a director of the company, who needed transport while recovering from an injury. Peter says working alongside one of their top agents provided Madison with some great training and prepared him well for working in

Hoggets on a plantain/ clover mix at Namoi.

career, whether it be a head shepherd or stock manager role. I think it has to be a property that’s going forward, not stuck in their ways, on a real roll but needing someone else to maybe help make improvements. Hill country is quite important for the dog work side because I really enjoy my dogs,” he says. “For my next role it would be a minimum of three years and from there I would like to look at a manager’s role and be leading a team of people and having product go out the gate at a profitable margin.” Outside of farming Jono is keen on deer stalking and duck shooting, as well as playing rugby for the Eketahuna Senior A side and competing in dog trials.

He entered the Shepherd of the Year competition after hearing about it through a mate, who had previously entered. “I wanted to wait until I knew this property well and would be geared up to have a good shot at it. I was pretty proud (to win) and happy that I knew my stuff. It’s a good achievement to put on your CV as well. “It’s good pressure, testing your knowledge, they really push the boundaries on questions that you may not know and go into depth to see how well you know the property you work on. You’ve got nothing to lose by entering. All you get is good feedback from the judges, which is always a positive.” Country-Wide July 2017

his own patch in South Canterbury. Now 22, Madison has been working as a sheep and beef agent throughout Kurow, Hakataramea Valley and Omarama for two years. Going out on his own meant working hard to develop relationships and build his own client base, but Madison says being a stock agent is even better than he had imagined growing up. “You’re sort of sitting on the fence until you’re given an area. “That gives you a real door opener – gives you something to work on.” It’s up to him to work as hard as he is willing to work and every day is different. He leaves home every morning, heading for a different farm or sale. Madison meets a lot of ‘good buggers’, but it is a learning curve coping with difficult clients or the disappointments that can come with the job. He says farmers use stock agents to achieve

the best possible price for their livestock. Failing to do that or seeing another agent achieve a better price for your client can be tough. “You’re trying to do your best to get the best price. “If someone beats you it’s not much fun.” Madison auctioneers twice a week at the Temuka sale, as well as at onfarm and clearing sales. He started out selling some of the last mobs at sales and thinks he was pretty terrible to start with. “You need to get your muscles in your mouth to get the words out as fast as you can. “You just keep bashing away on the money that you’ve got.” Big sales can be nerve-wracking, with pressure to set the sale, keep prices rising and not let prices stall at a lower than anticipated level. “It’s satisfying to do a good job selling the stock and trying to get people to go a step further. “The odd

Fancy a career as a stock agent?

A range of attributes are required to make a good stock agent. Stock agent, founder and owner of stock and station firm Peter Walsh & Associates, Peter Walsh says ultimately, a person needs to be challenged by the job and enjoy what they are doing. With the exception of late developers, he says it generally becomes clear within three years if a person will succeed in the role. Peter says no one will possess all the qualities required in newcomers to the industry, which include: • A farming background • Good work ethic • Socially aware • Open and able to communicate in a relaxed manner • A good listener • Sound education.

time I’ve probably said the wrong thing, I just keep smiling and keep going.” Madison won the Heartland Bank Young Auctioneer of the Year title at the Canterbury A&P Show last year. Part of his prize was a trip to Australia to auction at the Sydney Royal Easter Show, where he also represented New Zealand riding bareback rodeo. Back in NZ, Madison had the opportunity to auction the heifer sale at this year’s Beef Expo. Madison says selling at Beef Expo was a great chance to gain some exposure and get feedback on his auctioneering skills. “As my boss Peter Walsh keeps telling me; ‘the world’s best auctioneer hasn’t been invented yet’.” Peter says Madison has a nice manner and a natural confidence, without being arrogant. It can be a tough industry, especially for young people, but he believes Madison has a bright future in the industry. “He’s reasonably strong willed. He’ll stand his ground – in life you’ve got to be strong.”

Bark away Lloyd Smith and his Bark-Off column are on a break until the September issue. Young stock agent Madison Taylor loves the challenge of pushing up the bids as an auctioneer. Photo: Andrew Swallow.

A score of five out of 10 on the following attributes would suggest a person has what it takes to be a capable stock agent: • A sound stockman • Honesty and integrity • A clear and in-depth knowledge of what the role is • Be passionate, driven, enthusiastic and above all positive • Keep accurate diary records • Be organized and prepared to plan your work (daily, weekly, monthly, annually) • Be prepared to canvas for business (new and existing) • Be reliable with time keeping and communication, with attention to documentation detail • Be respectful with your clients, their families and your work colleagues • Accept all responsibilities (problem solving) no matter how mundane the task • Be a team player who shows respect for their companies policies and procedures • Peter says no one will average a score of 10

Country-Wide July 2017

COMMUNITY | GAME FARMING

Not so horny: The bull sable grows curving horns up to 1.6 m long for the bulls, 40% shorter for the females.

Shooting the animals Jackie Harrigan Shooting wild animals –not necessarily with a gun – is the growth industry of South African agriculture with 20 million hectares of damaged and marginal agricultural production land converted to game ranches in the past 15 years. South Africa is a very dry country with an annual rainfall of around 600mm. Many regions can no longer support conventional agriculture which relies heavily on regular applications of water to grow crops or pasture. But wildlife has survived on native drought-resistant pastures and shrubs on the continent for thousands of years and the growth of tourism in the country is bringing in people wanting to interact with wild animals and birds –shooting them with a camera or with a gun. Sustainable ranching is a great way of creating jobs for locals while building wildlife tourism, Monate Game Lodge owner Ellis Lourens says. The lodge is in the 3000-hectare Thithombo game park,

close to Pretoria in Limpopo province. “Sustainable ranching has also dramatically increased numbers of animals across the country and eight species have been saved from extinction.” Home to buffalo, lion, giraffe, hippopotamus, zebra, a large variety of antelope and close to 50% of the bird species in South Africa, Thithombo park caters for overseas and South African tourists wanting to watch birds and other wildlife while staying in luxurious surroundings and using facilities such as a day spa, swimming pools, lodge, conference and wedding facilities. Twice-daily game drives on open trucks are included in the price and guided by trained rangers who know where to spot the best wildlife and track the movements of prized animals to show them off to the tourists. They also specialise in telling yarns – like how a person is “more likely to be killed by a hippopotamus than lions and leopards combined because the hippo will knock you down, stomp on you and the males’

Hippos are not the easiest animals to see in their entirety. They can’t actually swim but due to sun sensitivity spend all day standing on the bottom of a watercourse. They kick up to the surface to breathe every five or six minutes and come out at night to feed on plant material. Often showing only their ears, the South Africans have a saying about “the ears of the hippo” relating to “the tip of the iceberg” because there is so much below the surface.

sharp teeth can rip your stomach out – but they won’t eat you”. It’s a powerful incentive to stop you hopping off the truck to get a better shot. “Many more tourists want to experience nature-based tourism experiences – 70% of international tourists want to interact with the wildlife,” Lourens says. Game ranching increases animal and plant diversity, protects soil and water and encourages genetic diversity through breeding programmes like those going on at Thithombo, he says. Game breeding has grown rapidly in the past 10 years with ranchers buying in wildlife based on genetic characteristics aimed at improving their stock for hunting, tourism or supply of venison. Thithombo game breeders specialise in breeding African buffalo, Livingstone eland, sable, golden oryx, nyala, bush buck, golden gnu, roan and black impala – the latter all breeds of antelope hunted by South Africans for their meat. African buffalo are prized for the size of their massive curving horns growing out of a keratinous band across the top of their forehead. The main breeding sire at Thithombo is Skukuza, with a 1.22-metre spread of horns.

Ellis Lourens: Game ranchers are starting to make the community aware of the importance of the wild animals as a source of wealth and jobs for the country – not just a source of free meat.

The prized sable antelope bucks are Rambo, with a pair of 1.11m trophy horns curving back from his head and Koos who has 1.27m horns. The bulls are mated to game park females to increase the size of trophy horns of the offspring. The South African hunting culture sees local hunters visiting game ranches each year to hunt meat, taking it home to butcher themselves or to have it semidried and preserved into biltong. Biltong hunters pay for accommodation and hunting licences and spend the weekend hunting antelopes. Impala, bushbuck, springbok are the least-expensive, followed by kudu, wildebeest, hemsbok, (3000-4000 Rand = NZ$300-400) then eland or buffalo (which can be eaten but is more likely to be shot for trophy horns. ›› p75 Country-Wide July 2017

COMMUNITY | CHILDREN’S BOOKS

A winner in the writing game Lynda Gray As any creative type will attest, inspiration strikes at the most inconvenient time. For children’s book author Lee Lamb the rhyming sentences for On the Farm Deer Recovery started coming together during the 2015 Highlanders and Waratahs semi-final. Husband Jamie was not impressed. “She was wanting me to help with words but I was watching the rugby. It was a really exciting game,” Jamie says. The Highlanders went on to win, 3517, and before the final whistle Lee had more or less penned another winning title in the On the Farm series. The book was inspired by Criffel Deer farm near Wanaka, which the Lambs have managed since early 2015. Criffel was one of the first deer farms in the country, established by industry legend Sir Tim Wallis. The Lambs say it’s their dream job because of the deer, history and special location. They decided to write a book that sons Jack (9) and Thomas (7) could take along to school to help explain in simple terms some aspects of deer farming. The story is about a stag, a new arrival at Winding Creek Station, who escapes after a storm flattens the fence in his paddock. The stag is found and brought back home safely with the help of a helicopter and net gun. “We’ve found that people buy it either because they love deer or hunting,” Lee says. About 3000 copies of the book have

sold. It’s been popular with kids but also parents and adults who have got familiar with some deer farming lingo and tasks such as velvet removal, thanks to a glossary at the back of the book. The deer farming story is the sixth title in the On the Farm series, most of which have been written after-hours by Lee, although Jamie is a contributing wordsmith and excellent on the “quality control” side of things. Although Lee got the guts of the deer book written during an 80-minute rugby game, children’s book writing, illustrating and self-publishing is not an easy-win industry. The self-taught writer and illustrator, raised on Grampians Station in the Mackenzie country, wrote her first book in 2008 but it took two years to sort the printing and get distribution started. The first print run was 100, distribution was by word-of-mouth and beating a path to local bookshops with copies in hand. Seven years on, seven titles and almost 45,000 copies later the minimum print run is 4000 and most of the distribution is handled by an Auckland-based rep. It all sounds rosy now but getting the ideal business model has taken lots of research and learning-by-doing. “There is so much to learn about printing and publishing,” Lee says. The Lambs’ side-line business and publishing achievement is huge given the fickle and highly competitive children’s book industry. They’re now considering the possibility of e-books and overseas markets. Australia, the United Kingdom and China could be possibilities but

there’s still a lot of research to be done before taking the next steps. Although looking to offshore opportunities the couple say that closer to home the books play an important role by turning reluctant farm boys on to reading and helping address some of the misunderstandings urban kids and their parents have about farming in New Zealand. “We’re writing books that rural kids can relate to and urban kids and adults can enjoy and learn from. Anything that can put a positive light on farmers and farming has got to be good.”

leopards, rhinos and elephants. Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA) is a voluntary body serving the interests

of 12,000 wildlife ranchers across the country working with government to lobby for support for ranchers undertaking breeding, hunting, wildlife tourism and processing of game products. The WRSA are currently lobbying government for licences to establish production and slaughter facilities for the wild game meats. As game ranching moves into managing animal numbers the supply of game meat is building and is matched by demand from restaurant and food service markets but the industry needs to be regulated and establish food safety standards before marketing the lean, organic and “ultimate free-range” meat products.

Game driving at dawn or sundown is the best time to see animals in the wild. The driver finds the animals and regales you with stories of how long they would take to rip unsuspecting tourists apart

While game parks can manage licences for game meat animals, the South African government controls hunting of lions,

Country-Wide July 2017

Lee and Jamie Lamb’s Deer Recovery has been a hit with kids and adults.

SOLUTIONS | STOCK YARDS

Getting the stock yards right

nderstanding how you want to use your stock yards is critical when choosing new yards. The best way to do this is to talk to other farmers about how they use their yards and you may just find the best option for your farm. Milton farmer Richard McElrea wanted heavy duty stock yards which could be removed if required. His farm is in a family trust. When he converted it from a sheep farm to a dairy support unit he needed yards. Since Richard was paying for the yards he did not want to risk losing his financial investment if he ever had to leave. He bought the Te Pari 167 Head Cattle Yard System, which has four working pens and a C- force circular forcing pen, with a stepped loading ramp. He also bought a crush, head bale and an EID reader. Including the concrete pad, which the yards are dynabolted to, Richard says the total cost was $65,000. Te Pari sales manager Andy Raikes said portability is a virtue as these yards can be packed up and taken to another site. However they are not designed to be dismantled on a weekly basis. Andy said there is a second hand market for them and they have been known to bring high prices. “The strength is not compromised if the yards are moved,” he said.

It is very unlikely that steel yards will come down in price. However, Andy says what has made the yards more affordable is the increasing price of timber. Dave Eckhoff has erected both timber and Te Pari yards in recent years. He believes you need to choose the best yards for your situation, in particular consider how you use your yards, where they are situated and what the ground conditions are like. On his Roxburgh farm he chose circular timber yards, with a long race. The farm was a breeding unit so the yards were not used often. The long race was chosen to avoid the hassle of having to keep getting small numbers into the race. The cost was $25,000. This included a Drummond head bail, made in Lumsden, which he described as brilliant. Because the ground was rock there was no need for a concrete base and the posts did not move. He had a good, wide race which led into a big catching pen, which meant the cattle could drift in quietly. At his Berwick farm the yards were used weekly, if not more often. He also chose the Te Pari 167 Head Cattle Yard System and put it on a concrete base, otherwise the mud in the yards would have been knee deep, he said. Dave bought the iDraft 1300, now called Titan DR vet crush, for $25,000, which he considered a cheap labour unit.

Robert Reid uses portable sliding gates as a crush. He built his cattle yards himself for $10,000.

This crush is a fully automated weighing and drafting system, easily worked by one person. His total yarding system cost $100,000. The yards added a lot of value to the property and should last at least two or three generations, he said. Dave felt very safe in these yards by himself, he knew when he swung a gate shut and heard the click that it would stay shut and he did not have to look over his shoulder. On the other side of Berwick, Robert Reid built his own timber yards, which can hold up to 80 cattle, for $10,000. He bought the timber and posts from Great Southern Group in Milton, and had steel gates made by an engineer in Outram. He considered building his own wooden gates but when he added up the cost of the timber and bolts it was cost-effective to have them made. Robert built the yards on the same site as his old yards but designed them so he can work easily and safely by himself. A contractor thumped the posts in.

›› continues bottom p77

LOOKING FOR BETTER RETURNS? We currently seek large scale farmers, graziers and investment partners. • Large scale beef finishers • Profit share, per kg $ rate or JV

Phone Nick, 027 476 3658 Email: nick.aam@xtra.co.nz AGRICULTURAL ASSET MANAGEMENT

JH0087909©

• Beef breeding properties/partnerships

Milton farmer Ian Ritchie believes wooden cattle yards are safer than steel. If a beast jams against them there is more give. Cattle are calmer because timber yards are less shiny, less noise and smaller gaps between the rails, which provide a good visual barrier with less outside influences to spook them. Ian studied some Landcorp yards and with help from contractor Rob McDonald they designed and built his circular yards, which hold between 200 and 300 cattle. Ian milled the timber on farm and the yards cost about $50,000.

Country-Wide July 2017

CLASSIFIEDS

SOLUTIONS | TOURS

Molesworth self-drive Discover Molesworth Station and other beautiful South Island locations with The Molesworth Tour Company. The company offers 4X4 self-drive adventure tours or you can bring your own 4WD. Stay on sheep and beef stations and follow the company’s inspiring guide and his lead vehicle over private farms and stations on an adventure to either Molesworth Station or to D’Urville Island For groups the company has fully supported cycle tours to Molesworth Station and the Spooners Tunnel, the Alps2Ocean trail, the Otago Rail Trail, the Nelson Great Taste Trail to Golden Bay and the

Wild Westcoast Cycle Trail. Tours are all-inclusive, have small group numbers, friendly driver guides, and wonderful farm hosts to meet. Small group tours included to Stewart Island and the Catlins, Molesworth Station and the upper West Coast, Golden Bay and Farewell Spit, Autumn in the Southern Lakes, the Bluff Oyster Festival and Catlins, West Coast Whitebaiting Tours, Heritage and homes tours in Marlborough.

More? Contact The Molesworth Tour Company, Blenheim. www.molesworthtours.co.nz info@molesworthtours.co.nz Phone 03 5728025

Fred Dougherty’s Fred’s Fencing imports galvanized steel stock yard panels from China.

Robert put in a long, curved race and used sliding gates purchased from Fred’s Fencing, in Outram to act as a back gate and crush. He chose the sliding gates because they are space-efficient. At the back of the yards Robert built a large holding pen using deer fencing so the cattle would be more comfortable if they had to be in overnight. He plans to put a trough in this pen. Outram farmer Fred Doherty has been selling portable stock yards for the past three years. Fred, a member of the Outram Rodeo Club, discovered a factory

Country-Wide July 2017

in China making the yards when he was researching potential replacement options for the club’s rodeo grounds, which are on his farm. The club was looking for costeffective, good quality yards. Fred brought in a 20ft container load of lightweight, galvanized steel stock yard panels. This went well so he brought in a 40ft container load. With the new yards up, several Taieri farmers were impressed with what they saw and asked if they could get some. This gave Fred the opportunity to start Fred’s Fencing.

Fred imports standard and heavy duty fence panels, loading ramps and sliding and swing gates. He keeps the range simple, with no accessories. Both the standard and heavy duty fence panels are 2.1 metres wide and 1.8m high, the standard weighs 38kg and the heavy duty 49kgs. Guide price for the standard is $130+gst and the heavy duty $160+gst. Prices can change with exchange rate variation. The loading ramp is 295kg and comes as a kitset. It is 3m long with a 750mm internal width with adjustable floor height priced at $2200+gst. The gates are $250+gst. Most of Fred’s clients have lifestyle blocks or are retired farmers with small blocks, although some clients with large farms use them on their dairy run-offs or grazing blocks. “The beauty of these portable yards is if after they have been used and they discover a gate or something is in the wrong place, they can reconfigure the design,” Fred said.

ANIMAL HANDLING DEMOLITION houses, villas, buildings, town or country. Please phone 021 165 8664.

ANIMAL HANDLING FLY OR LICE problem? Electrodip - The magic eye sheepjetter since 1989 with unique self adjusting sides. Incredible chemical and time savings with proven effectiveness. Phone 07 573 8512 www.electrodip.com

ANIMAL SUPPLEMENTS APPLE CIDER VINEGAR, GARLIC & HONEY. 200L - $450 or 1000L $2000 excl. with FREE DELIVERY from Black Type Minerals Ltd www. blacktypeminerals. co.nz

ATTENTION FARMERS www.gibb-gro.co.nz

GROWTH PROMOTANT $5.85 per hectare + GST delivered Brian Mace 0274 389 822 07 571 0336 brianmace@xtra. co.nz

FERTILISER Golden Bay

Dolomite

NZ’s finest magnesium (Mg) fertiliser For more info call

0800 436 566 77

WIN one of 7 $150 VOUCHERS

SOLUTIONS | CLOTHING

from

see p2

Oli & Gus draws huge Facebook following Donna sorting The marketing power of Facebook through fabric has surprised a Hawke’s Bay samples for home-based clothing producer upcoming Oli who now has 29,351 page & Gus clothing followers, and still counting, collections. since first posting an offer of children’s clothes two years ago. Donna Paterson-Mills and her husband Bryce have since extended Donna’s range into women’s wear and now have a website to streamline ordertaking, payments and dispatch – and to make their home life less hectic. “It’s all grown so quickly. Our plan is for the website to handle the retail side of our business so we can get our own lives back again,” Donna says. The Oli & Gus Facebook page followers exceed by five times the Facebook following of a successful women’s wear retailer with 41 stores throughout New Zealand. The website will extend the offering of meant-to-be-worn clothes for women under their Hot Mamma label that offers short runs of each garment style – some completely sold out within hours of a post on Facebook. “Our Hocus Pocus sweater is a recent example. It sold out in eight hours,” Donna says, who designs all the clothes and chooses the fabric for each garment. Uppermost in her mind is the lifestyle of busy women, like herself, who want good-quality clothes that are comfortable to wear, will still look good after repeated washes and offer an individual flair. “I’m sure our customers like the idea that there’s not much chance of someone else wearing exactly the same dress at the same place.” She says there is no deference to fashion magazines or catwalk trends, as evident in the Facebook photos of Donna modelling her latest garments without make-up or any pretence at being a fashion model. They had tried modelling with a professional photographer “but I didn’t look like me”, she says.

WS3150 Aussie Chopper shown here.

Superaxe and Aussie Chopper Hydraulic Log Splitters

JH0085140©

Australian made direct to you in New Zealand Setting new standards in safety, design and performance Built tough by Whitlands Engineering Call for your free brochure and DVD pack

www.superaxe.co.nz 0800 702 701 78

She has since relied on husband Bryce or Angus, now 6, to take the photos with her cell-phone, usually outside for natural light, and then Donna selects an image for uploading to Facebook with no thought of any photo edit. It all comes across as refreshingly casual, downto-earth and honest – the photos setting a tone that obviously appeals to the women buying Oli & Gus clothes. On the supply side the reverse happens because there is nothing casual about how the garments are produced. An off-shore supplier has learned to follow Donna’s designs and fabric choices and their ongoing communications have led to a mutual respect, as seen in a recent invitation to join the supply company at a major fabric market event. Donna says her interest in clothing design began as a young girl playing with cotton reels, pattern boxes and a button box at the foot of her grandmother’s antique sewing table. Rose was a renowned dressmaker in Hawke’s Bay – her last project, at the age of 80, being Donna’s wedding dress with Arabic embroidery supplied by Donna – and Donna gradually learned from her grandmother the basic skills, and art, of making clothes. “I had the most amazing wardrobe as a child, all beautifully hand-made. I fell in love with a terry towelling bikini and remember the smocked frocks and dresses Rose made for me. “Eventually I started making my own pieces from fabric pulled out of a remnants bag.” A Massey University bachelor degree in resource and environmental planning enabled Donna to travel to Asia and the Middle East as a language and art teacher – a venture that ultimately led her back into clothing design. “In Al Ain (the “garden city” 150km south of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates) I spent hours in the fabric markets and met with the artisans that created the most beautiful garments. “I started designing my own clothes again to wear while teaching at a private school in Al Ain. My designs had to keep within the cultural boundaries of the Middle East but I added my own ideas on colour.” In Australia, which became her home for 18 years, Donna worked at a management level in the fashion industry while husband Bryce continued his management role in industrial construction. In 2014 the couple returned to Hawke’s Bay and created their Oli & Gus label on Facebook as a work-at-home project for Donna. She attributes the popularity of the brand to garment quality, price and an individual look shaped by her own attitude and lifestyle that’s “a little quirky, a bit bohemian … definitely not mainstream”. The retail price of each garment is kept close to a target of $100. “This is not designer clothing and evening wear, unless you want it to be, and it’s priced at a level where someone can see something they like and order it on-line without too much concern.”

More? Visit www.oliandgus.co.nz

Country-Wide July 2017

ESTATE | CANTERBURY

West Hills primed for trophies

est Hills Station on the outskirts of Fairlie covers 1162 hectares combining oversown paddocks on its lower hills with clean tussock blocks higher and has the ability to incorporate deer, cattle, sheep and trophy hunting in a multi-faceted business. The station is for sale and includes 64ha freehold and 1097ha of pastoral lease, with a large part of the property deer fenced for an operation that runs between 1000 and 1100 red breeding hinds and 40 mostly Wapiti breeding stags. Trophy stags are released for guided hunting clients and wild fallow deer range over the higher hills of the station as well. Simon Richards from Farmlands Real Estate says it’s an outstanding location, just 5km from the township, yet with the type of country that lends itself to a range of farming options as well as trophy hunting. From the lowest point on the farm at 450 metres above sea level, the station rises to 1200m at the top of the Albury Range to provide stunning views of the surrounding mountains and wide valley below. At the front of the property lie 13

Country-Wide July 2017

easy-rolling paddocks that rise to 10 smaller improved blocks that have been oversown and fertilised, then the five larger tussock blocks. Deer fencing surrounds 836ha of the station and another 325ha is fenced for sheep. Wellplanned lanes provide great access to run the deer between paddocks and to the large covered yards that has the capacity to hold 700 hinds. “It’s got plenty of scope with its lower country and those lanes make it really easy for stock movement, especially on that down country, while those larger hill blocks provide great country for trophy hunting. It’s a nice, easy distance from town and people like to just drive out, have a shot and then go back to town for a drink and a meal.” Richards says larger deer farms like West Hills Station are seldom available and he expects strong interest due to good returns for the industry. “Breeding animals are worth quite good money and at the moment, venison prices are up and velvet is going well, so I expect keen interest from all aspects of the industry.

“This is a property with a varied nature including appealing down paddock country, then the lower hills and nice clean tussock country where you could put merino wethers on the top. It’s also an area that is really renowned for its reliable rainfall and decent growth.” Deer have been the main operation on the station, with fawning beginning in early November following a scanning around 94% and by March the weaners are sent off the property for finishing. About 40 Angus breeding cows are also carried, with progeny, and quality cattle handling facilities are integrated with the deer facility. An internal reticulated water scheme from the reliable Fairlie Creek has been recently upgraded and supplies troughs on the improved hill paddocks and front of the farm. Completing the station is a solid fourbedroom villa at the front of the property set in an attractive native bush garden. The station has a deadline sale date of July 6. For further information contact Simon Richards on 027 457 0990.

ESTATE | CANTERBURY/ SNAPSHOT

Crop potential on deer An 82-hectare deer farm near Timaru has been a labour of love for a farming couple who are ready to retire from the breeding and finishing unit they created 15 years ago and extensively planted as a place to enjoy. Just 20km south of Timaru, the farm is predominantly flat contour on deep, silty loam soils that has been carrying nearly 400 red deer and a small number of sheep. The farm is subdivided into 26 main paddocks and five holding paddocks, with a central lane providing access to every paddock. Noel May from Bayleys says the quality soils are capable of growing all types of crops, with cropping operations on its boundary, as well as its proven ability to finish stock well. As a deer farm it has carried weaners through winter and sent them to slaughter in spring, while lambs have been slaughtered at 17-18kg. “It’s all deer fenced, so anything can go behind it and the farm is very

well sheltered. They’ve put kale in for the deer, but you could do any sort of cropping, so it’s very versatile.” Multiple shelter belts of pine and Arizona cypress have been planted around the farm, plus woodlots of poplar, natives, Oregon and wattle. The owners’ passion for trees is reflected around the home as well as the driveway with its stunning array of ornamental trees leading to a large garden with hidden places to sit and enjoy it. The garden leads into an adjacent orchard with many varieties of fruit and nut trees that have been planted over the years. At the heart of the garden is the three-bedroom home which has been completely renovated during the years they have owned the farm. Out on the farm, the infrastructure is good and tidy, May says, from the threebay deer-handling facility to cattle yards, sheep yards, two-stand woolshed and a three-bay implement shed.

The farm has a deadline sale closing on June 29. To view the farm visit www.bayleys.co.nz/554731 and for further information contact Noel May on 021 457 643 or Kurt Snook on 027 256 0449.

Getting the term right Anne Hughes Farmers negotiating a lease should seek a term that will allow time for earnings to negate risks of fluctuating livestock prices. “If you’ve only got it one year, there’s the risk of buying stock and having to sell it again at lower prices,” NZ Farm Management rural business advisor Justin Geary says. “Most leases are in the three- to fiveyear range because you need time to offset some of that risk around stock prices.” Even with a five-year lease term you could take on the lease and buy ewes for $120/head, then have to sell when the lease ends for $75/head. Or the situation could be reversed and you sell out on a high. “Regardless of how good a farmer you are there is a risk with a lease of capital gain or loss in stock values.” If you owned the farm you could choose not to sell until stock prices lifted.

The first right of renewal is important because it guarantees the option to keep leasing the farm for a second term if you choose to. Some agreements could have two rights of renewal. Geary says the lease agreement should be drawn up by a lawyer and both parties’ lawyers need to be happy with its form and content. Until the agreement is signed, it is still in negotiation. Either party might want to negotiate on start dates, the term, rental price or fertiliser requirements. It is also important to include a plan in case of a dispute or if one party wants out. “All that stuff that you hope you never need, but the day you need it you’ll be thankful that it’s in there.” Leasing is based on a contract, but it is also a partnership and both parties need to be confident they can be in business together, Geary says. Just as the lessee needs to be comfortable with the owner’s expectations, the farm owner should be

satisfied the lessee has the skills to look after the farm. “You need someone to pay the rent, be a good stockperson and a good custodian of the land. “If they don’t look after the farm what will it be worth at the end of the five-year lease? “If you end up having to sell your farm in five years you’ll lose money on the purchase price.” Rent is usually paid monthly in advance. Deciding how much you can afford to pay depends on profitability. Geary says the cost of a lease can be calculated in different ways – as a percentage of gross income, percentage of the capital value of the farm, on a price/SU or price/ha basis, or price/kg milksolids produced on a dairy farm. “How much of the EBIT do I need to pay the rental year-in-year and does it leave a fair return to justify my hard work and risk taken.”

aahughes@gisborne.net.nz

Country-Wide July 2017

ESTATE | POVERTY BAY

Healthy hill country at Matawai Station

Country-Wide July 2017

SOUTHERN WIDE REAL ESTATE

SOUTHLAND NEW LISTING

DEADLINE SALE, 188.05 HA FA

Web Ref SWI1861

BRYDONE, 10 KMS FROM EDENDALE DAIRY FACTORY Presently utilised as a sheep milking unit, this property previously milked dairy cows and may be re-converted (subject to the necessary consents) or used for other alternatives. • Equipped with an extensive range of buildings including three dwellings, a near new wintering shed of approximately 3,000 square metres, three lambing or calf sheds, dairy shed currently set up for sheep milking and several other buildings. • The property features good layout with established shelter, easy rolling contour, is well subdivided into 52 paddocks with races of a good standard and pressure water system to troughs from a bore. Deadline Sale closing 4.00pm, 21st July 2017. Prior offers considered. •

DALLAS LUCAS

p 03 231 3014 m 0274 325 774 e dallas.lucas@swre.co.nz MICHELLE LUCAS

p 03 218 2795 m 0275 640 737 e michelle.lucas@swre.co.nz

Hargest House, Level One, 62 Deveron Street, Invercargill 9810 p 03 218 2795 f 03 214 0872 e southland@swre.co.nz

JH0087899

Matawai Station near Gisborne is the type of healthy, strong hill country renowned for growing stock well and its 794 hectares provides the scale and scope for a good-sized operation. After two generations farmed by the same family, the station is for sale and is ideally positioned for an array of farming options as well as the existing sheep and beef business. Just 14km from the vibrant community of Matawai village and 66km from Gisborne places the farm in a sought-after location that also benefits from a good rainfall due to the higher country to the west. James Macpherson from Bayleys says the lie of the land and the abundance of sheltered country provides an ideal farming environment and the family’s work over two generations has resulted in a clean, well-subdivided property with good infrastructure. “It’s an honest farm with scale and scope and just one of those farms that will grow grass, has good water and is great livestock country. “It’s a healthy farm climate as well – lovely and sunny – and you can generally expect good rainfall through the year because you’re on the fringes of the Matawai district with rain from the west.” Matawai Station has been carrying a mix of sheep and cattle and has carried up to 8000 stock units. Young stock is usually finished, though they are sometimes sold as store if the market suits. Five sets of sheep yards around the station make it easier to handle stock, as well as three permanent docking yards plus cattle yards in the middle of the farm. A five-stand, raised-board woolshed has a night pen capacity for up to 850 ewes and barns cater for hay and implements. Pockets of native bush across the farm and on the banks of the bounding Waikohu River provide recreational pleasure as well as a picturesque slice of land to farm and bring up the family. “The homestead is very spacious with a self-contained guest room and is positioned in a lovely elevated spot where it looks across the valley. Matawai is one of Gisborne’s functioning communities and is still very much a classic rural community.” Matawai Station is for sale by negotiation. For further information contact James Macpherson on 021 488 018 or Simon Bousfield on 027 665 8778.

FARMING IN FOCUS More photos from this monthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Country-Wide.

Brett observes in real time the drone moving sheep on his Apple iPad.

Building your own calf rearing gear and facilities will save money and increase profit margins.

Joanne Leigh â&#x20AC;&#x201C; calf rearers need to be in control of costs.

A softshell backpack protects the Phantom 4 during transit on a quad bike.

Assembly: propellers are fitted and an iPad connected to the controller.

Techno system manager Keith Hunt has worked permanently for the Buddos for 13 years.

Madison Taylor says bareback rodeo riding is a big adrenalin rush. Photo: www.stephenmowbrayphotography.com.

Brett made a dozen drones before buying a Phantom 4 last year.

Tararua Shepherd of the Year, Hamish Duff. Drone Deploy cloud software is used for mapping and data analysis.

Winter trade lambs on a plantain/clover mix.

Country-Wide July 2017

2017 Tux North Island and New Zealand championships.

Grenaa runs up to an altitude of 740m at its highest point.

Photos: Robyn Stephens.

South Island competitors Brian Dickison from Greenvale and Robin McKenzie from Warepa. The crossroads only a short distance from the Bellsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; farm.

Robin Quigley and Max from the Levels club.

Leo Jecentho from Karioi and Queen set alight on the long head.

Manson Bell holding a Raphanobrassica plant.

Leighton Bellringer and Boogie from Whangamomona.

Some of Manson Bellâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s R1 Friesian bulls before going on to the regrowth Raphanobrassica.

Lloyd Smith.

Rod Walker and Stoke from Taumarunui.

Hamish impressed the judges with the calm manner in which he and dogs worked with stock

Country-Wide July 2017

Sheep steward Noddy Halley and his wife Donna from Waingake.

REPUTATION IS EARNED THROUGH HARD WORK AND RELIABILITY. Over the last decade BIONIC® has helped Kiwi farmers by doing just that. Backed by 20 years development and testing in Kiwi conditions - BIONIC has earned a reputation for getting results. Put your trust in BIONIC again this season and you’ll earn yourself this Navigator jacket from Degree Techwear - another reliable hard worker designed to perform in Kiwi conditions.* QUALIFYING PURCHASES: 2500 CAPSULES OF: BIONIC® HI-MINERAL, EXTENDER® SECO OR IVOMEC® MAXIMIZER ADULT. 20X EXODUS® LAI INJECTION 500ML

BIONIC HI-MINERAL SHEEP CAPSULES. NOTHING ELSE MEASURES UP. PROUDLY AVAILABLE FROM YOUR LOCAL VETERINARY CLINIC.

*WHILE STOCKS LAST. PROMOTION ENDS 28/09/17

MERIAL IS NOW PART OF BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM. MERIAL NZ LTD. LEVEL 3, MERIAL BUILDING, OSTERLEY WAY, MANUKAU, AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND | WWW.MERIAL.CO.NZ | BIONIC®, EXODUS®, EXTENDER® & IVOMEC® July 2017 Country-Wide ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF MERIAL. REGISTERED PURSUANT TO THE ACVM ACT 1997 | NO. A9646, A10399, A7905, A7192 | ©COPYRIGHT 2017 MERIAL NZ LTD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. NZ-17-MAL-011.