Dairy News 24 April 2012

Farmers unfazed by global dairy price fall PAGE 3

CHECKPOINT INSPECTION LIC bull parade PAGE 18

LIFE IN THE FAST LANE Cows and rally cars PAGE 34

APRIL 24, 2012 ISSUE 267 // www.dairynews.co.nz

MILK SUPPLY WARNING “We will be left with no option but to look for Fonterra farmers in our catchment and that will only fragment the supply base.”

- Corrie den Haring, Green Valley Dairies.

PAGE 4

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 3

Farmers unfazed by global price fall PAM TIPA

ETS changes to help boost cow numbers.

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THE 9.9% drop at last week’s Global Dairy Trade auction has jolted farmers but they have vowed to carry on.

They are bracing for a drop in next season’s payout – probably below $6/kgMS – but point out forecasts for global demand still reflect a bright future for dairy farming.

“The dairy industry has been here before and we just carry on,” Fonterra Shareholders Council chair Simon Couper told Dairy News.

“It’s been signalled to us for some time we are in volatile times. If we look back in history we will see the price of our payout has never remained glorious forever and we have had ups and downs.”

With forecasts for Asian growth and world population “the dairy industry has a pretty good future ahead of us in the medium-to-long term”.

Federated Farmers Dairy chairperson Willy Leferink was surprised by the extent of the GDT drop. He has calculated the impact for mid Canterbury alone would be $72 million if prices continued this trend for the year.

“But we’re a resilient lot. You can’t walk away.

When you are a trader you pick up and move somewhere else but the land doesn’t move.”

Leferink is closely watching variables in the US including subsidy plans; Obama and the

Congress “don’t want a bar of it” but it depends on the Senate.

He says a good US summer would not help us and their dollar is helping them hugely. “But there’s a strong incentive to cull cows as their beef market is as high as ever.

“There a humungous pool of heifers sitting there because in the US they use sexed semen like there’s no tomorrow.”

Leferink says, with Asian growth forecast, he hopes the GDT drop is “just a blip”.

“But will it have an effect on forecasts next year?

Yes it will; 10% is not nothing.”

ANZ National’s chief economist Cameron Bagrie says “let’s not panic” but there were a couple of worrying factors.

“The volume price offset gain is insulating the dairy farmer in the 2011-12 season. I would suspect when Fonterra in May flags its early estimate for the 2012-13 season the payout’s going to have a 5 in front of it as opposed to a 6.

“In 2012-13, I don’t think they’re going to get that bigger volume kicker again. So that lower price is going to flow directly into the income.

But high-5 dollars is still good historically so let’s respect that.”

Bagrie says to see New Zealand’s bellweather exports fall by 10% overnight and see the New Zealand dollar move up “just shows you how absurd the currency market can be at times”.

“Ultimately the economic fundamentals will reassert and you will see that reconnectivity between currency prices and the currency. The problem is that you can remain disconnected for quite a while.”

He says everyone has heard the story of Asia’s increasing demand “but let us not kid ourselves into thinking the Asia train has only got a New Zealand carriage”.

“If commodity prices are going to be very strong, of course production is going to crank up around the globe. You are going to see this volatility – mismatches between supply and demand.”

‘NO SIGNALS TO EASE UP’ FARMERS GLOBALLY aren’t receiving price signals to ease off production growth, says Rabobank’s Christchurch-based senior dairy analyst Hayley Moynihan.

Rabobank has been predicting softer commodity prices through to the second and possibly third quarter of the year.

“There is a flush of milk globally…. Farmers aren’t seeing lower milk prices being

reflected yet in the prices they are being paid for milk, so there is that lag.

“The exception to this is the United States where their milk prices fell several months ago quite sharply and, combined with high feed costs, American farmers are feeling it in terms of the lack of profitability.

“That is the exception but farmers

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around the world aren’t really getting the signals yet to ease up milk production so it is going to take a while to rebalance.”

In New Zealand “farmers won’t receive that price signal until the new season is underway”, she says.

Demand is still holding up in emerging markets, but there’s a lot more milk out there, so it’s becoming a buyers’ market.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

4 // NEWS

‘Don’t turn off raw milk supply’ SUDESH KISSUN

CUTTING OFF Fonterra’s raw milk

ment areas and that will only fragment the supply base,” he told Dairy News.

“We don’t see lot of sense in this. It weakens every player including Fonterra.”

In its discussion paper on DIRA raw milk regulations reforms, MAF recommends a three-season limit for independent processors with their own supply.

Fonterra shareholders support this.

supply to independent processors will lead to fragmentation of the milk supply base, an independent processor has warned.

Green Valley Dairies says it will be forced to approach Fonterra farmers around its factory in Mangatawhiri, South Auckland, if the Dairy Indus“It weakens every player try Restructuring Act (DIRA) raw including Fonterra.” milk supply is removed.

Green Valley general manger Green Valley supplies fresh milk for Corrie den Haring says it doesn’t see any sense in ending supply to domes- the domestic market but unlike Fonterra and Goodman Fielder its products tic processors.

“We will be left with no option but to are not sold in supermarkets. It supplies look for Fonterra farmers in our catch- dairies and fruit and vegetable outlets.

The company buys 12m L of DIRA milk from Fonterra to supplement supply from its three organic and a conventional farm near the factory. It also buys milk from contracted local farmers. Green Valley currently processes 20m L a year.

However, the factory only operates a single shift five days a week leaving spare capacity.

Den Haring says under its growth strategy it will need about 100m L of milk in three years.

“We’re looking at 30-50 suppliers.

The proposed DIRA reform will force us to look at Fonterra’s suppliers and will put our good relations with the co-op under strain.”

Retailers set milk price RETAIL MILK pricing

is beyond the control of processors, says private label supplier Green Valley Dairies.

General manager Corrie den Haring says processors sell milk at the correct price but what the retailer does is “not under our control”.

“We don’t set retail pricing and have no desire to do so. Our business is to supply milk at the right price.

“If retailers use milk to bring customers through the door, it is their decision; they can do the same

with bread or bananas.”

Den Haring says his company’s supply agreement with Nosh Essentials for its private label milk is “just a good business opportunity”. The company supplies privately labelled milk to six other customers.

Green Valley is bottling milk under the Nosh Essentials own-brand label. Nosh is retailing the milk at $2.49 for two litres, putting it amidst the cheapest fresh milk available. Last month the company sold milk at $1/L for a limited time.

Green Valley Dairies general manager Corrie den Haring says DIRA reforms will force it to approach Fonterra farmers directly for milk.

Nosh director Clinton Beuvink says the company is happy to team up with Green Valley to bring affordable milk to customers.

“Green Valley milk is a high quality product. The company is recognised as a leading dairy farm....

It has a fresh-from-farm approach with supply midway between our Auckland and Hamilton stores.

“It has been a costly exercise for us but it is worth it now we have achieved our goal of a sustained reduction in price,” says Beuvink.

Green Valley accepts the way the DIRA farmgate milk price is set. It is fairly transparent, says den Haring.

“Fonterra has taken a fair and pragmatic approach in setting milk pricing at the farmgate.

“The current debate is about milk used by export focussed dairy companies.

“They are using milk in a manner not foreseen and expected.”

But it has reservations about the ‘October rule’ that controls the quantity of regulated milk an independent processor can take in each month, based on the quantity of regulated milk the processor took in October, the seasonal peak.

Organic milk products eyed for exports INDEPENDENT DAIRY processor Green Valley is looking at export markets for products made from organic milk.

The company is looking to secure export markets before seeking organic milk suppliers around its factory in Mangatawhiri.

Green Valley general manager Corrie den Haring says the products will be based on organic milk but not necessarily marketed as organics. The company is eyeing added value liquid milk and unique

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It is used by Fonterra to prevent independent processors from taking most of their regulated milk in the shoulder months when their supply is low.

Den Haring says it prefers a consistent milk supply throughout the year.

“Right now we have to fit our model into seasonal supply curve.”

He believes New Zealand’s milk supply curve must change.

“We manufacture long shelf-life products such as milk powder, cheddar cheese and butter, so there are no strong signals back to a farm that we require milk all year round.”

Green Valley’s three farms have a flatter milk supply curve.

products made from organic milk.

“If you’re selling dairy product with organics as the selling point, you’re not getting much traction,” he says.

“Part of the uniqueness of the product will include organics.”

The global organics market took a hit during the global financial crisis in 2008-09. But den Haring believes it’s not the only reason.

There is little product investment going into the global organic dairy business, he says.

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Organic milk makes up 30% of Green Valley’s business. It operates three organic farms: Marphona, Windmere and Ferndale near its milk plant. The company has spoken to some Fonterra suppliers but isn’t actively recruiting.

It also has the ability to increase its own farming operations within the district.

“We aim to establish export markets, which we are doing right now, before seeking more organic supply,” den Haring says.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 5

Synlait secures farms for A2 start-up PAM TIPA

SYNLAIT MILK has

identified two farms in Canterbury to use in the start-up phase of producing a2 brand nutritional powders for A2 Corporation, says Synlait’s general manager, nutritionals, Tony McKenna.

Under an agreement announced last week, Synlait Milk will source A2 Milk from accredited Canterbury dairy farms and manufacture a2 brand infant nutritional powders at its facility in Rakaia.

A2 Corporation plans to market the a2 infant formulas in the potentially huge markets of China and South East Asia.

McKenna says Synlait

has sourced two farms for need don’t have an A1 gene, they just have A2.

A2 milk production, one You do have cows that are of its own and another it has identified through A2’s mixed, but we can’t use that.” patented technology.

If demand increases He is confident Synlait has the volume with those for the a2 nutritional powders, Synlait would move two farms for the startup phase in the next dairy season. With A2 driving the market side they will wait for the signals for increased volume and potentially Synlait’s new nutritional powder facility will make a2 brand extra farms. products.

The A2 gene occurs naturally and McK- into A2 breeding to make sure of the purity of its enna says probably about product.

20-30% of Canterbury Curiously, the majority cows have the gene. of sires being used for New “It follows typical Zealand dairy herds now genetics – the cows we

are coincidentally A2, says McKenna. “I am not sure why that is, but that is the situation.”

A2 managing director Geoffrey Babidge says an agreement with a reputable supplier of nutritional powders is a key step in its plan to launch a2 brand infant formula products in high growth Asian markets, in particular China.

It is estimated the retail market for infant formula in China and South East Asia is US$6 billion and US$3 billion respectively. The market in China is forecast to

grow at an average rate of 12% over the next decade, he says.

A2 Corporation also last week announced a strategic review of its options to accelerate growth and maximise shareholder value.

A2C chairman, Cliff Cook said: “The company has achieved outstanding success recently and is gaining significant momentum from the successful commercialisation of its brands in Australia and increasing awareness of A2 milk in other markets.

“As a result, the company has numerous growth avenues available to it, both in geographic and product expansion.”

Chinese leader visits plant CHINESE LEADER Jia Qinglin last week visited Synlait Milk to see an example of successful bilateral investment between the company and Bright Dairy, China.

The visit by Qinglin, chairman of the national committee of the People’s Political Consultative Conference, was his only appointment with a New Zealand company during his official tour.

“We were honored by the visit and welcomed the opportunity to showcase our leading infant nutritional manufacturing capability to such an important leader and influential Chinese media,” says Synlait Milk chief executive officer John Penno.

“The prospect of positive exposure to consumers though the big Chinese media networks such as Xinhua and CCTV is invaluable to building our brand, and reinforcing New Zealand’s world-class reputation for food safety and quality to the lucrative Chinese market.”

Qinglin and his entourage of at least 40 people met Synlait Milk executives before viewing the plant – Southern Hemisphere’s largest and most sophisticated making infant formula. The $100 million facility opened late last year.

Qinglin also visited a farm supplying Synlait Milk and spoke with the family about the quality and care taken in the Chinese leader Jia Qinglin production of milk supplied to the pro- visits Synlait. years is to continue to develop our nutritionals cessor.

China is now New Zealand’s second-largest business and capitalise on the opportunities this trading partner and export market. It is New market presents.”

Based in Canterbury, Synlait Milk combines Zealand’s biggest export market for dairy products and one of the most important for Synlait farming with processing to produce nutritional milk products. These include infant and adult Milk.

“The infant formula market in China is worth nutritional formulations, food ingredients and an estimated US$10 billion,” says Penno. “Our milk powder products. The company has 150 fundamental business driver over the next five employees and at least 150 milk suppliers.

Asian visitors highlight new trade links PETER BURKE

VISITS LAST week by Vietnamese and Chinese leaders, and a John Key-led trade mission to Indonesia, further highlighted the importance to New Zealand’s economy of its emergent, super-wealthy trading partners.

Vietnam Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc met with Deputy Prime Minister Bill English, among other ministers of the Crown, to discuss trade issues.

Phuc is one of four deputy prime ministers. He was on his first visit to New Zealand, in a delegation of ministers and senior officials.

New Zealand is Vietnam’s fourth-largest trading partner, accounting for 10% of New Zealand’s exports and 16% of our imports. The Maori-owned Miraka dairy factory in the central North Island is part owned by Vietnam’s large dairy company Vinamilk.

Also making a timely visit – the Crafar farm sale decision being imminent – was China’s fourth-ranked politician, Chairman Jia Qinglin. He hinted that much was riding on the outcome of the Crafar decision, saying he hoped New Zealand will provide Chinese companies with “an enabling policy environment to facilitate Chinese investment”. He also noted that China “welcomed New Zealand investment”.

His visit was intended to celebrate the anniversary of 40 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Finally Fonterra took centre stage when, as part of John Key’s trade mission to Indonesia, it announced plans to invest in a blending and packing plant in that country.

Chief executive Theo Spierings, a member of the mission to Indonesia, says the plant will help support growing demand for quality dairy nutrition there and contribute to expansion of the co-op’s brands Anlene, Anmum and Anchor Boneeto.

“Asia is leading the world in dairy demand growth and Indonesia is a big part of this demand. The New Zealand dairy industry has [at least] a 40 year relationship supplying products to Indonesia. Dairy demand [there] is forecast to grow about 50% in the next eight years. With such rapid growth forecast… we want to increase our packing and blending capabilities… to support the long term growth of our business.”

Indonesia is Fonterra’s tenth-largest market and one of the fastest growing. Spierings says plans to invest in Indonesia are part of the company’s wider global strategy to sharpen its focus on the Asean region.

Key plans to visit China later this year.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 7

Govt urged to solve TB funding impasse SUDESH KISSUN

FARMERS WANT the Government to mediate in a bovine TB funding disagreement between the Animal Health Board and Waikato Regional Council.

Federated Farmers Waikato president James Houghton says Primary Industries Minister David Carter should get the warring parties together.

The current fund-

William McCook

ing arrangement where regional councils charge a rate on rural properties for TB control is working well, he says.

“So, I’m disappointed.

I mean if it’s not broken why fix it?” he said to Dairy News.

“We have until June next year to find a solution and I think the MPI should get both parties to the table.”

WRC is to stop collecting $825,000 on behalf of the AHB from July 2013 as the farmer contribution to the region’s $6.5 million TB control programme.

It wants the AHB to collect directly from farmers.

Houghton says he believes

11 other regional councils also favour the WRC’s stance.

But AHB chief executive William McCook says the time is not right to tamper with TB control funding in the region.

“Extensive areas of the region still have TB in wildlife which continues to pose a threat. Now is not the time to be relaxing our control work, or we risk repeating the scenario that saw cattle and deer herd infections rise exponentially in the 1980s and 1990s.”

Last year’s draft annual plan consultation in Waikato identified strong support for continued funding of the AHB’s TB control.

Surety of funding to allow operations and work to be planned effectively is vital, McCook says.

“The proposal to cease funding at the end of the next financial year could have an impact on efforts to eradicate the disease from New Zealand should an alternative mechanism not be found.”

WRC biosecurity and natural heritage group manager John Simmons says the TB control programme is a national strategy and not aligned with its regional priority. The council plans to increase its pest control budget by $400,000 from next year but will deal with regional priorities.

Simmons says the AHB can go directly to farmers

for TB control funding.

“We have agreed to collect funds on their behalf for another year so they have enough time to introduce a levy for Waikato region as they do in Otago.”

Simmons says the council is also concerned about how the money is spent by AHB. “Our regional contribution is not justified. At the same time the levy rises every year,” he says.

James Houghton wants Government to intervene in a bovine TB funding disagreement.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 9

Chinese welcome mat out for co-op PAM TIPA

CHINA’S GENERAL

populace are likely to welcome Fonterra’s investment in their country because of the technology and experience the dairy giant will bring, says New Zealand China Trade Association executive director Graham Kearns.

His comments follow the opening this month of the company’s second farm in China, where Fonterra’s Theo Spierings announced plans to develop separate farming hubs across China, aiming to produce 1 billion L of high quality milk every year by 2020.

Kearns says the China Trade Association is happy with the way Fonterra is investing in China.

“There is a transfer of technology – but I understand Fonterra is learning as well because it is a different style of farming.

“It can only help the supply side of, particularly, milk powder and infant formula into that market because New Zealand alone could not supply the requirements.

“If a New Zealand based company such as Fonterra is producing locally I am sure there is always gain to our country with the call back of profits etc.”

Fonterra’s experience would be welcomed in China.

“The growing popula-

tion in that middle income area is massive and their spending ability will rapidly increase. They will be looking for higher quality products rather than cheaper products now produced locally…

“They consider New Zealand, with its clean, green image and the products they produce, top of the world class and that’s why they want to be involved.”

Kearns, whose own experience of investment in China stems back to the late 1980s, says the Free Trade Agreement has created a big spur for business of all types in New Zealand to invest in China.

Speaking at the ceremony to open Yutian Farm One, Spierings said China was a significant priority in Fonterra’s refreshed global strategy. With consumption expected to double by 2020, the country will be consuming at least 70 billion L of milk every year by 2020.

“It is clear much of this growth in demand for dairy nutrition will be met from local production,” Spierings said.

Fonterra has already committed investment to five farms in the Hebei Province, in the north east of China.

“Our first farm in Tangshan opened in 2007 and today we are celebrating the official opening of our second farm in the area. Yutian Farm One is currently milking around

ADVISERS UNDER FIRE SHANGHAI PENGXIN was let down by its advisors in its bid to buy Crafar farms, says New Zealand China Trade Association executive director Graham Kearns “The Crafar farms situation certainly has created some sort of hesitation by the Chinese investors into New Zealand because they don’t understand the way our court system works and the way our business facilities operate.

“I think they are learning some very valuable lessons which will be good in the future. Obviously we are in favour of investment in farms in New Zealand no matter where it would come from.”

But the fact a New Zealand Government decision can be challenged in court certainly surprised the Chinese investors.

“But I think it was also a small failure on behalf of their advisers. They should have provided better advice in the investment decision process.”

2200 cows and producing around 11 million L a year. At full capacity it will reach 30 million L of high quality milk a year.”

Construction of a third farm, also in Yutian County, is underway

and Fonterra will invest NZ$100 million (RMB557 million) in a further two farms in the same province.

“This will mean we will have a hub with five farms within the area.”

Theo Spierings opening Fonterra’s new farm in China this month.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

10 // NEWS

Co-op shelves fines, bonuses plan GARETH GILLAT

FONTERRA HAS backed away from plans for fines and bonuses for milking window times. But the general manager milk supply, Steve Murphy, says the co-op would still like to see milk windows optimised.

Fonterra said in February it was considering working with farmers to reorganise milking times. It asked farmers

cial component of the to nominate the time it would change and an email Fontake them to milk from the terra sent to suppliers last start of milking to the finish week suggested the finanof the washdown. cial component has been And it suggested that shelved. farmers who constantly kept Auckland Federated within the milking window Farmers Dairy chairman might be rewarded while Steve Murphy Phillip Bell is pleased by those often still milking outside the nominated time when the the news.

“I don’t think many people I talked tanker arrived would face fines.

Farmers are perplexed by the finan- to would be excited about it,” says Bell.

“Organising the financial side of it becomes just another job somebody’s got to do.”

Murphy says while farmers are not in favour of the financial component they were in favour of re-examining milking window times. 42% of 14,000 farmers, managers and sharemilkers responded to a survey about their milking times.

“The feedback we got was that the existing windows – two hours morning and two afternoon – doesn’t work

for many of our farmers,” says Murphy.

He says the co-op will ask farmers for their milking times in the next one to two months and, providing they get enough responses, there could be worthwhile cost savings for the co-op.

“It’s important we get the solution that works best for farmers and the cooperative. The more time we have to collect suppliers’ milk, the fewer tankers we need on the road, which means less cost to the cooperative.”

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tion, says a US human resources firm.

Lumberjack is worst and soldier third-worst, says CareerCast.Com, after surveying 200 occupations. It claims to have “mounds of data” underpinning its findings.

Software engineering “We’ve got to is reckoned the best job, get up early and but dairy farming gets big thumbs-down we are forced to the and newspaper reportwork in the fresh ing is not far behind. air...”

The survey has drawn humour and pithy comment from dairy farmer Robin Barkla, Feds Dairy section vice chairman.

“It’s terrible at times. We’ve got to get up early and we are forced to work in the fresh air and the sunshine and see the sun rise and set. If you think that’s bad then that’s bad alright. Worse still the kids have to go out and play with those animals and they seem to thoroughly enjoy themselves and, let’s face it, some of our four-legged friends are our best workmates.”

Is it also ‘dirty’? Dairy News asked him.

No, Barkla replied. It’s just dealing with grass in one form or another. But he concedes some city folk – such as those he suspects did the survey referred to above – see working in a dairy shed and dodging the outpourings of cows’ bowels and bladders as “not very nice”.

“You have to be quick on your feet, no doubt about it. If you don’t get caught more than once a year under a direct stream it’s not too much to put up with.”

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

12 // NEWS

‘Councils dragging the chain’ THE CHIEF executive of the

“Farmers wouldn’t be able to get away with a situation like that.”

– Andrew Hoggard

Manawatu Wanganui Regional Council says he personally believes councils in the region should spend more time and focus on prioritising major infrastructure upgrades than on some community based initiatives.

Michael McCartney’s comments to Dairy News follow revelations that five out of the seven

councils in the region have a total of thirteen expired regional council consents between them relating to their drinking water or waste water treatment plants.

This has drawn strong criticism from Federated Farmers, Manawatu/Rangitikei president Andrew Hoggard. He says the sit-

PETER BURKE

Andrew Hoggard

uation has all the appearance of a double standard or a different set of rules being applied to councils compared with what farmers would get.

“Farmers wouldn’t be able to get away with a situation like that.

Basically when a dairy farmer’s consent comes up they have to get it renewed immediately with new more stringent conditions attached. Farmers simply have to step up to the mark.”

Hoggard says this year there’s been a high level of compliance by farmers in the region and he says ‘significant non compliance’ has been at a record low.

He says councils need to be more proactive with their consent process. “They need to think ahead and work out when these consents are coming up for renewal. They need to work out in advance what’s required, plan and put money aside so they can

transition through to a new consent.”

McCartney agrees and says the length of time local authorities take to renew some of their consents is long and in some cases “too long”. “We want our councils to put some priority to those infrastructure upgrades as quickly as possible.”

According to McCartney, district councils can still legally operate with an expired consent and there is no legal avenue to force them to move faster other than to “encourage and advise them” to do so.

He says he can understand farmers may see double standards existing and that there might be cynicism about councils being part of the much heralded plan to clean up the Manawatu River when they are not seen to be meeting their environmental obligations.

It’s not easy for local authorities, he says, as many of them have old infrastructure – costly to upgrade and requiring community approval.

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THE DAIRY industry’s animal evaluation company, NZAEL, is looking for a new manager. Current manager George Cruickshank is moving to a consultancy role.

Cruickshank is moving from the NZAEL head office in Hamilton to Hawke’s Bay for family reasons but will continue as a consultant on the current project to review the National Breeding Objective.

NZAEL board chair- Warren Larsen man Warren Larsen says the review of the NBO is an important project for the industry and the board is pleased to be able to retain Cruickshank’s expertise through to the completion of the review.

“The strategic direction for the National Breeding Objective review will be approved by key industry stakeholders and the NZAEL board in the next few weeks. The NBO review will then be developed and validated for implementation in February 2013,” says Larsen.

The NBO is a key tool for the dairy industry as it prioritises the importance of genetic traits for breeding within the national dairy herd in order to optimise animal efficiency and profitability.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 13

‘Keep OAD milking simple or lose’ PETER BURKE

A FARM consultant at Massey University says some

farmers doing once-a-day (OAD) milking are in fact working twice a day and losing some of the benefits of OAD. Tom Phillips works for the university’s Centre of Farm Excellence but has spent the past 30 years as a consultant in Australia, UK, France and Ireland. He was a keynote speaker last week at a DairyNZ run discussion group on a farm near Eketahuna.

Phillips says he’s surprised to see some OAD farmers using supplements such as PKE and other supplements not grown on their property. “The groups I’ve been dealing with in Europe have taken every cost out of the system.

They strip it bare so you’d have to be a very brave person to get up and say you’re feeding concentrates or supplements,” he says. Phillips says he’s comfortable with OAD farmers using supplements grown on the milking platform.

He says OAD is an extremely viable option financially and potentially the most profitable.

Phillips says OAD is also a lifestyle choice and he’s ‘uncomfortable’ about measuring the success of dairy farming on a single issue, such as per-cow or per-hectare production.

“There’s far too much measurement on a single factor no matter which country you go to. That’s why this sustainability approach – which includes people sustainability and profitability, herd fertility and extending the life of cows – is so important because it’s a much broader measurement. The core reason people are in business is to make profit but with OAD you can make very large profits and still be family- and staff-friendly,” he says.

To achieve profitability, Phillips says there should be more emphasis on the amount of milk solids per kilogram of live weight. He says this is the measure used in Europe and he notes that this theory was developed by scientist John Penno at Ruakura.

“The ultimate goal is to get a kilo of milksolids per kilo of live weight off pasture. So you are looking for a cow that forages and grazes very well and you’ve got to produce the right quality feed to get that result.”

Phillips says a key objective of OAD farmers is to get the right cows and he’s an advocate of a somewhat harsh culling regime.

TIME TO ACT TOM PHILLIPS says New Zealand dairy farmers, unlike their European counterparts, have not caught on to the need for sustainability.

In Europe strict rules can affect payouts to farmers if they don’t comply.

“In New Zealand there is a percentage very focused on it but the majority is paying lip service to it at the moment. I don’t think the public of New Zealand is going to allow that to continue.”

Phillips says there are two other core issues. “It’s very hard to be green if you are in the red, so to

be sustainable and environmentally friendly you need to have a profitable farming system.

“I am also confident that if you want to be in the black you are going to have to be green as well. I know I am playing with words but it’s fundamental to the [continuing] profitability of the dairy industry.”

Phillips says New Zealand farmers have opportunity to implement change before it’s forced upon them by regulation. If they keep arguing about it the regulators will dictate what’s to happen.

“You want to be culling 25% of the cows primarily for production, but also for the ability for them to be in calf in the first three weeks. They must have the ability to milk OAD with a low cell count and no lameness. The cows you never see are the ones we want on OAD.” Phillips says it’s possible to produce a good cow for OAD within five years. This requires culling, getting young cows into the herd and focussing on breeding objectives.

Tom Phillips says OAD milking can be a viable option financially.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

14 // NEWS

Voting underway for two v VOTING IS underway for two director vacancies on the LIC board. Nine candidates vying for the seats have this to say about themselves and key issues facing LIC

Gray Baldwin M.AgSc (Hons) Baldwin, (46) with wife Marilyn, is based in Putaruru and farms 410 cows with sharemilkers.

On their family farm of 60 years, they intend staying. Their core value is sustainability and they were Supreme Winners of the Ballance Farm Environment Award in 2009.

Baldwin’s has held managerial positions with BNZ Agribusiness and Ballance Agri-Nutrients and now works with 16 sharemilkers as a supervisor of CHH farms in Tokoroa. His current governance rolls include Ballance Agri-Nutrients Ltd, Trinity Lands Ltd and he is chairman of Regen Ltd, a Wellington effluent technology company.

He believes key issues for LIC are its focus on core business, building partnerships and “playing our part in history”.

“The current discussion with DairyNZ over our core database needs resolving sooner rather than later.

“As an elected director, I will want to see LIC’s interests protected but I have minimal appetite for a long IP battle. Let’s see some goodwill and giveand-take and we can all get on with running our core business.”

David Jensen B.AgSc, Dip.AgSc Jensen’s family farm milks 700 Kiwi-cross cows close to Tauranga, and grows kiwifruit and avocados.

The farm has used LIC’s Premier Sire’s bull team for “as long as I can remember,” he says, because it meets their aim of high breeding worth bulls at affordable prices.

Jensen says they are com-

mitted to integrating new advances in genetics and farm management systems into their business as long as there is economic payback.

He is a director with Farmlands Trading Society and Satara Ltd, a past LIC councillor, past NZ Dairy Group councillor, breeder of bulls for LIC and par-

ticipant in the Fonterra governance development programme.

“The past leadership of Livestock Improvement has put the co-op in a strong financial position, but it faces challenges in the years ahead,” he says.

“It is important that LIC remains driven to provide affordable, high-qual-

ity herd improvement services.”

agricultural training qualifications.

A Fonterra Sharehold-

ers Councillor, he has been an Argos conventional vs organic monitor dairy farmer since inception, and was a DairyNZ Tight Management focus farmer in 2009-2010. He has undertaken international and national speaking engagements and has been widely involved in community service.

“I have extensive

knowledge and ability in dairy farm management coupled with a strong interest in research and extension. My recent involvement with the governance model of Fonterra and a personal development of governance understanding will enable me to contribute positively to the value of LIC and to its shareholders.”

Grant Wills, B.AgSci Farming in Walton with wife Karo, Wills is managing director of a 650-cow dairy farm employing a 21% sharemilker. He is a former Piako Sharemilker of the Year and Dairy Farmer of the Year.

He started as a MAF agricultural engineering advisor in Taranaki/ Manawatu and has completed a number of

Let’s get down to business

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

NEWS // 15

o vacancies on LIC board Jeanette Quin, B.AgSc (Hons) Quin lives at Parawera near Te Awamutu with husband Des, farming 780 cross-bred cows. She has been involved in dairying for at least 30 years since starting out as a Dairy Board consulting officer, gaining a background in livestock improvement. It was a “natural step” to go dairy farming and she has been a hands-on farmer since.

She has been a tutor in Farm Business Management, in AgITO courses for Dexcel and now Dairy Training Ltd, a member of the Animal Evaluation User Group and the Te Awamutu In-Calf Focus Group, was LIC Auckland region director for two years, a chair of liaison farmer groups and has been on the LIC Shareholder Council since 1998.

“LIC’s core purpose to provide practical and profitable solutions for farmers is achievable largely because we are a farmer owned cooperative,” she says.

“I think it is vital we maintain strong links between farmers, shareholder representatives and directors so the important issues can be clearly defined and worked through.”

Jenny Morrison Morrison was a legal executive before marrying Craig and moving to his family farm in Hikau on the Coromandel Peninsula. They sharemilk for Craig’s parents and won the Auckland/Hauraki Sharemilker of the Year on their first attempt in 2004 and were runners up in the national competition.

They also own a 210ha drystock farm and 34ha dairy support block.

Morrison has been chair of the LIC Shareholders Council for three years, a member of the council for two, is a Fonterra Networker, a Dairy Womens Network member and treasurer of the Tairua/Pauanui Land Search and Rescue.

As the Shareholders Council chair she says she has worked collaboratively with the LIC Board, management, the industry and Government, and she wants to increase dairy farmers’ engagement with LIC. “The evolution of dairy farming structures and operations in New Zealand poses challenges to the way we, as a co-operative, communicate and provide service to our customers and shareholders and we need to continually innovate to address these issues.”

Stephen Silcock Silcock with wife Annette farms 580 cows at Tahuna north of Morrinsville and during their 32-year farming career have been loyal users of LIC products and services.

A volunteer firefighter for 37 years in the Tahuna brigade, he has held office in a TO PAGE 16

Malcolm Piggott Piggott with wife Rosalie started his dairy career with a half share in a 150cow 50% share milking business and within nine years owned 100% of a 950-cow business. They were Waikato Sharemilker of the Year in

2003 and bought their own Morrinsville farm in 2008.

From 1997 to 2002 Piggott was an LIC liaison farmer. Their herd is in the top 3% of indices, with a bull in the 2010 DNA Premier Sires Team, now

awaiting daughter proof.

From 1996 to 2008 he was involved in Federated Farmers sharemilkers section and was national chairman in 2008.

That year he spoke to the DIRA parliamentary select committee in sup-

port of LIC retaining the core database. He says this issue has not gone away, with DairyNZ now after the core database.

“There are other challenges ahead to keep LIC world leaders in breeding and herd testing.”

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

16 // NEWS

LIC candidates FROM PAGE 15

Stephen Silcock (cont’d) number of community organisations. In the industry he has served as an LIC liaison farmer, a director of Morrinsville Thames Valley Dairy Co-op and an NZDG Shareholders Council representative. He was elected to the Fonterra Shareholders Council in 2001. On the latter he leads a group considering changes to DIRA and Raw Milk Regulations. He is a director of Rimu SA, a company investing in dairy farming in Chile.

“Cooperatives in the past have played, and will continue to play, an important and vital role in the security, growth and prosperity of New Zealand dairy farmers and their families,” he says.

“LIC is no exception and it is critical that as member of our organisations we ensure LIC continues to focus on providing member services as effectively and efficiently as possible.”

ing equity partnership.

He has attended a Kellogg Rural Leadership course and in 2003 was awarded the computer World Excellence in the use of IT in a small to medium enterprise. He has been a member of the LIC Shareholder Council for 10 years.

Broadband progress

Ian Storey B.AgSc (Hons) A fourth generation dairy owner, operator, running 620 cows across two farms, Storey, with wife Pamela, in association with New Era Energy, helped bring about better outcomes from Transpower for farms across Waikato.

A managing director and trustee of three dairy farms, he has been on the Shareholder Council since 2004. He is a trustee of the Te Kauwhata Retirement Trust Board, has served

on the Dairy3 organising committee (vice chair 2005) and is a breeder of Taniwha Thunderbolt with two additional bulls in the Sire Proving Scheme.

He believes LIC is well run and managed but has challenges looming including maintaining levels of R&D, getting shareholders to take an active interest in their cooperative and maintaining control over the type of cow we milk in

Gary Stokes Married with four children, Stokes has been dairy farming since 1991.

His dairy experience includes dairy farm leasing, share milking and farm ownership, today milking 420 cows near Hamilton. He is part owner and a director of an international dairy farm-

IN BRIEF

“I believe I provide a direct link to the dairying coalface…. LIC needs to stay connected to the people who are hands-on farmers like myself.

“I have been involved with focus groups that Beta test and offer software feedback for a number of LIC products

ranging from CowPad in the early days to Protacvt and MindaPro. “The focus groups allow good communication between us, as farmers, and LIC as product developers, which helps build strong and cost effective product for all shareholders.”

the future.

“LIC can only continue to innovate if it remains a farmer-owned breeding and farm systems organisation delivering leadingedge technology.”

FEDERATED FARMERS says new broadband contracts announced last week is a welcome step toward getting rural New Zealand on the information ‘super highway’.

Spokesman Anders Crofoot says Feds looks forward to the day when every New Zealand school, no matter how remote, has access to fast broadband internet. The news that the network providers have been contracted means that goal is a step closer to reality, he says.

“Bringing high speed intent to these rural communities will ensure they have access to the same information opportunities as their urban counterparts.”

The contracts, worth $14.4 million, provide for 193 provincial schools, 183 rural public libraries, 37 rural hospitals and ten health centres receiving fibre connections, and are part of the Government’s $300 rural broadband plans.

Chorus and Network Tasman had won the bulk of the work, a $12m contract for Wakefield, Mapua, Motueka and Picton. A further $2.4 million was awarded to Inspire.net, Gisborne. net, Chorus and Araneo to connect 57 remote schools and their surrounding communities.

Crofoot says the contracts are important for rural schools and libraries, as education in New Zealand and globally becomes more technology dependant.

“Rural children will have an important part to play in New Zealand’s future. With agriculture underpinning... economic stability, we hope they will choose to remain in the country and farm.”

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

18 // NEWS

Better sires even sooner as genome costs drop PAM TIPA

THE COST of genome sequencing is reducing so quickly that LIC could be using the pinpoint accuracy of this DNA technology on all its Premier Sires within two to three years.

The first-ever human genome sequencing in 2000 took 10 years and cost $2-3 billion and the first bovine sequencing in 2006 took 1-2 years and cost $50 million, LIC general manager, research and development, Richard Spelman said. He was giving an idea of cost comparisons at the Premier Sires Breeding Day last week at LIC’s Ruakura site.

It now cost $20003000 for human genome sequencing and in five years every child could be

“We really want to improve the accuracy of genomic selection” DNA sequenced affordably. Bovine sequencing followed a similar pattern.

But he said it may become affordable (about $1000-2000) for all premier bulls at LIC in two to three years. The fact that the first mammal to be sequenced in New Zealand was not a human, but a KiwiCross bull, North Sea, showed the importance of dairying to the country, he said.

The main DNA proving technology now used by LIC is genotyping, which analyses about 50,000 base pairs of nucleotides ATCG. That is only about 160,000th of what is seen with genome sequencing, he said, which looked at all 3.2 billion base pairs.

About 25 animals are

now sequenced by LIC and a further 250 are in the pipeline, including Howies Checkpoint. No breeding bull so far ahead of its peers has been seen in New Zealand for 40 years.

“Checkpoint is a freak – the genetic perspective there is just unreal,” Spelman said. “He is so extreme… the phenotype in his daughters.”

He said, although they didn’t necessarily expect it, there might be one variation which occurred naturally in his biology which made him so special. They also plan to sequence Checkpoint’s dam.

With the further sequencing of a broad spectrum of animals they hope to explain “why an animal has high or low

protein or fat production and all the traits that sit in BW. We really want to improve the accuracy of genomic selection”.

Earlier Spelman spoke about a variation found in a bull called Halcyon.

Some of his daughters had strange coats, thermo-regulation issues, so they kept rolling in puddles to drop their temperature and the most extreme examples could not produce milk.

With genome sequencing they found Halcyon had an amino acid variation which probably occurred as an embryo and was not found in any of the other 25 animals sequenced.

“In the future we hope to sequence animals and detect these before we put the bulls out there as DNA proven,” Spelman said.

Reluctant star... Howies Checkpoint at the LIC bull parade last week.

A GAME CHANGER LIC STAR bull Howies Checkpoint is on target for record sales of frozen straws. This KiwiCross bred

by George and Glenda Howie, Morrinsville, is a “gamechanger”, says LIC Premier Sires manager Mike Wilson.

No other sire has stood so far above and beyond its peers since Maori Bestman in 1969, with Checkpoint at 319 BW points,

60BW points ahead of the next best bull. His insemination rates are 30 points better than any other on the market. About 30,000 frozen straws have been sold so far this season, and he is likely to achieve 60,000-70,000 sales.

“He is amazing at passing on really good genes to his daughters – he has 70 to 80 daughters in the Sire Proving Scheme.”

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

20 // NEWS

Fallow 4000ha could carry 14,000 cows PETER BURKE

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Currently the Government has put out for consultation a new document which contains significant changes to the ETS legislation. The main ones are the ability of the Government to make it easier to delay beyond 2015 the introduction of agriculture into any ETS scheme and the provision for ‘offsetting’. The ‘off-setting’ provision allows the landowner of a pre-1990 forest the option of converting this to another land use provided they plant an equivalent area in trees elsewhere in the country.

Kelly says Landcorp has about 4000ha effectively laying fallow in the central North Island. The trees have been cut down and new ones planted, but if the new ETS legislation is approved these trees – only a year or so old – could be ploughed into the soil and the land converted to dairying.

Kelly says what’s happening at present is a real waste, and off-setting would be “wonderful”.

“You are looking at about 400ha per dairy platform which would run about 1000 cows each, so potentially we could be looking at running 10,00014,000 extra cows.”

Kelly says the land in question was put into forest in the early 1950s when animals suffered from ‘bush sickness’ and were unable to be kept alive.

“They didn’t know what it was so they planted the land in trees. We know now that it’s simple cobalt

deficiency and cattle actually thrive well on the country provided they get enough cobalt. It’s a gross under-utilisation of the land just having it in trees frankly.”

The prospects of more dairy farms may, says Kelly, provoke some negative reactions. But he says they are working closely with Waikato Regional Council to devise nutrient management plans and build large effluent units to decrease the amount of nitrogen leaching into the Waikato River.

“We have set ourselves some arbitrary targets which are quite low but we believe we can achieve them. Currently I think the average level of N leached is about 55kg nitrogen/ha/year. I reckon we can get that down to about 30kg/per ha/year. If other farms can emulate that level as well then the whole catchment will benefit.”

Kelly says Landcorp is also creating larger riparian strips along waterways and wintering cows off the milking platform as a means of reducing their impact on the environment. Landcorp has met its obligations under the Clean Streams Accord and is now focusing on fencing streams where drystock are being run. “We are doing this as fast as money will allow.”

Overall Kelly believes that if off-setting is approved it will not only benefit Landcorp but Fonterra and the country as a whole. “When Fonterra is successful New Zealand is successful,” he says.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

22 // WORLD

Tasmania needs 20 new farms annually RICK BAYNE

DAIRY PROCESSORS are pouring millions of dollars into infrastructure in Tasmania and irrigation systems are opening up new

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processor demand, which means up to 20 new dairy farms per year will need to come on board.

Already some cropping and beef operators are seeing the financial benefits of converting to dairy and the industry is encouraging others to follow suit.

The northern Midlands and north-east areas of the state are seen as most likely to host future dairy opportunities.

DairyTas chief executive officer Mark Smith says growth needed to sustain the dairy processors’ expansion cannot be achieved within current dairy areas.

“We are achieving growth of 3-4% on an average dairy farm but we need 7-8% to keep the processing companies operating at sufficient capacity,” Smith says.

The introduction of irrigation in northern Midlands and north-east regions has helped to turn non-traditional dairying areas into land suitable for dairy expansion, he says.

“Without irrigation it wouldn’t be possible,” Smith says “It is a bit drier and hotter and the soil isn’t as fertile as land further south but with irrigation it is quite viable.

“Already we have examples of farms around Cressy that have been successfully converted from broad acre cropping and livestock to dairy.

“This has been done in partnerships between owners and managers with dairy experience and they are showing what can be done with the land. The development of water resources has opened up some exciting opportunities.”

DairyTas chairman Paul Bennett says the influx of new and expanded processors is a shot in the arm for the Tasmanian dairy industry and dairy farmers needed to respond to the challenge by supplying more milk.

“It is the first time in my time in dairying where I can choose which supply company to go to, but there’s not really a push to get extra cows in here,” he says.

Bennett says the investment by processors was good for the industry and needed to be matched on the land.

“It’s good as it drives competition for prices but the processors need to see a return on their investment and need to be operating at 80-85% capacity,” he says.

“They have elected to come here because they realise dairy is a natural fit in Tasmania. I’d certainly like to see another 40 or 50 dairy farms come in.

“We’ve seen a few startups in traditional sheep territory in the Midlands, so we have the prototype there for others to follow.

They see good opportunities in dairy.”

However, Bennett warns that many older dairy farmers were looking to exit the industry.

“We have probably 50 farms on the market at the moment, so we need to replace those farmers and at the same time encourage more into the industry.”

Tasmanian Premier, Lara Giddings says a new AgriTas training college and A$1.5 million to construct new power lines would allow for the creation of more dairy farms.

She also opened a new A$4 million Cape Barren dairy at Woolnorth, which was a prelude to the Van Diemen’s Land (VDL) company’s future expansion plans in the region.

Last year VDL announced a A$180 million investment to treble production at what is already Australia’s largest dairy farm.

Other dairy investments include: ■■ Fonterra’s A$6.5 million gas conversion at Spreyton and A$12 million upgrade of its Wynyard cheese plant ■■ National Foods investing $150 million expanding and modernising its Burnie and King Island specialty cheese plants ■■ Tasmanian Dairy Products plans to build a A$60 million milk powder plant in Circular Head.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

WORLD // 23

Australian dairy processors are keen on sharing milk tankers to cut costs.

Oz milk tanker fleet sharing on the cards A MILK tanker fleet sharing agreement may be on the cards among Australian dairy processors in Victoria and New South Wales.

Australia’s largest milk processor, Murray Goulburn (MG), believes milk tanker fleets should be consolidated to save costs passed on to farmers.

The Warrnambool Standard newspaper quotes MG managing director Gary Helou as saying the co-op is open to talks with dairy manufacturing counterparts to broker a tanker sharing deal.

Helou is said to be surprised individual processors still use separate tanker fleets, sometimes resulting in three trucks heading daily along the

same country lane.

“It’s ridiculous to have four, possibly five, tankers heading down the same roads each day. I’ve always said we’re in the dairy manufacturing business, not transport.

“Yes, I was surprised how parochial [the dairy industry] can be over this issue, so we are keen to review this process and pass on gains to suppliers.”

Since Helou took over the reins last year MG has cut 64 jobs at its Rochester plant to trim A$100 million from operating costs.

“This business needs to become more efficient and we are reviewing everything. This covers from the way

we acquire milk and transport it to the way we market and retail it.”

Warrnambool Cheese and Butter marketing executive Richard Lange says the Allansford-based processor was happy to cooperate with MG and other organisations on milk transport. There was already a degree of shared milk pick-up in the southwest, he said.

“WCB is always keen to cooperate with Murray Goulburn and others when it comes to milk pick-up and we’re open to discussions.”

Fonterra Ingredients Australia managing director Simon Bromell is reported as saying the company welcomed MG’s interest in transport.

Co-op eyes Middle East AUSTRALIAN DAIRY cooperative Murray Goulburn is spending A$3.5

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million on its cream cheese factory to meet growth in market demand. Its Kiewa plant production will increase by 10,000 tons per annum.

Managing director Gary Helou says the extra capacity will be available to markets by the end of 2012.

“MG’s current cream cheese products have a leading market position in Japan, based on their quality and consistency,” he says. The company is also developing profitable markets in China and the Middle East.

Helou says investing on extra capacity will allow MG to grow its market share in the Japanese market and to lift its cream cheese ‘presence’ in Asia and the Middle East. The co-op is opening an office in Dubai to service the world’s second-largest dairy import market – the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

Helou says the co-op aims to grow and rebalance its business and to try to cut costs by $100 million.

“We are evaluating several initiatives to support the twin objectives of operational excellence and innovation, which will be announced as we complete their evaluation,” says Helou.

Countries in the MENA region include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman. Currently this region imports a combined 1.2 million tonnes of dairy which is valued at $A3.8 billion.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

24 // OPINION RUMINATING

EDITORIAL

Spierings stamps his mark

MILKING IT...

Did they or didn’t they?

FINANCE MINISTER Bill English insists talks last week with China’s fourth-ranked leader didn’t include the Crafar farms.

He says he spoke to Jia Qinglin about trade, cooperation, aid to the Pacific and 40 years of diplomatic relations.

But the Chinese leader was quoted by local news media as saying he hoped New Zealand would “facilitate” Chinese investment and scale it up.

With Fonterra eyeing more investments in more of their farms, surely the Chinese would be pushing for a slice of the action here.

The Greens suspect the Chinese are pressing the Government to approve Shanghai Pengxin’s bid to buy the 16 Crafar farms. English says that’s a conspiracy theory. Time will tell.

Dead frozen

IT MAY take explosives to dislodge a group of cows that wandered into an old ranger cabin high in the Rocky Mountains, then died and froze solid when they couldn’t get out.

The carcasses were discovered by two US Air Force Academy cadets when they snow-shoed up to the cabin in late March.

Rangers believe the animals sought shelter during a snowstorm and got stuck and weren’t smart enough to find their way out.

The cabin is located near the Conundrum Hot Springs, a 14km hike from the Aspen area in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness area.

Example for Greens

HERE’S SOMETHING Russell Norman and his Green troops can learn from their Australian counterparts.

The new leader of the Australian Greens, Senator Christine Milne, wants a better relationship with rural and regional Australia.

She wants a better deal for dairy farmers, a smooth transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy and greater renewable energy opportunities for rural and regional Australia.

“We want to get a better deal for dairy farmers.”

Milne was raised on a dairy farm. But she’s sticking to her guns over carbon tax. It’s a necessary means of tackling climate change, she says.

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ABC audited circulation 27,332 as at 31.12.2011

The Cow Movie

ISSN 1175-463X

YVONNE THE German cow evaded helicopter searches, dodged the hunter’s gun and even eschewed her calf and best friend for a life on the run.

Now the tale of the runaway cow, which captivated the nation last year when she bolted from her farm to escape slaughter and roamed free in the Bavarian countryside for three months, will provide fodder for a Hollywood animated film.

Michael Aufhauser, founder of the Gut Aiderbichl animal sanctuary in southern Germany, which now looks after Yvonne, says the film will be “very romantic”.

“Yvonne even falls in love with a buck,” he said of the film set to hit the silver screen in 2014.

The farmyard fugitive last May broke through an electric fence on a farm near the Bavarian town of Muehldorf.

FONTERRA CHIEF executive Theo Spierings is wasting no time in pursuing his ‘strategy refresh’.

Two new farms have been announced in China. In Indonesia, Fonterra is building a dairy nutrition blending and packaging plant.

Spierings is stamping his leadership on the co-op. He’s made it clear that Asia, in particular China and Asean nations, is where the co-op will invest and market vigorously for a growing market. And it’s a sensible approach.

According to the OECD, the six major Asean countries have rebounded from the global economic crisis, with medium-term growth prospects returning to pre-crisis levels. GDP growth will average 6% annually across the Asean-6 countries over 2011-15.

In China, any fears of cooling down in the world’s secondlargest economy are evaporating fast. China’s economic growth will slow this year to 8.2% (from 9.2% last year) but rebound in 2013, driven by domestic consumption, the International Monetary Fund says.

At the same time growth is slowing in the EU and US dairy markets. So refocusing in China and Asean is smart.

With New Zealand’s limited milk supply, we have to tap into global milk pools. Consumption in China is expected to double by 2020 and the country will be consuming at least 70 billion litres of milk every year by 2020.

It is clear much of this growth in demand for dairy nutrition will be met from local production and Fonterra must be there for a piece of the action.

At the same time, Fonterra is also optimising New Zealand milk production; after all, its 10,000 farmer shareholders here form the bedrock of its milk supply base.

Fonterra already has big projects underway to improve the way it uses manufacturing plant in New Zealand, drive efficiencies and add value for customers so it can beat base commodity prices.

Spierings’ plan has Fonterra enjoying the best of both worlds: New Zealand’s premium quality milk supply and a growing global milk pool.

Spierings’s visionary and decisive approach will strike a chord with Fonterra shareholders. He laid out his plans and is already putting them into action. It’s all about taking the co-op to the next level.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

OPINION // 25

Offering Indonesia our best menu Prime Minister John Key led a trade delegation to Indonesia last week. He told a New Zealand Indonesia Business Seminar about his desire to see more trade between the two countries. Here are excerpts from his speech.

I WANT to see New Zea-

landers and Indonesians becoming more familiar with each other’s countries and with the opportunities to travel and do business. After all, Indonesia is New Zealand’s nearest Asian neighbour.

Our free trade agreement offers the prospect of greater commerce between our two countries. For example, New Zealand has had an FTA with China since 2008, and has since seen twoway trade increase 50%.

China has now leapfrogged the United States to become our second-biggest trading partner and I would be delighted to see a similar expansion in trade between New Zealand and Indonesia, on the back of our own FTA. New Zealand’s experience is that FTAs are mutually beneficial and lead to increased prosperity for all the countries involved. They do so in many ways.

New Zealand is interested in more than just Indonesia’s rapidlyexpanding consumer market. We see the FTA as a means of developing, for example, business partnerships, two-way investment and a vibrant trade in services.

New Zealand has a lot to offer Indonesia. We are a reliable, competitive

and high-quality source of food. We have technical knowledge and expertise that can help your country develop, build infrastructure and add value to the natural resources you have in abundance. We can continue to work with you, for example, in harnessing your large geothermal energy resources, we can contribute in niche areas such as air services and we can be a high-quality, costeffective partner in educating the next generation of Indonesian leaders.

A number of the delegation are from the food and beverage sector. Indonesia has a rapidly growing population that wants to be fed and, increasingly, wants to be fed well. We see food security in Indonesia, as in most countries, as having two elements: increasing domestic agriculture production, and securing a reliable and complementary supply of imports. New Zealand can contribute to both these objectives.

Indonesia’s consumption of protein is set to increase strongly... as incomes continue to rise. I understand per capita consumption of dairy products in Indonesia is about 11kg/year. That’s where China was 10 years ago, and the Chinese now consume about 25kg/capita/ year and rising.

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Have your say at: www.dairynews.co.nz

Meeting such demand calls for an increase in domestic dairy production, alongside an

increase in dairy imports.

New Zealand can assist Indonesia with both these things.

Prime Minister John Key in Indonesia last week.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

26 // OPINION

Money growing on grass JOHN SHEDDAN

WHEN YOU’RE buying

a rural property, the general rule is that sufficient feed is left on the property. Due to the way the ‘feed wedge’ is calculated, however, you could be left short of sustenance for your stock.

Frequently in rural property sales a standard clause is included in the sale and purchase agreement that defines the average grass cover the seller is to leave on settlement.

Why include that clause?

The purpose of such a clause is to ensure the arriving farmer has some degree of confidence in the quantity of feed available as often the agreement has been drafted months before.

Some more elaborate feed clauses provide for the situation where feed isn’t available and include a mechanism where any feed shortage will be remedied by the departing party providing additional grain or dry feed to compensate for the shortfall.

The underlying concept is that the ‘feed wedge’ for the property is maintained. The feed wedge is a diagrammatic view of the average grass length in each field plotted out in a bar graph format. The resulting graph ideally displays a range of grass length from the most recently grazed – and therefore field with the shortest grass – to that field which has remained ungrazed the longest and is due to be grazed next.

The principle behind this is that stock are rotationally grazed through the

property’s fields allowing each grazed field to be rested to ensure the maximum period of recovery for grass to re-grow.

As the combined measurements are given as an average, it’s possible to compensate for an unduly short field by leaving grass longer in others.

Problems can arise Two problems can theoretically arise from the feed wedge calculation: Additional feed can be eaten off by leaving all fields at the same length; this disturbs the grazing rotation; or One or two paddocks are sacrificed due to feed or weather conditions to allow the remaining fields to remain undamaged.

The point with the second problem is that while the overall grass cover meets the agreement’s requirements, the

Feed clauses in sales and purchase agreements leaves the new owner confident in quantity of feed available. Inset: John Sheddan

incoming farmer has a situation where the affected fields may be so badly

SealesWinslow r e c n la a B e g a il S e iz Ma

damaged from pugging or compaction that growth is retarded for the coming

season.

The standard protection for such a situation is

the insertion of a clause such as the good husbandry provision – that the farmer should follow usual farming practices; this test can, however, be difficult to quantify and enforce.

A more certain alternative is to have us flesh out your agreement to provide that no individual field should have grass cover less than a minimum value and that there should be no excessive pugging or compaction in any field. This will provide you with a known, measurable and enforceable position.

• John Sheddan is a partner in Gore law firm Bannermans. This article was first published in the autumn 2012 edition of Fineprint, the client newsletter of NZ Law Ltd member firms. Bannermans is a member of NZ Law.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

28 // AGRIBUSINESS

Award finalists offer diversity THE FINALISTS in the 2012 New Zealand Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year contest are a mix of experienced and new dairy farmers. The group is made up of small, medium

and large-scale operators.

Some are migrants to New Zealand, one is a man competing against 11 couples, and one is an equity farm manager competing against 11 sharemilkers.

National convenor Chris Keeping says the 12 regional New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards competitions always discover talented and interesting finalists to contest

THE 2012 NEW ZEALAND SHAREMILKER/EQUITY FARMER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS: ■■

Auckland Hauraki – Scott & Alicia Paterson, 50% 630 cows, Paeroa.

■■

Bay of Plenty – Richard & Amy Fowler, 50% 345 cows, Te Puke.

■■

Canterbury North Otago – Edna & Sarah Hawe, 17.5% 1400 cows, Ashburton.

■■

Central Plateau – John Butterworth, 50% 500 cows, Mamaku.

■■

Hawkes Bay Wairarapa – William & Sally Bosch, 50% 330 cows, Martinborough.

■■

Manawatu Rangitikei Horowhenua – Shaun & Liza Connor, 50% 242 cows, Shannon.

■■

Northland – Miles Harrison & Lucy Heffernan, 50% 240 cows, Wellsford.

■■

Otago – James & Helen Hartshorne, 50% 540 cows, Tapanui.

■■

Southland – Billy & Sharn Roskam, 50% 910 cows, Winton.

■■

Taranaki – Rebecca & James Van Den Brand, 45% 380 cows, Hawera.

■■

Waikato – Barry & Nicky McTamney, 50% 275 cows, Otorohanga.

■■

West Coast Top of The South – Paul & Debra Magner, equity farm managing 1470 cows, Hokitika.

Paul and Debra Magner.

the national titles.

“This year’s finalists are a high calibre group focused and confident in achieving their goal of owning a stake in the dairy industry.

“They are young, ambitious and growing their businesses at great rates,” Keeping says.

The winners of the New Zealand Sharemilker/ Equity Farmer of the Year, New Zealand Farm Manager of the Year and New Zealand Dairy Trainee of the Year competitions will be announced in Auckland

on May 12. They will compete for about $140,000 in cash and prizes.

The 12 finalists in the sharemilker/equity farmer contest will compete for cash and prizes worth about $80,000. Whakatane farmer Bryan Power, DairyNZ consultant Miranda Hunter and Westpac banker Andy Ewen will spend two hours on each finalist’s farm judging them on aspects including hygiene, pasture and financial management, and leadership. Awards trustee and farmer Alister

Body will join the judging panel for its final component, an interview.

The finalists are dominated by traditional 50% sharemilkers; nine of the finalists operate with 50% contracts. Central Plateau sharemilker John Butterworth is the only single man, and he is also the youngest in the group at 24 years, although 10 of the finalists are aged less than 35 years.

The oldest finalists, West Coast Top of the South representatives Paul and Debra Magner are the

only equity farm managers.

They came into the industry nine years ago after Paul had worked as a geologist and Debra as a rural banker.

The Magners also operate the biggest dairy farm in the finals; the Hokitika property milks 1470 cows and is expanding. Northland representatives Miles Harrison and Lucy Heffernan have the smallest herd – 240 cows.

Heffernan is from Britain, as are the Otago finalists James

and Helen Hartshorne and Canterbury North Otago finalist Edna Hawe; Taranaki finalist James Van Den Brand is Australian.

“With such diversity it is going to be interesting to see who comes out on top,” Keeping says.

The Dairy Industry Awards are sponsored by Westpac, DairyNZ, Ecolab, Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Honda Motorcycles NZ, LIC, Meridian Energy, Ravensdown, RD1 and AgITO. www.dairyindustryawards.co.nz

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TAF

Tenants at Fonterra The Bill, with “TAF enabling provisions” is now in Parliament.

Did you know?

You voted to trade amongst FARMERS with a FONTERRA SHAREHOLDERS fund. Seems the fund has the wrong name as the investors, not Fonterra shareholders, have all the rights. The bill states the holders of fund units (the investors) have the following ownership rights: ➨

The right to appoint and remove the manager of the fund

➨

The right to appoint and remove a majority of the Board of the manager of the fund

➨

The right to pass a resolution for the liquidation of the fund (a major redemption risk for Fonterra!)

➨

In the event of the fund being liquidated, the Bill states Fonterra will be in breach of the law every day that a fund does not exist, at a fine of $10,000 per day

With respect to milk price, the Bill states that at all times the chair and a majority of the members on the milk price panel are independent (meaning we the milkers of the cows are gagged on the very purpose for which our coop was formed)

ADD YOUR VOICE TO THE HUGE GROUNDSWELL OF FARMERS WHO WANT A SECOND VOTE ✄

Please fill this form out and send it to: Post: Beckleigh Farm, RD26 Temuka 7986 or TAF Vote c/- Post Office Edgecumbe Fax: 03 615 9569 Email: ourcoopreply@gmail.com We, the undersigned, respectfully ask the Fonterra Board to have a vote from Supplying Shareholders on Trading Among Farmers before it is a fait-accompli.

Name

Signature

Supply No(s)

Total share backed kgms

Name

Signature

Supply No(s)

To read the bill have a look at www.ourco-op.co.nz

Total share backed kgms

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

AGRIBUSINESS // 31

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Kel Sanderson says high dairy prices are here to stay.

Changes to Asian markets here to stay PAM TIPA

A “VERY strong structural” change in Asian economies means New Zealand will continue to have strong growth in its agricultural commodity prices such as dairy products, says Business and Economic Research Ltd (Berl) director Kel Sanderson.

He is often asked whether New Zealand’s relatively strong agricultural export prices in recent years are temporary, he told a recent seminar.

Some economists worry whether China’s growth rate is dropping from, for instance, 8% to 7.5%, but this is minor compared to the overall trend, he says.

“I don’t think the last few years are just a bubble. I think we will continue to have strong growth.”

He had earlier told the seminar his figures showed New Zealand farmgate returns had increased 58% in the past four years, with dairy strongly leading the way – worth $11.6 billion in the year to September 11, which was 72% of all farmgate value.

But New Zealand’s terms of trade or ratio of export prices to import

prices did trend down for decades, he says. Explaining terms of trade, he says people think of it as a dollar figure – the surplus of our exports less our imports – but it actually was the price relationship.

The easiest way to understand it, he says is, for instance, how many kilos of milk powder (or other commodities) it takes to buy so many imported shoes, tractors or cars.

“And that trended down for decades and we were told New Zealand would always have declining terms of trade because we are a commodity exporter, and manufacturing exports always have that inflation cost plus… the cars, the tractors, the shoes were always going to get more expensive.”

Sanderson says from 1950 to 1985 the export prices compared to import prices did drop but about the mid1980s this started to turn around – and has carried on.

“There’s a fundamental reason: since the mid-1980s Asia has industrialised.”

Many Asian people previously were not in the cash economy, they were subsistence farmers and their

food cost nothing. “That was probably one of the reasons our commodity prices were going down. But now those people are shifting into the industrialised cities, or some of the family are, and once they shift away from the subsistence farms they’ve got to be fed with purchased food products.

“In those factories they are producing the cars, the tractors and the shoes a lot cheaper than they were in Europe and North America – the countries we used to buy from.

“So essentially we’ve got two good things going our way: we’ve got people who are producing cheaper goods on the manufacturing side – they can sell them significantly cheaper than Europe and North America; and they need to be fed.

“This is a fundamental change and the trend therefore is long term,” he says, not just for China but India and other Asian countries.

Food commodity prices would fluctuate but every time they went down they came up, and “seemed to come up a little bit more”.

“So my conclusion, very strongly, is this is a structural change.”

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IN BRIEF New trustees to guide dairywomen THE DAIRY Women’s Network is adding two independent trustees to its board. The new 10-member board will guide members on policies and plans. Dairy Women’s Network chair Michelle Wilson says with its mission to recognise the diversity in experience, knowledge and business of dairying in New Zealand, the board plays a vital role.

“In order to reflect the diverse needs of our 3000-plus members and to serve the best interests of the network, it is important that we have a strong and diverse group of trustees.”

Applications for trustee vacancies closed last week.

TB status reminder THE TBFREE New Zealand Young Farmers 2012 national conference will be held in Dunedin next month. It will run alongside the grand final of The National Bank Young Farmer Contest.

Animal Health Board chief executive William McCook says the conference will remind visitors about the importance of the TBfree programme, while educating up-and-coming farmers about the risks they may face.

“Working with farmers ensures the legacy of New Zealand’s battle against TB continues. We are keen to talk to young farmers about TB testing and good stock practices,” says McCook.

The conference will run from May 24-27.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

32 // MANAGEMENT

OAD’s ‘many hidden profit points’ At least 50 people from as far apart as Whangarei and Ashburton turned up last week at an Eketahuna farm to discuss once-a-day (OAD) milking. The venue was Spring Grove Dairies farm managed by Dale and Sherryn Marshall. Dairy News reporter Peter Burke was there.

EKETAHUNA MAY not

be everyone’s dream town with its reputation for cold winters and wet springs.

This adverse climate has led Spring Grove Dairies to go to OAD. The farm is unusual: 60% rolling hill country and only 40% on flats.

You could be forgiven for thinking you were on a sheep farm. But the amount and quality of the grass is the giveaway.

The farm owner, Paul Franklin, says he bought it after a consultant kept badgering him about a farm with a lot of potential for sale at Eketahuna. His first reaction was he didn’t want to farm there of all places, but he came down

from Hawke’s Bay where he owns two other farms to look it over anyway. He quickly recognised the potential of the property and bought it.

On his other farms, Franklin milks twice a day but he had his own reason for going OAD on this property, he says.

“To go OAD you have to have some limiting factor: you can’t get staff, you’ve got long walks for the cows or you’ve got adverse climate. On this farm you have an adverse climate in the spring, quite a bit of walking and, let’s face it, not everyone wants to live in Eketahuna.”

The farm has two herds and Franklin immedi-

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Paul Franklin

ately put one of these on OAD then, after a difficult season, he put both herds on OAD. There was huge development work to be done: fencing, pasture renewal and getting the right cows.

At the same time as Franklin bought the farm five years ago, he hired Dale and Sherryn Marshall as managers. Sherryn had worked for Paul, and both she and Dale were looking to step up in the industry so they took the job – and have also come to like Eketahuna.

For them it was an instant challenge to develop a run-down property. “For example there

was a very poor water supply for the cows, we had power problems, poor infrastructure and because of poor subdivision there were creeks in every paddock. We lost a lot of cows,” says Sherryn Marshalls have divided up the chores on the farm.

Sherryn looks after cowshed management including taking care of the calves, dealing with animal health issues and mating.

Dale sees to feeding the cows and all aspects of pasture management, and calving. The herd with the younger cows is grazed on the hill areas, remaining there longer to eat out the grass. The older ones are nearer the shed. PKE supplements are fed out.

When they arrived they found the cows had come from four different herds.

Sherryn culled heavily in the early years to get rid of a mastitis problem and this has worked.

In a short time production has shot up, says

Dale and Sherryn Marshall with son Leighton.

People gather near the farm airstrip to hear the Marshalls’ story.

Sherryn. “The first year we did 102,000kgMS, the next year 154,000kgMS,

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numbers and becoming a lower input farm, but retaining the same level of profitability.

Both the Marshalls are now firm advocates of OAD. They like the flexibility it offers and say it is more sustainable. Franklin says OAD has many hidden profit points. It’s not just about lower input costs. He also notes a very low empty rate on the farm – just 6% - and the cows remaining in good condition through winter.

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then 172,000kgMS, last year 160,000kgMS and this year we are targeting 190,000 kgMS.” As well as better cows, Dale points out re-grassing – 30ha each year – has also been a big help. And they plant turnips.

The Marshalls have signed to manage the farm for another year and are discussing with owner Paul Franklin what direction the farm may take during that year. Options include dropping stock

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

34 // MANAGEMENT

Scholarship offer hooks top staff GARETH GILLAT

A FOCUS on person-

nel has made a Northland farm into a more profitable, smoother running operation, says Northland Sharemilker of the Year runner-up Michael Rope.

Rope is a lower order sharemilker on a 360ha, 980 cow family farm 10km south of Dargaville.

For a few years Rope has focused on staff management and says he has been rewarded with a smoother running, more profitable farm as a result.

He has five workers, all of whom are necessary on a farm this size, he says.

“It is a lot but we produce a lot of milk,” says Rope. “We could get by with three plus myself but

it would be hard yakka.”

This number allows some leeway in case of emergency, especially important given the difficulty of finding good staff.

“Staffing is such a battle.”

Attracting staff has been such a big issue that while he is more than happy with current staff he offered a $5000 scholarship to entice an ambitious, good quality worker to ‘future proof’ his workforce.

Rope advertised in the local paper, inviting people keen to enter farming to contact him. He offered $5000 towards formal agricultural training at a university, AgITO course or rural polytechnic.

In return they were required to work for him during their summer holi-

FARM FACTS: Farm size: 360 ha effective.

Herd size: 980 Friesan cross.

Calving times: Split calving.

Staff number: 5 (4 milkers, one handyman).

days and give him the first option on a contract for at least a year at the end of their studies.

Only one person applied for the scholarship this year but Rope says he is happy with the result and is confident his pay-off will be the ability to attract a string of motivated, quality employees.

“I will get someone with a bit more drive who wants to get involved in the industry,” says Rope.

“Someone who’s had a good background at uni will accelerate through the industry faster than someone who’s just plugging along.”

Rope plans to offer the scholarship every one or two years and is surprised more people don’t use the education scholarship technique as a way to attract staff.

“I know a few farmers use it for existing staff members but I haven’t heard of it happening this way before,” says Rope.

“Banks do it to attract topquality recruits so you’d think big farms would do

it.”

In doing this, Rope has emulated other businesses, as well as including plans for defined communal office facilities and defined chains of command.

“On larger farms you need to develop some

Sharemilker Michael Rope says attracting the right staff is key.

‘GET A LIFE OUTSIDE THE FARM’ NORTHLAND SHAREMILKER and Farm Manager of the Year winners say farmers who live their lives entirely for their farms are likely to burn out.

Northland Farm Managers of the Year Steve and Donna Griggs and Northland Sharemilker of the Year runner-up Michael Rope both built outside goals and interests into their long term plans, saying that there was no point to life in just living to work.

Steve and Donna Griggs, who plan to get overseas and allow for Steve to advance as a volunteer firefighter, say balance is important.

“The overriding thing is to enjoy farming and be personally sustainable,” says Donna Griggs.

Kaipara, Northland Sharemilker of the Year runner-up

it a

Michael Rope agrees, saying he would quickly go around the bend if his life revolved only about farming.

Rope drives a rally car for sponsors Dargaville Tires and NRM, with co-driver Michelle Mitchell. He was the first novice driver in the Top Half Rally series

pays to have

wrangler

®

for 2011 despite being a lower order sharemilker on a 980-cow farm.

Rope says farming is great for hobbies such as rally driving because it allows you the financial and time freedom to get to events. “I’d go crazy if all I did was farm.”

structured lines of command and communication otherwise things will disintegrate quickly,” says Rope. “I have tried to maintain a work ratio of 70% farmwork and 30% management work to do this.”

Another leaf Rope has taken out of corporate manuals is attending industry events to see what works and what doesn’t. He is on the management board of the

Northland Agricultural Research Farm and makes sure he attends at least 4-5 industry field days a year.

“It’s a good way to get figures; you’re benchmarking for the main business you have at home.”

However he says not everybody accesses the information.

“All the information is there to be used. People just sometimes prefer to box on... the same way they always have.”

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

36 // MANAGEMENT

Kind season on the West Coast One of the isolated dairying regions, the South Island’s West Coast, is having a great season. Production is up and optimism prevails, reports Peter Burke, who visited there recently.

NEAR FOX Glacier in

South Westland, the dairy industry on the coast starts to unfold. There’s just a narrow coastal plain at first, but this widens the further north you go. Driving up SH6, the visitor sees signs of new dairy conversions and established dairy farms looking in good shape or expanding.

Ross Bishop, DairyNZ, says the season has been conducive to “making things look good” and dairy farmers are content with how the season has rolled out.

Heavy rain in November and December in

lower Grey Valley caused some flooding, but this was limited to a small number of farms and they recovered quickly, Bishop says.

Stock have been well fed throughout the season, resulting in good cow condition and an absence of major animal health issues.

Local vets tell him the empty rate of cows is 8-10% -- about average, he says. And farmers have made some good management decisions, reaping benefits.

“In terms of feed and its quality, we’ve had

spring conditions for long periods of the year . As a result the dry matter percentage of the feed has probably been a bit lower than normal. Farmers have recognised this and added some supplements in order to slow down the passage of the feed through the cows’ systems,” he says.

Looking at the farmland between Fox Glacier and Hokitika, one could assume there is potential for more conversations to dairying. But not so says Bishop.

“The coast is running out of land that is readily

convertible. I think there may be acknowledgement of that by Westland Milk products sourcing supply from Canterbury. Having said that, there are properties on the coast that can generate extra production.”

He points to a recent conversion near Fox Glacier which was very successful and amalgamation of farms have created larger dairy units on the Coast.

Like most parts of the country, farmers on the Coast have been able to make good quantities of supplements due to slightly less rain and generally milder weather.

The conditions have been good, says Bishop.

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Coast is some 14% higher than last year, due to a good season there and extra milk coming across the hills to Hokitika from Canterbury.

As a result of the good season the processing plant at Hokitika will remain open until late June to cope with the extra milk flow.

Leo McIntyre, general manager, quality and technical services at Westland Milk Products (WMP), says the increased production is due to the very good climatic conditions. “Normally we have a very wet spring which runs through until about October. This year we’ve had just moderate amounts of rainfall and excellent growing conditions,” he says.

As well as the good weather on the Coast, WMP’s sourcing milk from four large dairy farms in Mid Canterbury has helped lift production at the Hokitika plant. Some of these farms run up to 2000 cows.

McIntyre says every day about 180,000 L comes to Hokitika by a special milk train. Of this, about 40,000 L

is from WMP’s supplier and the rest is bought from Fonterra under the DIRA scheme.

“This has given us the ability to maximise the utilisation of the Hokitika plant and has reduced our fixed costs,” he says.

Never in doubt was local support for WMP, whose 380 suppliers are fiercely parochial and remain so, says McIntyre.

“When we started taking DIRA milk, Fonterra actually came over here and canvassed some of our farm suppliers to see if they were interested in supplying them. The feedback was that our supplier base is very loyal to our company.”

The collection area for WMP stretches 400km from Fox Glacier in the south, to Karamea in the north and while this poses some challenges, the dairy industry on the Coast continues to thrive. The fact that 85% of the land on the West Coast is government conservation land highlights the challenges farmers face.

This year WMP will process about 630 million L and McIntyre says 90% of this is already sold.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

MANAGEMENT // 37

Council’s water consent process ‘relatively simple’ THE WAIKATO Regional Council says

a large proportion of dairy water-take consents required under its new Variation 6 water allocation policy should only need to go through a “relatively simple” process.

Variation 6, effective this month, is designed to manage water allocation in the region in the face of competing demands from all sectors. The council’s

wash-down and milk cooling must have a resource consent. It is likely farms with more than 215 cows will use more water than this, meaning some 3400 farms need a consent.

The council is developing a plan to handle the many consent applications anticipated. This planning is being done with, Federated Farmers and DairyNZ. It hopes to finish the plan by mid June.

“It’s good to hear council staff are advancing implementation plans for the new consents regime to make things as smooth as possible for farmers.” resource use and environmental monitoring committee recently received a report on Variation 6 implementation from council staff.

“It’s good to hear council staff are advancing implementation plans for the new consents regime to make things as smooth as possible for farmers,” committee chair Lois Livingston says.

The new policy affirms an existing requirement that any farmer taking more than 15m3/day for dairy shed

Staff want to ensure “a clear, concise and simple process for the affected farmers”, a report to the committee states.

Under Variation 6, farmers are “grandparented” their pre-2008 water take levels provided various conditions are met, including evidence showing the amount of water that was being taken prior to October 2008, lodging a consent application by January 1, 2015, excluding stock from waterways, and

Variation 6 is designed to manage Waikato’s water allocation.

developing a riparian management plan (if the take is from surface water).

“The key message currently being conveyed to farmers is that so long as they engage with the council they can be confident of obtaining consent for the amount of water that was being used pre October 2008,” the report says.

However, for operations that began or increased water use after 2008, the success of applications for more than 15m3/day would depend on range of factors including the existing allocation level in the catchment.

“In waterways and catchments where rivers and streams are already fully allocated, any new water take will require consent, even if it is less than 15m3/day,” the report says.

Livingston says these factors under-

score that anyone doing a dairy conversion or intensifying an existing operation should consider water availability.

“The scale and importance of the issues involved in implementing Variation 6 are vast, given that managing them well is essential to the environmental and economic health of our region. We are grateful [farmers] and other parties have been so willing to work with us on introducing Variation 6 in a coordinated way.”

Meanwhile, the committee heard that immediately following the Environment Court decision on Variation 6, water-take consent applications had been received from two big agricultural concerns. These applications, together with existing applications, would, if granted, result in the allocation of the

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full amount of ‘extra’ water made available by the court between Lake Taupo and the Karapiro Dam. When issuing its decision on Variation 6, the court increased the amount available from 3.6% to 5% of a river flow measure known as Q5, equivalent to increasing the allowable take from 5.3m3/sec to 7.4m3/sec.

The committee also heard that some farmers were irritated these two applications, which could effectively take all the extra water, were being dealt with on a first-in, first-served basis.

The committee was told this is not a matter over which the council has discretion. The law as it currently stands requires the applications to be treated this way. It would require a Supreme Court ruling to overturn the first-in, first-served principle.

It’s time to get your NAIT number You need a NAIT number in addition to your Animal Health Board (AHB) herd number or participant code. If you are in charge of cattle and deer, register to get your NAIT number now.

There are three ways to register: 1. Online at www.nait.co.nz or 2. Via a NAIT-accredited information provider or 3. By calling NAIT on 0800 624 843 Make sure you have your AHB herd number or participant code handy when you register.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

MANAGEMENT // 39

Avoid using sacrifice paddocks Widespread on-farm pugging can be best be prevented by moving stock to a sealed hard pad when soils are particuUSE OF so-called sacrifice pad- larly wet, or by grazing stock off farm.

But, as mentioned, we know those docks isn’t recommended by Waikato Regional Council because of the envi- without such a pad or the ability to graze off farm may resort ronmental risks associated to using a sacrifice padwith them. dock, usually selecting There are better stock areas with a rundown wintering options to use, pasture. If used on a ‘one such as stand-off pads and off ’ basis, animals are feed pads. generally moved on to the While sacrifice paddocks paddock for the remainare not in themselves illegal, der of the day during wet any discharge of effluent or weather, sediment into ground or sur- Bala Tikkisetty Ideally there should face water is prohibited. As a result, sacrifice paddocks are a high-risk be enough shelter available that stock wintering option when it comes to pro- can be housed in these paddocks withtecting water quality and soil structure. out undue stress. However, if used for However, the council is also aware more than a few days, the pasture will some farmers do resort to using sac- usually be severely damaged and require rifice paddocks given they are not in full renovation.

Some specific disadvantages of sacthemselves illegal. But note that if stock are fed supplements on a sacrifice pad- rifice paddocks include: dock, it is effectively an unsealed feed ■■ The aforementioned damage to pad which is illegal. soil structure leading to improper So we recommend various pracdrainage. tices to minimise some of the negative ■■ A high risk of sediment and effluent impacts of sacrifice paddocks. Soils are run-off or leaching. farmers’ most valuable resource and it’s ■■ Increased risk of mastitis and lameimportant to keep them in good physiness.

■■ Animals may not get their full daily cal and biological health.

Moist and wet soils are less able to feed requirements. support the weight of grazing stock than ■■ Soil potassium levels can get too dry soils and are susceptible to compachigh as a result of potassium being tion and pugging. Treading on moist excreted in stock urine, which can soils can lead to compaction; grazing predispose calving cows to metaon wet soils can lead to pugging damage. bolic problems.

BALA TIKKISETTY

Feed pads are better stock wintering options.

Some of the risks can be mitigated.

Periodically drag a set of light harrows around to help break up the excreta in the paddock.

This ensures good exposure to sunlight that will kill any pathogens and parasites that could otherwise build up in the paddock.

Avoid using paddocks closer to waterways, property boundaries and significant ecological features (such as caves or geothermal features).

When use of a sacrifice paddock fin-

ishes, resowing should be done after a light cultivation. With any renovation it is important not to leave it too long before the first grazing.

A simple way to check when pasture is ready is to grab some grass between thumb and forefinger and gently pull upwards. If roots come up, wait a bit longer. If not, it is ready for its first quick light grazing.

For those wanting more information, Waikato Regional Council is organising a stock wintering field day at

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Otorohanga on April 24 where issues on sacrifice paddocks will be discussed.

It’s worth knowing the issues because good soil and pasture management can result in increased soil depth, greater root-length density, better pasture productivity, increased carbon sequestration and reduced green-house gas emissions.

Bala Tikkisetty is a sustainable agriculture coordinator at Waikato Regional Council.bala.tikkisetty@waikatoregion. govt.nz. Telephone, 0800 800 401

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

ANIMAL HEALTH  // 41

Soils can cop more copper BEING LARGELY of

volcanic origin, much of the soil in New Zealand is naturally low in copper.

There are also regions where the soil is derived from rocks low in copper or the metals are leeched through high rainfall. Low copper levels in the soil mean there is less in the pasture and the stock grazing these pastures have reduced productivity as a result.

Copper is generally the most commonly deficient essential trace element in New Zealand production animals. Copper has a vital role in a number of body processes and therefore copper deficiency will inevitably result in reduced financial returns.

Copper deficiency will lead to poor reproduction and fertility, and reduced milk production. Blood cell development and hae-

moglobin production require copper so deficiencies mean these processes are slowed. Poor immunity may be seen in copper deficient stock and effects on growth are seen when nerve, tissue and bone development and hair growth are reduced by low copper.

ary deficiency is more complex, being due to interference by other elements in the soil leading to reduced availability of copper even if it is present in sufficient levels.

The key secondary deficiency in New Zealand systems is due to the element molybdenum (Mb) which

Copper is generally the most commonly deficient essential trace element in New Zealand production animals.

The mechanism of copper metabolism and the development of deficiency is complex, with primary and secondary effects contributing to deficiency. Primary copper deficiency results from inadequate dietary intake, i.e. deficient levels in the soil and pasture. Second-

competes with copper for uptake. Sulphur is also a problem as it forms complexes that inhibit copper uptake. Other elements such zinc, given during the facial eczema season in many parts of New Zealand, can block copper absorption. Even iron or contaminants such as

cadmium in superphosphate fertiliser can have an effect.

The effect of copper deficiency can be subtle and you may not know there is a problem unless you test. Testing the stock themselves is the best and most reliable method but there is a place for soil and even pasture testing in some cases. Discuss your options for testing with your vet and devise a plan for what tests are most appropriate for your farm and when they should be done.

Copper supplementation can be done orally or by subcutaneous injection. Copper given orally can be variable in its rate of absorption and will be subject to secondary factors such as the presence of molybdenum in the diet.

Subcutaneous injec-

Low copper levels in soils means less in the pasture.

tion is reliable in that it allows direct treatment of stock, so you know they have been treated with an appropriate volume, rather than relying on the animal to self-dose through the water or hoping they reach sufficient levels through pas-

ture applications.

The copper edetate in CopperMax dissipates from the injection site more rapidly than other forms of copper injections.

This rapid uptake means there is less time in the tissues at the injection site so less painful swellings and

injection site reactions.

CopperMax is a teal blue sterile fluid containing 50mg copper per ml of fluid (as Copper Edetate).

It flows easily through the dosing gun and is and gives 3-4 months supplementation. Article supplied

by Bayer Animal Health

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

42 // ANIMAL HEALTH

Ravensdown targets drench, dips market FERTILISER COMPANY Ravensdown says it is planning to disrupt the drench, dips and mineral supplements market by means of aggressive pricing.

Chief executive Rodney Green says the co-op will deliver proven quality without gimmicky giveaways and at a price only a direct-to-farm cooperative can deliver.

Ravensdown says it began selling animal health products 13 years ago and that it now stands at number three place in the drench market.

“In that time we’ve worked hard on trialling formulations, quality testing and developing new products,” says Green. “Now the range is broad and proven, it is time to leverage our direct distribution efficiencies.

“Because we own the intellectual property and do not sell through retailers we can pass on savings to farmers.

Of course, our shareholders are the first to benefit, but we hope all farmers will

get a fairer deal when the keen edge of competition slices through the animal health sector.”

Ravensdown says the breadth of its animal health range enables it to become a one-stop shop without the costs of running the shop.

“As a 100% farmer-owned co-operative, we exist to challenge those who might seek to exploit long-term price premiums on key farm inputs. It’s been in our DNA since being formed by farmers who wanted a fair deal on their fertiliser. Animal health products are also a key input and we want to keep prices competitive in the same way we do for fertiliser,” says Green.

He says the large corporate animal health firms are often offshoots of large overseas pharmaceuticals companies.

Farmers have no appetite to pay for margins siphoned off to overseas shareholders’ dividends or frittered away on gimmicky promotions, he says.

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Botulism a major risk after Oz flooding IT NEVER rains, it pours. Once again in 2012, La Nina has caused large areas of Australia to flood. It comes as a cruel blow after so many years of drought, and with the exception of the west, most states have been inundated where the dairy cattle are found.

There are many problems associated with flooding, the most immediate ones such as lameness and mastitis are obvious, so the level of response is generally quite good.

But there are some potentially serious problems, less immediate and potentially more devastating.

Problems with parasites, (worms, coccidia and fluke) are more likely to occur after wet conditions, so it is essential farmers anticipate this and plan to deal with it by strategic drenching. In many areas, April is the ideal time to drench cattle to reduce the numbers of worms and hence pasture contamination.

At the recent Australian Cattle Vets conference, a paper was presented that showed significant losses of production can occur even with low levels of worm eggs in the faeces.

Dairy producers also need to be aware of the potential for significant losses from another disease that is

barely on the radar for most dairy herds – botulism. There is no specific treatment for botulism, and most animals that go down will either die or need to be humanely destroyed.

Botulism vaccination, in my experience, is infrequently used in most southern Australian dairy herds, yet the potential for huge losses is real and much higher after flooding. This is because, to a large extent, the sale of vaccines is controlled by rural stores which sell these products close to cost price, relying on sales volume, discounts, manufacturer rebates and ‘trinkets’ (Eskys, porch heaters, etc) to prompt buying decisions. This means there has been less and less involvement of veterinarians in advising what vaccine is actually best for a herd.

There are a number of reasons why botulism is more likely after flooding.

Botulism is caused by a toxin produced from the vegetative state of the organism, clostridium botulinum.

Clostridium species, often better known for diseases such as blackleg or enterotoxaemia, are spore-forming bacteria. This means they can produce a dormant spore which can survive for long times in the environment.

Clostridium botulinum can be

found in soils, sediments and the gut contents of fish or animals. The bacteria themselves are not really dangerous; it is the toxin they produce under the right conditions that can be fatal.

Botulinum toxin causes paralysis of muscles and is the active ingredient in botox.

The muscle paralysis causes the smoothing of crows’ feet when used in tiny doses in the faces of humans.

It also causes severe disease and frequently devastating losses in cattle if they eat large amounts of toxin.

Botulism is considered typically a northern Australian disease, seen in the vast cattle properties where phosphorous deficiency is common, and cattle get botulism from chewing on bones contaminated with the toxin.

However, as dairy farms become more intensive, and large amounts of silage is fed, the risk of botulism increases markedly.

After flooding the problem is worse. Rotting vegetable matter can contaminate sources of drinking water; sediments are likely to have contaminated stored feed which due to flooding may become spoiled; and there is a higher likelihood of dead animals and fish being left behind by floodwater in paddocks from which silage will be made.

• Rob Bonanno is president of the Australian Cattle Veterinarians Association and a director of the Shepparton Veterinary Clinic.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

FEED/ANIMAL HEALTH // 43

High vs low input analysis THE 2009-10

DAIRYNZ Economic Survey (available from the DairyNZ website), provides a wealth of information on New Zealand dairy farms. One table I found particularly interesting compares the performance of low input (system 1) and high input (systems 4 and 5) owneroperator dairy farm systems (Table1).

When compared to system 1 farms, system 4 and 5 farms are larger, milk more cows and have a higher stocking rate. They produce more milk per cow, per hectare and per full time equivalent labour units (FTE).

System 4 and 5 farms spend more per kgMS on wages, supplementary feed and grazing and runoff lease but less on other items including animal health and breeding, fertiliser, irrigation and regrassing, maintenance and running.

Farm working expenses for the high input farms are slightly higher than for the low input farms ($3.57 vs. $3.31/kgMS) but because the system 4 and 5 farms produce a lot more milk they deliver a per-hectare operating profit $988/ha higher than system 1 farms. System 4 and 5 farms also deliver a higher total return on assets and equity.

If you are aiming to grow your equity, the data shows that system 4 and 5 farms deliver a

9.6% growth compared with 7.4% for a system 1 farm and 3.4% and 3.2% for system 2 and 3 farms respectively. System 4 and 5 farms carry more financial risk but in my opinion have significantly less risk of production failure when compared to less intensive systems more reliant on the grass growing.

My role as a forage specialist frequently takes me onto more intensive farms. In my opinion those which perform best: ■■ Pay attention to detail.

■■ Are good pasture managers.

■■ Source supplementary feed at the right price.

■■ Are generally owneroperators although there are some very successful exceptions.

During the next few weeks the Pioneer forage specialist team will be organising visits to successful higher input farms.

If you would like to attend please phone 0800 PIONEER (0800 746 633), to register your interest.

• Ian Williams is a Pioneer forage specialist. Contact iwilliams@genetic.co.nz.

Table 1: Owner-operators production systems (DairyNZ Economic Survey 2009-10, page 35)

Farm System

1

2

% feed imported Low input 4-14% for

Grass based dry cows

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS No of herds 24 84 Effective area (ha) 118.3 131.9 Peak cows milked 296 345 Stocking rate (cows/ha) 2.5 2.6 Kg Milksolids sold 93,096 108,938 Milksolids sold per ha 787 826 Milksolids sold per cow 315 316 Full time labour equivalents (FTEs) 2.1 2.4 Cows/FTE 139 141 Milksolids sold per FTE 43,669 44,691 CASH FARM WORKING EXPENSES Wages 0.52 0.60 Animal health and breeding 0.32 0.32 Supplementary feed 0.37 0.52 Grazing and run-off lease 0.26 0.31 Fertiliser, irrigation, regrassing, W&P 0.87 0.71 Maintenance and running 0.72 0.70 Overheads 0.31 0.31 Farm Working Expenses 3.37 3.47 Cash surplus 2.91 3.01 Dairy Gross Farm Revenue 6.56 6.43 Dairy Operating Expenses 4.55 4.51 Dairy Operating Profit 2.01 1.92 PROFITABILITY Gross farm revenue/ha 5,163 5,308 Operating expenses/ha 3,578 3,720 Operating profit/ha 1,585 1,588 Operating profit margin % 30.7% 29.9% Operating return on dairy assets % 4.4% 3.9% Total return on assets % 5.6% 3.6% Total return on equity % 5.2% 1.3% WEALTH CREATION Growth in equity % 7.4% 3.4% RISK Closing term liabilities/kgMS 19.44 21.86 Debt to asset % 39.2% 43.0%

3

4&5

10-20% for dry cows and to extend lactation

20% or greater inputs

73 140.6 398 2.8 139,567 993 351 2.8 140 49,232

42 147.0 461 3.1 177,919 1210 386 3.0 156 60,162

0.62 0.31 0.68 0.41 0.71 0.63 0.27 3.63 2.91 6.49 4.51 1.98

0.61 0.27 0.80 0.50 0.59 0.57 0.23 3.57 2.88 6.53 4.40 2.13

6,438 4,472 1,966 30.5% 4.5% 4.2% 1.8%

7,894 5,321 2,573 32.6% 5.5% 7.0% 7.2%

3.2%

9.6%

21.49 47.6%

21.30 53.6%

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

44 // ANIMAL HEALTH / BREEDING

Separating the elite from the also-rans PAM TIPA

PRECISION ACCURACY of their dairy herd SPS Farmer of the Year, Gwynneth and Barry (right) Parsons with Peter Gatley.

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known to us, the odd beef straw had been used on our dairy cattle when the dairy supply had run out,” he said.

Since moving to the South Island they had joined the SPS and he showered broad praise on LIC and its staff over the years for their helpfulness and professionalism.

He also paid tribute to Gwynneth “who has been particular in her herd recording which has been a key to our success” and to their sharemilkers for their contribution and attention to detail.

He also congratulated breeders “for your part in lifting the quality of our product”.

Earlier, LIC general manager genetics Peter Gatley said SPS was all about performance measurement, separating the elite from the also-rans.

already. Their success lies in doing the fundamentals very well and attention to detail is a hallmark of their performance.

“They run a 620-cow mainly crossbred herd and consistently complete all aspects of their SPS contract, paying particular attention to recording accuracy, happily turning to DNA parentage testing if in any doubt.”

Their LIC rep Anne Wells tells me their performance cannot be faulted.

“This (the Parson’s) herd shows what can be achieved genetically and by using the latest crop of young bulls, and it is already attracting the attention of our sire analyst so perhaps one day they will attend the same function in the capacity of breeder rather than SPS Farmers of the Year.”

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“We progeny test 160 bulls each year and we also put to the test about 160 SPS farmers. Like the bulls they have been prescreened before acceptance but the proof is in the performance. Only the top end of the bell curve makes the hall of fame.

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farmers recalled their first years of farming when such precision was out of their hands.

Barry, in his acceptance speech, joked about when they farmed 42ha near Morrinsville on a no exit street at the end of the artificial insemination (AI) run.

“The result was that at the end of season, unbe-

28/03/11 10:32 AM

UK GENETICS company Genus ABS has added two elite sires to its sexed sire line-up. Zelgadis and Bossman have been selected by Genus ABS to join their Sexation stud.

Genus ABS Genetics business development manager Stephanie Whittaker says the sires provide farmers a way to get more heifers from the best quality genetics available on the market.

“High quality heifer calves can boost type, health and profitability,” she says. Zelgadis is now said to be the world’s number-one type bull available sexed.

“This Italian sire blends style, power and performance with elite health traits. He is in huge demand around the world and promises tall, strong cows with great legs and feet.”

Bassingthorpe Bossman has been described as a Genus ABS global sensation.

“Since his release in August his daughters are reaching second and third lactation and are really impressing with their functionality, type and great milk production,” says Whittaker.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

ANIMAL HEALTH // 45 Taranaki cows had higher than normal incidence of salmonella this year.

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Salmonella outbreaks trigger MAF probe A NATIONWIDE study

on salmonella is to be done by Massey University epidemiologists.

The survey, commissioned by MAF, dairy companies and the New Zealand Veterinary Association, is to find out more about an unusual pattern of salmonella that affected dairy cows during this spring and summer.

Veterinarians in Taranaki earlier this year reported a higher incidence than normal of salmonella in cows in the region. Outbreaks also struck Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Canterbury.

The disease in not uncommon in New Zealand but the extent of the outbreaks in the past season is unusual.

MAF’s response manager, Katherine Clift, says it hopes the study will

identify risk factors associated with the salmonella cases to help provide advice for managing dairy herds next season. She says findings will be shared with dairy farmers, dairy companies and rural vets.

Clift says a preliminary survey during summer showed a possible association between salmonella and the use of mineral feed supplements. “The nationwide study will consider this as well as other risk factors,” she says.

Veterinary Association spokesperson Roger Marchant says one reason for the expanded study is to make it more relevant to other parts of the country and to get more robust information about salmonella risk factors.

Marchant says though feeding of supplements and minerals have been

identified as possible causes, any variation in feeding which causes a change in the environment in the gut can allow salmonella to proliferate.

“Traditionally we used to see salmonella cases in the late winter and

spring in dairy cows. Now it tends to be spreading to other times of the year.

For example the cases in Taranaki were more in the October/November period in the flush when people were feeding high levels of concentrates.”

Marchant says animals are sensitive to feeding levels and notes that “way back” sheep transported for long periods on trucks were susceptible to salmonella because of the resulting variation in feed pattern.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

46 // ANIMAL HEALTH

FE threat remains despite cooler nights DESPITE THE evenings starting to feel cooler the facial eczema (FE) season is not over yet. The risk of animals suffering from the condition still exists and may until next month, says

Agrifeeds technical manager, Andrew Oakley.

FE started later this year than normally expected and has not hit the highs of previous years.

“Even though we generally haven’t seen the higher spore counts it still pays to be vigilant as continuous low-level exposure will put your animals at risk of liver damage,”

says Oakley.

“Typical weather patterns of warm, moist and humid weather normally perfect for spores to rapidly grow and multiply has been replaced by persistent rain with the odd cooler day, so fungal colonies have not grown in abundance,” he says.

However, Oakley also says a number of areas have had high spore counts, some farms

but may incur some liver damage. It is estimated for every 5% of cows exhibiting clinical signs of FE (skin peeling), another 35% of the herd may be experiencing sub-clinical effects,” says Oakley.

Recent studies at AgResearch, Ruakura, by Dr Chris Morris, compared three well-recognised FE preventative methods using zinc.

Cows were either

“Even though we generally haven’t seen the higher spore counts, it still pays to be vigilant.” recording counts up to 500,000 s/g of pasture.

Farmers would normally regard pasture spore counts of about 50,000 s/g as trigger points for action.

“It seems the typical March/April peak will be lower this year but we can’t afford to be complacent despite some cooler nights. It is likely counts will remain moderate with some high peaks for at least another four to six weeks,” says Oakley.

When looking for symptoms of FE in dairy cows, often the first thing to be identified is a sudden drop in milk production, which can be as much as 30% overnight.

“This change can occur soon after the intake of toxic spores. Cows become restless at milking time, seek shade and lick their flank or udder.

Another drop in production occurs when physical symptoms (clinical FE) become obvious, usually about four to six weeks after consuming the toxin. Exposed un-pigmented or thin skin thickens and peels. Farmers need to watch for changes in the white areas, teats, inside the hind legs and the udder and udder support area.

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trough-treated with zinc sulphate, drenched daily with zinc oxide or dosed with a zinc Time Capsule bolus. Results demonstrated serum zinc levels were adequately elevated for four weeks according to the Gribbles minimum reference range of 18µmol/L when dosed with the Time Capsules.

Interestingly, cows treated with zinc via the water trough and at the recommended dose rates had lower serum zinc concentrations than cows drenched with zinc oxide.

The risk in trough treatments is that farmers were inadvertently putting their cows at risk of being inadequately protected especially during severe FE seasons so they need to be monitored closely to ensure adequate protection.

“Zinc intake via trough treatment may be reduced during inclement weather due to lower (and therefore zinc) water intakes.

This means some cows in the herd are at risk of liver damage. The likely at-risk cows are the shy drinkers – typically younger animals; low yielders that need to drink less water; and heavier cows that will be under-dosed when dose rates are calculated to the average weight of the herd,” says Oakley.

LATEST STORIES EVERY DAY Get upto date news at www.ruralnews.co.nz

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

ANIMAL HEALTH // 47

Fixed time A1 boosts fertility TASMANIAN FARMER Leigh Schuur-

ing believes it is critical to expand his herd without compromising the quality of his cows.

Apart from choosing reliable bulls, he has sought to improve the quality of his growing herd with better reproductive technology and reproductive management.

Leigh and Kelly Schuuring sharefarm on 293ha at Mella, “five minutes out of Smithton” on Tasmania’s north-west coast.

They own the herd of 900 Holstein-cross milking cows; their aim is to level out at about 1000 high production cows.

Last year, working with local veterinarian Craig Dwyer, they introduced Bayer’s reproductive fertility regulators to synchronise all the cows in the herd, making them ready for AI on the same day.

Fixed Time AI removes the need for heat detection and, using Bayer’s fertility regulators, they got more cows in-calf earlier, enabling them to deliver more calves in a tighter calving pattern.

“One advantage of this programme is that we get three shots at AI in the six-week mating period, rather than just two in the previous programme Leigh used,” Dwyer says.

While the basic mechanics of an Ovsynch programme are much the same in all dairy herds, Dwyer reminds that each herd is different.

Dwyer sets up the structure of the Schuur-

ing’s breeding programme a month or so in advance.

This involves ensuring the heifers have reached a target mating weight (which will vary somewhat for individual animals); feed transition management into early lactation; and checks for endometritis and other potential reproductive problems.

He advises on the programme and administers the Bayer reproductive regulators, while the farm’s four workers do the bulk of the day-to-day reproductive management tasks.

In their first year on Ovsynch, the Schuurings achieved an 81%, six-week in-calf rate (ICR), well up on the 73% ICR with their previous AI programme.

This year their six-week ICR has improved again – to 84%.

“This year’s better incalf rate is a result of last year’s work,” Dwyer says.

“Once we had achieved a tighter calving pattern through the Ovsynch program, it gave more of the cows a longer break after calving.

“They came into mating in just that bit better condition,” Leigh added.

The improved ICR contrasts with the fertility trend in dairy cattle that has seen the ICR in the nation’s dairy herds falling by about 1% a year for the past decade, according to Dairy Australia.

Heifer weight is a critical factor in achieving successful pregnancies. Dairy Australia says many heif-

ers are underweight at first mating; they are not reaching their full potential for milk production nor do they get in calf as successfully.

Smaller heifers tend to also calve later and don’t repay their rearing costs until they are in their second lactation.

“The Ovsynch program has allowed us to get a high percentage of the herd calving early,” Dwyer says. “This gives them extra time to grow; they are heavier at their first mating. So we’ve seen a positive effect on the pregnancy rate the second time we’ve used the Ovsynch programme.”

At an estimated growth rate of 0.7kg/day, an extra week gives a better chance of reaching the ideal weight of 350-370kg for first mating Holstein heifers. They are also more robust and survive better in the herd.

By achieving a higher percentage of cows in calf, the Schuurings are in a stronger position when making culling decisions; they can cull quite hard in order to keep the best quality and most productive animals and still meet their heifer replacement target.

“It’s a benefit to be able to keep these heifers as they come into the herd and increase milk production,” Schuuring says.

With the earlier calving, peak milk production is also reached earlier. The programmes enable them to pre-plan calving in spring to match the peak

Leigh Schuuring on his northwest Tasmanian dairy farm.

pasture curve.

“We’re calving when the best pasture feed is around, which means we’re getting the milk in the vat and also saving on extra feed costs,” Schuuring says. “This year milk production is 11% ahead of the previous year at the same time.”

Schuuring estimates they have seen $30,000 extra milk production alone from the programme. “There could be more. It’s definitely paid for itself in the first calving.”

An additional benefit of a calving pattern in which most calves are born in the first three weeks is that it provides an intense management focus.

Of the 850 cows calved last spring, 80% were born in the first three weeks.

“When you have a longer, drawn out calving period, you get tired, you lose focus and you lose calves,”

Schuuring said. “With a tight calving pattern we’re focused and we lose few.”

Schuurings were this year runners up in the ANZ Tasmanian Dairy

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

48 // FARM BIKES & ATVS

R+R 2-seater takes to sidlings BERNARD LILBURN

RACY IN red, CF Moto’s Terracross CF625-3 4x4 (Terracross Z6 for short) is a capable, 2-seat side-by-side – smart and aggressive looking, especially because of its alloy wheels and chunky tyres.

It is powered by a 600cc, fuelinjected, water-cooled, 4-stroke, 4-valve single-cylinder engine.

The Terracross is of Chinese origin, and the brand has come a long way since its first quad releases to this market. If the improvement continues at this rate, the other farm and recreational machine makers should be worried. This machine is already light years ahead of other branded Chinese machines that have been through this reviewer’s shed.

It has a smartly designed body and substantial ROPS, but a short deck that struggled to contain a conventional bale of hay. The test machine wasn’t fitted with a drawbar, but there is a place for one, which would make it decidedly more useful.

A read of the comprehensive manual has lots of advice for operators including a pre-ride check which I carried out from interest.

I discovered the tyres were inflated to over 20psi, far above the manufacturer’s recommended 7psi. It was amazing the effect a drop in tyre pressures had on ride and handling. The machine gave a far better ride, was more pleasant to drive, and the handling became much more direct, losing the tail out ‘attitude’ it had before. In other words, it gripped and went where it was pointed instead of doing lurid power slides across the paddock.

The ride isn’t as good as on the best from Japan or America, but softer suspension adjustment may help this.

The manual states that the machine

shouldn’t be used to climb slopes of more than 15 degrees. It is very capable of doing it uphill, especially in low range, but pointing it downhill is different as there is no engine braking, and the machine freewheels. Not for inexperienced drivers.

The cockpit features a full four-point harness, and side safety nets to keep all contained inside the machine. The steering wheel is multi adjustable which is a lesson for others, and also makes getting in and out easier. I had no trouble with entry and egress with my 1.65m frame, but some taller types struggled a bit.

A comprehensive centrally located digital dash

gives all the information required and is easy to read, including a bank of switches under the display. I wouldn’t trust the fuel gauge though.

The gearshift in our test unit I

thought was less than ideal, with the top of the T-shift spinning around. The Terracross has low, high, neutral and reverse via belt-drive CVT transmission, and a good park brake located on

the centre console. The T bar selector was rather notchy though that may be put down to newness. Selecting a gear, one was never sure that you had the right one. The dash readout certainly helped there.

The mandatory 4WD and diff lock are operated by Japanese quad-type switches on the dash, and the machine was a capable climber in the Manawatu summer dry.

Sidlings were no problem with the low-slung chassis providing good stability. Where some quads have had this reviewer decidedly nervous, the Terracross streaked across the steep sidlings we use on our test course. The turning circle was large, which could

make negotiating tight terrain difficult.

There is a small box under the front bonnet big enough for a light lunch only, and two cup holders in the cabin, so storage is tight. The deck will take two packs and a small tent maybe, and the deck net will keep it all there.

The test machine came with the standard winch, remotely controlled; simply plug into the dash and while you drive your mate can operate the winch from outside the vehicle. This machine is aimed at the recreational market rather than the farm market, but it may be ideal for the boss who wants to get around and have a look in comfort without the need to cart much. www.norwood.co.nz/cfmoto

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

FARM BIKES & ATVS // 49

Price may ease you off the bike WHEN TRIKES and

quads first appeared on farms they were primarily for all terrain transport – fairly basic and with moderate power.

In true Kiwi fashion, farmers have put these machines to a wider range of tasks over the years, for example towing, and the engine capacity has been increased to cope.

But with rising complexity and power has come higher prices – often more than can be justified if the quad is used largely to get people around the farm carrying a few tools. In such cases a two wheeler has until now been the more cost effective option.

Kawasaki has responded with a 4 x 2 300cc quad that does everything but tow the boat, yet only costs $6434 + gst – the Brute Force 300.

Pukekohe dairy farmer Brian Gallagher, who was kind enough to host Rural

News for a test day on his farm, has been buying Kawasaki for years and was keen to compare the Brute Force 300 with his current ride, a 2006 KLF 300. Both quads are 4 x 2, but the new one is more sharply priced relative to the market than his old one was in 2006. Price point will be a key to the Brute Force’s success.

The farm we rode on was moderately hilly with a few steep bits. Brian says two wheel drive is more than adequate for his needs, and the new 300 had no trouble with the hills and races we tested it on.

At its heart, the Brute Force has a liquid-cooled 271cc single cylinder engine bolted to a fully automatic CTV transmission and centrifugal clutch. The engine features electric start with backup recoil starter and a balancer for smoothness. This unit is not of the

massive power outputs we are now seeing from the big 800cc bruisers, but is more than fit for purpose and never felt underpowered around the farm.

Despite the competitive price, this quad doesn’t lack anything, with disc brakes up front, “bigATV” styling, and long travel suspension (double wishbone up front with 131mm travel and swingarm rear with 141mm travel). Some entry-level quads feel cheap, but this one punches above its price point in the way it goes and the build quality.

The ride was comfortable across heavily rutted ground, with only the occasional big jolt being transmitted to the handle bars.

Without the front differential and driveshafts of a 4WD, the curb weight is 243kg, rendering power steer unnecessary, and making for an easy handling quad. Towing capac-

DoL officers press safety

Pukekohe farmer Brian Gallagher (left) on the Kawasaki Brute Force 300 4 x 2. Kawasaki dealer Craig Brown is on Brian’s current ride, a 2006 KLF 300 4 x 2, which is still going strong

ity is still reasonable at 227kg (some farmers will no doubt exceed this, but that’s another story).

Practical features include a sealed front storage area that holds the

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ments are farm transport with that bit of extra carrying capacity, comfort and safety, the Brute Force 300 ticks all the boxes. And it’s the same price as a decent two wheeler.

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QUAD SAFETY heats up this autumn, as Depart-

ment of Labour inspectors return to farms visited last year, looking for continuing unsafe behavior vehicle use.

Inspectors will return to some of the 880 farms visited. Infringement notices may result.

The Department of Labour’s deputy chief executive, labour group, Lesley Haines, says farmers have made some progress.

“Helmet sales are up, and… we’re seeing more farmers taking positive safety steps. But there are still farmers who aren’t getting the message.”

About 400 farmers will be visited until May to check they are ensuring the safety of their workers using quads.

“We encourage farmers and their workers to go through a quad rider training course; this is the best way to ensure people learn the skills they need.”

The department’s quad safety campaign has four elements: ■■ Ensure riders are trained and experienced.

■■ Wear a helmet.

■■ Never let kids ride adult quads.

■■ Choose the right vehicle for the job.

“An average of 850 people are seriously injured each year and five people die as a result of quad accidents. We must reduce this toll,” says Haines.

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

50 // FARM BIKES & ATVS

Prizes for US maker DIRT TRAX Magazine, a North American quad and off-

road publication, has named three Can-Am off-road vehicles as 2012 Best In Class winners. The models, named in the last few weeks, are: 2012 Can-Am Outlander 1000 XT, Can-Am Renegade 1000 and the Can-Am Commander 800R. “The BIC Awards were developed in response to what we perceived as a need for better industry awards,” said Mark Lester, Dirt Trax Magazine publisher.

Dirt Trax Magazine editors determine best-in-class machines by comparing them to competitive models within their class during testing.

Vehicles are compared in such as power, handling, suspension, ergonomics and build quality, among other determining factors.

“Having three Can-Am vehicles receive best-in-class honours is a tremendous accomplishment for everyone

at BRP,” said Yves Leduc, vice-president and general manager, North America.

“Industry recognition and the Best In Class awards are always something to strive for and prove to off-road enthusiasts.”

Redesigned for 2012, the Can-Am Outlander 1000 was a unanimous choice as the Best Big Bore Sport Utility ATV. Editors liked its second-generation chassis and new 976cc Rotax engine, calling it “the most outrageously fast and powerful ATV ever built and the best handling and best riding ATV BRP has ever produced.”

Editors named the 2012 Can-Am Renegade 1000 the Best Trail Sport ATV, saying “the new chassis takes a stand-out Trail Sport 4X4 and makes it literally incomparable in the segment.”

The Can-Am Commander 800R was selected as the Best In Class Dual Purpose UTV for its unequalled handling and ride and smooth power delivery for both work and play.

The all-new Outlander 800R (Best Big Bore Sport Utility ATV), the DS 450 (Best Hardcore Sport ATV) and the Can-Am Outlander Max 650 (Best 2-Up ATV) were named runner-up vehicles.

The Kawasaki Mule handles the hills easily and provides stability and balance.

‘Hold your nerve, mind your foot to descend’ ADAM FRICKER

THE TRICK to driving a Kawasaki Mule down a near ver-

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In addition to an abundance of power, BRP created the Can-Am Commander side-by-side vehicle for comfort, safety and convenience.

Removable seats with integrated hand rests, adjustable tilt steering, passenger handholds and grab bars, dual-level cargo box, D.E.S.S. key selection to limit speed, and quick-attach side nets. Designed and engineered in Canada using European Rotax V-twin power providing for the best possible combination of work and play!

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tical slope is to hold your nerve and keep one foot tickling the brake pedal, while the other foot keeps enough throttle on to engage the CVT transmission.

Actually, the 45 degree slope just felt like it was vertical from the passenger seat as Pukekohe dealer Craig Brown turned the wheel and sent us over the edge. Unlike its passenger, the Mule didn’t flinch, it just crawled calmly down to the bottom, never breaking traction or feeling like it was going to run away. Then we turned around and went straight up again, effortlessly, the torque pouring on from just above idle.

In a dry paddock such as we were in, this exercise was perfectly safe, the Mule demonstrating its stability and neutral balance. On a wet day, no vehicle would tackle the same slope without drama.

The 2012 Mule 610 4 x 4 XC (pictured) is the latest evolution of the well-proven Kawasaki Mule range, which still includes the larger 4010. Dairy News first drove these vehicles when they launched a few years ago and at the time was impressed with their ability to go anywhere.

Our test Mule this time was the looker of range, in black with 26” Maxxis Bighorn II radial tyres and wider 12” wheels that contribute to the mountain goat ability but also enhance the sportier look of the XC. A comfortable ride is delivered by independent MacPherson strut front suspension with 78mm of travel, and a unit swing axle at the rear with 78.7mm of travel. The 610’s relatively small size, plus rack and pinion steering, make it manoeuvrable and nimble in tight spaces.

The engine is a 401cc, air cooled, 4-stroke, OHV, single cylinder thumper set high enough in the chassis to provide good ground clearance and in front of the rear axle for stability. Top speed is governed to 40km/h – a great safety feature if the vehicle is to be used by younger staff or family, and on the farm, 40km/h is plenty. This is not a racing machine, it’s a work vehicle.

The transmission is a belt-driven automatic with a Hi-Lo dual-range transfer case, with a lo-range suitable TO PAGE 51

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

FARM BIKES & ATVS // 51

Don’t sweat over steering YAMAHA HAS always fronted the pack on technology, chiefly with its class leading 2-wheelers, in off- or on-road form, and the company has enjoyed many victories over the years.

The Yamaha Grizzly range of farm quads were first with automatic transmission, and the range now has the 4 Ultramatic, as the company calls its constantly variable

well as easing the steering effort, EPS dampens any steering kickback.

Higher power and greater physical size – not only on Yamaha machines – make power steering desirable for control and safety. Many of the bigger machines have it, easing the load especially on female and young riders.

Yamaha fits doublewishbone independent suspension to all models, including the manualonly Big Bear, giving a more comfortable ride, maximising wheel

transmission. There are models from 400cc to 700cc.

New for 2012 in the Yamaha 450 Grizzly is electronic power steering as standard. The speedsensitive system reduces the physical effort demanded of riders, lowering fatigue levels on long working days. As

contact with the ground and getting the best out of the push-button On Command 4WD system.

Yamaha already has power steering on its 550 and 700 models in the Grizzly range. The 450 is the company’s biggest seller.

It has a dual-range gearbox the 400 doesn’t

BERNARD LILBURN

‘Hold your nerve, mind your foot’ FROM PAGE 50

for steep terrain and heavy loads. The 2WD/4WD is easy to use; you’ll only need 2WD for much of the time.

Once you’re in 4WD and headed into the muck and mire, you’ll have the limited-slip front differential aiding your progress with minimal steering effort, and still have the rear differential lock to call on if you get stuck.

The tipping deck, which lifts to reveal the engine, is a useful 1044 x 900mm and has cargo bed capacity of 181kg. The overall load capacity is 420kg. Towing capacity, including trailer, is 420kg. It also has a decent storage bin under the front ‘bonnet’.

Capping it off is the roll-over protective structure, which meets all official safety standards and gives nervous passengers something to hold onto when going over 45 degree drops.

We needn’t have worried; the Mule 610 XC is very stable with most of its 458kg weight kept low, and good balance side-to-side and front-to-back. You’d have to try pretty hard to tip it over. RRP is $15,575.

have, making hill climbing and towing a breeze on this bigger machine.

This reviewer’s pick of the Yamaha range is the 550 Grizzly built on the

700 frame, so wider and slightly longer, making for better stability and comfort. www.yamaha-motor. co.nz

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

52 // MACHINERY & PRODUCTS

Convenience, safety in feeder choice THREE HUSTLER balefeeders bought recently by a large Mid Canterbury dairy farm were chosen for their good design and operator safety, the machine maker says.

Roadley Farms, at Pendarves, Ashburton, milks 2100 cows on 900ha including run-offs. The farm is owned by Greg Roadley and managed

by Chris Keenan. Staff number 15 full-timers plus contrctors.

The three new Hustler CH4000 balefeeders were bought from Gluyas Motors, Ashburton.

Keenan says the farm previously fed a lot of pit

silage on a feed pad, plus some meal in the shed.

The farm also grows kale, fodder beat and Swedes.

Bales were previously

make their own baleage.

“All cows get it at once using a balefeeder.”

And having the right machine for the job is

“The Hustler chainless system had some good advantages.

I liked the rotor system: only two chains, enclosed and well protected, no feed bars and minimal moving parts.” fed by putting them into ring feeders on the crop or by putting them through a silage wagon.

Keenan says with smaller surpluses of grass becoming available on the farm it is a lot easier to

much safer too, important since farmers must now be wary of OSH requirements.

Says Keenan, “We have fed bales off trailers in the past but the recent purchase of these Hustlers

Roadley Farms’ team (from left) Greg Roadley, Juan Cavallotti-Rodriguez, Nelson Galos, Steve O’Sullivan, Brett Hillings, Ramil Apolonio, Chris Keenan and Ricki Burgess.

makes one-man operation safe.”

Asked why he chose the Hustlers, Keenan said they did a “reasonable amount of research which came down to three brands, two of which were made in the South Island.”

“The Hustler chainless system had some good advantages. I liked the rotor system: only two chains, enclosed and well protected, no feed bars and minimal moving parts.

TO PAGE 53

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

MACHINERY & PRODUCTS // 53

NZ stockist of front links, PTOs FRONT LINKAGES and front PTOs are among the Zuidberg Frontline Systems products now marketed exclusively in New Zealand

by Schouten Machines, Gore.

Schouten expects to supply ex stock by late April.

The company, which opened here in 2009, is a subsidiary of Schouten, Netherlands, maker of feedout wagons, slurry systems and other farm and turf care machinery.

Zuidberg Front Line Systems, also a Netherlandsbased manufacturer, is prominent in front linkage

and PTO systems. In business 30 years, and certified ISO 9001:2000 compliant, it now makes 23,000 linkages and 11,500 PTOs per year for factory or retro fitting.

Schouten Machines managing director Marcel van Hazendonk says “after a thorough period of research and preparation to roll out distribution, it is great to start our partnership.”

“We are pleased to have our own company associated with Zuidberg.

The Zuidberg product line suits our range of products and it gives the opportunity

PROPORTIONAL TAKE-UP THE ZUIDBERG front PTO has an internal oilimmersed multi-plate clutch.

Engagement is controlled proportionally and adjustably, guaranteeing smooth uptake of power by front-mounted implements.

The main advantage,

to offer the best frontline systems…. Since we are also the importer of Zuidberg Westtrack this is a completion of our partnership with

Zuidberg says, is longer life expectancy for frontmounted machines.

The Econ system offers optimum convenience when coupling the intermediate shaft to the PTO due to the 60-degree rotational ability of the PTO stub, without it rotating when in the

unloaded condition.

Zuidberg”.

Zuidberg export manager Gerben Klungel said “the knowledge and experience Schouten Machines has will

open opportunity… for Zuidberg products in the New Zealand market.”

Tel.03 208 8059 www.schouten.co.nz

The natural way of milking

Feeder choice FROM PAGE 52

“The feeder has good indication stickers which makes ease of use a breeze.

“The ribbing on the polyethylene platform is an excellent idea: helps the bale to track straight and provides help to remove strings from square bales too.

“The optional string box is an excellent idea and keeps a lot of rubbish out of the tractor.”

Each machine will be feeding 500-600 bales a year, mostly round baleage and straw.

“Occasionally squares

may be used as well so it’s good to have one machine that will do both,” Keenan says.

“And having a two-year warranty was a good extra perk.”

The farm tows the CH4000 balefeeder with a JD 6230 95hp tractor, ideal for this type of work.

Two of the Hustlers were bought with extension bars for feeding square bales up to 2.4m long.

Tel. 06 879 7926 or 03 434 0412 www.hustlerequipment. co.nz

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

54 // MACHINERY & PRODUCTS

‘Leave painting to others’ BERNARD LILBURNE

NOW YOU’VE built the

business and its plant, who will look after it all?

That problem has been solved in New Zealand for at least 25 years by Programmed Maintenance Services – now renamed Programmed Property Services.

This Australian company (founded in the 1950s) lists among its New Zealand agribusiness clients Fonterra, PGG Wrightson, AgResearch and RD1, also Wharekauhau Lodge and Country Estate, Wairarapa; Ruanui Station, Taihape, and Mount Alexander, Maniototo.

Now looking to service more farmers, Programmed points out the “ever increasing mainte-

nance dilemma” facing agribusiness, says national sales manager Tony Jane.

“This is a distraction management doesn’t need,” Jane says. “Take a large farm with, say, 10 buildings – houses, woolsheds or dairy sheds, barns, equipment sheds, pump houses, etc.

“The bill could amount to $150,000 to paint them all. The alternative offered by the company would be to have a Programmed plan for, say, 10 years at $16,000 per year. The ... After

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“We’re proud of our achievements, especially with farming clients,” Jane says. “We have a workforce of at least 1500 skilled staff, trades people and apprentices.

“And we have four maintenance programmes for customers to choose from – different levels of involvement to cater for all budgets and requirements.”

The company has initiated recycling of waste materials from painting jobs, including collecting leftover paint from jobs and returning it to suppliers; sending empty plastic paint buckets to council recycling centres, sending empty paint cans to metal recyclers; and collecting and chemically treating waste water from washing paintbrushes. www.programmed.co.nz

CLARIFICATION

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company would prepare and paint as well as come back, clean the buildings and carry out maintenance to keep them in good condition.”

Programmed’s 15 New Zealand branches employ or retain staff expert in painting, building repairs and interior fitout, landscaping, turf and grounds management, horticultural management and now also corporate imag-

Distributed by:

A STORY in Dairy News April 10, page 38, referred to the new LIC Protrack Drafter application as operating “from any location with cellphone coverage”.

This was incorrect.

The remote drafting application allows the user to “set up drafting of cows for the next milking from wherever they happen to be”.

Then, when the user moves back into cellphone network range the data is transmitted.

The application works on Apple iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad devices.

It is part of the new Protrack Drafter farm automation system released this month.

Dairy News apologises for the error.

FEEDPAD ROOFS REDUCE EFFLUENT AND REDUCE RISK Cover your feed pad with a HerdHomes® roof  Patented airflow design  Reduce effluent and storage requirements  Simple application M + 64 21 706 848 P + 64 7 857 0528 www.herdhomes.co.nz

NZ Patent Numbers: 521150, 544190, 550635, 545042. Further patents pending. International Patent Numbers: 2003267874, 03748807.9.

Further patents pending

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

MACHINERY & PRODUCTS // 55

Deal to stubble, trash TONY HOPKINSON

JUST IN time for the grain and maize harvest tidy-up

season comes Norwood Agriculture Equipment’s Lemken Rubin 9 stubble and trash incorporator.

The sooner this stuff is incorporated back into the soil the sooner it can start breaking down and enhancing the soil structure. The aim is to mix the material and the topsoil to get optimum conditions by not burying the trash too deep away from enough air to aid the process The Rubin 9 has two rows of discs working in opposite directions. They are 630mm in diameter with scalloped edges and work at a 17 degree angle. Behind each row comes a row of tines which allow the soil through, but which force the trash down to give proper mix. The material is incorporated at a depth of 75-125mm.

Rollers on the back can be rubber tyres, crumblers, steel or packer/rollers to suit soil types. All the discs are separately attached on pre-tensioned sprung legs to deliver optimum pressure to the discs and keep them on track with no sideways movement. Being individually sprung, when they meet obstacles such as stones they can move upward out of danger and return to the soil immediately.

If needed a Solitair 9 pneumatic seed drill can be attached for mulch seeding.

There are three types” mounted rigid, mounted hydraulic folding and semi-mounted with hydraulic folding. Working widths are 2.5m to 6m.

Tel. 0800 Norwood www.equipnz.co.nz

Getting jump on GPS jammers THIEVES IN Britain are using jammers to block secu-

rity system signals as they steal NZ$2.9 million of farm machinery a week.

Stolen vehicle recovery firm Tracker says police need to tackle growing use of GPS jammers. It told a Lancashire farm crime conference that thieves are using cheap, imported GPS jammers to steal prestige cars and 4x4s, and now are branching out into pinching farm gear.

Rural insurer NFU Mutual confirms GPS jamming is widely used.

Tracker sells a system (GSM, GPS and VHF technology) resilient to GPS jamming. It works much as an electronic homing device and is recovering about NZ$3.9 million of stolen vehicles and gear a month.

DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

56 // NEW ZEALAND PLOUGHING CHAMPS

Southern horse ploughmen take fifth trophy TONY HOPKINSON

A WINTON, Southland, father-and-son team won the horse ploughing section of the New Zealand Ploughing Association championships held on April 14-15 at Cambridge.

Peter and Jason Robson took the Rural News Group trophy, this particular prize being presented for the first time this year (previously the horse section trophy featured a cup). Rural News Group sponsors the horse ploughing event. This is Robsons’

fifth victory in the event.

Their horses are Morgans, famous in ‘western’ movies for pulling stagecoaches, and for heavy work on farms. The horses are of lighter build than some drafthorses but are “tough, endurance horses and versatile, suitable for riding as well as driving”.

Peter Robson attributes much of their success to Jason who has “a good eye for ploughing”.

Robsons own about 20 horses, using them for films, wedding transport, ploughing, pulling a seed drill and during oat harvest.

Peter (right) and Jason Robson, Winton.

Record crowd at 57th event DESPITE A few prob-

lems along the way, the Waikato Ploughing Association, under the chairmanship of John Guy, had a great two days hosting the finals of the New Zealand Ploughing Associations 2012 – the 57th year of the event.

Blessed with perfect

weather and a good site at Cambridge, the crowds for the Saturday and Sunday event well exceeded expectations. The ploughing events were complemented by the largest vintage machinery displays seen in recent times.

The horse ploughing, sponsored by Rural

News Group, attracted strong interest, especially since it included a team of six Clydesdales from Erewhon Station, on the Rangitata River that penetrates the Southern Alps.

A team of four Morgan horses from Winton, Southland, was judged winner of this section.

Morgan horses belonging to the winning Robson team.

Machinery buffs race apart?

VINTAGE FARM

machinery people are said to be a race apart – fanatics but reasonable and generally good folks. Do these plaques, seen at the recent New Zealand Ploughing Association champs finals, confirm or deny?

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

MACHINERY & PRODUCTS // 57 New diesel additive cuts filter, injector problems

Peter Cruse

TWO PROBLEMS plaguing diesel engines are addressed by a product from Power Up Lubricants.

Black-Out antifoulant additive is said to be ideal for newish vehicles with high-pressure injectors. Two problems plague such vehicles: premature fuel filter plugging, and formation of deposits in the injection system.

High temperatures and pressures cause soot-like deposits in filters. These then decompose in the

injection system. Blocked filters may only last 16,000-20,00km, then need replacing. And the high temperatures and pressures in modern injection systems lead to stubborn deposits at injector valve seats and nozzles, “resulting in injector drift power loss and increased smoke emissions,” the company says.

Power describes Black-Out as a “multifunction middle distillate fuel additive that... prevents the formation of fuel soot by conditioning

diesel to withstand the extreme temperatures and high pressures of fuel injection systems.

“It also cleans up existing deposits, returning injectors to ‘like-new’ condition in a short time.” It also prevents the formation of black sludge resulting from unburnt fuel and combustion soot.

The product is said to slash fuel filter plugging, extending filter lifecycle from between 800020,000km to about 48,000km.

Better mulch than spray TONY HOPKINSON

MULCHING HAS largely replaced spraying on Peter and

Debbie Cruse’s farm at Pikowai, Bay of Plenty, where they once grazed dairy heifers and now milk cows.

Faced with controlling rampant kikuyu they used to spray, but felt the sprays were doing too much damage to the grasses. “We wanted something to handle a range of weeds and the kikuyu that thrives in this area,” Peter says.

So they bought a Fieldmaster GMM model from Bruce Donald, at Jacks Machinery, Whakatane, after seeing it

MS1324

The three-knife blade makes for best cutting effect.

working at a display day.

Now they use it chiefly before seeding and for regularly topping the kikuyu, following the cows from November onwards.

“It mulches everything with its spindle heads; the stuff then breaks down quickly.” Cruse uses a 115hp Claas tractor, handling the mulcher with ease.

The machine has a 3m cutting width and is height adjustable. The GMM model has three-in-one versatility by means of blade changes: 1) mulching, 2) Gold Tip “razor sharp” topping blades, 3) axe blades for heavy material.

Cruse says weeds go down fast under it – Californian and scotch thistles, flea bain and grasses.

He reports continuing improvement in pasture as weeds are destroyed. And the resultant mulch adds to soil fertility.

This mulcher has ample strength, being made from 5mm plate with extra reinforced panels below over-body bracing.

The Cruses in 2009 thought they had milked their last cow when they quit their 320-cow farm at Rerewhakaaitu, south of Rotorua, after 28 years there. Then came Pikowai.

For two seasons they have milked 120 cross-bred cows through a 14-aside herring bone dairy. The farm is self contained; they make silage and hay and have 4ha of lucerne.

Debbie has a fold of 15 Highland cattle.

Tel. 0800 500 275 www.fieldmaster.co.nz

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DAIRY NEWS APRIL 24, 2012

58 // MOTORING

Discovering the Uzbeck deserts THEIR TOUGHEST

border crossing done, the drivers in Land Rover’s ‘Journey of Discovery’ (four Rangie Discoveries driving from UK to Beijing) rolled into Uzbekistan at 2.30am with all drivers desperate for a sleep.

Heading into Uzbekistan in the dark in a blizzard means pitching a tent camp because there are no hotels in the Uzbek desert.

But instead of sleeping under canvas, they wondered about knocking on a few doors. They had travelled this region before, spoke enough of the language to be understood,

and thought they might get a floor to sleep on thanks to the Uzbeks’ long tradition of great hospitality.

Said the team spokesman, “An hour later we were inside a cracked and peeling brick-built shack with two dogs, three rooms and kitchen smells as the occupants, a family of four, brought out the local vodka for the nondrivers and made tea and dinner for us.

“The building looked as desolate as could be from the outside in the darkness, yet inside the warmth and welcome were beyond belief. Waking a

few hours later we looked out to see the blizzard still raging. But more hot tea, and the knowledge of comfortable vehicle cabs... sent us out into the desert once more.”

The sight of camels on the road was unusual; their speed 42km/h.

“Like those camels the Discoverys are well equipped to go long distances between fuel stops, though even with additional fuel cans Uzbekistan did create some fuel woes. It seems you can buy everything at an Uzbek truck stop, including fresh fish, though fuel is at something of a premium.

“Ask the right questions though and it’s possible to get some petrol, even if the 80 octane fuel

isn’t exactly the finest brew.

“The trail, ruts and swamp that passed for

the main road on which we spent the day were as random and testing as anything in Kazakhstan,

more so at times, but as the snow was replaced by the sun, the desert around emerged in all its glory as

camels and goats dotted the roadside and the reddish brown dusty landscape warmed up.”

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The range includes 12V 900A, 12V 1200A, 12V 2000A and 12/24V 2200A, suiting cars, crossovers and 4WDs. The largest can start big petrol engines and 24V diesels up to 7L capacity.

The premium 2000A and 2200A models offer 5-stage charging electronics for fast and comprehensive charging, ideal for performance batteries.

These two models also have microprocessor-controlled protection, preventing the starter from misuse through over-discharging or cranking. In these situations the Jump Starter will shut down until re-charged

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NORMALLY UP TO $149.99 EA

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Selected fencing products from: Stafix, PEL, Hayes, Gallagher, Greyson Gates and NZ Wire **Terms and conditions apply. RD1 Fencing promotion, conditions apply. Spend $100 and go into the draw. See more details in store or WWW.RD1.COM

nationWide netWork of stores – all Welcome, no JoininG fee customer support centre 0800 731 266 email customer.service@rd1.com

for tHe farmyard and backyard