LIC flies fresh semen to South Island

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SOLUTIONS MILK COOLING

Cool and compliant with aquaCHILL

As milk cooling regulations continue to get tougher, and with warmer summer months upon us, dairy farmers are looking to alleviate the worry associated with compliance.

With strict milk cooling regulations imposed by dairy processors, farmers are becoming increasingly interested in upgrading or replacing their systems to position themselves well ahead in terms of compliance.

GEA Farm Technologies is helping farmers keep up with the changes with the GEA aquaCHILL, a future-proofed cooling system that can snap chill milk to 4C and has the invaluable ability to be tailored to meet future standards – easily.

Current cooling standards require milk to be held at 6C, and for Southland dairy farmers Ferdinand Vries and Stacey Young, upgrading to the aquaCHILL meant they

Demand for LIC’s fresh liquid bull semen is flying out the door as demand rockets. The co-operative chartered a plane through Mainland Air to airfreight more than 70,000 straws of semen (its biggest inter-island shipment) from Hamilton to Nelson, Christchurch, Invercargill and Dunedin departing on October 31.

The shipment was just one of many LIC will make as its team works to impregnate four million cows over the coming months.

The 12cm long straws flying out of Hamilton tomorrow will be stored in secure chilly bins as cargo during the flight with care and speed of delivery critical to maintaining the semen’s integrity.

It’s the first time in LIC’s history it has chartered a plane for its semen delivery to the South Island and demonstrates the lengths it’s going to ensure there is no interruption to its supply chain during the pandemic. It also supports other

no longer had to worry about meeting compliance standards.

“The main benefit is absolute peace of mind. When the shed is turned off, the milk is down to temperature – there’s no worrying about whether the plate cooler was working or if the well water was cold enough. When we finish milking the milk LIC fresh liquid bull semen straws being prepared for shipment to the South Island. traditional air and land transport options the co-operative is using to transport fresh semen quickly.

Once on the ground, straws are quickly distributed by LIC’s artificial breeding logistics teams to artificial breeding technicians who will be onfarm within days to inseminate cows for dairy farmers as part of their mating plans.

The process then starts again with LIC’s artificial breeding technicians inseminating cows across the country resulting in around $300 million in genetic gain. is chilled, and they can pick it up any time they want,” Ferdinand says.

“The best insurance policy was putting in the snap chiller. We were never not making it, but it was always a struggle! Now with the GEA aquaCHILL it’s no worry at all, the milk is always under 6C, no matter what.”

Running in tandem with the vat, the aquaCHILL is a simple “plug and play” solution that can be retrofitted to any system. Designed to run only during milking, no additional power is required between milkings to offset losses from systems using thermal storage. It also includes unique energy saving features, helping to lower the overall current draw of the unit to reduce power consumption and monthly costs.

• For more information on GEA’s aquaCHILL,

LIC flies fresh semen to South Island

contact 0800 GEA FARM.

A similar volume of 2019 inseminations is expected for 2020 as cow efficiency and production increases but herd numbers remain stable.

LIC’s general manager NZ Markets, Malcolm Ellis, says the shipment marks an exciting milestone as it’s the biggest individual consignment to date to the South Island by LIC.

“We’re seeing strong demand across our AB product options this year. Our delivery of fresh semen via our powerful Premier Sires teams continues to be a defining contributor of genetic merit to the national herd.

“This year we are particularly experiencing phenomenal growth in the area of fresh sexed semen which delivers a 90% chance of producing a heifer calf enabling farmers to target valuable heifer replacements from their most productive cows ensuring the rate of genetic gain within their dairy herds is optimised.”