Dairy News Australia Murray Region February 2024

FEBRUARY, 2024 ISSUE 160

MURRAY REGION

STICKING TO THE PLAN Geoff and Yvette Brown from Lockington have their path mapped out for their journey through the dairy industry. Page 6.

All things rural

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2 // MURRAY REGION

Chair’s message

It’s never too early for autumn planning

BY RACHAEL NAPIER

HI THERE, and welcome to 2024!

As usual the year has kicked off with another successful International Dairy Week.

Congratulations to everyone who made the effort to participate, and to those who supported people attending, it’s a massive undertaking — halter training, selecting entries, washing, feeding and organising.

My personal favourite is the kids’ fancy dress section — whoever organised the spiderman costume (you know who you are) well done!

Inspiring the next generation is so important, and the youth section is certainly a place where memories are made.

Given the incredible humidity and heat we’ve endured this summer, it seems ridiculous to be talking about autumn now, but I’m going to, because I’m big on preparation.

Now is exactly the time to talk with your team about your autumn sowing program to secure seed, calving and joining preparation jobs, and hooves. Don’t forget the hooves!

When you start sowing in autumn, you should start your hoof care program for the winter.

Talk to your consultant, ag store or vet about a plan now to get hooves in good condition and keep them that way into the winter.

The plan is to prevent lame cows, and not treat them. For starters, it’s cheaper. While you’re at it, have a critical look at your laneways.

With rivers and dams full, you’ve got to wonder what sort of issues we may be up against this autumn/winter.

We’ve just endured the wettest El Niño on record, so what does this mean for winter?

If you haven’t already done so, click on over to the Murray Dairy Facebook page and keep in the

Sarah Lloyd and Claudia Ross at International Dairy Week.

Rachael Napier is full of praise for the youth section of the event.

know about upcoming relevant workshops like Cups On Cups Off 2.0.

The humid and hot weather is unsurprisingly creating some

mastitis issues on-farm, and keeping yourself and staff informed and trained is key.

Rachael Napier is the Murray Dairy chair.

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MURRAY REGION // 3

Project yields varied results MURRAY DAIRY, in collaboration with key industry partners, recently unveiled the outcomes of its flagship investment in the Fodder for the Future project.

This comprehensive report, the culmination of three years of trials and demonstrations across northern Victoria and southern NSW, aims to provide technical insights and extension messages to empower farmers in optimising the quality and yield of alternative fodder species.

Fodder for the Future — a joint initiative involving Murray Dairy, Agriculture Victoria, Birchip Cropping Group, Irrigated Cropping Council, The University of Melbourne, Riverine Plains, and Southern Growers — was successfully funded by the Federal Government through the Murray-Darling Basin Economic Development Program.

This collaboration sought to address crucial aspects of fodder production and its impact on regional agriculture.

Murray Dairy’s research and innovation coordinator Yvette Williams said collaboration was critical to achieving results for farmers.

“We identified that the grain and fodder industry had extensive knowledge in agronomy that could be applied directly on dairy farms, and we also felt that improved understanding of milking herd diets and quality targets for fodder would help increase common understanding of what makes good fodder in the market,” Yvette said.

“By working with these partners we were able to share information to incorporate into the trial sites as well as reach a wide audience of both dairy and fodder producers.”

The report underscores the significant variations in yield and quality observed across all trial sites, emphasising the influence of site-specific seasonal conditions, sowing timing and crop types.

Managing crops to meet both yield and quality targets in a given year was a challenge, as many factors such as rainfall, dry conditions, flooding and weeds had different impacts at different times at different sites.

A third of the project’s cereal samples and a quarter of the vetch samples met the AFIA Grade A1 specifications, but only one-to-three per cent of the samples met the more stringent quality specifications of the Feed Central Excellent grade.

This highlights the variation in quality that is still achieved when growing fodder under relatively controlled trial plot conditions, the challenges that are amplified at commercial paddock scale, and the opportunity that exists to improve quality of fodder products on the market.

The Fodder for the Future summer forages trial site at Kerang.

“Growing high quality fodder on paper seems straightforward but the practical implementation can get really difficult in our region where we are dealing with extremely different seasonal conditions each year, across all the different sites,” Yvette said.

In addition to the specific technical messages generated by each trial site, the project identified several additional extension messages to support farmers adopt practices on-farm to improve the quality and yield of their fodder.

These messages focused on the practical application of technical outcomes.

The messages were centred around relationship building, diversification and income generation, the yield and quality trade-off, the importance of proactive weed control and the importance of break crops in dairy rotations.

The project found all of these factors were

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critical to managing risk in fodder systems, particularly in response to extreme climatic conditions.

Looking ahead, and building on the results of this project, Murray Dairy — in collaboration with Dairy Australia, Gardiner Foundation and the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries — will delve deeper into the role of break crops in fodder systems.

This new project, a part of the national C4 Milk Research Program, aims to evaluate consecutive crop effects in forage production systems.

By understanding the cumulative impact of intensive cropping rotations on the profitability and sustainability of dairy farms, the research will shed light on the role break crops play in these systems.

The Birchip Cropping Group and Irrigation Farmers Network will deliver this vital research

over the next three years on behalf of Murray Dairy.

Murray Dairy is looking forward to working with partners and farmers to continuously improve fodder production systems in the region.

Kerang fodder producer Jarrad Schlitz says locally focused research gives farmers the opportunity to see outcomes that are directly relevant to their businesses.

“We see the dairy fodder industry as an important aspect of our market, and to get information on how to improve quality and yield that is directly related to our soils and seasonal conditions is really exciting,” he said.

2 For more information on the project, contact Yvette Williams by email at yvettew@murraydairy.com.au or phone on (03) 4811 6008.

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DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA FEBRUARY 2024

4 // MURRAY REGION

Skin in more than one game

BY ANDY WILSON

THE JOYCE family of Tongala brought their top-quality Guernseys to International Dairy Week to win this year’s Grand Champion for the breed.

Kalaso Drone Koala won Best Udder in her class (Junior Two-Year in Milk) and Intermediate Champion before taking the trifecta in the final.

Team leader Katlyn Joyce managed the team’s nine cows brought from the family’s 61-hectare property and was pleased with the three wins at this year’s event.

Katlyn said the family’s goal was to emulate the success of Florando SD Koala 7, who won Grand Champion at IDW from 2012 to 2015.

“So that’s obviously always the aim — to win Grand Champion Guernsey,” she said.

Kian Seve leads Kalaso Drone Koala for the Joyce family from Tongala to win Intermediate Best Udder in her class and Grand Champion Guernsey.

“We have our own bulls so hopefully people will start to use them as AI. “We want to get more bulls into the AI and produce more champions later on.”

Vanessa Young travelled from Kiama in NSW

to work with the Joyces this year and said the family’s success was also shared among the Guernsey community thanks to Florando SD Koala 7.

“Koala was bred many years ago by the Joyces and was very successful,” she said.

“There were a number of successful Koalas with our competitors out in the ring today.

“We do have skin in everyone’s game.”

Mahalia Moore travelled from the NSW central coast to help the Joyce family.

“I am from Konilra on our own little farm, and I am normally at the Sydney Royal but decided to come down and help today,” Mahalia said.

Vanessa said attendance at IDW often made for 20-hour days but enjoyed the company of their expanded team of three families coming together each year.

“We have made our own show family, and it’s nice to see each other’s faces,” she said.

“It’s like a family. And just like family, once a year is enough.”

Vanessa said she wished the success of a dam was rewarded as much as sires were.

“If there was such thing as a dam equivalent to the Premier Sires award, Koala would (have been) a shoo-in.

“If there was a dam’s award, she would have it in the bag. But they only care about the sperm!”

Team fitter Kian Seve said preparation of cows began a long time before any event.

“It starts before you come here,” he said.

“It’s been pretty much a year-long preparation, working with them every day, especially this week spending most of the time with them washing and clipping and it takes a fair bit to get them ready for show week.

“We are always looking to get the next champion.”

ATTRACTING THE NEXT GENERATION TO DAIRY At this year’s International Dairy Week, Murray Dairy/Dairy Australia took on a bigger stand with the big drawcard using virtual reality technology to showcase dairy to the next generation (and some curious older folk as well).

Murray Dairy staff were able to give people a glimpse into what a day on a dairy farm looks like.

Options included growing rye-grass pastures, following rumination in a cow’s stomach to turn grass into milk, watching the milking process in a modern dairy facility, transporting the milk to a milk factory, and processing it into nutritious dairy product like cheese.

Murray Dairy had more than 300 people

attend the stand, ranging in age from five to 85, checking out the virtual technology and talking to the Murray Dairy team on things related to dairy.

International Dairy Week is a great place to catch up with passionate dairy people and that is why Murray Dairy/ Dairy Australia went bigger with the stall this year.

Being such a drawcard event in our region has meant we always make sure we have a presence, but this year we wanted to put extra effort in, so people who made the effort to come along had a reason to swing by the stand and say “hi”.

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MURRAY REGION // 5

COM BAT M I LK FE V ER

Girl power in the show ring

BY SOPHIE BALDWIN

INTERNATIONAL DAIRY Week 2024 will be memorable for many people for many different reasons.

For Hannah Dee, 21, and sisters Astre, 17, and Kendell Modra, 15, and sisters Emily Robins, 20, and Kiara Robins, 18, it will be remembered as time the girls got stuck in, had a go and ran their own show team for the first time.

The girls are no strangers to attending IDW with their respective families, however, this is the first time they have done it all from start to finish on their own.

And their results were certainly not too shabby, with heifers Avalon Mandate Drama, The Points Sidekick Pam and Sherbrooke Karma Olga all taking home class wins.

Of the three milkers, only two made it into the ring with Clydevale Doc Cleavage winning her class and going on to win Reserve Intermediate Champion, while Clydevale Doc Integrity placed fifth in a large class.

The girls all had a busy preparacowtion health with Hannah, Astre and Kendell all returning home from a holiday atural systems to elevate just 10 days before the show.

hout ffort

during transition

Proud of their IDW showing achievements are (back, from left) Emily Robins and Astre Modra, and (front) Kiara Robins, Hannah Dee and Kendell Modra.

“This is the first time we have done it all on our own, and while it has been hard, we have been pretty self-sufficient and taken in the experience,” Kendell said.

“We will be back again next year if

we have some good animals to bring along.”

Astre said breaking the animals in and getting them ready took a lot of time.

“It is exhausting but rewarding,

and it has been great to see our hard work pay off. We all worked really well together,” she said.

Hannah said the experience had taught her she could do more than she ever thought.

“I would normally watch Dad do a lot of the stuff that I have ended up doing this time and I have proven to myself that I can be calm in stressful situations,” she said.

The girls all agree the experience has been extremely rewarding for them all and allowed them to make connections with other breeders.

“At the end we are all still friends, and other than one of the cows not making it out into the ring, it has been awesome,” Hannah said.

Hannah’s mum Mandy Dee said she was extremely proud of the way the girls had conducted themselves throughout the whole experience.

“They all worked so well as a team and it is fantastic,” Mandy said.

“This experience has given them the confidence they can do anything they put their minds to and to see a young, all female team having a go is just really special.”

Astre and Kendell’s mum Clare said the girls had been preparing their show team for months.

“There is so much work that goes into this and we couldn’t be prouder of all the girls to pull this off as well as they have,” Clare said.

While the girls ran the show team all on their own, they did accept help from their parents setting and packing up.

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6 // MURRAY REGION

Browns stick to their plan

BY SOPHIE BALDWIN

GEOFF AND Yvette Brown from Royals

The Browns are currently milking 165 cows.

Geoff and Yvette Brown keep an eye on working dog Sia, who is keeping a close eye on the herd.

Geoff and Yvette Brown have their dairy journey carefully planned out.

Green Jerseys at Lockington have always followed a plan when it came to purchasing their 55 hectare dairy farm and that now includes exiting the industry.

They only ever planned to milk cows for 10 years and with that deadline fast approaching in 2026, they are starting to seriously think about the next stage of their life.

The couple firmly believes the dairy industry is full of opportunity and has been a wonderful one to be involved in.

It has certainly enabled them to grow their wealth, but at the same time they have had to be careful with their spending and have always followed a strict financial plan.

“My parents were always pretty careful and taught me from a young age to get rid of debt as soon as possible,” Geoff said.

Geoff originally comes from a dairying background in New Zealand but had been away from the industry for 15 years, while Yvette openly admits she had no idea what she was heading into when they first began looking at farms on-line.

With a strict budget, the couple knew they couldn’t afford to buy in Gippsland and with Geoff having previously farmed at Numurkah, he was aware of the Lockington area.

“When we bought this farm I was so naïve. I remember thinking this place had such a pretty driveway and yet we came to a falling down house and farm with 100 cows, no money and people thought we were just insane,” Yvette laughed.

“We deliberately chose to farm without any fancy bells and whistles and anything we have purchased has been workable but mostly second hand, I love a good farm clearing sale,” Geoff said.

Yvette said she can’t believe how excited she was when they were finally able to afford to buy some new calf feeders and hay rings.

“Everything looked so shiny and new,” she said.

The split calving herd is largely grazed on pasture with a third of the farm sown to permanent pasture and the rest is shaftal and rye.

The couple also lease an additional 36ha across a couple of different blocks which are used for young stock and silage.

Geoff does all the milking and general farm work, while Yvette helps in the dairy taking the cups off and hosing out. She also helps with the calf rearing and the financial side of the business.

“We have contractors come in to help with silage and cartage and anything we can’t do ourselves which includes a relief milker from time to time.” Yvette said.

The cows are milked in a functional 12-aside dairy.

The cows are milked in a functional 12-aside dairy.

Currently they are milking 165 (normally around 135), largely due to a good milk price and cheaper temporary water prices. They bought the farm without any water and are at the mercy of the temporary water market.

“You can grow good quality pasture here in northern Victoria and irrigation is the best thing ever — if you can afford it,” Geoff said.

He said the high temporary water prices in 2018-19 were a nightmare and impacted on productivity and the bottom line.

When it came to running his own herd Geoff said he was always going to milk Jerseys.

“I got my first Jersey when I was 15. I have always liked them because of their smaller stature and their components — our herd runs at a five per cent fat test all year round,” Geoff said.

Geoff has put a lot of emphasis into breeding high component cows, originally sourcing semen from New Zealand. He is now transitioning to Australian bulls.

The couple bought their farm just after the 2015 Murray Goulburn milk price drop and even though they missed out on that particular headache, they have certainly had their share of tough times including droughts, floods and high water prices.

They have been able to navigate their way through these tough times by farming conservatively and only buying things when and if they can afford it.

“The first three years every single cent was spent paying bills to feed the cows — we replaced our old feed out wagon with another second hand one that was in a better condition and we have only ever had second hand tractors,” Yvette said.

“When we first started I would have never thought we would end up paid $10kg milk solids and I do worry what will happen when the price does drop because like everything, our cost of production has gone up as well,” Geoff said.

He said this year was one of the best years for per cow production and he couldn’t believe how well the cows were milking.

“I have been able to feed the cows really well and it shows in the vat,” he said.

With their self-imposed deadline fast approaching, Yvette said she had really enjoyed her time as a dairy farmer.

“Dairying has certainly taught me resilience that’s for sure. I come from a teaching background and this is certainly a lot different,” she said.

“There have been days when I thought what am I doing, especially when its 40 degrees and I still have to herd test, but ultimately there are so many good things,” she said.

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA FEBRUARY 2024

MURRAY REGION // 7

Learning about the American dairy industry.

Kaleb Quinn discussing cropping options at Holterman’s farm.

Discussing feedbase at Hidden Valley.

Young farmers tour the US

BY SOPHIE BALDWIN

YOUNG FARMERS from across the region were given the opportunity of a lifetime to participate in an overseas trip as part of the Young Dairy Network development program — United States study tour.

The trip was sponsored by Murray Dairy and the Gardiner Foundation.

Under the guidance of tour leader and Murray Dairy YDN coordinator Bec Wyper and Murray Dairy staff Ross Read and Natalie Schlitz, the team of 20 young farmers spent 14 days visiting California, Wisconsin and Indiana, checking out dairy systems and developing networks.

The trip was an initiative of the YDN steering committee and was fully supported by the Murray Dairy Board as part of a broader program which focused on succession planning and career progression.

“Succession planning is a key focus of this program and is an issue for many farming families — many don’t do it well and we are conscious of that and trying to encourage the next generation to break that cycle,” Bec said.

Participants attended succession planning workshops facilitated by Cam Smith based on a modified version of the ‘Our Farm Our Plan’ program.

“We really wanted to encourage these young farmers to look to their futures and see what was involved and have some of those conversations with their parents, and if they aren’t on the same page, work out how they can get there.”

Bec said it was interesting to see some of the ways this issue was tackled in the US. Some businesses had an LLC incorporated structure that involved the whole family as a means for succession.

Family members each had a share which they could invest in the business or sell. There was no sweat equity and everyone was paid what they were worth avoiding confusion.

“This was a key learning for many of the participants,” Bec said.

Farming systems were extremely intensified compared to Australia, and the group was surprised by the lack of farm technology, such as draft gates and collars because of their access to skilled and affordable labour force Some farm businesses had generations of the same family fulfilling their labour roles.

The participants in the Young Dairy Network study tour to the US.

“From what we saw I think we do a better job of controlling fodder quality here in Australia.

When making silage their first couple of cuts are focused on quality and the last on quantity to get bulk,” Bec said.

The farmers we spoke to said there wasn’t a lot of room to expand production wise because farmers couldn’t go over their milk quota and many were only on three-month contracts with their processors which created a degree of uncertainty.

One farmer owned the cows, the dairy and the barn and where the concrete ended so did his farm — they either then leased land or bought in fodder.

“He was surrounded by cropping families and he had very strong relationships with those

families buying their fodder,” Bec said.

Bec said it was quite common to see many operations only owned the cows and the milking infrastructure.

“Individual shareholders bought land and leased it back to the company to grow the business,” she said.

“The trip was such a great opportunity to look at a different way of doing things and I think it had a real impact on the farmers who participated.”

Returning back from overseas, the group completed a couple more workshops and were presented with a certificate at Dairy Australia’s AGM recently held in Moama.

To be eligible for the trip, participants had to be aged between 21-40, be involved in the

dairy industry in the Murray Dairy region and commit to a 12-month succession program.

They were shortlisted and interviewed before selection.

Bec is hoping the program will continue in the future with a similar itinerary that could be expanded into other places like Europe.

“A lot of work went into organising this program and we have built some strong relationships and a real legacy, so I hope this can continue in the future,” she said.

The trip was also supported by gold sponsor Pioneer seeds, silver Noumi Bega, Riverina Fresh, Provico and bronze Ky Valley, ST Genetics, Rochester Vet, Phibro, Reid Stockfeeds, Rex James Stockfeed, WB Hunter, Eagle Direct and Rubicon.

DAIRY NEWS AUSTRALIA FEBRUARY 2024

8 // MURRAY REGION

Jersey is cream of the crop

BY ANDY WILSON

CHERRYLOCK CATTLE Co in

Tallygaroopna celebrated winning Grand Champion Jersey at International Dairy Week with Jamber Colton Veronica.

But the celebrations didn’t end there — she went on to be crowned Interbreed Reserve Champion Cow. And she also had the best Jersey udder.

The cow, jointly owned with R. and A. Wilson of Jamberoo, NSW, had

been in preparation at Tallygaroopna since early December.

Cherrylock manager Brad Gavenlock said he and wife Jessica ran their own cattle but their core business was managing for other owners.

Judge Nathan Thomas said the field of Jerseys were “exceptional” with “tremendous” dairy strength.

“Nothing today was short of that and I commend them all for bringing them out and bringing their calves,” Nathan said.

Brad Gavenlock leads Jamber Colton Veronica from the ring after a long day of the cow rising through the wins from its class to Grand Champion Jersey.

“(The winner) is the epitome of dairy strength, with a true amount of breed character here. She’s a beautifully balanced dairy cow, with a high and wide udder and good teat placement.

“It’s the kind of cow that if she was in North America, I’d be trying to buy her.”

The Reserve Champion owned

by Ben Pedretti, also from Tallygaroopna, Cherrylock Dreaming Of Olives, drew high praise from Nathan.

“The reserve will have her day.”

Brad said the importance of showing cows was critical for any dairy business.

“I think this side of it is probably more relevant to the industry than people would understand,” he said.

“A lot of my crew are younger ones and they are on farms and this is their release, but at least they’re still involved in the industry.

“It keeps them in the industry and I would not be in this industry if I had not started to show as a kid.”

Brad Gavenlock holds the 2024 Grand Champion Jersey, Jamber Colton Veronica, while his family (left) celebrate with judge Nathan Thomas and co-owners the Wilson family from NSW.

Fodder for the Future Hay yield and quality results out now!

Murray Dairy’s major feedbase investment has been working with the cropping and fodder industry to understand how to improve yield and quality of winter cereals, summer forages and legumes for dairy consumption across the Murray region.

Our Final Report details yield and quality results measured across different sites and locations as well as key lessons about how to improve their performance.

To read the report, visit dairyaustralia.com.au/murraydairy.

© Dairy Australia Limited 2024. All rights reserved.

Jamber Cotton Veronica also won Champion Best Udder for a Jersey.