Dairy News 24 March 2015

Demand for organics forces strategy refresh. PAGE 3 DAIRY WOMAN OF THE YEAR Katie Milne, takes top honours PAGE 6

CRIME FIGHTER Police unveil new four-wheeler PAGE 38

MARCH 24, 2015 ISSUE 331 // www.dairynews.co.nz

HOW SAFE IS YOUR MILK? 1080 threats put focus on security of raw milk on farm .

PAGE 4

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

NEWS // 3

Demand for organic milk prompts strategy refresh SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz

FONTERRA HAS made a u-turn on its organic

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business, on the back of growing global demand, lifting its premium to certified organic dairy farmers by 45 cents to $1.50/kgMS. Fonterra this month told organic milk suppliers it is committed to developing the business long term to meet escalating demand.

But the organic farmers want an even higher premium.

Organic Dairy and Pastoral Group chairman and South Canterbury dairy farmer Bryan Clearwater says though he is pleased at the increase, Fonterra based its calculation of the new premium on a survey of farmers that he thinks was badly flawed. Only time will tell whether the new premium is enough to encourage more farmers into organics, he says.

Clearwater says that, given global demand for organic dairy products is strong and growing, that it fetches prices 2-3 times that of non-organic, and that it is much kinder to the environment, he wants Fonterra to put more effort into actively pursuing

Deadman says that, while organic dairy remains organic sales and supporting organic farmers. a specialty product, more people are choosing The number of organic farms supplying Fonsuch products and he expects this trend to terra has dwindled 40% over the last five continue, particularly in Southyears, he says.

East Asia, China and the US. Fonterra scaled back its “Chinese consumers unprofitable organic dairy are quickly developing a operations in 2011 as public liking for organic dairy and appetite for premium prodorganic options are always ucts waned with the prowelcomed.” tracted economic downturn.

Asian consumers also The co-op cut processing favour organic milk powcapacity and concentrated ders, especially infant formost of its North Island mula and fortified milk suppliers on its Hautapu powders. plant in Waikato.

Fonterra recently Now it has refreshed its launched Anchor organic growth strategy for organic milk powder in China and milk, its global business it is reportedly popular with manager for organics, shoppers.

Craig Deadman, saying the Deadman says growing ‘refresh’ will enable it to grow Fonterra’s organics busithe business profitably and Anchor organic milk powder launched earlier this month in China. ness depends on developing sustainably.

“This strategy reflects the volumes our custom- and selling higher-value specialty products at preers have indicated they need to satisfy increasing mium market rates “to enable all Fonterra farmers to benefit from heightened returns”. demand for organic dairy.”

Stay realistic, keep milking Calf feeder reduces labour costs.

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NEWS ������������������������������������������������������3-16 OPINION ����������������������������������������������18-19 AGRIBUSINESS ���������������������������� 20-23 MANAGEMENT ������������������������������ 24-28 ANIMAL HEALTH �������������������������� 29-32 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS �������������������������������������� 33-35 TRACTORS & MACHINERY ����36-38

FARMERS ARE hoping last week’s big drop in the GDT price index is just a blip, says Federated Farmers Waikato president Chris Lewis.

Farmers will hope prices bounce back at the next auction on April 1, he says.

“Farmers are sick of the word ‘volatility’ but the last auction just reinforces the level of uncertainty out there,” he told Dairy News.

He says farmers are more positive about next season but he cautions them about getting their hopes too high.

The 8.8% drop in the GDT price index brings to an end a six-auction winning streak that started last December and had two big improvements in

February. Whole milk powder slumped 9.6 % and skim milk powder fell 5.5%.

It was the first auction since the 1080 contamination threats were made public by New Zealand police.

Federated Farmers Dairy chairman Andrew Hoggard says farmers will be disappointed but he points out farmers have no control over the markets.

“That is the nature of farming so it’s always hard to accurately predict the reasons for these drops, which ultimately affect our bottom lines.

“To be honest I wasn’t expecting such a big drop, given the previous lifts in GDT, but that just

goes to show how unpredictable the market is.”

Hoggard says there’s a lot of speculation on why the price has fallen, and all indicators now point to a supply issue. However until the experts have had time for analysis it is hard to know for sure.

“Regardless of where it has come from, this is not great for farmer confidence, and hopes of getting back to a $6-plus payout next season will be lower if we don’t see continuing lifts in the next few auctions.

“In light of everything, it’s important farmers don’t jump to conclusions too early and just get on with what they can control – putting sustainable milk in the vat.”

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

4 // 1080 CONTAMINATION THREAT

Matrix of tests, controls ensure safety on farms SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz

THE MINISTRY of Pri-

mary Industries’ own tests and controls of raw milk safety on farms overlay those of the dairy companies, but the ministry works also with the companies.

A spokeswoman told Dairy News that on farm controls and systems minimise the opportunity for contamination of milk.

Their effectiveness can and is confirmed by, for example, testing of milk and audits of farms.

The recent threats to contaminate infant formula with 1080 have put

part of the focus on the safety of raw milk in vats.

MPI points out it is a serious criminal offence to contaminate or adulterate raw milk and any such event would be investigated by the dairy company, MPI and police.

MPI is urging farmers to play their part in preventing contamination of milk.

Farmers should be familiar with NZCP1: Code of Practice for the Design and Operation of Farm Dairies, available on the MPI website. This details preventative measures that help protect dairy equipment and raw milk from contamination.

The spokeswoman says it is important that chem-

Sheds as secure as can be THERE IS a limit to what farmers can do to improve security on their farms, says Federated Farmers Dairy chairman Andrew Hoggard.

His comments follow the publicity surrounding the news of a 1080 threat to infant milk formula. At a news conference it was suggested farmers should secure their milk supply.

But Hoggard points out that farmers need to keep their sheds and facilities open at all times for tankers to collect their milk.

Beyond installing a secu-

rity camera they can do little more, he says.

“In the modern cowshed there is quite a bit of technology and kit but we have to leave everything open for tankers,” he told Dairy News.

“More and more farmers are installing security.

I have tried a number of different cameras including game trail ones. The

SOUTH ISLAND AGRICULTURAL FIELD DAYS ■

MARCH 25-27, 2015

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worry I have with those is that the criminal could quite easily steal it and I’d never know who the criminal was.”

Hoggard has a camera connected to his computer providing pictures of anyone entering his cow shed. Plenty of equipment is being stolen from cows sheds, an ongoing problem, he says. – Peter Burke

The 1080 threat on infant formula has put part of the focus on raw milk safety on farms.

icals are kept secure and away from the farm dairy, and that records are kept of what has been bought and used.

“If farmers see suspicious behaviour on their farm or a neighbour’s farm they should contact their dairy company or police immediately.”

Dairy companies test milk at collection points on each farm; samples are subject to various tests to confirm the quality of the milk.

She says in addition the milk in the tanker is tested for certain chemical resi-

dues prior to the milk being unloaded. “If the tanker is found to have residues in excess of maximum allowable residue limits the milk is discarded; this testing by the dairy company is mandated by MPI.” MPI runs separate testing – the National Chemical Contaminants Programme (NCCP) – over and above dairy company testing. Independent of dairy company sampling and testing, it randomly samples milk in farm vats across the country and over a full year.

The samples are tested

for at least 500 chemical residues, contaminants and compositional parameters. This helps MPI determine the effectiveness of controls of agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicines and farming practices.

“The NCCP also helps MPI understand what issues may be emerging through changes in farming and feeding practices.

The programme has been proven highly effective.

The NCCP has also stood up to international scrutiny, with numerous audits by other countries.”

Food safety ‘dumbed down’ THE OPPOSITION claims that the Min-

istry for Primary Industries has ‘dumbed down’ the expertise needed to handle major food safety issues such as the recent 1080 threat.

Labour’s rural issues spokesman Damien O’Connor told Dairy News that such matters require technical expertise and are a crucial area of government.

It’s a worry, he says, alluding to many stories he has heard of delays, confusion and uncertainty in the food safety area that shouldn’t occur in a country so dependent on this. He reiterated his call to pull food safety and biosecurity out of the ‘conglomerate’ of MPI. He says each of these two groups needs to focus solely on its specific tasks.

O’Connor says he’s concerned at way the Government handled the release of the 1080 threat.

“The national launch about the threat was overplayed, the fact that it didn’t continue was great,” he said.

“It was over-hyped from the first press conference. What politicians including the Prime Minister have done is unhelpful. The timing of the disclosure will be exposed in the review of this matter, as will the confusion over how and when exporters should have been notified….

“Some exporters have had product certified by MPI on the water yet MPI knew full well it could be affected by requirements for further testing and that has annoyed a number of exporters.” – Peter Burke

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

NEWS // 5

South’s drought eases on fringes ANDREW SWALLOW

PAM HAS saved the season on many North Island dairy farms but the cyclone’s soak failed to reach the south where some areas are still desperately dry, despite dribs and drabs of rain in recent weeks.

Those meagre falls have kept most dairy pastures green even where irrigation has run out, and winter feed crops are

hanging on for when the drought breaker comes, but it can’t arrive soon enough.

“Best case is we might get an extra 3-4t/ha of kale from now,” Federated Farmers South Canterbury Dairy chairman Ryan O’Sullivan told Dairy News.

“It just depends on what’s there now and the health of the crop. There’s quite a range around the district with some quite bad insect damage. A really sick crop’s not going to do

that 3-4t/ha but a healthy crop will.”

In his own case, he’s now budgeting on kale off heavy land doing just 7-9t/ ha, and light land 5-6t/ha.

Fodder beet’s fared better and while bulbs are still small, in most cases it will do 15t/ha or more, he reckons. “If we can get 15-20t/ ha in a year like this we’ve got to be pretty happy.”

A few dryland farmers in the area have dried off completely but most who had irrigation ear-

Pam’s helping hand OVERALL CYCLONE Pam turned out to be a significant help to the Northland dairy sector, says DairyNZ regional leader Chris Neill.

Northland got varying amounts of rain as the ex-tropical Cyclone Pam passed east of the region, he told Dairy News.

Rainfall ranged from around 10ml in the Far North to 60ml or more in the wider Whangarei part of the region.

“A large part of the extended Bay of Islands, Kaikohe and Dargaville areas look to have received 30-40ml – very welcome to stimulate pasture growth and allowing farmers to take advantage of their expenditure to keep cows in produc-

tion and milk through to May,” Neill says.

“While there have been some severe winds from the storm we haven’t heard of major damage. The sun is shining again and farmers are enjoying that overall Cyclone Pam has been a significant help rather than a hindrance to our Northland dairy sector.”

Federated Farmers Northland Dairy spokesman Ash Cullen says rather than a force of fury, Cyclone Pam’s mainly nice and gentle rain was welcome. His farm in Maungaturoto had 30mm overnight during the rapidly passing cyclone.

“I have not had any reports of any damage,” he says.

lier in the season are still milking the cows they’re keeping, albeit with considerable supplement use and/or reduced milking frequency.

O’Sullivan has dried off one herd from the 1250 cows they normally milk and expects season production 20% below budget. Those who’ve stopped all milking will likely be 25% down, but for most in the area 5-10% below expectation is more likely, he says.

“In most cases there’s been considerable extra cost for supplement to produce the milk too.”

Last week’s GDT result was “a big disappointment”, putting the already low payout forecast at risk, he adds. “It’s going to be a pretty tough autumn and the first six months of next season are going to be very tough.”

A positive locally is generally good mating results despite taking bulls out earlier.

“We had a fantastic dry spring, which meant the cows were under a lot less stress. Unfortunately it turned into a dry summer

Looking good: grazing maize and straw has kept these dryland heifers humming in drought-stricken Canterbury but many mobs are not so flash, says Feds’ North Canterbury Dairy chair, Vaughan Beazer.

too!”

Extreme winter weather aside, as yet he doesn’t believe the drought should impact next year’s mating results and in turn, production in 2016-17. “You’ve only got yourself to blame if you get to next spring and you’ve still got skinny cows.”

Dairy NZ’s regional leader Canterbury/North Otago Virginia Serra, says mating results across the region are more mixed, as is the feed situation.

“We have farms with very good covers, 24-, 26-, even 28-hundred but at the other end of the scale

there are some at 16- or 18-hundred. It all depends how the farm’s been affected by water restrictions.”

Serra says winter feed remains the main concern and detailed feed and cashflow budgets through to at least balance date next spring need to be done regularly to keep abreast of the situation.

“Some farmers have been very proactive… but unfortunately we’re still seeing quite a few who are not.”

Federated Farmers North Canterbury Dairy chairman Vaughan Beazer says “put your hand up

and ask for help” if unsure what action to take. “Don’t make emotional decisions.”

Thanks to the adverse event declaration a call to the Rural Support Trust means a consultant to help with those budgets is probably available at no cost to the farm, he points out.

“The people at the Rural Support Trust are all farmers or ex-farmers who’ve been through this sort of thing before so they will understand your situation and be able to put you in touch with the right people.”

Care about animal welfare FARMERS NEED to take seri-

ously the transportation of stock and be fully acquainted with the various animal welfare rules on this.

That’s the view of DairyNZ’s team leader for animal husbandry and welfare, Nita Harding. Her comments come as MPI investigates a recent well-publicised complaint about skinny cows on a Cook Strait ferry.

Harding says she knows of the

complaint but not whether it is valid or not. But she says with cellphones everyone has a camera and “there is nowhere to hide”.

She says farmers transporting stock cannot just call up a truck and load animals onto it.

“Farmers need to think about what animals they’re putting in the truck and what condition they’re in. There’s a whole process farmers should be

working through in selecting animals for transport; they shouldn’t delegate that job to a junior staff member.

General guidelines [require taking account of] the mode of conveyance, duration of the journey, health of the animals, their age, body condition, physiological state and any particular stress to which the animals might be exposed.”

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

6 // DAIRY WOMEN’S NETWORK CONFERENCE Katie Milne receives her award at the conference.

West Coaster takes out top award PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz

THE DAIRY Woman of

the Year 2015, Katie Milne, was feeling “pretty surreal” the morning after taking the title at the Dairy Women’s Network conference in Invercargill last week.

She was up against some “awesome ladies” in the other finalists, though she was the underdog in some ways, she told Dairy News.

Though already in leadership as a Federated Farmers national board member and West Coast president, she sees the “awesome stuff” other women are doing out there as groundbreaking for the industry.

An aspect of the Dairy Women’s title that delights Milne is “judgement by your peers”.

“Dairy women are 50% of this vibrant industry

and to be backed by them saying ‘here, have a crack at going further and seeing what you can do’ is humbling and amazing. That’s the big thing for me – 11,000 farming ladies are with me.”

On going further in agricultural leadership, she says she is keen to see what happens, and to have an opportunity to push the messages about dairying in general. “This is another platform to do that. We’re getting to be the cousins out in the country and the rest of New Zealand does not understand us very well. They need to understand us better so we can continue to grow our industry; to be able to do that New Zealand has to back us.”

Milne was brought up on a family West Coast sheep and beef farm; her mother was the farmer, her father an accountant.

Milne now farms with her partner at Rotomanu

in the Lake Brunner catchment on the West Coast.

They have a small high BW Jersey herd of 200 cows.

On a separate runoff they rear replacement heifer calves and run a localised contracting operation making silage pits, hay, baleage, effluent spreading from ponds, herd homes and stand-off pads.

The 2015 Dairy Woman of the Year judging panel comprised Mark Heer from DWN gold partner ASB Bank, Sandy Burghan from Global Women New Zealand, DWN trustee Alison Gibb, DWN chair and 2014 Dairy Woman of the Year winner Justine Kidd, and Fonterra representative Janet Rosanowski.

Of Milne, the panel said: “Katie demonstrates an unselfish contribution to the dairy industry delivered with a passion and zest that gets atten-

tion. She already plays in a space beyond her immediate expertise, experience and comfort zone, epitomising a dairy woman determined to make a difference and thus achieving great advocacy outcomes for the wider dairy industry.”

Milne has been West Coast provincial Federated Farmers president since 2008, and holds a position on the national board, where she is spokesperson on adverse events, rural security, local government, ACC and employment.

Her prize is a Fonterra-sponsored scholarship to the Global Women ‘Women in Leadership’ programme valued at $25,000. The programme will give her 12 months of exposure to globally focussed women in leadership roles in the New Zealand business sector. @dairy_news facebook.com/dairynews

Milk processor’s delight WESTLAND MILK Products is

delighted that West Coast dairy farming stalwart Katie Milne has won the 2015 Dairy Woman of the Year Award.

Westland’s chairman Matt O’Regan says the award is fitting recognition for Milne’s passionate dedication to dairying on the West Coast and, through her work with Federated Farmers, as a national advocate for the industry.

Milne has been a shareholder supplier of Westland Milk Products for at least 20 years, O’Regan says.

“In that time her advocacy for the

dairy industry has hugely benefited the Coast, especially in the incredible amount of work she has put into TB prevention and infection control. TB is still a serious issue on the West Coast, with some 35 of the South Island’s 58 infected herds located here. But compare that to a decade ago when there were 253 infected herds in the region.”

The Dairy Woman of the Year award celebrates women making a difference in the dairy industry, in their dairying businesses and in their communities. It recognises those who

have significantly contributed to the dairy industry through passion, drive, innovation and leadership.

Milne is the West Coast chair of TB Free and previously a member of the West Coast focus farm advisory board. She has also been a management group chair for Sustainable Farming in the Lake Brunner catchment project.

“Katie is a ‘feet-on-the-ground’ Coaster who has managed to build influential connections with national decision makers,” O’Regan says. @dairy_news

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DAIRY WOMEN’S NETWORK CONFERENCE // 7

Robotic milking can revive kids’ interest PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz

ROBOTIC MILKING

is coming of age in New Zealand and interest has surged in the last six months, DeLaval’s Grant Vickers says.

“I think it’s because a number of installations in New Zealand are working well,” he told Dairy News.

“The perception of risk has probably lessened.”

The current inquiries, for robotics and barns, are from all sizes of farms and will result in installations in the North and South Island.

Vickers spoke about robotic milking during a Dairy Women’s Network field trip to a 600-cow wintering barn as part of the organisation’s ‘Entering Tomorrow’s World’ conference.

He gave a number of reasons why increased production should result from robotic milking, particularly with a barn. In New Zealand, dairy genetics gave cows the potential to produce more with access to good feed 24 hours a day.

On grass, when you have cows outside coming in voluntarily to get milked the typical scenario is having the farm divided into three blocks with a change every eight hours, enabling cows to be

milked three times a day.

Production increase on a grass basis is based on more milkings, Vickers says. While hard numbers on longevity are not available yet, he is “absolutely confident” they will get extra lactation out of some cows by robotic milking.

“That firstly comes from taking the stress off cows. The change in the cows’ behaviour and habit when you put them on voluntary milking is unbelievable. You need to see it to believe it.

“The same cow within two or three weeks would move from a herd mentality – you can almost see them smiling. They come into the shed and they haven’t been pushed by a backing gate or a motorbike… they’re not walking along the race with their heads down.”

On the matter of ‘future proofing’, Vickers says many older farmers are disillusioned because their kids have left the farm and don’t want to come back to milking. “[But that changes if you] tell them they can come home and be farmers but they don’t have to put the cups on twice a day.

“Some of them are saying they would come home. They are tech savvy these people, they like the idea of it.” He says he is talking to a number of people bringing their son

Southlanders take leadership gongs TWO WOMEN seen as dedicated and inspiring influences in their dairy communities have won the Dairy Community Leadership Award.

The award, open to all Dairy Women’s Network members, recognises dairying women who make significant contributions in their local community, through leadership and support.

The 2015 recipients are western Southland farmer Jo Sanford and northern Southland mum Rachael Nicholson.

The major prizes awarded were a leadership course sponsored by calf rearing specialists Milk Bar and an Agri One Sustainability Course sponsored by ASB. Sanford and her husband converted their Tuatapere sheep and beef farm to dairy in 2007 and now milk 800 cows.

“Giving back to the community is very important to me and sharing my knowledge, skills and experience gives me huge personal satisfaction,” she says.

Nicholson and her husband Scott started out their farming career 50/50 sharemilking in Riversdale.

or daughter into the discussion because they will come home with robotic milking.

Also a lot of older people on older smaller farms could replace the shed with robotic milk-

ing for “not a lot more” and stay on the farm for another 10 years.

Vickers says 90% of new dairy installations in Holland now are robotic milking.

De Laval’s Grant Vickers (left) and Neil Milne,Comfort Cow Barns, gave a briefing on robotics.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

8 // DAIRY WOMEN’S NETWORK CONFERENCE

‘Super diversity’ brings benefits, challenges PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz

DIVERSITY AND its

effects on all areas of business including dairy and agri-business was highlighted by speakers at the conference.

The key speaker, prominent lawyer and Global Women’s first chair, Mai Chen, said she intends to focus for the next 10 years on the effects of New Zealand’s highly diverse population on law, public policy and business.

This “super diversity” is shown in that 25% of New Zealand’s population was born overseas, and in Auckland 44% were born overseas and the city has 230 ethnicities. It will bring benefits in increased productivity, increased innovation and more foreign investment but also great challenges to social capital and social cohesion, Chen says.

This will affect all businesses, she says. “I have one business a week in my boardroom saying ‘we are losing market share’.”

She tells them this is

because they are targeting the wrong population.

The Anglo Saxon populace is ageing and diminishing, while the Maori Pacifica and Asian population is growing – 50% in Auckland and growing.

“That is part of a megatrend which is Asia. The middle class in Asia in 2015 will be bigger than Europe and America combined,” Chen says.

“Half of New Zealand is now brown; that has an impact on your workforce and your customer base.

Another megatrend is agglomeration: Auckland will get bigger and bigger and that will be tough on the regions.”

She is doing a stocktake for all businesses, including farm businesses, on how we leverage off this super-diversity of our country.

Kevin Cooney, head of agri capital at ASB, said in a later panel discussion at the conference that greater diversity will be needed on the boards of food companies as they more closely align themselves with consumers.

He says the trends in

global food demand are now attracting institutional investors. “Offshore capital is seeing the food industry and the availability of new technology as a massive opportunity to invent change in what has been a traditional industry.

“The convergence of technology and global food trends will drive massive change in the way we connect with consumers.

“We have seen the emergence of the large scale corporate farm; that is not going to change.”

In the next 5-10 years a handful of globally relevant food producing businesses with an asset base of $1-2 billion or more will emerge in New Zealand, he said.

Technology gives us an opportunity to be more closely attuned to consumers “so those businesses will be increasingly mindful of what consumers want and be making stuff to order”.

There are limits to what the bank can do to fund that future, he says.

Too much debt can be an underlying constraint on a business’s ability to invest

in new efficiencies and technologies.

“Therefore we’re going to see inevitably a greater role for large scale institutional foreign direct investment into our industry. Venture capital investment will also be a key influence.”

This posed questions he said he did not intend to answer at the conference, but to raise for discussion.

First, for large scale businesses, or even smaller businesses looking to the future, what would be the shape of boards and governance “for us to thrive and compete in this new world and provide value for its shareholders? If our businesses are to be more closely connected with consumers in the future, we need to have boards connected with how consumers think.”

Second, given that farm prices have escalated to the point where farm ownership is now hard to achieve, “how do we motivate in the future and build a new generation of world class farmers to run our industry?”

ADAPTABILITY THE KEY TO SUCCESS PUBLIC LAW specialist Mai Chen says the dairy industry is one of the most regulated in New Zealand – and she warned the secret to success in any field was learning to adapt.

“I can’t tell you what’s going to be in your industry in five years – everything is changing,” she told the conference. “I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future but I can make sure I have the abilities as a person to

adapt to it.”

Chen quoted Charles Darwin as saying the race is not won by the strongest, nor the most intelligent, but by the one who is most responsive to change. “I will not succeed because I am faster or stronger than anybody… but no one is more adaptable than I am.”

Chen said her adaptability came from arriving as an immigrant at the age of six. “You can’t

speak the language, your parents can’t, you don’t have much money, you don’t Mai Chen know anybody and you are the first Taiwanese family in the South Island; you get pretty good at solving problems.”

Dairy Women’s Network members on a farm tour.

Herd’s five-minute walk beats sticky slog PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz

STAFF CAN get cows to milking within

five minutes in Southland’s chilly winter rather than slog round in a wet swede paddock.

That’s one big advantage of David Burnett’s 600-cow wintering barn at Waimatua, near Invercargill. The barn was the destination for an ‘Innovation Southland’ tour during the conference in Invercargill last week.

On this first-ever field trip held during a Dairy Women’s Network conference, 50 women visited the barn on the tour hosted by De Laval. Visitors heard about effluent handling, robotic milking, overall shed management and, in a session by Seed Force, the growing, harvesting and feeding of fodder beet.

Burnett’s 440ha milking platform has two sheds and about 1400 cows. He is about to go into his third season with a wintering barn for 600 cows.

He told Dairy News they take late-calving cows out of both sheds and put them into the barn where they are milked later into the season – up to about six-eight weeks before they calve. “So if they calve a month later, we milk a month later.”

The early calving cows go to run-off.

He finds the shed helps to look after his pasture in the shoulder of the season.

“It is easy to keep the paddocks good in the winter if you don’t have cows on them – that’s the main advantage.

“And you’re able to milk those late calving cows a little longer – it helps justify having the shed.”

Long term he hopes it will pay for itself: the cows are in better condition so they should produce better and the feed used is more efficient. But he says everyone needs to decide for themselves.

“It’s a big capital investment to put on your farm. But long term it is not too bad.

It’s not something you would put on your farm if you were going to sell in the next few years because you wouldn’t get your money back. But it fits into what we want to do and our long term plans.

“There will be more and more sheds eventually. Environmentally they are good, you’ve got total control over effluent, your cows aren’t doing any damage, there’s no nutrient runoff.”

The staff are milking a bit longer “but you can either walk into the barn and get your cows out in five minutes and milk the cow under cover or you can slog round in a swede paddock in winter. So that’s not a hard decision.”

The full setup cost about $2 million, the shed itself about $1.6 million.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

NEWS // 9

Moving up the value chain PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz

WESTPAC HEAD David McLean says New Zealand is not capturing enough of the value chain with its dairy exports.

McLean told Dairy News that Fonterra, other dairy companies and New Zealand generally, must invest more in this area of innovation.

A lot of innovation is by small businesses with new ideas, he says, for example the recent initiative in milking sheep. A large percentage of the world population consumes sheep milk products and if New Zealanders can innovate, this industry could grow.

“Access to capital and research funding is very important. The trouble

with all these start-up ventures is their very high risk. If they have good reach or are working with an in-market customer, that can be taken into account. We are keen on innovation and supporting it so we’ll be as flexible as we can.”

Meanwhile McLean says he’s optimistic that the payout for next season will be above $6/kgMS. His only caveat on that is the possibility of lower milk volumes because of the dry weather.

“But we’re optimistic about the long term demographic trends in Asia where more people want protein in their diet.

There are other clouds on the horizon such as sanctions on Russia and milk quotas in Europe coming off. There are offsetting

Coming to a stream near you LOCAL WESTPAC bank staff could find themselves up a creek near you if their chief executive David McLean has his way.

Westpac is a sponsor of a project called Million Metres Streams (MMS), designed to encourage farmers – dairy and drystock – to plant trees along streams on their farms.

The scheme is different from the Sustainable Dairying: Water Accord in that it’s voluntary and requires any land planted to be placed under a QEII covenant and fenced.

The project is evaluated and if successful the cost of the trees will be paid for by sponsors.

MMS is run by the Sustainable Business Network and gets sponsors such as Westpac to pay for the trees and their planting.

Recently McLean, whose bank has put up $10,000 to sponsor planting on a Manawatu farm, was out in the field helping to plant trees.

“The way it works is that the local farmer covenants part of their land under the QEII Trust,” he says. “This is particularly non-productive land that is prone to erosion along the waterways so they’re not giving up much in the way of productive land. We picked up the cost of planting 275m of stream which took 2500 plants.”

McLean says the aim of the scheme is to protect New Zealand’s brand as a sustainable producer of high quality food, important particularly in light of the recent 1080 scare – a disgusting act by a deranged individual, he says.

MMS is a positive way of cleaning up waterways and providing good buffer zones between pastures and streams that could be subject to nitrogen run-off, he says.

All farmers are in view – not just dairy farmers.

Professionals have been doing some of the planting but McLean hopes also for volunteer efforts, including Westpac staff given time off to help plant in their regions.

Westpac has put up an initial $10,000 but is open to doing more; no budget figure has been set, McLean says.

“We want to be big in rural, an important part of the economy. As a bank we want to support rural communities.” – Peter Burke

factors so… it is worth watching carefully. We don’t see a rebound to the high payout of the previous season but we do see a solid outlook for the future.”

Speaking before last week’s fall in GDT prices, McLean says while his bank is no more an expert than anyone else, the fact

that the GDT auction price has risen by 30% above its November low is encouraging. This could signal that the inventory problems of the past are starting to play out, he says.

“From a farming point of view some other conditions are very good. The cost of borrowing is about as low as in living memory

so that is a big contributor to farm profitability.”

McLean says as long as dairy prices hold up there will be more dairy conversions, but factors such as the availability of appropriate land and water will be limiting.

At some time the natural limit of dairy expansion will be reached.

Westpac head, David McLean planting a tree on a Manawatu farm.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

10 // NEWS

Indian companies can help N PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz

PRIME MINISTER

John Key says India knows it needs a free trade agreement (FTA) with New Zealand, though an FTA is always “challenging” for the agricultural sector of any country we negotiate with.

But the technology transfers and other benefits to India of an FTA would far outweigh any downside for Indian producers of New Zealanders selling products there, Key told an Auckland business summit.

He said the former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had told him privately that he “had to feed his people” and “it was not easy”.

India has over a billion people so there are

massive opportunities for New Zealand companies there, Key told the India New Zealand Business Council summit in Auckland on March 13. “Capturing a tiny fraction of that market is massive from New Zealand’s point of view. But it’s equally important for India.

“The FTA will only happen when Indian companies lobby the Indian Government because there will always be resistance.

“An FTA doesn’t complete economic transactions; it is actually just an entree to each other’s markets. It is a symbol that you are very serious about what you are doing and you want to build a long term relationship.”

The summit was attended by business leaders and entrepreneurs from India, many here for

Prime Minister John Key, visiting Indian politician Nandan Nilekani (right) and NZ-India Business Council chairman Sunil Kaushal at the summit.

the World Cup Cricket.

Key’s comments were part of a wide range of views on the FTA, with a number of Indian representatives arguing that an FTA was not immediately necessary for good business collaboration and partnerships between the business communities of both countries. New Zealand’s technology, ideas, innovation and knowhow, including dairy production, processing and supply chains, were cited as among the best “products” we could export.

Several speakers also said dealing with the individual states and sectors within India may provide more immediate opportunities for business and trade than getting a government-to-government agreement.

Rupert Holborow, MFAT economic division

CHINA TRADE GREAT BUT WHAT IF...?

NEW ZEALAND risks becoming too dependent on China, says John Key. “I am very pro our China relationship as New Zealanders would know.

I have stood up for that relationship despite the politics that sometimes collect along the way.” It has made New Zealand stronger and seen us through the global financial crisis.

“But New Zealand has had experience of being too dependent on one market… when we were pretty much Britain’s farm in the South Pacific.

When it joined the European Common Market in the early 1970s the impact on New Zealand was dramatic.

“The long term risk to New Zealand would be [our becoming] totally China-dependent, and then if, for whatever reason, the relationship going sour; or it might be something completely beyond our control.”

Key said we needed diversification in New Zealand companies and markets.

manager, who led the 10th round of the FTA negotiations with India, says India’s population will soon be the world’s largest and its younger demographic and growing GDP should compel New Zealand to recognise it needs

to engage more with India.

He said an FTA would bring tangible benefits but was also symbolic as a statement of intent by both governments as to how they wanted to characterise the bilateral relationship as it develops.

However, just home from leading the 10th round, he said “with sadness I [see] there is still a considerable distance to close if we are to conclude our FTA. I can’t see it happening imminently. I wish I could say otherwise; it’s a

tough long road ahead.”

But New Zealand hasn’t lost hope and doesn’t intend giving up. “But a key message is... I don’t believe we should hold off our engagement strategy with India waiting for something that may still

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

NEWS // 11

p NZ clinch FTA take some time to materialise.”

Indian high commissioner to New Zealand Ravi Thapar said New Zealand has smart technologies which could connect well with Indian industry. “Rather than New Zealand just projecting itself as a leader in agriculture it should project itself as a leader in smart technologies,” including dairy production, agriculture and general food production.

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy said India has the world’s largest dairy industry and a “milk revolution” could

be achieved by modernising the supply chain and improving productivity by better animal husbandry and genetics. “These are all areas New Zealand knows a lot about and creates exciting opportunities in partnerships between the two countries.” New Zealand also offered high value premium products.

INZBC executive member Sameer Handa said for New Zealand business trying to start in India, the country is too big so they should bring it down to the states, the sectors and the markets they wanted to get into.

“That state level understanding is crucial; that is the unit in which you can actually do business.” He says the new Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has launched ‘cooperative federalism’ which is pushing more money and responsibility to state level. Many reforms will be at state

level.

Entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani also said “don’t get stuck on Dehli. Go to the state governments because they can get a lot of stuff done now. That is the way forward. Do not be obsessed with whether things get done in Dehli or not.”

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy says India’s dairy industry can grow using Kiwi expertise.

DAIRY’S IT EXPERTISE A BEACON LESSONS FROM the IT sector working with the dairy industry in New Zealand could help the Indian primary sector, says an IT expert.

Michael Horton, the Perth-based senior vice-president of HCL’s ANZ business, says the global IT company has quite a few hundred staff working in New Zealand mainly with the dairy industry.

“We have learned a lot on how to improve their productivity and particularly value chain optimisation. There’s a lot of opportunity for us in the IT industry to take these learnings back to India.”

He said there had been much discussion at the INZBC summit on Indian agricultural production and a lot of lessons can be taken from the New Zealand dairy industry. Statistics presented at the conference showed that 40% of the agricultural product of India goes to spoil, versus 5% in New Zealand.

Availability of refrigeration was one factor.

And there was a lot of big data use, data analysis and optimisation that came out of their work with the dairy industry. “We can leverage back into India some of the learnings of our Indian people based here,” Horton said.

IUM PO EM

UR -ON

FONTERRA’S MANAGING director of Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (APMEA), Pascal De Petrini, has resigned – effective immediately – to rejoin his former company Danone.

De Petrini will return to France mid-June to become Danone’s executive vice-president strategic resource cycles.

Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings says since joining the co-op in October 2013, De Petrini has strengthened the consumer and foodservice business.

“He is a strong team player who has set a clear, focused strategy to drive volume and value in our key APMEA markets.

“We respect his decision to accept a new challenge and thank him for his leadership of our APMEA business during his time with the cooperative.”

Fonterra expects progress on a replacement

by August 1. Meanwhile the APMEA heads of the regions will report directly to the chief executive.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

12 // NEWS

Should we try the Dutch approach?

SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz

A SUGGESTION that

New Zealand farmers should house more cows hasn’t gone down well with one industry leader.

Visiting Dutch agriculture expert Professor

Aalt Dijkhuizen suggested New Zealand farmers keep cows indoors to improve production and reduce pollution, as do their Dutch counterparts.

Speaking in Auckland to an audience that included Fonterra chairman John Wilson and Open Country Dairy chair-

man Laurie Margrain, he said a simple housing system for cows would lift production, safeguard the environment, assure good animal welfare and allow adoption of new technology.

However LIC chief executive Wayne McNee sees a flaw in Dijkhui-

zen’s argument: profitability and efficiency does not seem to feature highly.

“The two go hand-inhand here,” McNee says.

“Profit is the ultimate goal for New Zealand dairy farmers, regardless of the system or technology utilised.

“The best way to make

a profit is by breeding animals that will efficiently, and repeatedly, convert feed into quality, highvalue milk.

“The New Zealand cow is renowned for her ability to efficiently produce milk solids, get in-calf each year and keep doing so for an average of five lactations.

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For the majority, this is on pasture, at the envy of many farmers around the world. “ McNee says the claim that Dutch cows produce twice the volume of milk of New Zealand dairy cows may be true but he questioned how much feed the animals require to achieve those levels of production, and at what cost to the farmer.

“Also, how fertile are they and how long will they last in a herd?

Therefore, how efficient are they, really?

“What works in the Netherlands, or any overseas model for that matter, won’t necessarily work here.

“Housing cows in barns is not the only way to increase production. New Zealand dairy farmers have proven the success of this over the last 20 years: average production of milk solids from New Zealand cows has increased from 278kg to 371kg, and 60% of that increase is a result of

genetic improvement.”

Dijkhuizen told Dairy News that he accepted the success of the New Zealand system in the past.

“The discussion, however, is about the most attractive system for the future… where environmental regulations may (or will) restrict the growth and profitability of the New Zealand system and hence increase the costs of production.

“The question then is not which cow produces the most per kg of liveweight but what is the most efficient and profitable per kg of milk or milksolids.

“In that equation, it becomes much more attractive to produce the amount of milk with fewer animals or, the other way around, to produce with the same number of cows more milk.”

He cautions that simply rejecting possible adjustments of the NZ dairy system may turn out not to be the wisest option.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

NEWS // 13

Farmers getting ahead of effluent watchdogs MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz

GETTING EFFLUENT

issues under control before the council pays you a visit was the big point of interest at the recent Effluent Expo at Mystery Creek.

Many farmers, a large majority from greater Waikato, soaked up information from the 60-plus exhibitors.

Environment Waikato’s pro-active approach is having its effect – farm visits, identifying problem areas, working with farmers to suggest better practice and pointing them in the direction of industry specialists who can help.

EW says it has seen a much better ‘buy in’ to the discussion by farmers since mid-2014 when it ceased helicopter over-flights. But

it continues to remind farmers that officialdom must act on reported incidences of pollution.

On many farms existing infrastructure was quite often “nearly” compliant, and the authorities are keen to take a softlysoftly approach to allow farmers time to investigate solutions, raise funds and complete upgrades, before intervening.

One major issue of older or inherited systems is leakage – easy to detect during drought but much harder in winter months or during prolonged rainfall.

One exhibitor, Opus International, offers its Opus Pond Drop Test (OPDT) as a means of monitoring pond levels very accurately to determine if there is leakage.

For 48 hours they monitor pond depth and

The Effluent Expo last week attracted over 650 people.

use sensors to measure temperature, relative humidity and, importantly, transpiration (evaporation) in the surrounding area.

The depth during the 48 hours, minus what would be normal evaporation, accurately determines whether or not the pool is leaking.

The data can be used as part of the farm’s Dairy Effluent Warrant of Fitness,

showing authorities there is or isn’t a problem.

Another notable exhibition theme was “now that we have the effluent contained in pond or tank, let’s make sure we manage it properly”. The main thrust was ensuring effluent is mixed regularly, with no crust allowed to form.

Mixing looks after the physical properties of a holding area and gets air

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into the effluent, encouraging aerobic fermentation, the multiplication of friendly bacteria and a resultant reduction in odours.

One such aerator – deceptively simple – was shown by Vertec. Floats akin to a kayak have plastic paddles between driven by electric motors ranging from as little as 0.75kW for a pond with a surface area of up to 80m2 up to 11kW for 800m2.

Another record crowd AT LEAST 650 people attended the Effluent

Expo.

The record turnout has pleased organiser and Waikato Regional Council’s environmental farming systems adviser Electra Kalaugher.

Those attending the fifth annual event at Mystery Creek last week included farm owners, sharemilkers, farm managers and workers, and agri-industry professionals.

About 55 exhibitors, indoors and outdoors, took part, says Kalaugher.

“The continued excellent turnout highlights farmers’ commitment to improving their environmental performance despite the low payout this year.

“About half the expo visitors were farm owners, who are the decision makers for major investments like upgrading their effluent systems.”

Turnout was good from regions beyond Waikato, including council staff from Auckland, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki.

Outdoor irrigation seminars were designed to help farmers work out what kind of irrigation systems would best suit their farms.

The expo sponsors were Waikato Regional Council and DairyNZ. “We’d like to thank DairyNZ for their ongoing support of this important event,” says Kalaugher.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

14 // NEWS

Oz co-op rolls out TAF-type scheme AUSTRALIA’S BIGGEST dairy processor,

Murray Goulburn, will hold an extraordinary meeting in April to seek supplier approval to list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).

It will hold 14 supplier meetings in Victoria, NSW and SA, then proceed to a vote at the April meeting.

The co-op hopes to raise A$500 million by listing, to “support our growth strategy to improve farmgate returns and fund planned investments in world-best manufacturing capability and market reach”.

The proposal is for a scheme similar to Fonterra’s TAF (trading among

farmers). Suppliers would retain 100% control of the cooperative. Outside investors would be able to buy share units and would qualify for dividends but would not have voting rights.

MG says the opening share price would not be known until shortly before trading of the units started

on the ASX. Outside unit holders would be required to disclose holdings greater than 5%. A foreign investor seeking to own more than 14.9% share units must get Foreign Investment Review Board approval.

The co-op says dividends would be linked to the farmgate milk price.

The dividend paid to shareholders (farmer suppliers) and unit holders (outside investors) would be the same and paid on the same date.

After the 14 supplier meetings, final information sessions will be held in April and, subject to shareholder feedback, an extraordinary meeting in

Murray Goulburn of Australia is toying with a TAF-style capital structure.

late April will formally vote on the capital structure.

MG confirmed late last month its full year forecast milk price of A$6/kgMS despite a 1% decline in half year sales (A$1.3 billion) from the previous year.

Managing director Gary Helou said in a letter to suppliers that the forecast price would remain despite the fact “key dairy ingredients prices globally have fallen significantly in the past six months, dragging down farmgate prices in dairy exporting countries by up to 40%”.

“The moderating Australian dollar, while positive, occurred too late in the December half to materially impact the half year results. We welcome the emerging benefit that a lower currency will provide our export business, particularly in the value added dairy foods segment through the balance of the year and into next year.”

MG reported a half year net profit after tax of A$12.9 million compared to A$61 million in the previous corresponding period.

Helou says the two periods were not directly comparable due to higher input milk price paid at the beginning of the financial year. This was done to provide cashflow benefit to farmers.

MG remains on track to deliver a full year net profit after tax of $20 million-$30 million, “broadly in line with last year’s result”.

MG received just over 2 billion litres of milk in the six months to December 31, a 6.8% increase on the prior corresponding period.

“Our milk intake continues to grow at a faster rate than the Australian milk pool which according to Dairy Australia grew by 2.6% during the six months to December 31, 2014,” Helou says.

Fonterra pays $750m for China stake FONTERRA HAS completed the partial tender offer and will acquire 18.8% of the Chinese infant formula maker Beingmate Baby & Child Food Company Ltd. The transaction, costing $750 million, was scheduled to close last week.

Chief financial officer Lukas Paravicini says the companies had earlier made provision for the possibility of the partial tender offer reaching slightly less than 20%.

“Our goal was to acquire up to 20%. We are extremely satisfied and confident that the partnership can and should proceed on the basis of the 18.8% stake.

It is a good result,” Paravicini says.

“Over the next few weeks Fonterra and Beingmate will move ahead with the next phase of our partnership, which includes establishing a joint venture to purchase the Darnum plant in Australia and finalising a distribution agreement making Beingmate Fonterra’s exclusive Anmum distributor in mainland China.”

Fonterra and Beingmate said last August that they intended to form a global partnership to supply infant formula to China. A global supply chain will move products from farmgate to consumer. Fonterra milk pools and factories in Australasia and Europe will contribute.

0004 OPS Benefits Selwny Dairy (280x187)_FAem.indd 1

3/02/15 4:54 pm

Image courtesy of Te Aroha Museum

Prosperity comes from productivity.

Productivity comes from improvement.

Now let’s talk about where improvement comes from.

In 1814 there were two cows and one bull, brought into New Zealand by Samuel Marsden. Today the dairy industry has 4.9 million cows and processes 1.83 billion kilograms of milk solids per year.

ELE-01656-DN

In early days, if you were milking more than three or four cows, you were a full-time farmer. Today, two people can milk 800 to 1,000 cows in a couple of hours.

Between 1979 and 2014, milk solid production increased by 1.3 billion kilograms.

60% of those gains came from genetic improvement.

Once, farmers knew their individual cow’s quirks, characteristics and names. Today, farmers have the smallest details of every one of their hundreds if not thousands of cows at their fingertips.

The story of the New Zealand dairy industry has been one of constant improvement.

And at LIC, we’ve been part of that story for over 100 years, helping improve the productivity and prosperity of our farmers.

Helping make New Zealand dairying the world leader that it is.

Improvement. It’s in our nature.

It’s in our name.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

16 // NEWS

What is a true cash cow?

Jersey farmers at the True Cash Cow field day.

Farmers using a DeLaval robotic milking system * spend 72% less time on milking tasks

A HIGH performing Jersey herd can generate consistent cashflow now and in the future, a ‘True Cash Cow’ field day heard in Te Awamutu last month.

Jersey New Zealand and CRV Ambreed teamed

up to offer local farmers two days of nutrition, health, production management and breeding programme guidance and support to help maximise their farm profit and increase the value of their herd.

The programme included presentations from award winning Jersey farmers Graham and Lyn Lawry, Dairy Business Centre NZ Ltd nutrition consultant Rensinus Schipper, and DairyNZ genetic evaluation developer Melissa Stephen.

Jersey New Zealand representatives and CRV Ambreed’s breeding team were also on hand to share the latest developments and successes in their joint venture programmes, JerseyGenome and Jersey Genes, which are helping to create valuable progeny and strengthen the overall genetic gain for the Jersey breed.

Attendees visited four Jersey herds where farmers shared their achieve-

ments within their breeding programmes and discussed what they are doing to increase their herd profitability. Jersey New Zealand president Brian Carter said it was a great opportunity to see the potential of the Jersey breed and how the Jersey cow can be competitive in the national herd.

Jersey New Zealand general manager Warwick Dowse says JerseyGenome and Jersey Genes provide excellent breeding opportunities that will help to achieve efficient production, and create a more valuable herd.

“The Jersey cow is the breed of choice for farmers in both New Zealand and overseas,” says Dowse.

As Jerseys are typically a lighter animal with good longevity, Dowse believes this could potentially motivate some farmers in the future to re-think the breed make-up of their herd and how they can best produce a long-lasting, productive cow.

IN BRIEF Research grant CRV AMBREED has secured $2.1 million in Callaghan Innovation R&D funding, to cover 20% of its development costs for three years.

Managing director Angus Haslett says this is a “huge step forward that cements our position in New Zealand as an innovative leader in herd improvement.”

Late last year, CRV Ambreed was one of 22 New Zealand companies to receive R&D Growth Grants, worth $32 million over three years. The grants provide 20% public money for qualifying firms’ eligible R&D spending up to $5 million a year, up from the previous scheme’s $2.4 million.

To qualify for a Growth Grant a business needs to commit to spend at least $300,000, and at least 1.5% of revenue per year on quality R&D in New Zealand.

The grants are for three years, but after two years businesses can be granted a two-year extension of funding.

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Minister for Primary Industries Hon Nathan Guy will open the conference at Mac’s Function Centre in Wellington on May 7-8.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand chief executive Dr Scott Champion, Overseer general manager Caroline Read and Landcorp farm operations general manager Graeme Mulligan will also present over the two-day event.

what you do in autumn

sets you up in spring

ELE-01271-DN

Set up your farm for early season growth with PhaSedN. With PhaSedN, an autumn application does more than boost your pasture heading into winter – it’s also a great way to set your farm up for early spring growth.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

18 // OPINION RUMINATING

EDITORIAL

A tick for food safety

MILKING IT...

Rabo torpedo EXPECTATION IS a powerful force in commodity markets. Show buyers a correction is due and they’ll reduce demand, precipitating the predicted fall. Last week Rabobank released its quarterly dairy report saying “the strength of the recent rally is hard to justify on current fundamentals.” It came out the day before the latest GDT event, at which the index dived 8.8%. Rabobank’s global reach and status means most GDT bidders would have read the report. The expectation for a correction was set, and sure enough, the market delivered. Of course, the fundamentals were out there anyway so prices were likely to ease regardless of the report, but probably not nearly as sharply. Thanks Rabo: great report; lousy timing.

Python songs for SIDE? MOST MAINLAND dairy farmers recently received a mailer promoting this year’s South Island Dairy Event, better known as SIDE. The theme, UpSIDE, marks a return to a theme format that brought us, amongst others, PositiveSIDE (2006), GlobalSIDE (2008) and OpportunitySIDE (2010), before the jingle was abandoned in 2011 in favour of ‘Challenge Your Future’. Now that the jingle’s back, what’s the betting organisers will reach for Monty Python’s “Always look on the bright side…” as the conference theme tune? It would be appropriate given the low payout forecast and drought gripping much of the south at present.

And if this gloom persists why not add the ‘Python’ theme march ‘The Liberty Bell’ which ends with the giant boot squishing the (farmer’s?) head into the ground.

1080 nutjob SOME 1080 opponents were indecently quick to distance themselves from the eco-terrorism scandal in which an anonymous coward threatened to contaminate infant formula in protest against the poison.

This extreme threat of economic sabotage provoked instant and widespread disgust and it is understandable wellknown 1080 opponents wouldn’t want to be associated with it. However, in our experience at Rural News Group, while this is at the top of scale, the bullyboy, gestapo style of selfrighteous attack is in keeping with many anti-1080 nutjobs we’ve encountered over the years.

DairyNZ and drought BETTER LATE than never will likely be some South Island farmers’ response to DairyNZ’s belated drought advice (see p24). Steps to ensure greater and/or more reliable feed supply in the face of “the dry” were needed much earlier in the season and now, for many, the only option is shopping, most likely for palm kernel. PKE probably will, as before, get us out of jail but what’s really needed is a strategic rethink about water use.

It’s well known ryegrass isn’t the most efficient or drought resilient species so a bit more maize, lucerne, fescue or wholecrop cereal would go a long way to buffering our systems against rain or irrigation failure. More pit silage instead of the convenient but costly short shelf-life baleage would be a good idea too.

TWO WEEKS on and the 1080 threat to infant formula has disappeared from media headlines.

New Zealand is still sending safe, premium quality infant formula to the world’s markets; parents here and overseas still have complete faith in our products.

The nutters threatening to contaminate milk powder with the poison 1080 remain at large, but hopefully the police dragnet is closing around them. The threats they hoped would bring our multi-billion dairy industry to its knees are shown for what they are – nonsense. Nothing has happened to throttle trade.

MPI is telling our partners exactly what it’s telling consumers here and overseas: we’re confident New Zealand infant and other formula is as safe today as before the blackmail threat. Our key markets, like China, are still accepting our infant formula. Some have asked for extra certification.

On March 10 – the day the public learned of the threat – China’s Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (Aqsiq) announced all infant milk formula shipped from New Zealand since that date required a 1080-free certificate. MPI says exporters are complying. Instead of harming our exports this 1080 threat has strengthened our food security credentials at home and overseas.

Security in New Zealand retail outlets is tighter: in every supermarket selling infant formula, staff are monitoring those sales and handing out information sheet to buyers. Police nationwide have now visited 855 dairies and other small retailers selling infant formula to distribute MPI information to retailers and consumers.

Healthline and PlunketLine continue to respond promptly to calls from the public. Both services report a low number of calls on the 1080 threat issue and hospitals report no activity above what is expected.

MPI has tested at least 52,000 batches in all categories of milk products for sale here and offshore, finding no traces of 1080.

The 1080 incidents prove New Zealand’s robust food safety regulations are second to none.

Such acts of criminal blackmail are common; major food companies are often targeted. But the Government, dairy industry and our trading partners have handled this incident professionally.

It has improved our food testing regime and stamped our authority as a supplier of safe and premium quality infant formula in the world.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

OPINION // 19

No bull in proper effluent management CHRIS LEWIS

I NEVER thought when

I entered farming politics that there would be so much talk about the stuff that comes out of the back end of a cow. The polite term is ‘effluent’ of course; not polite are its effects and the costs of managing it.

Waikato Federated Farmers has the task of holding our regional council to account when war-

sent to wash out effluent. Amy King, Variation 6 farm water project manager, and her staff, lead a group that resulted, with industry support, in 100% of dairy farmers applying for one.

This engaging and inclusive approach gained a lot of respect from people outside the council.

The mecca for effluent discussion – Effluent Expo Day last week at Mystery Creek – is said to

something you want to repeat unnecessarily.

The expo showed we are all serious about getting great results for our industry by working together for positive change.

Part of that requires

collecting data on our progress, such as how much farmers are investing along the way.

• Chris Lewis is Federated Farmers Waikato provincial president. @dairy_news facebook.com/dairynews

The annual Effluent Expo attracted over 50 exhibitors.

All of the experts under one roof

In the last 12 months my family farm has spent well over $250,000 on improving our effluent system and native planting.

ranted, and effluent is a big bone of contention.

But they have a job to do, as we do, so it’s sometimes important we celebrate them. Just as farmers often feel criticised by the media, I imagine councils do too, giving the public an ill-informed perspective.

In the past six months Waikato Regional Council has set up an effluent working group of councillors, council staff, dairy industry leaders and myself, for better management of the issue. The region will be better for this unique model, which should be available in the next six months, and I thank everyone for their participation in this group.

No one is going to forget the Okororie issue, with the prosecution of Hold the Gold Ltd, any time soon, but to the council’s credit it has acknowledged the problem and is acting on it.

It recently organised a meeting with local leaders, including the chief executive officer, to discuss what to do.

The meeting was positive and constructive and everyone hung around to socialise afterwards. Such community leadership, with engagement and listening, builds positive relationships and trust.

For example, the council’s Variation 6 rule requiring everyone with a cowshed to get water con-

have attracted more farmers this year than last (600 attended in 2014); a great result for the organisers.

Federated Farmers had many people in its tent responding to an effluent survey; the general mood was positive. Farmers asked what the landscape looks like for the future and what they can do improve their effluent systems.

That’s an indication of the dollars earmarked for, or spent on, effluent handling and the environment.

In the last 12 months my family farm has spent well over $250,000 on improving our effluent system and native planting.

These projects have been successful and have taught me lessons. It pays to look at a lot of systems and ask where your farm will be in 10 years. Attending events such as the Effluent Expo Day will keep you informed about what is right for you and your farm.

It is important to get it right the first time. A few of my past projects, overengineered yet only just big enough a few years on, have taught me not to build too small lest I should have to built bigger, later.

After all, even when a council is doing its best, the consenting process isn’t fun or cheap – not

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

20 // AGRIBUSINESS

Demo farm secures key sponsors THE SAINT Peter’s School-Lincoln University demonstration dairy farm at Cambridge in the Waikato has secured two sponsors.

PGG Wrightson Seeds and Ballance Agri-Nutrients recently signed partnership agreements with Lincoln University.

Lincoln vice chancellor Dr Andy West said at a signing ceremony that industry support is needed for the farm to achieve its ambitious goals.

“We [invited] a number of organisations… to be sponsors and partners and were delighted with the response.

PGG Wrightson Seeds and Ballance Agri-Nutrients are our founding partners and we will be announcing others in coming weeks.

“The partners share a commitment to collaborate and apply their skills to developing this demonstration farm so it is profitable and environmentally sustainable.

“It’s fair to say that farmers are custodians of the land and a large portion of the New Zealand environment and this

farm will provide farmers with tangible ways to farm sensitive catchments profitably and sustainably.

“This is pastoral farming and the quality of the forages that go to make up those pastures largely dictates how well a farm performs, so having PGG Wrightson Seeds… supporting this demonstration farm is encouraging.”

Launched in August 2014, the demonstration dairy farm aims to be in the top 3% of dairy farms in the region for profitability and environmental performance, promoting sustainable dairying through collaborative research, education and training.

PGG Wrightson Seeds general manager David Green says the need to farm within environmental limits was one of the reasons it became a sponsor.

“The intensity of modern farming systems and the need to balance production within environmental limits presents farmers with a unique set of challenges.

Forage provides one answer so we are delighted to collaborate with other

like-minded organisations in a property which will become a showcase for sustainable and profitable farming.

“PGG Wrightson is also a large employer of undergraduates and graduates within the agricultural framework and we welcome any opportunity to showcase the opportunities which abound in the many facets of New Zealand’s primary industries.”

Ballance Agri-Nutrient’s chief financial officer, Richard Hopkins, says the fertiliser co-op is excited to be part of the demonstration farm.

“The key demonstration objective is to develop and demonstrate how to farm profitably within strict environmental limits and this aligns closely with our own core objectives.

“We already sponsor the Ballance Farm Environment Awards and this demonstration farm represents another opportunity for us to support our shareholders and the wider industry.” @dairy_news facebook.com/dairynews

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy with St Peter’s School students on the dairy farm during its launch in August last year.

FARM FACTS ■■

■■

■■ ■■ ■■

THE ST Peter’s - Lincoln demonstration dairy farm has been a working dairy farm since the St Peter’s campus was developed in the 1930s.

Today it comprises 183ha eff, milking 470 cows in the current season. The farm is situated along 4km of the Waikato River. Soil types vary markedly, from wetter soil types on the northern side to sandy river soils closer to the river. It has small pine plantations and gully sidings and streams now being fenced off and planted with native trees and shrubs.

Average pasture cover is 2200kgDM/ha.

On-site field days, on-line research and education through the St Peter’s and Lincoln curricula are in the pipeline.

The farm will be governed by a committee of leading Waikato dairy farmers, scientists from Lincoln University and sponsors.

Check out our websites BREAKING NEWS MANAGEMENT STORIES MARKETS & TRENDS MACHINERY REVIEWS COMPETITIONS AND MUCH MORE...

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

AGRIBUSINESS // 21

Dairy plant in a container A NEW ZEALAND com-

pany has invented a containerised dairy processing plant that will be operational in Indonesia within two months.

The 40-feet container plant that Thermaflo manufactured for the Indonesian company contains a fully hygienic, process plant that will separate, homogenise and pasteurise 1500L of raw milk per hour. Using a four-head inline filler the company will also be able to bottle fresh milk and cream.

Themaflo says with the unique container plant will operate at the highest international standards and produce a top quality product.

Thermaflo have been working for 10 years to establish its brand within the Indonesian market.

“With a number of smaller jobs previously completed it didn’t take long to establish a reputation as manufacturers of high quality processing equipment; this reputation is what helped land a project to design and manufacture a containerised milk process plant for a wellknown pineapple proces-

sor,” it says.

The Indonesian company first got in touch with Thermaflo in early 2013 as it looked for a great way to make its business not only greener but to also develop a new dairy based business. With the infrastructure purchased the company contacted Thermaflo for processing equipment. Thermaflo provided a unique concept that was cost effective and provide for expansion of the operation in the future.

From the signing of the purchase order, it took the Thermaflo team one month to design the process flows and to make sure all the equipment would fit inside the container. Over the following four months, Thermaflo fabricators built the process from the ground up, this includes the Sureshield flooring and poly panel walls, to the installation of the homogeniser, pasteuriser, separator and all the pipe work to connect each piece of processing machinery.

In addition to the process plant that is housed within the container, services are also housed outside, such as the hot water boiler and

air conditioning. These will be shipped with a 20” refrigerated container that will be used to stock the finished product.

Once the fabrication

was completed at Thermaflo’s premises their team commissioned the container plant at the workshop so it was ready for export.

Thermaflo’s dairy plant in a shipping container.

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PRODUCT IS pumped from the raw product tank housed outside into the level controlled pasteuriser balance tank. From here product is pumped through the regenerative section of the plate heat exchanger (PHE) by a centrifugal pump to the separator. From the separator, the cream is separated and sent to the batch pasteuriser for thermal treatment, and the remaining skim milk is then homogenised.

Using the screw valve on the separator it is possible to manually standardise the product to contain a certain percentage of cream.

A skilled plant operator would be required, and still the fat level may vary by 1-2% due to a fluctuation in the total solids in the milk being processed.

Once the cream is separated, the milk is then sent through the HTST pasteuriser.

The pasteuriser heats the raw product to between 73-80Co, for 15 seconds. This temperature profile is not the norm for New Zealand or Australian milk processing, but is very common in an Indonesian plant. Once the milk has been heat treated, it is then sent back through the heat regenerative section of the pasteuriser and then through the cooling section to exit at 4 oC or lower. Once this process is complete the milk is then ready to be bottled through the inline filler.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

AGRIBUSINESS // 23

First time lucky for equity sharemilker FIRST-TIME ENTRANT Richard

Ash has won the 2015 Manawatu Sharemilker/ Equity Farmer of the Year title.

Ash took the title and $19,150 in prizes at an awards night at the Awapuni Racecourse in Palmerston North on March 14.

The other big winners were John Wyatt, the 2015 Manawatu Farm Manager of the Year, and Blake Moore, the region’s 2015 Dairy Trainee of the Year.

Ash (33) says he had been too busy working on his dairy farming business to consider entering the competition. He equity sharemilks 1400 cows for David and Sarah Marshall near Marton. He has worked there 10 years since completing a BApplSc from Massey University and travelling and farming overseas.

He says he has complementary skills and a great working relationship with the Marshalls. “I’ve also got a great team of staff and support people who help me on a unique property.

“My ultimate farming goal is to own my own farm. In the meantime I’d like to keep learning, as I am passionate about the co-operative nature of the dairy industry.”

Sanson 25% equity farm manager Aaron Taylor was runner-up in the Manawatu Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of

the Year, winning $6650 in prizes. Third went to Ashhurst 21% sharemilkers Ben and Lizzie Ash, winning $5800 in prizes.

John Wyatt (25) is making excellent progress in his dairy farming career: in 2009 he won the Hawkes Bay/Wairarapa Dairy Trainee of the Year title.

“Winning [this] was a good opportunity for me and took me well out of my comfort zone,” Wyatt says. “It gave me a head start in progressing within the dairy industry.

“Now entering the farm manager contest is beneficial as I get to see a different side of the dairy industry, meet other likeminded people and further raise my profile.”

Wyatt is a farm manager for Kevin and Joanne Argyle, milking 460 cows at Kairanga. He won $9245 in prizes.

Wyatt, who grew up on a small Dannevirke sheep and beef farm, says his focus is on profit over production and he is always looking at ways to make improvements.

“My goal is to achieve farm ownership through 50% sharemilking by the age of 35.”

Second in the farm manager contest went to Opiki contract milkers Jarrod and Nikki Greenwood, who won $6200 in prizes, and Rangiwahia farm managers Jon and Crystal Cranshaw won

third, winning $3900 in prizes.

Winning the Dairy Trainee of the Year will boost opportunities for Blake Moore (21) as he

seeks a manager’s position for the coming season.

He is 2IC for Olsen Agriculture, milking 750 cows at peak at Opiki. He won $8000 in prizes.

Ash will host a field day on April 9; Wyatt will host a field day on the Kairanga farm he manages on March 31. www.dairyindustryawards.co.nz

Richard Ash

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

24 // MANAGEMENT

Don’t slog on, dry off now DAIRYNZ IS advising

drought-stricken farmers to dry off early rather than continue milking with bought-in feed.

DairyNZ last week

Low pasture cover means drought-stricken farmers are better off to stop milking and work on cow condition, rather than buying feed.

advised farmers to assess and plan their own feed supply and demand situations and weigh up probabilities.

It says keeping on

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milking by means of supplement is risky: profitability is highly dependent on how soon it rains to restore available water levels, and therefore how many days in milk can be created by using feed grown by this rain.

“There is now very limited opportunity for this to happen during this lactation,” DairyNZ says. “The longer the water restoration is delayed, the more any feed grown (or purchased) will be required to underpin next season’s production.

“All these decisions must be related to expected cashflow for the next 6-12 months. While there is potential to produce and be cashflow neutral in the short term, can this be sustained through the winter and into next spring?”

DairyNZ says extremely dry conditions have hit Marlborough, Canterbury and North Otago.

While some areas are more affected than others, determined by the availability of irrigation, most of the dryland winter and young stock grazing has been affected therefore farmers will need to manage proactively.

It also advised farmers against milking empty cows. At a $4.70/kgMS, reducing the milking herd size by removing the empty cows is a critical first step towards rebal-

ancing feed supply and feed demand.

“The feed they would eat can be redistributed to the cows being retained in the herd and compensates you for any milksolids the empties would have produced,” DairyNZ says.

“Not having 50 cows eating 14kgDM for 30 days brings 21 tonne DM of feed into the feed supply.

“The belief that empty cows produce more milk than a pregnant cow is a myth. Extra energy requirements for pregnancy are not significant until day 280 (for a July calving cow this is about April 1). Any difference in milk production between empty and pregnant cows is not apparent until day 250 of pregnancy.”

Once-a-day milking may be an option but time is running out for that too.

DairyNZ says it may already be too late to make any gains in body condition score.

“Over 50 days only small gains in BCS (0.1) can be expected from OAD even when milking cows are well fed. However it’s never too late to go to OAD if you have already made the decision to dry your cows.

“Switching to OAD milking takes the pressure off cows and staff and gives you more time to plan and manage.

However somatic cell counts (SCC) can be an issue.”

LIVEWEIGHT KEY AS CALVING LOOMS MAINTAINING LIVEWEIGHT and preventing further weight loss is crucial for calving.

DairyNZ says each farm needs to assess its feed resource and prepare a timeline for restoring BCS before next calving.

“If the feed and cash resources allow for BCS gain to be made using supplements, be aware that feeds differ in their efficiency to restore body condition scores.”

Calving cows at BCS 4.5 will come at a cost.

DairyNZ says it’s estimated to be $38 less income per cow at the current milk price for reducing the herd BCS at calving from 5 to 4.5.

An increase in calving BCS from 4.0 to 5.0 increases milksolids production by 12kg/cow.

“Therefore 4.5 BCS at calving = 6kgMS/cow x $5.00 = $30/cow loss compared with calving at BCS 5.”

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

26 // MANAGEMENT

Think now about stock wintering BALA TIKKISETTY

IT MAY be dry onfarm right now, but we’ll soon be heading through autumn to winter. So it’s

Wet pasture, heavy grazing and the resulting compaction can reduce pasture growth.

worth starting to think now about good stock wintering practice ahead of the wetter months, to protect animal health, soil health, water quality and pasture production.

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High stock densities and soil moisture in winter can lead to much soil damage. Wet pasture, heavy grazing and the resulting compaction can reduce pasture growth and drag down farm productivity, effects that can last several seasons.

Break feeding of forage crops has a similar effect on soil structure, but because it results in bare soils the environmental effects of runoff can be much worse, including increased runoff of sediment, dung, urine and nutrients, all of which affect water quality. Mitigating the effects of such practices bring many complex challenges.

Besides livestock density, the selection of feeding out sites and the management of wintering systems are factors affecting water quality.

Various stock wintering options can help mitigate these various risks.

Feed pads and standoff pads are options for protecting soil physical structure during wet periods.

A feed pad is a dedicated concrete platform where supplementary feeds are brought to the stock. Higher feed efficiency is achieved as the wastage is reduced to about 5%, compared to about 20% or more when silage is fed in paddocks.

They are generally not suitable for standing stock for extended periods so their potential to protect soils is limited.

A stand-off pad is a dedicated loafing area for stock. These pads are constructed using a softer free-draining surface and utilise materials like wood chips. As stock can be withheld from pasture for longer times, the area

required per cow has to be bigger – say about 8m2.

Capture of effluent is important on stand-off pads. The base should be sealed either with an artificial liner or with concrete, and effluent directed into the treatment system.

Animal shelters are also gaining popularity. These combine a feeding platform and stand-off facility, and give animals shelter from the worst of the weather. They allow stock to be kept off paddocks for extended periods, thereby protecting the farm production system from damage even in a very wet winter.

When building any wintering pad allow for solid and liquid waste disposal. Design the pad so that the contaminants run into the effluent disposal system for the dairy shed. Locate the feed pad or stand-off pad well away from any waterway.

So-called sacrifice paddocks – an area of ordinary pasture where stock can be held for feeding out – are a last resort option for standing off animals when it is very wet, or as an area to feed animals hay and silage. These pose a risk of damage to soil structure damage and animal health problems such as lameness and mastitis. If soil potassium levels rise too high (potassium is excreted in urine) it may predispose calving cows to metabolic problems.

And, whatever wintering system is used, it is important not to feed out in areas where run-off water may reach any water body.

• Bala Tikkisetty is a sustainable agriculture advisor at Waikato Regional Council. bala.tikkisetty@waikatoregion.govt.nz Tel. 0800 800 401

Check out our websites www.ruralnews.co.nz www.dairynews.co.nz

0800 665 277 37 or 03 326 6089

www.wintonstockfeed.co.nz SEE US AT THE SOUTH ISLAND FIELD DAYS – SITE C115

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

28 // MANAGEMENT

Award-winning Oz farmer thrives on irrigation SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz

AWARD-WINNING TASMANIAN

farmer Ken Lawrence opened his farm to his peers last month.

Two busloads of farmers descended on Lawrence’s farm in Osmaston, 50km west of Launceston, before the Australian Dairy Conference; part of the tour was a bus ride through the 487ha property.

Lawrence and his wife Jill own Fermer Dairy, milking 910 cows on a 236ha milking platform. They won the 2014 Dairy Environmental Award and were finalists in the 2014 Dairy Farmer of the Year Business award.

He says the farm is set up to produce 375,000-400,000kgMS/year; irrigation is key. About 90% of the milking area is now irrigated using farm storage and Meander Dam water.

The farm has three centre pivot irri-

Ken Lawrence hosts farmers on his Tasmanian farm.

FAMILY FARM A CONVERSION FERMER FARM was bought by Ken Lawrence’s grandfather in the late 1930s; it ran as a mixed farm with cows, wool sheep, beef cows and cropping.

Lawrence’s father Lindsay took over in the late 1950s and continued the tradition.

After finishing agricultural studies, Lawrence returned to the farm in 1983. With the collapse of the wool market in the 1990s the farm was converted to dairying.

gators. Trees lost to the pivots have been replaced by shelter belts he planted with assistance from Landcare Australia.

The herd is mostly Jersey. Lawrence aims to breed cows that are “easy-care” – 450kg in liveweight and producing their liveweight in MS. Production in 2012-13 topped 424kgMS/cow and 1636kgMS/ha; the next year it rose to 458kgMS/cow and 1649kgMS/ha.

Cows are fed mostly grass, topped up

with about 1.2tonnes of grain and silage.

For Ken and Jill, young stock management is vital, and they make sure plenty of time and energy are allocated to calf rearing.

“Colostrum is fed to all calves the afternoon they are brought to the calf sheds,” he says. A new calf shed allows replacements to be housed separately from bobby calves.

“Calves are weaned from milk at about 80kg but continue to be fed with

muesli for six to nine months to ensure target weights are reached.”

The award scheme brought to light various attributes of Fermer Dairy – nutrient mapping and budgeting, revegetation and shelter, riparian management and supporting biodiversity.

Lawrence was keen to emphasise that he wasn’t turning the farm into an organics operation. “But we’re min-

imising chemical use. We’ve done tissue tests and salt and chlorine levels are climbing; we’re compensating for that by minimising use.”

During the bus tour, farmers noticed a small flock of sheep. Lawrence had bought 300 last year to fatten. “If we are lucky, we will make a bit of money out of them,” he said. @dairy_news facebook.com/dairynews

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

ANIMAL HEALTH // 29

Keep theileria in mind when moving stock FARMERS ARE being warned to assess the risks to their herds from the tick-borne disease Theileria if they are moving stock this autumn and winter.

DairyNZ veterinarian and technical policy advisor Nita Harding says stock now grazing, such as heifers, that will be coming onto the farm could pose a risk – or be at risk of Theileria – depending on the situation onfarm.

Harding says farmers can help the industry and veterinarians manage and prevent the spread of the disease if they are moving cattle between Theileria zones this season.

“Pregnant cattle are at the highest risk. Other stock classes appear not to be as susceptible,” she says.

ble areas moving into stable areas. We strongly recommend that farmers shouldn’t bring in pregnant heifers and cows from tick free areas into stable areas without seeking veterinary advice.

“Sharemilkers who are forming their herds or farmers undertaking conversions and forming new herds need to take particular care.”

If you are buying in replacements or are building a herd from multiple sources, it is a lot more complicated to assess the risk of Theileria to your farm, she says.

“Remember there could be multiple diseases that could pose a risk to your farm so it’s important to talk to your veterinarian and do a bit of risk assess-

“Pregnant cattle are at the highest risk. Other stock classes appear not to be as susceptible.”

“To assess your risk you need to understand your current level of risk where you farm and the risk in the area the cattle are moving from or to. We’ve subdivided the country into three general zones based on our current knowledge of tick distribution and farms on which the disease has been confirmed.

“Essentially we have stable, unstable and free areas – and they equate to high, moderate and low risk areas for Theileria.

At particularly high risk are high performing animals from free and unsta-

ment and management planning.”

Franklin Vets managing director Mark Hosking says there is a movement risk tool on the Franklin Vets’ website (www. franklinvets.co.nz) which farmers can quickly use to see what risk they may face.

There is also advice on DairyNZ’s website www. dairynz.co.nz/theileria and the New Zealand Veterinary Association website www.nzva.org.nz “We’ve dealt with a lot of cases in our area so we have worked to help others across the country to

WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR The signs of Theileriosis are those associated with anaemia and include: ■■ pale or yellow, rather than healthy pink, vulva (open up the vulva and look at the colouring inside) ■■

whites of eyes yellow (a sign of jaundice)

■■

lethargy – exercise intolerance, cows lagging on the walk to the shed

■■

sick cows not responding as expected to treatment for conditions such as milk fever

■■

cows go off their food and appear hollowsided

■■

a decrease in milk production

■■

sudden death especially in late pregnancy or early lactation.

understand the disease,” says Hosking. “For people who are moving stock into areas with ticks, we would strongly advise they carry out blood tests to determine if the animals being moved have been exposed to the parasite. If they have been exposed then there should be relatively little risk of

them developing clinical disease. However if they haven’t come across the parasite before then they will be at a high risk of breaking down with clinical Theileriosis.

“If you are moving animals from one property to another, it is paramount that you try to assess the risk you face of running

into problems.

“Farmers should avoid exposing naïve animals to infected ticks six-eight weeks prior to calving/ peak milk production.

Most naïve dairy animals arrive in infected areas in May/June, two months prior to the major stress of calving and milk production.”

Theileria nymph.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

30 // ANIMAL HEALTH/FEED

Silage smells and what they may mean IAN WILLIAMS

I GREW up in town and

one of my distinct memories of summer and autumn when we went to visit our farming friends was the smell of silage. As a kid, silage always seemed to stink and it is a smell which has been imprinted on my brain.

Now I work with the stuff. I even have a personalised number plate with the word SILAGE on it! Whenever I introduce myself to people from town and they ask me what I do and I mention the word silage, they instantly screw up their noses and say something like “How can you work with that stuff, it stinks?” or they ask “Are you still

married?”

Prior to the maize silage making season, I thought it would be a good opportunity to run through some of those silage smells and outline what they may be telling us.

First, a word of precaution. If you want to smell your silage, don’t stick your nose into a handful and inhale deeply. Some silages may contain spores harmful to human health.

Put your silage sample on a flat surface and use your hand to waft the smell up to your nose.

That said, let’s get back to the odours.

Desirable smells: Little or no smell.

The most desirable end product of the fermentation process is lactic

acid. Lactic acid is nearly odourless. So if the silage doesn’t smell or has a slightly earthy smell that is a good sign.

Slightly vinegary. If you have used an inoculant like Pioneer brand 11C33 or 11CFT which contains L. buchneri, then a vinegar odour shows the bacteria have done their job. L. buchneri bacteria take lactic acid and convert it to acetic acid, making the silage less likely to heat when exposed to air. Acetic acid is what is in vinegar.

Undesirable smells: Vomit/rotten meat.

This is the smell I remember as a child, mainly in grass silage though. If the silage stinks, it has probably gone down a butyric acid fermentation path-

way. This usually happens when the silage contains a lot of soil or was harvested too wet. Not only do humans hate the butyric smell, cows do too and they usually need to be very hungry before they will eat the silage. It is important to note that this smell nearly always occurs in grass silage rather than maize silage.

Vinegar. If your maize hasn’t been inoculated with a proven L. buchneri inoculant (as outlined above) and it smells of vinegar (acetic acid), a less efficient fermentation has occurred, increasing feed losses and possibly decreasing palatability.

Alcohol, sweet, fruity, buttery or even butterscotch. The silage may smell really good to us but

If your silage doesn’t smell, that’s a good sign.

these smells all indicate the presence of yeast prior to the maize being fully fermented. Once again this means an inefficient fermentation pathway and greater energy and drymatter losses. Some farmers wrongly associate these smells with good silage.

Acetone (nail polish remover). This smell usually occurs once the stack has been opened and exposed to air. This is a precursor to rapid heating, and therefore losses.

Ammonia, caramel or tobacco. All these indicate heating when the silage was being ensiled.

Ammonia indicates the breakdown of feed protein and caramel and tobacco indicate the loss of sugar.

Cows often love tobacco smelling silage but usually turn their noses up at ammonia.

What to do about smells.

As always, the best way to ensure your maize doesn’t end up stinking is by doing everything right in the first place. I have covered how to make great silage in many previous articles but you may also want to read the following article: http://www. pioneer.co.nz/maize-silage/ product-information/silagetechnical-insights/storing-a-

maize-silage-crop.html If your silage does smell and your cows don’t want to eat it, the only solution is dilution.

Remove all obvious rot and mould, and then try to incorporate any bad smelling silage with a large amount of good smelling silage. Some farmers have found the addition of powdered molasses can help.

Finally, the best way to get an assessment of silage quality is to send a sample to a commercial feed testing laboratory.

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

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

32 // ANIMAL HEALTH

Focus on condition of individual cows John Roche, DairyNZ

A lot of research into body condition scoring has yielded overwhelming evidence to support DairyNZ targets at calving. The optimum BCS for mature cows at calving is 5.0. Heifers and young cows in their second lactation should calve at a score of 5.5. DairyNZ principal scientist animal science, John Roche, discusses the issue.

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birth to a heifer calf the following year.

If all that doesn’t convince you of its importance, the people who judge us by looking over the fence will think fatter cows are in a better welfare state than thin cows.

It is difficult to put a value on this. It is also important to realise that you cannot ‘fix’ a low BCS cow after calving.

Too fat is equally bad.

Although in the past, BCS advice has focused mainly on thin cows gaining BCS to meet targets at calving, a five year research partnership between DairyNZ and AgResearch has highlighted that fat cows may be equally compromised. For example, 40% of mature cows that calved at BCS 5.5 showed signs of ketosis after calving, even when well fed. In comparison, none of the cows that calved at BCS 4.5 to 5.0 showed signs of ketosis. All the research efforts point to BCS 5.0 as the optimum mature cows and BCS 5.5 for first and second calvers.

It is important to treat cows as individuals. All these results highlight the need to focus on the condition of individual cows, not just the herd average.

Having a herd average of 5.0, when one third of the herd is BCS 5.0, one third is BCS 4.0, and one third is BCS 6.0, will not provide you with the desired outcome.

In this situation, the cows at BCS 6.0 have been overfed during late lactation and the dry period, they do not return sufficient milk for the feed expense and are at an increased risk of metabolic diseases after calving.

In comparison, the cows at BCS 4.0 have been underfed, will cycle late, produce less milksolids than they should and will be thin at mating, reducing the likelihood of an AI calf next year.

So, what needs to be done?

Cows need to be condition scored in February and thin cows identified.

These cows need special attention; consider the following options: Dry them off early and feed them preferentially during the dry period.

With current low milk prices this is probably the best option.

They could be milked once-a-day. Although this will increase BCS, the effect is small. Eighty days of milking cows once-aday increased BCS by only 0.2 BCS compared with cows milked twice-a-day.

Continue to milk them and feed them preferentially. Although this seems logical, preferential feeding of thin cows in late lactation generally results in them producing more milk and has only a small effect on BCS. In addition, with the current milk price it may not be economic to do this.

It must be remembered that cows require adequate time and feed to gain condition. Cows gain very little condition in the month before calving because of the energy requirements of the growing calf and it is rare for cows to gain more than 0.5 BCS a month during the dry period – and this is presuming they are well fed.

To achieve calving BCS targets, cows at BCS 4.0 need to be dry for three months before calving and cows at BCS 3.5 need four months dry.

To gain BCS during the dry period, the cow needs to eat more.

The amount of feed required by a dry cow to gain condition can be found in the BCS reference guide on the DairyNZ website.

As an example, to gain half a BCS, a Friesian cow (about 500kg) needs to eat about 100kg DM pasture, 80kg DM pasture silage or maize silage, 60kg DM PKE, 110kg DM kale, 90kg DM swedes or 75kg DM of fodder beet in addition to the energy required for maintenance, pregnancy and limited activity.

• This article first appeared in Inside Dairy March 2015.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

MACHINERY & PRODUCTS // 33

Calf feeder for Kiwi farms A CALF feeding system

with potential to reduce labour costs and lead to overall herd improvements has been developed by a Kiwi engineer.

CalfSMART was inspired by a European farming system, but built with an understanding that New Zealand farms are different, says designer Ben Neal.

Neal, who is also CalfSMART’s general manager, spent five years working with dairy farm-

ers to develop New Zealand’s first purpose-built automated calf feeding system.

Raised on a dairy farm near Dannevirke, he completed a BEng (Automation) from Massey University and an NZCE Mechanical. He worked as a field engineer in the UK and in business development in the offshore oil and gas sector.

“I saw what was happening in Europe. I knew, having grown up on a dairy

Jake Eden with his calf Java Jade at the 2015 Wanaka A&P Show.

Big crowds flock back to show THE ANNUAL Wanaka A&P Show attracted 35,000

people, leaving organisers thrilled with the return of large crowds and some record entry numbers.

The 78th annual two-day show is one of Wanaka’s biggest events. An economic impact report is being prepared following the event.

Livestock and equestrian competitors, trade exhibitors and public from all over New Zealand attended.

This year, a record 290 combinations (i.e. one rider on several horses, or one horse with several riders) entered the equestrian competition, up 60 from last year. Sheep entries in the livestock competition were up 60 on last year, to 260. The total number of trade exhibitors came to 463, up on last year’s record of 418.

Show coordinator Jane Stalker says she’s thrilled with the turnout.

“The Wanaka Show is, at its heart, a community event that celebrates everything about the agricultural and pastoral industry.

“We have A&P families who have been coming to the show for generations. But we also love catering to the wider public, which is why we place great emphasis on entertaining our visitors. The end result is a hugely popular event.”

Owned by the not-for-profit Upper Clutha A&P Society, the show organisers last year gave $80,000 to community groups.

Speaker of the House and former Minister for Primary Industries David Carter opened the show.

farm, that their products weren’t strong enough for Kiwi farms and they were built for smaller cohorts of calves. If New Zealand dairy farmers are to benefit from the cost savings and improved calf rearing that you can achieve through an automated system then we needed a Kiwi solution - something that is tough enough and also intelligent enough to fix itself.”

The CalfSMART system can feed up to 200 calves in a standard four stall unit and can be scaled up to 20 stalls which will feed 1000 calves.

The entire CalfSMART is made with high-grade stainless steel - the stalls, the hopper, the tanks and the control panels. “It’s a locally built product that we’ll install for you, we offer local support, training and advice. This is our sole product, our technicians have one job, one area of expertise - no other supplier offers that,” says Neal.

The CalfSMART is selfcleaning, it has a built-in redundancy functionality to self-diagnose blockages and perform automatic pressure wash processes.

It automatically detects feed line leakages, blown pump hoses, low water

pressure and system wiring breaks (shorts) etc - sending you an alert.

Neal presented his idea to the BCC, business development organisation, which helped him refine his product and find investors, including Rural Fuel founder Larry Ellison, New Zealand Venture Investment Fund and MIG Angles.

The product was launched at the Central District Field Days with the first run of autumn systems sold and installed prior. CalfSmart is currently building product for the spring 2015 rearing season.

New Zealand has nearly 12,000 dairy herds that rear cohorts of calves ranging in size from less than 100 to over 250. The largest 15% of New Zealand’s dairy farms rear 35% of the entire country’s replacement heifers.

Traditionally, calf rearing has been carried out by farming families, however in recent years, as farms grow in size, this work has increasingly been carried out by a migratory workforce.

Neal says CalfSMART uses the latest intuitive technology to provide a reliable, consistent feed, it uses RFID tags to iden-

Ben Neal at the Central Districts field days.

tify and weigh each calf at each feed, allowing you to monitor and benchmark progress.

The webserver interface provides the ability to operate the system remotely, monitor calf feeding and weight data and benchmark progress against other farmers.

“Interestingly, the automated system is closer to how nature intended. In the natural environment, a calf will feed sporadically throughout the day. In a shed, calves feed twice a day, this can have implications given the calf’s stomach is only so big and the little ones have to compete.

CalfSMART allows the calf to pick and choose - just like nature intended. However, unlike in the natural environment all calves have the chance at feeding - even the little ones.

“Anyone who has raised calves knows that inconsistent feeding, cold milk, and environmental stress can lead to nutritional scours making calves weak and susceptible to infectious scours. Healthy calves put on weight faster, allowing them to reach their full potential earlier.”

Neal says the farmers his team have spoken to are always nervous about new staff and their stan-

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dards regarding calf rearing. “The time it takes to get staff up to speed, there’s always the nagging thought of what your staff are up to when you’re away, and nearly every season they move on and you have to start again. CalfSMART reduces labour costs and provides reassurance, taking some of the stress out of calf rearing.

“Another bonus of CalfSMART is that having developed it alongside Kiwi dairy farmers our team has built up a wealth of knowledge on calf rearing and we’re only too happy to share our learnings,” Neal says.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

34 // MACHINERY & PRODUCTS

New mid-power models lineup

Landini says its new midpower models are ideal for all types of farming.

LANDINI TRACTOR

supplier AgTek says the Italian company’s new 4 Series has expanded with three mid-power models: the 4-060 (64hp), 4-070

(69hp) and 4-080 (76hp).

They are available in 12F+12R speed mechanical (synchro shuttle) transmission or a hydraulic (power shuttle) versions

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with modulation control which offers 16F+16R speeds Platform and cab versions are offered, ideal for all types of farming from hay-making to front loader tasks, the company says.

They also suit orchard and vineyard use since their overall width can be as narrow as 1.73m.

The compact range is powered by Deutz Tier 4 engines with DOC oxidation catalyst, which do not require a DPF filter and subsequent regeneration cycles at high temperature.

The tractors come with a servo-assisted mechanical or electro-hydraulically engaged PTO, and a 49L/min + 28L/min steering circuit with two rear remote valves. Mechanically controlled rear linkage provides 2700kg lift capacity upgradeable to 3400kg with an additional cylinder. Argo’s own front axle has a limited slip system for optimum traction and electro-hydraulic 4WD engagement.

Noted for its specialised tractors, Landini is showing its REX series with new design features such as cab restyling – especially functional use of colour – and bonnets made of polymeric materials for superior strength and weather resistance.

The core parts of the tractor remain unchanged, AgTek says.

The ‘F’(fruit), ‘GE’ (ground effect-low) and ‘GT’ (standard) versions are powered by 3- or 4-cylinder Perkins engines with maximum power ratings from 68hp to 110hp. Two

transmissions are available, the basic version having three ranges and five gears providing 15 + 15 speed ratios.

An optional transmission, ‘PowerFive’, is built on the same architecture but also has an electro-hydraulic HI-LO that doubles the speeds available to 30+30. A de-clutch button on ‘power reverse’ transmission eases gear shifting. Also available is a creeper which provides up to 40 + 40 speed ratios by operating only on the two low ranges.

A split hydraulic circuit has 100L/min flow in the triple pump configuration, supplying up to six control valves and the rear power lift with 2600kg maximum lifting capacity (3250kg for the GT version).

Meanwhile, showing at the SIMA exhibition in Paris last month was the articulated version of the Landini 9000 series, important in the maker’s high-range equal-wheel tractors.

The 9095 and 90105 models feature FPT 4-cylinder 3.2L Tier 3 engines with 88hp and 95hp power ratings, respectively.

One of the principal features of the 9000 Series is its Argo Tractors original 16 FWD + 16 REV mechanical synchro shuttle and creeper as standard equipment (from 0.8 to 40km/h).

All functions can be operated by easy, userfriendly controls with balanced integration of mechanics, hydraulics and electronics.

Tel. 07 573 8132 www.agtek.co.nz Landini offers platform and cab versions.

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

MACHINERY & PRODUCTS // 35

Feeders feature better solutions, smart design TWO NEW Agmech feed

out options will be available this autumn from South Canterbury machinery maker Duncan Ag. The company says the machinery will embody all-round farm solutions and smart design. And it is extending a special finance offer to ease farmers into tools to improve productivity.

General manager Craig McIsaac says the company knows of farmers’ increasing need to get as much value as possible out of their machinery, including the firm’s recently acquired Agmech range and its Duncan Ag drills and accessories.

“We like to think of ourselves as designers and makers of smart farming multi-tools – implements that deliver heaps of versatility as well as proven build quality,” McIsaac says.

For example, the new Agmech Multi Plus is a “perfect multi-tool wagon that can feed anything from pit silage, round bales and square bales to fodder beet and maize”.

“It’s not your normal multi wagon, in that it

has 450mm high sides to increase the capacity which means it can then double as a silage wagon.

Normal wagon sides are only 200mm high, so this makes quite a difference.

“It also means farmers can use just one machine to do several jobs, which saves time, money and labour.”

The Agmech Multi Plus will come in a four bale size, with a capacity of 12m3 of silage.

Also new for autumn is the Fodder Chopper, designed for easy maintenance and nonstop delivery of any vegetable, root, maize, meal or nut crop.

“It chops a tonne of crop in two minutes even with foreign objects mixed in and, like the Multi Plus, it combines efficiency, high build quality and versatility to help farmers maintain productivity,” McIsaac says.

“Production systems on many large farms mean supplements will remain on the menu notwithstanding tighter budgets this season; what we’re aiming to do with the likes of these new machines is make sure farmers have

Farmers can use one machine to do several jobs.

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the tools they need to manage and handle that feed quickly, efficiently and reliably.”

McIsaac says the special finance offer centres on extended payment terms and reduced interest on at least a dozen different AgMech models, including the multi feed-

ers, forage wagons, and trailers.

Duncan Ag has cut interest rates on the range to 2.9%, with one third of the price paid at purchase and the balance due in two payments over the following 24 months.

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The new Agmech Multi Plus can double as a silage wagon.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

36 // TRACTORS & MACHINERY

John Smith has six Valtras in his fleet.

Stockman prefers gear that frees him for husbandry A SOUTHLAND farmer’s liking

THE ULTIMATE fEED OUT TOOL pit SILAGE // BALEAGE // STRAW // FODDER BEET // SQUARE // ROUND // SINGLE BALE // MULTI-BALE

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For your local dealer or to discuss directly, contact: 0800 177 171 • admin@duncanag.co.nz

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for Valtra tractors coincided with his beginnings in dairy support, reports supplier Agco.

John Smith, of Wendonside, loves working with animals and is at heart a stockman. His main source of income is dairy support, and he farms Romney cross Texel sheep.

Smith says his interest in machinery is based solely on how it helps him care for his stock, and the Valtra’s – he now owns six – have served that purpose.

“I bought the first Valtra six years ago, when we first started getting into dairy support. It was good value for money, reliable and easy to drive. I’ve found that anyone can jump in and operate one without drama.”

He has since bought a new one every year.

Though the farm has three permanent workers, it is a family operation: Smith’s wife Diane runs the farm office, their three sons do most of the baling in the summer holidays and their two daughters help on the farm.

Smith started out with 400ha in the late 1970s and now farms 1220ha.

Sheep alone weren’t profitable enough, so he moved into dairy support. With the dairy grazing came the need for baleage and more copping, requiring more machinery.

They now winter 6600 cows and 570 yearlings, and run 4500 sheep.

They require 340ha of kale, 120ha of swedes and 100ha of barley for wholecrop. Whole-crop and grass baleage adds up to 9000 bales a year, keeping the tractors busy.

Smith’s tractors are Valtra N Series. These have a long wheelbase, good for loader work, and they are stable and versatile, Agco says.

John Smith says the tractors are good value for money.

“We chose mid-size tractors.

That way we can have more of them and more flexibility, especially in November when we’re putting in crop and making baleage. We can also use smaller gear. And these tractors have better re-sale value than bigger ones.”

Smith’s policy is to sell a tractor after five or six years when it has done 5000 hours.

Valtra tractors are custom built to fit the needs of the buyer, but Smith tends to stick to basic models. “The last two have had more electronics but the previous ones were more basic.”

The oldest is an N111e (126hp). It usually tows the 3.5m discs and harrows.

Then there are three N101s (114hp). They have loaders and move a lot of baleage and do the feeding out in winter. They also pull a 12 tonne roller, 24m sprayer and, during the

baling season, one takes the mower and another takes the rake.

The newest two are an N122 and an N123 (135hp). They work a six-furrow plough and a combi baler. These two have cab suspension, “a big improvement that takes the jarring out and you don’t get thrown around as much.

Any new tractor we get will now have that and loader suspension.”

Valtra has a range of transmissions. The N123 is a Hi Tech 5, with 20 forward and 20 reverse gears. They are in four ranges with five steps. The driver can manually move through the gears with the push of a switch, or can set it to automatic.

Smith bought his Valtras from JJ Ltd in Gore and he says they are one of the reasons he has stuck with Valtra.

JJs does the major 1000 hour services, Smith gets on with farming.

Tel. 027 270 8027 www.agco.com.au

DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

TRACTORS & MACHINERY // 37

Smarter and bigger sprayer does more contractor George Tepper works faster for longer each day with a new RoGator RG900 self-propelled sprayer, says supplier Croplands.

Tepper and his wife Jessie-May run Ngapara Crop Services from their home at Ngapara, inland from Oamaru.

The Teppers bought the machine last August, looking for more capacity and features.

“We were looking for a machine that could do more than we were doing before – more work in the same time,” Tepper says. “We had to look for a slightly bigger machine with more capacity and more power.”

Croplands says he considered another sprayer but settled on the RoGator because of its high specifications.

Says Tepper, “It’s well spec’d out for what we wanted to do and it has the ability to spray everything that we needed.”

Most of Ngapara Crop Services’ work is on dairy farms, applying Pro Gibb and liquid N and spraying out pasture. Spraying feed crops such as fodder beet and kale is also a big part of the work, and a small amount of grain crops.

The RoGator RG900 has a 30m boom, whereas Tepper’s previous machine had a 24m boom.

RoGator booms are said to set the industry benchmark for control and accuracy and have stable pressure over their entire length.

“The longer boom means we can get across the ground quicker and we can cover more ground.

It also has the automatic boom height control so it adjusts it for us. You set everything before you get to the paddock and then just drive it,” says Tepper.

Raven AutoBoom improves the RoGator’s accuracy when spraying and helps avoid costly damage to the boom wings.

“A lot of our work is on hills so that’s where you’re always working your boom height,” Tepper says. “The machine’s boom height sensors… make a lot less

work for me. It’s one less worry when you’re working on hills, as you have a lot to concentrate on when you’re spraying. It makes life a lot easier for me.”

The RG900 also has GPS auto steer. Combined with the automatic boom height control, the auto steer puts Tepper under less stress in the cab and he can put in a longer day.

At 280hp, the RG900 is twice as powerful as Tepper’s previous sprayer. It has four-wheel steer and 4WD hydro transmission.

“The extra power means we can drive faster and cover more ground….

When you’re going on a hill it’s important. The slowest you can go uphill limits what size nozzle you can use, so your slowest speed governs your top speed downhill too.”

The RoGator RG900 also saves time: it does 50km/h on the road, and it has a 3500L tank, which means less time spent refilling.

Its hydraulically adjustable wheel track can be extended to 4.0m wide for stability on hills. And the adjustable track means it can move quickly and easily among a wide variety of crops, crop heights and field conditions.

“You can widen out your wheels for stability when you’re working on the hills; that’s a great feature. It helps get to those places that you’d normally feel uncomfortable with,” Tepper says.

Air suspension with an anti-roll system on the front and rear axles smooth out the ride, while keeping the booms at a consistent height.

The machine’s pressurised cab keeps chemicals out. The cab is designed for maximum operator comfort and ease.

The Raven Viper GPS controller has a weather station and a Slingshot system which transfers job data back to the office computer.

“The weather station is a great feature and allows me to constantly monitor the conditions while spraying. The Slingshot allows me to record

weather data and coverage mapping to send to clients when the job is completed.”

The RoGator management centre displays the engine and drive status, and critical liquid system

parameters including wheel tracking, field lighting and foam marking.

Four RoGator models are available, from 2650L to 6000L tank capacity.

Tel. 027 248 6822 www.croplands.co.nz

George Tepper’s RoGator RG900 gets its stability on hills from its adjustable wheel track that extends out to 4m.

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DAIRY NEWS MARCH 24, 2015

38 // TRACTORS & MACHINERY McCormick’s new X.7 series come with upgraded engines and transmission.

X.7 series bring things up to dates MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz

MCCORMICK TRACTORS have a heritage

dating back to the 1830s, when Cyrus Hall McCor-

mick patented the reaper binder - the new McCormick X.7 series brings things up to date.

The recently released X.7 series from the Argo tractors stable replaces the well liked MTX models

with upgraded engines and transmissions, while retaining key features such as the full cast chassis and independent front suspension.

With six models from 145 to 200hp, all X.7 series models use the “Betapower” engine from FPT to Tier 4 interim standard, and using AdBlue treatment for an effective exhaust emission clean-up.

These engines are electronically controlled, and offer up to an additional 25hp for transport or PTO operations, thereby maintaining speed and productivity in tough conditions A major change sees the inclusion of a ZF sourced transmission to ensure this power is directed through the wheels and down to the ground. The semi-powershift drive offers six main ranges, coupled with four powershift steps, allowing 24 forward and 24 reverse speeds from 3.4 to 50km/h, so always ensuring the right gear ratio for any job.

For those needing even slower speeds a creep option offers an additional 16 speeds right down to 420 metres per hour at a rated speed of 2200rpm. Standard features include the norms of speed matching, auto powershift and shuttle modulation. McCormick has also announced the release of a stepless, CVT style transmission option to the NZ market-

place in the last quarter of the year.

As part of the NZ standard package the x.7 will be offered with standard features of independent front suspension, hydraulic cabin suspension, and the obligatory 50km/h which is preferred by contractors and farmers with run-off blocks that are any distance away from the home base.

The rear of the tractor offers a capable output with a lift capacity of 9300kg which should cope easily with most mounted implements, and a closed centre/load sensing system, with a total output of 167 litres per minute and 123 litres per minute available through the four standard double acting rear remote valves.

Topping off the package sees the introduction of the “Premiere” cabin package which seeks to offer the driver an environment that is comfortable for long hours, and thereby ensures productivity.

An air suspension seat, pneumatic cab suspension, and automatic climate control starts the ball rolling, and digital displays and arm rest controls ensure machine functions and driver ergonomics are taken care of, The buddy seat and hi-vis roof complete the package and should ensure long days are worked with ease.

Now with AGTEK’s industry leading 4/4 Warranty (4 years or 4000 hours)

X7 New Kid on The Block.

Crime buster at field days

Tough and sturdy like its American forebears but with the most performance-oriented cutting-edge technology developed in Europe and the breathtaking, exclusive elegance of Italian design: if you really want the utmost in terms of efficiency, operator comfort and style don’t compromise, choose McCormick.

WAIKATO POLICE are hoping the sight of a ‘POLICE’

Distributed by

Contact us for further information and your nearest dealer.

p: +64 7 573 8132 www.agtek.co.nz McCormick is a worldwide brand of the ARGO Group of Companies

branded tractor at regional field days will encourage farmers to get involved in rural crime prevention.

Inspector Paul Carpenter says the police are “always keen to introduce new and novel initiatives to highlight rural crime. Waikato has been at the forefront of these endeavours with things such as mounted patrols at key public events and the new red-and-orange hi-visibility patrol cars on state highways.”

So talks with CB Norwood Distributors led to the company lending a New Holland tractor for the season. – Mark Daniel

0800-123-PKE

Reliable supply direct to farmers.

Unrivalled access to grain and feedstuffs.

Competitive pricing

North Island Kevin Mayall 027-52-88-528 South Island Sid Russell 027-52-88-529

www.admnewzealand.co.nz

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