Dairy Focus December

An Ashburton Guardian Advertising Supplement

dairy FOCUS Issue 31. December 21, 2010. $2.00

Rising through the dairying ranks P3

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Contents Page 3 Rising through the ranks

Page 4 Preventative hoof trimming

Page 5 Powerless over transformers Page 7 Take drought action now Page 8 Managing mastitis

Page 9 Sharing grain feed facts Page 10 Milk cooling - the facts Page 12 Bulk fuel feature

Page 15 Bovine viral diarrhoea

Page 16 Dairy dollars keep economy ticking

dairy FOCUS

An advertising supplement of the Ashburton Guardian Opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Ashburton Guardian Publication date: Next issue:

We welcome any correspondence to either:

Amanda Niblett, phone 307-7927 email: amanda.n@theguardian.co.nz

or

December 21, 2010 January 25, 2011

Lance Isbister, phone 307-7953 email: lance.i@theguardian.co.nz

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3

Rising through the ranks Lance Isbister Rural Reporter, Ashburton Guardian

Lyndon Grant and Lizzy Pattullo are true believers in working hard with the right people to achieve their goals in the dairy industry.

Although Lyndon and Lizzy didn’t initially come from a dairy farming background, their passion for the dairy industry grew as they realised what they could achieve with the help of excellent employers who encouraged the couple to learn and take on greater responsibilities.

This is the couple’s �irst year as lower order sharemilkers for Ross and Sue Duncan on their Mitcham farm and are looking forward to growing their business next year when they move onto the Duncans’ dairy conversion in June.

It’s been a tough �irst season sharemilking for Lyndon and Lizzy who have had to learn a lot about managing staff and their business while dealing with a wet cold winter, which didn’t help the feed situation, but they still managed to increase production on farm through their teamwork.

Lyndon and Lizzy both see the growth from the 500 cows they milk now, to the 600 cows they will be milking next year as a huge opportunity as they look to build up their capital to take the next step towards 50:50 sharemilking.

An important part of their pathway in dairy farming has been the experience and advice they have received from former employers, including Leo and Kathryn van den Beuken, Steve and Katrina Dellaca and their current employers Ross and Sue Duncan.

Even now Lyndon and Lizzy can still call the van den Beukens for advice which will point them in the right direction, and the Duncans are only too happy to open up their account books to Lyndon and Lizzy to show them how the whole operation is run.

“The willingness of those people to help us has been great, it will be a lot easier to understand our business when we move onto 50:50 sharemilking.”

Lyndon and Lizzy are keen to pass

on the knowledge and skills they have learned from the van den Beukens and Duncans to future employees to offer them the same opportunities as they have had.

As a result the couple keep their two employees informed about how the farm is managed so they are not kept in the dark when it comes to situations like tightening onfarm spending.

“It’s all about helping people and not holding back information from them.”

Lyndon and Lizzy feel fortunate to be dairy farming PHOTO LANCE ISBISTER 141210-LI-125 in Mid Canterbury Lyndon Grant and Lizzie Pattullo showed where teamwork got them after raising 177.3kg bobby calf where water is more “Big Boy” which earned them second place in the bucket reared section of the Mid Canterbury Rugby reliable and their Bobby Calf Competition held last month. income is more secure so are keen The couple has been weighing up year because they see it as an excellent to continue working towards farm the decision to enter the New Zealand opportunity to build their reputation in ownership in the area.

Dairy Industry Awards (NZDIA) this the dairy industry.

The couple have fostered an excellent relationship with their accountant and bank manager and have never been afraid to ask marginal questions.

“The only dumb question is the one which isn’t asked.”

Lyndon and Lizzy have made the most of industry training and support, attending Dairy NZ discussion groups and Agribusiness Courses, which give them the opportunity to compare their business with other dairy farmers.

“We do the best we can to make as much money we can for ourselves and our business partners Ross and Sue.” But it’s not all about the money, Lyndon and Lizzy enjoy the dairy farming lifestyle as well as the dairy community is brought together by social events like the Mid Canterbury Bobby Calf Competition.

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4

Preventative hoof trimming Fred Hoekstra Veehof Dairy Services

Last month I was talking about the importance of preventative hoof trimming. This month I would like to go through the steps of preventative hoof trimming.

The aim is to have the cow standing correctly on the ground. If the toe is too long the cow will lean back on her heel.

The claws also need to be �lat to give more stability, especially the inner claw, as once the hoof is trimmed correctly, the weight will be distributed evenly across both claws. Yet many inner claws are concaved and will “fall over”.

I often use the analogy of ladies who walk on high heels. Some of those heels are as thin as my little �inger. How come they can still walk in those shoes and not fall over? Because they have the stability in the toe, it is just the same with our cows.

The toe needs to be �lat for stability, the heel gives height. Therefore we want both claws to be the same height to distribute the weight of the cow over the two claws equally.

We start on the inner claw. This is the smallest of the two claws and the closest in shape and size to what we want to achieve. Once we have trimmed the inner claw we use it as an example for the outer claw to make it the same.

The length of the claw is crucial. It needs to be 7.5cm in length. A small cow can be slightly shorter but you would be best to stick with the 7.5cm.

Once you have cut the claw at the right length the thickness of the cut is the thickness of the sole on the toe part of that claw. The toe needs to be 7mm thick but the heel needs to be left as high as possible.

The more you take off the heel area on the inner claw the more you will have to take off the outer claw to match the inner claw later.

Once you have �inished the inner claw you can do the same on the outer claw - cut the claw to 7.5cm and make the toe 7mm thick. This time you need to trim the whole claw down to the same height as the inner claw.

Make sure the claws are �lat. If the claw is uneven the cow will feel like she is walking on a rocking horse.

Now the claws are even they will bear the weight evenly across both claws.

All we need to do now is scallop out the inside of the claw. And that is what preventative hoof trimming is about.

Every cow should be trimmed like that whether she is lame or not. For lame cows you need to go a bit further but only after those three steps have been completed.

Learning to trim like this really should be done under supervision of a tutor.

If you are keen to get better at trimming just give us a call on 0800 833463. We run hoof trimming courses regularly.

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The length difference between the inner and outer claws indicates a problem that needs to be rectified.

5

Powerless over transformers Ray Mayne Ray Mayne Hose and Fittings Limited

Well, it’s that time of year again. Do we look back on the year that is just about �inished or do we look ahead to what 2011 is going to do for us?

I don’t believe 2011 will bring the challenges that 2010 has – at least I certainly hope not.

From a work point of view, this irrigation season has been very busy.

We have come from a very wet winter straight into a very dry summer.

Luckily our groundwater levels have been very good. This is due to the really good recharge we had during winter.

Normally there is a gradual lead up to the busy period of irrigation as different areas get dry more quickly than others, however this year all areas seemed to get very dry at pretty much the same time, which meant it has been �lat out since the end of September!

The earthquake did not do too much damage to wells, pumps, irrigation mainlines and irrigators etc. Yes there was damage, but it could have been much much worse.

Our aquifers could quite easily have been severely affected – or even worse, destroyed completely. Think about that. Imagine if the aquifers suddenly disappeared. What would we all do? We all rely on water – one way or another.

After many years of planning, the BCI irrigation scheme is almost up and running. To see irrigation taking place from this piped scheme is very satisfying. Congratulations to all of those people who have been involved in this idea and have had the foresight and determination to make it happen.

Likewise with the Acton scheme which is also taking water from the Rakaia river. This scheme is now up and running – well done to all of those people involved.

Thanks must also go to the individual farmers who have had to dig deep into their own pockets to fund all of the expense these irrigation schemes cost. With returns not getting any better on many of the crops that are grown and costs only going one way, it takes commitment and faith in farming to progress in this way.

The exchange rate is also high – good when we are importing irrigation equipment and the like, but with an exchange rate of around US0.75, one thinks where it could be if it was at US0.60.

With the Fonterra pay out just being increased again, where would it be if the dollar was at US0.60?

In September we got a con�irmation for a Reinke Centre Pivot irrigator from a client who lives slightly north of Ashburton.

We completed all the necessary farm plans, the property was GPS’d, dimensions con�irmed and the order sent off to Reinke Manufacturing in Nebraska, USA.

In the meantime we were able to prepare the concrete pad for the pivot centre to sit on, install the necessary PVC irrigation pipe to the pivot centre and install the electrical cable from the pivot centre to the proposed power source which had been con�irmed and signed off with our local power authority.

In October the container arrived with all the necessary equipment to build the centre pivot irrigator.

This was completed by our spanning crew and the system was ready to run in good time by mid October.

As no power was available at this stage – the power authority had not installed a small transformer on an existing power pole, we decided to temporarily operate the centre pivot on one of our portable diesel generators – as a service to our client.

As this article is being written, our portable diesel generator is still operating the pivot – no transformer has been installed. I have spoken to the power authority and they have informed me that they hope to have the system operating by Christmas!

No new structures are required and the only thing that is required is a

small transformer.

As the site is on the farmer’s boundary, our local power authority MUST complete this task. No independent operators are allowed to complete this work! This is very frustrating - for us and for our client.

The problem is that this same problem keeps occurring each year. Each year we are told that things will get better for next year, but it never does.

As we �inish off 2010, my wish is that the power authority improves their performance and can supply transformers to their clients in the same way we are trying to improve our performance to our clients each year.

Season’s greetings to everyone, let us hope that 2011 will be a kind year to all of us!

Merry Christmas

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6

Diary Focus Farm Technologies Dairy Ashburton Guardian Advertising Feature

Whirlwind visit

Caption: MacDon and Ashburton Implement Services have been working together to supply MacDon machinery and parts to New Zealand farmers for the last 15 years. (from left) Ashburton Implement Services sales agents Graeme Moore and Hamish Wilson, MacDon export manager Bruce Nesbit and retiring export manager Ken Kotowich.

The Donald Love Contracting team were humbled when representatives of Canadian based harvesting equipment manufacturer MacDon recently paid them a visit.

Mac Don export manager Bruce Nesbit and retiring export Manager Ken Kotowich recently caught up with Ashburton Implement Services (AIS) and Donald Love Contracting to see how their windrowers dealt with the multitude of crops grown in Mid Canterbury.

MacDon have been pioneers in the development of self propelled windrower technology since the company (then known as Killbery) produced their first windrower in 1951.

Since then MacDon has been at the forefront of windrower technology with their range of windrowers.

Today MacDon is one of the top companies in Canada which produce farm machinery, employing 1300 staff who work to build and

distribute thousands of windrowers and headers a year, which they export to 70 countries.

MacDon’s export manager Bruce Nesbitt is proud to have AIS as their New Zealand Dealer for the last 15 years.

Having seen a range of different crops grown in a number of countries, Bruce was amazed by the number of different crops grown in Mid Canterbury alone and was eager to see how they performed in New Zealand conditions.

When it came to buying two new windrowers two seasons ago Donald Love Contracting was keen to get their hands on MacDon machinery because they saw it as the latest technology, very well built and were impressed with their range of options.

Donald Love said using the two MacDon M150Windrowers they are confident they are at the head of the field when it comes to contract work.

“The capacity of the machines in phenomenal and they have a huge crop clearance.”

Donald is also impressed with the 37/km/ hr top road speed of the windrower, which is important to his business when he could spend up to an hour a day on roads travelling from on paddock to another.

The fully computerised monitoring and header control system of the M150 enables Donald’s team real time feedback on the windrowers cutting performance.

Although the windrowers were a major capital investment, Donald was pleased with their versatility, especially header attachments which are interchangeable between the two windrowers.

The operator station featuring the deluxe multi adjustable air ride seat, air conditioner/ heater and tilt steering offers the operator superior comfort during harvests.

Donald said having Ashburton Implement Services (AIS) as the local agent for Mac Don was a big plus, because they ensured timely supply and service especially at this time of the year when the pressure is on to cut silage and specialist crops.

7

s Farm Technologies Ashburton Guardian Advertising Feature

TracMap development continues

Over the past twelve months, TracMap has expanded its product range with the release of two systems designed for New Zealand farmers and agricultural contractors, as well as expanded the features available on their back office mapping system. application and job history in the form of The first is the TM465, the next generation aerial overlays or PDF reports, which are of TracMap GPS guidance systems. The available via the Internet. Absentee owners system is unique in the world, and allows can ensure actions are being performed on farms to display information critical to their their farms. operations layered on the screen out on the The second new release is the TracMap 4 wheeler or tractor. This information may be Traveling Irrigator Monitoring system. Reliable their farm map, irrigation plan, break fence disposal of effluent is one of the key issues locations, hazards, etc. that farmers are facing at present.

The benefits to the farmer from the system Designed to reduce the risk of effluent or are numerous. water being over applied to one area as a • Accurate placement of fertiliser or spray result of irrigator (15% saving in product costs) malfunction, the system works by • Accurate calculation of areas and display of continually checking the speed the irrigator break fences is moving. If it moves too slowly, the pump is • Records kept of fertiliser or spray history shut down, and the operator alerted.

• Allocate tasks to staff, with knowledge they TracMap has experienced rapid growth will get it right (ie. Spread fertiliser in the since its market launch, just over three years blue paddocks only). ago. It recently won the position of 8th fastest • Increase effectiveness of k-line or sprinkler growing company in New Zealand in the irrigation systems (payback for most 2009 Deloitte Fast 50, and is a finalist in the operations in just over 1 month) Emerging Company category in the 2010 NZ • Knowledge transfer. One person can carry Hi-Tech awards. on where the last person left off.

The full TracMap product range is available The system can also be teamed up with through Ashburton Implement Services. the “Your Maps @ TracMap” reporting system. This stores and displays the

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Drought management strategy for dairy farmers “Don’t procrastinate, act now,” warns a FarmWise national dairy farm consultancy group.

With the drought of�icially announced in Northland and expected to be declared in other areas such as the Waikato, FarmWise Consultant, Ken Bartlett, said farmers need to implement a drought management strategy, now.

“The immediate goal for dairy farmers is to keep as many cows in milk as possible and reduce the feed demand on the farm he said.”

“To do this farmers need information about their herd so they can cull lower producing cows and put others on once a day milking (OAD).”

He said gaining individual cow information is critical to decision making and effective drought management.

“It’s very dry, and we don’t know when it’s going to rain, some weather predictions are forecasting a wet summer, others a long hot dry one, so farmers need a strategy to help them cope.

“The information farmers gain from herd testing is necessary for making informed decisions. Herd testing will identify low producing cows, cows that are better suited for OAD and identify those with high somatic cell counts (SCC).

“From that information farmers can decide which cows to feed supplements to and identify which lower producing animals and those not needed for next season to cull.

Ken Bartlett predicts a shortage of supplement feed if the rain continues to hold off and says this will result in the cost of feed increasing.

“Summer crops, like turnips, are in many areas failing to germinate due to lack of rain, compounding the problem of feed shortage on farm.

“Culling animals naturally reduces feed demand on the farm.

“We can’t do anything about the weather, but by herd testing farmers can ensure they are feeding the better producing animals and culling the poorer producers from the herd, it means important decisions are not based on guesswork, but knowledge.”

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Mastitis management Agriculture ITO’s new Mastitis Management programme is set to help dairy farmers reduce the rate of mastitis in their herd. The end result will be lower antibiotic use, improved milk production and improved farm pro�itability.

Mastitis is one of the most common and costly diseases of cows. The two workshop series has been developed to help farmers create a mastitis management plan for their own farm that is practical and successful at decreasing clinical mastitis and somatic cell counts (SCC).

Whangarei dairy farmer, Brent Farrell, took part in the Northland pilot of the course.

A dairy farmer for 23 years, Brent said the course contained very valuable information and he learned things he hadn’t previously known.

“It made us more aware of what needed doing and increased sta motivation to keep cell count down as the course really showed us the cost of mastitis on our farm,â€? he said.

Mr Farrell’s participation in the workshop has directly resulted in an increase in the quality of his milk.

“Our SCC has gone down by ďż˝ifty or sixty thousand.â€?

Teat spraying is just one aspect that’s important to get right in order to keep your somatic cell count down.

The workshops are made up of both theory training and practical sessions. At workshop one,

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participants learn the theory behind mastitis and visit a farm to learn how to recognise key mastitis risk factors and develop a mastitis management action plan.

They then assess the mastitis risk of their own herd and come back to workshop two to discuss and gain ideas to improve and �inalise their mastitis action plan for implementation on their own farm.

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“There is a need for a practical course on mastitis management because in the industry mastitis is getting worse,� he said.

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The Mastitis Management course is part of Agriculture ITO’s package of milk quality learning programmes that aim to increase farm pro�itability through improved milk quality and production.

It is aimed at those in a supervisory role who can in�luence how mastitis is dealt with on the farm, like managers, sharemilkers and owners.

Courses in Mastitis Management begin soon nationwide. For more information or to enrol, contact your local Agriculture ITO training advisor on 0800 691 111 or visit www. agricultureito.ac.nz.

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“The end result will be increased proďż˝it from less mastitis, as well as a reduction in antibiotic use, less culling of cows for mastitis and improved animal welfare.â€?

The programme was developed by Agriculture ITO in conjunction with Steve Crane�ield, mastitis consultant for PureMilk. A veterinarian with 20 years clinical practice in mastitis management, his experience means he knows only too well the true value of training in this area.

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Grain facts shared to lift profits

By Virginia Serra – DairyNZ Senior Consulting Of�icer (Canterbury)

In recent years the number of dairy farmers feeding grain (mainly wheat or barley) to cows in the shed has increased signi�icantly in Canterbury and North Otago.

One of the factors contributing to this trend has been a favourable price ratio between milk and grain.

Grain is a concentrated feed, 85- 90% dry matter with an energy content of 12-13 MJ ME/kg DM. Wastage can vary from less than 5%, when fed to cows using an in-shed feeding system and best practice grain management on farm, up to 15% if managed poorly.

Like other supplements, to �ind out whether you can make money from feeding grain the following points need to be considered.

• Do I have a genuine feed de�icit and how long is the feed de�icit likely to last? The feed de�icit can be assessed by the post grazing residual - grazing lower than 1500 kg DM/ha or seven clicks on the rising platemeter.

• What is the cost per unit of MJ ME down the cow’s throat (price of supplement, quality and wastage)?

• What is the capital required to feed the supplement; in the case of grain there is a capital outlay for an inshed feeding system.

As with any supplement fed in a pasture based system the response per kg of supplement offered is determined by: • How hungry the cows are

• The quality and utilisation of the supplement • Whether the “spared pasture” is captured for milk production

• Any negative associative effects of feeding the supplement • Any farm systems response (e.g. cows in better condition).

The likely response to supplement is well researched both in New Zealand and overseas. However, when it comes

to feeding grain there seems to be some confusion about realistic milksolids response, the effect on cows daily intake, substitution rate of pasture for supplement, digestion process, reproduction bene�its , change in milk composition and impact on animal health.

To provide dairy farmers with more information and clarity about feeding grain, experts from DairyNZ and the Foundation of Arable Research will present at a series of Harvesting Pro�it from Grain seminars.

These meetings will present peer reviewed research and an unbiased view of the issues around the use of grain on dairy farms. DairyNZ has sought input from industry experts on best practice ranging from sourcing grain, storage and feeding systems to incorporating grain into farm systems.

The events has given Canterbury dairy farmers who feed grain as a supplement the opportunity to sort fact from �iction and also for farmers considering the option, good quality

information to base their decisions on.

These seminars are not about promoting grain as a supplement but are about helping the increasing

number of farmers in Canterbury and North Otago who are already buying grain or considering adding grain to their farm system to be well informed on how to use grain pro�itably.

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10

Milk cooling - the basics Milk at approximately 35 degrees from the cow in the dairy is pumped through a heat exchanger (primary plate cooler) with cooling water from a storage tank passing through the second circuit of the same heat exchanger at a much lower temperature. This process cools the milk instantly to between 14 and 18 degrees and then enters the milk silo.

Conventional milk silo refrigeration systems are designed to lower the milk temperature to five degrees over a period of around three to five hours depending on milking times.

In general the quicker the milk is cooled to storage temperature the better, as bug growth in the milk is kept to a fraction at this temperature as compared to the normal milk entering temperature.

Due to desired tightening of dairy company pull down criteria and also to some degree ECan indicating there may be some restrictions on the volume of water utilised in dairy sheds in the future there is now a trend towards snap chilling the milk to much lower temperatures entering the milk silo.

Although under current dairy company policies there is no extra payment for superior milk quality the main benefit for the farmer is a significantly lower risk of a milk downgrade Slow to cool faults

‘Slow to cool’ situations are common over the hottest summer months and faults can be due to: • Lack of maintenance of refrigeration units • Incorrect siting or setting up of refrigeration equipment

• Insufficient refrigeration capacity • Clogging of refrigeration unit condensers due to excessively dusty environments • Plate cooler water temperature too high • Insufficient water quantity for plate cooler • Clogged plate cooler plates • High losses from un-insulated milk silos in hot weather Fonterra is currently testing ‘on farm’ monitoring equipment to send information on milk temperatures and volumes to the scheduling centres in real time and this is increasing the number of slow to cool faults being notified.

As always, a proactive approach to maintenance is generally more cost effective in the long run and saves a lot of unnecessary stress.

DairyCool operates a consultancy service to measure and advise on cooling faults Dual filling of milk silos

Where there are two milk silos on site it has been traditional to put approximately 50% of the morning and 50% of the afternoon milking into each milk silo thereby allowing all of the installed refrigeration capacity to be utilised.

Scheduling of dairy company milk tankers to collect the milk from the silos while the farm is still milking has led dairy companies to discourage dual filling of milk silos.

This has a major impact on the refrigeration design and may also have an impact on the dairy layout as far as the silo pads and refrigeration are concerned.

The only local supplier and service centre for Genuine Milka-Ware products Milka-Ware Ashburton also provides the following services:

s -ILKING MACHINE TESTING s 4URN +EY $AIRY 0ACKAGES s -ILKING -ACHINE INSTALLATION 5PGRADES s 3ERVICING -AINTENANCE OF !LL $AIRY EQUIPMENT

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96 South Street, Ashburton - Call Luke on 021 689 432 or 03 308 8335

www.herdhomes.co.nz

Murray Hollings DairyCool Ltd

Drought moves DairyNZ says extreme soil moisture de�icits across the North Island and top of the South require dairy farmers to make key decisions now.

Purchasing supplement in advance, to keep their core group of cows milking to the end of February should be a top priority.

DairyNZ regional team leader Chris Murphy said farmers who haven’t already culled low producers and other obvious candidates, should do so, and cull again in January when initial pregnancy diagnosis information is available. “In the current situation, supplements can provide a good economic return, so securing them ahead of time is vital,� Mr Murphy said. “The economic return will come from having cows in milk that can respond when it rains, providing you calculate how many days it will take to recover the cost of supplement.� “It might take 30 days of milking at 1kg MS/cow/day to recover the feed costs after it rains. However, this is still good economics compared to having no cows to milk when it rains.� “If you haven’t already done so, now is the time to secure and commit yourself to supplement feeding. If not, your only alternative may be to dry off,�

Mr Murphy said.

For farmers in really dry areas, a holding pattern until the end of January, in the absence of rain, could be to have a core group of cows being

milked once-a-day and provided with up to 5kg DM supplement per day to minimise weight loss.

These animals could respond really well to pasture growth when it rains and produce a lot of milk through to the end of the season.

He said if a cow’s milk production levels appear low, given the amount of feed offered, check the protein content of the diet. If the protein level is below 17% crude protein, seek advice on whether there are pro�itable options to improve the protein content in the diet.

Young stock should also receive high quality supplement each day, as it is a cheaper option than recovering liveweight later on. If young stock are being grazed off, regularly check their condition and discuss a feeding plan with your grazier to get these stock through the dry conditions.

The next step is to review your cash�low budget, based on the increased milk price, reduced production and extra supplement costs.

Managing through these conditions adds pressure to the farm team – watch for signs of stress on your farm (including yourself). “We all tend to unnecessarily stress ourselves – worrying about the dayto-day detail of getting it right is futile and it won’t make the pastures grow faster. Put the above recommendations in place, have a good holiday break and get off the farm,� said Mr Murphy.

James & Son for longevity and quality

11

James & Son (New Zealand) Pty Ltd was formed in 2003 as an extension to the family owned James & Son (Grain Merchants) Ltd - established in 1850. To this day James & Son continues to maintain close links with the food and beverage processing industries and livestock farmers PRODUCT QUALITY By continuous monitoring of the products and close relationships with the farmer clients, we advise our various suppliers regarding customer requirements. Our aim is to ensure farmer (and livestock) satisfaction. Ongoing investment and re�inement into product storage and handling at the source enables consistent quality. This is coupled with regular nutritional and chemical residue testing of all products TRANSPORT We strive to deliver quality feeds when and where the farmer requires. Our contractors are of the highest standards in terms of safety, reliability and hygiene OUR PRODUCTS; Locally grown quality BARLEY has been grown to feed quality standards and is available either as whole grain or crushed BARLEY SECONDS are a Co-Product of the Malting Industry. Consisting of grains which are too large or small for consistent malting production, they are screened twice to leave a clean, high quality grain

BREWERS GRAINS are a protein-rich feed suitable for feeding to all classes of livestock, in particular dairy cattle. The grains can be used fresh or ensiled and in both cases oer a palatable addition to the ration. In dairy herds Brewers Grains tend to stimulate appetite and can increase both milk protein and volume BREWERS YEAST is a highly digestible, protein rich concentrate useable by all classes of mature ruminants. It is a great source of many of the B Group vitamins and has a good phosphorus level

CANOLA MEAL is a high quality Protein source, ideally suited to those producers seeking top performance and production from their stock. A Co-Product of the Canola CARROT POMACE Oil extraction process, it is palatable and readily useable by all classes of livestock

CARROT POMACE is a vitamin and mineral rich co-product of the juicing industry.

The carrots are peeled and chopped before being double pressed to remove as much water (juice) as possible, resulting in a relatively dry carrot Co-Product

CONFECTIONARY is a range of high energy, sugar based lollies, sweets and chocolate.

They are an excellent source of readily available, fermentable energy COPRA MEAL & PELLETS are a Co-Product of coconut oil production. The Copra product is the �leshy inner lining of the coconut fruit. It is dried and processed through an expeller press, producing a palatable and nutritious product

HOMINY MEAL is a high energy, highly palatable Co-Product of the maize milling industry. It is a suitable feed for all classes of livestock, particularly high performing dairy and beef cattle with a requirement for energy dense feeds CALF PELLETS incorporate Malt Culms, a Barley malting Co-Prod

Increased milk production from lower cost inputs

James & Son can offer some of the most cost effective energy and protein feeds on the market.

Feeds available include: This combined with s 0OTATO FRIES experienced staff advice s #ARROT PRODUCTS will ensure you get the most s "EANS 0EAS out of all feeds on farm s 3WEET #ORN including full utilization of s "READ CRUMBS your pasture, resulting in s "REWERS GRAIN more milk in the vat with s #ONDENSED $ISTILLERS 3YRUP #$3 lower input costs. s$RIED $ISTILLERS 'RAIN $$' Due to our international buying power we can also offer a wide range of commodity products at competitive prices e.g. PKE, Soya, Tapioca, as well as local grain and of course our NZ famous Choc Calf Pellets.

#ALL *AMES 3ON NOW FOR YOUR ECONOMICAL SUPPLEMENT FEED OPTIONS *ASON "IRCHALL

.EED &EED 7E VE GOT WHAT YOU NEED -2 &%%$ Head Office PO Box 863, Hastings 4156, New Zealand Phone 06 872 6044 - fax 06 873 3665

12

Dairy Focus

Bulk Fuel Feature

Ashburton Guardian Advertising Feature

Dirty diesel hot topic on many farmers

Left and centre: Examples of old style 500 gal overhead steel tanks. Above: Image of early stages of diesel bug growth Dirty diesel has been the talk of many farmers lately due to failures in their vehicles, but more to the point it is the old dirty storage tanks being used that have caused most of the issues. Ask anyone in the diesel repair industry.

There has been a marked increase over the last 12 months of failures of injectors and fuel pumps in tractors and machinery due to the onset of common rail engines. This is not attributed to one brand of manufacturer but across the board where the tolerances are now so ďŹ ne that even a tiny amount of water in the system can do huge damage.

Ed Harrison from Sebco was speaking with a Service Manager from a tractor dealership where he was shown a common rail injector pump that had failed, the tractor was under a year old, had less than 1000 hrs on the clock and had stopped during a busy part of the season due to fuel contamination. The repair was just under $20,000, let alone the inconvenience of the tractor out of action!

What Ed found really concerning that to the visual eye you could see no real damage. “Many operators don’t realise the implications of fuel contamination, Grandads or Dads old NufďŹ eld, Fordson Major or MF 65

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used to run ďŹ ne with fuel from the old 500 gal overhead tank, the problem is that was 40 or 50 years agoâ€? says Ed. The tractors/sprayer/ combine/Ute/SUV that are all used on the farm today are expected to ďŹ ll from that same tank, most of these have hardly ever been cleaned out and are littered with unseen water contamination and rust on the inside.

Another issue that crops up is the diesel bug, the above ground steel tank with direct sunlight on it heats up and with condensation, rust particles and the correct temperature an environment occurs that is beneďŹ cial for this algae to grow. It multiplies considerably

and then blocks ďŹ lters and pumps causing excessive damage. It is much like grinding paste going through your fuel injection system.

The problem is quite easily avoided by updating fuel storage tanks to the Sebco Diesel Stations, as they are in an insulated environment, much like double glazing in your house, that virtually eliminates condensation and as they are not steel no rotting or rusting occurs. Ed says “I can only wonder when people spend many hundreds of thousands of dollars on new plant for the farm that they do not look at the overall beneďŹ t of spending a bit more by comparison for the longevity of their eetâ€?.

13

Dairy Focus

Bulk Fuel Feature

Ashburton Guardian Advertising Feature

Southfuels – the efficient and reliable option

The Southfuels business is focused on servicing the South Island rural, contractor, commercial and industry customers. It is our aim to provide the most efficient and reliable bulk fuel and lubricant delivery service in the South Island, and at a consistently competitive price.

Southfuels carry a full range of the highest quality fuels, oils and lubricants: • Low sulphur diesel • 91 octane unleaded petrol • Specialist oils and greases Our call centre is based in Hornby in Christchurch. Our friendly telephone staff can take your orders and help with any enquires between 8am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.

We have a team of four sales representatives. They are committed to you in all aspects of your fuel, lubricant and fuel storage requirements.

Lubricants Southfuels can supply a full range of quality oils and Lubricants delivered FREIGHT FREE to your door for orders exceeding 20L. Phone the call centre or your local sales representative to place your orders.

Fly Buys Southfuels is the only bulk fuel distributor to offer Fly Buys points.

Southfuels – proudly supporting Fuel for Schools!

Fuel for Schools is an innovative primarily rural focused sponsorship programme operated by Northfuels and Southfuels. The programme can help fund the ever increasing

costs of running Primary, Intermediate and Secondary Schools throughout New Zealand.

How it works, 2 Easy Steps...

1. New and Existing Northfuels and Southfuels customers can nominate a school of their choice 2. Once nominated the school receives sponsorship of 1 cent for every 2 litres of bulk fuel delivered Fuel for Schools is a very easy way of supporting your local school and the best part is it won’t actually cost you anything. This is our way of supporting our rural customers and giving something back to the fuel users and communities that support us.

“So, jump on board - we’re doing it for the kids” What is Fuel for Schools?

Fuel for Schools is an innovative primarily rural focused sponsorship programme that provides all Primary, Intermediate and Secondary Schools throughout New Zealand with an exciting new way to raise additional funds.

Who is operating Fuel for Schools?

The Fuel for Schools programme is operated

by Northfuels in the North Island and Southfuels in the South Island.

When does it start?

The Fuel for Schools sponsorship programme officially started on November 2nd 2009.

When does it end?

The Fuel for Schools programme does not have an end date. This provides an ongoing opportunity for New Zealand Schools to register for the programme, support and

promote it, and ultimately keep raising much needed funds.

Who can be involved in Fuel for Schools?

• All Primary, Intermediate and Secondary schools throughout New Zealand, but primarily focused around rural schools • All bulk fuel users How does Fuel for Schools actually work?

3 Easy Steps...

• Schools need to register on-line for Fuel for Schools Sponsorship • New & Existing Northfuels and Southfuels customers can nominate a school of their choice • Once nominated the school receives sponsorship of 1 cent for every 2 litres of bulk fuel delivered Why would we want to nominate a school?

• It is a very positive and easy way of supporting your local community and school • It will help ensure that kids in rural communities continue to have access to the best learning resources • The programme is funded out of our sponsorship budget so it does not affect the fuel price on the day How many schools can we nominate?

A customer of Northfuels or Southfuels may nominate one School only.

How much money can a school make through Fuel for Schools?

The school receives 1 cent per 2 litres of bulk fuel that is delivered by Northfuels or Southfuels to the bulk fuel user.

How does the school actually get paid?

We will issue a cheque on a quarterly basis to the school.

How do existing Northfuels or Southfuels customers nominate a school?

This is really easy; • Go online to www.southfuels.co.nz click onto Fuel for Schools link • Simply enter the appropriate school, electorate, & your account details, or: • Download a school nomination form and fax to 0800 nominate (0800 666 4628) What if we are not an existing Northfuels or Southfuels customer?

This is also really easy, and the farmer or bulk fuel user has several options available to them.

• They can sign up a direct account on-line.

• They can charge their bulk fuel purchases through either PGG Wrightson or RD1 Do fuel users receive any additional benefits from Northfuels or Southfuels?

Yes. Northfuels and Southfuels are the only bulk fuel distributors in New Zealand to be part of the Fly Buys programme. Fly Buys points are available on all bulk fuel and lubricant purchases.

What if we want to talk about fuel pricing?

For many bulk fuel users the biggest issue when purchasing fuel is reliability of service. However some users will want to know the price or receive a formal quote.

New or existing customers can simply contact our friendly and helpful call centre team or contact a local PGG Wrightson or RD1 store.

Fuel and Lubricant Specialists

• Locally based team for exceptional service • Collect Fly Buys Points on bulk fuel and lubricants • Advice on fuel storage and HSNO regulations

Rural - Industrial - Commercial

Phone 0800 999 989 www.southfuels.co.nz

14

Dairy Focus

Bulk Fuel Feature

Ashburton Guardian Advertising Feature

CRT fuel – the easiest way to arrange your bulk fuel supply

The easiest way to order your next delivery of bulk fuel is simply to ring 0800 66 66 26 and discover the CRT service difference for yourself. CRT Fuel supplies rural and commercial operations throughout New Zealand with bulk diesel and petrol, and provides solutions for many different types of fuel storage situations. CRT also supplies the Challenge network of Kiwi-As service stations throughout the country – appropriately enough for a business whose parent co-operative is 100% owned by New Zealand farmers.

As well as competitive pricing and service that sets the benchmark, CRT Fuel is able to offer fully HSNO compliant petrol and diesel storage tanks and knowledgeable, experienced technical field staff who can assist with your fuel requirements.

CRT Fuel was originally established 30 years ago to handle the distribution of bulk fuel to the South Island rural market. Since its inception, the business has gone from strength to strength.

“The fact we’re steadily increasing our customer base says a lot about the way the market is viewing us,” CRT Fuel general manager Mark McHardy says. “Once we’ve secured a new customer they stay with us, which shows the service provided by our drivers, territory managers and the rest of the customer services team is first class.”

CRT Fuel now has a bulk fuel national distribution network delivering to rural and commercial customers via its experienced tanker drivers who operate a fleet of more than 30 tankers from 11 ports.

CRT Fuel’s territory managers can supply all the information on services, compliance and storage or for more information you can go online at www.crt.co.nz Simply click on the CRT tanker on the home page. The handy online fuel ordering system gives customers the flexibility of ordering at any time of the night or day, and locating the right person to talk to is easy using the regionalised map.

If you’re not sure or you want to place an order over the phone, call the CRT Fuel customer services team on 0800 66 66 26.

Simple, straight forward service you can trust CRT Fuel takes the hassle out of your bulk fuel purchases You can enjoy the benefits of: > Competitive pricing on bulk diesel and petrol

> Supply of a quality range of oil and lubricants

> Fully HSNO compliant petrol and diesel storage tanks

> A full range of accessories including nozzles, hoses, flow meters and pumps > Knowledgeable and experienced technical staff

We’re not just fuel, we supply tanks, accessories and technical advice

> Experienced tanker drivers operating out of ports nationwide > Assist with petrol tax claims

15

Bovine viral diarrhoea Bovine Viral Diarrhoea or BVD is a widespread viral disease of cattle in New Zealand. It affects both beef and dairy cattle.

losing that pregnancy. The resulting infertility in those animals can be long lived, and they are ultimately culled for poor reproductive performance.

BVD has been endemic in New Zealand for many years but only recently are we better able to fully understand the behaviour of the virus within cattle populations. New viral detection techniques have enabled our diagnoses to become far more accurate and we can now �ind the virus in just about any organ or secretion including milk.

In New Zealand as much as 75% of all cattle will probably have antibodies to BVD suggesting they have been exposed to the virus after birth. But only about 1% of the cattle population is carrying the virus. The trick is to �ind this 1% and cull them.

The signi�icance of BVD is that it can result in infertility in cattle, and this in turn can lead to low breed replacement rates, high numbers of abortions and slow genetic gain. In dairy cattle practice, if calving rates are slow peak milk production will be impaired at great cost.

Unfortunately BVD is a complicated disease, can manifest in several ways, and the signs of disease in animals affected by BVD can be very similar to many other diseases.

Pregnant carrier cows can pass the virus to their unborn offspring and infect other animals in close contact that are naive to BVD. In this way persistent and transient infections are established.

Persistent infections in calves mean the animal can shed the virus for life and maintain the disease as long as it lives.

If pregnant cows become infected early in pregnancy they are at risk of

Ian Hodge, BVSc. MACVSc. Riverside Veterinary Services Ltd

The BVD virus cannot survive for very long in the environment without animal hosts. The literature suggests up to one week only. For this reason once infected animals leave a property that property should be clear of BVD and pose little or no risk to incoming stock after one week.

Dairy farmers can monitor the BVD status of their herds by bulk milk testing. This is cost effective and provides valuable information. In some situations, persistently infected cows carrying the BVD virus can be located in big herds, and the disease can be well controlled within one season.

In beef herds, diagnosis, control and eradication is possible and is done by blood testing, isolation and culling.

Eradication programmes are very successful.

On dairy farms the BVD virus can be very infectious and can circulate between animals on such things as gumboots and motorbikes. Dirty needles are often the cause of the

Strange things happen to cows with BVD!

spread of infection between animals.

Saliva is also a major cause of spread.

Bulls can become infected with the BVD virus, and infections can lead to reduced fertility which, if it occurs at mating time, can have a big negative impact.

The best approach to BVD is to know your enemy by doing some basic testing and monitoring. Your vet will

be happy to assist in planning a control programme.

Thankfully we now have a very good selection of BVD vaccines to choose from and vaccination, to achieve herd immunity, is a very sound way to protect vulnerable animals, including unborn foetuses.

Your vet should be the �irst point of contact for information about BVD, and will be happy to help you.

Innovation is the key to saving you money.

Innovation is the key to save you money.

Lower your running costs without huge outlay with a reliable company that uses reliable products.

Glycol and other snap chilling technologies On dairy farms the BVD virus can be very infectious and can circulate between Milk silo refrigeration and animals on such things as gumboots and motorbikes. insulation wraps Dairycool milk silo controllers Mahana Blue and heat exchanger recovery units Free no obligation on farm Get incredible value on all steel buildings, atappraisal Wide Span – takeSheds! advantage of the “out of the Stablesbox” & Heritagethinking Barns Garages and Workshops Farm, Storage & Machinery sheds Commercial Buildings, Covers & Arenas of the team at Dairycool and experience the unmatched after sales service.

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16

Dairy dollars keep economy ticking An independent report by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, released recently, shows money from milk �lows right through the economy, starting at the farm gate and moving out to rural and urban communities.

The report to Fonterra and DairyNZ shows:-

• Dairy provides 26% of New Zealand’s exports.

• A $1 rise in Fonterra’s payout makes every New Zealander nearly $300 better o. • Dairy farmers spent around 50c in every dollar they received on locally produced goods and services. • Every tonne of dairy exports helps reduce the

current account de�icit, bringing down interest rates and reducing mortgage payments for homeowners.

• Dairying employs 35,000 workers directly and a further 10,000 contractors.

Fonterra CEO Andrew Ferrier said the report, commissioned by Fonterra and DairyNZ, will enable New Zealanders to better understand that when dairy does well, New Zealand does well.

“Most people understand dairy is a key export industry. Now they can understand what it means for them as the report accurately quantiďż˝ies, for the ďż˝irst time, the tangible beneďż˝its to both rural and urban communities,â€? Mr Ferrier said.

An increase of $1 to Fonterra’s payout boost real incomes by about $270 for every person in New Zealand, showing everyone bene�its when the company does well.

said: “Our modelling shows that the dairy sector has delivered signiďż˝icant and ongoing beneďż˝its to the New Zealand economy.â€?

“Its inďż˝luence extends well beyond its direct impacts in dairying areas, with the sector closely intertwined with the rest of the economy. That includes the jobs it delivers, the income that these workers earn, its links to supply ďż˝irms, the eects of rural economic growth on urban centres and the tax revenue it provides to fund public services.

“The sector’s strength has been very evident as New Zealand recovers from the global ďż˝inancial crisis and domestic recession. Given anaemic domestic demand, the export side of the economy has been relied on to generate economic growth and dairy has made a signiďż˝icant contribution.â€?

“Of the $7.5 billion farmers received in 2009, $3.6 billion was spent on domestically produced goods, including fertiliser, feed, agricultural services and ďż˝inancial services.

DairyNZ Chief Executive, Dr Tim Mackle, said that last year dairying kept 35,000 people directly in work. “Our contribution to jobs is like having a city the size of Gisborne all working in the dairy industry. Urban centres also get a healthy share of indirect employment as they provide essential goods and services that are needed to produce dairy products.�

NZIER Deputy Chief Executive, John Ballingall,

“We’ve got a good track record of supporting regional growth, which this report shows, and we want to continue this trend. The challenge for our industry will be in how we achieve this growth in a sustainable way,� Dr Mackle said.

“There is no doubt that dairy has helped us out of the recession and the beneďż˝its extend well beyond the farm gate. Export growth from the dairy sector has helped narrow the current account deďż˝icit and that helps everyone through lower interest rates on mortgages and other borrowings.â€?

Dr Mackle said the NZIER report shows dairy accounts for 26 per cent of New Zealand’s total exports and it is looking to grow its contribution to the country.

One stop dairy shop

Underpasses • Tree Clearing • Dairy Lanes ASHBURTON CONTRACTING LTD

Phone 308-4039, South Street, Ashburton

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Grafton Irrigation (2005) Ltd 0HONE 63 Racecourse Road PO Box 2072 Washdyke Timaru 7941 manager@graftonirrigation.co.nz www.graftonirrigation.co.nz