Dairy direct june 2013 (low res)

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Country News PUBLICATION

Issue 6, June 2013

A healthy dairy environment » page 28

Raising healthy calves feature » page 10 Dookie plans robotic dairy » page 17 Murray dairy farmers planning to expand » page 5

Editor Geoff Adams editor@countrynews.com.au Writers Cathy Walker Laura Griffin Sophie Bruns

Cover: Garry Broadwood from Yalca Story page 28

Photographers Julie Mercer Bianca Mibus Jayme Lowndes Graphic designers Teresa Lagozzino Brendan Cain Riverine Herald production team Sales manager Jamie Gilbert jamie.gilbert@countrynews.com.au Published by Country News PO Box 204, Shepparton, Victoria 3632 (03) 5831 2312 www.countrynews.com.au

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JUNE 2013

I wanted to go overseas this year but it seems I’ve dropped the ball and nothing much fell into place.

I had the idea and picked a few destinations, but my planning fell down. While I thought I was too busy to plan ahead, I forgot that without some sort of plan, nothing was going to happen.

While the words, “Strategic planning” send some of us to sleep, the reality is that unless we engage in some forward thinking, the holiday doesn’t arrive, the paddocks don’t get lasered and the calf shed doesn’t get built.

Murray Dairy has been working on a long-term plan during the past six months which should be publicly available this winter.

The draft, which I have seen and many dairy farmers have been involved with, has a major focus on driving efficiency and productivity on-farm, which is to be applauded.

Over the next few years the challenge will be for the development body to turn the vision into reality and to ensure the plan doesn’t meet the same fate as my holiday!

Geoff Adams Country News and Dairy Direct editor

Welcome This issue of Dairy Direct comes to you as the Murray Dairy board’s strategic planning process enters its final stages. Last year we sought input from farmers through the Regional Priority Setting process, and this year we met with key industry partners to make sure we understand their strategic priorities. We then locked ourselves away as a board over two days and developed our draft Strategic Plan.

We’ve spent the past month seeking feedback and comment directly from dairy farmers to test whether we have got it right. The next step is to update the draft and take it to the June meeting of the Murray Dairy Board. It will then go to the next meeting of the Industry Steering Group for final consideration.

The response and level of interest in the draft strategic plan has been really strong. Sometimes I find the number of different planning processes can become a bit much. But the importance of a well considered plan is clear when it comes to getting better outcomes.

As I have indicated before, the board has been looking at the direction of Murray Dairy and changing what we do at an operational level. This has taken some time to put in place and we are now seeing a conclusion to this process.

What has worked in the past is not necessarily what is needed to position us for success into the future. The organisational change that is under way has involved looking into the future and repositioning ourselves to best achieve the outcomes we need to deliver.

One of our main activities in the past few years has been the High Flow Project.

This is now known as Improving Border Check Irrigation Performance and it shows what can be achieved with a strong plan behind it.

Reflecting back some three years

there was a clear need for a research project which examined irrigation efficiencies. At that time, some initial research was showing savings of up to 30 per cent in water use as a result of higher flow irrigation.

Murray Dairy took the lead, secured funding and put resources in place to evaluate potential for on-farm savings.

In partnership with Goulburn-Murray Water and Department of Environment and Primary Industries, the research was conducted over three irrigation seasons across seven farms – all with a range of different soil and crop types.

The research indicates that significant savings are secured up to a certain point, but beyond that the savings are negligible. In broad terms, current best practice is as good as it gets for water efficiency. Although we also know that water efficiency is only one of the aspects that prompt development to occur.

The project is now drawing to its conclusion, with field days and farm walks to promote the findings. A final report will be available later this year.

Tools and resources will also be developed to help dairy farmers improve irrigation performance. To get detailed information visit: www.murraydairy.com.au/highflow-2 We are looking forward to finalising the Murray Dairy Strategic Plan and positioning the organisation to help support improved efficiencies for the region’s dairy farmers.

I also take this opportunity to welcome Lisa Birrell to our team. Lisa comes to us with strong dairy industry experience and will be an asset for our organisation.

contents Doing Dairy with Sophie Bruns Dairy news

4 5–6

Animal health

8

Calving feature Calf comfort important for good growth Colostrum is vital for healthy calves Feed right for best results

10 12 14

Tackling calf challenges head-on

16

Work starts soon on new Dookie dairy

17

Calf rearing made simple

19

Toolamba farm in focus

21

Stockmanship key to low cell count

24

Travellers in search of gold

26

Trees not just for good looks

28

Jersey sale attracts buyers

30

Bluechip sale a resounding success

32

Local output defies national trend

34

Dairy farm incomes dive

36

Giving farmers the recognition they deserve 37 Connecting farmers with services

39

New face brings experience

39

Murray Dairy moves forward

40

Murray Dairy lays out its priorities

40

Change needed for industry to remain competitive 42 Calendar of events

43

Malcolm Holm chairman, Murray Dairy

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Doing Dairy

Sophie Bruns is a dairy farmer from Gunbower with a husband, two daughters and a mortgage.

with SOPHIE BRUNS

Not looking forward to winter mornings As we head into the darkness and chill of winter, getting up in the mornings – well, for me anyway – becomes increasingly difficult.

Lucky for us we have one alert rooster, who – might I add – is living on borrowed time, crowing outside our bedroom window. He can be counted on to beat the alarm every morning. The joys of life on the land with livestock.

The dry autumn has made for a pretty good calf rearing season for me.

Last spring we had a nasty bug that claimed a few lives. This year all my calves were drenched with Halocour for seven days and anything that looked remotely like getting sick was given a long acting Alamycin. It seemed to work and I only lost one heifer calf. Yippee.

We did have one that had a twisted bowel but a ride in the front seat of the vet’s car and into surgery soon fixed that.

It was quite funny to see the calf perched up in the front seat, waving as it drove out the gate. I did inquire about putting the seat belt on, but the vet ran the gauntlet and wasn’t fined for having an unrestrained passenger (the calf made an outstanding recovery too, by the way).

Autumn pasture growth has been slow but we are just bringing another 20 ha of pasture into the rotation which should help.

We are getting ready to dry off some of our spring calvers. It seems with a split calving herd, no sooner do you get everyone on, than it’s time to turn around and do it all again.

I won’t be sorry to dry off one of our cows in particular who has taken to kicking the cups off as soon as you put them on her. She has tested everyone’s patience – lucky for her she is in calf or her life may have come to a premature end at the abattoir.

How did we get to June already? The only positive about the year moving so quickly is that this season will soon be behind us, and we can focus on the next one with some sort of hope that it won’t be a repeat of 2012-13.

At least the Aussie dollar has started to fall, milk prices are meant to increase and if we can just get some rain and a good spring who knows what could happen.

– Sophie Bruns

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dairy news

Murray Dairy farmers look to expand Farmers in the Murray Dairy region are the ones most likely to be planning increases in herd size during the next 12 months, according to a national annual survey conducted by Dairy Australia. over volumes and full allocations to maintain and boost pasture production amid dry conditions.

“Good irrigation allocations in northern Victoria allowed farmers to maximise pasture production. While slowing, production growth in this region alone remains positive,” he said.

Season-to-date regional milk production data shows an increase of 5.1 per cent as at the end of March 2013.

Mr Repacholi noted that a total 52 per cent of survey respondents classed their operations as ‘expanding’ or ‘steady where I want to be’.

The survey was released as part of Dairy Australia’s annual Situation and Outlook report.

Dairy Australia’s managing director Ian

“

Good irrigation allocations in northern Victoria allowed farmers to maximise pasture production.

“

The 2013 National Dairy Farmer Survey (NDFS) found that almost half the respondents from the Murray Dairy region were planning to increase the number of cows they milked.

Herd-size projections for 2014 suggest Murray Dairy’s average herd size will increase to 297 – a rise from the 261 recorded in 2010. And the region had the highest number of farmers (21 per cent) rebuilding or taking over a new farm.

Despite this, only 48 per cent of Murray Dairy farmers were positive compared to 77 per cent in 2012, part of a national downward trend in industry positivity across all dairy regions.

Dairy Australia senior analyst Norm Repacholi said: “Water trading volumes in northern Victoria were up 130 per cent on last year for the March quarter as farmers utilised carry-

Norm Repacholi

Halliday said: “A total of 1000 farmers were surveyed across Australia in February this year for the annual NDFS. The survey examined farmer attitudes and intentions. This information is invaluable for forward planning by the whole industry.”

For more detail on the findings of the national survey, go to pages 34, 35 and 36.

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dairy news

Policies must support industry Australian Dairy Farmers wants the Federal Government to introduce policies in the areas of markets, people and sustainability to help the dairy industry grow and prosper.

Australian Dairy Farmers president Noel Campbell said the representative body’s policy priorities for the 2013 Federal Election would help Australia to become a world leader in innovation, sustainability and food production.

The organisation wants Federal Government policy to maximise the potential for secure market access, ensure a competitive

regulatory framework and maximise value chain returns along the whole supply chain.

It is calling on the Federal Government to establish a mandatory Code of Conduct covering the whole supply chain to balance the market power of Woolworths and Coles and appoint an ombudsman “with teeth” to ensure compliance. It also wants the bargaining position of dairy farmers strengthened.

Australian Dairy Farmers wants action on Free Trade Agreements with China, Japan and South Korea.

Genomic research awarded The Dairy Futures Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) has been recognised for innovative work that has the potential to deliver more than $100 million in value to the Australian dairy industry during the next 12 years.

The Awards for Excellence in Innovation are conducted annually by the Cooperative Research Centres Association with the aim of recognising outstanding examples of the transfer of CRC research results, knowledge and technologies to end-users.

Dairy Futures CRC received its award for a research and industry collaboration that has transformed dairy cattle breeding in Australia by making genomic technology routinely and reliably available to dairy farmers. As a result of this work, dairy farmers can now use cutting-edge genetics to improve the value of their herds rapidly through much earlier and more reliable breeding selection decisions than have ever been possible before.

Dairy Futures CRC’s work was one of the largest cattle genotyping projects undertaken anywhere in the world, bringing together thousands of dairy farmers as well as breed societies, industry service businesses, government, industry investors and research providers.

Dairy farmers make bull selection decisions based on published Australian Breeding 6

JUNE 2013

Values (ABVs). Dairy Futures CRC’s work culminated in the incorporation of genomic information in the published ABVs for the Holstein and Jersey breeds in April 2012 and August 2012 respectively — the key dairy breeds in Australia. As a result, genomic information can now be used in assessment of more than 90 per cent of dairy sires in Australia.

More than one million individual dairy cow records were scrutinised using advanced computer technology in order to select the 14 000 cows from which DNA would be extracted from tail hair samples contributed by dairy farmers who took part in the projects.

Dairy Futures CRC’s chief executive officer Dr David Nation said the award recognised a compelling story about innovation delivering value for one of Australia’s major industries. ‘‘The value of this work is giving dairy farmers more powerful tools to speed up genetic gains in their herds, making their herds more valuable, more quickly,’’ he said. ‘‘Farmers who want to select breeding sires for important traits like fertility and longevity can now do so with much more confidence.’’

In the focus area of people and workforce, Australian Dairy Farmers wants immigration requirements for dairy workers to be easier to understand and navigate. It also wants the threehour minimum engagement requirement in the Pastoral Award removed for milking.

The priorities document also includes policies on developing industry education and training.

Mr Campbell is proud of the dairy industry’s contribution to sustainability.

“Our industry is constantly investing, adapting and

innovating for a sustainable future. We are proud of our industry and confident in its future,” he said.

Australian Dairy Farmers want spolicies for improved natural resource management in productive farming systems, while ensuring the industry maintains the right to access key natural resources that are integral to a successful industry. For example, it wants an explicit 1500 Gl cap introduced on buybacks in the water recovery strategy for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

High flow best for lighter soils Water savings may not be as high as some irrigators have imagined when using high flow irrigation, but the practice has its benefits.

New research conducted by the Department of Environment and Primary Industries has found savings are possible on lighter soils but not much can be achieved on heavier soils.

The same research has also uncovered some side benefits to fast flow, in savings in labour and infrastructure.

It has also emphasised the potential for savings (or big losses) in timing when the water is turned off on the big bays.

DEPI irrigation specialist Rabi Maskey told those at a recent field day that improving irrigation performance may not be the only goal for farmers. ‘‘They may go for a high flow rate to save labour and time, and save infrastructure. You may be able to achieve those objectives as well.

On a medium to heavy soil type, moving to a higher flow rate beyond 10 Ml/day would not have water-savings benefits. ‘‘Going from, say, 3 Ml/day to 10 Ml/day, you would be able

to save some water.’’

Mr Maskey said most of the water was taken into the soil within about 20 minutes and after that the infiltration rate was flat.

He said managing the water run-off was more important on heavier soils than the flow rate.

“You need to look at how to get rid of water at the end of the bay.’’

He said the margin of error in cutting off flow became critical when there was a big flow going down the bay. ‘‘If you are aiming at water savings only, and you can push 30 Ml/day through one outlet, you might be better to think about putting that rate down a few bays.

“In a light type of soil the research is saying if you go up to 20 Ml/day you might be able to save some water.

Beyond that you won’t be able to save water, even in a lighter soil.’’

Irrigators could look at different options to save water, Mr Maskey said. ‘‘Switching to a different, deeper-rooted crop like lucerne, halving bay lengths or investing in spray irrigation may be a better option in looking for water savings.’’

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animal health Our animal health adviser In this issue we introduce Rochester veterinarian Keith Fletcher, who will be writing regular columns on animal health issues.

Dr Fletcher graduated in 1987 from University College, Dublin, and worked in mixed practice in the United Kingdom before moving to Australia in 1993.

He worked at a dairy practice in western Victoria and the southern Riverina in NSW and is now a partner at Rochester Veterinary Practice, which predominantly serves the dairy industry.

He has been involved with Countdown Downunder since 2000 and has delivered many farmer short courses and Cups On Cups Off courses dealing with mastitis control and prevention. He recently started delivering the Dairy Australia Healthy Calf Workshops.

Calf fluid therapy – the essentials Scouring calves are a headache. Due to the fluid loss in the faeces, calves are susceptible to dehydration.

Calves also become acidic due to the loss of bicarbonate in the scour and it is the combination of dehydration and acidosis that will often lead to death in the calf. It is possible to prevent the calf reaching this stage, and the aim of this article is to answer the questions on fluid therapy: When to give? How much?

How often? What type?

How much fluid does a healthy calf require each day?

About 6-7.5 per cent of the calf ’s body weight is required each day (ie a 60kg calf requires 4-4.5litres/ day). The majority of this fluid is consumed as milk, however it is critical that fresh water be offered at all times.

How much fluid does a calf lose when it is scouring?

A calf can lose between one and four litres of fluid per day (according to the severity of scour). The amount of fluid lost is directly related to the degree of dehydration of the calf. The degree

Assessing dehydration in scouring calves

% dehydrated Gap between eye and socket Skin tent/standing (seconds) Mucous membranes Temperature of extremities

Keith Fletcher

None 0 None 2 Moist Warm

Mild 4 2mm 4 Moist-Dry Warm

Moderate Severe 8 >12 4mm 7mm 6 >8 Dry Dry Cold Cold

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of dehydration can be assessed by the table (below left).

How much fluid does the calf need to have to correct the loss from scours?

From the table the degree of dehydration can be calculated.

Knowing the percentage allows a fairly accurate idea on how much fluid is required in addition to the daily requirements. Multiply the calf ’s body weight by the degree of dehydration to give the amount of electrolytes required to rehydrate the calf.

So, a 50kg calf that is five per cent dehydrated requires 2.5litres of fluid on top of its normal daily requirement.

Should the calf remain on milk?

A calf should remain on milk if it is still bright, fairly active and willing to drink.

The important factor is the inclusion of electrolytes between milk feeds to prevent the dehydration and acidosis that will lead to deterioration in the calf. If the calf is already looking dull then it is worth taking the calf off milk for 24 hours and replacing it with electrolytes (remember the volumes calculated above).

These feeds should be smaller volume, frequent feeds.

Obviously this is very timeconsuming so it is a good idea to have one person dedicated to the task if possible. Milk should be reintroduced 24 hours later in small volumes, fed at frequent intervals (for example, one litre of milk fed two or three times daily).

Electrolyte feeds need to be continued while scouring persists (and fluid loss is occurring through the scour).

What type of fluid is the best?

The aim of fluid therapy is to replace the water and electrolytes that are lost in the scour. The solutions must have adequate buffers to correct the acidosis, and adequate energy for absorption of fluids across the intestines. Different brands are available, however it is important to realise that not all electrolyte products on the market fit these criteria, in fact

many are far from it. Talk to your vet about which products are most suitable.

Can I mix the electrolytes with the milk?

No. The electrolyte interferes with the milk clotting mechanism in the abomasum and prevents a clot from forming, therefore interfering with digestion of milk protein.

Due to this, electrolytes and milk must not be fed within two hours of each other.

What if the calf won’t suck?

Stomach tubing is effective if done carefully. If the calf is unable to stand then intravenous fluids administered by a vet are required. These can assist in replacing the fluid deficit immediately and can have a dramatic effect.

Antibiotic residues Fluid therapy is the most important part of treating calf scours. However, antibiotics are indicated in a number of situations. Unfortunately, antibiotic residue in calf meat is much too common and is a huge potential loss to the industry. It is rare for residues to arise due to not obeying proper withhold times. It is much more likely to occur as a result of contamination of feeding vessels. For example, a lot of farmers use antibiotic boluses or oral drenches to treat scours by adding them to the calf milk. If that same bucket is then used to feed a bobby calf, there may be enough antibiotic left in the bucket to cause a residue. To avoid this, either drench the calves directly or if adding to milk, use separate buckets for bobby calves and keep treated calves segregated from bobby calves.

Another alternative would be to use injectable antibiotic, and you could discuss this with your vet. After all treatments, keep proper records of dates of administration so that the correct withholding times are observed.

– J. Keith Fletcher Rochester Veterinary Practice

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9

Dairy Australia

Calving feature

Calf comfort

important for good growth Well designed and carefully managed calf rearing environments ensure that the risk of disease is minimised and that calves can grow well.

Limitations on space, available facilities and finances all influence what is practical. When designing a calf rearing area or reviewing the effectiveness of your existing facilities, it is important to remember: The period most calves are housed coincides with when their immune systems are most immature — and calves are vulnerable to disease at this point.

Calves that are housed in poorly designed, poorly maintained or dirty and overcrowded environments have an increased rate of disease.

Consider quarantine areas Areas should be set aside for the isolation and treatment of sick animals as well as for calves requiring special attention. However, there are some issues to consider: 10

JUNE 2013

Sick calves may be left with their immediate group if they do not have direct contact with calves in neighbouring pens.

Any movement of a calf may further spread the disease through the shed.

Don’t forget, the main reason calves are held separately is to reduce the risk of transferring disease from a sick calf ’s manure to other calves, and to manage antibiotic residues.

Comfort in the sick pen Attention to the comfort and wellbeing of the sick calf will improve survivability rates.

Sick calves will often have body temperatures outside of the normal range. They will also experience higher levels of stress.

Cold calves can be warmed by the use of

covered hot water containers placed close to a calf, or by calf jackets.

Warm calves can be cooled by placing them in cool areas away from direct sunlight.

Supplying an environment with a controlled temperature and good bedding can significantly improve the welfare and the survival of a sick calf.

Drainage Calf rearing areas must be well drained and not contaminated with effluent run-off from the dairy or adult cow grazing areas.

Design and manage calf rearing facilities to prevent disease Choose the area to rear your calves carefully.

CALF REARING HOUSING Make sure you have suitable calf rearing facilities.

Design calf rearing sheds to provide adequate protection from wind, rain and heat.

Make sure dairy effluent does not enter the calf rearing environment.

Maintain a clean environment by topping up bedding material regularly and disinfecting rails, partitions, walls and gates.

Limit the risk of calf rearing personnel spreading disease.

Plan facilities and procedures to limit the need to enter pens.

Choose an absorbent and comfortable bedding that insulates the calf from the cold.

Paddocks which have been used for grazing by older stock or for holding agisted or sick animals pose a high risk of disease for calves due to contamination from manure, and should not be used.

Multi-purpose sheds used to store chemicals or machinery normally pose little risk, however if there has been a spillage in the past, poisoning or residue contamination can occur.

Paint on old timber often contains lead and can result in lead poisoning.

Providing dry, clean bedding is critical because it helps control a calf ’s body temperature.

Good quality bedding helps maintain body temperature by preventing heat loss. Less energy is then used for keeping warm and more can be directed to growth.

Bedding should be a minimum depth of 15 cm at all times.

Calves should be able to nestle deeply in bedding with their legs obscured by the bedding material.

If bedding is wet and a calf lies in it, it will conduct heat away from its body.

Bedding options When selecting bedding materials consider issues such as ongoing

availability, price and the degree to which the material compacts over time. Another important consideration is whether calves will attempt to eat the bedding material — make a selection to avoid this if possible.

Options: Bark chips –– wood chips, tan bark and post peelings are absorbent bedding materials with good insulating properties and low palatability to calves.

Rice hulls –– these are absorbent with good insulation properties.

Note that the use of rice hulls is sometimes associated with a high incidence of mouth ulceration and small cheek abscesses.

Straw/hay –– using straw or hay as a bedding should be avoided when it is also supplied as a fibre. Calves may consume contaminated bedding and increase their exposure to pathogens.

Wood shavings, sawdust –– fine-particle sawdust will compact more and is less suitable than larger wood shavings.

Treated wood/pine shavings or sawdust should not be used as these could be toxic if consumed.

Sand –– does not provide any insulating properties and can accumulate in the stomach of calves that may consume it. It is not recommended.

Source: Dairy Australia, Rearing Healthy Calves

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Dairy Australia

Calving feature

Colostrum is vital for healthy calves The feeding of colostrum plays a vital role in raising healthy calves, but there are some guidelines which should be followed to get the maximum effect.

Colostrum is the substance which provides the antibodies that form the main protection from infectious diseases for the calf in the first six weeks of life, until the calf can develop antibodies of its own.

Without colostrum, a calf is likely to die.

Colostrum begins developing in the weeks before calving and production completely ceases once the cow gives birth. It is at its strongest concentration and highest quality at the point of calving.

Protective constituents Colostrum contains: antibodies, which prevent and fight disease in the newborn calf; white blood cells; growth factors which promote growth and development of body tissue such as the stomach and intestines; and antimicrobial factors which are believed to play a role in disease prevention.

Colostrum also contains high quality nutrients rich in protein, fat, vitamin A, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, zinc, manganese, iron, cobalt, carotene, riboflavin, vitamin B12, folic acid, choline and selenium.

Key facts about colostrum It is important to be clear about two key facts relating to colostrum: no additional colostrum is produced from the moment the calf is born; and the protective capacity of the cow’s colostrum begins to decrease straight after calving.

Understanding these points is the key to

getting colostrum management right onfarm.

Note that if you collect colostrum straight after birth, it maintains its protective capacity so long as it is stored correctly in the fridge or freezer.

Transfer of immunity Transfer of immunity refers to the transfer of antibodies from the cow to the calf through colostrum.

To achieve successful transfer of immunity, calves must consume sufficient amounts of antibodies and then absorb it through their intestine and into the blood system.

Failure of passive transfer of immunity (FPT) is a term commonly used in scientific and veterinary texts. The word ‘passive’ describes the way the antibodies move from the gut into the blood circulation. The term FPT can be considered the same as failure of transfer of immunity.

Failure of transfer of immunity occurs when calves do not have sufficient protective levels of antibodies in their blood stream shortly after birth. It means that the calf has either not consumed enough or absorbed enough antibodies into its own body. Calves that have had difficult or prolonged births often have failure of transfer of immunity.

It is associated with an increased risk of disease and death pre-weaning.

Longer-term issues include: increased losses up to six months of age; decreased rate of growth;

increased average age at first calving; and reduction in milk production during the early years in the herd.

Failure of transfer of immunity is common. It is estimated about 31 per cent of pre-weaning deaths in the first three weeks of life could be attributed to such failure. A recent study estimated nearly 20 per cent of all United States dairy heifers had a failure of transfer of immunity. The situation is likely to be similar in Australia.

Colostrum management To achieve successful transfer of immunity, ensure that all calves are fed the right quantity of good quality colostrum as quickly as possible after birth.

Harvest colostrum as soon as possible after a cow has calved.

Test the quality of colostrum before you use, store or discard it.

Feed calves as soon as you can.

Feed newborn calves with the highest quality of colostrum available.

Measure the antibody concentration in the colostrum and adjust the volume to ensure each calf gets the right amount.

Reserve older or poorer quality colostrum for calves older than 24 hours.

If you have lots of sick calves or a high death rate get veterinary advice.

– From Dairy Australia’s publication, Rearing Healthy Calves

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Dairy Australia

Calving feature

Feed right for

best results The aim is for calves to be healthy now and productive in the future The aim of any calf rearing program is to ensure that all calves are healthy and that replacement calves are productive during the course of their lives in the herd.

The effect of good nutrition provided at the start of a calf ’s life has a big impact in terms of: General health status.

Growth rate and weaning age.

Fertility and mating.

Production levels.

Providing calves with quality colostrum straight after birth gets them off to a great start. The next challenge is to help the animal make a smooth transition from being a ‘drinker’ to an ‘eater’.

Initially, milk provides the main source of nutrients for the newborn calf. As the calf ages, it obtains more and more of its nutrients from solid feed.

Fresh, clean water is essential Water is required to maintain normal body function in all animals, regardless of age.

Water must be available to all calves from birth and it should be fresh and clean at all times.

Water helps to avoid dehydration in calves that are scouring.

Water is needed for the rumen to function.

Water must be supplied separately — never rely on milk/milk replacer to supply the water requirements of calves.

There is no evidence to suggest that calves will over-consume water and consume fewer concentrates. In fact, the opposite has been shown to be the case.

Early access to water encourages early consumption of concentrate.

Research has shown that calves not offered water ate 31 per cent less dry feed.

All calves, sale calves included, must be provided with fresh, clean water from birth.

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JUNE 2013

Milk or milk replacer?

The abundance of surplus and waste milk in seasonal Australian dairy systems has limited the uptake of milk replacers. Generally on a cost benefit alone, the use of milk replacers cannot be justified on many farms. It makes the most economic sense to use milk surpluses and ‘transition milk’ first.

When surplus milk is not readily available or milk prices are high, calves can be reared economically on high quality and reputable milk replacers.

Automated calf feeding systems can be used to achieve good results, as the preparation and mixing of milk replacers is consistent.

Delivery to the calf often seems to work better than with fresh milk, and cleaning up the system is easier too.

Milk replacers may be useful to prevent the spread of infection from the adult herd, and for the control of diseases such as Johne’s.

Milk replacer composition and preparation Calves can be reared successfully on milk replacers but they must contain the right ingredients. Traditional skim milk-based products are no longer the only choice.

Cheaper whey-based or non-clotting replacers have been found to produce good results.

Check the source of protein as some of the protein and vegetable oils used may not be suitable for calves. The best advice is to use a reputable, well-known product with a proven track record.

Be careful about milk fed to calves While waste milk or mastitis-affected milk can be fed to calves, it pays to be cautious.

Milk from sick cows may contain a greater number of disease-causing organisms, and also antibiotic residues. Any waste milk should be used quickly and kept chilled to minimise the

growth of bacteria.

Never feed milk from cows treated with antibiotics or other veterinary chemicals to sale calves.

Milk from cows with confirmed bacterial infections such as salmonellosis or Johnes disease should not be fed to calves under any circumstances.

There is no ‘silver bullet’ or a single best way to provide a balanced and nutritious ration to calves. To promote steady growth and maintain health, calf rations need to be formulated so they contain: Energy for growth and functions such as breathing, walking and grazing.

Protein for all basic metabolic processes and growth.

Fibre for rumen function and to ensure cud chewing.

Vitamins for metabolic processes, bone formation and disease resistance.

Minerals for carbohydrate metabolism, cartilage and muscle function.

Feeding fibre to calves In a calf ration, fibre is an important component as it promotes the growth of the muscular layer of the rumen and helps maintain the health of the rumen lining.

Studies have shown that particle size of the fibre component of the feed is more important than the fibre type in promoting healthy rumen function.

Fibre may be introduced by day three and should be available to all calves by two weeks of age.

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Tackling calf challenges head-on

The calf shed is cleaned out, disinfected and limed at the end of every season.

Glen King-Gee with his autumn-born calves.

In an effort to reduce the mortality rate on his 500-cow Murrabit dairy farm, Glen King-Gee began vaccinating his cows four years ago with the Bovilis S and Bovilis E vaccines. This season he has used the new Rotavec Corona vaccine and he has been happy with the results to date.

“At one stage we were losing 20 to 30 calves in our main (spring) calving season. The calves would get sick after three to four days with scours and if we didn’t treat them with electrolytes within five to six hours and feed them every two to three hours they would be dead within a day,” Mr King-Gee said.

He knew salmonella and rotavirus were present in his calves because he tested any calves that got sick.

“It is very important to keep working with your vet and since we have begun vaccinating things have been pretty good. This season we used the new vaccine and I have only lost one heifer calf this autumn which is certainly a bonus.

“Each year is different and things change each year which affects the way things are done.

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JUNE 2013

“We try and bring in cows that have calved within 12 to 24 hours and if a calf is not full we will feed it with colostrum ourselves. If a calf gets a good drink from its mother then that’s the best thing that can happen.”

Calving always creates a busy time on the farm and sometimes it is tempting to cut corners.

“Hygiene is probably our biggest downfall.

Last spring we had a young girl come in and help us with the calves and she replaced the teats on the feeders for the new calves every 10 days and we hardly had any sick ones.”

This season Mr King-Gee is planning on doing the same. He will use new teats on the feeders for the newborn calves and when it comes time to replace them, the used teats will be reused on the feeders for the older calves.

“I prefer feeders to wagons because they are much easier to keep clean.”

Mr King-Gee keeps a vat on the back of his ute and he simply fills it up with milk from the dairy and backs it into the calf shed. He fills the feeders up with a hose attached to the vat which helps avoid the use of back-breaking buckets. Any leftover milk is returned to a second vat at the dairy and the ‘portable’ vat is

The calves have free access to a custom mixed calf grain ration.

“

Each year is different and things change each year which affects the way things are done.

“

Rearing calves certainly offers up its fair share of challenges each and every season.

Glen King-Gee

regularly washed to keep it clean.

He rears his calves in pens of six and they are fed milk twice a day for two to three weeks.

“Once they hit the three-week mark we open up the shed and let them out in the side run.

They have access to good quality hay or straw and an adlib grain mix.

“Our calves are weaned at the six-week mark and we then take them away to another block where they have access to good grass, hay and grain. They are all drenched, vaccinated and de-horned at the same time.”

At the end of each season the rice hulls are scraped away and the shed is disinfected and limed.

The state-of-the-art $2.5 million robotic dairy planned for University of Melbourne’s Dookie Campus is still in the design stage but construction is expected to begin in mid-2013.

Work starts soon on new Dookie dairy When the project was announced last year, the head of the Department of Agriculture and Food Systems in the Melbourne School of Land and Environment, Frank Dunshea, said he expected building to begin in January this year. ‘‘We are looking at opening in June next year ready for the calving season,’’ Professor Dunshea said at the time. ‘‘It will be suitable for a largely grazing system and we are going for the stand-alone robots, but we are also focused on how we can use the latest technologies to assist us with our system.’’

Fast forward 12 months and it seems major construction projects, just like domestic ones, can take longer than planned.

The new dairy will embrace state-of-theart technology designed to facilitate future research experiments. These facilities will also be used to demonstrate innovative dairy practices to farmers and students.

The facility will include the robotic milking

facility and milking shed for 180 cows and feeding systems. The university shut down its outdated herringbone dairy in mid-2012.

Western District firm GreenCon Australia Pty Ltd, based at Cobden, won the contract to build the multi-million-dollar facility; the specialist milking facility will be designed by Lely Dairy Equipment, distributed by its local representative W & P Pumps at Kyabram. ‘‘We have only been involved with Lely for a short time and have already sold several robotic units, which we’re delighted with,” W & P Pumps managing director Wayne Surplice said. ‘‘The Dookie dairy is an exciting project to be involved with.’’

Prof Dunshea will lead the research at the new Dookie dairy. He has had a research career spanning 25 years in farm animal and biomedical research. His area of expertise is in growth physiology and nutrition and understanding the interactions between the animal and the animal’s environment.

He said it would provide training for students, a research base and a working model for dairy farmers interested in the latest technology.

While research into herd management, nutrition, animal behaviour, heat stress and disease management will all be a part of the new operation, Prof Dunshea said it would not be highly experimental. ‘‘We won’t be inventing technology, it will be off the shelf and available to farmers who see it in action,’’ he said. ‘‘We will have infrared cameras that will measure how hot the udder is when the cows come through, checking for mastitis and heat stress.’’

Some of the research will focus on the behaviour of dairy cows and which ones are suitable for the stand-alone robotic system.

As for the design of the building itself, Prof Dunshea said it would include viewing areas for farmers and students to observe operations, and there was some scope for innovative design.

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• 95% lasered and very well laid out with 10% sown to permanent pasture and the balance in rye and shaftel.

• Five Bedroom Family Home that has recently been renovated with two ensuites, master with walk in robe, open plan living, gas and electric cooking and evaporative cooling.

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• Once in a lifetime opportunity to buy a cheese factory with established brands, manufacturing facility and established markets.

• The Locheilan Cheese enterprise is for sale as our vendors are retiring including the dairy farm that supplies the raw material.

• 360 acres in five titles on the creek.

• Modern 20 swingover dairy complete with cup removers.

• Main home is a 4 BR brick family home with ensuite, 2 living areas and evaporative cooling, plus 2 BR cottage in treed surrounds.

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• Farm currently leased with supply contract and unlimited growth for the cheese business means this is a real money maker with growth potential, so act now and call Les.

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• 1,074 acres on Yabba South Road, Invergordon.

• 60 Bale Rotary dairy complete with Alpha plant including cup removers, cow Id, auto draft, flood wash yard, 120 tonne grain storage, crusher, mineral dispenser, effluent pump system, 20,000 litre vat and 600 cow yard with concrete feed pad.

• There are four houses on this property. Two are Brick four-bedroom homes with ensuites.

One is a three-bedroom Settlement Family Home, and tidy two-bedroom cottage.

• 272 megs of high and 87 megs of low reliability water all delivered by three wheels on the property. S & D water is from the main channel GMW delivery share is in place.

• Milking up to 700 cows and with production between 315 – 360,000 kg/ms, this farm has serious cashflow and production options.

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Story and pictures: Sophie Bruns

Val and Trevor Dehne with some of their spoilt Jersey calves.

A portable set of yards has made calf rearing just that little bit easier for Trevor and Val Dehne from Leitchville. The setup is simple in construction – it merely consists of some ring-lock gates with a bit of cut-off pipe welded to the ends (big enough for a star picket to slip through) and a wall of hay to block the wind. The yards can be easily divided when required, and if something like de-horning must be done, the gates are simply moved to form a funnel and make that job easier, too.

“We saw some portable goat yards in Burke last year and we thought we would buy them and take them home. We never got back there so when we came home I priced some steel to make my own. We soon worked out it was going to be cheaper to buy some gates and weld the rings on,” Mr Dehne said.

“This system is simple and easy to slot together and use, and it only takes 15 minutes to pack up when the season is over. The wife’s happy – and you know if you have a happy wife you have a happy life,” he said with a laugh.

Mrs Dehne is in charge of all the calf rearing

The portable calf yards are erected in a new position each calf rearing season. Mortality rates are non-existent, a fact the family attributes to the clean environment.

and this is the second season she has used the yards. They have been set up in a different area of the paddock to create a disease-free environment.

“The yards were a great success in spring and I didn’t lose a calf,’’ she said.

“They have stopped a lot of scours; the calves seemed to get sick when we were rearing them in the shed.

“Now they only spend their first couple of days in the shed on rice hulls to get accustomed to drinking from the feeder, then they are bought outside to the yards.”

Mrs Dehne said she found the calves became a bit hot on some of the warm days last spring, so a shade sail was put up to fix the problem.

“Calves on our farm go from the labour ward to the nursery to the Hilton,” she said with a laugh.

The couple rears about 70 calves a year and the new yards cope with that number easily.

Calves are fed twice a day with adlib straw and pellets for about three months. They are kept in pens of about six within the portable yards, but once they are strong enough they are let out into the big paddock.

“

We don’t have to move the calves at all.

Everything is done in their own environment, which is less stressful Val Dehne for them.

“

Calf rearing made simple

They are drenched, de-horned and weaned when they are about three months old.

“We don’t have to move the calves at all.

Everything is done in their own environment, which is less stressful for them,” Mrs Dehne said.

“I like my calves to look fat and healthy. I would feed them for longer but the boys (Mr Dehne and their son Rohan, who also works on the farm) won’t let me.

“People come and have a look and can’t believe how simple the system is. It is clean, the calves are contented and the most important thing is I haven’t lost a calf (after birth) since we started to use it.”

JUNE 2013

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Toolamba farm

in focus

Colin and Ross Read commenced as the first functioning Murray Dairy Focus Farm in June 2011.

At the start of their journey they put together a number of goals that they wanted to achieve by being involved in the Focus Farm Project, including: 1.

To operate a profitable and efficient dairy farm business; 2.

Set up their dairy business for the future, considering:

3.

a. Succession b. Transition c. Diversification Deliver a satisfactory work/life balance for all the people involved in the business.

In relation to operating a profitable and efficient dairy farm business, the brothers have increased production, profit and total equity in the business during the past two years.

The following table outlines the actual

The Focus Farm partnership will be splitting up, with Ross Read seeking a different job in agriculture.

physical performance of the farm business for the 2010-11 and the 2011-12 season and the budgeted and provisional physical performance of the farm business for the 2012-13 season. The provisional 2012-13 results are based on actual results for the year to date and the anticipated results for the remainder of the financial year.

Some key points from the physicals include: • Milk solids production has increased four per cent when compared with 2011-12

Murray Dairy draft strategic plan – Next Steps Over the recent weeks Murray Dairy has sought feedback into its draft Strategic Plan. Workshops were held in Cohuna, Numurkah, Tatura, Kiewa, Finley and Echuca.

Some who couldn’t attend the workshops, provided written feedback. Thank you to all who have contributed recently and also to those who contributed to the 2012 Regional Priority Setting process which helped inform the development of the strategy.

The Murray Dairy Board will consider the revised strategy at their June meeting and it will then proceed to the Industry Steering Group for final consideration. Once adopted, a copy will be made available to all dairy farmers and industry representatives across the region.

The strategy will guide the key focus areas for Murray Dairy over the next three years. Key priorities include:

• Driving profitable and efficient dairy businesses • Growing skills and capability in the Murray Dairy region • Promoting the region’s dairy industry • Increasing Murray Dairy’s organisational capacity

milk production. This strategic plan presents a sound basis for leveraging the region’s competitive strengths and to help dairy farmers succeed.

Visit www.murraydairy.com.au

The Murray Dairy region has distinguished itself as a competitive region for dairying across Australia.

Year to date, it is the only region that is experiencing increased JUNE 2013

21

SHARING IDEAS AND OPTIONS

Production of home-grown feed increased on the Toolamba farm.

Consultant Cameron Smith and Colin Read lead a group during a tour of the Focus Farm.

•

•

•

and 31 per cent when compared with 2010-11.

While there has been a decrease in the proportion of home-grown feed contributing to milk production from 84 per cent in 2010-11 to 74 per cent in 2012-13, the production of home-grown feed has actually increased from 5.56 tonne DM/ha to 6.07 tonne DM/ha over the same period.

Enabling the higher amount of homegrown feed to be produced has meant an increased use of irrigation water which is expected to total 870 Ml, up by 172.8 Ml on 2011-12 use. Additional TWE has been purchased compared to last season.

Despite the purchase of additional TWE, home-grown feed costs are currently expected to be slightly less than in the

Murray Dairy in conjunction with Dairy Australia and the Gardiner Foundation established four Focus Farms across Northern Victoria at the end of the 2010-11 season.

The aim of the Focus Farm project is to help farmers better understand their farm business systems, to analyse the impact of on-farm development and decision-making options including considerations pertaining to risk management.

Each of the Focus Farms developed objectives and focal areas specific for their business which might relate to production, financial management or resource management.

Each Focus Farm is supported by an experienced farm consultant who facilitates a support group consisting of local farmers and service providers who have been invited to participate by the Focus Farm owner(s) to assist them to achieve their goals and objectives.

The support group is integral to the process. Ross thought that while the support group provided a huge amount of input into their business, he hoped that being involved gave the other farmers and service providers an opportunity to interact in a social environment, and also that having interesting guest speakers at the field days on topics that were relevant to farming communities (mental health and succession as examples) was important.

Being a Focus Farm was not all beer and skittles. The farmers notes that at busy times of the year such as hay season and calving season they still had to set aside time each month to prepare for the meetings and for the field days, and had to pressure-wash and scrub the dairy clean before each meeting.

previous year due to higher levels of home-grown feed utilisation and the fact that more of the home-grown feed will be directly grazed rather than being conserved and fed back to the herd.

Ross considers that one of the main benefits of being a Focus Farm was that it kept them in touch more financially because of the regular meeting and going over the numbers every month.

The following table outlines “some of the numbers’’ or the actual financial performance of the farm business for the 2010-11 and the 2011-12 season and the budgeted and the provisional financial performance of the farm business for the 2012-13 season. The provisional 2012-13 results are based on actual results for year to date and anticipated results for the remainder of the financial year.

While total production costs and total costs are higher than budgeted, the results for 201213 are on track to be lower than either of the 2010-11 and 2012-13 seasons.

Being a Focus Farm and having a support group involved provides a “multitude of views” or “different perspectives that the members of the support group bring to each meeting.”

The brothers considered that it was “great to have so many ideas and opinions on topics relevant to our business.”

“While ultimately this is our business and we have to decide if the ideas coming from the support group members are worth having a crack at, the different perspectives do tend to make you think about things more.’’

Ross said keeping control of the farm objectives was important, as there was a risk at times that the support group might take them

Murray Dairy welcomes Lisa Birrell Murray Dairy is pleased to welcome Lisa Birrell to the team. Lisa joins Murray Dairy as the new dairy productivity officer and will be working with farmers to help achieve productivity efficiencies.

With a strong understanding of the regional dairy industry, Lisa has studied agricultural science at Melbourne University and has extensive knowledge of animal health and nutrition.

Lisa commenced work with Murray Dairy on Monday, June 3.

For all the latest information on dairy research, development, education and extension activities, visit www.murraydairy.com.au 22

JUNE 2013

FOCUS FACTS PHYSICAL PERFORMANCE MEASURES

Gabrielle Coupland from Rabobank talked about farm sucession planning at the Toolamba Focus Farm walk.

in a direction they weren’t comfortable with.

The following table outlines the actual farm business performance for the 201011 and the 2011-12 season and the budgeted and the provisional farm business performance for the 201213 season. The provisional 2012-13 results are based on actual results for the year to date and anticipated results for the back half of the financial year.

Despite the more difficult terms of trade that confront all dairy businesses in 201213, the operating surplus and the EBIT that will be generated this year will be better than that generated in either of the previous two seasons.

In relation to setting up the business for the future, Ross said the end point was somewhere different to where he thought it would be when they started.

“In the beginning I considered that (setting up the business) would be about bringing someone in, whereas it ended up with someone being taken out of

the business.’’

Col said: “The outcome was unforseen at the start of our involvement.’’

However in relation to the succession, Col said he was “happy with the resolution” while his wife Deb said, “This feels like where we are supposed to be.”

Ross said that with the circumstances of where their farm business ended, having an experienced facilitator to help them navigate through the complexities of farm succession was invaluable.

Col and Deb have a 10-year window looking forward.

During the next five years the objective for the business will be to consolidate by reducing debt and potentially by some further rationalisation of the farm’s asset base, while on the personal front this period will allow the education of the family to be completed.

The five years after that will be stepping towards retirement, where another transition or succession process will be likely.

– Farm consultant Cameron Smith

2010/11

2011/12 2012/13 (b) 2012/13 (p)

TOTAL LITRES 1342850 1717881 1852831 1799039 TOTAL FAT 56793 69163 74864 73798 TOTAL PROTEIN 44853 58264 62981 59347 TOTAL MILK SOLIDS 101646 127427 137845 133145

MILKING AREA 248 248 248 212 HERD SIZE 230 252 270 272 WATER USE 330 697.2 700 870

PURCHASED CONCENTRATE (t DM) 231 331 355 407 PURCHASED FODDER (t DM) 28.1 9.35 0 50 HOME-GROWN FEED (t DM) 1381 1241 1300 1243 TO INVENTORY (t DM) 0 0 0 44 TOTAL FEED (t DM) 1640 1581 1655 1744

PURCHASED GRAIN ($/t DM) 283 260 281 306 PURCHASED FODDER ($/t DM) 173 169 0 135 HOME-GROWN FEED ($/t DM) 77 105 92 99

PRODUCTION PER COW 442 506 511 490 TOTAL FEED PER COW 7.13 6.27 6.13 6.41

WATER USE EFFICIENCY 4.18 1.78 1.86 1.43

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE MEASURES ($/kg MS)

2010/11

2011/12 2012/13 (b) 2012/13 (p)

MILK INCOME 5.15 4.90 4.76 5.23 OTHER FARM INCOME 0.65 0.46 0.69 1.23 TOTAL FARM INCOME 5.80 5.36 5.45 6.46

HERD COSTS 0.40 0.27 0.19 0.23 SHED COSTS 0.23 0.24 0.23 0.28 FEED COSTS 1.74 1.71 1.59 1.91 OVERHEAD COSTS 0.71 0.80 0.54 0.69 LABOUR COSTS 0.38 0.27 0.47 0.08 TOTAL PRODUCTION COSTS 3.46 3.29 3.03 3.19

OPERATING SURPLUS 2.34 2.08 2.43 3.27

INTEREST and HP COSTS 1.15 1.05 1.02 0.91 PRINCIPAL and CAPITAL COSTS 0.42 0.72 0.41 0.58 TOTAL COSTS 5.03 5.05 4.46 4.67

FARM BUSINESS PERFORMANCE MEASURES

2010/11

2011/12 2012/13 (b) 2012/13 (p)

OPERATING SURPLUS 2.34 2.08 2.43 3.27 EBIT 1.35 1.11 1.71 2.11

RoTA 5.15% 4.97% 8.73% 10.40% RoE 1.89% 0.79% 7.56% 12.79%

EQUITY 39.83% 44.06% 46.00% 45.72%

Did you know...

Below are a few statistics which highlight the important value of the dairy industry provides within the Murray Dairy region.

• Across Australia, some 43,000 people are directly employed in the dairy industry.

Of these, more than 10,000 are employed in the Murray Dairy region.

• The region’s largest employment in dairy jobs occurs in the following municipalities: › Campaspe – 2306 jobs › Moira – 1910 jobs › Greater Shepparton – 1778 jobs › Gannawarra – 1207 jobs • Murray Dairy produces some 2.1 billion litres of milk over the course of a year. This contributes more than $740 million to the region’s economy.

For all the latest information on dairy research, development, education and extension activities, visit www.murraydairy.com.au JUNE 2013

23

Story and pictures: Cathy Walker

Stockmanship key to low cell count Some people spend time pushing cows up into the dairy for milking. Stuart Cameron has the opposite problem: he reckons he has to push them out.

A quiet herd is a healthier herd, Stuart Cameron believes.

your levy at work locally

For all the latest information on dairy research, development, education and extension activities, visit www.murraydairy.com.au

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JUNE 2013

With young heifers coming on and others like this cow who is rated EX93, Stuart Cameron says it might be a while before the transition from dairy to beef is complete on their Invergordon farm.

Keeping cell counts down was all about good stockmanship, Stuart Cameron said.

“

It’s a lot of little things, easy things, that fix cell counts, but it can be timeconsuming.

Stuart Cameron

“

Mr Cameron and his wife Jill, from Invergordon, have achieved a remarkable record of very low cell counts for 10 years straight and, among many reasons, Mr Cameron says calm cows with good temperaments are also healthier cows.

Recently the Camerons headed the Tatura Milk Industries Top 10 lowest BMCC list* with 61000 and, while proud of the statistic, Mr Cameron said he felt it was every farmer’s duty to provide the cleanest and healthiest milk they could. ‘‘You don’t want mastitis in a herd, you don’t want to send the milk either: as far as I’m concerned it’s crook,’’ Mr Cameron said.

The one-time stock and station agent was milking cows as a small child on his parents’ dairy farm on the outskirts of Dandenong, and has also worked as a relief milker and herd tester and has never lost his love of cows.

After crossing the state to purchase a property beside Mrs Cameron’s family at Invergordon, they set up their own dairy.

When her parents retired, they bought them out and now farm 77 ha.

They’ve ridden the pits and troughs of dairying through the drought, and Mr Cameron said having underground water had gone some way towards survival in difficult times.

Sing is an old favourite and Jill Cameron has already reserved a place for her and a couple of other ‘‘special’’ members of the herd on the farm when the couple changes over to beef cattle.

His theory of keeping cell counts low can be encapsulated in two words: good stockmanship.

But if that sounds obvious, he says it’s often not. ‘‘It’s a lot of little things, easy things, that fix cell counts, but it can be time-consuming,’’ Mr Cameron said.

Drying off — the way it’s done — in particular is really important, and Mr Cameron rebuts those who say his cell count is low because he has a small herd: 50 with 30 to calve at the moment, 200 cows at its peak. ‘‘Getting big numbers and running around with feed-out machines doesn’t help; eating and sitting on dirt isn’t good for your udders,’’ he said. ‘‘Plenty will disagree with that, but that’s life.’’

Another theory he has about cell counts is

‘‘some people don’t look at different ways of doing things, they don’t change’’.

One thing the Camerons have been sticklers for is feeding their heifers, even in financially tight times, and Mr Cameron said that investment reaped rewards in terms of herd health. ‘‘Feeding heifers helps with conception (rates), we’ve had 70 to 80 per cent with sexed semen.’’

The future is exciting for the Camerons as they transition out of dairying. What has been Hadleigh Holsteins for 18 years will become Inverleigh Simmentals.

Mr Cameron said his wife had already stipulated certain favourite Holsteins, including 12-year-old Sing, were not going anywhere – so they’ll retain a few dairy cows for calf-rearing and a house cow.

Mr Cameron has been offered work as a farm consultant to put his knowledge of controlling cell counts to good use; it sounds like a job tailor-made for him. * Bulk Milk Cell Counts (BMCC) refer to the concentration of cells (expressed as cells/ ml) produced by the entire herd into the vat milk. BMCCs give a general indication of the level of mastitis in dairy herds and are an integral part of the milk quality payment system for most dairy companies in Australia.

JUNE 2013

25

Story and pictures: Cathy Walker

Travellers in search of gold There was a time when there were 1000 dairy farms on the island of Jersey. And each farmer had his own bull and there were 1000 different ideas on how to breed them.

No surprise then that Jerseys prospered in their isolated homeland where the genetics could be shared and compared.

Derrick Frigot is president of the World Jersey Cattle Bureau and recounted that tale during his visit to Australia in May during what was billed as the ‘‘Gold Rush Down Under’’ tour by overseas Jersey cow fans who represented countries including Switzerland, the United

States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Argentina.

As well as breeding Jersey cattle, Mr Frigot’s Jersey Island Semen Exports Limited pioneered artificial insemination on Jersey and he has made a career of working with and travelling the world to inspect the breed that bears the name of its homeland.

Dairy Direct caught up with Mr Frigot at Loxleigh the Tallygaroopna property of Geoff and Natalie Akers, who played host to 35 international and many Victorian Jersey breeders.

Over morning tea, one visiting farmer said

it was obvious the milk in the jug was Jersey ‘‘because you couldn’t see the bottom of the jug’’.

Mr Frigot didn’t make that claim, but he did have some compelling arguments for why the dainty Jerseys were increasing in numbers, more so than their ‘‘black and white’’ opposition and often paddock mates. ‘‘In Jersey we could use the top bulls; AI changed all that, and then everyone had access,’’ Mr Frigot said. ‘‘(Before that) until the 1960s it was cattle that were moved all around the world, before artificial insemination.

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Local and overseas visitors toured half a dozen northern Victoria farms looking at Jersey cattle, including the farm of Geoff and Natalie Akers.

Jersey expert Derrick Frigot checks out the herd of dairy farmers Geoff and Natalie Akers at Tallygaroopna.

‘‘In Jersey we had 1000 bulls but in other countries they bought a breeding bull and you could say were stuck with what they got, good and bad.’’

Jerseys are the second-largest dairy breed in the world (behind Holsteins) but the fastest growing.

Mr Frigot said, for example, the number of dairy farms in Australia had shrunk from 22 000 to 7000 but ‘‘the Jersey breed is the only breed that’s actually climbing in numbers’’.

He said the more compact cow (relative to Holsteins and other larger breeds) ate less,

“

Timboon visitor Chris MacKenzie casts an eye over one of the Akers’ cows.

These days people value the quality of the milk.

Derrick Frigot

and surrounded by Australians.

produced less methane and ‘‘as a producer of milk it’s the most efficient because it eats less and produces the most valuable milk’’.

But Mr Frigot replied: ‘‘I’m very impressed. I came here in 1976 and they were the cows of that day.

Higher protein, butterfat and calcium are the hallmark of Jersey milk.

‘‘But the internationalisation of genetics has helped a lot.’’

Mr Frigot said after World War II it was hardly surprising Holsteins were the breed of choice, because quantity was important.

He said the bottom line for all dairy farmers was income.

‘‘These days people value the quality of the milk,’’ Mr Frigot said.

It was probably an unfair question to ask what he thought of the Australian herds he’d seen, given he was standing in a paddock of them

‘‘The farmer keeps cows to make a living,’’ Mr Frigot said. ‘‘It’s very important he’s got efficiently producing cows.’’

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Story: Laura Griffin Pictures: Jayme Lowndes

Trees not just for

good looks Garry Broadwood has plenty of reasons to plant plenty of trees.

Mr Broadwood has planted thousands of trees on his Yalca farm to improve its aesthetics, encourage birds and provide shade and shelter for his dairy herd.

Corridors of native trees act as a wind break and shelter.

28

JUNE 2013

“

The trees help arrest the decline in milk production from adverse weather conditions.

Garry Broadwood

“

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Broadwood family planted between 7000 and 8000 trees in corridors and among remnant patches on the 469 ha property.

“Trees make the farm look good,” Mr Broadwood said.

“They also act as a wind break and cut down the wind speeds significantly. We can get howling winds across this farm that are hard on the animals.”

In summer, the herd of between 330 and 340 mostly Holstein Friesian are sprayed by sprinklers in the yard and then stand under the shade of a corridor of trees planted in 2000.

“They are more content when they’ve got shade and shelter,” Mr Broadwood said.

“The trees help arrest the decline in milk production from adverse weather conditions.”

Mr Broadwood said if cows were less stressed, they were easier to handle and ultimately more productive.

“A happy cow is a happy life.”

He credits the trees with playing an important role in maintaining high quality milk. The farm won a milk quality award last spring – it came second in the northern Victorian and southern Riverina Dairy Farmers’ Milk Cooperative, and won the award three years ago.

Some trees were planted with planters from the Nathalia Tree Group and the Superb Parrot Group. The second

generation dairy farmer said superb parrots could sometimes be seen in spring. Native trees, particularly those indigenous to the area, encourage many different birds, including finches and other small coloured birds.

Yalca dairy farmer Garry Broadwood in front of 4.5 ha patch of remnant Murray pine forest.

Through the Superb Parrot Group, the Broadwoods direct-seeded plants in the patch.

The land was pre-ripped and sprayed in the summer before the trees were planted in early spring. Mr Broadwood said they did not lose many. During the dry years, they did not plant.

There are also trees that pre-date the farm’s establishment. There are remnant patches of Murray pine and box gum/yellow box, which Mr Broadwood estimates would be at least 150 years old. He pointed out a bull oak, which he described as a very slow growing tree.

He encourages farmers to plant native trees, particularly on areas that can not be fully utilised.

Some gum trees pre-date the farm.

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Jersey sale attracts buyers The annual Northern Lights Jersey Sale in May was held at the Echuca racecourse for the first time in its eight-year history.

Inspection time at the Northern Lights Jersey Sale, but the cows are oblivious to the fuss and keep munching.

Thirty cows changed hands at an average of $4342, some finding homes thousands of kilometres away.

Sale top price of $10 000 was paid for lot one, Jugiong Damsel 6193. The young cow had recently won All Australian Two-year-old, had produced more than 6000 litres and is due back in August to Vanahlem.

She was offered by the Nicholson Family of Girgarre and was knocked down to A. Ball of Honeycombe Jerseys at Malanda on the Atherton Tablelands in North Queensland.

Next top at $9000 was an eight-month-old

heifer Brookbora Valentino Marie, described by auctioneer Brian Leslie as magnificent and backed by three generations of EX 92 dams.

Like the top lot, she went interstate, from Tennyson-based vendors R. and S. Bacon to S. and K. Whitten of Tamworth, NSW. Third highest seller at $7600 was the Queensland entry, Ascot Park Vanahlem Beauty offered by S. and J. McCarthy and selling to Loxleigh Jerseys of the Akers Family, Tallygaroopna.

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production on account of their Numurkah neighbours John and Margaret Cockerell, paying $6800.

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Little Ryanna LR Mogul Brasilia was one of the early lots at the Bluechip sale and sold for $7000.

Zoe Hayes leading Bluechip LR Windbrook Dancer 3. The heifer was International Dairy Week Champion Under Six Months of Age in January 2013. She sold for $28 000.

Bluechip sale

a resounding success Bluechip Genetics’ annual invitational on-farm sale at Zeerust was a truly international affair.

Rob Kelly from New Zealand is a member of the partnership that bought Bluechip LR Windbrook Dancer 3 for $28 000.

The top-priced lot at $72 000 on account of Bluechip and Duckett Holsteins was Bluechip Goldwyn Frosty, imported as an embryo from the United States and purchased by New Zealand syndicate Toi Toi Genetics.

Dairy Livestock Services manager Scott Lord said given the seasonal conditions and financial constraints the sale ‘‘far exceeded our expectations’’. ‘‘It was a fantastic line-up of cattle,’’ Mr Lord said. ‘‘Dean and Dianna Malcolm are leaders in their field and chase the best genetics. The sale was a real credit to them.’’

Of 98 lots offered, 94 were sold for an aggregate of $592 650 at an average of $6300.

More than 100 people registered to bid and the day/night format was a winner, with a big crowd for both sessions.

Bluechip Genetics divided its sale into two sessions for the first time, with the evening session bringing the top price.

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Dairy Australia situation

and outlook report

Local output defies national trend

Dairy farmers in northern Victoria and the southern Riverina have forged ahead in milk production despite flat milk prices during the past season.

Figures released by Dairy Australia show the Murray Dairy region is the only region in Australia that has increased its milk output.

Murray Dairy farmers are also among the most confident dairy people in Australia, although overall optimism has taken a sharp knock in the past year.

The figures come from a Dairy Australia national survey carried out in February, which included 200 people from the Murray Dairy region.

The rising production figures will make the region well placed to take advantage of a forecast increase in milk prices next season.

Dairy Australia strategic manager Jo Bills said ours was the only region able to maintain production with higher input costs and lower prices. ‘‘It’s fairly amazing compared to the rest of the country, ’’ Ms Bills said.

Dairy Australia’s analysis of current commodity price and exchange rate settings indicate an opening price for 2013-14 of about $5/kg milk solids compared to the 2012-13 opening price of $4.30/kg MS. This calculation implies a potential full-year average price around $5.50/kg MS, up from $4.90 to $5.10/kg MS in 2012-13.

34

JUNE 2013

the United States and New Zealand facing drought and the European Union also decreasing production.

In a survey question about optimism in the national industry, the general response was at the lowest measure since 2004 when the first surveys were conducted during a market downturn and at the start of the drought. ‘‘Every region has had a knock in confidence,’’ Ms Bills said. ‘‘Tasmania has usually been the happiest, but it has gone from nine out of 10 to about five out of 10, but Murray Dairy is at reasonably high levels.’’

‘‘We are seeing supply from New Zealand sliding quickly away. The latest report is that year-to-date production in New Zealand is down about 0.5 per cent.’’

She said international demand remained quite robust with demand from China and SouthEast Asia strong. ‘‘Australian consumers remain cautious despite the movement in the economy.’’

Ms Bills said the international situation had changed since this time last year, with

Significant differences between regions Positive attitude to industry future by region (% farms) 100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40% 2005 30%

2006 2007 2008

20%

2009 2010

10%

2011 2012 2013(p)

0%

Nat

MD

WV

Gps

SEQ

NSW

SA

WA

Tas

Dairy Australia situation

and outlook report

Why dairy matters in the Murray Dairy region Why dairy matters in this region Value of production in 2011-12 by local government area* Value of production in 2011/12 by local government area* Wangaratta Wakool Towong Swan Hill Moira

ry matters in this region Loddon Indigo

duction in 2011/12 by local government area* this Greater region Bendigo Greater Shepparton

Gannawarra

Ex factory value (A$m)*

Deniliquin

y local government area* Corowa

0

Farm GVP (A$m)

Conargo

Source: Dairy Australia *Based on milk production

Campaspe Berrigan Benalla Alpine Albury

-

50

100

150

200

250

300 350 value 400 (A$m)* 450 500 Ex factory

$ million

Farm GVP (A$m)

Source: Dairy Australia *Based on milk production

Ex factory value (A$m)* Farm GVP (A$m) Source: Dairy Australia *Based on milk production

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150

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Dairy Australia situation

and outlook report

Dairy farm incomes dive

36

JUNE 2013

Three-year growth outlook by region Proportion of farms intending to increase production(%) 80% 70% 60%

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013(p)

50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

“

Nat

MD

WV

Gps

SEQ

NSW

SA

WA

Tas

“

ABARES Farm Survey estimates for 2012-13 indicate average dairy farm cash incomes fell to $95 300 – down 33 per cent from the 2011-12 average of $143 000, but closer to two per cent below the preceding 10-year average.

Dairy Australia’s analyst Norm Repacholi said: “Challenging production conditions, rising input costs and a persistent focus on the supermarket milk price war have undermined farmer confidence.”

Asked to compare the current season profitability with the average of the past five years, four out of five farmers expected lower profit in 2012-13. South Australia had the greatest proportion of farms expecting lower profitability (92 per cent) while Western Australia had the least (57 per cent).

In line with lower expected profits and declining confidence, the proportion of surveyed farmers intending to invest on farm during the coming year has declined from 38 per cent in 2012 to 28 per cent in 2013.

As in previous years, milk price was the most important confidence driver, cited by 46 per cent of farmers. Input costs were the next most influential (21 per cent) for farmers, followed by the Australian dollar (17 per cent) and government policies and interventions (17 per cent).

Mr Repacholi said it was interesting to note that three of the top-four ranked influences on confidence were well outside the control of individual farm businesses and were

Farmers who are more confident in the industry’s future are more likely to be in an expansion phase and milking herds of more than 500 cows.

Norm Repacholi

highly variable.

“Surprisingly, the level of debt was mentioned as a confidence-influencer by just two per cent of respondents,” he said.

“Farmers who are more confident in the industry’s future are more likely to be in an expansion phase and milking herds of more than 500 cows.

“They said confidence in future demand for

dairy products was the most common reason for their positivity.’’

Business equity was a key driver of current farm performance in the 2012-13 season.

Businesses with strong equity (> 70-80 per cent) across all regions would be able to make moderate investments in farm capital in 201213, according to the report – Dairy Australia’s major annual survey that draws on a range of data and a survey of 1000 farmers nationally.

Giving farmers the recognition they deserve One of the first questions Sue Milne asks when she meets dairy farmers is, “Do you know how many skills it takes to be dairy farmers?”

Some farmers doubt they have any skills, but Ms Milne tells them the National Centre for Dairy Education Australia has identified more than 500 skills in business, people, natural resource management, feed base, animals and other areas, including occupational health and safety.

Ms Milne has been working as an industry consultant for about 18 months and loves helping farmers get their life’s work recognised with formal qualifications, including certificates and diplomas.

Last year, she undertook skills recognition with 36 farmers from Numurkah and surrounding areas. They embarked on skills recognition for reasons including resume building, loan application, study credit and university entrance.

Skills recognition also lifts farmers’ self-esteem and confidence and gives them not only an opportunity to reflect on their extensive knowledge and skills, but also look to the future.

“Most farmers in northern Victoria encourage

their children to go to university, and now they have the opportunity to have their qualifications recognised. They are so proud when they graduate and when they look at their certificate on the wall,” Ms Milne said.

“It raises their profile in their family and community and also raises the profile of dairy farming.”

Ms Milne visits farms to talk to farmers about their operations. She then lists the evidence required to prove certain skills, which can include documents such as farm plans, soil test results, fertiliser recommendations, drug records, manuals and course certificates.

“I say to them, pull out the filing cabinet.

If people are organised, it can be a quick process.”

Evidence can also include observations and demonstrations. Ms Milne takes photos of farmers delivering calves, of infrastructure and of occupational health and safety plans in practice.

She matches this portfolio of evidence against units of competency. It takes her about a week to map the evidence, then she applies for qualifications for the farmer.

Ms Milne said skills recognition was also a great way for farmers to evaluate their own

National Centre for Dairy Education Australia industry consultant Sue Milne loves helping farmers to get their skills recognised.

and staff ’s skills to ensure they kept up to date and the business was compliant, viable and sustainable. Training can be organised to address any gaps in skills.

“To be competitive now, it’s really important to have skills in all areas,” Ms Milne said.

She said the skills recognition process was currently free but was dependent on funding availability.

Ms Milne said her 20-year experience in dairy farming gave her the working knowledge that was vital for skills recognition.

“I respect what they do and I understand not only their achievements but also their challenges.”

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Connecting farmers with services Helping dairy farmers understand and use the services available to them was key to Troy Mauger taking on the new role of Dairy Australia’s farm change and innovation regional co-ordinator.

Troy will help to ensure Murray Dairy’s farmers have access to effective extension and education services which support farmers in improving farm performance and profitability.

“Working with Murray Dairy to provide extension, farm change and innovation services on-farm is a key component of this role,” Mr Mauger said.

“I’ll be working to remove duplication of extension activities and with providers to offer more flexibility to dairy farmers.

“Bringing the value of the research completed by Dairy Australia and other groups to farm businesses is vital.”

Mr Mauger has an extensive background in dairy; he was raised on his family’s dairy farm where he worked until 2011, and is still involved in a cropping business in the Riverina. This keeps him in touch with the challenges facing irrigators and agriculture.

“Since I began, I’ve been working

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with farmers and service providers to determine what’s currently on offer and working out where the gaps are,” Mr Mauger said.

“Over the next three months, I’m looking forward to building on this work as well as working with new and existing discussion groups and connecting with regional network groups.”

Mr Mauger will work alongside Murray Dairy and with the other co-ordinators appointed in Gippsland, Western Victoria and New South Wales.

Mr Mauger’s appointment is a part of Dairy Australia’s National Farm Change and Extension Strategy, which aims to unlock the value of research and development on farms by ensuring there are effective farm change and extension services available.

New face brings experience A Shepparton woman with extensive experience in the dairy industry has joined Murray Dairy as its new dairy productivity officer.

Lisa Birrell, who is a former area manager with Fonterra based at Stanhope, started with Murray Dairy on June 3 in the new role as part of Murray Dairy’s internal restructure.

She acknowledges the dairy industry is moving through a tough time but is optimistic the Murray Dairy region will be able to capitalise on change.

“I see a strong future up here for the dairy industry. I think there can be productivity gains on-farm as farmers work on what they can influence, including the costs of production,” she said.

“The challenges are there to find good labour and address other on-farm issues.’’

Mrs Birrell said the recent Dairy

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Australia survey which showed increasing milk production in northern Victoria demonstrated there was capacity for growth.

The return of water to dams and the resulting containment of feed costs had contributed to this, she said.

Prior to working with Fonterra, Mrs Birrell was a consultant with nutrition company Best Fed and after graduating in agricultural science from University of Melbourne, was a territory manager with Alpharma Animal Health.

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Murray Dairy moves forward

The region’s dairy development body Murray Dairy has decided to change the approach it takes to delivering its business.

As part of a wider organisational review that started last year, Murray Dairy is implementing a new organisational structure to better position itself to service the needs of local farmers.

Murray Dairy chairman Malcolm Holm said the board had made a clear decision to change the approach.

“We are moving from general, project officer positions, to more focused and skills-based positions,” Mr Holm said.

“This has been achieved without extra costs and better positions and allows Murray Dairy to deliver on the key priorities of farmers.”

The new organisational structure involves the establishment of two specialist positions – dairy productivity officer and dairy business development officer.

“I am pleased to announce that Lisa Birrell, formerly of Fonterra, will join Murray Dairy as the dairy productivity officer,” Mr Holm said.

“Starting in June, Lisa will focus on increasing dairy farmers’ ability to achieve productivity efficiencies in areas such as improved feedbase, risk management, animal health and water.”

Also within the new structure is a dairy business development officer who will focus on workforce development, labour shortages and careers in dairy.

Advertising for this role will commence

shortly.

This new commitment to specialist roles has resulted in changes to other roles, most notably, the role of operations manager.

As a result, Sarah Parker will leave Murray Dairy to pursue other interests.

“Sarah has worked tirelessly for the organisation during her time at Murray Dairy,” Mr Holm said.

“The board appreciates Sarah’s contribution and I thank her for her dedication and wish her the best.”

Th new organisational structure aims to boost the resilience of the dairy industry across the Murray Dairy region.

For further information on the strategic plan go to: www.murraydairy.com.au

Murray Dairy lays out its priorities

He said the time had come for a review of Murray Dairy’s new priorities outlined in where Murray Dairy was headed after a its draft strategic plan will have a focus on time of great change. efficiency, profit, skills and promotion. ‘‘We’ve been through floods and droughts.

The regional development body is looking at: There are changing dynamics in how driving profitable and efficient dairy farmers get extension and services, the businesses; things we may have taken for granted are no protecting and promoting the dairy longer there. industry in the Murray Dairy region; ‘‘Kyabram (DPI site) has closed and there growing skills and capability in the has been a withdrawal of services from Murray Dairy region; and government. ighty increasing Murray Dairy’s organisational Finley ‘‘Now Murray Dairy needs to step up to the Berrigan capacity. plate in the new era. It needs repositioning.’’

Tumbarumba Murray Dairy chairman Malcolm Holm said This changing scene and a new chief executive their actions would focus on increasing dairy Cobram officer has made the time ripe for the new farmers’ capacity to achieve productivity Corowa Katunga Albury strategic plan. efficiencies and to support dairy farm Katamatite umurkahbusinesses to prosper by continuously The draft was launched in May, which Corryong Kiewa improving business management skills. triggeredTallangatta a series of consultation meetings. ngupna Katandra Yackandandah “It includes smart applicationWangaratta of natural Mr Holm said Murray Dairy had the Shepparton resource management to enhance the longevity opportunityEskdale to set the agenda with an eye on ra of production systems,” Mr Holm said. getting better outcomes for dairy farmers.

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New Murray Dairy chief executive officer Leanne Mulcahy.

Although Murray Dairy is one of the regional programs under the umbrella of Dairy Australia, Mr Holm said there was still flexibility for each region to have their own emphasis because each had their own characteristics. ‘‘We work closely with DA but we also have our own autonomy.’’

Staff positions, a dairy development officer, dairy productivity officer and marketing/ executive support will be aligned with the objectives of the new strategy.

The values driving the plan are leadership, effectiveness, integrity and innovation.

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Speaking at an ABARES conference Mr Nicoll outlined his views after examining overseas dairy industries, and some may find them controversial.

“We have an industry that’s struggling to deal with volatility.

But as we all know, with volatility comes opportunity.

“And as a farmer, we’re constantly told the potential for the dairy industry is huge. We’ve got this increasing demand in the growing nations around the world. But the constant line from farmers is, well, show me the money in the dairy industry.

“The Australian and the New Zealand dairy industry tracked comparatively, right up into 2000. Then the New Zealand industry took off. And the Australian industry stagnated,’’ he said.

“And there’s many factors that brought that change in the Australian industry about. And it was probably originally driven with drought. But there’s more than drought in that.’’

He said farmers needed to look at the productivity gains between 1980 and 2000 which were around improved pasture management and fertiliser management, increased amounts of nitrogen coming into the systems, increased supplementary feeding with associated increase in feed conversion efficiencies, and increased stocking rates.

He said milk processors did not have a margin to compete on price so they were using payment structures which sent signals on how farmers should supply their milk.

“They’re driving milk dairy farmers down a path of lower resilience in their system.

They’re driving them down a higher cost of production path, because they’re trying to flatten out their milk production and are not getting the economic response for that. So this is taking Australia away from the New Zealand model and pushing us more towards the Northern Hemisphere model.

“Those payment signals that we’re getting are confusing the response that farmers are making in their management systems.

“We need to come back to the key profit drivers of our industry, and that’s cows and pasture.

That’s how the Australian dairy industry’s got to where it’s got to. That’s how that growth cycle that we saw leading up to 2000 occurred.

“If we go down the path of the higher cost, moving away from pasture-based, we cannot compete on a world scale. We cannot compete with the Americans.’’

He also warned farmers about a ‘sacred cow’ in the industry.

“The Australian dairy industry has gone down the path of Holstein-Friesians … the industry is not realising heterosis gains that all the other intensive agricultural industries have. Pork, chicken – they’ve all gone down the path of heterosis, of crossbreeding, hybrid vigour. For some reason, the sacred cow in Australia is black and white.’’

calendar of events

Tuesday, June 11 and Wednesday, June 12 – Developing your herd’s genetics – DEPI Gippsland – venues in Maffra and Foster TBC 10.30am to 1.30 pm, both days Contact Matthew Reynolds on 0408 534 595 or matthew.reynolds@dpi.vic.gov.au

Friday, June 14 – Manage Farm Safety (Day 1) – NCDEA Numurkah 10 am to 3 pm This program will give managers the knowledge and tools to implement OHS practices on their farm and comply with the legal requirements of OHS. Day two of the program is on Friday, June 21.

Contact NCDEA 1300 062 332 or 0447 379 565.

Friday, June 14, Friday, June 21 and Friday, June 28 – Farm Planning course – DEPI DEPI Wodonga, 1 McKoy St, Wodonga Contact Kylie Scanlon on (02) 6071 5318 or kylie.e.scanlon@dpi.vic.gov.au Wednesday, July 17 and Thursday, July 18 – Grassland Society of Southern Australia 2013 Annual Conference Conference Room at the SS&A Club, Olive St, Albury.

Monday, June 17 to Friday, June 28 – Relief Milking Training Program – Murray Dairy

Friday, June 21 – Manage Farm Safety (Day 2) – NCDEA

Cohuna Neighbourhood House Cost: $220 Contact Murray Dairy on 5833 5312 or admin@murraydairy.com.au

Wednesday, June 19 – Ellinbank Seminar: Animal health officers – what we do – DEPI DEPI Ellinbank, 1301 Hazeldean Rd, Ellinbank 12.30 pm to 1.30 pm Contact Sharon Aarons on 5624 2222 or sharon.aarons@dpi.vic.gov.au Thursday, June 20 – Katandra West Focus Farm Tactics for Tight Times Field Day – Murray Dairy Katandra West 10.30 am to 1 pm with lunch Contact Murray Dairy on 5833 5312 or admin@murraydairy.com.au Thursday, June 20 and Friday, June 21 – Farm Chemical Users Course – NCDEA Pyramid Hill 9 am to 4 pm both days Contact NCDEA on 1300 062 332 or 0447 379 565.

Friday, June 21 – Farm Chemical Update – NCDEA Pyramid Hill 9 am to 4 pm Contact NCDEA on 1300 062 332 or 0447 379 565.

Numurkah 10 am to 3 pm This program will give managers the knowledge and tools to implement OHS practices on farm.

Contact NCDEA on 1300 062 332 or 0447 379 565.

Thursday, June 27 – Tallangatta Focus Farm Tactics for Tight Times Field Day – Murray Dairy Tallangatta South 10.30 am to 1 pm with lunch Final Tactics for Tight Times Field Day on the farm will review program and look forward.

Contact Murray Dairy on 5833 5312 or admin@murraydairy.com.au

Thursday, June 27 and Friday, June 28 – VFF Conference 2013 Melbourne Showgrounds – Expo Hall, Epsom Rd

Wednesday, August 21 – Ellinbank Seminar: methane emission research for Victorian dairy systems – DEPI DEPI Ellinbank, 1301 Hazeldean Rd, Ellinbank 12.30 pm to 1.30 pm Contact Sharon Aarons on 5624 2222 or sharon.aarons@dpi.vic.gov.au

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