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Fat sources in milk replacers.
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NEWS Training at the touch of the phone. PAGE 16
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TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS NOVEMBER 2, 2021: ISSUE 738
www.ruralnews.co.nz
Farm costs soar! SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
DAYS AFTER Fonterra lifted the forecast milk price mid-point to a record level, farmers have been hit with sharp increases in fertiliser prices. Both big farmer-owned fertiliser cooperatives Ballance and Ravensdown lifted prices last week. Ballance told its farmer customers that the price of its SustaiN product
had gone up by $100 to $999/tonne from October 28th. Urea rose by $117 to $960/tonne. Ravensdown also lifted its N-Protect product price by $100 to $999. Urea moved from $845 to $950/t. Federated Farmers dairy section chair Chris Lewis told Rural News that farmers are facing price rises on several fronts: staff costs, fuel prices and rates for hiring tradies and contractors.
At the same time, banks are raising interest rates. He says an $8/kgMS payout “is only keeping up” with the rising costs. Ballance Agri-Nutrients told farmers that the cost of urea production “is increasing significantly on the back of sharply rising energy costs”. “In the last three months, the import price has increased by close to US$200/tonne and we now need to pass some of these costs on,” Bal-
Outstanding in her field! Hawke’s Bay farmer Maddy McLean and husband Andrew – pictured with children Olivia and Oscar – farm 1036 hectares (885 effective) of hill country about half an hour south of Waipukurau, trading lambs and bulls, as well as breeding ewes. In this issue she reflects on how the traditional role of women in agriculture has evolved. She also discusses how she gained the skills, knowledge and confidence to contribute to both the day-to-day and business sides of her farm. See full story pages 18-19.
lance sales manager Jason Minkhorst told farmers in an email. “In addition to energy costs, high global demand for arable crops has squeezed the global supply of nutrients, resulting in pricing volatility that is expected to continue over the coming months. “Ensuring that you have a reliable and consistent source of sustainable nutrients remains our priority and we will keep you updated through
the tail end of spring.” Ravensdown acting general manager customer relationships Gary Bowick told farmers that while spring is in full swing, global commodity trends, international demand for fertiliser and shipping costs have continued their upward trend. “This has resulted in a necessary adjustment to urea prices,” Bowick says. Lewis points out that there are additional costs to what the store charges for fertiliser. “There’s cartage costs plus spreading costs of between $100 and $300/ tonne; growing grass isn’t cheap.” Lewis says supplement feed is also costly. “Buying palm kernel expeller (PKE) which is close to $400 is not a viable alternative either. “What’s the plan? Industry groups have been silent on giving advice.” Last week, Fonterra announced a 40c rise to its forecast milk price midpoint to $8.40/kgMS. If achieved, the milk price would match the record price paid by Fonterra in the 2013-14 season. The co-operative’s new forecast milk price range has been narrowed to $7.90 - $8.90/kgMS. Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell says the lift in the price range is a result of continued demand for New Zealand dairy relative to supply. Hurrell says it’s still early in the season, a lot can change, and there can be increased volatility when prices are high.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 3 ISSUE 738
www.ruralnews.co.nz
NEWS �������������������������������������� 1-17 AGRIBUSINESS ����������������18-19 HOUND, EDNA ���������������������� 20 CONTACTS ����������������������������� 20 OPINION ��������������������������� 20-23 MANAGEMENT �������������� 24-25 ANIMAL HEALTH ������������26-27 MACHINERY AND PRODUCTS ���������������������� 28-30 RURAL TRADER �������������� 30-31
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Reaction to the Government’s mandated 3 Waters reform has been strong in provincial NZ, with regional Labour MPs such as Rangitata’s Jo Luxton feeling the wrath of local sentiment.
‘State-sanctioned theft’!
Phone: 09-307 0399 Fax: 09-307 0122 POSTAL ADDRESS PO Box 331100, Takapuna, Auckland 0740 Published by: Rural News Group Printed by: Inkwise NZ Ltd CONTACTS Editorial: editor@ruralnews.co.nz Advertising material: davef@ruralnews.co.nz Rural News online: www.ruralnews.co.nz Subscriptions: subsrndn@ruralnews.co.nz
DAVID ANDERSON
GOVERNMENT PLANS to push through its controversial three waters reforms – taking over the control of water services and assets from local councils – has been labelled theft. Initially Labour promised the changes would be voluntary, but now it’s taking the assets by force. National’s local government spokesman Chris Luxon told Rural News the move “smacks of arrogance and government overreach”. Despite the wholesale opposition, Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta last week announced that the Government would legislate in early December to create four new water entities that would eventually take
over the water assets currently owned by councils. She will also establish a new ‘working group’ to work on how these entities will be governed. Mahuta’s reform of the country’s three water services – drinking, waste and storm water – has caused derision and outrage from the vast majority of the country’s councils, which currently have ownership of billions of dollars’ worth of water assets. Many have loudly opposed it. “It is state-sanctioned theft,” Luxon says. “By jamming through the reforms, it proves this government is obsessed with centralisation and control.” He has labelled Mahuta and the Ardern government “arrogant” for not listening to the overwhelming council and public opposition to the reforms.
“This is an asset grab and a clear case of the Government doing whatever it wants regardless of how strongly New Zealanders object to their overwhelming desire for centralisation.” Farmers and rural residents have consistently spoken out strongly against the reforms since they were first mooted. Federated Farmers says it opposes the mandated changes. “Top of the list are issues around governance and accountability. The complexity of rural water scheme ownership and operations has got rural people worried,” Feds president Andrew Hoggard says. He also questions how the four new mega water entities will ensure the needs of smaller and rural communities are not crowded out.
Technically, councils will still own the assets, but will not have a shareholding in the water entity to which they belong. Councils will also have very limited influence over the boards of the entities, which they’ll be two steps removed from. Luxon says the four-entity model is fundamentally broken. “It will create needless bureaucracy, strip away local control, and put distance between communities and decision-makers. Water services will be controlled by a complex smorgasbord of unelected appointees and officials.” Both National and Act have promised to repeal the reforms if elected back into government. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
4 NEWS
Mandatory meat sector vaccines still up in the air SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
MANDATORY VACCINATION against Covid-19 for meat sector workers is still up in the air. Meat companies support the Government’s plans for a clear and simplified risk assessment process to help them decide whether or not they wish to make vaccinations mandatory at their plants. However, Meat Industry Association chief executive Sirma Karapeeva told Rural News that mandatory vaccinations are “just one tool in the tool box”. “Our industry is operating under strict protocols to ensure the sector’s continuing operations do not compromise people’s safety or contribute to the spread of Covid-19.” A major issue facing meat companies is how
to handle mandatory vaccinations for Maori and Pacific Islanders, two groups lagging behind in vaccinations. Karapeeva wouldn’t say how many meat processor staff are fully vaccinated. “While employee vaccination information is private, our meat processing and exporting companies have indicated that staff vaccination rates are broadly in line with uptake rates in their regions, although this will vary from plant to plant and region to region,” she says. “Our companies are working hard to ensure as many of our people are vaccinated against Covid19. This includes offering on-site vaccinations and various incentives. “Māori and Pasifika make up a significant proportion of our workforce and we recognise these groups in particular are lagging behind others in
RAPID TEST SUPPORT MEAT PROCESSORS support the roll-out of rapid antigen tests in New Zealand. MIA chief executive Sirma Karapeeva says being able to test a proportion of workers every day will provide an extra layer of protection for the workforce. It would also ensure that if a worker is infected, the spread of the infection can be much more rapidly identified and controlled. “We welcome the Government’s recognition that having a fully vaccinated workforce can support continued access to our global markets and we look forward to the details on how this will be applied,” she says.
Covid-19 vaccinator Leanne Allnutt administers a jab to Roddy Brown of Blue Mountain Station on a recent visit to the Mackenzie Country station by a team from the South Canterbury DHB last month.
getting vaccinated. “Some processing companies have partnered with Māori health providers to promote clinics as a way to lift vaccination rates.”
Currently, meat companies can make Covid19 vaccination a health and safety requirement at plants, but this is a difficult and complex process and requires companies
to undertake an assessment of the different risks of vaccinated people versus unvaccinated people, notes Karapeeva. “It is critical that all workers are vaccinated to
provide a shield against Covid-19, especially for meat processing where workers are working close together for long shifts. “We applaud the Government for taking this step.” Last week, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Michael Wood agreed to provide businesses not covered by vaccine certificates greater clarity on whether
they can mandate vaccines. Wood says this process will provide businesses with a clear and simplified legal framework to make decisions about requiring staff to be vaccinated or not. The risk assessment will build on the guidance provided by WorkSafe, with input from public health officials, business representatives and unions.
MASSEY’S BEST AG STUDENTS FOR 2021 MASSEY UNIVERSITY agricultural students have responded well to online learning in the present Covid19 environment. Head of Massey’s school of Agricultural and Environment, Paul Kenyon, says it’s clear students have been disappointed at the cancellation of numerous physical activities they would normally do as part of their degrees. He says to make up for it, staff
have created equivalent online activities to ensure that the students have met their learning objective. “Despite the best efforts, the online activities never fully replace hands-on activities,” Kenyon told Rural News. “The students have adapted and coped very well and, remember, the modern student is very good at handling electronic media sources.” He says it was probably more
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of challenge for staff to adapt their teaching to develop virtual field trips. But Kenyon says the farms involved were very helpful in terms of providing a virtual alternative and the students seem to respond to that quite well it. Normally at this time of the year, Massey stages a special dinner to honour its top ag students, but this was also cancelled due to Covid.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 5
Overseer overused in wrong way WHERE TO NOW?
PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
THERE IS a lot of misunderstanding about Overseer, according to the company that owns the tool. The software tool was designed to measure and regulate nutrient loss from farms. However, chief executive Dr Caroline Read says it’s not surprising that Overseer has ended up in a bad space. She says this is primarily because it is being used by some regional councils as a regulatory tool, which it was never designed to be. Read’s comments come amidst ongoing debate about the place of Overseer as a tool to assist farmers determine N loss as part of their farm management plans. There have been calls for Overseer to be scrapped altogether, and a recent comprehensive review of it questioned its veracity to be embedded as a regulatory tool. The overall collective reaction seems to have sided with the notion of keeping Overseer, upgrading it and better defining exactly what it’s capable of doing and not doing. Reed says Overseer is certainly not broken as some people would
AGRICULTURE
DR CAROLINE Read says Overseer is anything but broken and the company is keen to retain the simple structure of the product so that it can be continually upgraded and redeveloped for the future needs of the primary sector. “Last year we have had three module upgrades and so we are continually upgrading it,” she told Rural News. “So when we added urea inhibitors we made changes and when we added plantain we made changes to effects it might have on nitrate leaching.” She says they are constantly aiming to add things into the model to give farmers more options to choose from. “In order to do that, you need to keep the modelling as simple as possible so that you have got the greatest amount of flexibility to manoeuvre.” Read says using Overseer as a regulatory tool that produces a specific number is not a good use of the tool. She says the aim is help farmers meet regulatory targets and for regional councils to have confidence in those proposals. “As I see it, Overseer may be one of multiple tools used to support regional councils to make good decisions and enable farmers and regulators to engage and for everyone to understand why decisions are made.”
Caroline Read (inset) says Overseer is a useful tool if used to help underpin good nitrogen management plans for farms.
suggest and says many simply don’t understand it. “The Science Advisory Panel (SAP) that recently reviewed it didn’t have real clarity about what they were assessing Overseer against. “They essentially came out and said it didn’t provide you with a really highly accurate real time measure of N loss,” she
told Rural News. “I couldn’t agree more. It doesn’t do that and the way it’s structured, it is never going to do that” She adds if people have a need for a real time measuring tool for regulation, that’s not Overseer. “And good luck to someone building a tool like that with the data available.”
Read says looking back on the history of Overseer, it seems that one of the problems was that because it had an amalgam of owners – Ag Research, MPI and the fertiliser industry – there was no real spokesperson for it. She says it was initially aimed at pastoral farmers and later modified to include the arable sector and mixed farming,
plus commercial growing. “Then the regional councils thought it was something they could use and everyone said ‘yes’.” She says, at that point, Overseer rose in status from being a good farm management tool to suddenly finding itself incorporated into law by being embedded into regional council plans – despite strident opposition from
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qualified planner to write a document that simply explained the best ways to use Overseer. She says this was to point out that it is a really useful tool if used in the broader sense to help underpin good nitrogen management plans for farms. “But it is not about determining an exact leaching number from a farm.”
farming groups. Read claims that scientists associated with Overseer at the time gave expert evidence at hearings where it was being promoted to clearly state its capabilities and limitations. But it appears that their evidence and advice fell on deaf ears. In 2016 a company, Overseer Limited, was established to run the software tool. Read says one of the first things she initiated was appointing a
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
6 NEWS
An answer looking for a problem? NO CLASH BETWEEN NEW AND OLD
NIGEL MALTHUS
NZ’S LATEST farming fad – regenerative agriculture (RA) – is getting a boost with more taxpayer funded backing. A series of research projects, funded by a series of government bodies, include looking at whether regenerative agriculture offers ‘naturebased’ solutions for climate change in New Zealand. The project has seen a number of ‘working parties’ produce 20 reports, the first four of which were released on October 29, with the rest to be released over the next few weeks. The project is led by Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research senior researcher Dr Gwen Grelet and independent social researcher and sheep and beef farmer Sam Lang. Grelet says traditional agricultural science takes a linear approach: knowledge from a single research discipline (such as plant breeding) is shared from scientists to farmers, who might then adopt one change and observe the result. She claims RA research demands a ‘complexity aware’ approach, in which farmers are research partners, and knowledge comes from multiple disciplines and sources of innovation. However, Lincoln University professor of Agricultural Science Jon Hickford strongly defends mainstream agricultural research against
JON HICKFORD says agricultural scientists are already looking at the effectiveness of our farming systems and trying to improve them. He gives as examples on-farm research trying to reduce carbon footprint and methane production. Meanwhile, Hickford says claims of big chasms between ecology and traditional agricultural teaching at university level are “garbage”. “Students are already able to major in environmental management, while doing Agricultural Science degrees.” He says subjects such as the nitrogen cycle cannot be taught without covering its environmental and ecological impacts. “We teach about the consequences and the impacts of farming at all levels, across most of the component disciplines of agriculture.”
Lincoln University professor of Agricultural Science Jon Hickford warns against diverting an already limited public purse away from traditional research.
the claim that regenerative agriculture requires a new approach. As the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science (NZIAHS) president, Hickford was instrumental in producing a special edition of the NZIAHS magazine last December, strongly disputing many of RA’s claims. He says the danger of
using the term regenerative agriculture is the implication that how we currently farm in New Zealand is in some way degenerative. “We’ve got some of the most, if not the most carbon-efficient production systems in the world,” he told Rural News. “Our pastoral production systems, sheep, beef and dairy, are argu-
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ably the best in the world anyway.” Hickford warns against diverting an already limited public purse away from traditional research. Meanwhile, in a foreword to the release of the first reports, it claims interest in RA has been steadily increasing among New Zealand farmers, industry, processors and
marketers. The report says this highlights the need to better understand what it means in the New Zealand context – and for scientific testing of its claimed benefits. It does, however, concede that RA’s definitions are “fluid and numerous” and vary depending on places and cultures. “The lack of a crystalclear definition makes it a
challenging study subject. RA is not a ‘thing’ that can be put in a clearly defined experimental box nor be dissected methodically.” Grelet admits that RA is not a magic bullet, but she claims its grassroots popularity with farmers and incentives for adoption from some of the world’s largest food companies means it has potential for driving the transformation of New Zealand’s agri-food system. But Hickford says the big challenge for regenerative agriculture is to show its value proposition to New Zealand farmers. “We’re all for doing science but be wary about claims in the marketplace that are unverified.” He notes that not only have the likes of the NZ Merino Company and Beef+Lamb New Zealand declared an interest in
RA, but so have multinationals including Nestlé and Pepsi whose purpose is to “buy low and sell high”. He says this won’t necessarily be to the benefit of farmers. Hickford says the argument that RA, like organics, has a high value proposition sounds compelling but is “untestable at this stage”. “The net benefit economically of these systems might be quite small, if they exist at all. We’ve got to test it out, but I think you’re playing a high stakes game if you take the whole production system down a new and uncharted pathway.” The RA research project has been funded by the Our Land and Water National Science Challenge, the NEXT Foundation and Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 7
Infant formula woes hit Mataura! SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
CHINA’S INFANT formula market upheaval is creating short-term challenges for Southland milk processor Mataura Valley Milk (MVM). Its third party customer base is dwindling as customers deal with inventory issues triggered by changing dynamics in China. MVM is 75% owned by a2 Milk Company (a2), which is also facing declining volumes in
facility – one of the most technically advanced nutritional sites globally. He says the purchase allows the company access to existing supply agreements with local farmers engaged to supply the highest quality milk and significantly transition to A1-protein free in three seasons. It also provides a2 supplier and geographic diversification and complements existing supply from Synlait. While the Chinese infant formula market
to adapt their growth strategy. “We have reviewed our brand positioning to ensure continued distinctiveness and to cap-
ture the full potential of our China label and English label products in key channels.” @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
Infant formula market upheaval in China is creating challenges for Southland milk processor Mataura Valley Milk.
As a2 expands its product portfolio in the future, MVM will have a key role in the production process. infant formula sales in China. At an a2 investor presentation last week, MVM chief executive Bernard May says the short-term outlook for Mataura is “more challenging than anticipated”. The drop in infant formula business means the factory will be producing more commodity products – whole milk and skim milk powders. This will adversely impact earnings, he says. However, a2 plans to increase MVM utilisation over time. Next year it will start producing a2 instant WMP. The plant is expected to reach profitability within five years. May says as a2 expands its product portfolio in the future, MVM will have a key role in the production process. a2 is also looking at MVM making its infant formula brands alongside Synlait for both English and Chinese labels. A blending and canning facility is also being planned at Mataura. a2 acquired the majority stake in MVM three months ago for $268 million from China Animal Husbandry Group (CAHG), which will retain a 25% interest. May told investors that MVM is a world-class
remains the largest and most attractive in the world, volume growth is declining. At last week’s investor presentation, a2 chief market strategist Eleanor Khor noted that with declining volumes, retail pricing is also now under pressure and making conditions even more challenging is the fact that consumers are no longer actively prioritising international brands: instead, they are looking for brands that resonate, and local competitors are more effectively connecting with consumers in their home market than multinational corporations. “This is potentially unsurprising given the speed at which the consumer landscape is evolving. Generations are getting ‘shorter’ and the market is now made up of mostly post-‘90s mums with very different attitudes and behaviours,” says Khor. The changing Chinese market has prompted a change in a2’s growth strategy. Managing director David Bortolussi says the China infant milk formula market has experienced unprecedented change over the past 12 months, which has required them
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
8 NEWS
Engine room of NZ economy SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
DEPARTING LIC chief executive Wayne McNee is proud of his contribu-
tion to the farmer-owned co-operative. McNee joined LIC after his role as the first Director General of the Ministry for Pri-
Authority. “I wanted to move to the private sector after 18 years in the state sector,” he says. “I wanted to work in
mary Industries (MPI). He led the merger of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Ministry of Fisheries and the New Zealand Food Safety
LIC chief executive Wayne McNee leaves his role later this month.
NEW BOSS SOON AN ANNOUNCEMENT on the new chief executive for LIC will be made shortly, says chairman Murray King. He told the recent LIC annual meeting that the board is progressing with its appointment of a successor to McNee and is in the final stages of selection. “An announcement will be made shortly but the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic have delayed the process,” he says. King thanked McNee for his service.
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the dairy industry as in my view it is the engine room of the New Zealand economy. It was then, it is now, and it will be for many years to come. While other sectors come and go, the dairy industry leads the way.” McNee steps down later this month satisfied with the contribution he has made to LIC and the contribution the co-op makes to the country’s dairy industry. “LIC has transformed over the last 10 years into a modern, progressive cooperative.” He lists the ongoing investment LIC makes into R&D and the benefits that brings the sector: over 6% of revenue goes to R&D, the highest percentage of any established company in the New Zealand food and fiber sectors. “Being a co-operative helps LIC have a longterm focus, investing in science, which may not pay back for a decade or may never even pay back – like our research into genomics, low methane
emitting cows, and heat tolerant cows.” McNee notes that LIC provides 75% of dairy and beef genetics in the sector. “That genetic gain is so important,” he says. McNee believes the purpose of genomics in animal evaluation is to predict the future. He says it enables elite young bulls to be used for artificial breeding, effectively fast-tracking genetic gain to breed a more sustainable animal. “Increasing genetic gain through breeding the best quality heifer calves has become an even more valued aspect of dairy farmers’ seasonal focus, and genomics is one of the critical technologies to help farmers breed more productive and climate-friendly cows.” McNee puts down LIC’s success to its people, who he says are passionate about serving the dairy sector. “It is and will always remain a very important part of the New Zealand dairy industry,” he says.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 9
Funding for sheep and beef carers BEEF+LAMB NEW Zealand (B+LNZ) will help fund a programme to attract and train more young people to work in the red meat sector. B+LNZ is backing the Growing Future Farmers (GFF) Essential Farm Skills Programme, which offers a range of specialised industry training and development opportunities across the country – including formal New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) qualifications. The funding will see enrolled learners get a boost of $500 each in 2021. GFF will also receive a cash injection of $25,000 towards running the programme. “Farmers have told us how important building the next generation is to them and emphasised that they wanted us to focus on initiatives
that would build practical capability behind the farm gate, so B+LNZ is implementing that approach,” says chief executive Sam McIvor. GFF chair John Jackson welcomed the support saying it was a significant step in the growth and development of the programme. “The success of this initiative is very much dependent on support from wider industry participants as it relies on our farmer trainers who sponsor our students in the workplace as they learn.” Jackson says currently GFF has 45 student trainees on farms throughout New Zealand and it expecting to start a further 70 first year students next February. Wairarapa’s Palliser Ridge currently has two GFF students and farm
manager Kurt Portas says the programme is a good transition for school leavers to get into the industry. “At Palliser Ridge, we’ve been involved with the GFF programme since its inception. There is some great agricultural training happening all over the country, but we need more of it and at a larger scale to keep our industry thriving.” McIvor says the funding is part of B+LNZ’s commitment to investing in and supporting the growing, training and retaining of people in the red meat sector. “As well as having our own initiatives, B+LNZ collaborates with and provides funding support for other sector organisations to attract, train and retain the talent we need to drive the sector forward.”
GFF chair John Jackson says the funding is a significant step in the growth and development of the programme.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
10 NEWS
Hort boss calls for clarity PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
GIVE US clarity! That’s the plea from HortNZ to PM Jacinda Ardern and the Government. Chief executive Nadine Tunley says Covid is here to stay and with vaccination rates increasing, the horticultural sector wants to know what the future rules of engagement will be, how they are expected to function and what the new normal will be. Tunley says Covid has been hard on growers, especially those in South Auckland. She says the industry understands that lockdowns may continue for a while, but the sector wants answers beyond the daily or weekly briefings from Parliament. Tunley says they want to know what the end game is going to be. She notes the initial handling of Covid by the Government was good, but says a change is needed now. “We would be looking for a movement in the border arrangements because it’s not
HortNZ chief executive Nadine Tunley says Covid is here to stay and the horticultural sector wants to know from government what the future rules of engagement will be.
just a matter of us getting labour in from overseas, it’s also a matter of our business connecting with the world,” Tunley told Rural News. “We are going into our third season and not being able to meet per-
sonally with many of our customers, especially those in Asia and that is a massive challenge – relationships are so important. The fact is that other countries are getting there now to customers... We are lagging behind in this
respect and we need to accelerate the process of having greater ease of overseas travel.” Tunley says there is a need to be able to function normally and says Covid has affected the health of most people in
the country in different ways. “Covid hangover is real,” she says. For the hort sector, certainty is needed so that the industry can plan ahead. Tunley says the feedback of the daily or weekly briefings are irrelevant to a sector, which works on a much longer planning cycle. “We plan in seasonal increments – 12 month windows and we overlay that with five and ten years – because we need to be able to plan our plantings and everything we do, well in advance,” she adds. “Our industry can cope with Covid but needs to know what the Government’s plans are for the future to get a sense of comfort that it actually understands what we need to go forward.” Tunley says Covid has cost NZ a huge amount of money. She adds that businesses are very passionate about what they do but they can only help grow the economy if they have an insight into government thinking.
LISTEN TO THE EXPERTS GETTING THE whole of government, including politicians, to understand agriculture, is a challenge says Nadine Tunley. She says this is because it is such a diverse and complex sector. In her experience, some of the lower level staff in government ministries have a better understanding than some of those at the top. She says growers and farmers understand the complexities of raising stock or producing vegetables and fruit. Their focus has always been on producing high quality, safe products and Tunley hopes that others in the supply chain have the same commitment to excellence. “Government should not try to be the experts right across the agri sector,” she told Rural News. “There has to be a level of trust that when farming leaders get up and tell ministers and officials what is happening in their sectors, the Government have to trust that advice.” Tunley says she finds it interesting that some ministers of the crown have quite strong views on various subjects and it’s good to have an opinion. “When I took on this role at HortNZ, I came there with a background that goes across many of the primary sectors – not just horticulture. It’s not my job to impose my opinion on the sector. “My job is to take the facts and information and understand what needs to be achieved and deliver the best outcome for my growers and try and implement that change, whether I agree with that change or not,” she says. “I think we have allowed far more personal involvement in politics than I would have expected.”
FERTILISER BAGS NOW ABLE TO BE RECYCLED FREE RECYCLING of plastic agricultural bags is now available to farmers and growers. Rural recycling programme AgRecovery says it is “turning up the dial” on sustainability, with the rollout of recycling of bags made from low density polyethylene (LDPE) plastic in
Marlborough and Hawke’s Bay. This comes ahead of a nationwide rollout, following successful trials held in the regions last year. Operations advisor Felicity Mitchell says the success of these trials and the enthusiasm of farmers and growers are behind the move to a perma-
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 11
NZ/Irish ag science research co-operation PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
GREATER COOPERATION on agricultural research between NZ and Ireland is on the cards. This follows the signing of an agreement between the two countries in Dublin last month. It came as the result of a meeting between Agricultural and Trade and Export Minister Damien O’Connor and his Irish counterpart, Charlie McConalogue. The pair met last month to discuss options for greater cooperation and later O’Connor visited the Ashdown Food Research Centre in Dublin. O’Connor says the aim of deal is to build on the research partnerships that already exist between the two countries. Massey University and DairyNZ are two organisations which have worked with the Irish research entity Teagasc for many years. He says NZ works closely with Ireland in the Global Research Alliance. “The agreement will have a particular focus
on pasture based farming systems. We both have the same challenges around environmental impacts and obligations to greenhouse gas reduction as they do and our farming systems are very similar,” O’Connor told Rural News. “Irish farmers face similar challenges to ours. The day I was in Dublin, there were farmers in other parts of Ireland protesting about similar issue that have been raised in NZ.” O’Connor says both sides can learn from each other and he’s keen to see more scholarships provided to encourage more young people to travel to see what is happening in terms of research in both countries. “In some respects, it’s giving greater political support to what is happening already and developing this further,” he adds. “In other words, creating a more formal partnership which builds on the close historical ties between our two nations.”
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Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor and his Irish counterpart Charlie McConalogue after signing an agreement on greater co-operation agricultural research between NZ and Ireland last month.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
12 NEWS
Freight kills asparagus exports PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
IT’S UNLIKELY any NZgrown asparagus will be exported this season. That’s the word from the chair of the asparagus council, Sam Rainey, who says the spiraling cost of air freight has made this impossible. Traditionally, NZ asparagus is exported to Japan, Singapore and some of the Pacific nations. However, Rainey told Rural News that huge freight rate rises – due to the Covid pandemic – mean it is no longer profitable to send the highly desirable vegetable overseas. “The reality is that exporting was barely profitable before Covid and the fact that it is not now makes it really challenging for the industry, which has to rely entirely on the domestic market.” Rainey says the issue with asparagus is that its production season is short – October through to December – and it’s not easy to spread the growth of the crop. In
Asparagus council chair Sam Rainey says the spiralling cost of air freight means it is unlikely that any NZ-grown asparagus will be exported this season.
warm weather, asparagus grows quickly and needs to be harvested immediately, and there is a risk of a glut of it on the market. This is despite the fact that the industry has shrunk significantly
over the years. “As growers we all understand the market and the nature of the crop, so no one wants that oversupply,” he explains. “The supermarkets
and growers want a nice, consistent fresh supply. Remember asparagus is highly perishable and you want to be eating it fresh. As an industry, we need to manage that.” With the industry now
confined to the domestic market, the challenge is to get more people to eat asparagus. Rainey says the industry has invested heavily in promotional activities in an effort to increase asparagus con-
sumption and he is confident that they can do this. “But what blows me away is that so many young people don’t eat asparagus and we need to manage that as an indus-
try,” he adds. “It’s about getting people to open their eyes to asparagus because it’s nutritious, versatile and really good for you and you can add it to any dish.”
RCNZ GETS GOVERNMENT FUNDING FOR GOOD YARN RURAL CONTRACTORS NZ, which represents more than 600 contractors around the country, has received government support to assist them. RCNZ chief executive Andrew Olsen says the organisation is delighted to learn it’s been successful in an application to WorkSafe to help members with their mental health and well-being.
WorkSafe will provide $60,000 in Covid Relief funding for an expanded programme of GoodYarn mental health literacy workshops. “This will be put to use to get around the country to engage with our members and their staff. We know this season will be particularly difficult with overseas worker labour constraints,” Olsen says.
“We have always viewed ‘GoodYarn’ as the right setting to have these conversations. The trouble to date has been it’s been reserved for our conference. This funding injection means we can deploy more people to carry on this great work in between times for this season at least.” RCNZ president Helen Slattery, who is herself a GoodYarn facilitator,
says the funding is a real short in the arm for RCNZ’s specific use for its members, many of whom are under pressure through labour shortages. The WorkSafe funding comes just as GoodYarn received a $100,000 boost from the Waikato-based farming trust, Trinity Lands. “Clearly the value of GoodYarn to assist rural people facing mental
health challenges, especially in difficult times, is now being recognised and that’s very welcome,” Slattery says. “We’ll be giving our members a heads up about the program in coming weeks once we get resource and logistics sorted out. In the interim, some may appreciate knowing that some friendly help is on its way.” www.goodyarn.org
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
14 NEWS NZ primary sector welcomes deal
Trade Minister Damien O’Connor says the deal provides fantastic opportunities for NZ exporters to the UK.
UK FTA proposal gets the green light PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
“A VERY good deal, by any measure, for our country.” That’s how Trade Minister Damien O’Connor describes the recently announced ‘Agreement in Principle’ (AIP) for a free trade agreement (FTA) with the UK. O’Connor says the deal is a huge step forward after decades of challenges in this area. Two-way trade between the UK and NZ was worth nearly $6 billion. The AIP means the FTA is effectively done and it’s now a matter of officials doing what O’Connor describes as a “legal scrub” to the document so that it can be officially signed and sealed. “I am very proud of what’s been achieved
with the outcome being 97% of tariffs being eliminated on our products entering the UK,” he told Rural News. “This will save NZ exporters more than $37 million a year alone. There will be a transition period for our butter, cheese, beef and sheep meat producers, during which time they will enjoy significant tarifffree transitional quotas. “For instance, 7000 tonnes of butter and 24,000 tonnes of cheese can flow to the UK market tariff-free at commencement. That will grow to 15,000 for butter and 48,000 for cheese by Year 5, after which trade will be free.” O’Connor says 12,000 tonnes of beef at the start of the deal will grow to 60,000 in Year 15, after which the beef trade will be free. There is also
149,000 tonnes of sheepmeat at commencement which will grow to 164,000 in Year 15. “This FTA is comprehensive, inclusive and high quality and provides fantastic opportunities for our exporters to the UK to build their international trade links. It’s worth noting that our deal compares well with the Australian deal.” O’Connor says some people are concerned about some of the long transitional arrangements, but he says people have got to realise that the tariff free transitional quotas begin from day one. For example, at present NZ is only sending about 500 tonnes of beef to the UK, whereas under this FTA that access will lift to 12,000 tonnes. He says it’s unlikely that NZ will fill either the beef or sheepmeat quotas, and so
the transitional arrangements give NZ producers opportunities in the longer term. “As far as dairy is concerned, I think it’s a great deal because it sees the phasing out of all tariffs after five years and increasing quotas for butter and cheese. This is a huge opportunity given the constraints we have been facing,” he says. O’Connor points out that exporters of apples, kiwifruit, honey, wine, onions and other products will benefit from the FTA when it’s signed. During his recent visit to Europe, O’Connor met with the UK’s new Trade Secretary, Anne Marie Trevelyan. He says she is an enthusiastic supporter of the agreement and in a relatively short time acquired a good understanding of the tricky issues.
THERE HAS been widespread praise He says the AIP provides a welcome for the UK FTA from all primary sector lift against the current backdrop of sigleaders. B+LNZ and the MIA say farm- nificant challenges in exporting perishers, processors, exporters and our econ- able products. Hegarty says NZ has very omy will benefit from greater export few tariffs remaining on food products revenue once the FTA is signed and so it is appropriate and equitable that ratified. They say the red meat sector our products entering the UK will not be taxed unnecessarhas not had quota free ily in the future. access to the British “The removal of market since the UK this distortion will joined the EU in 1973. be good for both the B+LNZ’s Sam NZ export indusMcIvor says the AIP try and the UK conbuilds upon the strong sumers by enabling trade links between the better access for United Kingdom and healthy food prodNew Zealand. ucts. “This allows British “The removal of consumers access to tariffs on trade with best in-season products UK will provide an all year around, particestimated benefit ularly during busy periof approximately ods such as Easter and B+LNZ’s Sam McIvor says the deal will allow British NZ$5m annually to Christmas, which fall consumers access to best NZ.” during the UK’s off-sea- in-season meat products all Hegarty says that son meat production year around. while our horticulwindow. We are ideal trade partners with British consumers ture trade with the UK is dominated having high expectations for the quality by apples and then onions, a range of lesser-known products – such as apriand ethics behind their food.” Sirma Karapeeva, MIA chief execu- cots and frozen berries – will also stand tive, says the FTA will allow New Zea- to benefit from the FTA. The Executive Director of NZ Interland companies the opportunity to sell a wider range of high-quality products national Business Forum (NZIBF) welinto the UK market, particularly beef. comed the news saying it will help lift She says following the UK leaving the the spirits of exporters. Stephen Jacobi, EU, NZ’s 1300 tonne beef quota was who’s a former trade negotiator, says split between the UK and the EU, leav- it is clearly a substantial and compreing New Zealand with only 454 tonnes hensive deal, with commercially meaningful market access across NZ’s key of beef access into the UK. “Outside of this quota, NZ beef export sectors, including dairy, meat, exports attracted tariffs of up to 70%, horticulture and wine. “The FTA would also position meaning virtually no-out-of-quota trade occurred. Improved access will the UK well for future membership allow companies to deepen and expand of Comprehensive and Progressive relationships, and crucially, compete on Agreement on Trans Pacific Partnera level playing field with our interna- ship (CPTPP). “A strong outcome from the FTA tional competitors,” she says. News of the agreement is positive negotiations, which is now within for horticulture and consumers accord- reach, is what is needed for NZ to coning to the NZ Horticulture Export firm its wholehearted support for UK accession,” he says. Authority CEO, Simon Hegarty.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 15
UK farmers sceptical about benefits to them PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
UK FARMERS have predictably expressed scepticism about the proposed UK/NZ FTA. The president of the UK National Farmers Union, Minette Batters says it offers “nothing in return” to British farmers. She claims Britain will be opening its doors to significant extra volumes of imported food – whether or not this is produced to the UK’s our own high standards
– while securing almost nothing in return for UK farmers. “We should all be worried that there could be a huge downside to these deals, especially for sectors such as dairy, red meat and horticulture,” she says. “The UK government is now asking British farmers to go toeto-toe with some of the most export orientated farmers in the world, without the serious, longterm and properly funded investment in UK agriculture that can enable us to do so.”
Batters says this is why it is very difficult for the NFU to show any support for these deals. O’Connor says the NFU’s reaction is not unexpected. He says he’s told UK farming leaders directly that the FTA will provide them with opportunities to export into markets in Asia where there are huge growing demand for high quality protein. O’Connor adds that under the FTA agreement, NZ will not compete and undervalue UK products in any market.
NFU president Minette Batters.
Now the EU?
NOD OF APPROVAL SOMEONE WHO’S played a behind the scenes role in the FTA negotiations is former NZ Trade Minister and High Commissioner to London, Sir Lockwood Smith. Smith is the only non UK member of the British Trade and Agricultural Commission (TAC) set up by the British government to win support from the rural community for FTAs such as this one. He has spent much time talking to UK farmers about the benefits of becoming more global in their outlook. Smith says the Agreement in Principle is what he would have expected and hoped for and is a great outcome. “Having tariff free trade into a northern hemisphere market is fantastic and makes up for the efforts of the TAC to get UK farmers to agree to this.” He says while some people have complained about some of the transitions being too long, having zero tariffs right at the start is good news. He says the agreement is also good news for Britain as it will help them with their application to join the CPTPP.
WITH THE UK FTA now effectively done , the attention is on obtaining a similar deal with the EU. However, all the ex perts reckon this is going to be more difficult. Sir Lockwood Smith says he doesn’t think the success of the NZ/U K FTA will have a hu ge impact on getting through a deal with the EU. He says there are bigger iss ues and more chall en ges and notes that the EU pla yed hard ball over Br exit. There is also the fac t that any FTA with the EU has to be approved by the 27 member states – quite a tall order. Damien O’Connor po ints out that during his recent trip he had a number of meeting s with both agricultural and EU trade ministers and says they were very positive. “They see the value of a trade agreeme nt with NZ,” he told Rural Ne ws. “We are a small player but we share many of the same values and ou tcomes for trade, which inc ludes matters relati ng to the environment, small businesses, women and indigenous people.” Former Trade Minister and High Commissioner to the UK Lockwood Smith.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
16 NEWS
Training at touch of the phone AN APP developed to support rural contracting trainees is key to a new initiative that has gained government funding. Rural Contractors NZ (RCNZ) has agreed to help fund the initiative – alongside $140,000 support from MPI – to train and mentor young people working with contractors around the country. The recently launched HanzonJob app will provide training to rural contractors and help them to mentor their staff. Support will also be provided for 200 new industry trainees to access the app to record and document their work experience. RCNZ chief executive Andrew Olsen says there’s a critical shortage of skilled machinery operators in NZ due to Covid-19, and HanzonJobs provides a very real solution.
“Supporting rural contractors with mentoring training will help to boost their and their team’s capability,” he says. “The app will also enable their staff to keep an accurate record of their work and experience and help to identify any areas of development.” HanzonJobs is owned by former Golden Bay rural contractor and labour recruiter Richard Houston. He developed the app after Covid-19 hit and labour shortages intensified. The app provides a web-based platform that allows trainees to easily log all the activities they’ve been involved in during a working day. Over the course of a season, the trainee will build a detailed record of their learning and experience across various
“Providing mentoring for rural contractors will help them to train and retain their staff, while providing access to the HanzonJobs app makes it simpler to recall and present an employee’s experience.”
RCNZ chief executive Andrew Olsen.
jobs involving differing terrain, conditions and machinery types. RCNZ board member Daryl Thompson trialled the HanzonJobs app with four trainees last year
and says it brings a range of benefits. “The information captured by the app is critical for developing and monitoring my own workforce,” he explains.
“We can demonstrate that as an industry we are supporting training, and it can help show areas where we’ll need staff next season.” Thompson says another bonus of the app is that it provides a record of learning, which insurers seek when it comes to machinery damage claims. Olsen says most contractors say the best training is on-the-job and the app is a perfect way
to capture this. Houston says rural contractors and their trainees have found the app useful. “Employers can see what a potential recruit has actually learned to do, rather than relying on say-so,” he says. “A survey from last season showed more than 80% of trainees enjoyed the season – and planned to return this season.” He claims the app played a big part in this
satisfaction. “We’re planning to align the records in the app with associated unit standards, to further the ability of the platform to contribute towards qualifications.” MPI’s Cheyne Gillooly says the ministry is proud to be supporting this initiative. “Providing mentoring for rural contractors will help them to train and retain their staff, while providing access to the HanzonJobs app makes it simpler to recall and present an employee’s experience.” Olsen says RCNZ’s aim is to recruit about 200 trainees and their mentors from Northland to Southland to support the initiative. “This initiative really hits home the power of working together and what’s possible.”
TOURISM RESET COULD HURT AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS highlighted that most of our agricultural products delivered fresh to market are transported on passenger planes, and tourists contribute to the cost. It says the drop in tourism numbers could push up transport costs to
the point where some businesses do not export at all and are put out of business. Before Covid-19 hit, there were 550 international flights into and out of New Zealand each week, which carried 80% of New Zealand’s overall
export airfreight in their belly-holds, and that it was worth $10.8 billion in December 2019. Only 20% of New Zealand’s airfreight was carried by dedicated air cargo-only freighters. Before Covid-19, air freight was less than 1% of New Zealand’s total
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
NEWS 17
Own experience used RICHARD HOUSTON drew from his own background as a rural contractor in developing the free new HanzonJobs app. He says contractors already do most of their own training, but until now had no way to structure and showcase the results. Houston, who is based in Golden Bay, says he surveyed rural contractors as he was starting to develop the app last year. “Every year they train new people. They value on the job learning as the highest form of learning,” he explains. “Now, instead of asking a potential employee what they can do, the employer can see what they have done.” He says rural contracting workers are a bit like trainee pilots who have to do a set number of hours, touchdowns and night flights before they get their qualifications. The HanzonJobs app is not yet linked with any qualification. However, it provides the sort of supporting evidence required with trainees able to record all the work they do by machinery type, terrain, weather conditions and tasks. After spending most of the 2000’s driving machinery in both hemispheres, Houston drew on his contacts and started helping find skilled seasonal machinery operators for the seasonal workload at either end of the planet. Pre-Covid saw
him help 100-plus drivers each year migrate down to NZ to help with the work. This business shrivelled as Covid took hold. Houston then turned his focus to something which had long been on his mind: how to best train Kiwis to operate often complex contracting machinery. HanzonJobs was introduced in rapid fashion last year and he personally mentored the 70 trainees who effectively trialled the app. It records all the activities they do, producing a database with multiple benefits for trainee and employer alike. RCNZ chief executive Andrew Olsen, who only took up the role in June, quickly realised the scale of the labour crisis the sector had and was looking for options. He says some great work was done last year by RCNZ to develop and support training at places like Telford and Taratahi and with some training operators. However, these didn’t have scale and didn’t always link best with rural contractors. “Our members favour on-job training by a country mile. We are a seasonal industry and need the right season/weather/ conditions to provide the work necessary to learn these jobs.” Olsen saw the early results from HanzonJobs and was sufficiently impressed to ask his
board to back it. “The board is totally supportive,” he says. “They are all contractors, all facing the same labour shortages and wanting to see our industry come through this.” Meanwhile, Houston says he’s become very office-based these days but when he needs some
fresh air – he goes back to his origins. “I go and drive a maize drill or a silage chopper for office release, just fill in when required.” The local contractor, whose machinery he’s driving, will appreciate that – given the crisis-level shortages of staff this season.
Golden Bay contractor Richard Houston drew from his own background to develop the new HanzonJobs app.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
18 AGRIBUSINESS
Women of real substance With the critical role women play on farms around the world recently recognised by this year’s International Day of Rural Women on October 15, Hawkes Bay farmer Maddy McLean reflects on how the traditional role of women in agriculture has evolved. She also discusses how she gained the skills, knowledge and confidence to contribute to both the day-to-day and business sides of her farm. RURAL WOMEN of the past were often perceived as the strong backbone of the homestead – cooking, cleaning and caring for the kids. However, today, for many rural women like Maddy McLean that’s an outdated stereotype, which undervalues the strong contribution they make to the business side of the farm. McLean and husband Andrew farm 1036 hectares (885 effective) of
hill country about half an hour south of Waipukurau, trading lambs and bulls, as well as breeding ewes. She’s quick to pay homage to the pioneering rural women of the past, who got involved in every aspect of the farm business. McLean says more women now work in the agri sector than ever before, in roles that might have been traditionally male-dominated. “It’s really evolved, I think, from what the
traditional role was for women, back in the day. I think it’s recognised that women are now a lot more involved in the business side of farming,” she explains. “There’s also much more to it now – with the environmental regulation, health and safety, grants to apply for and nutrient budgets to organise, so there are plenty areas where I can contribute.” The McLeans are among the best in the
Maddy and Andrew Mclean with children Olivia and Oscar, alongside ANZ relationship manager Henry Tietjen (left).
country at what they do, winning the Silver Fern Farms Hawke’s Bay Farmer of the Year award at this year’s Hawke’s Bay Primary Sector Awards. This was largely based on their stellar financial
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where she implemented a Resource Management Plan change for the Tukituki catchment. It was in this role that she developed a wide range of skills and knowledge around land, soil
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
AGRIBUSINESS 19 and nutrient management. However, when the couple’s children Olivia and Oscar came along, she decided to leave her job to be on the farm full time. Not only to help care for them, but also to help Andrew, who was “flat tack” out on the land, as well as doing the farm’s books. “Andrew and I have different strengths in the
business, and we work really well as a team: we try to strike a balance between doing the on-farm work, caring for the kids, and taking care of the jobs around the house,” Mclean explains. Last year, a friend recommended she take an Agri Women’s Development Trust course called ‘Understanding Your Farming Business,’ and she found it incredibly
valuable. “It made me realise just how involved you can be in the business, and how important you are to the business,” she says. One of the biggest lessons she took from the course was the importance of having a solid budget – an approach that Andrew wholeheartedly endorses. “If you’re out on the farm and you’re getting a
Maddy and Andrew Mclean farm 1036 hectares (885 effective) of hill country about half an hour south of Waipukurau, trading lambs and bulls, as well as breeding ewes.
bit worried, you can come back and check your plan and remember why you’re doing it – it gives you that reassurance that you’re on track,” he says. Andrew also says that checking in with other farmers regularly, through avenues like discussion groups, or bouncing ideas off people with experience, like his parents, has helped the couple make decisions.
ROLE MODELS MADDY MCLEAN has also noticed a it, and ANZ Hastings relationship manager change in expectations from the past Henry Tietjen says the couple are role when she says agricultural suppliers models for the agri sector. would call and usually ask to speak to her “Andrew and Maddy are model husband. customers really – they started off leasing “Now when the Andrew’s parents’ farm and bank manager calls, were soon in a position to the conversation we buy it, and their proven track have is equally as valurecord of outstanding results able as the one they made providing the lending have with Andrew, as for them an easy decision,” I’m more confident in he says. “Two heads are my understanding of better than one, and Maddy the financial side of the contributes incredibly to their business.” business, providing another ANZ managing layer of stability to an already director of business smart operation.” Lorraine Mapu grew up In recent months, Maddy on a dairy farm herself. has just taken up a partHawkes Bay farmer Maddy She’s proud the bank time role with the PoranMcLean says the traditional has customers like the role of women in agriculture gahau Catchment Group, McLeans. administering a fund for projhas evolved. “I grew up ects to improve water quality, surrounded by strong women, I know the drawing on her experience working for vital contribution they make to our agri the council. sector, and Maddy is a great example,” Her advice for other rural women, who Mapu says. “It’s great to see many more might be keen to step up the part they women taking leadership positions in our play on the farm, is simple. rural communities and getting recognised “Don’t be afraid to try something new, for the valuable contribution they make.” even if it’s not exactly what you were The McLean’s combined business looking at, in life. You can actually play a nous also makes the bank comfortable massive role if you’re willing to give it a with helping them out wherever they need crack.”
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
20 OPINION EDITORIAL
EDNA
Read the fine print! ON THE face of it, the recent free trade deal announced with the United Kingdom appears to be a big win for New Zealand’s farming sector. Plaudits have, rightly, been heaped on the NZ negotiators from all sections of the NZ farming landscape. There is little doubt that they were able to take advantage of the UK’s desire to secure new trade deals in the wake of Brexit and its keenness to join the CPTPP to gain a favourable result. Good on them! While the deal is still only an ‘agreement in principle’, when it does come into fruition the opportunities for NZ’s primary sector look very good. The deal sees a mix of instant access and transition periods for many our key agricultural goods. It’s been predicted that the deal could be worth a billion a year to NZ when it comes into full force Red meat producers may be somewhat disappointed with the long lead-in time to full access to the UK, but the reality was this was always going to be tough to get over the line. With a significant increase in New Zealand agricultural exports to Britain likely as a result of the deal, the reaction from UK farmers has been predictable. We have already seen its Red Tractor food assurance scheme make false claims about some of the animal welfare and quality issues of NZ farm produce compared to its British equivalents. Meanwhile, National Farmers Union president Minette Batters has claimed that UK farm businesses face significantly higher costs of production than farmers in New Zealand and Australia. It is on this note that NZ farmers will want to carefully read the actual details of the deal when it is finally published. British farmers currently face a number of severe bureaucratic regulatory restrictions in the way they farm – so watch out for similar restrictive practices and stipulations weaved into the fine print of this deal. If NZ farmers currently think the proposed climate change, freshwater, biosecurity and animal welfare (etc, etc) regulations they are currently getting dished up are tough, then just wait to see what our negotiators have promised the Brits in this deal. Remember, when something looks far too good to be true, it usually is!
RURALNEWS TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS
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“Not just an anti-vaxxer, he doesn’t believe fossil fuels pose a problem either!”
Want to share your opinion or gossip with the Hound? Send your emails to: hound@ruralnews.co.nz
THE HOUND Change of tune!
A bit queer
Hypocrites?
Kill it!
A MATE of the Hound’s reckons it is amazing how a couple of years sitting on Fonterra’s board, earning $175K-plus a year, can quickly turn former rebels into members of the establishment. He notes that three years ago, when Leonie Guiney and John Nicholls were running for the Fonterra board, they both made a big play of not being part of Fonterra’s ‘Independently’ Assessed Candidate process and instead took the rebel NonAssessed Candidate route. Both ‘rebels’ were successful in getting elected to Fonterra’s board. Now three years later, both Guiney and Nicholls are standing again for the co-op board this year. However, this time they are both taking the Fonterra-endorsed ‘Independently’ Assessed Candidates route and have been given the big tick of approval by the ‘Independent Assessment Process.’ Be interesting to know why the change?
YOUR CANINE crusader was delighted to recently learn that the 2023 Census will be asking people about their gender, sexual identity, and whether they have any variations of sex characteristics – also known as intersex status. According to Stats NZ, this will be the first time “everyone in Aotearoa New Zealand” will be questioned on such topics. “People’s sense of their gender and sexual identity is really important to them and can impact on their lives and experiences,” the woke folk at Stats NZ claim. “The data will also inform better decision making and provision of services for the rainbow community.” The government department’s social and population insights general manager Jason Attewell says Stats NZ already collects sexual identity and gender in its other household surveys. Well, isn’t that good to know.
THIS OLD mutt is never surprised by the outright hypocrisy of sanctimonious climate change zealots. Exhibit A: Climate Change Minister James Shaw – and his band of 10 taxpayer-funded pen pushers – who are all flying (firstclass) off to Glasgow, producing tonnes of carbon, to attend the latest climate change talkfest. Have none of these do-gooders ever heard of video conferences? Exhibit B: Rod Orman – a pompous Pommy hack – who has also swanned off to Glasgow, talking to several hand-wringing climate catastrophics and then writing stories about what a terrible job NZ farming is doing for the Newsroom website – which has received more than $1.3 million in government handouts for ‘public good journalism’. It’s ironic that Oram, a self-confessed cycling enthusiast, didn’t just ride his bike to the office for a Zoom meeting instead of jetting off to the other side of the world.
YOUR OLD mate understands that lobby group Groundswell’s ‘Mother of All Protests’ is still going to be held on Sunday November 21. This would be a bad move. Sources tell this old mutt that much of the goodwill and support farmers and rural people garnered from many New Zealanders after the successful ‘Howl of a Protest’ back in June is in danger of evaporating. Apparently, another big concern is that several fringe groups – such as anti-vaxxers, Brian Tamaki supporters and ‘UN Agenda 21’ conspiracy types – are hoping to hitch their wagons to the Groundswell protest, which would do untold damage to the group’s hard-won respectable reputation.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
OPINION 21
The demonisation of N SYNTHETIC NITROGEN, once hailed as a gamechanger because of its vital role in ‘The Green Revolution,’ is now being demonized as an environmental destroyer. Certainly, past use was more gung-ho than is now the norm, and rivers have suffered. Undoubtedly, the extra people on the globe – supported by the use of synthetic nitrogen (estimates are 40-50% of the current global population) – are having an environmental impact. But strategic use of synthetic nitrogen, using precision agriculture in New Zealand is a different story. Nitrogen (and superphosphate) application have been important in increasing the organic matter, which is approximately 58% carbon, in our soils. Every tonne of carbon is associated with 80-100kg nitrogen (N), 20kg of phosphorus, and 14 of sulphur, as well as other nutrients. These nutrients are part of the value of soil organic matter. Micro-organisms decompose organic matter as their source of energy, releasing nutrients and carbon dioxide as they do so. Some of the nutrients are used to make more micro-organisms, but some are lost, in rainfall for example, before used. A research paper by Plant and Food scientists – released at the end of last year – reported that after 13 years, fallow plots on the Canterbury Plains had 19-22 t/ha less carbon than pasture plots. The fallow plots were kept plant-free but were not cultivated during that time. The implication is that soil micro-organisms decomposed organic matter at approximately 1.5 tonnes of carbon a year. And the organic matter was not being replaced by the plants in the constant cycle of growth, litter, death. In addition, approximately 170 kg/ ha per year of N was mineralised and lost, probably through leaching. Keeping plant cover
COMMENT
Jacqueline Rowarth actively growing, perhaps with irrigation to overcome soil moisture defects, reduces potential losses significantly. But keeping the cycle going while harvesting material (milk, meat, crops, vegetables… whatever) means replenishing the nutrient supplies to cover the removals in the harvest. The 190 kg/ha N cap therefore has implications in terms of food production and soil organic matter. Research published in 2016, based on New Zealand systems, is helpful in considering the changes. Lead author Professor Tony Parsons, now retired from Massey University, used a model based on processes (photosynthesis and decomposition, for instance) and factors such as temperature and moisture. Moving from 150 kg/ ha N input per year to 15 would, over time, halve the amount of food produced per hectare and the amount of carbon in the soil would decrease by approximately 20 tonnes (27%). Neither the decrease in food production nor the loss of carbon is desirable. In 2019, AgFirst economists calculated that the knock-on effects of removing synthetic N from the New Zealand primary sector would mean a decrease in gross output by $19.8 billion, a decrease in value add (GDP) by $6.7 billion and a reduction in employment by 73,760. Of course, there are theories about using organic sources of N, but the way N reacts in the soil (and in response to rainfall) is independent of source. The research has been done. Just as it has on food production.
A decrease in food production will mean increased food prices. Given the media flurry over inflation, this should be pointed out everywhere. A 4% increase in food prices in the past year, and 4.6% increase in ready-to-eat and restaurant food –
both reflecting increased minimum wage and the challenges associated with Covid – appeared to make more of an impact than a 22% increase in fuel prices. Food is regarded as a right. Efficient food production, with precision agriculture
ensuring the genetic potential of animals and crops is achieved, maintains soil organic matter and optimises yields. Removing N from the system would mean increasing the area under agriculture in order to feed people. This
would not be good for biodiversity; the research has been done. Keeping agricultural land productive and sustainable requires ever advancing technology and uptake. New Zealand agriculture – industry and farmers – leads the way.
• Jacqueline Rowarth is a soil scientist, Adjunct Professor Lincoln University, and farmerelected director for Dairy NZ and Ravensdown. The analysis and presented here are her own. jsrowarth@ gmail.com. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
22 OPINION
Unforgiveness is a stressor IF YOU had asked my grandparents what stress was, they would have given you a very different answer than you would get right now. Their generation was not wound anywhere near as tight as we seem to be today! Life was lived at a slower pace back then. As
I recall, they were much more conscious of seasons, rather than hours, minutes, and seconds. Now there’s a thought – definitely some wisdom there I reckon. To mention another thing while we’re here; they were way less selfconscious than we are
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today. For starters, they spent much less time in front of the mirror! Have you ever wondered what ‘road rage’ might have looked like back then? Imagine how that might have played out back in the horse and buggy days! I’m amazed at how
upset some folks can get over such miniscule and fleeting things, even silly little things that really are so shallow. The top not being put back on the toothpaste tube, or the toilet roll not put on the right way… my goodness, how serious is that? And the tantrum that follows,
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dare I call it childish, like someone hasn’t grown up yet. I’ve read some interesting stuff on stress, and what it does to your mind and body. It can hammer our immune system, which is not good for our overall wellbeing, I promise you. Fear is certainly a stressor, and we seem to have plenty of that on offer at present. Another one not spoken about much is unforgiveness: I have a couple of amazing stories in my files; one out of the POW camps from WW2; the other from the Truth And Reconciliation Trials in South Africa many years ago, following Nelson Mandela becoming president. Quite aside from what is in my files though, we have had the privilege over many years of walking with some people through some very ugly stuff. Now, there are a number of options that can help people cope with whatever has happened to them or is happening in their lives. And I’m ok with that because obviously coping is much better than not coping! But what if we can do better than just cope? What if we can actually get free and see that wretched thing totally lose its grip on us? Surely that has to be worth exploring. Sadly, I often recall one person we never managed to reach. Talk-
ing with them one day through some of their many problems, I said to them, “It’s unforgiveness isn’t it.” To which they promptly replied, “Yes, and I can’t forgive them, and I won’t!” Well, others have managed to and often from stuff much worse. This person could have too, but simply refused. So, they continued to live with stress as their constant companion, with some other nasties thrown into the mix. Perhaps the best definition for unforgiveness I have come across is this: “Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies.” In my journey to date, I have met some truly sweet and lovely people. Looking at them and being with them, you would have absolutely no idea what they have been through and what they have risen above. It can be a challenge to even get their story out of them because they have so successfully moved on. All of the venom has gone. If I can persuade them to share just a little, usually some serious forgiveness is a major player in their story. Yes, something happened that really brought great change to their lives. Or should I say “Someone.” Keep safe and God bless. • To contact Colin Millar email: farmerschaplain@ ruralnews.co.nz
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
SELL IT!
I TOTALLY agree with the Hound (Oct 19), Pamu/Landcorp is a dog of an investment for us as taxpayers. But it is even worse for us as farmers. In most countries the Government subsidises their farmers with billions of dollars. NZ is the only country where the farmers subsidise the Government! Our co-ops dish out big discounts on fertilisers, our processors dish out premiums on product prices and these come straight out of your pocket. Even then they barely make a profit. Fed Farmers should get off its backside and see that it (Pamu/Landcorp) is sold ASAP. In a free market economy, there is no logical reason why the Government should run dairy, sheep and beef farms – certainly not at every farmer’s expense. Dave Stanton Geraldine
RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
OPINION 23
Take the politics out of farm emissions GROUNDSWELL IS not against climate policy, or a pricing mechanism to manage farm emissions. However, we are against the continued misrepresentation of methane’s contribution to climate change. We believe this is a deliberate ploy by the Government to force farmers to reduce our emissions well below what the science says is required. Methane is a shortlived greenhouse gas. If it can be stabilised in the atmosphere, it will no longer contribute to warming. A farmer with stabilised methane emissions is no different to a net zero CO2 emitter who has offset 100% of their emissions – both are climate neutral processes. But under current policy proposals, they will be treated very differently. The net-zero CO2 emitter will pay no emissions tax, while the farmer will not only pay a tax on these emissions, but also be incorrectly blamed for continuing to be part of the problem. This is not fair and equitable climate policy. The solution to this
Farmers took to the streets around the country back in June in a Groundswell protest.
misrepresentation of methane is to base policy on warming effect. This way, farmers could be held accountable for any contribution they make to climate change, but it would ensure we are not taxed on emissions that are not adding to warming. The Government has roundly rejected this approach, but not only that – it refuses to allow any reference to warming effect from being included in emissions policy. The Government has painted itself into a corner. If it allows farm-
ers to accurately measure their impact on climate, it will show that the current Zero Carbon Act’s methane reduction target of 10% by 2030 is grossly excessive. The IPCC has concluded that a 0.3% per year reduction in methane emissions can offset any further warming from a steady flow source, such as a farm. This incremental reduction is required to offset any GHGs which remain in the atmosphere after the decay process. Farmers could ensure no further warming from methane by reducing
their emissions by around 3% by 2030, this is a full 7% less than what the Government is demanding. Even the ‘independent’ Climate Change Commission has refused to comment on the discrepancy between the reductions required to be warming neutral and the Zero Carbon Act’s 10% target. Farmers are being left to conclude that our industry’s actual contribution to climate change is irrelevant. We are being asked to reduce our stock numbers, sacrificing the long-term sustainability of many businesses,
based on incomplete emissions reporting. We have the tools at our disposal to correctly measure warming from methane. The new GWP* metric is designed to do just that. A political decision appears to have been made to suppress this information from both farmers and the public. Warming effect is important – the entire purpose of our country’s climate policy is to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Not measuring agriculture’s warming effect may be politically convenient, but it defies all logic.
This has put farmers in a regulatory predicament. If we push for a more science-based approach to emissions pricing, we risk the Government withdrawing from the He Waka Eke Noa process completely and throwing agriculture into the ETS at processor level. This threat has been made very clear to us. Our traditional advocacy group representatives have already capitulated to this and are now largely pushing the Government policy agenda. An emissions tax at processor level would
be damaging to the industry and achieve nothing in the way of behavioral change. The current policy will harm many rural communities by slowly pricing farmers out of the market to make way for carbon forestry. We accept the need for emissions regulation and are willing to play our part in limiting any further climate change from our industry. We ask that the Government works with us; together we can turn agriculture into our first major climate neutral industry. • Supplied by Groundswell
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
24 MANAGEMENT
Goodbye to the plate meter! WEEKLY FARM walks have become a thing of the past for some dairy farmers in Canterbury and their pasture growth data has never been better. Thanks to world-first technology designed, tested and made in New Zealand, they no longer have to watch their grass grow. That’s because the Farmote System does it for them. Real-time, objective daily pasture measurements in all conditions are now available at the tap of a phone. There’s no plate meter required, no hours spent walking the farm, no worries about getting the numbers wrong, and no guesswork. Five years in the making, the Farmote system is the brainchild of a Christchurch design engineer who grew up in a fourth-generation farming family in South Canterbury. Richard Barton launched the gamechanging technology on subscription last month. He is now busy installing new systems for local dairy farmers. Barton combined the latest advances in cube satellite imagery with remote sensors, microelectronics and weather-proof, cow-proof design to achieve what until now has been unachievable – automated in-paddock pasture monitoring. The Farmote hardware is deceptively simple – each unit or ‘mote’ comprises a hollow plastic pole, topped by a sphere the size of a tennis ball, mounted year-round in the paddock. The pole is full of solar-powered electronics and batteries; the sphere contains optical sensors used in smartphone cameras; and the prongs securing the mote to the ground include soil moisture and temperature sensors. What makes it unique – apart from being permanently installed on-farm – is the way it automatically integrates data collected from the paddock with aerial imagery captured by low Earth
Richard Barton launched Farmote – his automated, in-paddock pasture monitoring technology – on subscription last month.
orbit cube satellites. All farmers have to do once Barton installs the system is simply log into the Farmote system website using their mobile device or PC. Sixty motes have been tested on Canterbury dairy farms over the past three years; testing has also been done in Manawatu and Waikato. Good pasture management, based on knowing how much grass is growing at any one time, is vital to optimising dairy herd performance, productivity
and profitability, Barton says. But getting reliable growth data has not always been easy. Existing tools and systems can be time-consuming. Results often vary depending on who does the monitoring. It’s difficult to standardise data across different farms. Even relatively new satellite-based systems are affected by cloud cover and time-lag. Barton says the thing that really struck him in the early days of develop-
ing Farmote was that so many farmers knew the value of pasture measurement, but struggled to find time to do it. They also worried about getting it right. “With the best will in the world, sometimes it’s just not possible to fit in a farm walk when you know you should,” he adds. Newly returned to Christchurch from the UK in 2016, already excited about then-emerging advances in
remote sensing and keen to start a new business, the successful medical design engineer saw in pasture measurement an irresistible technical challenge that needed fixing. Barton proved the initial Farmote concept within 12 months. However, that wasn’t the hard part. “We had three huge challenges,” he explains. “The first was to make it stockproof, and that took two to three years of development in itself. The second challenge was to make it weatherproof, and the third was to make electronics that would function indefinitely.” Barton already had some experience of the electronic challenge – devices he designed and refined for life-saving human medical and pharmaceutical use in his previous career had to be utterly reliable. Farm animals were another matter, however. “Our biggest problem was bored cows! They would play with our motes until they broke them. You put something in a paddock with cows, and every single one of them wants to lick it, or chew it, or rub against it.” Meantime, all the data collected on farm had to somehow be integrated with real-time satellite imagery, another major technical undertaking that took twice as long as expected to achieve. By early 2020, all the challenges, animal and otherwise, had been resolved to the point where the Farmote system was ready for launch. Farmers had tested it in commercial conditions; Lincoln University had contributed to the trial work; commercial and private investors both here and overseas had backed it financially, and the company was about to order its first thousand motes from a Chinese manufacturer.
RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
MANAGEMENT 25
Grass lacks real guts! PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
WET WEATHER and a lack of sunshine in many western areas of the country are causing problems for farmers. Mark Laurence, DairyNZ’s lower North Island leader, says while the situation is bad it is not terrible like past seasons, but it is causing milk production to slow. He says production is static and is only being held up there because farmers are feeding supplements to their cows. A recent report by the ANZ bank noted that milk production right across the country was down by 4% for the month of August. Laurence says farmers are using supplements to keep their cows in good condition for mating, which is now taking place. “Farmers are feeding supplements out for two reasons. Firstly, they want to retain milk production, but they are also conscious of the need to keep cows in good condition for mating which has already started in some areas,” he told Rural News. “The two go hand in hand. By maintaining the milk production, farmers are also making sure that the cows are cycling and that will become apparent in the following year. It will finally have an impact on the farming in about a year’s time.” But perhaps the biggest effect, and less noticeable to the eye, is the poor quality of pas-
tures. Laurence says while pastures may look good, the reality is the lack of sunshine has reduced the quality and nutritional value of the grass. There has also been a delay in taking silage off paddocks and this is now only just starting to happen, but questions remain about its quality. Laurence says the wet is also delayed the sowing of crops, which means they will be late and potentially lower yielding. He adds that wet ground has made it difficult to get machines onto the land to sow and harvest crops. “Normally I would have expected cropping work to begin in early October, but with the delay because of the rain, the whole season is being compressed,” he explains. “There is good advice out there to say, if you are now three or four weeks late then maybe you need a different variety of whatever crop, be it turnips or maize or something. It’s all about a balancing act.” The wet and cooler weather in western regions is said to be a key reason overall milk production across the country for August was down by just over 4%. But Laurence says while conditions are not good the weather is not as bad as it was in the 2017/18 season. He says the wet is right across the lower North Island. “We have all been through years that have been lot worse than this one,” he adds. “What’s
different about this year is that we have had three really good winters and springs in a row and we have to remember what a wet spring looks like.”
DairyNZ lower North Island leader Mark Laurence.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
26 ANIMAL HEALTH
Fat sources in milk replacers A recent study by AgResearch suggested that farmers should avoid feeding milk replacers with vegetable proteins and fats to lambs in their early life. However, supplier of milk replacers AgriVantage argues that there is plenty of other research around to dispute the conclusion of this study. GIVEN THE relatively new practice of rearing orphan lambs compared to the artificial rearing of calves, we are still developing our understanding how the composition of a milk replacer can affect digestibility, energy availability and growth rates. Extensive research carried out in the field of calf nutrition for over
100 years (Kertz et al., 2017) has provided valuable insights for animal nutritionists seeking to develop high quality milk replacers for lambs. This knowledge, when combined with a thorough understanding of the composition of ewe’s milk and the results of research around lamb nutrition, has led
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materials. This includes milk and vegetable fats, for inclusion in the diets of these rapidly growing, valuable, young animals. It is clear from extensive research data that, in addition to providing an important energy source for the young animal, fat also provides a source of essential fatty acids, key components in the formation of cell membranes and bioactive lipids. Fatty acids are either saturated or unsaturated, with saturated fats (e.g. butter and tallow) typically solid at room temperature, while unsaturated fats (e.g. soya oil) are typically liquid at room temperature. Nutritionists working with monogastric animals like pigs and chickens have long understood that it is the degree of saturation of a fat (or the proportion of saturated to unsaturated fatty acids) which determines the digestibility of a fat rather than the fat source
itself (Wiseman and Salvador, 1991). In other words, it’s the balance of fatty acids that is important, not the source. In ruminants, work carried out by French researchers (Toullec et al., 1969) showed that short chain fatty acids (with 8 or fewer carbons) are 100% digestible while medium chain fatty acids and long chain unsaturated fatty acids are 95% digestible. Saturated long chain fatty acids are between 80 and 90% digestible. The balance of these fatty acids in a fat source subsequently determines the digestibility of that fat source, so that digestibility of tallow is 90%, peanut oil 93%, palm oil 95%, coconut oil 96% and milk fat 98%. These estimates of digestibility are still valid today (Tanan, 2005). Thus, careful choice of fat sources is particularly important when formulating a milk replacer as this affects both the
supply of fatty acids and fat digestibility, which in turn is an important factor in the energy supply to the young animal. An equally important factor influencing the digestibility of fat is the particle size and stability in the milk replacer solution (Tanan, 2005). Technologies which homogenise and encapsulate fat in a protein matrix improve fat digestibility and are only available to a few specialist milk replacer manufacturers. So-called medium and long chain fatty acids make up over 97% of fatty acids found in both plant and animal fats. The short chain fatty acid butyrate, an important energy source for rumen epithelial cells as well as cells in the large intestine, only makes up less than 3% of the fatty acids found in cow and ewe’s milk (MarkiewiczKęszyck et al., 2013). While we know that
production of butyrate from starch fermentation in the developing rumen is the most important energy source for rumen epithelia cells and key to supporting rumen development (O’Hara et al., 2018), it is also true that salts of this fatty acid are commercially available and added into quality milk replacers containing vegetable fat. Importantly for New Zealand farmers, these research findings are supported by practical experience. Many lamb (and calf) rearers around the world and in New Zealand successfully use milk replacers in which vegetable fat is the only fat source. In fact, milk replacers with butter fat (while common here) are not commercially available in the USA or Europe. So, in much the same way as the book cover only presents a glimpse of the story, the list of ingredients making up the milk replacer is far less important than the digestible nutrient profile of the product and the performance of the product in your feeding system. When choosing a suitable milk replacer (curding or non-curding, containing vegetable ingredients or 100% milk ingredients), look beyond the product label. Choose a product which is formulated by a qualified nutritionist, based on a thorough understanding of up-to-date scientific research, is manufactured to high quality standards, and which is backed by comprehensive local support.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
ANIMAL HEALTH 27
Drench action plan launched A NEW concept designed to help manage parasite resistance to drenches in New Zealand has been launched. The new Wormwise Action Plan encourages responsible marketing and sales of drench, more accurate and easier parasite testing, research to demonstrate the costs and benefits of various parasite management approaches and better training and development are among its priorities. Wormwise is a partnership between Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ), the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), Agcarm, the New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) and other stakeholders. The development of the Action Plan follows an independent review of the Wormwise strategy carried out with industry input including farmers, veterinarians, drench sellers, MPI, B+LNZ, DairyNZ and Fonterra. “Sheep and beef farmers rank resistance of parasites to drench as their single biggest animal production challenge,” says Dan Brier, general manager farming excellence at B+LNZ. “Parasite resistance to drenches is now widespread, appears to be getting worse and a new approach is necessary. We simply can’t drench our
way out of drench resistance.” He adds that New Zealand also faces new challenges – including potential increased risk from new or more widespread parasites arising from climate change, the low likelihood of new drench products becoming available, as well as greater transparency demanded by consumers on animal welfare and the use of chemicals in farm production systems. Chief veterinary officer at the New Zealand Veterinary Association Helen Beattie says vets are an important part of the solution by working with farmers, developing parasite management plans and providing veterinary advice. “Through the review, we found the efforts of Wormwise and the strategic direction were largely in the right direction, but concluded there is scope to do much more,” Beattie explains. “Ultimately, additional resourcing and a different approach is required if we are to genuinely influence parasite drench resistance in time.” As part of the new Action Plan, the industry will identify best practice for working with farmers on parasite management and drench resistance in order to help other farm-
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
28 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS
NH expands tractor range MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
NEW HOLLAND has launched the T7 Heavy Duty (HD) tractor with Precision Land Management Intelligence (PLM) to the New Zealand market. Part of New Holland’s 11 model T7 range, the new T7 HD is said to offer power, agility and versatility via the three models in the 250 to 300 rated horsepower sector. At the same time, integrating the brand-new Horizon Ultra™ cab and next-generation PLM™ Intelligence New Holland product segment manager – mixed farming and livestock, Ben Mitchell says the new tractors were created from the first-hand feedback from
The new T7 HD is said to offer power, agility and versatility. (Inset) The conventional dashboard is gone and replaced by the CentreView, self-levelling steering wheel mounted display.
operators who listed comfort, space and connectivity as must haves. “The T7 HD is ideal for operators who need
to multi-task in a variety of fields and transport applications,” Mitchell explains. “Alongside being remotely connected to dealers and support
services, to increasing overall efficiency and profitability.” The new generation of T7.275, T7.290 and T7.315 are not very different
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The new generation of T7.275, T7.290 and T7.315 are not very different visually to the current offering. However, the lowered rear fenders boost visibility, while a new 24 LED work light package improves things for early starts or late finishes. visually to the current offering. However, the lowered rear fenders boost visibility, while a new 24 LED work light package improves things for early starts or late finishes. Said to be 7.5% larger, offering 11% more glass area and with a reduced noise level of only 66dB(A), the redesigned cabin offers more legroom and areas for storage. To the left, there is enclosed storage area with power sockets behind the passenger seat that now gets a flat back.
Meanwhile beneath the cabin, a 12-litre chilled cool-box is created thanks to the rear fender redesign. To the right, the new Sidewinder armrest-taken from the T8 Genesis, comes complete with IntelliView 12 display and a host of customisable functions. The more open storage areas are complimented by the seat, which has a greater degree of swivel, again due to the mudguard redesign. The conventional dashboard is gone and replaced by the
CentreView, self-levelling steering wheel mounted display, which maintains its horizontal orientation as the wheel is turned. Full climate control offers zone selection and 35% more output than the previous setup. Meanwhile, the optional AutoComfort seat adds a climate control function to extract moisture on hot days or warm your backside on cold mornings. New Holland says the T7 HD tractor is available for purchase now, with delivery expected on farm by mid-2022.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
MACHINERY & PRODUCTS 29
More options available for forage harvesters in 2022 MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
CLAAS HAS announced several improvements for its 2022 JAGUAR 900 forage harvesters, including increased options for the front attachment drive. In addition to the allmechanical and the variable drives used with ORBIS maize fronts and pick-ups, customers can specify a twin hydraulic drive system that offers benefits when working with grass pick-ups. “With this option, the pick-up intake auger continues to be driven via a quick release coupler and can adjust its speed in accordance with the feed intake rollers, depending on the length of cut. The new hydraulic drive means the speed of the pick-up reel can now be automatically adjusted to match ground speed of the harvester independently of the speed of the intake auger,” says CLAAS Harvest Centre product manager for JAGUAR, Luke Wheeler. “This means the rotational speeds of the pickup reel and intake auger can be matched exactly to the prevailing harvesting conditions for more consistent crop flow and higher throughput. This is particularly important when harvesting high yielding crops at low ground speeds or vice versa.” US studies have shown the new hydraulic drivein connection to the new front can increase throughput by up to 13.7% compared with the existing mechanical constant drive-in heavy harvesting
conditions. In other upgrades, Claas will also introduce an app to help the operator to determine the correct dosage settings based on crop yield, crop type, operating width, working speed and the recommended dosage for its factory-fitted forage inoculant dosing system. Once the relevant data has been entered, the operator can implement the recommended settings using the CEBIS terminal, with easy adjustment once chopping is underway. The app is said to help avoid underdosage, which can have a significant impact on silage quality; and overdosage, which leads to excess use of expensive inoculants. Operators can decide whether to use the Actisiler 37-litre tank or the 375-litre water tank and measure dosage in litres per tonne or litres per hectare. With a second, optional dosing pump, silage additive injection can now be doubled, taking it to quantities of up to 800l/hr. The app is available for Android and Apple operating platforms and can be downloaded via connect.claas.com. The company also announced a new water injection system, for difficult harvesting conditions such as high sugar content grass or high dry matter content lucerne. The system automatically injects water from the onboard 375-litre tank into the feeder unit, guide plate area, accelerator and discharge chute whenever there is no crop flow – such as at headlands
or during forage trailer changeovers. The system helps stop the build-up of sticky
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An app has been introduced to help the operator to determine the correct inoculant dosage settings based on crop yield, crop type, operating width and working speed.
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
30 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS / RURAL TRADER
Green machines run Hey’s bale business MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
BASED ON a 220head dairy farm near Stratford, and with a good knowledge – gathered first-hand – of the region’s agriculture sector, Hey Harvesting is owned and operated by Andy and Rebecca Hey. Starting from a humble beginning in 2004 with two John Deere machines, today’s fleet runs to an impressive line-up of 15 dark green and yellow units. They include a 1750, a Range of 6 series from a 6410 through to the latest 6230R and a trio of 7530’s. Offering a multitude of on-farm services,
which includes maize and cereal crop harvesting and small-seed planting, 95% of the Hey’s customer base are dairy enterprises. Therefore, efficient silage and haybaling is imperative, a reason that drew Andy Hey to John Deere products. “Being a dairy farmer myself, I have high expectations around the quality and pace of work we provide and know we must be as productive as possible,” he explains. “We turned to John Deere balers as they have been consistent and reliable.” In October last year the silage and hay equipment line-up was boosted by the arrival
Taranaki-based contractor Andy Hey started his business back in 2004 with two John Deere machine that today has grown to a fleet of 15 green machines.
of a John Deere V451R Variable Chamber Baler to complement the 960 Variable Round Baler already in the field. Featuring a 2.2m wide feeding system and a high-capacity rotor, with a 480 mm diameter converging auger, the V451R is said to be capable of producing more than a bale a minute – a level of production Hey says is “exactly where we need to be”. Durability is also important as the Taranaki dairy sector sprawls across a range of land types, from rolling and steep hill country to peaty loams.
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“Being a dairy farmer myself, I have high expectations around the quality and pace of work we provide and know we must be as productive as possible. We turned to John Deere balers as they have been consistent and reliable.” “We have found our balers can follow the ground quite easily and required very little maintenance in terms of repairs,” he adds. Although the silage and hay equipment is parked in the shed during the off season,
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diversification has also been a key to the couple’s success. This – alongside the dairy and harvesting enterprises – sees them operating a quarry to supply material for drive and raceway construction during the winter
months, which keeps a fleet of five large trailers towed by John Deere tractors busy. “We are unique in this region with our tractors, as most other suppliers use trucks, but we can get to places that are far more inaccessible,” Andy Hey explains. Reflecting on the future, he says the key focus is a shift to enhancing the business’s productivity. “With the machinery on board, we are aiming towards making the business stronger after many years of expansion.” @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // NOVEMBER 2, 2021
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