NZ Dairy (Issue 2) Winter 2017 by Waterford Press Limited

Winter 2017

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Couple calm perfect storm Three years ago Greg and Janelle Imeson were part of the Sydney business world. Then Greg’s hankering to return to the family dairy farm got the better of him. Now they are Northland Dairy Managers of the Year. – page 25 Photo: imesoncountry.com

INSIDE

First-timers scoop top award - PAGE 4

Couple settle on sweet spot - PAGE 14

• Can apply raw effluent at application rates below 7mm/hour and application depths below 3mm • Combines reliable proven method of traveling with the performance of effluent raingun • Save time and money by covering more than double the area of traditional travelling irrigators

New bobby-calf rules take effect - PAGE 39

Sustainability wows judges - PAGE 47

Te Reo part of learning curve - PAGE 68

IN THIS ISSUE »

NZ Dairy

1o ‘Know better, do better’ – a winning mantra

One-year-old Ruairi O’Malley gets to know his cows. His mum and dad are worth listening to – Siobhan and Christopher are the 2017 Canterbury/North Otago Share Farmers of the Year.

35 Family seeks balance on ‘for-ever’ farm

Dan and Freya Lynch mix dairying, calf-rearing and breeding pedigree jerseys with their four-children family life. Three years ago they moved to bigger property which they call their ‘for-ever’ farm

50 Family plans generational shift

Darrell and Jasmine Trumper are working out a succession plan with Darrell’s parents. And they say quite a few families in their neighbourhood are watching with close interest.

57 Ryan loves keeping it simple

Ryan Worsley – known as a huntin’, fishin’ and divin’ man – is also a serious dairyman. And he reckons his decision to take on a job managing a 1000-cow business is the best move of his career.

62 Farmer, fashionado share in award

Fraser loves farming and tends to the cows at Karaka; Amber loves fashion, works in central Auckland, and farms at weekends. Together they are the 2017 Auckland/Hauraki Share Farmers of the Year.

72 Here comes genomics, says breeder

Genomics is poised to make a ‘very exciting impact on sire selection abd breeding’, says Owen Coponga, a Holstein Freisian New Zealand director..

>> Index | 79

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Bal Sran

Boy from Punjab overcomes odds Richard Loader The learning curve for Northland’s 2017 Dairy Manager of the Year runner-up, Balkaren (Bal) Sran, has been steep and challenging. When he arrived alone as a 21-year-old in New Zealand in 2008 from the Indian state of Punjab, he had neither milked a cow nor spoken English, He enrolled as an international student at the Wairakei Polytech to study Information technology. Qualified as an electrical engineer back home, he thought a career in IT was the next logical step. He quickly discovered IT was not for him but, as fortune would have it, another door opened up. “As an international student I had paid $18,000 for a year’s study. I had to do something otherwise I had to go back to India and the money was nonrefundable,” he says. “Someone suggested to me ‘Why don’t you try farming?’, so I enrolled in a 12-month course.” Although studying full-time, he worked parttime on a dairy farm in Tokoroa. On finishing the polytech course, he was offered a full-time position on the farm where he stayed for two years as a farm assistant. Bal had learned to read and write English in India, but not to speak it. And to make things worse, the Kiwi accent created more difficulties. “The first year was very difficult and I didn’t enjoy farming because I didn’t know what was going on. It was a bit stressful. Just going to the bank or shopping, you had to ask two or three times. But day by day my English got better, and slowly but surely, farming became very much a passion for me.” Over the next few years he moved to farms at Rotorua and Culverden (in the South Island) – building knowledge, experience and gaining promotions. He also completed part-time level 4 studies in production management. When he moved to Jo and Geoff Crawford’s farm in Hikurangi, Northland in 2014 as farm manager, he was looking after 350 cows on 150 hectares. The following year he took over 600 cows

Day by day my English got better, and slowly but surely, farming became very much a passion for me.

Bal Sran arrived in New Zealand in 2008 to study information technology. Unable to speak English he did a career u-turn, studied farming, and this year was runner-up for Northland’s Dairy Manager of the Year. on 160ha and now, with the Crawfords’ purchase of a neighbouring farm, he has 1000 cows under his control on 360ha (effective). “This season I’m contract milking on both farms. That contract has been signed off for a couple of years when it might be renewed or I might see if I can go for 50:50. The dream is to buy my own farm.” This year was his second time in the dairy awards – he finished third last year. He says it puts your name out there as someone who wants to progress, it goes on your CV and opens doors. It means that when you are looking to move, you can choose a job you really want rather being chosen for a job. “And I learn heaps because you meet all the new people, all the professionals. I wasn’t good on fertiliser, but I talked to all the guys and learned quite a bit.” He says he can’t imagine doing anything else but farming now. “I love pretty much everything about it because every day you have a new challenge. You always have to think.” It’s a lifestyle for him now – a good place for the family to grow.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Peter & Nicola Carver

NZ Dairy

First-time entrants scoop top Karen Phelps First-time Ballance Farm Environment Awards entrants Peter and Nicola Carver admit it has been a shock to go from obscurity to having their faces on the pages of newspapers. People on the street recognise them and the phone has been ringing non-stop. They say they were surprised to win the regional title let alone take out the national supreme award: “We entered to benchmark ourselves and see where we could improve,” says Peter. “It has been reassurance that we are on the right track. It’s very encouraging.” The Carvers say they have tried to suit their Holmleigh farming operation – on 515 hectares at Ohangai, east of Hawera – to the land. Their dairy farm is on the flattest part of the farm, the rest of the cattle and sheep run on the rolling country, and the steepest hill country is reserved for forestry. With support from Taranaki Regional Council schemes, they have 25ha planted in pines and around 5ha of retired land in redwoods to stabilise the land, minimise erosion, and make the farm more aesthetically appealing. The dairy farm, which peak-milks 260 cows, on 95ha converted around three years ago, is the newest addition to the operation, It is run by a manager and the cows are all wintered on the dairy platform. Last season the dairy unit produced 125,000 kilograms of milksolids (about 480kg per cow).

PHOTOS (this page and facing page): Peter and Nicola Carver (left) celebrate their success in winning the Ballance New Zealand Farm Environmental Award at their first attempt. They say they have tried to suit their farming operation at Ohangai, east of Hawera, to their 515 hectares of land. They have a dairy farm on the flattest part, run beef cattle and sheep on the rolling country, and reserve the steepest hill country for forestry.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Peter & Nicola Carver

award The Carvers say that when they converted this land, future proofed this part of the farm by installing larger-than-required infrastructure such as effluent and milk storage. Peter Carver says the dairy unit has created efficiencies across the whole farm. For example, all progeny from the dairy cows are kept and the Carvers use their own bulls over the late cows. These are grown out, rather than buying in store stock as they used to do. Dry-stock animals migrate to the dairy unit as needed to keep the grass down and pasture quality high. The dairy unit has also helped them spread the risk of commodity fluctuations by improving farm efficiency and realising better economic returns in the long term. The couple’s sheep and beef breeding and finishing unit comprises around 4500 stock units with an equal ratio of sheep to beef. The romney ewes are run in two mobs and average 130 per

• To page 6

The dairy unit has helped them spread the risk of commodity fluctuations by improving farm efficiency and realising better economic returns in the long term.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Hayley Hoogendyk

NZ Dairy

Fill-in milking job opens door to management Richard Loader “Farming is now in the blood,” says 28-year-old Manawatu dairy manager Hayley Hoogendyk who’s forging an impressive career in the farming industry. After farming for just a little over five years, she was judged the 2017 Manawatu Dairy Manager of the Year award amongst some tough competition. She also collected merit awards for employee engagement, leadership, and power play. It’s the third time Hayley has entered the awards. She was runner-up for manager of the year last year and in 2014 was named Manawatu Dairy Trainee of the Year. “Winning this award means a lot,” she says. “It was hundreds of hours of hard work, so I really felt it had paid off. I felt really proud. “I knew three of the four finalists in my area, I’m quite good friends with all of them. They’re all good farmers, so to take it out with them is pretty cool.” It’s a career that might not have happened had it not been for a chain of events. Her first career choice was accountancy,

however she found her first university accounting paper boring and switched to a business degree, majoring in sports management. For the next two years she worked in events management at Massey University until government funding was withdrawn and she found herself looking for a new job. She took to milking cows until another events job came along, discovered farming was her calling, and has never looked back. After progressing quickly from farm assistant to second-in-command roles, Hayley is now farm manager for Te Paratai Farms Ltd, on a 220-hectare (effective), 650-cow property at Rongotea, near Samson. It’s owned by Roger and Noeline Taylor and Nigel Taylor “For two years now I’ve been managing a multimillion-dollar business,” says Hayley. “There are not many industries where you can do that in three years from starting. It’s a very rewarding industry and the more you put into it, the more you can get out.” She says that entering the dairy awards really put a focus on the farm as a whole. It made her

“we offer an extensive range of quality services to maximise efficiency and profitability for your farm”

Hayley Hoogendyk started milking cows as a fill-in job and liked it so much she’s now pursuing a career in dairying. She has recently been named Manawatu Dairy Manager of the Year. and the farm-owners look at what they were doing and why, where they were falling short of key performance indicators for the industry averages, and what they were going to do about it. Hayley has a a 2IC and two farm assistants reporting to her, and says she is passionate about human-resource management. “I think staff development is one of the more rewarding parts of farm management. As a manager it’s one of the areas you have most control over.

“The more you develop them, the easier your job is and the better the farm runs – they’re a pretty big asset.” While lower-order sharemilking might be her next move within the next couple of years, she ultimately sees herself overseeing multiple farms along the human-resource side. “I quite like giving young people their first opportunity as managers. I think we need to look after young people coming into the industry if we are to retain them.”

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PHOTOS Sheep, dairy cattle and beef cattle share Peter and Nicola Carver’s Taranaki farm, which has won New Zealand’s premier environment award.

First-timers scoop top award • From page 5

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cent lambing. Lambs are weaned around 70 day and average 18.5kg finishing weight. Holmleigh runs around 50 angus breeding cows. All progeny is finished and some bulls are sold for dairy service. All dairy calves are reared. The Carvers have done a lot of re-grassing on the property and grow around 40ha of crops each year – a combination of chicory, maize and turnips. Peter’s parents, Gerald and Faye Carver, who the original 390ha in 1990. Peter and Nicola returned in 2002 from managing a bull and dairy grazing unit in the Waikato. An adjoining 125ha farm was added in 2004. It remains a family business. Gerald and Faye live on the farm and Peter’s brother, Mike, helps,

Nicola works as a high-school teacher in Stratford and does the farm books. Peter and Nicola’s three daughters – Emma, 15, Abby, 13, and Jodi,11, also take an interest, especially horses. The Carvers hope their children may take farm and carry on the family-farm tradition. “The competition has shown us that we’re pretty close to where we need to be to future-proof the farm and make it more sustainable,” says Peter. “Now it’s a matter of trying to do what we do even better. The dairy farm is fully compliant with the regional council riparian plan and we will continue to fence off streams on the dry-stock part. Because it’s a family farm, we have to make it a viable option for the next generation to carry it on if they want to.”

NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Russell & Tracy Bouma

Detail, data, determination... Karen Phelps Attention to detail in all aspects of their farming operation saw sharemilkers Russell and Tracy Bouma claim the Share Farmer of the Year title at the Southland-Otago Dairy Industry Awards. The couple won four merit awards – farm-dairy hygiene; farm safety and health; recording and productivity; farm environment. They went on to win the pasture-performance award at the national finals. When they entered, the Boumas were sharemilking on a 270-hectare (effective) unit at Clydevale where they milked 800 cows for brothers Owen and Andrew Johnston. Russell Bouma says their main aim in entering was to benchmark their business and gain an outside perspective on it. Because the farm was running on a pasture-based system, they placed particular emphasis on this aspect of their operation. They used readily available data provided by Dairy New Zealand to break down costs, to measure energy produced in the feed and assess resulting cow condition. The aim was to pinpoint the ideal crops for the unit. This led them to move from kale to fodder beet and turnips, and they say the results were noticeable.

Fodder beet can produce more yield from a smaller area, so that left us more available pasture. It also has a good result in terms of cow condition.

“Fodder beet can produce more yield from a smaller area, so that left us more available pasture,” says Russell. “It also has a good result in terms of cow condition.” They used their spring-rotation planner, and when the rotation got down to 30-35 days, they used leaf emergence and soil temperature as trigger points to move to a faster round. This attention to detail allowed them to make this shift by September 12-15 - two to three weeks earlier than what was typical in the region. They used autumn feed budgets heading into winter to ensure cows would be fully fed from the farm. The data from weekly plate-meter rides was put into MINDA so that they could identify the better performing paddocks to assist with grazing planning. Their overall focus on detail was extended to good systems and policies implemented in all aspects of their business, such as health and safety, human resources, and animal health and welfare. This season the Boumas have moved back to the North Island. They want to be closer to family and say that 50:50 sharemilking 1000-1050 cows job for Glen and Karen Speed at Rangitaiki will allow them to expand their business. They say they will apply the same attention to detail that has made them award-winners. Their first goal is to maintain the healthy 400,000 kilograms of milksolids the farm achieved last season. They admit they have big shoes to fill as the previous sharemilkers, Donald and Kirsten Watson, won the Central Plateau Sharemilker of the Year title and the national pasture-management award. Tracy says they will get to know the farm, then identify areas that could be improved to continue the Watsons’ good work. The Boumas also have a 50:50 sharemilking job milking 450 cows at Clinton, in Southland. The manager there is stepping up to a contract milking position this season. Both Russell and Tracy Bouma have family

Tracy and Russell Bouma speak at a field day on the 270-hectare unit at Clydevale, in South Otago, where they sharemilked 800 cows for brothers Owen and Andrew Johnson. Dairy New Zealand consulting officer Guy Michaels is on the right.

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The Boumas won the 2017 Share Farmer of the Year award for the Southland-Otago region, along with merit awards for farm-dairy hygiene, farm safety and health, recording and productivity, and farm environment. They won the pasture-performance award in the national finals. farming backgrounds. Russell worked on smaller farms in the Reporoa area for several years after leaving school. He and Tracy took on their first lower-order sharemilking job on a 150ha, 550cow farm and steadily climbed the dairy ladder, eventually entering into an equity partnership on a farm at Oruanui, in the Taupo area.

Moving to the South Island allowed them to fulfil a dream of exploring dairy farming in that part of the country. They have three children: Brooke, eight; Zoe, five; and Liam, two Their long-term goal is farm ownership although they remain open as to how they get there and are look for opportunities.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Dion & Jo Bishell

NZ Dairy

Award ‘reward for hard work’ Russell Fredric Dion and Jo Bishell say focus and hard work helped them win two major dairy-industry awards this year. They were named 2017 Share Farmers of the Year in the Taranaki division of the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards at Hawera in March. taking away $17,346 in prizes, and then finished third in the same section at the national awards in May. They appreciate this recognition of the skills, experience and tertiary qualifications they bring to their roles as 50 per cent sharemilkers for the Drought & Kalin Family Trust Partnership. But they say they are not prepared to rest on their reputation as they embark on a second sharemilking position this season. Jo, who grew up on a Waikato dairy farm, holds a Bachelor in Applied Science majoring in agriculture and a post-graduate Diploma in Farm Systems and Management. She worked as a consulting officer for Dairy New Zealand for about nine years. Dion started farming at the age of 16 for his grandparents in Taranaki. The couple have studied for the PrimaryITO Grow Safe Stages one and two, They have been farming together for 13 years, and are in their fourth season for the Drought/Kalin partnership on a 150-hectare property at Manaia, peak-milking 470 cows. Waiting to hear the result at the regional dinner was particularly nerve wracking because the Bishells were second in the competition last year, Jo says. “There’s always that bit of added pressure, but we work bloody hard at what we do. It was a great reward to achieve for all our hard work.”

Entering the awards and having the benefit of expert input into their processes motivated the Bishells to push the boundaries of their farming business. “For us,” says Jo, “it’s about being good on all aspects of farming, doing best practice across the board, using all the tools that are available to you and implementing them.” They employ a full-time second-in-charge and a full-time milk harvester. Seasonally there is typically a dry period during summer and autumn for six to eight weeks, but in the 2015-16 season this stretched out to five months. As a result cows were dried off on April 7;

PHOTOS Left: Jo and Dion Bishell are taking on a second sharemilking contract this season. Below: The Bishells speak at a field day on the property.

• To page 9

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Bridie Virbickas

Bridie escapes office ...and goes farming Sue Russell Bridie Virbickas has enjoyed managing her parents’ Bay of Plenty dairy farm – even though her mother thought Bridie had “lost her head” wanting to take it on. But Bridie was raised on a dairy farm, loved the lifestyle and working with stock, had a degree in agricultural science from Massey University, and had worked for Ballance Agri-Nutrients as a sales cadet and then leader of the farm-sustainability team. When the opportunity arose to manage the Matuku farm – one of three owned by her parents, Bernard and Linda Virbickas, who live three kilometres away on the home farm, it was a dream come true for her “I was used to being outside and found myself

more and more in an office. I felt like a caged animal.” In the sole-charge position Bridie is responsible for all day-to-day, farm-management decisions – her background of visiting and giving advice across a raft of farm types has proved very useful. Her parents have sold their Edgecumbe farm and bought the neighbouring property to Matuku. Come the 2018-19 season Bridie will be contractmilking 600 cows across the two farms. The 60-hectare Makatu farm carries 240 jersey cows. She finds the 22-a-side herringbone shed “very adequate” and in mid-May, 150 cows were still being milked. But, she says, the cyclones that devastated parts of the region in late summer posed challenges. “We didn’t get the best production last season. The cyclones put paid to that with the season ending sooner than planned.”

Fortunately, while there was a lot of surface water, it was clean rain-water and didn’t affect pasture adversely. The challenges came from a major “down cow” issue – 16 cows down with milk fever in the middle of Cyclone Debbie. The farm is low in calcium and, while there was plenty of grass, its water content didn’t provide the necessary dry-matter content the cows need to perform at peak. “With my background, I could understand what the cows needed. I phoned our local vet to get advise on what minerals to provide and he said I was doing everything right given the conditions.” While herd numbers were down from 270 cows the previous year, production was cranking up 8 per cent a month until the cyclones hit. “To see fewer cows per hectare performing better was key for me,” says Bridie. “I try to use feed to the best of my ability. The condition of my cows and how well they were milking proves I must be doing something right.” She has been looking into adding feeds such as DDG Distillers Grain into the mix, supplemented with maize silage and palm kernel. “The cows love it. Per kilo of dry matter, it looks to be more efficient.” She also found time and commitment to enter the Bay of Plenty Dairy Industry Farm Manager of the Year award, and was runner-up.

PHOTOS: Above: Bridie Virbickas with Nick. Lower left: Bridie will be contract-milking 600 cows this season. Lower right: The view across the 60-hectare property at Makatu. She says she found the experience really beneficial. And she sees plenty of further professional development in store.

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‘We’ve got both sides of the puzzle’ • From page 8

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they are usually dried off from mid to late May until calving in the first week of July. The effects of the drought saw production down to 171,000 kilograms of milksolids – “a really bad result” compared with 198,000kg the previous season, Jo says. “That didn’t help when you had a really bad payout to go with it.” “Our goal through that down-turn was to achieve a zero balance at the end of the season, but we knew we were going to be in a deficit by that time season and the bank provided us with the capital to clear that out. So, our equity went down again.” The 2016-17 season was better, but presented challenges with high autumn rainfall. As seasonend aproached, the Bishells were targeting total production of 185,000-190,000kg milksolids. However, they believe the farm is capable of

200,000kg during a favourable season. With their share of farm working expenses at $2.14/kg per milksolid and a forecast payout of around $6/kg for the season, reducing debt from any surplus is a priority, they say. In the day-to-day running of the farm, Dion oversees the management of cows and pasture while Jo handles administration, health and safety, and financials plus the calf-rearing during the spring. Their complementary skills and experience are a significant asset in dealing with an already huge and growing part of the business, Dion says. “We’ve got both sides of the puzzle.” That puzzle is set to get bigger as the Bishells take on another 50% sharemilking position on a farm near Hawera, owned by Shanghai Penxin, as part of their plan towards farm ownership. The farm will be run by a contract milker, but managed by the Bishells on a three-year contract.

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10 |

DAIRY PEOPLE » Christopher & Siobhan O’Malley

NZ Dairy

‘Know better, do better’ key Kim Newth

Mid Canterbury sharemilkers Siobhan and Christopher O’Malley say a positive attitude to learning and self improvement were instrumental in their being named 2017 Share Farmers of the Year.

I remember saying to Siobhan, well before awards night, that we were already winners because we’d looked into the business in so much detail and really analysed what we were doing and why.

A positive attitude towards learning and selfimprovement is a hallmark of Christopher and Siobhan O’Malley’s Mid Canterbury sharemilking business, Pukeko Pastures. And it brought awardwinning results when the couple were named Share Farmer of the Year in the 2017 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards. Along with the top prize, they also received awards for human resources, interview, and livestock recording and productivity. Earlier in the year, they won the Canterbuty/North Otago Share Farmer of the Year title. Christopher and Siobhan both grew up in Christchurch and had other careers before they started Pukeko Pastures in 2011-12. Their mixed urban-rural experiences have imbued them with a determination to spread the word on the upsides of the dairy industry beyond the rural sector, (and one of the ways they are doing so is through regular posts on their Pukeko Pastures Facebook page). “When I was growing up in Christchurch, no-one talked about sharemilking as a career possibility, yet this is such a great industry,” says Christopher. “There are just so many opportunities.” Having a grandfather who was a dairy farmer on the West Coast gave Christopher his first taste of country life. He has fond memories of school holidays spent on the farm. Perhaps it is also where his passion for outdoor adventure first took root. Before dairying, he worked as an adventure-tourism guide and, one year, his fearless nature saw him sign on as first mate to sail across the Pacific – even though he had no sailing experience at the time. Siobhan, a former secondary school teacher with an MA in classical studies. is now in the last stages of completing a Diploma in Agribusiness Management. At the time of the global financial crisis in 2008 they were working in Dublin, but then decided to head home to safer pastures. Siobhan found a job teaching, while Christopher decided to try his hand at dairying. “Tourism is very seasonal, so for me it was all about getting a career,” he says. “I started as a dairy assistant in Darfield in June 2009; I could see there was a future for us in it.” By 2011, they had decided to combine their energies in dairy farming. They took to it like proverbial ducks to water, entering the regional 2013 Dairy Industry Awards while working as variable order sharemilkers on the West Coast. The

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Christopher & Siobhan O’Malley

| 11

to award-winning result

farm was fighting a severe drought at the time, but the couple still came away with a leadership award and a farm safety and health award. Entering the 2015 awards round did not go so well, as they were in the process of job hunting at the time. “It was timely reminder of the huge commitment you need to be able to make to do these awards justice.”

They then waited until they were into their second year, sharemilking 515 cows on Graham Brooker’s 138ha farm in Ashburton, before trying again. “I remember saying to Siobhan, well before awards night, that we were already winners

As well as being busy sharemilkers, Christopher and Siobhan O’Malley are raising a young family of three, Finnian, five, Aisling, four and Ruairi, one (above).

• To page 12

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12 |

DAIRY PEOPLE » Anthony & Peter Giesbers/Christopher & Siobhan O’Malley

NZ Dairy

Financial, lifestyle reasons behind winter milking Sue Russell Northland dairy farmer Peter Giesbers says the decision to move away from traditional spring calving to autumn calving was made for sound pragmatic reasons. “There were many reasons why it was the right choice for us when we made the move for the 2012-13 season. The premium being paid for winter milk is one of them and, though we are affected by the wet here, it is much better to be calving in the dry in March.” They grow good grass up north, Peter says, with high protein yield through June, July and August. And to top it off, more money is paid for calves and cull cows. “It’s also nice to be dry for Christmas and the new year.” With the positives come some negatives. and Peter has some concern about the ‘empty’ rates. Calving is set to start from March 1 for the 355 Livestock Improvement Corporation-inseminated full-friesian cows. The flat farm, 15 kilometres west of Kaikohe, has an 115-hectare (effective) milking platform. Underfoot the mainly clay soil has around 10 per cent volcanic content. “We do flood as we have a river on our boundary,” Peter says. Milk is produced through a no-nonsense, 30-a-side herringbone shed with automatic cup

Father and son Anthony and Peter Giesbers winter-milk around 330 friesian cows near Kaikohe. Peter is also involved in two other farms. removers. Milking is a single-person operation to harvest. Peter says last season was particularly challenging because of the weather. “It was very, very wet through to OctoberNovember, then turned dry in January-February. The wet definitely affected not only our milk production, but also getting crops in the ground.” The farm operates to a system five, feeding out maize produced on 25ha, along with 300-

350 tonnes of palm kernel and some kiwifruit. Occasionally conola soya and DDG are added, but only when required during calving. Peter’s father, Anthony, and one other worker deal with the farmwork; Peter is also involved with two other farming properties. “This farm produces a good comfortable level of milksolids that we can budget on though there is always room for improvement,” he says. He isn’t a fan of once-a-day milking and

acknowledges that, even with additional feed, cow condition can be a factor at times. “We did try once-a-day on another farm and found that the cows didn’t peak as high.” Two Herd Homes on the property are invaluable Peter says – together, they can accommodate 300 cows. A concrete area between the milking shed and the covered barns is used often for standing off cows awaiting calving. They bought the home-farm was in 2004; four years later, just after the ‘crash’, a farm five kilometres down the road with new owners wanted a 50:50 sharemilker. Peter seized this opportunity and in 2011, became a 50:50 sharemilker on the home-farm. He added a third sharemilkinf contract in 2014. “My brother-in-law and I work together on the third farm. He is contract-milking and takes care of all the staffing; on the other sharemilking farm I have a contract-milker to free me from worrying about staff.” Peter is married to Lana, who teaches at the local primary school. They have two girls, aged five and two. With such a busy life across the various farms, its important to have off-the-farm activities, he says: “We’ve got in to mountain-biking and have enjoyed going to the new bike park in Waitangi.” At a recent Fonterra ward dinner Peter says his dad was asked about the autumn calving. “I think more and more people can see the benefits that flow from switching to autumn calving in terms of financial returns and lifestyle.”

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Sharemilkers of the Year winners Christopher and Siobhan O’Malley. The awards ceremony at Auckland’s Sky City took a dramatic turn when Christopher’s father collapsed at their table and was rushed to hospital, but was later discharged.

Tech-savvy couple impress judges • From page 11 because we’d looked into the business in so much detail and really analysed what we were doing and why. That was the biggest prize of all from entering.” The awards function at Auckland’s Sky City Convention Centre in May took a dramatic turn when Christopher’s father collapsed at their table and had to be rushed to hospital. “I’m relieved to say he’s okay,” says Christopher. One of the key points of difference the judges praised about the O’Malleys is how they are embracing technology to boost farm health and safety. The couple find WhatsApp an invaluable tool for keeping in touch with what’s happening on farm, from the mundane to potential risks. “So, for example, we can let everyone know if there’s a wire across a track, so don’t drive your motorbike down the hill. Or if I’m off the farm, the person milking can text and say when the cows are locked away so that I know they are safe.” The judges also noted how the O’Malleys had

been able to put together a high-quality herd within a budget constraint. When they signed up for their current 50:50 sharemilking position, they had no cows. As Christopher says, it was because the job came up in April, very late in the season. “So we’d either sold or leased out all our animals. We spent May driving around the country trying to find 500 animals to milk!” Along with sharemilking, Christopher and Siobhan are raising a family of three – Finnian, five, Aisling, four, and Ruairi, one. Christopher, who was named 2016 MidCanterbury Rugby Referee of the Year, somehow finds time for his favourite off-farm recreation too. “I’m still refereeing senior rugby in Mid Canterbury – it’s the one thing I have to myself!” he laughs. Farm ownership is their ultimate goal. Nothing seems impossible for this hard-working couple who have already come so far and whose favourite saying remains, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know, do better.” (Maya Angelou).

NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Niall & Delwyn McKenzie

| 13

Family farmers on same track Richard Loader Northland Share Farmers of the Year, Niall and Delwyn McKenzie say they are incredibly happy where they live. Niall puts it down to resilience. Having come through an incredibly wet 2016-17 season that impacted on available feed, they are confident they have the knowledge they can get through anything the weather gods might throw at them. That, he says, comes from feeling good about yourself, a positive relationship with your partner, and a network of supportive neighbours who just happen to be family – in fact, 23 of them all on the same rural road. It gives you empowerment and reserve to go through the tough times, he says. It makes you feel unstoppable. Niall met Delwyn when she was 21 and he was 23. That was 16 years ago and they have been an inseparable combination on a farming journey ever since. “We’ve worked in Australia and the South Island doing large herds and different systems, from milking 1600 cows three times a day in Tasmania to just farming grass,” says Niall. Now on a system 1 grass-based farm on Settlement Road, Kaiwaka, they are 50:50 sharemilking 230 cows on Rodger and Jan Comrie’s 100-hectare (effective) farm. Delwyn is the sixth generation of her family to dairy-farm on the road; her grandparents are next door and her parents the next farm over. A brother, cousins, aunties and nephews populate other farms along the road. It’s a family affair that operates within a spirit of co-operation. “We can borrow Delwyn’s grand-dad’s balefeeder. He’s 85 so we help him with some of his physical work,” says Niall. “If we need a 100-horse tractor with a two-metre bucket, Delwyn’s dad helps with that and in return, we help with a bit of weekend relief-milking.” Delwyn is a relief primary school teacher, and when not teaching, is full-time on the farm. When she’s teaching, she’s up early helping with the morning milking and home in time for the afternoon milking. Niall says he has a very strong “energy value” – code for “sometimes I get overly carried away and need to get put back in the straight and narrow”. He says Delwyn’s great strength is her foresight and ability to tweak and fine-tune his ideas. Together they are a formidable team. They’re also one paper away from completing their National Diploma in Agribusiness through the Primary ITO. “We’ll end up with a diploma, which is pretty good for someone who left school at 16 and barely got school C.” Niall says winning the Industry award, the second time they have done so, was a nice acknowledgement from their peers and and “makes us want to strive to be better farmers”. “We do farm differently and I was shocked when we were announced as the winner. It just means that while we are doing things differently, it is still working for us.” His message is to keep on trying, never give up, and always forge a positive relationship with your partner.

Blue Vallance, Paparoa 0274801072 Don Wilson, 027 4975825 Top: Northland Share Farmers of the Year Niall and Delwyn McKenzie are milking 230 cows in Kaiwaka. Above: The McKenzies’ 100-hectare farm is on Settlement Road – Delwyn is the sixth generation of her family to dairy-farm on the road.

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14 |

DAIRY PEOPLE » Shaun & Catherine Terry

NZ Dairy

Couple settle on sweet spot Karen Phelps Shaun Terry reckons that over the last seven years, he and wife Catherine have tweaked their farming system to the point where they have found the sweet spot. The couple lease a 220-hectare (effective) farm near Pio Pio, in the King Country. They 50:50 sharemilked on the farm for three years before leasing. An 80ha support block winters cattle, grows silage and runs young stock for dairy unit. It’s roughly a third flat, a third rolling and a third steep. The flats are clay, which makes winter and spring a challenge. It’s very easy to damage the soil and once it’s waterlogged, it takes a while grass to grow. The balance of the property is mairoa ash. “We’ve settled on 2.3 cows per hectare, and we’re producing 350 kilograms of milksolids per cow on a predominantly once-a-day milking system,” Shawn says. The couple began farming together in 2008 as

managers near Tokoroa, then had a year at Opunake (Taranaki) as lower-order sharemilkers before going 50:50 on the current farm. While satisfied with progress, Shaun would like to expand their farming business through other options while continuing where they are. The Terrys are assisted by Eddie Descaller (going into his third season) and Jaymee Smith (began in January). Shawn and Catherine have every second weekend off. During calving and peak season, Eddie and Jaymee work alternate weekends. The couple have three children Liam (seven), Piper (five)and Mia (three), and employ a nanny from mid-July to November so that Catherine can work on the farm. The 530-cow herd is made up of high-breedingworth crossbred animals; it is among the top 10% BW nationally. The 40-a-side herringbone shed has automatic cup removers and a Protrack drafting system.

• To page 15

PHOTOS – Opposite page – Catherine and Shaun Terry with their cows and children (Mia, in Catherine’s arms, and on the ground, Piper (left) and Liam. This page – top, Shaun checks water levels; above, Catherine and Shaun look over their 530-cow herd; lower left, you can never have too many old baths; below, Catherine and Shaun in the dairy.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Shaun & Catherine Terry/Greg & Ingrid McCracken

| 15

Weaner option source of ‘important income stream’ • From page 14 A feedpad, constructed five years ago, has been “a game changer”, says Shaun. “It allows us to fully feed the cows while not damaging pasture, especially in spring when we have half the herd calving in nine days.” Shaun and Catherine also have complementary strengths. Shaun enjoys figures and budgets whereas Catherine enjoys all things cow-related, such as animal health and breeding. “Cashflow is a big one,” says Shaun. “That is still a big driver for our business and it is great to see us getting into a more positive position.” Catherine has completed an agribusiness diploma through Primary ITO. It took several years of part-time study, but has furthered her understanding and skills. They rear excess heifers to sell: “This gives us options through cashflow and also for our own herd improvement,” says Shaun. “We have sold up to 150 dairy weaners. It’s a good alternative to milk production alone and, with the lower pay-outs we’ve experienced in recent seasons. has been an important income stream for us.”

Farmers ‘wait and see’ on motorway Karen Phelps

There’s nothing like the news that a motorway might be cutting right through the middle of your farm to put your business goals on hold. This is exactly what has happened to dairy farmers Greg and Ingrid McCracken, who farm at Wellsford, in Northland. They had plans to split the farm in two and increase cow numbers. Now these plans – along with any other development work – have been on hold since February when they received the motorway. “The Warkworth-to-Wellsford motorway extension could go right through the middle of the farm, taking up 70 to 100 hectares of the property plus the entire lease blocks,” says Greg McCracken. “We now have to wait to see what will happen so that we can know what to do.” Greg grew up on a farm at Waipu before his family bought the unit at Wellsford around 25 years ago. At the time it totalled 130ha and milked 280 cows. Around 18 years ago Greg and Ingrid bought the farm and have added a considerable area of land to the farm The property now has a milking platform of

It could be anything from a few years to more than 20 years before the motorway project comes to fruition, and, meantime. the McCrackens are in a holding pattern. But Greg remains pragmatic: ‘We’ve got to proceed as normal, focussing on the farm and making the most of what we’ve got. 330ha, plus lease blocks of 150ha of lease blocks giving them the ability to milk 730 predominantly jersey cows. Greg says the focus they are now concentrating on improving production rather than any major capital expenditure. Over the past five years they have done significant re-grassing, paddock development and drainage, and hope to start seeing the benefits from this. They currently carry all replacement stock on their land, but are considering grazing stock off the farm so that they can bring the present grazing land this land into the dairy platform. They are working hard on pasture management

to maximise production. The herd is milked through a 40-a-side herringbone. The McCrackens’ best production has been 215,000 kilograms of milksolids from 640 cows on 290ha. This season they are aiming for 230,000kg milksolids from the larger herd on 330ha. The McCrackens recently won the soil and agribusiness management awards at the 2017 Ballance Auckland Farm Environmental Awards. Greg believes one of the key factors in their success was the move from using a travellingirrigator system of dispersing effluent to a low-application, four-pod system. A weeping wall retains solids so that they can be distributed as needed.

The McCrackens handle all of their own fertiliser spreading, using a GPS system for accuracy of placement. Greg does the farm business accounts himself and updates the budgets every few weeks. This, he says, gives him a good handle on all the financial aspects of the business at all times. The judges also picked up on the farm’s record of staff retention. The three current workers have been there for four, six and 14 years. Greg says that although he has judged dairy-industry awards and encourages staff to put themselves forward for competitions, this year was the first time he has put his own farm up for any awards. He says the feedback has been valuable and has given him ideas that could be implemented but for the lack of definitive time frames for the motorway project. It could be anything from a few years to more than 20 years until the project comes to fruition, and meantime the McCrackens are in a holding pattern. But Greg remains pragmatic. “We’ve got to proceed as normal, focussing on the farm and making the most of what we’ve got,” he says.

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16 |

DAIRY PEOPLE » Carl Wilmshurst

NZ Dairy

Accountancy handy in the milking shed Richard Loader For 26-year-old West Coast contract milker Carl Wilmshust, knowledge and development is a journey in which everything he does matters. Two years ago, having completed his accountancy degree and registered as a chartered accountant working for a firm in Hokitika, Carl received a call from his dad inviting him back on the family farm. It was June 2015. The previous farm workers had left and a storm had ripped through the property, leaving a wake of damaged sheds and numerous blown-down trees. “I knew the practical side of milking cows, but had a lot to learn from Dad about pasture management. We’re a good team and work well together. We have weekly meetings to decide how the week is going to work...how we can get through as much work as possible, maximising efficiency. He says it has been a fusion of injecting accounting expertise and hands-on practical farm management, efficiencies and cost-benefit analysis intertwined with getting the physical job done.

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It’s a fusion that has worked well. Carl and his partner, Anna, were runners-up for the 2017 West Coast Regional Share Farmer of the Year and gaining the business-performance Merit award. The 160-hectare (effective) farm is in the heart of Jade County – Kowhitirangi, just outside Hokitka, rich in history and landscapes such as the Hokitika Gorge and its azure blue waters. It’s a beautiful location amidst rivers, lakes and native bush, a stone’s throw from the wild West Coast. It is, of course, a rainforest and the farmland gets very wet. “We get an average of 4.5 metres rainfall every year, so pasture utilisation can be a challenge,” says Carl. “We’ve gone from a system two to a four, increasing production by 37 per cent. There’s a real cost-benefit to the shift that has made money for Mum and Dad.” Carl says the higher-input system has also improved mating because with better feed, the cows cycle better and are easier to get into calf. He says this has resulted in a more condensed calving, more milk-days and fewer empties. Pasture management has been a big issue for Carl since moving back onto the farm. A sacrifice paddock was used last year to minimise the impact of pugging, and this year a crop has been planted and will become the sacrifice paddock for the coming season. A recently acquired pasture aerator helps drain excess moisture, and the cows are milked in two mobs to further minimise damage. “It just means you don’t have to put 400 cows through one gateway,” he says. “The other thing is that they don’t have to be in the shed as long. While one mob is moving out onto the feedpad, the other mob is entering the shed.” Carl’s background as an accountant has come in handy with the preparation of accounts, GST PAYE, fuel-excise returns, budgeting and tax planning. It has also been useful in preparing feed budgets. The farm is now up for sale. If it sells, Carl and Anna will see out the next season as contract milkers. If it does not, there could well be a fourth season. “I never wrote farming off,” says Carl. “It was just the way it played out—going back wasn’t planned. I would definitely go back into accountancy with the advantage of having hands-on farming experience.”

Above: Kowhitirangi contract milkers Carl Wilmshurst and partner Anna (above) were runners-up in this year’s West Coast Regional Share Farmer of the Year award. They also won a businessperformance merit award. Below: The Wilmshurst cows enjoy the lush Kowhitirangi environment.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Thomas & Jemima Bebbington

| 17

Ohakune couple love their guernseys Sue Russell Manawatu dairy farmers Thomas and Jemima Bebbington have held a strong allegiance to guernsey cows since buying them in a herd five years ago. And they have taken that interest and enthusiasm into the New Zealand Guernsey Breeders’ Association. The Ohakune-based sharemilking couple have a herd of 450 cows, 40 of which are guernsey. “We’re 50:50 sharemilkering and at this stage we think we have the perfect herd size,” says Thomas. “Profitable production is the main driver of our business and, over the years, we have chosen to retain a small number of guernsey cows which fight our cross-breds for top position on herd tests.” The Bebbingtons say the main reason they have been drawn to the breed is that they are not commonly farmed here. “Having the Guernseys creates a bit of a talking point and we’ve been amazed at the gathering of interest in the breed,” says Jemima. Last year, when the couple moved from farming near Te Aroha in the Waikato, they had to get rid of their rising-two-year-old guernseys. They used TradeMe as the means to do it. “We had a really nice couple buy 12 from us,” says Jemima. “The interest is certainly out there.” . All the guernseys are bred to imported guernsey straws and the Bebbingtons say the quality of milk produced is second to none. “They are also very placid, easy to manage animals,” says Jemima. She is on the Guernsey World Federation Board and Thomas is vice president of the New Zealand Association which recently hosted more than 50 breeders and farmers from the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and Australia. “For a small breed here, it was pretty cool. They all had a great sense of humour and were impressed with what they saw here,” says Jemima. “It was just great to be around such positive farming people.” . The visitors began their New Zealand visit in Queenstown, visited guernsey farmers in the South and North islands before settling into their World Breeders’ Conference, which is held every three years. The next conference, which Thomas and Jemima hope to attend, will be in Pennsylvania, USA in 2019. Their farm, which is five kilometres from Ohakune, has an effective milking platform of 160 hectares with a further 15 hectares set aside for

young stock. Its half-flat, half-rolling contour means that underfoot there are dramatic changes in soil type and condition. The couple hosted a field day in April for local farmers. “Where we came from, Hauraki, was such a different farming situation it was really helpful to have locals who had farmed in Ohakune for many years look over the property and give helpful feedback,” says Thomas. “We’re 600 metres above sea-level, so the climate is very cold at times. As a result, we milk for only nine months, reducing to once-a-day milking in the middle of January.” The cows were dried off on April 21, and calving is due to begin on August 6. Next to the 15-year-old, 40-a-side herringbone milking shed is a 450-cow-capacity yard. The farm has two centre-pivot irrigators, but these have not been used for the last couple of years. Jemima describes Thomas as a cow-whisperer: “It’s the way he looks after the cows. That’s the best way to describe it.” A stickler for standards Thomas says he puts 110 per cent into every task and hopes this shows in his production and animal health. Last season they managed to beat the farm record with production of 150,000 kilograms of milksolids. Thomas says the farm is capable of more under the same system: “I think we can get 160,000 and my goal is to get there in two years.” They have two more seasons to go on their contract, find the farm picturesque and great to work on, are very happy with where their farming business is heading, and plan to remain in the area, long term if possible.

PHOTOS Ohakune sharemilkers Thomas and Jemima Bebbington milk a herd of 450 cows including 40 guernseys. They are members of the New Zealand Guernsey Breeders’ Association.

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18 |

NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Linda & Hayden McCartie

Edgecumbe couple Hayden and Linda McCartie weathered two floods and a drought to be named 2017 Bay of Plenty Dairy Managers of the Year Award.

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Richard Loader Two floods and a drought sounds like it ought to be the title of a disaster movie – but it was reality for Edgecumbe farm managers, Hayden and Linda McCartie, and many others around them. For Hayden and Linda though, the adversity in weather was tempered with winning the 2017 Bay of Plenty Dairy Managers of the Year Award. They also received merits for employee engagement, dairy management and feed management. Fitting awards for the hard working farming couple who suffered at the hands of the weather gods this season but heap praise upon their farm workers. “We’ve had large numbers of staff for quite a few years now,” says Linda. “Last season was just phenomenal in as far as how well we worked together; everyone had one another's back. It 's the best team we have had in the last 15 years—hands down.” Hayden says they were proud to be named Bay of Plenty Dairy Manager of the Year, but even prouder when their farm assistant, Hayden Goodall,

was named Trainee of the Year. The couple’s pride in their farm worker’s success says much about their selflessness and the significance they place on staff development. Hayden and Linda are in their third season as farm managers on a 280-hectare farm owned by the Gow Family Trust. The farm, which is reclaimed swampland, is comprised of two separate units, four kilometres apart, and managed as a single operation. The larger of the two units is 215ha and milks 750 cows, while the smaller milks 200 cows off 65ha. Last season was not good from the start. A wet, miserable winter was followed by an equally wet spring that brought with it the first of two floods for the season. “Springtime was that wet it drowned everything,” says Hayden. “Quite a bit of damage was done to the pasture and we were using all our supplement to keep the cows in condition for mating.” Summer came, bringing a drought with it. While

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Matt Gow

| 19

Flood-ravaged farmers still picking up the pieces Karen Phelps

Hayden and Linda McCartie with the silverware at the dairy awards.

Adversity brings out the best in farm staff • From page 18 the two pivot irrigators were doing their job, it was still insufficient to maintain the pasture energy. Hayden says that because there was no supplement left, the young herd went once-aday milking from Christmas time to try and keep condition. The rest of the herd went once-a-day from March. “Everything was looking good for the last two or three months. Milk was pumping in and production for April picking up by 70 per cent. Then the cyclone hit and the April floods put paid to the rest of the season.” With two-thirds of the farm under water, 750 cows were dried off within two days, 170 cows were culled, and the flood pumps worked overtime to get the water back into the canals. Hayden says that while it’s a year he wants to put behind him and move on from, going through the floods was in some ways a good experience. What impressed Hayden and Linda most was the ability of their staff to look after one another during adversity.

Farmers are still picking up the pieces after the devastation caused by the Edgecumbe floods in April. Matt Gow says he was one of the lucky ones, but estimates the damage caused to the farms owned by the Gow Family Trust to be around $200,000. He thinks that because of the unlikely nature of the event, not many farmers in the region would have had adequate insurance coverage. There is hope the government might step in to assist as he says many farmers in the region fared far worse. The farms owned by the Gow Family Trust include 215-hectare unit and 65ha units about two kilometres apart. They milk a total of 940-950 cows and are run as one unit for all intents and purposes; they are managed by Linda and Hayden McCartie, the 2017 Bay of Plenty Farm Managers of the Year. While the smaller unit was not flooded. around 60ha of the larger unit was under water. Not from water from the burst wall of the Rangitaiki River, but water flowing from neighbouring properties onto their land as the drainage system got overloaded. Around 20ha of a 26ha lease block was also under water. Water saturated the land for around 10 days, destroying crops and pasture. By the time the land was able to be re-planted, it was too late for this winter and has left a feed shortfall. Matt responded by drying off the herd two weeks early – which cost him an estimated 15,000 kilograms of milksolids in lost production – and off-loading cull cows immediately. The farm also has a 170ha drystock block, and surplus stock was sold to relieve feed demand there. Making good decisions early has seen feed targets met without the need to buy in additional feed or graze stock off – two expensive options because of increased demand after the floods. Cyclone Cook followed very soon after the first flood, but because there was some warning, the

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I remember I could see only six fencepost-tops on one farm. People have been great though and really responded quickly to help the community. For example, truck-drivers rallied around and got all the stock off farms really quickly. The generosity of people has been phenomenal. Gows managed to pile bales round the irrigator tyres to hold them in place. Matt says the floods occurred as the farms were coming out of a wet spring, which had seen production in the region down around 20 per cent, but a good autumn was seeing things starting to bounce back nicely. He remains mindful that the Gow farms got off lightly compared with some whose entire farms were under water. “I remember I could see only six fencepost-tops on one farm. People have been great though and really responded quickly to help the community. For example, truck-drivers rallied around and got all the stock off farms really quickly. "The generosity of people has been phenomenal. Local community and Federated Farmers meetings have been held to identify problems and work out how to respond to such events.” He says the Gow farms were fortunate in

that they have a private flood pump which had been upgraded with a computerised system capable of coping with some overflow issues, although nothing like what were created by this unforeseeable event. They will flood-gate more culverts to help reduce additional backflow of water onto the farm. Around 50ha of pastures has been re-sown and another 20-30ha is still needs to be done. Target production before the flood was 405,000 kilograms of milksolids and the farm finished on 370,000kg. Pasture cover and cow condition have been hitting targets, and Matt has his fingers crossed for a kind July and August as this is when he sees potential pressure on the system. It will take time to fully recover from the flood, but like most farmers in the area, he plans to take it on the chin. “Farmers will do what they always do – carry on.”

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20 |

DAIRY PEOPLE » Euan & Mikki McLeod

NZ Dairy

Managers say they’re up for new challenge Karen Phelps

He says they plan to concentrate on weighing young stock regularly as they seek to achieve key liveweight targets. He suspects the herd’s The 2017 Waikato Dairy Manager of the Year, Euan high breeding worth (BW) – one of the best in the McLeod, admits he was surprised by his success. country at an average of 138 – could be working “It was my first season managing, so I was against them when it comes to factors such as pretty inexperienced all things considered. I figured fertility. I’d have a go by entering this year, then have a real “The herd has been bred toward production crack at winning next season. So I did better than quite extensively, and perhaps fertility has suffered I’d hoped.” as a reault.” The McLeods also won merit awards for Murray Gibb works closely with Euan and livestock management and for employee the farm employs one full-time staff member. In engagement. the 2016-17 season production finished around Euan is the manager of Murray and Janet Gibb’s 143,000 kilograms of milksolids after “a terrible 122-hectare farm with a high-breeding-worth jersey spring”. In a good year the target is 150,000kg of herd farm of at Taupiri, The system-two farm peakmilksolids. milks 375 cows. The McLeods have this season taken the next He credits his Kiwi step – contract milking – wife, Mikki, as integral starting on the same farm to winning the title. on June 1. They already She relief-milks, rears their sights set on a I love getting up every have calves and is two papers 50:50 sharemilking position away from completing day and the challenge after that, or perhaps a graduate Diploma in an equity partnership of dairy farming. I’ve Rural Studies, focused on depending on what farm management and opportunity presents. always got a target in agribusiness. The couple Euan thinks that have two children under because of environmental front of me to strive for. restrictions, the industry five, and a third was born in June. could be heading towards Contract milking will Euan, originally from milking fewer cows. Which Scotland, says they just be an extension of is why he is particularly benefited from the win by focused on ensuring he that, and we are ready has the best-quality cows meeting other competitors, judges and sponsors. possible. for the challenge. “It was a real privilege The McLeods have 110 to be in amongst people cows, which they bought like that and make contacts. as in-calf heifers and lease Feedback from judges out to build equity to fund has also been really useful. We’re going to benefit their next move. This year they bought 25 risingmassively from that.” one-year-olds, which are out grazing. Euan says their two priorities are: “I love getting up every day and the challenge • financial targets – identifying financial key of dairy farming,” says Euan McLeod, who was performance indicators and how to improve them; a bricklayer in Scotland before coming in New • mating and fertility – a six-week in-calf rate Zealand. of 59 per cent (the industry target is 78%) leaves “I’ve always got a target in front of me to strive plenty of room for improvement although it is up on for. Contract milking will just be an extension of that the season before. and we are ready for the challenge.”

PHOTOS – Above: Euan McLeod...sees industry heading towards fewer cows. Lower left: Mikki and Euan McLeod with their children (from left), Iona, Archie and baby Callum.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Graeme Collins

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Graeme still warms to favourite jerseys Richard Loader Northland dairy farmer Graeme Collins reckons if it were not for his love of breeding pedigree jersey cows, he might have retired from milking years ago. Refreshed from a holiday in the Philippines, his first in a decade, he says there’s a ‘yes and no’ answer to whether he’s looking forward to the new season. The cows were dried off a few weeks early last season as Graeme was having a cataract operation, and he’s enjoyed not having to get up quite so early in the mornings. But he says that when the calves start to come in the first week of July, he gets pretty keen on it again. He loves seeing who’s had what. “That interest is there all the time. You use a bull and say ‘Oooh yeah, I’d like to see what those daughters are like’. Having an interest in the registered cows themselves keeps old fellas like me going longer than if you were just milking cows.” Graeme, 66, has farmed right from when he was a little fella growing up on his parents’ farm, and has always loved cows. He bought his own farm at Wellsford on March 9, 1984, and has been there since, farming alone until nine years ago when he took on a worker. The farm is about seven minutes from the ‘home farm’ and he milks 100 pedigree-registered jerseys off a platform of 55 hectares through a 10-a-side herringbone shed. He says he likes to keep things simple and is pretty much pasture-based. “I haven’t gone into maize silage or palm kernel or anything. I don’t have anywhere to store it and at the end of the day, it’s what ends up in your back pocket.” He established the Waiteitei Stud when he bought the farm and gradually achieved 100-percent registration with Jersey NZ. He has a long and successful history at pedigree sales and show competitions, and can now add Waiteitei Super Maxwell to the stud’s achievements.

Super Maxwell, a rising-five-year-old bull, was nominated by Jersey NZ for artificial breeding and then selected by CRV Ambreed for its sire-proving programme. The first of his daughters were milked last season. “He’s come out with an OK survey, so Ambreed is marketing him in its catalogue this season, which is a first for me,” says Graeme. “I milked two of his daughters last season and was quite happy with them. There are another three to calve this season.” Graeme is also a TOP (traits other than production) inspector for Jersey NZ. He goes all over the country on roads well travelled, seeing farms and landscapes many of us will never see. “I remember going up a valley out from Wanganui and it opened up into this beautiful land you would probably drive past and never know existed. That’s the beauty of it, and meeting the people.” As to retirement, well that’s the perennial question for Graeme; but right now, he’s a contented man.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Paul Clement

NZ Dairy

Remote irrigation via the cloud Kelly Deeks Technology is playing a pretty big role in the management of Delaborin Farm at Hororata, Canterbury. A redevelopment during the 2014-15 dairy season saw the farm equipped with cloudbased irrigation technology which allowed remote operation via smartphone. Farm manager Paul Clement oversaw that process, then continued to manage the property until June 1 this year when he was promoted to farm operations manager of both Delaborin and another dairy unit owned by Theland Purata Farm Group. His efforts were recognised at this year’s Ballance Farm Environment Awards where he received the award for integrated management. Ten centre-pivots now cover 343 hectares of Delaborin’s 370ha, with 20 grids of solid setsprinklers covering 13ha in its larger dryland corners. The centre-pivots and their SCADAfarm cloudbased management software were supplied by Waterforce, and the sprinkler system was designed and supplied by Think Water New Zealand. “This is the only Theland Purata farm that has this technology, so we are quite lucky to have it,” Paul says. “Without it, it would almost be another labour unit we would need to employ.” He says Delaborin Dairies has turned away from the traditional pivot technology and the feeling of old, which was to get as big a pivot as possible. “Now we know that the bigger the pivot, the more inefficient it is. We’ve gone for smaller pivots, but more of them, so that we can get better efficiency.” The SCADAfarm technology saw Paul able to

run Delaborin Dairies’ irrigation system during his three-week skiing holiday in Japan. “The only difference was that I couldn’t see the irrigators physically going around. But I was looking at our four Aquaflex soil-moisture meters, which are all on line, then turning the irrigators on and off as I needed to.” He says that everyone who is connected with

• To page 23

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Phil van Heuven & Erin Brown

| 23

Good season for ducks and awards Russell Fredric It has been a memorable season for Waikato sharemilkers Phil van Heuven and Erin Brown – for both the right and wrong reasons. A dismal spring followed by an equally unfavourable summer, combined with the effects of heavy cyclonic rain in April, put a dampener on the season, but Phil van Heuven remains philosophical and offered a solution for Southland farmers whose duck ponds were drying up. “I guess we are going to see those really keen duck shooters come up our way because our ponds are completely full,” Phil van Heuven says. And Phil was a winner of this year’s Dairy Industry Awards. He won the Waikato Share Farmer of the Year title, and a pool of other awards –. financial and business performance; pasture performance; farm hygiene; farm environment. The total of $14,050 in prizes has been a big boost. “It took a while to sink in, but once all the phone calls and text messages came through, it started to do so. It’s a major accomplishment for me, and great to see reward for all the hard work and passion that I have for the farming industry.” “I’m hopeful this will set us up to further the sharemilking goals we have and to progress further in the industry. It is also a great way to get constructive feedback that will be beneficial in many ways for our entire career.” A qualified joiner who worked as a builder’s labourer before changing careers, Phil has seven and a half years of experience in the dairy industry. He and Erin are now into their fourth season 50:50 of sharemilking 230 cows for Brett

PHOTOS Above, left: Phil van Heuven and partner Erin Brown (are in their third season sharemilking 230 cows at Tirau. Phil, a former joiner, was the winner of this year’s Dairy Industry Awards Waikato Share Farmer of the Year and scooped a raft of other awards. Above, right: A key part of the operation is closely monitoring pastures and having a re-grassing programme. Left: Phil van Heuven in the dairy shed on Coubrough on a 76-hectare (71ha effective) property at Tirau. “My goal this season was trying to do record production, but because of the difficult winter, I ended up trying to keep cow condition and getting cows in calf.” Because of the adverse conditions over spring and summer, their cows went on to once-a-day milking in February to maintain pasture cover and cow condition and to minimise the need for feed supplementation. Key parts of the farm operation include close monitoring of pastures to achieve correct residuals along with a re-grassing programme; cow condition is a priority, and growth rates of young stock are closely monitored. He has no plans to make radical changes to the farm’s present operation as a result of the awards.

Water scheme boon for farm • From page 22 Delaborin Dairies recognises that water is a valuable resource: “Moisture is very specific to optimising grass growth, and, without water, we wouldn’t be able to dairy farm. It’s that simple.” All of Delaborin Dairies’ water comes from the Central Plains Irrigation Scheme, which, in time, will irrigate the majority of the central Canterbury Plains. The scheme restricts the farm to pumping a maximum of 220 litres per second per day, while the consent conditions restrict it to pumping an average of 205 litres per second per day. “The challenge for me is to stick to those two restrictions through all 10 pivots and the solid set sprinklers to get on the 5mls a day I need,” Paul says. “I can’t run everything at once because of those restrictions, so I’m scaling them and ordering them so that I can allow them to run on a daily basis.” When the irrigation system was commissioned, it took a lot of brain-power and a lot of Excel spreadsheets to get it organised, but now it turns on at 8am every day, and runs fairly consistently. “There are some changes when we perhaps don’t need to run some pivots, but generally on

those occasions, we use less water anyway.” Just understanding the capability of the system and the finer details in terms of the water and what Delaborin Dairies intends to do with it were all things Paul had to get his head around at the start. While last season was a learning experience – the first season of both the Central Plains Water Scheme and the new pivots – this season has been very easy in comparison. “We’ve now got the system in place and we can run it from anywhere in the world.” Following its redevelopment, Delaborin Dairies is irrigating three times the area of the previous three Roto Rainers, and has increased cow numbers from 450 to 1200. “It used to take us three hours a day to sort those Roto Rainer irrigators out, probably four hours by the time you’ve done all the checks,” Paul says. “We were restricted on water because we were pumping out of bores which were quite low-yielding. As soon as the water came past the gate, we were able to get enough water to irrigate everything, so the most obvious thing to do was convert the farm. Now we’re irrigating almost three times the area and milking almost three times the number of cows.”

“I have continued to do what I know and what has been working for me, but will take some of the feedback into my farming practices.” The couple’s half-share of the farm’s working expenses is a respectable $1.50; the farm operates on a Dairy New Zealand rating of system two or three depending on the season, using summer

crops, palm kernel extract and hay. They employ a calf-rearer for two months during spring. Phil and Erin have secured a larger share-milking position for this season and aim to continue to progress into bigger sharemilking positions and to increase equity until they can afford to buy their own farm.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Scott & Sue Narbey

NZ Dairy

PHOTOS: The fencing-off of waterways and significant wetland areas and a nil pugging policy with pasture by standing the cows off on a feedpad, have contributed to Helensville farmers Scott and Sue Narbey winning this year’s Ballance Farm Environment award. Scott, pictured below with wife Sue and children Bella and Ollie, says he wanted to showcase what farmers are doing for the environment.

Narbeys number one on the environment Sue Russell

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Taking out line honours in this year’s Ballance Farm Environment Award has been a very positive experience for Scott and Sue Narbey, who are equity partners with Scott’s parents, Murray and Marie, on their 155-hectare, intensively farmed dairy unit on Mangakura Rd, south of Helensville. After completing a Certificate in Agriculture from Telford Polytechnic in South Otago, Scott returned to the family farm. He is the fourth generation on the system-five property. Scott and Sue acknowledge the hard work of Scott’s parents on the farm, and say their support has been vital to allow the couple to build equity. A third of the farm is one-third flat, with the remainder rolling; there is alluvial soil on the flat and Waitemata clay on the hills, which is prone to pugging. “We have a nil-pugging policy on the farm," says Scott. "When it's wet, we stand the cows off on our feedpad between the milking shed and the effluent storage. We’ve had the feedpad for 15 years now.” As well as winning the supreme award, they won the dairy farm and integrated management awards. The judges acknowledged that while the Narbeys' farming system was intense, every aspect of its management seemed simple and logical. The engine-horse for milk production is a 44-bail rotary designed for one person to operate for the bulk of the season. This is achieved by automatic cup removers, in-shed feeding, ProTrack drafting and an EZheat camera. The shed’s water-tanks and pumps are monitored by a Water Smart system which is directed from the couple's home. "It means we can monitor tank levels from the house or the cowshed, and be alerted to any water leaks," says Scott. Last season the Narbeys' herd of 405 friesian/ friesian-cross cows produced 176,000 kilograms of milksolids. Their breeding aim is to reduce the size of the

cow: “Yes, we’re after a smaller cow, mainly for environmental reasons," says Scott. "I’d say we’re about halfway there” The Kaipara River runs along one boundary, which has been fenced for more than 40 years. The the couple have recently retired further marginal land and completed planting and fencing of four significant wetland areas. Life in the Narbey household is busy. Not only do they run the family farm, but they also own a 90ha grazing and beef property at South Head, which is managed by Scott's father, Murray. Scott also manages an 80ha beef-and-maize property for Sue’s family trust. Sue and Scott also own a physiotherapy business in Helensville; they started it 11 years ago and it now employs 10 staff. Sue, a qualified physio, works at the practice full-time overseeing the whole operation. The couple have two children, seven-year-old Bella and five-year-old Ollie, who are the fifth generation to live on the farm which was originally cleared from bush to dairying by Scott’s greatgrandfather, Thomas Narbey. This season a significant shift will take place in the farm’s organisation with the promotion of Matt Sneddon to a contract-milking role. “It’s a way of acknowledging a valued employee and to give him a hand up in his own farming journey,” says Sue. Before the children arrived, she did the weekend milking along with Scott. These days, while she has her busy "other life" off the farm, she continues to rear the calves. After a couple of tricky low payout years, the Narbeys say it was a positive thing to decide to enter the awards this year. “The dairying industry has had a hard time in the press and we wanted very much to showcase just what we have been doing for the environment," says Scott. "From my experience the majority of dairy farmers really care about the quality of the environment.”

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Greg & Janelle Imerson

Move home a winner Russell Fredric A perfect storm awaited Greg Imeson when in 2014 he returned to his family’s Northland farm from Sydney where he was working as a senior consulting structural engineer. “We arrived four months before the start of thew new season. On June 1 the payout dropped to $4.40 (from $8.40) and then we had very wet months. Everyone was asking me if I’d rather be in the office and I said ‘No way’.” However, he sees some silver linings to those storm clouds that appeared after moving to the 310-hectare (effective) farm. “I’ve learnt all of my farming on a very-low-cost, smell-of-an-oily-rag type of situation. I haven’t had the luxury of buying endless palm kernel, I’ve had to go right back to the basics of pasture management and keeping close attention to the farm working expenses.” This year the efforts of 34-year-old Greg and wife Janelle were recognised when they were judged Northland Dairy Manager of the Year award Greg has an honours degree in structural engineering from the University of Canterbury, and worked in Auckland, London and Sydney for 10 years.

He always wanted to be a dairy farmer, but his father encouraged him to get a degree, have fun, and travel the world before considering settling down to farm life. “Sydney life was a bit too hectic for us and we decided to move home. My older brother, who was managing the farm, moved off to a 50:50 sharemilking job around the road, which left a good opportunity for us to come back.” The farm – at Hukerenui about half an hour north of Whangarei – is run on split calving with 335 cows autumn-milked and 520 milked during spring. This accelerated Greg’s learning curve as mating, calving, drying off and rearing young stock happened twice a year, while the premium for winter milk was also a good incentive. Now the couple and their two children – Jethro (three) and Marley (two) – have a new challenge. They have moved to their own dairy farm this season. Greg outlines how it became possible to buy the 75-hectare farm at Poroti, about 20 kilometres west of Whangarei, over a relatively short time. When his brother, Todd, left the family farm along with his herd of 275 cows, it created an opportunity for Greg and Janelle (still living in Sydney) to buy their own herd when cow prices were low and lease it toe farm.

“We paid an average of $1050 per cow; now they’re worth over $1500,” he says. They also bought Fonterra units at $4.80 on advice from their family banker. Fonterra’s listed share price in April this year was around $6. “We are extremely lucky with the timing of buying our shares and cows, but we had worked and saved hard which allowed us the means to capitalise on the opportunities.” “We’ve made really good money off them, which, with the dividends and gain on our herd, has really built our equity.” The exposure gained from the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards helped win the bank over to the Imesons’ proposal to finance the new farm. After managing a much larger and operationally more complex, farm and employing four staff, life is set to be much different for Greg and Janelle. “I will have more time to spend with my family, but there will be other challenges with farm ownership and milking every day. It’s certainly not going to be easy, but it’s going to be different.” Greg describes the new farm as a highperforming unit – it has been producing 77,00080,000 kilograms of milksolids (around 1060kg per hectare). He says he has budgeted conservatively on first-season production of 70,000kg MS.

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PHOTOS Above: The Imesons on their new farm, from left: Janelle, Marley, Greg and Jethro. Bottom of page: Jethro, Marley and Greg inspect the grass growth. Photos: imesoncountry.com

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Kerry & Anita Higgins/Looney

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NZ Dairy

Award-winners have 40 in their sights Kim Newth Kerry and Anita Higgins and their two young daughters barely had time to celebrate their success at the 2017 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards before they were on the move – to Culverden to contract- milk for the Harakeke Dairy Ltd Partnership. It's just seven years since Kerry left behind a career in security (he was a senior security officer at Parliament). In March, he was named 2017 Canterbury-North Otago Dairy Manager of the Year and then, in May, national runner-up. He also

won the national dairy management and financial management and planning awards. “I had to pinch myself really hard after being in Auckland for the national awards. Considering the calibre of the other entrants, I almost felt like I had imposter syndrome when they started announcing I’d won these awards!” Kerry credits the complementary skills he and Anita have developed as a key part of their success. Kerry takes care of stock and farm management and Anita has a strong role in managing finance and administration. It's perhaps no surprise that Kerry, who grew up on a high-country station near Lake Benmore,

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Above: Kerry and Anita Higgins with their children, Mackenzie (three) and Emerson (seven months). Lower left: Kerry on location in a paddock of winter crop. has no regrets about stepping away from life as a security officer in favour of the dairy industry. “There was a lot of standing around waiting for something to happen and, of course, nothing ever really does happen in New Zealand. When Hillary Clinton came on a parliamentary visit, the most exciting part was watching these secretservice guys running around just like they do in the movies.” He and Anita started in dairying with Anna and Sam O’Reilly, near Darfield. After two years there, they began cold-calling other good operators in the area to scout out opportunities, and let people know who they were and what their goals were. A second-in-command role came up with Leon and Bronwyn McKavanagh at Hororata, and the following year they took over management of the 433-hectare, 1340-cow farm. A lot of effort last season went into developing staff to take over the running of the two herds in preparation for the HIggins' move to Culverden. “The owners’ son, Nathan, came on board and worked underneath me for the year, so the process of handover ran pretty smoothly,” says Kerry. Contract milking is now the next step, which the couple hope will lead to farm ownership. The

position with the Harakeke Dairy appealed because they knew there was a supportive community in Culverden and the challenge of running a farm without owners living on site. Farm management now involves reporting to a board and working with a farm consultant. “It’s a real change from where we have come from." says Kerry. "I was already doing a lot of staff management, but it does feel different now. When they’re your own staff and you’re paying the bills, there’s more personal responsibility involved.” Another adjustment has been getting used to the heavier soils at Culverden, which at least come with the bonus of being easier to fence. This season;s production targets for the 216-hectare dairy platform milking 750 cows are 330,000 kilograms of milksolids – around 450kg per cow, and in line with local levels. Kerry believes his goal of farm ownership by 40 remains realistic. He and Anita are motivated by wanting to provide a family home for their two children, Mackenzie, three and Emerson, seven months. “Turning 40 is seven years away," says Kerry. "I think we can get there. You never know what will happen, but you have to be positive.”

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Sue Russell Bay of Plenty dairy farmers Brent Looney and Natasja Boon very quickly give you an impression of their commitment to farming excellence and of the boundless energy they have poured into their careers. Brent has seized opportunities that enabled him, within the space of 10 years, to own his own farm and practise ‘biological’ farming methods. “It’s very typical for Brent to think outside the square,” says Natasja, who grew up near Amsterdam (in the Netherlands) and is a qualified secondary schoolteacher. Their enthusiasm for farming and their commitment to best practice won them the agribusiness management and harvest awards in the Bay of Plenty Ballance Farm Environment Awards – achievements they are very proud of. Twelve years ago Brent moved away from more traditional farming methods where commercial fertilisers are routinely applied. He replaced the NPKs (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) with generous amounts of lime, dolomite, serpentine, ocean element, trace minerals and inoculums – all supplied by fertiliser company Probitas Systems NZ.

“What we discovered was that production dropped only slightly," he says "I was told it would drop by 20 per cent, but it didn’t. And the icing on the cake was that the production level was achieved with a third of the cost of using traditional fertilisers.” While he is not a conventional organic farmer, he is definitely pushing the boundaries of what can be achieved using biological principles to deliver the trace elements soil needs to grow great grass. Brent, who has worked on the farm for 17 years, describes last season as one of the worst in terms of what the weather-gods delivered in the region. “Wet winter, then straight into drought, and then two cyclones meant we had to find organic farms to take our herd. Our certified organic status means that we couldn’t even walk the cows down the road and we ended up splitting the herd over four organic farms around the North Island.” The couple’s 55-effective-hectare farm is near Matata, in the eastern Bay of Plenty; it is next to wetlands and is prone to flooding. Under foot, the soil structure is roughly 50:50 sandy/silty loam and peat – a combination that has a good balance, says Brent. The herd of 180 friesian/jersey cross is wintered on the farm. Each season 50 calves are reared and they stay on the farm until April when

What we discovered was that production dropped only slightly. And the icing on the cake was that the production level was achieved with a third of the cost of using traditional fertilisers.

NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Tim Barclay

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Tim reveres 'great encourager' Richard Loader Tim Barclay has been passionate about the holstein-friesian breed for all of his 50 years—a passion stemming from his maternal greatgrandfather and shared with past, present and emerging generations of the Barclay family. It has forged a bond between uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents, parents, siblings, nieces and nephews. The annual round of A & P shows and other events provides fertile ground for family reunions. The rewards are there too. Proof enough that the holsteins from Tim’s Okawa Stud, near Te Awamutu, match what the judges are looking for. “We’ve been lucky enough to get pretty good results,” Tim says. “We don’t always win, but we’re normally competitive.” Tim’s grandfather, Merton Leslie—farmer, friesian breeder and a great mentor— helped shape Tim’s views of the world and what constituted a good milking cow. “He was a great encourager. He never put you down, but he did challenge you, made you think. He didn’t go along with the old-timers who would talk about the good ol’ times. He’d say the old times were terrible, the good times are now, and tomorrow there will be an opportunity to improve.” Sage advice for a positive thinker like young Tim Barclay. As a boy of 13, Tim helped his mother, Barbara Weld, on the farm where she was sharemillking. That turned into working for wages when he was 16 and later enabled him to rear his own holstein calves. Over 30 years Tim went from contract milking to sharemilking, to buying into equity management before he and wife Jo bought their 74-hectare farm 14 years ago. Tim milks 180 pedigree holsteins through a 16-a-side herringbone and has totalled 80,000 kilograms of milksolids over the last couple of seasons. With an improved payout this year, he’s hoping to slide up to 90,000kg. While not a supporter of the breeding worth (BW) index, Tim’s very clear on what a top milkproducing cow looks like.

“I think there’s a misconception that show cows are not commercial cows—that the only use they have is for showing,” he says. “But in our experience that is not the case. What we are finding is the cows that do well at the shows are also our best commercial cows.” He cites the case of 14-year-old Okawa Legend Shelly, one of the farm's top producers and winner of many show ribbons. “She’s just calved for the 11th time. While her BW is extremely low, in her lifetime she has produced 7052kgMS. "I think she’s a pretty profitable cow and made us a lot of money. We’ve also sold three of her

Tim Barclay says Okawa Legend Shelly would have been on the bobby-calf truck under the breeding-worth system. Now 14, she has produced 7052 kilograms of milksolids, had 11 calves, and won numerous show ribbons. 'I think she's a pretty profitable cow and made us a lot of money," says Tim.

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daughters – two for $6000 each, the other for $5000.” Tim makes the point that under the BW system Shelly would have been on the bobby-calf truck when she was born. The Okawa Stud breeds for traits that will enable cows to produce a lot of milk for a long time, he says. Their breeding objectives are strong legs and feet to walk long distances if need be, a wide chest so that they have space inside for a large heart and lungs, and big spring of ribs so that they can eat lots of grass. Tim talks of the importance of the udders. “The

udder attachment, especially the rear udder, has to be very high and wide. When the cow walks back to the shed to give milk, her udder is full. We want her to be carrying that milk as high as possible so that when she is walking, she is not kicking her udder.” However, Tim accepts he doesn’t always get it right : “I get a lot of motivation from young people who are keen and interested in cows. I find it good listening to young farmers, bouncing ideas off them and improving on what we have.” Perhaps that’s a legacy of his grandfather’s philosophy.

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Proud to support Tim Barclay Natasja Boon and Brent Looney...proud of their two environmental awards. they are relocated to a 20-hectare run-off 12 kilometres away at Awakeri (Brent bought this block two years ago after having leased it) . Milk is harvested through a basic 16-a-side herringbone shed. Production last season was just under 60,000 kilograms of milksolids – 6000kg below what is normally achieved. Brent says herd health is a priority and each animal is provided with five millilitres of certified organic cider vinegar/seaweed and garlic mix. “We use it as a preventative for everything, and it's especially great for dealing with mastitis," he says. "We never drench the cows, but do regular blood tests and if they are lacking in a trace element, we provide just what they need.” When a health issue does occur, they access

homoeopathic products through Homoeopathic Farm Support. “They are brilliant, supplying just what we need within 24 hours,” says Brent. Last season saw a shift in lifestyle through the employment of a farm manager, Glen Penny. Brent says this has enabled the couple and their family to have more quality time together. He says his experience of the process of organic certification has been that it takes less time than many think to get there. “You have to be certified through a certifying agency. The land takes three years to convert and the herd takes 18 months. You have to do an initial soil test to ensure there are no nasty toxins in the ground.”

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Jarrod & Nikki Greenwood/Damien and Sandra Hancock

NZ Dairy

Mentor 'went that extra mile for me' Richard Loader “Pretty ecstatic,” was Jarrod Greenwood's response to how he felt when he and wife Nikki were announced as the 2017 Manawatu Dairy Industry Awards Share Farmer of the Year. The announcement at the region's annual dinner was all the more meaningful for Jarrod because the farmer who trained and mentored him as a Land Based Training cadet was also at the awards evening. When Jarrod enrolled at Land Based Training (LBT) in 2000 for a 12-month course, he was assigned to Brent Gennell’s farm. “I was something of a troubled 16-year-old – not really going anywhere and I didn’t like authority,” says Jarrod. “Brent took me under his wing, went that extra mile for me and got me focused. Having him at the awards night, seeing me take the award, meant an awful lot.” After completing the LBT course, Jarrod got a dairy-assistant job and has hardly stopped for breath since. As he and Nikki have built a solid reputation within the industry, they have progressed to bigger farms, taking promotions and additional responsibility. They are now in their fourth season contractmilking 320 cows on Ian and Steph Strahan's 109-hectare (effective) farm. Jarrod says the win is great affirmation of the work they have put into the farm's pasture management. ‘We aim for quality pasture all year round,

minimising the grass going to seed and pretopping. It’s really going back to basics, doing a weekly walk-around using a rising plate-meter and forecasting growth rates.” They have had four previous attempts at the industry awards in various categories, so their win is reward for determination and persistence. The physical prizes were a bonus, says Jarrod. Just entering has provided invaluable benefits such as networking with like-minded people, putting your name out to the farming community, and getting feedback from the judges. Another benefit is seeing young people entering the Trainee of the Year or Manager of the Year categories. He says these are the motivated young farmers he will be looking to recruit when he takes his next step in 12 months. With one full-time staff member and a number of students and cadets through the farm on a regular basis, leadership and staff development is key for Jarrod. Providing a fun, safe and enjoyable work environment is at the heart of his approach to inspiring young farmers to be the best they can. “Because I have come through LBT, I have always wanted to inspire and help young people coming through the industry. I enjoy helping people who want to help themselves, and I want to give back to the industry.” He has come a long way from that troubled youth of 17 years ago, and says he owes much to his wife, Nikki. “Nikki’s a huge motivator for me to pull finger and get stuck in. Without her help or input, I doubt we would have come close to winning this award.” Nikki and Jarrod Greenwood, 2017 Manawatu Dairy Industry Awards Share Farmers of the Year, are in their fourth season contract milking 320 cows on a 109ha Palmerston North property owned by Ian Strahan. Jarrod says the win acknowledges the work they have put into the farm's pasture management.

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When Taranaki dairy farmer Damien Hancock gave the bulls a hand with his version of ‘nightclub mating’ this season, the resulting empty rate, just under six per cent and the third-lowest in the local area, had his discussion group asking for him to do a trial next season. After three weeks of mating, he reused the CIDRs on 35 of his 200 cows that had not got in calf. For their second go with the two bulls, Damien was in there as well, doing his DIY AI. “When they stick the bulls out, most people don’t carry on with AI as well,” he says. “I was giving the bulls a hand.” He says he has seen situations where when he has had four or five cows bulling in the yard at the same time, two bulls are chasing two cows and taking no notice of the rest.

“I’ve got the bank there, I’ll do my own,” he says. Damien’s empty rate,which had been averaging 11% to 12%. went down to 9% last season, and then to 6% this season with his interaction. His discussion group liked the sound of what he was doing, and has asked him to do the same next season, using a different breed to AI the cows so that he can see how much impact his interaction has had. He will also be working on his somatic cell count, since it averages about 250. A good in-calf rate gave him the opportunity to cull a few this year, and he says he will be doing more teat spray next year. There are also some capital developments going on with a new effluent system currently under development. “Sometimes the sump can’t keep up with the amount of rain we get,” Damien says. “We’ve currently got one day holding and we’re

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Jack Raharuri

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Redemption possible – ask Jack Kelly Deeks Jack Raharuhi reckons he was pretty rebellious as a teenager, despite being well brought up by his parents. Westport didn’t have too much to offer him apart from drink and drugs and plenty of mates happy to keep him off the straight and narrow. “I didn’t have a bright future,” he says. “Dad had a friend, Dion Fox, at Landcorp’s Basset Farm, and he gave me a casual milking job when I was 14. He was a hard bugger and I was young and dumb, but he kept me in line. “After a couple of years, I thought, ‘What am I doing?’ and went full-time at 16 to give dairying a go. I signed up with AgITO level three and started studying. At 19 I was semi-qualified, and met my wife, Charlotte, and things took off from then. She sorted me out a bit, and I studied real hard. "I got promoted to second-in-command at Basset, and into an accelerated management programme with Landcorp. Two years of intensive training, and if I ticked all the boxes, I’d get a management job.” He didn’t get the first job that came up, but after a year of “really going for it”, he had two years as second-in-command and then manager at Basset Farm until last year. Landcorp has three adjacent dairy farms near Cape Foulwind; Basset, Tram Road and Totara. At one stage, as well as managing Basset, he was overseeing Tram Road right through the calving season. At Basset, he undertook an environmental programme which involved fencing 42 kilometres of waterways, and in partnership with conservation volunteers, planted flaxes, manuka and other natives to capture excess nutrient. He redesigned the farm map. His staffing programme involved not employing a 2IC, rather having two 3ICs, each spending three

His hope is that other young people, especially those running off the rails, may find inspiration in his story and discover that redemption is possible – and that given the right help and opportunity, life can be pretty sweet.

Jack Raharuhi, 24, went from being a rebellious teen to farm manager via an accelerated management programme with Landcorp. He won the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Dairy Farmer Title in 2016 and is now managing Totara Farm, a 480-hectare Landcorp property at Cape Foulwind, milking 1100 cows. months in charge of either pasture or animals, and then swapping over: “By the end of the season I had two highly skilled 2ICs to flick on to Landcorp. It gave me a reputation as a trainer.” in 2016 he won a West Coast environmental award for milk suppliers and the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Dairy Farmer title. His nominator, Landcorp's business manager for the region, Rebecca Keoghan, became Dairy Woman of the Year. Landcorp recognised him as being among its top 10 per cent of dairy-farm performers, based on criteria such as animal management, milk quality, environmental impact, staff health and safety and profitability. This year, he took over as manager of Totara Farm, a 480-hectare property at Cape Foulwind,

trick with empty rate' putting in a three day concrete pond to hold 40,000 litres. We should be able to take three days of 100 millilitres of rain, and we’ll be compliant after that system goes in.” Damien and his wife, Sandra, have owned their farm near Stratford for 10 years, having worked their way through management and sharemilking on various farms. At 1250 feet above sea level, it is colder and a lot wetter than most parts of Taranaki, but has good, free draining volcanic loam soil. Initially the farm was 54 hectares and milked 140 cows. Then, four years ago, the couple bought a neighbouring 26ha and their upped cow numbers to 200. “We’ve probably got a bit higher stocking rate up here than most,” Damien says. “I have very minimal gear, and my theory is if you have to top, you haven’t got enough cows on. I only have to top half a dozen paddocks a year, and that works for us.”

When they stick the bulls out, most people don’t carry on with AI as well. I was giving the bulls a hand. His discussion group liked the sound of was doing and asked him to do the same next season using a different breed to AI the cows.

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milking 1100 kiwicross cows. For six months he and Charlotte have seven staff, then four for the rest of the year. Charlotte cooks them all breakfast in the staffroom each day to ensure that these single workers are well nourished. On wet days, Jack oversees their ITO studies.

He likes to employ locals if possible; his main criteria are personality and motivation. Personal development, training and experience follow from there and contribute to the farm’s profitability. His dream is to move into an operationalmanagement role overseeing perhaps five farms and establishing a training centre where his skills can be used within Landcorp. At 24, he is proud of his personal success. And a driving force within him is the hope that other young people, especially those running off the rails, may find inspiration in his story thus far, and discover that redemption is possible – and that given the right help and opportunity, life can be pretty sweet.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Ross & Joanne Soffe

NZ Dairy

Dairyman likes to cover his breed bases Karen Phelps Stratford-based dairy farmer Ross Soffe says the shorthorn breed has progressed in New Zealand to the point where some shorthorns are top-producing cows – even when compared with other typically high-producing breeds. “We’ve made huge advances in the past 15 years," he says. "Particularly in terms of production and the number of cows on the ground in New Zealand, which we think is currently about 5000. "Our traits other than production are up there with any other breed. If you want a good, honest, hard-working cow with easy calving, good feet and good general health traits, this is the breed.” The shorthorn is thought to be the oldest cattle

in New Zealand; it was brought here by Samuel Marsden in 1814 as a dual-purpose cow supplying good milk and meat. It was the country's most popular breed until the 1920s when jerseys took over. Ross, who is president of the New Zealand Shorthorn Association, farms a herd of 360 cows. He describes them as a bit of a mixed bag – mostly friesian and crossbreds, some jerseys and even the odd ayrshire and guernsey, and 100 milking shorthorns. He favours diversity in his herd: “You never know where the next genetic discovery might come from.” He and wife Joanne are putting a lot of thought into succession planning. They sold their 60-hectare farm at Waitara as larger farms

Ross Soffe favours diversity in his herd, which he describes as 'a bit of a mixed bag' – friesian, crossbred, jersey, shorthorn, ayrshire, guernsey. 'You never know where the next genetic discovery might come from'.

“Ongoing research & development results in superior products & performance advantages including; more yield, faster milking, no slip and no teat end damage.”

PHOTOS – Above: The Soffes at the shed on the farm: from left, Caleb, Ross, Ashleigh (holding Kyan), Paton (front) and James. Lower left: Ross Soffe suns a mixed herd. Lower right: 10-year-old Cara – the Soffes' star cow for type and production. Opposite page, upper: Cows negotiate some of the farm's more difficult terrain.' Opposite page, lower: Ross with young cows. alongside them paid a good price to buy them out. The farm was also not of viable size to pass on, he says. Daughter Ashleigh and her husband, James, have just bought a farm across the road from Ross and Joanne’s Stratford unit, and the Soffe's son, Caleb, started there as manager on June 1. The farm will milk a herd of 360. Meanwhile Ashleigh and James will continue to milk 200 cows on a lease farm south of Inglewood. The plan is that when their lease runs out in two years' time, they will move back and run their new farm at Stratford, with Caleb taking over as manager of the home farm. The goal is for Ross and Joanne to take a step back from the day-to-day role. Ross says they are trying to consolidate the

business this season. They are milking fewer cows on the home farm and are aiming to improve percow production. He considers a lower stocking rate will suit the area better and also help lower farm workingexpenses. They have suffered from wet springs and hope that wintering fewer cows on farm will help relieve feed pressure in spring. They are also moving to a more-friesian cow rather than a crossbred because of the fresian's slightly larger size and its capacity to produce more per cow. They are also aiming to breed slightly larger shorthorn cows. They have had good success with

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Mark & Adelle Pacey

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Awards bolster goal of farm ownership Sue Russell It’s a real family affair on the Pacey’s 116-hectare dairy farm on the edge of Lake Rerewhakaaitu, 30 kilometres east of Rotorua. Mac and Lynda Pacey moved into the district in 1981, buying a 50ha hectare farm carrying 130 cows. Track forward 36 years and their son, Mark, and his wife, Adelle, have bought into the now much larger holding with a herd of 320 crossbred cows. While the farm is situated on very fertile soil, underfoot it was challenging in late autumn this year. “Mud! We’ve got plenty of it at the moment, so we’re not having that much fun. We’re still milking 150,” says Mark. A feedpad next to the 24-a-side herringbone dairy shed offers respite when conditions do not suit the herd standing on pasture. While not ideal, Mark says it works well enough with regular cleaning. Mark and Adelle had three successes in the New Zealand Dairy Awards Central Plateau regional competition – leadership; farm environment;; recording and productivity. This was the second year they had entered, and Mark says it has been beneficial. “We thought we had learnt quite a lot the first time around, and we decided to enter to learn more.” Their farm straddles rolling country with a couple of steeper sidings. Grass growth was strong last season and calving is due to start on August 1. “Our calving season is quite compact with 78 per cent calved down in six weeks.” Mark and Adelle employ a young farm hand, who is relatively new to the industry. The milking shed still uses the Duravax cupping system, technology that has largely been replaced by automatic cup removers. Come Christmas Day, the young herd drops down to milking once a day while the old herd milks on twice a day for a further three weeks. “It takes a little bit of getting used to cupping on and off," says Mark. "The cups go on and off at half-suction. At peak milk it takes us about three hours to put the herd through.” Once milking stops, work on the farm picks up – given that during the main season, most of the time is committed to moving stock around and cleaning up the pad. Three kilometres from the main farm, the 45ha support block is home to the young herd.

Adelle and Mark Pacey were multiple award winners in the Dairy NZ Central Plateau region competition. The couple milk 320 cows on 116 hectares on the edge of Lake Rerewhakaaitu.

We are pretty lucky that Mum and Dad have farmed really responsibly and taken care of the business so well. We will become equity partners on this farm. Mum and Dad have a home at Ohope, but right now I can't see Dad off the farm for a long time. Mark says the decision to reduce the stocking rate from 3.7 cows/hectare to just over three has been a good one. He says he and Adelle are in a good position to attain their goal of farm ownership: “We are pretty lucky that Mum and Dad have farmed really responsibly and taken care of the business so well.

We will become equity partners on this farm. Mum and Dad have a home at Ohope, but right now I can’t see Dad off the farm for a long time.” Mark Pacey is very supportive of the local Dairy New Zealand discussion group, saying it provides an opportunity to rub shoulders with a lot of dairy professionals and to visit farms around the district.

Ross likes to cover his options • From page 30 Australian genetics and New Zealand-bred bulls, but plan to move back totally to New Zealand genetics. “We think New Zealand is producing better daughters after work done in the last 25 years on breed development,” says Ross. He started breeding shorthorns for interest and to place his own mark on the herd rather than carry on in the footsteps of his parents. He considers around 25 per cent of the herd shorthorn is about right for his operation, but says this is still a work in progress.

The shorthorns are currently achieving 10-15 fewer kilograms of milksolids than the other breeds in his herd. The herd the average is 350-360 kilograms of milksolids per cow. The best the farm has done is 380kg per cow. The empty rate has risen to 18 per cent over the last two years with a mean calving date of three weeks. Ross has no idea why this has occurred, but intends focusing on growing out the heifers better. That's pretty much it for the season – doing the basics better ... EDing, calving spread and empty rates.

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DAIRY PEOPLE» Lance & Wendy Main

NZ Dairy

We've come a Kim Newth

PHOTOS Above, left: Lance Main with an ayrshire cow. Above, right: A crop of fodder beet. Lower right: Friesian and ayrshire cows and calves on the Mains' farm at Oxford, in North Canterbury.

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When Lance and Wendy Main look back on what their farm near Oxford was like when they took up the land in 2010, they can see huge differences in both soil health and productivity. Their farm and stock-management achievements were recognised at the 2017 Ballance Farm Environment Awards, where they received the Ballance Agri-Nutrients Soil Management Award and the LIC Dairy Farm Award. Originally 165 hectares in extent, the farm was only a few seasons into a dairy conversion when they bought it. The year before they started, total production reached 67,000 kilograms of milksolids. The Mains have expanded the property to 255ha and lifted production to 277,000kg. They have regrassed extensively and planted 10,000 pine trees for shelter. Their goal this season is to peak-milk 540 cows and to push production from their ayrshire and friesian herd past 500kg milksolids per cow; they have their cows on a high-quality feed regime. The couple kept only 50 cows from their previous equity-partner position in Southland, with Wendy using her experience as a junior stock judge to build up their current herd. “We’ve come a long way,” says Lance. “We’re delighted with the way things have gone.” Their interest in ayrshires goes back 20 years when they encountered them while sharemilking in Northland. They got involved in the local ayrshire club and never looked back: “They’re something different and we really enjoy them.” At Oxford, Lance and Wendy started with only a basic understanding of their farm’s soil type, but

that soon changed as Wendy began applying her experience as a primary ITO tutor – “She started using our farm as a research model,” says Lance. Since 2013, their experience as Synlait gold-plus and gold elite certified suppliers – including helping develop the Lead With Pride programme – has, they say, proved invaluable and undoubtedly laid the groundwork for their Ballance award success. “We can’t speak highly enough of that programme, which really encourages best on-farm practice,” Lance. The Ballance judges praised the Mains for their use of monitoring, measuring and benchmarking tools. Paddocks going into crop are monitored before and after cropping, and regular area testing is carried out. A moisture meter has proved an invaluable aid to understanding soil profile. A mix of Poulfert poultry manure and sawdust is used as fertiliser, and has greatly improved soil condition, says Lance. “It’s definitely opening the soil up and we’re getting better moisture retention.” While their farm has higher-than-average annual rainfall for Canterbury - around 850 millimetres – much of it comes down as snow or winter rain. Irrigation remains an important part of the equation and they are able to use around 3.2mm per day. “We put it on only when we need to,” adds Lance. Back in 2010, there was just one functional well on the farm. That and two other abandoned wells were redeveloped and made operational. “We’ve gone from 18 litres a second to 64 litres a second. We irrigate around half to two-thirds of the farm in summer.” Neither Lance nor Wendy has a farming background, so they have had to learn the ropes from scratch. They have worked hard over many

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Lance & Wendy Main

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long way – award-winner years to achieve farm ownership. Lance started as a 16-year-old farm cadet in Northland and, after he and Wendy married, they devoted almost 30 years to sharemilking, from Kaitaia to Gore. Now, both feel ready for change. This season, Wendy’s nephew Rhys Harris and his wife, Lily, have started contract-milking on the farm, with Lance in a mentoring role. “I haven’t taken on any other work at this stage, though a few people have suggested I consider a role as a farm adviser. In the short term, I hope to get out and do those jobs on the farm that have been put to one side.” Wendy’s life remains very busy with ITO classes and part-time nursing. The couple have two adult children, son Jesse and daughter Sarah. They have five grandchildren and a 17-year-old niece is currently living with them.

PHOTOS Top: The dairy shed/yard complex on Lance and Wendy Main's farm at Oxford, in North Canterbury. Right: Wendy Main with a friesian cow. Above: The view across the Mains' 255-hectare property towards the Southern Alps.

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DAIRY PEOPLE » Michael & Raewyn Hills/Kevin Ferris

Couple sold on value from competitions Kelly Deeks Entering the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards brings so many benefits that whether you win something almost becomes secondary, says Manawatu dairy farmer Raewyn Hills. “I suspect the fact it’s a competition puts off some people,” she says. “But the real benefit for us has been in entering. You learn so much about your business and the reasons you are farming. Any awards we have won have been a bonus.” Raewyn and husband Michael are serial Dairy Industry Awards entrants. They began in 2012 when they were managers. They won the regional farm manager of the year title in 2013, and say it helped them fine-tune their management – what they were doing and why. It also helped them determine where they wanted to head, assess their financial position, where they needed to be and what they needed to do to get there.

The couple are 35 per cent equity partners with Michael’s father, Peter, and uncle and aunt, Brian and Alison Hills, in Burnside Farms. The business has a 305-hectare dairy platform milking 830 cows and a 300ha dairy-support and bull-beef far When Michael’s uncle decided he wanted to step back from his farming interests, it created an opportunity for the younger couple as they had already done some of the groundwork. It also led to thoughts around succession planning. Although this was not specifically addressed in the competition assessment, the preparation process generated ideas around structures and how to set things up. Raewyn says it might be easy for people to think there is no point in entering the competition if they are on a family farm, but this far from the case. “We have found there is often more thinking required on a family farm, particularly around things like succession planning.” She says the competition experience also helped them identify opportunities that they hadn’t noticed

Raewyn and Michael Hills says it’s important to continually assess your goals. before and raised their credibility with advisers, bank managers and the like. “It has allowed them to understand where we are and where we are heading...what our vision is. It has brought us all onto the same page so that we can work together for a common goal.” Raewyn and Michael – who are parents to Lucy, six, Mitchell, four, and Claire, 13 months – admit they don’t have much spare time. Surprisingly, they say this is another reason they keep on entering. “It gives you a deadline you have to work to and makes you do something,” says Raewyn. “It’s easy to get tied up in the day-to-day running of the business and forget to take a step

back and look at the bigger picture,” she adds. The couple, who were runners-up in the 2016 Manawatu/Horowhenua/Rangitikei Share Farmer of the Year, say it is important that goals are not set in stone and are able to move as the business changes. “That’s why we keep entering – our business and personal goals are constantly shifting,” says Raewyn. “Or sometimes we achieve one goal, then need to step back and reassess to see what our next goal will be. It’s a constantly moving target and doesn’t happen in a straight line. Sometimes you have to take a side step to get where you need to go.”

Farmer fears fall-out of Karen Phelps

Raewyn and Michael Hills milk 830 cows on a 305-hectare dairy platform.

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The introduction of the Southern Dairy Hub this season will help farmers find ways to stay profitable as well as achieve environmentally sustainable outcomes, says Kevin Ferris, a farmer who has been involved in establishing the hub. The aim of the hub farm is to demonstrate top commercial performance, he says. The 349-hectare property, near Makarewa, is self-contained for wintering and young stock, which will allow research to be carried out across the whole system. The hub farm is designed to carry up to four 200-cow herds, with one to be used as the control. In the first year 640 cows will be milked; this

number is scheduled to rise to 800 from year two. Kevin Ferris says the aim is to address dairy issues in the region through local research and demonstration. He has had similar challenges across his own, sizeable operation, which he and wife Jenny own. and that spans both islands. In the South Island the family business has two farms in Southland – 580 cows on a 163ha property at Cattle Flat, and 2200 cows on 760ha (20%-owned by non-family shareholders) at Dipton. There is also a 900ha support block at Mossburn, in Southland. The Ferrises’ North Island interests include a 600-cow, 180ha property near Te Awamutu, a 142ha, 530-cow farm at Te Kuiti, and a 500ha (300ha leased) support block at Otorohanga. The

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY PEOPLE » Daniel & Freya Lynch

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Family seeks balance on ‘for-ever’ farm Richard Loader Northland farmers and pedigree jersey breeders Dan and Freya Lynch are people who make things happen in their corner of the world. In a farming career of 20 years, they have established the Freydan Jersey Stud along and a substantial calf-rearing operation. Then the opportunity arose to buy a larger farm in their dream location of Waipu. They were milking 240 cows on a farm they bought at Oakleigh two years previously and set about injecting energy into its development to boost the value of their investment. During that time, their 400 pedigree jerseys and

their calf-rearing operation remained on a farm at Waipu where they were also sharemilking. Dan says buying the larger 230-hectare property four kilometres from Waipu township enabled them to consolidate their pedigree jerseys and calf-rearing into a more economically sustainable operation. The improvements they had made to the Oakleigh farm helped it sell quickly and the Waipu property was theirs. They are now in their third season at Waipu on what they call their ”for-ever farm”. They moved to a predominantly once-a-day milking regime right from the start to achieve work-life balance and better management of their multi-faceted business. “We went once-a-day milking knowing that

‘kneejerk over-reaction’

the farm needed development,” says Dan. “And because we are rearing all of these cattle, managing two run-offs and have four young kids who are all getting into sport, it seemed a sensible way of doing it.” Calf-rearing forms a significant part of the business, says Dan, providing a stable incomestream – representing a quarter to a third of their total annual income. “About 400 calves are born each year and we rear all of them. About 100 weaner bulls are sold to Grazing NZ every year under contract. We grow the extra 50 or 60 bulls we have to yearlings on the run-off and sell them to local farmers for heifer mating. That’s quite a large income stream for us. “All of our heifer calves go into the herd, though we have sold some for export if we have excess.” This larger-than-normal percentage of heifers going into the herd every year enables them to sell the bottom breeding worth/production worth part of the herd – normally 50-80 animals – to people building up their herds. “Although it’s the bottom of our herd, the herd is above the national BW/PW average,” says Dan. “The agents all realise that, and the stock always sells pretty well.” Bulls are usually taken by AB companies every year – this year two Freydan animals will be in CRV Ambreed’s catalogue. “Once we started breeding we aimed to get bulls in the catalogue as it’s a measure of success from the breeding side of things,” Dan says. “People are now asking for our cattle.”

PHOTOS – Right: Heads up from the Lynch family. Above: The next generation prepares. Below: Cows on the farm at Waipu.

We need to think about what we want to define as ‘sustainable’ as in reality anything we do – in the country or town – does has some effect on the environment. We have to be a bit careful we don’t knee-jerk and over-react. family also has a sharemilking contract on a 71ha, 470-cow unit at Te Awamutu. Kevin and Jenny’s two sons manage the day-today operations – Nick Ferris in the North Island and John in the South Island. Kevin says compliance and sustainability is the core of the operation, and they are seeking to invest. They are fencing waterways, investing in yard drainage systems, and ensuring creeks have compliant crossings. They have upgraded effluent systems on all units to raise storage capacity and have installed low-application technology. Operationally they are concentrating on environmental outcomes. For example, they leave a 10 to 20-metre buffer zone around crops to protect waterways, and sloping land is grazed in drier weather to ease run-off issues. Kevin says that although the family’s farms have a lower stocking rate than he would have planned for originally, he remains concerned about further tightening on stock numbers by regional authorities.

He fears it could have severe consequences for rural communities. Less spending by farmers results in pressure on related rural businesses and small-town New Zealand economies in general. “We need to think about what we want to define as ‘sustainable’ in New Zealand as in reality anything we do – in country or town – does have some effect on the environment. We have to be a bit careful we don’t kneejerk and over-react because this won’t do the New Zealand economy any good. “But at the same time, the message is loud and clear – if we want to grow, we have to respect the environment. We need to find farming systems that will achieve or exceed compliance as well as sustain profitability.” He says he is hesitant to expand his own business until he has some certainty over expectations and regulations. “It has certainly made me more risk-averse. When we invest, we are looking at the long term; but we can’t assess risk when regulations change all the time.”

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36 |

DAIRY SERVICES » WD Davenport & Co

NZ Dairy

‘Hassle-free worker accommodation’ Kelly Deeks WD Davenport & Co has started a sister company, Daven Homes, to build houses. Sandra Davenport, who with husband Warren owns the company, says they determined the need in the region for a dedicated residential builder with a good understanding of the needs of rural clients. The Morrinsville-based company, which was formed around 30 years ago, has an offering that ranges from a full design-and-build option, to sets of plans, to transportable homes. She says transportables can be good for farmers looking for hassle-free worker accommodation as Daven Homes can construct the building off-site, then drop it into place on the farm. The new business also tackles renovation and maintenance projects, and is an agent for Metrapanel, a pre-cut-panel construction system. The Davenports have found that diversifying more heavily into residential housing has proved useful during quieter times in the dairy-industry season. It offers another option alongside farm projects such as dairy-shed builds, silage bunkers, farm buildings and feedpads. “When operating a family business in a small, rural town, diversity is everything,” says Warren. “We have to be able to do anything our clients want – rural, commercial, residential.” A case in point is the increasing interest in goatmilking sheds in the region. The company has built a number of rotary and herringbone sheds for goat farmers. Sandra says some dairy farmers are also converting part of their properties for goats. Goats need less land and help farmers diversify their operation. It’s all in a day’s work for WD Davenport & Co, she says. Coming from a farming background has helped Warren build a business servicing predominantly rural-based clients.

Covered feedpads have proved one of the business’s major growth areas: “Production has gone up by more than 20 per cent for one client we built a covered feedpad for,” says Warren. “He’s had better animal health and more milk in the vat. He sees the feedpad paying for itself in just five years.” WD Davenport & Co employs around 10 staff

• To page 37

Production has gone up by more than 20 per cent for one client we built a covered feedpad for. He’s had better animal health and more milk in the vat. He sees the feedpad paying for itself in just five years.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY SERVICES » NZ Groundspread Fertilisers Association

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Groundspreaders get head round driver development Kelly Deeks The New Zealand Groundspread Fertilisers Association (NZGFA) advocates for the groundspreading, contracting, and general transport companies in the business which apply about 1.6 million tonnes of lime and fertilisers to New Zealand farmlands each year. This huge effort is undertaken by about 281 companies, many of which are small businesses with one fertiliser spreader, while some companies run more than 50 spreaders. The total number of fertiliser spreaders in New Zealand is estimated at more than 600. The membership of the association is 261, comprising active members, associates, and affiliates. The association runs seven autonomous branches representing the interests of those in the branch regions, and a national council charged with managing the affairs of the association at a national level. NZGFA president Brent Scully says health and safety is a major concern in the New Zealand groundspread industry, with fertiliser spreading and hilly terrain being inherently dangerous, and a moment’s inattention can lead to an accident.

The association has recently developed a comprehensive groundspreading health and safety manual, which is made available to members on line or in hard copy for a nominal cost. “The manual will have to be updated on a regular basis to conform to regulatory changes, and as an attempt by the association to help our members in their statutory responsibility to run safe workplaces,” Brent says. Driver training has long been a core activity for the association, and is closely integrated with the industry health and safety manual. The association has developed two main training streams. The Hill Country Driver Training Manual recognises some parts of New Zealand are very steep, and as part of the association’s commitment to Spreadmark, it continues to offer driver training covering the use and practice of applying fertiliser to land. “A training provider has been contracted to deliver a driver training guide which contains material that must be completed by the trainee in the workplace,” Brent says. “Trainees are brought together for a one-day course, and then more work is undertaken in the workplace with the employer signing off practical elements of the course.” Spreadmark, a voluntary code aimed at

New Zealand Groundspread Fertilisers Association president Brent Scully says health and safety is a major concern in the groundspread industry. increasing the accuracy of fertiliser spreading throughout New Zealand, was originated by NZGFA more than 20 years ago. Spreading companies register in the scheme and undertake to pay a promotional levy. All fertiliser spreaders are tested by running them across trays to ensure they are spreading within a coefficient variation of 25 per cent for super-phosphate and 15% for nitrogenous fertilisers. Three-quarters of spreader drivers must be trained, and the spreading company is independently audited every two years. Brent Scully says the ongoing professional

development of drivers is an industry imperative, and something the association, as the industry representative body, is uniquely qualified to undertake on behalf of members. The 2017 NZGFA annual conference will be held from July 9 to July 11 at the Memorial Centre in Napier. About 150 members and sponsors are expected to attend, and will spend time considering groundspreading industry methods and new technical developments in the industry.

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Residential housing has proved useful for Daven Homes during the quieter times in the dairy industry.

Building company a family affair • From page 36 and is a real family-run business. Sandra Davenport looks after the office and administration, while their daughter, Michelle, contracts her drafting skills to the business under her own company, Footprint Draughting, which she has recently started. WD Davenport & Co is a member of the Certified Builders’ Association of New Zealand, employs licensed building practitioners, and is a member of Hazardco. The company services the wider Waikato region and is presently busy with a number of residential house-builds. “We offer a tremendous amount of experience and we are always full of fresh ideas as we work with our clients on their project,” says Warren. “When your clients need something done, you have to make it happen. We make a real point of

When your clients need something done, you have to make it happen. We make a real point of servicing all of our clients well – both existing and new. servicing all of our clients well. It’s great to get continuing work, and we really focus on our local area offering value for money and an efficient highquality service.”

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38 |

CALF SHEDS IMPLEMENT SHEDS

GOATS BARNS

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Our rural dairy buildings are tough, cost eﬀective buildings designed to endure New Zealand’s climatic conditions. Kit-set, part-constructed or fully-constructed, our proven construction system means we can oﬀer custom options or specialised buildings to suit your budget, and keep your goats or cows cool and happy.

NZ Dairy

DAIRY SERVICES » Bobby Calves

August 1 D-day for new bobby calf rules Seven new regulations now regulate the handling of bobby calves by farmers and transporters. Four came into effect on August 1, 2016, and the other three will take effect from August 1. According to the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), the regulations “set standards and requirements in accordance with good practice and scientific knowledge, and ensure appropriate penalties can be applied to incentivise those in charge of calves to change their behaviour”. The act refers to “young calves”. A “young calf” is defined as “up to 14 days of age” and “separated from its mother”. The four regulations introduced last year were: • The killing of any, not just young, calves by blunt-force trauma prohibited, except in an emergency. • Calves must be at least 96 hours old, and display certain physical characteristics, including being disease-free and able to stand and move freely, before being transported. • Maximum journey time of 12 hours for calves. • Transportation of calves across Cook Strait prohibited. The three regulations due to come into force on August 1 this year are: • Loading and unloading facilities so that calves can walk onto and off vehicle on their own. All reasonable and practicable steps must be taken to provide these facilities. • Suitable shelter must be provided for calves

Livestock Ph. 06 2745 852 Fax. 06 2745 630

before and during transportation and at points of sale and slaughter. The MPI says farmers should talk with transport operators about design, location and consent requirements before finalising shelter sheds. It says Dairy New Zealand can also provide some guidance on the process. • Calves must be slaughtered as soon as slaughter premises. Feeding is required if calves cannot be slaughtered within 24 hours of their last feed on the farm. Infringement of the regulations can attract fines of up to $5000 for individuals and up to $25,000 for body corporates. The MPI says it offers education and awareness programmes on the new regulations, is communicating to raise awareness and promote best practice, and is implementing a programme to monitor and assess compliance with the regulations through the use of inspectors’ The ministry also says farmers, transporters and processors need to talk to one another about meeting the requirements and working out the detail. “If you own or are in charge of calves, you may need to change your current practice, systems and facilities.” The MPI has a hotline (0800 008333). • Full details of the Animal Welfare (Calves) Regulations 2016 are on the New Zealand legislation website (www.legislation.govt.nz).

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| 39

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DAIRY SERVICES Âť Bobby Calves

NZ Dairy

It all starts on farm with bestpractice checklist: criteria for a compliant holding pen

Bobby calves entering the supply chain have a lot to cope with, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important farmers ensure their calves are healthy, strong and fit before being transported. The Taranaki Bobby Calf Action Group has come up with an eight-point checklist of best-practice guidelines that farmers must tick off before a calf can be cleared for transportation. Calves must be: * At least four days old. * Ears up and eyes clear. * Correct eartag. * Dry navel.

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NZ Dairy

DAIRY SERVICES » Bobby Calves

* No scours. * Firm and worn hooves. * Standing and walking. * Full tummy – no antibiotic milk. Bobby calves also need to be separated from their keepers when ready for transportation. The group says it is important for staff selecting the bobby calves to know these eight points that must be ticked off before the calves can leave the gate. Calves that do not meet these guidelines will not be picked up by the transport company.

“No matter the fate of a calf, all calves should be treated the same.” Designated bobby calves should have a dedicated area that meets criteria developed by the Taranaki Bobby Calf Action Group: • The holding pen needs to be 1.1 metres from solid ground, level with the truck deck to meet transport-company loading requirements, and with all-weather access. It should be 2 metres high so that the working area is safe for all workers. • There should be steps on the side of the pen, preferably on the left-hand side.

• A loading platform (preferably not a ramp) should come from the holding pen at truck level straight into the truck so that the bobby calves can walk straight onto the truck. • Holding pens need to be enclosed and set off the road to minimise public visibility. • Holding pens must be at least 25 metres away from milking facilities. Holding pens must be big enough for all calves to be able to lie down comfortably. Pen size will vary depending on farm size and calf numbers. A guide is: 2.4m x 2.4m for 17-20 jersey/cross

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breeds or 15-17 holstein/friesians. The ideal flooring for holding pens is slats or grating, so that the floor is non-slip. There must also be adequate ventilation. Bobby calves need to be separated from their keepers when ready for transportation. The group says it is important for staff selecting the bobby calves to know these eight points that must be ticked off before the calves can leave the gate. Calves that do not meet these guidelines will not be picked up by the transport company.

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42 |

DAIRY SERVICES » Fabish & Jackson

NZ Dairy

PHOTOS – Examples of Fabish & Jackson’s work: a 54-bail Octa-Lock dairy parlour (above,left); a pool and slide complex (above, right); a feed-storage shed (below, upper); a 60-bail Octa-Lock dairy parlour (bottom, lower)

Pre-cast concrete widens scope Kelly Deeks

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Taranaki building company and farm building specialist Fabish and Jackson has its own specialist pre-cast concrete division, which has been designing, manufacturing, and installing a wide variety of concrete products for more than 10 years. With two overhead gantries, the company is able to handle large concrete projects, says managing director Steve Fabish. Effluent ponds are a big item for Fabish and Jackson, and requirements have changed over the 30 years the company has been in business, he says. Taranaki farmers used to be able to just dig a hole in the ground, he says. “Now ponds need to be lined. With our pre-cast concrete division, we do a lot of concrete-lined ponds, which are easier to clean as they can be emptied right out and cleaned out with a digger.” Races and feedpads are also core to Fabish and Jackson’s pre-cast concrete division’s work. The company’s reputation has been built on farm buildings, especially dairy sheds and silage bunkers. Its experience with dairy sheds dates back

to the invention of the rotary platform, when Steve and Trevor Jackson were building sheds with Merv Hicks. Now, it has added a raft of in-house services. Today Fabish and Jackson designs and builds its own Octa-Lock dairy parlour, a reputable design that has been modified and developed over 25 years to produce a functional, efficient, and costeffective dairy parlour.

The Octa-Lock has allowed Fabish and Jackson to hold a high market share of dairy parlours built in Taranaki. The company has also built sheds in many parts of New Zealand, and has exported sheds to Wales and Chile. Steve says every farm and farmer has specific needs and wants, and the company never builds two sheds the same.

• To page 43

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DAIRY SERVICES » John Austin

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Contractor sees a growing role for drones Kelly Deeks

PHOTOS: John Austin is a family-owned and operated agricultural contracting business based in Te Awamutu and serving to around 800 customers. Above: John and wife Jackie with their three children, Michael, Daniel and Hannah. Below: Michael, who works in the business, discusses a maize crop with John. Bottom: Maize has become a specialty for the firm.

No two sheds the same • From page 42

“Different things are important to different farmers, and they all have different thoughts on how they do things,” he says. “We work with each farmer to give them what they want, and to accommodate the different farm layouts.” The Octa-Locks built have housed turntables ranging from 28 to 100 bails. Steve says the Octa-Lock design suits the installation requirements for a rotary milking platform. The roof structure is supported on eight poles; the walls are suspended between these poles with no footings required. “This makes installation of the drainage, water, and power more straightforward and cost effective,” he says. “The kitset nature of construction allows us to do most of the construction off site, and the option of completing the roof structure before the floors, reducing possible delays due to bad weather.” Octa-Locks are built with laminated glulam beams. He says these are strong, structural timber beams with superior earthquake resilience and greater fire resistance than other building materials, and treated to resist fungi and insect attack.

Different things are important to different farmers and they all have different thoughts on how they do things. We work with each farmer to give them what they want ... The company’s staff manufacture the glulam beams to any size and length, and for both domestic and commercial use. The company produces all the beams required in the building of its parlours and chicken sheds. Steve says the firm has felt the effects of the low milk payout and has recently been though some of its toughest years in business. However, he reports renewed enquiry this year, which seems to be coming from small farms combining, which is resulting in larger herds that require larger sheds and more infrastructure.

New technology plays a huge role in the operation of agricultural contractor and maize specialist John Austin Ltd, which is always looking for new ways of doing things. The company’s latest foray into new technology has it working with OnSide, a new health and safety app that John Austin is building into its system for co-ordinating drivers’ jobs, both from the office and from drivers’ smart phones. “We are great believers in trying to solve our customers’ problems,” John says. “We were getting inundated by farmers’ health-and-safety policies and hazard maps, sitting here swamped in paperwork wondering how we were going to get through this.” John Austin Ltd found that OnSide had the answer. “The driver signs in and OnSide goes through all of the health and safety hazards on the block they are working on, and if they find an issue, they report it through their phone,” says John. “We think OnSide can solve some problems and keep drivers safe on your farm. It’s good for our staff and for some of our customers in making health and safety on the farm real. “We are there supporting growing crops, supporting the environment, and supporting safe workplaces on your farm.” John Austin Ltd also does a lot of farming itself, leasing about 1200 hectares acorss 50 blocks. “We try out new technology on our lease blocks,” says John. “Different agronomy processes...different tillage and transfer processes...we’re constantly trying to improve what we do’” . He says the firm has done a lot of work around yield monitors on combines and forage harvesters, variable rate planting and variable rate fertiliser, and in recent years has had a go with drones. “When we first used a drone when we were trying to assess when the harvest was ready.

We try out new technology on our lease blocks. Different agronomy processes...different tillage and transfer processes... we’re constantly trying to improve what we do. Because of droughts we had areas of fields that had dried out, and areas that hadn’t. It was hard for us to assess how much of the field was dry and how much was wet.” John Austin Ltd sent its agronomist up in a plane to check it out, but she came back suggesting she spent more time trying not to be airsick than actually looking around. “We thought we’d keep her on the ground and sent a drone up instead,” John says. “We haven’t developed that as much as we should yet, but we want to and will be looking and wanting to do so. “I think it’s a huge opportunity to keep an eye on what’s going on. It’s amazing what you see from the drone...grazing patterns and all the rest of it. It can give you places to look to identify why something is happening.” In the past few years, John Austin Ltd has seen a big bonus for farmers in variable-rate seeding and the GPS control of sprayers and planters. “Stopping overlap is a major benefit” says John. “You don’t over-plant, it helps with the yield, and stops leaching. It’s an awesome technology. GPS control on the sprayers saves chemicals, reduces crop injury, and saves the environment.”

For all your contracting requirements

Phone 07 872 0000 www.johnaustinltd.co.nz

44 |

DAIRY SERVICES » Everfresh Transport

NZ Dairy

Growing fleet reflects customer growth Kelly Deeks Planning and a “can-do”attitude have driven rapid expansion at Everfresh Transport. The firm, established in November 2000, has grown to become one of the Hawke’s Bay’s largest specialised transport operations. It operates as an import support business for the dairy industry, carrying fertilisers and stockfeeds, and selling livestock feeds to the dairy industry in the form of apple pomace, a by-product from the juicing of apples, which has high levels of crude protein and high metabolisable energy. Company founder John Agnew founded Everfresh out of his fruit and vegetable growing businesses to carry his produce. Before long, it was carrying the produce of others as well. The company claims expertise in the intricacies of agricultural and horticultural transportation, along with understanding of the importance of preserving the freshness of cargo, the necessary documentation, and special handling requirements. An important aspect of the firm’s expansion has been keeping drivers employed outside the fruit harvest season, from February to May. Everfresh got into earthworks and developments, and then carting stockfeeds and fertilisers, general, container, and bulk and metal cartage. Management people are round the clock to talk with clients. This personalised service has gained the firm a reputation for customer satisfaction, says operations manager Bevan Hall. He started at Everfresh 12 years ago while still at school as a wash-boy. “To be good at what you do, you’ve got to have good people,” he says. “We are growing with our customers, and we make sure our staff are developing with the business as well.”

PHOTOS: Founder John Agnew has developed a cartage business to carry his own fruit and vegetables to include stock feeds, fertilisers silage and bulk cartage, earthworks and containers. Everfresh runs a permanent staff of 25, and at peak season, gets up to 50 employees. Bevan says Everfresh has been committed to its customers through good and bad times and has been rewarded with a high level of customer loyalty. “There have been a few bad years in the dairy industry recently, and we’ve stood by the dairy farmers. Now we’re seeing many farmers come through that stronger than they were going into it. Things are now improving and we will continue to support them.”

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DAIRY SERVICES » Southern Humates

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Healthy soil key to minimise leaching Kelly Deeks One very important part of the answer to clean, green, and productive dairy farming has been found at the bottom of a Southland lignite mine where Southern Humates has been producing a quality humate for both farming and stock health. The farm’s managing director, Malcolm Sinclair, says his contracting company, Sinclair Contracting, has been running the lignite mine for 15 years, but demand for coal had dropped off because of individuals and businesses seeking to become more environmentally responsible. Six years ago, he went to a course on biological farming run by former Lincoln University lecturer Andrew Young, which explained how the world is losing thousands of hectares of topsoil a year through unsustainable farming methods. “He did some digging on farmers’ paddocks to show what should have been in the soil and what actually was,” says Malcolm. “At that stage I became convinced some of the techniques being used by the farmers were not the best. That was the first time I heard about humates and what they do.” Testing began in earnest, with samples sent to laboratories in New Zealand and overseas; the results showed that Sinclair Contracting’s old lignite mine contained a very good quality humate. Three years of independent scientific trials confirmed it. Production at the mine bean about three years ago with a leased crushing and screening plant. It wasn’t long before demand increased and Southern Humates had to do better; Malcolm set up a plant at the mine and employed Chris Nel as sales and production manager. Malcolm says the coup for him is turning something that was very environmentally harmful into something very environmentally helpful. Chris says New Zealand and the rest of the world has a major issue with polluted waterways, and this brings a lot of pressure to farmers, particularly dairy farmers, to clean up their act. “But the problem is not the dairying,” he says. “The problem lies in the amount of fertiliser we’re putting down on the soils that is leaching into the waterways. We see biological farming as the answer.” New Zealand farmers have increased the

But the problem is not dairying. The problem lies in the amount of fertiliser we’re putting down on the soils that is leaching into the waterways. amount of urea they are applying by 38 times in less than 35 years. It’s a staggering amount and it’s had tremendous detrimental effects, like the eutrophication of our waters. But it’s also killing the soil. “You’ve got a green plant and it looks really good, but it’s packed with water and nitrogen. There is a chemical imbalance in that grass which is converted to the cows, which aren’t getting a balanced feed. It all boils down to the fact the soil’s biology has been disturbed.” Healthy soil has a one-to-one ratio of fungi to bacteria, and Chris says 90 per cent of New Zealand’s farm soils have way too many bacteria, and very little fungi. Humates stimulate fungal growth and fix the ratio so that all the protozoa, earthworms, and bugs in the soil can function properly. “These bugs build a connection, an introduction between the fertiliser and the soil, making the nutrients available to the plants. Farmers are throwing heaps of superphosphate onto their farms, but in most cases it’s is already there – it just needs to be unlocked.” The implication of this, he says, is the increased ability of the soil to hold on to the nutrients. This results in farmers requiring much less fertiliser, and much less fertiliser being leached into the waterways. And, says Chris, because soil health determines plant health, which determines stock health, farmers who are trying to improve their stock health, or looking after their land for the next generation, or saving money on fertiliser, or showing the world they are doing their best to keep New Zealand clean and green, can benefit from organically certified humates.

Leaching trials in 2016 showed that in spring, urea leached 107 per cent more than unfertilised pasture but only 24% with the addition of humate.

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NZ Dairy

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DAIRY SERVICES/ON FARM » Cambrilea Weedspraying

| 47

Diversity, innovation wows judges Karen Phelps Charlie and Helen Lea have taken a sustainable approach to farming. Not only for their own Ratanui farm, near Cambridge, sustainably but also assisting other farmers to do the same. The Leas, who own a 22-hectare cattle and sheep breeding and finishing property, were the supreme winner in the Waikato Ballance Farm Environment Awards. The first-time entrants won six of the 10 category awards on offer – soil management, harvesting, innovation, integrated management, water protection and farm stewardship. Charlie admits they like to think outside the square, and it was their innovation and on-farm plant nursery that wowed the judges. The Leas established Cambrilea Weedspraying 20 years ago, Based on the farm, the business provides weed-spraying services and runs a nativeplanting and nursery operation. It has planting contracts with the Waikato Regional Council and helps farmers with spraying. Cambrilea uses a spot-spraying method with hand guns, which requires just 10 per cent of the amount of chemicals used with aerial or broadcast operations. Riparian planting programmes cover getting rid of weeds, selecting and providing self-sustaining, native plant species, preparing the ground, planting, and overseeing seedling establishment. But it is the choice of species that makes the offering unique. Cambrilea grows 16 species, 10 of them suitable for supplying feed for bees and flowering for 10 months of the year. Charlie says this is a win-win for farmers – they benefit from riparian planting that improves streamside ecology and waterway health, and helps with flood control, and the aesthetic appearance of buffer zones around waterways and wetlands is enhanced. This also offers farmers potential to attract the honey industry to winter-over hives on their farms and generate a little extra cashflow, says Charlie. He also sees potential for farmers to do riparian planting with an eye to offsetting carbon emissions – which he predicts will become important. The aim of the nursery is also people-oriented – it supplies the farm’s 12 employees with a steady stream of work over the winter months.

PHOTOS: Cambrilea runs 130 hereford beef cows and supplys and plants around 50,000 native trees a year from its nursery, as well as contracting to plant 30,000-50,000 for the Waikato Regional Council. “On a rainy day I don’t have to wake up wondering what my staff will do,” says Charlie. “A group of people in the rain planting trees and laughing and talking is a great thing to see.” Helen was formerly head landscape architect for the Hamilton City Council, and her knowledge and experience have played a big part in Cambrilea’s development. It’s a sizeable operation, growing and supplying and planting around 50,000 natives a year as well as contracting to plant 30,000-50,000 for the Waikato Regional Council.

• To page 49

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DAIRY SERVICES/ON FARM » Cambrilea Weedspraying

| 49

Award winners with a passion for the land • From page 47 Given that the Leas have planted 17,000 natives on their own land, you might wonder how they have time for a farm that runs a flock of 700 high-fertility, facial eczema-tolerant coopworth sheep, plus a breeding herd of 130 hereford beef-cows. They fatten lambs and beef, and supply service bulls to the dairy industry via an annual on-farm bull sale in late September. Another factor that intrigued the awards judges was the innovative inventions the Leas have come up with to solve problems on their farm. For example, Charlie invented a salt-and-pepper-shakerlike rectangle box fitted to the FEL silage forks that sprinkles causmag on the pit silage each time he loads the silage wagon. The box holds 50 kilograms of causmag when full. In the nursery a piece of plastic with a cork in the centre regulates an automatic watering system. Rain causes the cork to expand, pressing a button, which signals to the system not to turn on, thus conserving water. They are cheap yet effective ideas, and typical of the Leas’ farming philosophy – to simplify things and solve problems where they can, particularly with an eye to environmental concerns. Charlie says he always wanted to be a farmer. He grew up on a small, beef farm at Karapiro and went shepherding when he left school, which took him around the world. He established Cambrilea when he returned to New Zealand. In 2004 he and Helen, who met in Whitianga, bought the farm in a land partnership with Helen’s parents; they later created Ratanui Farming Partnership together. Winning the awards has been acknowledgement of the hard work they have put in, but more importantly a way to publicise their passion for the environment. They say that no matter what they do, their focus is on developing a sustainable operation for their staff and their three children - Chelsea, nine Sophie, six and Georgia, three.

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ON FARM » Darrell & Jasmine Trumper

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New generation takes the reins Kim Newth Succession planning is helping secure the future of a family farm in the Waikite Valley, near Rotorua. Darrell and Jasmine Trumper are the latest generation to farm the 56-hectare block, which was taken up by Darrell’s grandfather in 1963 and is now part of a much larger family enterprise. Darrell’s parents, Steve and Shirley, took over the original farm in 1980 before buying a 140ha farm in the valley in 2003. A few years ago, they sold this and bought a 350ha property (in the valley) with a 190ha dairy platform and the balance used for beef dry stock. Steve and Shirley still live on the 56ha home block, now used as run-off for silage and to winter 230 cows. Another 42ha run-off has also been acquired and is used for heifer beef, . Succession is now on their minds, and they are in process of setting up an equity partnership with Darrell and Jasmine. “We would never have been able to afford a farm without going down this route,” says Darrell, who notes that a number of other families in the valley are exploring similar succession options. He has considerable industry experience. He

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In that first season I did sixty hectares of silage – we had too much grass. We already had the run-off for silage, so we don’t need to make more off the dairy farm, which we would rather use to make milk. PHOTOS Upper left: Steve and Darrell Trumper feed autumn calves on the family farm in the Waikite Valley, near Rotorua. Left: The farm’s new stockyards. Lower left: The Trumpers milked 540 cows last season and produced 186.000 kilograms of milksolids/ Below: Darrell with his two sons, Cruz (six) and Ryder (four). Opposite page, bottom: The farm borders Lake Ngapouri.

left school at 16 to study at the Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre, in Masterton, before working three seasons with Mark and Sophie Dibley at Ngongotaha, near Rotorua. The Dibleys were going through an expansion phase with their herd and milking shed. Darrell then spent two New Zealand winters working the wheat harvest in the United States, interspersing this with agricultural-contracting work in the Rotorua area. Two seasons with a Reporoabased contractor followed before he returned home to work with his parents. The Trumper farm milked 540 cows last season, well up on the 440 cows of the family’s first season there. Total production was 186,000 kilograms of milksolids. This season’s goal is around 380400kg milksolids per cow. “In that first season, I did 60 hectares of silage – we had too much grass,” Darrell says. “We already have the run-off for silage, so we don’t need to make more off the dairy farm; we would rather use that to make milk!” Milking is done in a 40-a-side herringbone shed. A recent investment in a new ice-bank cooling system allows milk to be cooled quickly and to stay cold. “Something different we have tried this year, too, is to start winter milking because of the premium on offer. We bought a bit of maize and PK this year for that; it has been working out well.” On the beef side, numbers are still in the process

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ON FARM » Taratahi Farm Training Centre

| 51

Hands-on training proves a winner with employers Russell Fredric The success of the Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre’s dairy unit is measured by much more than its milksolids production. A shortage of workers in the dairy sector means farm-owners are looking for staff with attitude and aptitude, so Taratahi’s trainers work hard with the aim of producing well rounded, skilled workers who can have long and rewarding careers in the industry. Taratahi, New Zealand’s largest agricultural training centre, has a residential campus near Masterton, in Wairarapa, and non-residential campuses in Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, Manawatu, Hawke’s Bay and Southland. Its assets, and those assets it manages on behalf of others, equate to more than $100 million; Taratahi has 42,000 stock units of sheep, beef and deer, and milks a total of 2000 cows. Nigel King, who manages the Masterton dairy unit, says the centre has a high success rate for students looking for employment after completing agricultural courses. “Those who want to get jobs all get jobs,” he says.

The Taratahi offering includes full-time courses, diploma programmes, short courses and an Agriculture in Schools programme which includes Primary Industries Trades Academy, STAR and extramural study. The training provided by Taratahi’s “very experienced” dairy farm-skilled staff is not lost on potential employers who are quick to offer positions to students when they have completed their courses, says Nigel. “Those who choose not to come back to do further studies are certainly picked up very quickly by employers, even in December. All the hard work (training) has been done.” Because of the hands-on experience they gain, most Taratahi-trained students can achieve an annual salary about $5000 a year above those who are untrained. And the risk to employers of hiring a sub-standard worker is virtually eliminated. “They are well trained and they have the knowledge and the skills to get out there and be a useful part of a team right from the start,” says Nigel. Taratahi’s 210-hectare, Wairarapa dairy unit is run on a commercial basis, with 150ha of the farm under irrigation. Its herd of 560 crossbred cows is milked in two herds through a 46-a-side herringbone shed.

PHOTOS (above and lower left): Nigel King says Taratahi graduates are in demand on the job market: ‘All the hard work has been done. They are well trained and they have the knowledge and the skills to get out there and be a useful part of a team right from the start.’ Until to 2010 cows were split-calved. However, most of them are now calved and milked on a conventional system – about a quarter of the herd plus any struggling cows are milked once a day from October 1. “We found some of our heifers weren’t really responding to twice-a-day milking through the whole season,” says Nigel. “Reproduction was an issue, getting them back in calf.” The result has been heifers that hold their condition well, and have better reproduction and improved milk production. “The payback was days in milk. We didn’t have to worry about drying them off early because of poor body condition.” Nigel says an advantage of working as a manager in a training environment is that it allows a

greater degree of flexibility to try different systems, something that might not be possible on a fully commercial farm. And the focus extends beyond the students – the dairy unit is made available to local farmers along the lines of a focus farm and to organisations such as Dairy New Zealand, and an in-calf programme is supported by a local veterinarian. While last season’s production was 390 kilograms of milksolids cow against an average of 410kg, Nigel is reasonably happy with the result especially considering some of the season’s weather challenges and the farm is self-sufficient – it is not supported by a run-off, feedpad or wintering shed. “With no bought-in feed, I think we’ve done pretty well just on grass.”

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New generation takes the reins • From page 50 of being built up. “We’re doing that naturally from our own herd so that we’re not buying animals.” They have 100 beef steers, being 50 rising oneyear-olds, 50 rising-two-year-olds and 40 beef heifers (a mix of R1s and R2s). Conditions on the predominantly flat and lowlying farm tend towards wet and muddy. While this is challenging over winter, it does prevent the farm from drying out too quickly over summer. Noxious weed control and planting programmes are designed to ensure that the farm, which borders

onto Lake Ngapouri, is meeting its environmental obligations. Substantial investments have also been made in new fencing and waterlines over the past few seasons. Working with Darrell on the farm is a full-time worker and a drive-in milker to cover weekends off. Jasmine is busy on accounts and administration, and she and Darrell are also occupied with raising their two boys, Cruz, six, and Ryder, four. Farming runs deep in the family: Darrell’s brother, Jamie, has a 70ha beef farm in the Napier area, where he and his partner plan to build their home.

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ON FARM » Ernest & Catherine Blom/Steve & Maria Poole

Farms merger throws up curve balls Russell Fredric A season of change last year, which included stepping up to an equity partnership. has tested the tenacity of Taranaki couple Ernest and Catherine Blom. The Bloms were served a series of curve balls right off the bat as the 2016-17 season started on the 160-hectare (effective) Pihama farm where they are contract milking for Catherine’s parents, Michael and Barbara Stevenson. The property comprises the original family farm, which has beenowned by the Stevensons since 1950, plus a neighbouring property bought about 15 years ago. Until the start of last season, the farms operated separately with two herringbone sheds. But tougher regulations for effluent storage were the catalyst for building a new 60-bail rotary shed and an effluent pond with capacity for 90 days of storage. Combining the two properties also necessitated building a 13-metre-high, 30-metre-long concrete bridge over a river that separates the farms. The dairy platform supports two herds, each of 280 cows, all spring calved. The rotary shed includes automatic cup removers, teat sprayers, Protrack drafting, a cow heat (oestrus) detection camera and in-shed feeding; cows in oestrus are automatically drafted. “We decided to sell the (old) plant and then start from scratch and move the shed right to the middle of the farm,” Ernest Blom says.

Combining two properties where Ernest and Catherine are equity partners necessitated building a 13-metre-high, 30-metre-long concrete bridge (above) over the river that separates the farms. The bridge was completed in June last year and a new cowshed (below) was commissioned in late July. The bridge was completed in June last year, but the new dairy shed was not commissioned until late July. Calving started on July 20. Previously, four staff, including two lots of contract milkers were employed, but at certain

times of the year the operation can now be run by two staff. The curve balls started with the Bloms’ herd having to adjust to a rotary shed after the season had started, and they continued as lameness problems became a “massive issue”, Catherine says. About 120 cows were affected through the season, partly because the new concrete and old races needed attention. However, other dairy farmers in the district were also dealing with increased cow lameness because of prolonged

adverse weather conditions, she says. It was disappointing and time consuming work, and it was distressing to see cows in pain, she says. But identifying lameness in the very early stages was not easy. “The person in the cowshed has to be really on to it to be picking up those lame ones. If you are missing them, that’s when it becomes quite stressful. If you get them early enough, sometimes you don’t have to treat them.” Penicillin-treated cows were put in a separate mob and the races improved with lime fines. The introduction of the new cowshed also affected production as cows are creatures of habit, so this was an added stress. “We lost approximately 20,000 kilograms of milksolids,” Catherine says. Production ended up at 235,000kgMS, which the Bloms feel was a satisfactory result given that the two original farms together produced a total of 240,000kG. “If we didn’t have those lame cows, potentially we could’ve done 250,000 or 255,000,” says Catherine To cap the season off, the Bloms had their first child in February. With the teething problems of the farm infrastructure upgrades now out of the way, they are expecting a more settled season in 2017-18 and have engaged a nutritionist to fine-tune the cows’ feed regime. With all of this mind, they have set a target of 280,000kgMS this season. “Although we are going to do more production, our main goal is maximising profit and developing a system that will work in both a high and low payout,” says Catherine While 280,000kgMS may seem ambitious, the production achieved in the face of last season’s adversities gives the Blom’s confidence the target is not unrealistic.

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If you’re keen to make an impression in the annual New Zealand Dairy Industry awards, Steve and Maria Poole’s farm ar Kapuni, in Taranaki, is a pretty good place to start. The Pooles’ manager, Sam Hughson, one of four full-time workers on the farm, was runner-up in the Taranaki region Manager of the Year. This followed his success in 2016 when he was rated Taranaki’s Trainee of the Year. “Sam’s doing very well, training the other staff as well, and at just 20 years of age he has a very promising future,” Steve Poole says. Tim Bonner, who started with the Pooles at the beginning of the 2016-17 season, won the Taranaki Trainee of the Year award. He has gone on to a contract milking position for the 2017-18 season. Another Poole staff member, Neil Hunter, earned the Most Promising Dairy Trainee accolade. Steve says the awards create a great platform to add value to the farming business. “Entering and achieving in these awards makes them more interested and motivated. They have more questions and definitely want to hone their skills a bit.” The Pooles have owned their 210-hectare (effective) dairy farm near Kapuni for 15 years. bought a second dairy unit three years ago, just up the road near Kaponga. The home farm runs 820 kiwicross/friesian cows. Over the past few years, the breeding emphasis has been on bringing more kiwicross into the mix. Maria loves rearing the calves and looks after the books and administration of their business. Steve describes last season’s weather as a bit of a salt-and-pepper affair. “We had a tough spring followed by a good summer for our district, and then a solid autumn, though April was very wet.” Production was pretty much on the target of 430,000 kilograms of milksolids.

The Pooles run a reasonably high-input system, so Steve is always mindful of the cost of supplement as this can impact considerably on the bottom line. “It’s ‘pasture first’ and we have used palm kernel, along with maize silage and prolic liquid stock food,” he says. “We’ve also introduced DD Grain and soy hulls as a strategy to stay under the Fonterra threekilograms-per-cow suggested limit. To date this has worked well, with the DGG proving very palatable in the mix and providing good protein and ME (metabolisable energy) levels.” A director of Hamilton-based Livestock Improvement Corporation, he says the farmerowned co-operative is coming off a couple of very tough years of payouts (which directly influenced farmer spend with it) and the 2017-18 year feels a lot more positive. “We are seeing a pleasing increase in herd-test orders and our bulls continue to dominate the RAS list (ranking of active sires), which is very important as farmers decide on their mating plans.” He says LIC is continuing to work on its capital structure and hopes to discuss this with shareholders this year. “The automation and technology we provide to assist dairy farmers with information enable them to make sound management decisions are also an important part of what LIC offers.” He feels farmers are generally optimistic, especially with a healthier payout. On his farm, the five-year-old, 60-bail De Laval rotary shed continues to perform well. “The staff just love it. It has all the automation necessary to operate with one person. It’s also very quiet and the cows flow well through it.” A hundred and fifty of his herd are autumncalvers and are milked through the winter. The Pooles have five children. The youngest is at primary school and two eldest sons, Isaac and Louis, are getting towards the business end of their agricultural science degrees at Massey University, in Palmerston North.

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ON FARM » Landcorp Pastoral

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The Achilles Dairy Unit, one of 18 dairy farms operated by Landcorp Pastoral, has an effective milking platform of 856 hectares and carries 2200 cows. Axel Nielsen manages a staff of nine full-timers, plus casuals during calf-rearing.

Achilles one of the top performers Sue Russell Ask Achilles Dairy Unit farm manager Axel NielsenVold about Landcorp Pastoral and he says it’s a “great company” to be a part of. Achilles Dairy is one of 18 dairy farms operated by Landcorp Pastoral, which leases the land off Wairakei Estate. “I can’t speak highly enough about the company I have worked for for five years now,” says Axel. “It’s a great way for young people, in particular, to get into the industry.” Achilles Dairy farm has an effective milking platform of 856 hectares, made up of mainly flat and some rolling terrain. The plan is to retire the 10 to 15 hectares that roll into trees. The farm carries 2200 cows, and over the past three years, the herd has been bred using kiwicross semen with the aim of achieving a smaller, more even animal.

“There are some long walks on this farm, so the smaller cow will do better,” says Axel. Working with him are nine full-timers, with casuals employed during calf-rearing. The 10-dayson/four-days-off work roster gives everyone a good break and a chance to recharge batteries. There are two 9-10-hour shifts, one starting at 3am and the other at 7am. Milk – 733,000 kilograms of solids last season – is produced through a 60-bail Waikato rotary. Axel says he’s pleased to have lifted production considerably from the 650,000kg produced in his first year. He finds managing a large staff satisfying, especially when they move into a higher position within Landcorp or use their experience as a stepping stone in their careers. The challenges of running such an extensive operation are why he enjoys his managers’ role so much. “We’re always working on different things. In

the last few years we’ve placed an emphasis on environmental impact. We’ve planted a lot of trees to act as shelter belts, and retired and planted 4ha of wetlands. Fortunately we don’t get snow here.” Landcorp’s decision to eliminate palm kernel extract from the food chain has shif ted the emphasis to feeding maize, which is bought as grain and fed through the shed. In the last couple of years a winter crop of swedes has been grown over 20 hectares. Calving starts on July 19. Axel’s work-rate steps up over mating and calving, but once Christmas comes and goes he’s able to slow down a bit and attend to other responsibilities. He has taken on an extra staff member, Landcorp farm managers in the district meet every month, and as part of Landcorp’s network, he deals directly with a business manager.” Reporting to Landcorp’s head office in Wellington is done through all of the farms’ computer programmes. Axel says this enables

managers to see how other farms are performing. “Last season we were number one, and before that we had three years in the top 10 in terms of performance.” He rates Landcorp’s administration as very tidy”: “When I was interviewed for the job, the process was very thorough. It’s a very professionally run company with strong values to areas such as health and safety, people, animals, structure and systems.”

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54 |

and then the whole farm!” 2 months later: almost no crust Brian carried out David’s instructions and within two months, good biological activity was present and the with how Slurry Bugs were performing.

To solve the root-cause of pond crust (and poor animal health and low milk production), farmers need to focus on soil conditions. If the soil conditions are right, everything else will fall into line, like dominos. So, what are the ‘right’ soil conditions?

A balanced pH of 6.4 David describes soil as follows. “Farmers should think of

Brian Schnell’s phone call

with trillions of workers – the micro-organisms that live there.

“Here’s the problem I was having. My pond was crusted over and I was losing holding capacity. Not only that, the solids were constantly blocking the irrigation jets, which was a major pain.” Brian had had these problems before and had paid contractors to come in and stir the pond and suck out the solids. He even had a digger brought in to excavate the crust. But the crust always came back.

“You cannot overstate their importance for grass growth.

that liquefy the pond by eating the crust. So, I called David

the environment these good microbes prefer. 6.4 enables

Slurry Bugs do the job or do I need more mechanical solutions?’ He told me not to spend another cent on machines.”

David drove from Hamilton to inspect Brian’s pond. Within 10 minutes, he noticed three things. aerobic microbes are at work, eating crust and liquefying the pond. I saw no bubbles at all. green colour occurs when Chlorine kills micro-organisms.

to get 6.4 through a good balance of a range of nutrients, not just by adding lime.”

David then told Brian the deeper truth about pond crust: that the state of his pond was merely symptomatic of a nutrient imbalance in his soil. “I told Brian that the crust on his pond is undigested feed and that undigested feed is directly related to the low pH in the rumen of his cows. Low pH is an environment that stunts the work and reproduction of good, digesting organisms. nutrient imbalance in the feed, which is directly related to an imbalance in the soil. It’s all about the soil.”

Introducing the BioCircle David sees every farm as a BioCircle of transference. What’s in the soil goes into the grass. What’s in the grass goes into the cow. What’s in the cow goes into But Slurry Bugs are aerobic. “Slurry Bugs need oxygen and light. To survive, they eat

1. Low pH stunts the work of good organisms 2. Low pH helps disease-causing pathogens

Forward Farming carried out a soil test (tested in Missouri, USA). Even though the test revealed Brian’s soil had an ideal pH of 6.4, it was achieved through an Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, and Sodium. Brian’s soil Magnesium was too high in relation to Calcium on soil enzymes. Tests also revealed that the organic matter, which feeds soil biology, was too low.

gets transferred. First, we added lime at 625kg/ha to get Brian’s Calcium levels up to 68%. Increasing Calcium by the correct amount automatically reduced Magnesium to the ideal range in relation to Calcium.

Slurry Bugs eat the crust, they then excrete the solids in a “But more than that, their digestive systems change the composition of the pond nutrients – from unstable to stable organic forms that plants can easily use.

To increase organic matter, 240kg/ha of compost was added to the fertiliser mix. Phosphate was not added because it was already within an acceptable range.

far better fertiliser.”

Brian, do these three things

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

David asked Brian to do three important things. 1. Change the atmosphere of the pond so Slurry Bugs 2. Add a booster of Slurry Bugs into the pond. 3. Keep chlorine chemicals out of the pond by using an alternative sanitising product.

• Nutrients get transferred: balanced or imbalanced • Organisms • pH levels get transferred: acidic or neutral

Better grass growth + greater biological activity Cases of mastitis down from 25 to 3 Cases of lameness down from 15 to 2 Milk Urea down 39% from 29.44 to 18.11*

added

*October 2015 compared to October 2016

To contact David: 027 490 9896

To read more: www.fowardfarming.co.nz

ON FARM » Trevor & Angela Corbin

NZ Dairy

| 55

Angela Corbin, her father, Ian Watts (left), and her husband, Trevor Corbin (right) converted the former 430-hectare sheep and beef farm at Tutira in Hawke’s Bay in 2008. It includes a milking platform of 180ha (effective) and a 100ha support block.

‘You’ve got to be ready to go’ Kelly Deeks As dairy farmers after completing a conversion from sheep and beef on their northern Hawke’s Bay farm in 2008, Trevor and Angela Corbin were reasonably in debt – and then the payout plummeted. They looked at ways of trimming spending without impacting on what was supposed to be achieved in those areas. “You can’t slash and burn your business because the turnaround can be quick, and you’ve got to be ready to go,” Trevor says. “We really analysed what we spent. We used to buy in quite a bit of maize silage, and we decided in the low-payout years we didn’t need it, and we didn’t lose much production. “It’s all about that balance. Keeping the farm ticking along and making sure it doesn’t go backwards, and you’ve got the opportunity to capture any increase in milk price or improvement in weather patterns.” That opportunity came in March this year when the Corbins’ cows had been milking once a day since February 1. “It started raining at the beginning of March and we decided to go back on twice-a-day for another six weeks. The cows’ production rose 23 per cent in the first week.”

CODD CONTRACTING

Good rain and pasture growth meant in March allowed the Corbins to go back to twice-a-day milking, with production rising 23 per cent in the first week. Having the ability to recognise when those opportunities are there, and then taking action is key, says Trevor. He and Angela have been in the dairy industry for 30 years; they have a background in sharemilking, and have worked on dairy farms in Waikato, Northland, and Southland.

They left Southland in 2006 when farm prices were becoming beyond their reach, sold their herd and moved to Tutira, in northern Hawke’s Bay, to become partners with Angela’s parents, Ian and Eileen Watts, in their sheep-and-beef farm. “The plan was to carry on with sheep and beef, but as a store farm,” says Trevor. “But the

sustainable returns just weren’t there.” “The market was a finisher’s game, not a store game. Fonterra was looking for milk supply in northern Hawke’s Bay, so we did our due diligence and decided that moving over to cows would be a wise move.” The conversion process on the 430-hectare farm began in 2008. It included a 180ha (effective) milking platform to milk 500 cows, a 100ha (effective) support block, and the back hill of 100ha effective which is still used for sheep and beef. “The hill is sheep-and-beef country, and the 100ha over the other side of the farm is cut by two gorges, 60 metres deep, so there are physical constraints on each side of the farm.” Since 2009, cow numbers on the Corbin farm have risen to calving 580 last season. Trevor says that is probably pushing the limits of their system, which runs on the philosophy of being selfcontained. The support block provides two cuts of grass silage and one cut of balage, grazing for young stock, and winter grazing for the cows, half on a crop of kale, and half on grass. The only supplement bought in is straw for the kale crop. “We have control of all our costs and of our grazing,” says Trevor. “That’s how we’ve handled the low payouts.”

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Matthew & Sally Wright

Mentors help smooth way for Matthew Karen Phelps Matthew Wright credits a series of mentors as having played a key role in helping him and wife Sally get to their present dairying role. The couple contract-milk a high-input, autumn-calving farm at Waverley for owners Kevin and Diane Goble. South Africa-born Matthew may have had an urban upbringing, but was always adamant he didn’t want a job where he had to wear a tie. His grandfather farmed, and that was enough to give Matthew a taste for rural life; he studied agricultural management and ended up farming organic lilies. When Matthew immigrated to New Zealand, owning a farm was his top goal. Having been advised that dairy farming was the best way to get there, he threw himself in the deep end, applying for a second-in-charge position on a 1400-cow farm as his entry into the industry. “I thought ‘I’ve got a degree, I should be right,” he remembers. “Obviously I was out of my depth, but they must have seen something in me because they put me on as a trainee second-in-charge. Six months later I got the second-in-charge role.” His ambitious personality saw him in various roles on different types and sizes of farms to gain as much experience as he could...sole manager on a 150-cow, grass-based farm, then contractmilking on a high-input, 550-cow unit. He and wife Sally twice entered the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards in the Waikato and were finalists the second time. They then moved to a farm of similar size but with a grass-based system before coming to their position – contract-milking 545 cows on 200 effective hectares, with Sally looking after the farm administration. Their first season (2016-17) there was also the

farm’s first season of autumn calving. Matthew says this suits the farm as they can capitalise on the winter-milk premium and take stress off the system during the dry summer. Empty cows can be carried over and bulls put over them again – if they get in calf they head to the Gobles’ home farm near New Plymouth; if not, they are milked through and then culled. The friesian crossbreds are milked through a 50bail rotary shed with automatic cup removers and automatic teat sprayer. As the walk to the shed can be long, staff have to be trained to spot lameness quickly. The farm is self-contained – around 15ha of maize and 15ha of barley will be grown this season. As autumn calving is new for the farm, Matthew is assessing possible enhancements, such as making paddocks uniform and improving gateways and races. He hopes this will minimise damage to pasture in winter, result in more productive paddocks and raise milk-solids production. Last season the herd produced 279,500 kilograms of milksolids; the target this season is 285,000-290,000kg. Matthew has an off-farm sideline as an AB technician for Livestock Improvement Corporation during spring and winter. He has been doing this for five years and says his experience is put to good use on the Gobles’ farm. The Wrights have two sons – Joshua, three and Benjamin, one. Their goal is to continue to increase their equity, and Matthew says he would like to mentor others. “Working with people and seeing results is a true passion of mine. It can really help you achieve your goals – it has helped us get to where we are today. We want to continue to learn and improve our skills to be the best we can.”

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Ryan Worsley

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Ryan loves keeping it simple Russell Loader Waverley farm manager Ryan Worsley is a good keen man who likes his hunting, fishing and diving. He also likes to keep his farming systems simple, concentrating more on sustainability and profitability farming than simply pumping out the milksolids and putting pressure on man and animal. Over the last 12 years he has worked on various farms around the North Island, progressing from farm worker to second-in-command to lower-order sharemilking on a 180-cow farm a couple of years ago. However, he was not entirely fulfilled on a small farm, and when an offer to manage a 1000-cow farm came along from a previous boss, he jumped at the opportunity. David and Sue Pearce, the owners of Longview Farms, were transitioning one of its units, Paetaia Dairy, from year-round milking to a seasonal operation with spring calving. Ryan had been a herd manager on the property for a couple of years or so early in his career, and knew the lay of the land. David wanted a keen man to manage the transition for him. “It has been the best move of my career really,” says Ryan. “This is my first season as manager starting on June 1 last year. I’m pretty happy where I am.” Peak-milking 950 predominantly jersey cows off a 330-hectare platform produced about 350 kilograms of milksolids last season. The intention was to peak-milk 1000 cows, but there’s no place for “passengers” in Ryan’s herd

PHOTOS: Paetaia Farms manager Ryan Worsley (bottom) says moving from year-round milking to a seasonal operation has helped with mating and has taken a lot of pressure off the environment, staff and animals. and 50 of the worst performers were quickly culled. With the season the way it was, production never really peaked and Ryan feels the girls did pretty well to achieve what they did. “This coming season I’m starting with 1150. We’ll bring the usual 220 replacements on, but I

won’t cull quite so heavily because I’ve got grass coming out my ears at the moment.” Ryan has appreciated the shift to a seasonal operation. He recalls what it was like milking year round from his previous engagement on the farm – a high-stress environment that put a lot of pressure on staff. That has gone now and, for sustainability, “it’s a beautiful way to go”, he says. “It has helped with mating too. When you are milking all year round, you just have so many things to focus on. “Whereas this year at mating time, we were focused solely on mating and that’s all everybody was thinking about. The empty rates have dropped from 14 per cent to 10%, and next year we are targeting 5%.” The 60-bail shed gets a bit of a rest now too – long earned after 20 years of hard labour, he says. Not a fan of focusing solely on milksolids, Ryan believes the guy doing 800 kilograms of miksolids per hectare on all grass at low cost is making just as much money as the man on a high-input farm doing 1400kgMS/ha. “I know what I would rather be doing—and that’s low-cost, simple farming.”

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58 |

ON FARM » Rowan McGilvary

NZ Dairy

Manager Rowan McGilvary is into his seventh season at Kaiwaiwai Dairies, in South Wairarapa, milking 900 cows. Infrastructure improvements include a one-million-litre effluent storage pond, a 600-cow feedpad, and a two-hectare wetland. Tests show that nutrient outflow is significantly reduced by the wetland, which is complemented by native plantings.

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Karen Phelps Kaiwaiwai Dairies manager Rowan McGilvary still enjoys the challenge of his role seven seasons after he started in his position on the large-scale South Wairarapa farm. With recent improvements in infrastructure, he is looking forward to seeing the potential gains that can be made during the next season and beyond, particularly in the light of a season which has been largely forgettable. After 34 years in the industry he is still passionate about his work and enjoys the relationships he has with his employer and other staff. “They’re very good people to work with,” says Rowan. “It’s a challenging farm and I like a challenge. I tend to chuck an anchor out when I get somewhere

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that’s good and that I like. There’s still plenty of scope for improvements on the farm.” Recent infrastructure improvements included the addition of a one-million-litre, effluent-storage pond, which with the installation of three pivot irrigators in February, can now provide crucial irrigation to about half the 315-hectare property. Rowan expects the irrigation to be a gamechanger as January and February are traditionally dry months leading into autumn. The farm operates on split-calving and wintermilking, which demands four staff apart from Rowan; they milk 900 cows in two herds through a 44-bail rotary shed. While the size of the shed is not ideal for the volume of cows, technology such as Protrack automatic drafting, and automatic cup removers makes a huge difference as only one person is needed. Last season’s production was 353,000 kilograms of milksolids against a budget of 360,000kg; a difficult spring accounted for the difference. Rowan says weather records for last season showed the third-lowest Wairarapa autumn sunshine hours on record and the fourth-highest rainfall recorded. The farm’s soil types, a mixture of peat, clay and stones over clay, plus an iron pan, add to the challenge of managing pastures. “Last season, in particular, it was really bad for lameness with our races packing up over winter; it’s really hard to maintain our races with milking all year round.” Despite this, the winter milk premium makes split-calving worthwhile. Information provided by Massey University, which Kaiwaiwai Dairies

matched with its historical data, has also shown that split-calving and milking two smaller herds was the best match for the available grass through the season. “Trying to get 900 cows through January and February in the Wairarapa without any irrigation just didn’t make sense.” A feedpad which supports 600 cows helps alleviate pasture pressure, while the farm is also supported by a 240ha run-off about 20 kilometres away. This is used to feed young stock and heifers after weaning in autumn and spring. Outside of infrastructure, there has been a big environmental push, with a two-hectare wetland established in the middle of the farm four seasons ago. Built on a paddock too wet to use for stock, the wetland acts like a kidney for nutrients which have been shown on Overseer to be significantly reduced from a system of out-flowing drainage complemented by native plantings as well as microbial activity in the wetland. Kaiwaiwai Dairies has collaborated with the Greater Wellington Regional Council in monitoring the wetland. All of the farm’s waterways are now fenced. Rowan, who was the 2015 Hawke’s Bay/ Wairarapa Farm Manager of the Year, says that at Kaiwaiwai Dairies, he is motivated by the potential he sees in the business, particularly since the addition of the irrigation. “It’s self-satisfying for me because they’re the sort of people that, if they have confidence in you, just leave you alone to do your thing.” “Equally I feel obliged to make sure I do the best job I can to reward them for the faith they’ve shown in me.”

NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Robert Rosser

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Production up despite wet spring Sue Russell Robert Rosser’s 15 years of managing dairy farms took him to Ashburton for four years, but home is very much in and around Takaka, in Golden Bay. Since k-line irrigation was installed, followed by three centre-pivots five years ago, on the 165-hectare farm, he has moved towards crossbreds. They do better on grass, he says. The Takaka River runs through the farm, which has three distinct terraces. By the time he dried off his 546 cows for the 2016-17 season, they had surpassed the production target of 222,000 kilograms of milksolids by around 5000kg. “Even though it was so wet in spring and through parts of summer, we made up and got ahead. We did have a lot of lame cows to contend with, but we used cow-slips, which helped them walk once we lifted them.” Milk is produced through a 50-bail, Waikato rotary with Protrack and cup removers’ it has served the Rossers well in the eight years it has been in operation. Meal is also supplied in-shed – half a tonne per cow over the season. As he seeks to boost production, Robert is starting to look at per-cow performance and will do some culling. Over winter the herd is stood off on nearby runoff blocks: “All the herd is wintered for six weeks off the farm to give the home block a rest.” He is assisted on the farm by Pete Doughty and Sam Goffriller. Pete has been with him for six years while Sam has just completed his second season. “We don’t really have a structure, and Sam and Pete work together,” says Robert. Robert places high store on training and is always looking to upskill. He finds the programmes offered through the Ag ITO system work well. “Sam has completed level 4 this season. I think its great because I learn about what he has been taught by the book, and it gives me a chance to explain why we do things the way we do on this farm.” Outside of farm life, Robert and wife Cindy have two-year-old Benjamin to look after, and another baby due in late July. A serious back injury last year added pressure to farm activities as Robert required a significant period off the farm and did not return to full duties until the start of October. “Fortunately, calving last season went really well,” he says.”This season we’re calving 550 cows. Only a dozen or so cows have had mastitis

PHOTOS – Sam Goffriller and partner Sage Andrews (top left) assist Takaka farmer Robert Rosser on his 165-hectare farm (above) at Golden Bay, as does Robert’s two-year-old son, Benjamin (top right). and our somatic cell count has been really low.” Sam Goffriller’s entry and success in the region’s Dairy Industry Trainee of the Year awards brought a lot interest and pleasure to the farm. “I was up against managers as well, and the process of entering was quite full-on, providing a few pages of detail,” Sam says. The preliminary rounds involved three judges. “We also went to Tapawera for the prelims with half an hour to answer as many questions as we

could, followed by 20 minutes of theory and 20 minutes of practical.” The original group of 11 competitors was culled to six for the second round, which involved five judges. The group visited the Brightwater farm of the previous winner where more theory and practical tests took place. “These were harder questions and I thought I did terribly, to be honest,” says Sam “So, when the awards were announced and the five merit awards

were handed out, I begin to wonder about my chances. I was thrilled to come in third, picking up more than $3000 in prizes and vouchers.” He says the prize giving was held at a great venue, Shanty Town. Awards aside, he says he’s really enjoyed his time on the farm:. “It makes a difference to have a manager you get on with. Robert is very hands on and great to work alongside.“

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60 |

ON FARM » Peter and Karen West

NZ Dairy

Sticking with good stock brings reward Karen Phelps Peter and Karen West say one of the keys to maintaining consistently good stock has been to continue to invest in them – in good times and bad. It’s advice worth listening to. The couple have won the Livestock Improvement Corporation Dairy Farm Award for the Waikato region in the 2017 Ballance Waikato Farm Environmental Awards. “Some farmers try to save on semen, for example, but they can actually lose out in the long run in terms of high-breeding-worth (BW) animals coming into their herd in two years,” says Peter. “We believe we get any investment we make in semen by investing in Livestock Improvement Corporation semen from the top four bulls in the country. It more than pays for itself in better milk production, the value of the animals and the overall enjoyment of farming nice stock.” The Wests milk a herd of 410 predominantly friesian cows on a 144-hectare (effective) unit at Kaihere. The cows are milked through a 44-a-side herringbone shed with Protrack. Half of their cows were calved in just eight days last spring, which they achieved by a variety of means, including short-gestation semen and putting the entire herd to artificial breeding (AB) in three

and a half weeks. This has meant that on average, cows calve nine days earlier than their due date, which equates to nine extra days of milk as well as additional opportunity to get back in calf again, says Peter. They continued to invest in herd testing, even in the downturn, recognising the huge value this brings to their operation. “We aim to keep the value of the herd high, and herd testing improves our accuracy around this in terms of drying off cows, somatic cell counts etc, says Peter. “It’s an important management practice on this farm.” For the past three years all of the Wests’ calves have been in the top five per cent for BW in the country. They have also had 30-50 per cent surplus heifer calves to sell, which equals money in the bank and improves cashflow. While Peter admits their livestock management practices are more work up front, he feels this more than pays off at calving time. For example, when cows calve later, they are very proactive using protaglandin injections and an aggressive CIDR programme. They also keep a good eye on the progress of

• To page 61

Karen and Peter West’s focus on excellence has been instrumental in the couple winning numerous farming awards over the years, the latest being the 2017 Livestock Improvement Corporation Dairy Farm Award for the Waikato region.

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Brent Pratt

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‘We are the eyes and ears’ for Landcorp Russell Fredric Working on a Landcorp-owned farm may draw thoughts of an impersonal management structure. But for Brent Pratt, the opposite is true. He has been farm manager for Landcorp’s 440-hectare (effective) Takou Bay dairy unit in Northland for seven years. Before that, he and his wife, Jacqui, sharemilked for Landcorp. Although Landcorp’s reporting requirements are quite stringent, Brent has a high level of input into decision making. “You are more like a partner of Landcorp, really, in running the farm,” he says. “I have a big involvement in what happens on the farm. The whole idea of going to winter milking was my idea. You have a high input on all that side of things because you are like the owner. We are the eyes and ears.” The farm, 20 kilometres north of Kerikeri and about five kilometres from the coast, is on flat to light rolling contour and supports about 950 kiwicross cows in two herds. Four hundred of the cows are calved in autumn and 450 in spring. They are milked through a 70bail rotary shed with Tru-Test (formerly MilkHub) automation systems. Five full-time staff, including Brent, are supplemented by casuals, but recruiting can be a challenge. “It seems quite hard to get people to move to Northland,” says Brent. The sub-tropical Northland climate means there are usually good autumn rains, but no dramatic flush of spring grass; summers can be very dry. “We can go two or three months without rain and it’s normally very early. November, December, January can be dry.” “We virtually had five months when we had minimal rain. It makes a big impact on your farm, on your grass-growth ability.”

Brent Pratt manages Landcorp’s Takou Bay dairy unit near Kerikeri in Northland. The farm supports 950 cows in two herds, milked through a 70-bail rotary.

Stock form basis for the Wests • From page 60 the calves once they are born. Calves are kept on the farm until May 1 and weighed before heading off to graze. They are weighed again six months later and when they return home. “It can be deceiving without using scales,” says Peter. “They can look really good but not be meeting targets.” The judges noted the Wests had simple and effective grazing management, numerous waterconservation measures in place, an excellent breeding programme, and outstanding recordkeeping in all areas of their business. The judges also mentioned the Wests’ great drive and passion for their vision, while being proactive in monitoring and bench-marking all aspects of their business. This. said the judges, has put their performance amongst leading farmers. It’s a bit of a change from years ago when Peter was a lad and “didn’t know one end of a cow from another”.

It wasn’t until he was a teenager and was visiting a girlfriend that he got put to work on her family’s farm. Peter not only fell in love with Karen, but also farming. They worked on several farms, including a stint on Karen’s family farm. By the time they were 20, they had saved enough to go 50:50 sharemilking on the farm at Kaihere, which they eventually bought. The Wests say they have always aimed to make not only their farm but also their community a better place. They helped establish the Hauraki Plains College Academy of Agriculture – a joint initiative between the Hauraki Plains community and the college – at the beginning of 2003. Based at Ngatea, the course is designed to help young people into a career in agriculture. This focus on excellence has also seen the Wests win in a regional award and the national human wealth award in the 2004-05 Dairy Excellence Awards This year they have also made it to the top 12 of the 2017 Dairy Business of the Year Awards.

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62 |

ON FARM » Fraser & Amber Carpenter

NZ Dairy

Goal setting, teamwork lay base Richard Loader Goal setting, communication and complementary teamwork are critical success factors for the winners of the 2017 Auckland/Hauraki Share Farmer of the Year award. Fraser and Amber Carpenter, both in their early 30s, also received merits awards for the farm dairy hygiene, recording and productivity. farm environment and pasture performance. The Carpenters are in their second season as 50:50 sharemilkers on Fraser Mansell’s 65-hectare effective farm at Karaka, where they milk 180 cows through a 15-a-side herringbone shed. While Fraser Carpenter was born and bred on a farm and always knew that farming was something he wanted to pursue, Amber’s background is quite different. Brought up a city girl in Auckland, she completed an arts-and-design degree, majoring in fashion, and continues her career in the world of the fashion business. She is currently balancing her time working as Cotton On New Zealand’s merchandising manager during the week with the call of farm work in the weekends, She says she now has a bit of both worlds— Parnell by week and Karaka by weekend. Fraser runs the day-to-day farm operation, from milking to calf rearing, and Amber looks after the business side of things. “We both set up budgets at the start of the season, but Amber pays the bills, does the business projections, sets the budgets, and records the actuals,” he says. “And she does a pasture-meter walk every weekend.” . After completing his Primary ITO level-four qualification in production management and an agribusiness diploma, Fraser became aware of the Industry awards and saw them as the couple’s next big goal. “Goal setting for us has been a major,” he says.

Amber and Fraser Carpenter say teamwork and communication were crucial factors in their success in winning the 2017 Auckland/Hauraki Share Farmer of the Year award. The couple are 50:50 sharemilkers on a 65-hectare farm at Karaka milking 180 cows.

• To page 63

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Kevin & Alison Hull

| 63

Kevin has future in mind in work on environment Karen Phelps Attention to detail in terms of fencing off waterways and riparian planting that has seen Awakare Farm, owned by first-time entrants Kevin and Alison Hull, claim the dairy farm award for the Wellington region at the 2017 Ballance Environmental Awards. The 99-hectare total/85ha effective unit northwest of Carterton has waterways running through the land. Kevin estimates he has built seven to eight kilometres of fences, a process he started nearly a decade ago. He says Wellington Regional Council grants have been a big help in completing this work. The Hulls also improved their environmental footprint by replacing a sump system with a 1.2 million-litre capacity storage pond. And they have extended the area over which they spread effluent from 8ha to 22ha. A timer on their travelling irrigator allows them to adjust application rates more finely. Kevin says it was encouraging to win the award and he will be carrying on the environmental work, fencing off more waterways and culverts. Part of the impetus is to protect the farm for future generations, especially as they have three children, one of whom in particular is keen on a farming career. Alison grew up on the farm, which was originally bought by her grandparents, Peter and Valerie Batchelor. Kevin comes from a dairy farm at Parkvale, east of Carterton; he worked on the family farm after leaving school until meeting Alison and

Riparian planting and fencing of around eight kilometres of waterways has ensured first-time Carterton entrants Kevin and Alison Hull success at the 2017 Ballance Environmental awards.

Duo speechless after award win • From page 62 “It’s fine to say you want to own a farm one day— but if you write that down and break things down into the smaller steps, you make them achievable and there’s more chance of success.” The couple, who are developing their business and farming skills, say they entered the competition to benefit from the judges’ feedback and to benchmark themselves against the best in the country. Networking, building relationships and critically examining their business from the outside were invaluable opportunities offered by the competition. “It has been an amazing experience,” says Amber. “We realised we would get a lot out of it, but I don’t think we realised just how much. “We’ve learned so much about our business and we’re a lot more confident about where we are going, both as a couple and as a business. I would

be very encouraging for anyone to enter.” Fraser says he was ecstatic and speechless when they were announced winners. “We were first-time entrants and I didn’t think we would come anywhere because there were lots of good farmers entered. You benchmark yourself against those good farmers, and to come up with the win was fantastic.” Amber says it was made even more special by having their boss, Fraser Mansell, at the awards dinner. He had a grin from ear to ear over their success, she says. Fraser and Amber pride themselves on teamwork, and say the awards have shown them what they can achieve together; maybe one day they will both be full-time on the farm. Their next step is to get to a bigger 50:50 sharemilking job with 350-500 cows and then work their way to buying their own farm or going into an equity partnership.

moving to her family farm in 1985 so that the pair could take on a 50:50 sharemilking position for her parents. In the late 1990ss they bought Awakare and now milk a herd of 200 friesians through a 22-a-side herringbone shed. The farm is a mix of steep hills, rolling and flats. The Hulls graze the cows on the hills during the day and the flats at night. Kevin is concentrating on pasture improvement with the aim of doubling his re-grassing efforts from the 4.5ha he has been undertaking. He will plant 8ha of turnips and chicory for summer crop this year. For winter the cows are sent to a grazing block run by daughter Abby, 28, and her husband, Jason, near Masterton. Jason has a rural-contracting business, Scotts Ag Contracting, with his familty. Kevin is pleased with how the herd is tracking – a 10 per cent empty rate and production of 380400 kilograms of milksolids per cow. Last season the farm achieved 68,000kg MS. The target for this season, with 20 extra cows, is 70,000kg. The Hulls do not employ any staff. Kevin does the majority of the work, while Alison works off farm as a captive breeding ranger at the Mt Bruce Wildlife Centre – a job she loves. She takes six weeks off in the spring each year to give Kevin a hand during the busy calving season. And it looks as though a fourth generation could one day take over the family farm. Son Johnny, 25, is contract milking on a farm in the Featherson area. Kevin says the aim is to provide all the children with an opportunity to go farming if they want to.

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64 |

ON FARM » Mark & Vicki Trolove

NZ Dairy

Extra hand – more time for projects Karen Phelps Opunake farmers Mark and Vicki Trolove will become more hands-on in their farming operation this season as their son Andrew, 24, returns to the farm to take on a manager’s position, replacing contract milkers. Andrew worked at the local Farmlands for several years when he left school before heading overseas to play club rugby in England for a year. When he returned home, he worked on the farm doing development work before taking on the management position this season. The plan is that this will leave the door open for Andrew to move into a contract-milking position if he chooses. Mark says pasture management will be Andrew’s main focus as the farm was originally bought as a going concern, leaving plenty of room for improvement. The 215-hectare total/210ha effective farm, milks a herd of 620 predominantly friesian cows. The family has invested heavily in a new 60-bail rotary shed with DeLaval plant, including milk meters, drafting gates and in-shed feeding system. Milking times have been halved, which means less fatigue for staff. Mastitis levels have plummeted through the closer management made possible by the additional technology. Happy cows are pleased to go into the shed to be milked with the enticement of the meal they are now fed each day. The shed was the result of growth through a land purchase. Cow numbers rose from the 420 the couple milked through a 32-bail rotary in their first season. When cow numbers got to around 600, milkings started at 4.30am and took nearly four hours. This season the aim is to improve the herd, which Mark admits wasn’t probably the best bunch of cows when they set up the farm. They will cull heavily and target a low empty rate to give more options around culling. They have been growing fodder beet for several years – 5ha this season along with 5-6ha of turnips. Development will continue with fencing and riparian planting. The Troloves are pretty selfsufficient in this respect and can do most jobs, such as hay and silage, fertiliser spreading etc. themselves. Last season the farm produced 400 kilograms of milksolids per cow. This target this season is 450kg per cow. Mark says it has been good timing having

Opunake farm manager Andrew Trolove (blue overalls) with workers (from left) Jaaron Moore, Praneel Kumar and Amber Waters, ready for action after a morning briefing. Andrew come home as he has a good group of friends in the area who are also young farmers wanting to get ahead. Mark hopes that increasing Andrew’s role on the farm will leave him more time to pursue what he loves best – projects. “As we bought the farm as a going concern, we are making progress in terms of development. But it has been slow as we are doing it all ourselves. This has been good, though, in the downturn. “If Andrew can run the farm, that will leave me free to carry on the development work, which is what I love. I like projects, I’m not a big fan of routine or milking cows.”

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Mark and Vicki Trolove, sporting the Coastal rugby colours, with son Andrew in front of the milking sheds on their 215-hectare property at Opunake.

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NZ Dairy

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STONE AGE FERTILISERS The earliest global date for the beginning of the Stone Age is a mere 2.5 million years ago, in Africa. However, the building of top soil on the planet began from the moment planet Earth was put in motion. The raw materials for top soil are rocks, in particular basalt rock, which in its molten form captures a full complement of minerals. Our planet is approximately 460 million years old. The tools necessary for building top soil, are glacial movement of ice flows. As the ice flows it grinds the mountainous rock down to a fine powder; when the ice recedes, it leaves behind, metres deep, of precious mineralised top soil. Added to this is the interaction of live volcanoes and all the fine rock powder they spew-out across the land. Our planets top soil is basically derived from rock dust. How alive and magic is our “living planet”; having the ability to crush multi-mineral rock dust to build top soil, to maintain life.

All life is dependent upon top soil and water – these are the two most precious commodities on our planet. Agrissentials are the pioneers of multi-mineral rock dust blended with fish, seaweed and micro-organisms. These fertilisers have the ability to regenerate top soil by increasing the microorganisms and the worm population within the soil, breaking down all waste and manure, back into top soil. Both our RokSolid full spectrum fertiliser and our Oceans100 fish and seaweed liquid fertiliser contain over 63 minerals, all in a natural form and converted by the microorganisms to a plant available form. In this state, the converted minerals taken up by the plant are all recognised at the cellular level, building strong healthy plants, which transfers on to strong healthy animals and people. It’s the ultimate system.

introduction of synthetic soluble chemical fertilisers in the last 40 years has witnessed the erosion of our beautiful top soil, at a rate of 200 to 300 million tonne per year in NZ alone – that’s unsustainable (Dr. Morgan Williams report to the NZ Government 2004). Agrissentials, Stone Age fertilisers, made from ground up rock and blended with fish, seaweed, micro-organisms and other plant material, are the ultimate fertilisers for all producing units. All of Agrissentials products evolve out of the environment and as such, are part of the environment and part of nature, non-toxic and completely safe. While the NZ Regional Councils haggle and hustle over farming, soils, water and the environment, in an effort to keep the “agrochemical” system going, the current chemical problems will continue to destroy our soils and pollute our water. The chemical system is insane.

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66 |

ON FARM » Clarence and Elise Stolte

NZ Dairy

Second farm another step up Kelly Deeks Wairarapa dairy farmers Clarence and Elise Stolte are in the middle of a growth curve, having taken on a second 50:50 sharemilking job at Masterton last season, and now buying equity in the family farm they have worked on for the past 10 years. The couple arrived on Clarence’s parents’ dairy farm in Carterton as farm managers. This wasn’t the home farm though. Clarence’s parents, Willem and Roelie, are Dutch immigrants who bought and settled at a Masterton poultry farm, which is where Clarence was raised. “As poultry farmers, my parents also needed land to put the chicken manure on, which was a good reason to have a dairy farm on the side,” Clarence says. “My parents always had sharemilkers on their dairy farm, while I did a few years farming elsewhere before coming home.” After a couple of years of lower-order sharemilking there, Clarence and Elise bought the 500-cow herd and became 50:50 sharemilkers. By 2016, they were ready to start a second 50:50 job, which they found at Masterton. This season the Masterton farm will be milking 450 cows; they milked 480 last season. “We’re trying to take the pressure off,” says Clarence. “It’s a wet farm, and is basically zero supplement. We bought in 30 tonnes of feed in total, and everything else is self-contained.” Both farms have their own run-off blocks for wintering, and at Masterton, 300 cows are wintered at home. At Carterton, 200 of 500 cows are being winter milked. The farm has always winter-milked, but normally 150 cows. “We get paid a bit better for it now,” Clarence says. “Also, now we’ve got double the number of cows, we’ve got double the number of empties. And winter milking takes the pressure off the farm in summer.” He says the Carterton farm is super dry. Half irrigated with very unreliable irrigation, and very light soils. “It lends itself to winter milking. It’s so valuable to us to be able to dry off a whole lot of cows in January and February.” The Carterton farm has calved 100 cows this autumn, and made up to 200 cows with 100 carryovers. “We’re not having to keep everything. We’re only keeping the best to winter-milk, which maintains the quality nicely. It’s pretty handy to be able to hang on to some top cows.”

Wairarapa farmers Clarence and Elise Stolte have taken on a second 50/50 sharemilking job on a Masterton farm milking 450 cows. Clarence says he and Elise have always sought to run a low-cost, high-profit operation, and that has been key to producng really good growth in their business. Having developed equity in the land at Carterton,

their business looks a lot different from the standard 50:50 sharemilking model, where they earned half the milk cheque, but their mortgage was probably only a quarter of that of the land-owner. “Fifty-fifty sharemilking has been a great vehicle

and we’ve had really good profits.” he says. “I’ve always thought land ownership provided a pretty minimal return compared to 50:50 sharemilking, but it’s steady, reliable, safe, and it lets us do what we love – dairy farming.”

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ON FARM » Brumby Farm

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Dad’s beautification scheme’ recognised Sue Russell The work begun by geneticist Peter Brumby and wife Patricia, and involving two generations of the family, and now managers Jason and Holley Perrin has been recognised by a Bay of Plenty Regional Council Environment Award No. 1. The award was a tribute to the Brumbys’ dedication and success in creating a sustainably sensitive, respectful and balanced use of the land on a 283-hectare block near Waihi. “The decision to enter was to gain feedback from professionals about how best to improve production, soil quality, nutrients, water and biodiversity on the farm,” says Suejane Brumby. “It was also to honour Dr Peter Brumby (her father).” Peter, an internationally acclaimed agricultural scientist, and his wife, Patricia, bought the property in 1988 and developed it. Peter died in 2011. Suejane says Peter had talked for years about entering the awards and “this year seemed the right time”. The Bay of Plenty Regional Council Environment Award comes under the Ballance Farm Environment Awards umbrella. The awards attract entries from dairy farms, horticulturists and land-based businesses. The judging process involved visits by professional experts – Nick Doney, Alister Snodgrass and Hamish Dean in November, and Bay of Plenty judging co-ordinator, Margaret Wright, Oliver Knowles and Sharryn Clark, from Rabobank, in November. “They pointed out that we have a lot of dock and explained how to get rid of it,” says Suejane. “We also have a problem with California thistle, and better use of our wetland was discussed. It was very useful information and has given us steps to

take to improve these aspects of the farm.” The awards were announced in late February and all connected with the Brumby property were thrilled that Peter’s work and commitment to improve the farm to enhance its environmental footprint had been recognised. Comment from the judges summed up that sentiment. “The legacy left by Dr Peter Brumby is a property featuring beautiful riparian plantings, ponds, native bush and production forestry, managed to realise full potential at harvest. An extremely well-bred, dairy herd, with ongoing attention to conformation and genetic merit is an asset to this property.” The farm also has a Queen Elizabeth II Trustcovenanted block of native and exotic trees. Suejane carries memories of helping her father plant these trees in what was affectionately called “Dad’s beautification scheme”. Jason and Holley Perrin, and their three children, have had one season running a 165-hectare (effective) dairy farm and a 40ha run-off for the Brumbys. The Waihi volcanic-ash soil produces quality pasture and the 400-odd kiwicross cows receive in-shed supplement through spring and summer. Milk production in 2016-17 was 146,300 kilograms of milk solids, roughly the same as in the previous season. The farm also carries 185 heifers. This season Jason and Holley have taken up a 25 per cent share-milking stake, along with overall farm management. Holley’s main physical role on the farm is rearing the calves. Calving is due to start mid to late July, and Jason expects it will take 10 weeks. “Last season calving was a bit tough. Mud everywhere. Some people in this area were down 20 per cent and will take some time to recover this loss.” Suejane says she is committed to the role of dairy farmers in enhancing water quality and meeting environmental standards expected by Fonterra. “Fonterra is trying very hard to reduce environmental impacts across all its farms and 95% of us have raised the quality of our water-ways. We do everything we can to comply and we take those responsibilities seriously.”

PHOTOS: Ponds and extensive plantings of both exotic and native trees, started by geneticist Peter Brumby and his wife, Patricia, and continued by two generations of the Brumby family at Waihi, have been recognised with a Bay of Plenty Regional Council environmental award.

We would like to congratulate Suejane Brumby, Jason & Holley Perrin (Pictured) of Brumby Farms on winning the BOP Regional Council Environment Award for 2017.

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68 |

ON FARM » Lisa Hicks

NZ Dairy

Te Reo part of learning curve Kelly Deeks Contract milker Lisa Hicks is trying to nail it this season on the Atihau-Whanganui Incorporation dairy farm AWHI Dairy at Ohakune, after riding some learning curves with the new in-shed feeding system last season She and Atihau-Whanganui Incorporation are so confident they are also having a crack at the 2018 Ahuwhenua Trophy – BNZ Maori Excellence in Farming Award. “I’ve even been going to Te Reo lessons,” Lisa says. “I’m just trying my best to make everything the best I can.” She is used to keeping up appearances. AWHI Dairy is a flat to rolling 405-hectare block, with an effective milking area of 375ha, and a dairy support area of 90ha on a neighbouring Atihau Whanganui Incorporation sheep and beef farm. Surrounded by Tongariro National Park, and right beside the Ohakune Old Coach Road Cycle Trail, AWHI Dairy is in the public eye 24/7. “We have to make sure things are tidy, and we even have the odd wandering tourist bringing the cows back to the cowshed with their pushbikes,” Lisa says. She also regularly invites learners to AWHI Dairy through her involvement in the local Ruapehu College’s Gateway programme, and Land Based Training Ltd. Next year, she and AWHI Dairy will host 180 pupils from a Whanganui school involved in Dairy New Zealand’s education programme. “I like being around people and teaching people, and I like to go back to what other people have taught me,” she says. “I did my adult teaching certificate at the Universal College of Learning before moving here in 2014 so that I could be geared up ready to be an assessor. I’m always learning, and always teaching.” Lisa is also the Manawatu’s convener of the Dairy Women’s Network and is involved in the Agri Women’s Development Trust. Still she finds time to run AWHI Dairy – and very rewarding she finds it too, especially doing record production year on year. Lisa took on the AWHI Dairy job with her husband, Graham Sorenson, who has since gone to work off farm. The pair are both career changers in their 40s, with Graham a mechanic by trade and Lisa a milk merchandiser. “I’ve gone from one end of the cow to the other,” she says. Lisa’s son Andrew is 2IC at AWHI Dairy, and is as keen on learning and teaching as his mum. Last season’s coup at the farm was dealing with I like being challenges of getting around people the new in-shed feeding system and teaching into the 44-a-side shed. people, and I herringbone “Growing crop on and having it like to go back farm harvested and stored to what other is a process we’ve had to learn,” Lisa people have says. “This year we’ve also got fodder beet taught me. for the first time.”

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Another first and another challenge for last season was the cows being wintered on a AtihauWhanganui Incorporation owned block next door to AWHI Dairy. “That has been a big saving on transportation, and feed costs and we can monitor the cows a lot

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better with them being right next door. They are fully fed on kale and balage.” This season, AWHI Dairy has a new calf shed facility to comply with new legislation, and will calve 710 cows and peak milk 690, an increase of 20 cows on last season.

PHOTOS: Lisa Hicks (top) has stepped up to the plate on the Atihau-Whanganui Incorporation dairy farm AWHI Dairy at Ohakune. She has overseen the installation and operation of an in-shed feeding system, which involves growing and harvesting supplementary crops on farm for the first time.

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Landcorp Maronan Valetta

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Above: Cause for celebration: Landcorp’s award winners – from left, Matthew Hoets (Valetta Farm manager), Brendon Stent (business manager), Tomas Muller (Maronan Farm, manager) and Asfke Huisman (farm technician). Right: The milk-tanker entrance to Valletta Farm.

Awards source of new ideas, knowledge Karen Phelps Ashburton dairy units owned by Landcorp Farming won the agri-business category in this year’s Ballance Farm Environment Awards. Brendon Stent is the business manager for the units, and Tomas Muller (Maronan Dairy) and Matthew Hoets (Valetta Dairy) are the farm managers. It was a team effort reflecting the focus Landcorp places on people, pastoral management, animal welfare and producing safe, high-quality foods, says Brendon Stent. “We entered because we want to put ourselves out there and showcase what we are doing on our farms.” He says the managers were keen on the idea of entering the awards. Maronan and Valetta are part of a five-farm complex spanning 2100 hectares and milking 5000 cows. Brendon, who oversees the farms, says the systems and processes were a key factor in the win. The judges noted Landcorp’s clear business plans, well defined goals, buy-in by all staff, policy,

business and financial transparency, and robust and practical health and safety systems. “Each year budgets are set and each month we put up all the key performance indicators so that everyone can see where their farm is tracking,” he says. “It’s about keeping communication channels open to achieve targets and goals”. He says health and safety is a priority: “We are very targeted on ensuring everyone gets home safely. Toolbox meetings are an important part of this, and this extends to members of the community or contractors who come on to the farm.” Maronan Dairy and Valetta Dairy supply Synlait. Valetta has achieved gold-plus status in the dairy processor’s Lead with Pride programme and Maronan is working towards certification. The programme rewards excellence in four areas — environment, animal health and welfare, milk quality, and social responsibility. The Synlait programme recognises and financially rewards suppliers who achieve dairyfarming best practice, and certified farms receive a premium of six cents per kilogram. Other farms in the Landcorp complex supply A2 or grass-fed milk, which also attract premiums. The

overall goal is for all five farms to supply A2, says Brendon. He says Landcorp places a lot of emphasis on training – which the group sees as having business, social and environmental benefits. Training is also geared to the larger goals the business is trying to achieve. “Landcorp’s new Pamu brand is about giving people opportunities to excel and grow with good career opportunities.” He cites himself as a good example having come to Landcorp as a farm manager and working his way up. Entering the awards has exposed Landcorp to new ideas and he believes the organisation will enter again next year: “There are a lot of good people doing good things and we were competing against a strong field of farmers who want to be environmentally proactive. “It’s about all farmers working together to make a difference and we certainly saw some new ideas and gained knowledge as a result of entering. “Winning our award was acknowledgement of the hard work our staff put in and the pride they take in what they do.”

There are a lot of good people doing good things and we were competing against a strong field of farmers who want to be environmentally proactive.

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70 |

ON FARM» Ryan Goble

NZ Dairy

Ryan puts the squeeze on his systems Karen Phelps Ryan Goble is the third generation in his family to farm. He has just completed his second season on his grandparents’ dairy farm at Maxwell, near Wanganui, where he is sharemilking in partnership with his brothers, Hayden and Blair. Blair is a silent partner in the business, but Hayden has worked on the same farm. Ryan says his experience has been invaluable and has sped up Ryan’s role. The 185-hectare-effective/190ha-total unit milks a herd of 550 friesian cows through a 40-a-side herringbone shed with automatic cup removers. A major change taking place on the property is a shift to autumn calving. Around 60 autumn cows have been bought and calved. Spring cows will be dried off and, when they are calved, will not be mated until winter 2018. Ryan says the aim is to improve the match with feed demand and supply curves on the farm. “We generally have more reliable growth in winter than in summer," he says. "We already had all the infrastructure to make the change, so it was just a matter of changing mating over.” Although he expects to buy in the same amount of feed over winter as he has been doing over summer, the bottom line will benefit because of the winter-milk premium. Cows will also have betterquality grass for their entire lactation, and should be in better condition and have nicer weather for calving, which should reduce the number of fatalities and improve animal health. He is also working on tightening up all aspects of his system to minimise wastage. The farm employs three full-time and one part-time staff, and Ryan is seeking to improve systems to maximise their time. Weekly farm drives with a plate-meter will help make the best use of pasture, which will be particularly important with the shift in calving. Around one tonne of supplement per cow is bought in each year – a mix of soya hulls, tapioca, soya-bean meal and distillers' grain. On farm Ryan

grows 10ha of maize, 6ha of turnips, 6ha of fodder beet and 10ha of barley. The farm is supported by a run-off about a kilometre away; it grows silage and 10ha of maize, and winters cows. Over the last three seasons the farm has produced 255,000 kilograms, 265,000kg and close to 280,00kg of milksolids. Ryan grew up on his parents’ dairy farm near New Plymouth before heading to Lincoln University to complete a Bachelor of Commerce in agriculture. He farmed for his parents. Kevin and Diane, for two years before taking on his current role for grandparents Barry and Janet. where manages the farm for the sharemilking company in which he is also a shareholder. Janet and Barry pretty much let him get on with things, and Ryan admits he is lucky to have the opportunity. Not that he is sitting on his laurels. He plans on farm ownership in about 10 years. “It’s the way I’ve been brought up – to work hard and do things for yourself. I aim to reduce debt and improve my own farming skills, getting better and better at what I do.”

PHOTOS Top: Cows graze on the Maxwell dairy farm where Ryan Goble sharemilks in partnership with his two brothers. Above: Ryan Goble milks 550 cows on 185 hectares (effective). Below: The dairy shed and yard.

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Peter & Sarah Walters

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Couple rate Miraka model as a winning formula Karen Phelps Mangakino-based Peter and Sarah Walters have just completed their first season under the new Te Ara Miraka farming excellence programme, and say it has helped them gain a premium for the milk on their farm as well as enhancing their businessoperation targets. The aim of the programme is to improve efficiency and produce first-class raw milk leading to greater profitability for farmers and Miraka, with a lower environmental footprint. The key elements of the programme cover environmental sustainability, animal welfare, food safety, traceability, people management and milkquality assurance. Farms are independently audited by a third party accredited under JAS-ANZ to International Standards ISO/IEC Guide 65. Te Ara Miraka provides farmers with tools, resources and access to experts to achieve greater profitability, stronger communities and improve stewardship of the land. The Walters say they didn’t have to make many changes to qualify for the programme as it fitted with their operational goals. They have invested in soil-moisture measuring equipment, an effluent system warrant-of-fitness test, and have increased the amount of farm recycling they are doing (all plastic from the farm is now recycled). Peter says the number of farms in the area that have subscribed to the programme has created efficiencies for local recycling operators, and the recycling programme is working well. Of the 20-cent maximum premium per kilogram of milksolids the programme offers, the Walters expect to receive more than 19 cents. More importantly, the programme has confirmed that they are farming on the right track. The couple has just completed their second season as farm-owners. Both grew up on dairy farms and studied at Massey University completing

degrees in applied science in agriculture. The 214-hectare total/205ha effective unit they own milks a herd of 560 predominantly friesian cows through a 40-a-side herringbone shed with in-shed meal feeding system. The cows are milked in two herds split into young and older cows. The Walters say their initial focus has been on infrastructure, including building a calf shed and concreting an underpass. This has already produced huge benefits as previously the cows had to wade through mud up to a metre deep during wet weather. Concreting key parts of the underpass means it is now dry no matter the weather, less faecal matter is dropped, and cow-flow has sped up. A liquid sump and solids catcher with a submersible pump moves effluent to a stationary irrigator on the farm, which distributes it to paddocks. The Walters are already seeing a marked reduction in lameness and mastitis. Peter predicts lameness issues will practically be eliminated when they finish surfacing the tracks around the dairy shed with stock rock. The couple have also upgraded their primary milk-cooling system to meet the imminent new requirements. They have changed pasture-cropping policy with an eye to reducing nitrogen. To reduce reliance on bought-in feed, they have planted both summer and winter crops – chicory for summer and fodder beet for winter. They have eliminated turnips and kale because chicory and fodder beet produce less nitrogen, plus opportunities to grow more feed in a smaller area. “We are trying to increase the amount of feed we grow while minimising our nutrient footprint in terms of nitrogen,” says Peter. “We can virtually double our yields on the same land by growing fodder beet instead of kale; this ll give us more land for pasture.” The Walters have four children: Caitlin, 11, Nick, nine, Cameron, eight, and Matthew, six. The family sees the Te Ara Miraka goals – people, environment, cows, milk and prosperity – as a winning formula to ensure their farm is available for the next generation.

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72 |

ON FARM » Owen & Cathy Copinga

NZ Dairy

Genomics: making a good breed better Richard Loader Developments in genomics will have a significant impact on improving the holstein friesian breed around the world, says Southland farmer and Holstein Friesian New Zealand director Owen Copinga. Fresh and motivated from the HFNZ’s annual conference, he says presentations on genomics and its impact on sire selection and breeding are very exciting for the continued development of the breed. “Internationally, holstein is making incredibly fast progress in breeding for whatever trait we choose, simply through developments in the field of genomics. “The key thing for me is that the holstein breed is part of the largest cow breeding network in the world. Big gains are being made in breeding through genomics, with breeders having access to genetics around the world.” Owen and Cathy Copinga, who have been dairy farming for more than 30 years, moved from the Bay of Plenty to Southland 14 years ago in search of better-quality, pastoral land that was less challenging for their pedigree cows. They found their 350-effective-hectare property, inclusive of leased support blocks, in the small farming community of Isla Bank, halfway between Otautau and Winton, and have farmed there since. Of their 650 holstein friesians in the herd, 90 per cent are registered pedigrees going under the stud prefix of Rivendell, which the couple formed 30 years ago after being given a few pedigree animals by Owen’s father. A key breeding trait for them is the animals’ capacity to carry a lot of milk. Says Owen: “For

Internationally, holstein is making incredibly fast progress in breeding for whatever trait we choose, simply through developments in the field of genomics.

Importing American genetics has proved successful for holstein friesian breeders Owen and Cathy Copinga, seen here with Rivendell Sham Beatrice ET EX named South Island Champion last year and Reserve Champion in New Zealand. cows to achieve high levels of production, the number-one trait is good, high and wide udders to carry their milk. The holstein definitely has the ability to produce a lot of milk and consequently a lot of milksolids.” On average the Copinga cows produce 650 kilograms of milksolids a year. The farm’s annual

target is 400,000kgMS, which in terms of kilograms of milksolids to kilograms of liveweight is very good in terms of efficiency. Rivendell Stud has bull contracts with artificialbreeding companies, and one of its bulls is in this seasons CRV catalogue. Bull and heifer sales form a significant part

of Rivendell’s operation with about 250 bull calves sold privately each year to people seeking purebreds. Close on 100 F16 heifers are sold each year to local buyers and to the export market. Intrigued with the American genetics, Owen wanted to see how well they would perform in the New Zealand environment and with completely different bloodlines. “We imported some embryos from America, so we now have some pure American genetics in the herd, including Rivendell Beatrice, an outstanding show and production cow who was South Island champion last year and the Semex reserve champion in New Zealand.” With genomic technology and a global network of genetics to select from, Owen is ofdconfident that a very good breed can be made even better. “The number-one thing for breeders is that our generation interval has been shortened dramatically and we can make rapid improvements in the breed.”

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Of the 650 holstein friesians in the herd, 90 per cent are registered pedigrees.

NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Shaun Neal

| 73

Attention to detail, focus on numbers adds up for Shaun Karen Phelps

Taranaki’s Shaun Neal has taken out the region’s Dairy Manager of the Year award as well as the national livestock management award at the 2017 New Zealand Dairy Industry awards, in only his second year of farming.

Taranaki farmer Shaun Neal admits to being a perfectionist. It is a trait that has helped win him the Dairy Manager of the Year award for the Taranaki region as well as the national livestock management award at the 2017 New Zealand Dairy Industry awards. And remember, this is just Shaun’s second year of farming. “I’m very focused on numbers and ways to generate profitability from minimal inputs,” he says. “I have a strong pasture focus and attention to detail is important.” Shaun grew up on a farm in Opunake, he is contract-milking this season. He says he was always interested in a farming career and headed to Massey University to complete a Bachelor of Commerce (agriculture) degree before heading to a trainee-manager position, then manager the following season on the 330-cow farm owned by Simon and Gillian O’Connell, in Taranaki, Which is where he won the awards. Attention to detail was seen as crucial to in every aspect of his management of the unit – weekly pasture walks (plate metering, and later, when he was more familiar with the farm, also by eye), close monitoring of cows and their dietary requirements at different points of the season, and actively keeping an eye on the cows at mating and calving. The farm maintained a low empty rate (six per cent) under his management and the calving spread was condensed at nine weeks. The farm produced 1700 kilograms of milksolids per hectare on a system three. Shaun says he just does the basics, but does them well and records everything, which has led to success. For example, at mating he identified animals in heat by close observation, ensured feed levels were optimised and used tail paint regularly keeping accurate records. Info from pasture walks is uploaded to MINDA, a feed wedge generated and decisions made from this. His perfectionist and ambitious attitude probably also helped him win the title and awards as he admits he set this as a firm goal. He is looking forward to his next challenge – to successfully contract-milk the 320 cow farm at Opunake owned by his parents. “I’m pretty excited about the challenge. It will be a learning curve, employing staff and trying to exceed current production,” he says. Shaun will implement his detail-oriented approach on the farm, which totals 112 hectares (effective) and milks a herd of 320 predominantly kiwicross cows. The farm has a 40-bail rotary shed with Protrack, automatic cup removers and teat sprayer and in-shed feeding system. Shaun says he will once again focus on pasture, adding inputs only as needed under a system-two

operation. He plans to grow 4ha of fodder beet and 4-6ha of turnips on farm and estimates around 8-10 per cent of feed will be bought in, dependent on weather and pricing. He will mate the top percentage of the heifers at 15 months, nominating to daughter proven LIC bulls to fast track genetic gain. Only the top 80 per cent of the mixed cows will be mated to these bulls and the lower percentage will receive hereford straws, with their offspring destined for the beef market. Shaun’s production goals are 1200 kilograms of milksolids per hectare. He thinks he can achieve this with a firm focus on pasture and livestock management. He plans to monitor the summer dry and be proactive rather than reactive by drying off cows and culling sooner rather than later. “Paying a lot of attention to the cows is the main focus,” he says. They need to be well fed and happy. Nothing is possible without them, so it’s about acknowledging that and making sure they are genuinely cared for as well as we can.” His competition successes have allowed him to plan his goals – farm ownership – and the steps he needs to take to get there. At this stage he is planning on two to three seasons of contract milking before looking for a 50:50 position with a herd of 250-300 cows. He will look to double this number when finances allow as he sees this as the best pathway to farm ownership in the Taranaki area, where land prices are high. He grew up in Taranaki and says he would like to stay in the area to continue the family tradition and be a second-generation farmer.

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74 |

ON FARM » Chris & Rachel Numan

NZ Dairy

Soil fertility behind record Sue Russell Chris and Rachel Numan 50:50 sharemilk 700 cows at Pokuru, south-west of Te Awamutu. The move to the 193-hectare farm back in 2012 has been another step for the young couple’s farming business which began with Chris moving from farm assistant to contract milker at a young age. They say the 2016-17 season was their best yet in terms of production. The farm is best described as having a rolling contour a “We managed to achieve 1600 kilograms of milksolids per hectare,” says Chris, “Tthat is the best of any year on this farm. We fed out mainly maize silage and palm kernel with a little bit of dried distillers’ grain in the low-growth periods.” . The original target of 305,000kgMS was surpassed by 3000, and that was 15,000kg more than the average of the previous three seasons. A key factor in the production growth has been attending to soil fertility, says Chris. “We felt the farm was lacking ability to grow feed, so we concentrated on improving the quality of some of the pasture species, growing and harvesting more grass. We also planted about nine hectares of chicory and intend to do the same this season.” When the global dairying outlook improved in December, Chris they decided to keep milk production up and continue milking through the last part of the season to gain as much additional income as possible. The basic 50-bail rotary has no fancy bells and whistles. The cows are split into two herds, with the older herd the larger at 400. Chris and Rachel employ two herd managers and one farm assistant; Chris is very hands-on with day-to-day management and enjoys making improvements to the property for both their own and the owner’s benefit. “We made a decision at the start of last season to go from two to three employees and do away with casual employees to create flexibility in the system.” The aim for 2017-18 is to produce the same as last season. For the first time, the heifers were inseminated in September with the cows due to calve from July 11. The plan is also to up the amount of chicory grown Improving the the quality of some of the pasture species, with a focus on soil fertility has helped Te Awamutu sharemilkers Chris and Rachel Numan achieve record production figures this season. They are pictured with baby Jack on the Pokuru farm where they milk 700 cows on 193 hectares.

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NZ Dairy

ON FARM » Chris & Rachel Numan

| 75

production I think it makes us smarter in order to survive. and fed by 50 per cent on last season to allow a possible deduction in use of dried distillers’ grain. Asked to describe his attitude to the farm’s environment, Chris says he aims to have high standards and keep up to date with industry best practice. “We’ve worked hard to make improvements though there is always something more that can be done. Widening the races a bit would help reduce our lameness.” As for the future of the business, he says he doesn’t have a problem with any volatility in world milk prices. “I think it makes us smarter in order to survive. I enjoy working through the budgeting and cashflow forecasts.” The farm also provides regular farm

data as a ‘farm-watch’ contributor to Dairy New Zealand. Chris is enjoying life as a father with baby Jack born in May this year. “I am also working through an agri-business diploma through Primary ITO and Wintec, and enjoying the challenges this brings.” Strategically the couple have set clear goals to achieve in the medium term, including eventual farm ownership by 2025. As a qualified vet practising in the district, Rachel’s essential role on the farm is to look after animal-health issues. “More immediately, I aim to increase feed grown on the farm, removing weeds with a full farm spray every year.,” says Chris. “Along with this, our bottom-line will be improved by rearing more replacements than required giving us more options to remove lower-breeding-worth cows.” Boosting the six-week calving rate is another goal he says is highly achievable, as well as improving fencing with the aim to have extensive riparian planting along the farm’s water-ways.

Pasture renewal with a focus on different varieties, such as chicory, has helped sharemilker Chris Numan boost milk production figures this season. He hopes to increase the amount of chicory grown and fed by 50 per cent on last season.

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76 |

NZ Dairy

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| 79

FEATURE INDEX Âť Anthony Kiff .................................................................................................. P80

Robert Rosser ............................................................................................... P59

Anthony and Peter Giesbers .......................................................................... P12

Ross and Joanne Soffe ............................................................................. P30-31

Atihau Whanganui/Lisa Hicks ........................................................................ P68

Rowan McGilvray .......................................................................................... P58

Brent Looney and Natasja Boon ................................................................ P26-27

Russell and Tracy Bouma ................................................................................ P7

Bobby Calves Section ............................................................................... P39-41

Ryan Goble .................................................................................................... P70

Bridie Virbickas ............................................................................................... P9

Ryan Worsley ................................................................................................. P57

Brumby Virbickas .......................................................................................... P67

Scott and Sue Narbey ................................................................................... P24

Cambrilea Weedspraying Ltd .................................................................... P47-49

Shaun and Charlotte Neal ............................................................................. P73

Carl Wilmshurst ............................................................................................ P16

Shaun and Catherine Terry ....................................................................... P14-15

Chris and Rachel Numan .............................................................................. P74

Southern Humates ........................................................................................ P45

Christopher and Siobhan Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Malley ........................................................... P10-12

Sran and Crawford ........................................................................................... P3

Clarence and Elise Stolte .............................................................................. P66

Steve and Maria Poole .................................................................................. P52

Damien and Sandra Hancock ................................................................... P28-29

Takou Bay Landcorp ...................................................................................... P61

Daniel and Freya Lynch .................................................................................. P35

Taratahi Agriculture Centre ........................................................................... P51

Darrell and Jasmine Trumper ................................................................... P50-51

Thomas and Jemima Bebbington ................................................................... P17

Delaborin Dairies : Theland Purata Farm ................................................. P22-23

Tim Barclay ................................................................................................... P27

Dion and Jo Bishell ...................................................................................... P8-9

Trade Page Bay of Plenty .............................................................................. P78

Ernest and Catherine Blom ............................................................................ P52

Trade Page Northland ................................................................................... P76

Euan and Mikki McLeod ................................................................................ P20

Trade Page Taranaki ....................................................................................... P78

Everfresh Transport ....................................................................................... P44

Trade Page Waikato ...................................................................................... P77

Fabish and Jackson 2010 Ltd ................................................................... P42-43

Trevor and Angela Corbin .............................................................................. P55

Fraser and Amber Carpenter .................................................................... P62-63

WD Davenport & Co Ltd ............................................................................ P36-37

Graeme Collins ............................................................................................. P21 Greg and Ingrid McCracken Te Hana Dairy ................................................... P15 Greg Imerson ................................................................................................. P25 Jack Raharuhi ............................................................................................... P29 Jarrod and Nikki Greenwood ......................................................................... P28 John Austin .................................................................................................... P43 Kerry Higgins ................................................................................................. P26 Kevin and Alison Hull: Awakare Farm ........................................................... P63 Kevin Ferris .............................................................................................. P34-35 Lance and Wendy Main : Trinity Holdings ................................................ P32-33 Landcorp Maronan Valetta ............................................................................ P69 Landcorp Pastoral ......................................................................................... P53 Mark and Vicki Trolove .................................................................................. P64 Mark and Adelle Pacey ................................................................................. P31 Matt Gow ....................................................................................................... P19 McCartie and Gow ..................................................................................... P18-19 Michael and Raewyn Hills ............................................................................. P34 NZ Groundspread Fertilizers Association ...................................................... P37 Niall and Delwyn McKenzie ........................................................................... P13 Nigel Taylor and Haley Hoogendyk .................................................................. P6 Owen and Cathy Copinga ............................................................................... P72 Peter and Karen West ................................................................................... P60 Peter and Nicola Carver ............................................................................... P4-6 Peter and Sarah Walters ................................................................................ P71 Phillip van Heuven .......................................................................................... P2

80 |

ON FARM » Anthony Kiff

NZ Dairy

The Pineview Farm workers (from left): Dennis Phillips, Mac Carson, Redemption Pokowhenua, Waimoa Ka, Joe Dunn and manager Anthony Kiff, who was named 2017 Central Plateau Dairy Manager of the Year.

Upgrades good for all Kelly Deeks Shanghai Pengxin has made huge improvements to the dilapidated former Crafar Farm Pineview since buying it in 2012, and manager Anthony Kiff and his staff are now enjoying the benefits. One of the biggest advantages is that he can spend time on training and upskilling staff. “My shed was the poorest out of the 16 farms Shanghai Pengxin bought in the North Island, so I got the first, brand-new, 60-bail rotary shed in 2013. “The previous shed was a 65-a-side herringbone, where we could cup only about 60 cows at a time. With 1180 cows, we were spending 13 and a half hours every day milking. “ It didn’t matter if I chucked three or 10 people in the shed, we couldn’t physically get the cows through.” The farm accommodation was run down and had not been maintained, but by 2013 the workers’ homes were brought back to a good standard. In the paddocks, a second water trough was added. Anthony loves Pineview and has a real sense of ownership after taking charge of about 55 capital projects on the farm. “We’ve spent more than $260,000 on renovations to the six original houses, and I organised all of the contractors for that. “We’ve put in water bores, we’ve spent more money on capital fertiliser, about $300,000 on fencing and water supply since I’ve been here, and $1.5 million on the new shed and effluent system.” Before the Landcorp sharemilking contract finished at the end of last season, he was running Shanghai Pengxin and Landcorp budgets.

He had taken a really good look at himself, defining what he does well, what makes the farm tick, what drives the business, what attributes he had to offer. He then looked at everyone else on the farm, tried to use their strengths, and to encourage them to take steps to achieve their own goals.

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“I had a bit of a business-manager-type role, while also monitoring cows’ feed and organising staff training rosters etc.” Anthony has been a leader virtually ever since he joined the dairy industry 10 years ago. He had a position with local Federated Farmers president Alan Wills, who through valuable one-on-one time taught him how to manage a 520-cow herd and many other vital skills. “I played rugby, and that’s where I got my leadership skills from, as well as being able to speak up and be part of a team.” After four years in the industry, Anthony was second-in-command on a 2300-cow farm. It was either sink or swim, he says. His skills were recognised this year at the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards, when he was named 2017 Central Plateau Dairy Manager of the Year. He had finished second last year and knew he had to give it everything to win. He had taken a really good look at himself, defining what he does well, what makes the farm tick, what drives the business, and what attributes he had to offer.

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He then looked at everyone else on the farm, and tried to use their strengths to fill the various roles and to encourage staff to take steps to achieve their own goals. Under his management Pineview’s production has increased from 360,000 kilograms of milksolids to 495,000kg last season at total cost of around $4 per kilogram of milksolids.

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