Country-Wide March 2022

BACKING FARMERS

THE

NAKED TRUTH Southland farmer Logan Evans bares all to highlight the loss of good farmland to pine trees p82.

HE WAKA EKE NOA

Roadshows and farmer feedback

OMICRON

Preparing for disruption and killing space

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

What is likely to happen

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March 2022

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March 2022

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1. Wilkins M, O’Connell E. (1992) Vaccination of sheep against Toxoplasma abortion, Surveillance, 19:4,20-23 2.Anderson, P (2001) The implications of Campylobacter Infections in Ewe Flocks. Proc 31st Annual Seminar, Society of Sheep and Beef Cattle Veterinarians., NZVA p31-40 3.Geldard, H, Scaramuzzi, R.J., & Wilkins, J.F. (1984) Immunization against polyandroalbumin leads to increases in lambing and tailing percentages. New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 32:1-2, 2-5 4.Baron Audit Data, June 2021

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EDITOR’S NOTE Opinion

The summer of discontent

T

HE WELLINGTON PROTESTERS have outstayed their welcome but is the protest the start of many?

The protest has been reported as being hijacked by extreme elements and we’ve been told there are some people yelling abuse, but they seem to be a small minority.

I’m triple vaccinated and don’t support the anti-mandate protest nor condone any violence or intimidation, but I do admire the courage of their convictions. There are always some extremists in a protest but the great majority of these protesters looked like a festive crowd made up of working class people, the very people Labour is meant to represent. Few looked threatening.

There has been little verification of these claims by the media who haven’t bothered to get out from behind their desks and talk to the protesters. The journalists say they feel intimidated by horrid things written in chalk and even a noose was displayed. Uncomfortable situations are part and parcel of being a journalist, harden up and stop being so woke.

There is a small group of tents growing in Dunedin’s Octagon in support of Wellington so I wandered over and took photos. I was confronted but had a polite discussion with one of the supporters who was anti-mandate.

How can the media and commentators judge the Wellington protesters without mingling and talking to them?

Commentators like Bryce Edwards, a politics lecturer at Victoria University, did and said they are working class people, predominantly brown, who have lost jobs and are fed up with the mandate. Most of us would like to know what is the Government’s exit strategy and timetable for ending the mandate. With 95% vaccination, why do we need to present a vaccine pass to buy a coffee?

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March 2022

The protest has been hard for Wellington businesses and residents but so have the rules on businesses around the country especially Auckland and Queenstown.

Whatever the protesters’ reasons for being at Parliament they seem to have one thing in common - they are anti the Government.

Has the media lost the public’s trust?

Most of the mainstream media have done a poor job of holding the Government to account.

It has been accused of being biased towards the Government, especially the Prime Minister. The $55 million Public Interest Journalism Fund is seen as a bribe. With the outlook for the economy looking bleak, inflation driving up food prices and other costs, will the public demand better scrutiny of the Government’s economic and environmental policies?

People across the country are fed-up with the Government’s impractical and unworkable rules.

Rules made up by bureaucrats and academics whose salaries are paid by taxpayers. There will be sympathy towards the protesters tired of government rules controlling their lives. Yes some controls were needed to slow Covid but were they the best options?

Is there now an opportunity for farming?

Given the pressure the Government has placed on farming families with a deluge of rules in recent years, is it time to apply the heat by taking to the streets again to protest?

Terry Brosnahan

Got any feedback?

Contact the editor: terry.brosnahan@nzfarmlife.co.nz or call 03 471 5272 @CountryWideEd

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Contents

40

EROSION-PRONE LAND BRINGS PINE PROFITS While sheep and beef are the focus, trees to protect eroding land bring in the money for a Central Hawke’s Bay farmer.

22

DOING THE NUMBERS Deane Carson does the calculations on the proposed He Waka Eka Noa schemes.

8 BOUNDARIES

50

18 Feedback from a roadshow

DEBT REPAYMENT FOCUS PAYS OFF

A family succession plan has seen a young couple establish their own farming operation in North Canterbury.

HOME BLOCK

20 New option fairer, helps stop pines

11 Paul Burt contemplates trees as neighbours

22 Doing the numbers

12​​ Mark Guscott relishes the scent of summer rain

24 Vegetation questions dominate

13 Dani Darke gives young ewes a chance

BUSINESS

14 Robert Hodgkins ponders when a subsidy is an incentive 15 Lean on a gate and talk to a mate says Amy Hoogenboom

62

CHASING MR GOLDENBALLS’ MUTATIONS 6

HE WAKA EKE NOA

16 Blair Drysdale’s hemp keeps the glass overflowing

23 Qualified support for levy

27 Opinion: Let the market do its job 28 Covid-19: Send stock ASAP when ready to go

70

MAIZE STACKS UP

30 Markets: Price good, space tight 32 Carbon forestry: Guilt trees destroying farming

17 He Waka: Richard Reynolds on the five stages of grief Country-Wide

March 2022

BUSINESS 35 Pushing the science of forecasting 36 Covid-19: Prepare for disruption Country-Wide is published by NZ Farm Life Media PO Box 218, Feilding 4740

38 Kikitangeo dispersal a season highlight

LIVESTOCK

General enquiries: Toll free 0800 2AG SUB (0800 224 782) www.nzfarmlife.co.nz

40 Onfarm: Erosion-prone land brings pine profits 48 The wonders of genetics 50 Onfarm: Debt repayment focus pays off

Editor Terry Brosnahan 03 471 5272 | 027 249 0200 terry.brosnahan@nzfarmlife.co.nz

57 Stock Check: Changes ahead for a vet 58 Grazing away from home 60 Selling to maximise returns 62 Genetics: Chasing Mr GoldenBalls’ mutations 66 Obituary: Colin Harvey and Peter Jackson

ANIMAL HEALTH 68 Antibiotic-free lamb

CROP AND FORAGE 70 Maize stacks up 73 Taming a prickly problem

60

SELLING TO MAXIMISE RETURNS

The three main systems used to buy wool from the farmers’ clip.

ENVIRONMENT 76 Looking back to look forward 78 What tree to plant and where 80 Dutch face up to manure

YOUNG COUNTRY

COMMUNITY

Design and production Lead design: Emily Rees 06 280 3167 emily.rees@nzfarmlife.co.nz Jo Hannam 06 280 3168 Writers Anne Hardie 03 540 3635 Lynda Gray 027 465 3726 Robert Pattison 027 889 8444 Sandra Taylor 021 151 8685 James Hoban 027 251 1986 Russell Priest 06 328 9852 Jo Cuttance 03 976 5599 Joanna Grigg 027 275 4031

Angus Kebbell South Island, Lower North Island, Livestock 022 052 3268 angus.kebbell@nzfarmlife.co.nz

85 Advice: Aunty Thistledown 86 Beating the footrot curse

Tony Leggett | International 027 474 6093 tony.leggett@nzfarmlife.co.nz

88 SOLUTIONS 90 FARMING IN FOCUS

Logan Evans challenges the move to carbon mining.

Photo by Chris Sullivan.

Sub editor Andy Maciver 06 280 3166 andy.maciver@nzfarmlife.co.nz

Partnership Managers Janine Aish | Auckland, Waikato, BOP 027 890 0015 janine.aish@nzfarmlife.co.nz

82 Carbon mining exposed

OUR COVER

Publisher Tony Leggett 06 280 3162 | 0274 746 093 tony.leggett@nzfarmlife.co.nz

73

TAMING A PRICKLY PROBLEM

Pasture redevelopment has been part of the solution to an infestation of nodding thistle.

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PREPARE FOR DISRUPTION

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March 2022

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BOUNDARIES

COUNTRY-WIDE SURVEY We want to hear your views on He Waka Eke Noa. Head to the link below and complete our survey by March 14.

tinyurl.com/ag-emissions-tax-survey

Alex Clapham shore in the shearing marathon which raised more than $200,000 for Southland’s charity hospital.

Taking to the handpiece ALEX CLAPHAM TYPIFIES THE West Otago community spirit that drove the ‘Shear 4 Blair’ Waitangi Weekend shearing marathon.

He started out at 6am on Sunday with a handpiece and eight hours and 542 lambs later moved off the board and out the back to help with penning up before moving on to the wool press, and rouseabout duties.

“He’s an English guy who hasn’t been here long who wanted to be part of what we were doing… what he did epitomises the attitude of everyone who helped out,” Nelson Hancox says.

Nelson and Fi Hancox provided the 10,000 lambs and woolshed for the fundraiser event similar to one they helped organise in 2020 in aid of their stock manager Shaun Bradley’s cancer treatment. The Hancox’s wool buyer Jared Manihera was lead organiser of that event and it was him who got them on board for ‘Shear 4 Blair’ to raise money for the charity hospital, a project spearheaded by a trust and the family of Southland man Blair Vining who turned the spotlight on the dire shortage of care and support during his own terminal bowel cancer battle.

The benefit of hindsight made organisation relatively straightforward.

So too did the huge group of supporters

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who selflessly gave their time.

“The cool thing is that help came from right across the community and what blew us away was the number of young people who got involved,” Fi says.

A good example was the full crutching of the 10,000 lambs the weekend before the event. Two Southland crutching contractors donated their time, making the four hour return trip with two trailers.

“We had 22 stands and 70 helpers of all ages and from lots of diverse groups and we got the job down in four hours,” Nelson says.

Closer to home it was the Hancox’s neighbour Wilson Devery who made sure handpieces and fleeces were kept flying during the 24 hours of continuous shearing. Experienced in the set-up of competition shearing events he had several tips and tricks to increase run tallies such as the downsizing and carpeting of catching pens.

“It was a precision exercise from the emptying out of the lambs through to when and how many were brought into the woolshed and holding pens. We reckon we ended up shearing an extra 1000 because of his help.”

The community camaraderie and sponsors were well and truly rewarded with the raising of more than $200,000.

CARE WITH LUSH LUCERNE February rains have seen dry stands of lucerne flush with green leaf. Professor Derrick Moot, Lincoln University, says the rain was welcome but has led to management issues for lucerne.

“While the lucerne is highly palatable, lush lucerne brings us back to spring-like conditions so treat with caution.”

There is an increased risk of high nitrate, especially if rain follows an extended dry period.

Hot humid conditions are exactly those that increase coumesterol levels in lucerne, which can reduce ovulation rates, he says.

“Graze the lucerne up to two weeks before the ram goes out but, at that time, move them on to a grass-based pasture.”

Decreased ovulation can be up to 25% so, if you have other feed on hand, this is the year to use it. Once mated the lucerne is fine to be grazed again, he says. An ideal tupping feed alternative is pastures high in subterranean clover. Rain over much of the traditional sub-clover east coast country has seen a fantastic strike. If sheep keep off it for four weeks, it should be established enough for grazing. It should have at least three to four leaves and breaks, rather than being pulled out, with a test pull.

A man is in a doctors office. His doctor is there with him.

“I have two pieces of bad news,” the doctor says.

“What are they?”

“Well, the first piece of news is that you have cancer.”

“What’s the second piece of news?” he asks.

“Well, the second piece of bad news is that you have Alzheimer’s.”

The man laughs and says, “Well, at least I don’t have cancer.”

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March 2022

CAN YOU DEAL WITH AMBIGUITY? The Treasury is looking for a senior analyst - economic strategy to work at the forefront of economic thought and policy to enhance the wellbeing of all New Zealanders.

The Treasury safeguards New Zealand’s finances and is the Government’s trusted economic advisor.

Highlights in the job description, required qualifications and skills section: An economics background is not essential. Need to be comfortable working at pace – but only when required, and dealing with ambiguity. The ability to influence others and be a superb communicator with good EQ (emotional intelligence).

The opportunities of this position included, to connect with others and engage in social activities, along with the opportunities to engage with international organisations.

The role: to enhance understanding of New Zealand’s economic performance and resilience, help with advising on the economic response to Covid-19 and find solutions to complex economic or policy challenges.

Job closes February 21, 2022.

Note: all information was taken directly from the job description posted. https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt. nz/the-treasury/jobdetails/ajid/Wvt08/Senior-Analyst

DID YOU

KNOW ?

Ducks, unlike most birds, have penises. Sometimes they disappear at the end of mating season and grow back for the next mating season.

Scientists are at a loss to describe why ducks are so well endowed (one of the largest phalises compared to the size of their body), while other birds get away without one all together.

Photo supplied - Photos for Jean.

RATs Recently my daughter fell ill and we tried to get a rapid antigen test (RAT) for her.

We couldn’t, so my wife had to wait for more than two hours in her car in the queue to get a covid test which later turned out to be negative.

A friend living on a farm in South Australia says RATs are freely available in the supermarket. A packet of five costs about Aus$25. Each school child is given a packet and each week has to be tested twice. What a shame we can’t do this in New Zealand. Save a lot of time and petrol.

MEATWORKS ASSEMBLES? A recent advert by Silver Fern Farms was seeking a clerk for its ‘animal assembly department’. Who knew that after they cut up the animals they reassembled them.

Turns out that it is the flash name for the stockyards.

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March 2022

SUNNY-SIDE UP A spectacular sunflower field on a farm near Pahiatua has been a blooming success, drawing thousands of visitors from as far afield as Wellington.

The Mangamarie Sunflower Field was established in 2021 by farmer, photographer and mum, turned sunflower entrepreneur, Abbe Hoare.

Abbe hit on the idea of planting a sunflower field on their farm, just south of Pahiatua, initially as a way to mitigate a threat to their farming business. With the farm on either side of a busy road, which she regularly needs to move stock across, the sunflowers seemed a novel way to slow traffic.

She had no idea it would prove so popular, provide a perfect backdrop for photography sessions for her other business, Photos For Jean, and diversify their farm income.

Planting a cut variety – sowing every one of the 4700 sunflowers herself – meant she was able to sell cut flowers too.

An unexpected bonus was the ability to bridge the rural urban divide through flowers. The field had more than 5000 visitors in just 12 days, and Abbe says many of them came from the city, particularly Wellington.

The field was an economic success, making about $30,000 in profit, which will be reinvested in the farm.

The field has now closed for the season, but expect to see it back, bigger and brighter, next summer.

9

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March 2022

HOME BLOCK Matata

People or trees for neighbours?

From manicured sheep farm, through a dairy conversion and to the prospect of another carbon plantation, Paul Burt gives a brief history lesson.

T

WENTY FIVE SHEEP FOR EVERY KIWI and SMPs to keep the engine room of the economy ticking over. It was summertime back in the day and hot as hell.

After days of shearing, cut out was fast approaching. In fact, it was approaching so fast the boss was concerned as he was well shy of his tally.

He did a lap of the farm but only came up with a few stragglers and then the presser found the missing mob in some back pens under the woolshed.

The job got done and on shady manicured lawns, under a sprawling pin oak, we enjoyed a beer as we got paid up. The homestead was of 1930s vintage with a blue gabled roof and wide verandahs with white pickets. Roses and camellias filled in under mature trees and even from my youthful perspective I could appreciate the care and consideration that went into creating such a place.

The owners were near retiring and with children not interested in farming the land changed hands.

In those days the Rural Bank offered loans to capable young farmers who had scraped together a 15% deposit. The other 85% was loaned at discounted rates which was the government's answer to getting young people into farm ownership and the only way to make the budgets work initially.

A young couple bought this particular farm and with the energy of youth and skilful management ramped up the sheep business to a very high level.

Wool was contributing up to 50% of farm income and the good years saw a new woolshed built to replace the original rough-sawn across the board type.

Paddock numbers quadrupled and bush remnants were fenced and retired. Three children buoyed the small but well-regarded country school.

Being progressive types and wanting to get the most out of their asset the farmers decided the farm, with its easy contour and improved fertility would show more return by converting to dairy. This was early days for sheep to dairy conversions but despite the sceptics a successful dairy farm was established.

Uncommonly for dairy farms of that era neatness and attention to detail were paramount and the farm drew wide praise.

Country-Wide

March 2022

"The skilled community workforce went elsewhere, changed direction or simply grew old. We witnessed marketdriven change and how it shapes rural communities."

Eventually a change in lifestyle beckoned for this family and the farm again changed hands but continued milking cows. With falling sheep returns and good dairy forecasts this made sense. Many of the other hill farms in the district had subdivided into smaller units and lifestyle blocks with some forest conversions.

Many residents worked out of the district and the school roll dropped to the point of closure. Despite lower profitability and rising costs, efficient farms with scale still made a living but it was capital gain that kept the bankers happy. The days of developing a farm and raising and educating a family on 3000SU were gone.

The skilled community workforce went elsewhere, changed direction or simply grew old. We witnessed market-driven change and how it shapes rural communities. Wool lost the battle with synthetics (did we even put up a fight?), and whole forest planting triumphed over smaller private woodlots.

Ironically, 15% of every farm in trees would have cleared many mortgages.

It became fashionable for people to buy into the country lifestyle but they were shackled to town for employment and socialising. There were successes and failures but this is the reality of human enterprise the world over. Things may have been different had the farming industry been able to cap the peaks and fill the troughs of commodity price swings.

These surges are as dangerous as a Beehive full of inexperienced politicians.

The picturesque farm I’ve written about with its gentle hills and enticing views is changing hands once more. To achieve great things on a farm you really have to be in love with the land. Much is lost when that passion disappears. The likelihood is that this once-loved farm will become a forest.

Who would you rather have as a neighbour, a dedicated farming family or an investor who will possibly never set foot on the land and whose only reward from ownership will be the comparatively hollow satisfaction of digesting a set of financial statements.

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HOME BLOCK

Carterton

Ah, the scent of summer rain…

Technology’s great when it works as the sales people claim, Mark Guscott reckons.

I “We shouldn’t just believe everything these sales people tell us though. Some of the products are needed but there’s no such thing as a silver bullet in farming.”

12

’VE JUST OPENED THE OFFICE WINDOW to let the smell of summer rain in. Isn’t it the best? It’s Waitangi weekend and I’m celebrating 60mm (and counting) of rain on our parched Wairarapa soils. To be fair, parched in summer is pretty normal here. Start early and finish early when the mercury is getting near to 30C I reckon.

The team here has spent the week weighing, drenching and dipping lambs.

We grow a variety of forage crops that are now full up with these lambs and they should be pumping the weight on over the next few weeks.

I was marvelling at the advances in technology as I watched the lambs run through the fully automated weigh crate and then around again and through the fully automated spray dip. If things go well these bits of kit will save many hours of hard labour. “‘If things go well,” he says.

When things don’t go well, we have to put on our technician hats and problem-solve to diagnose sensor faults or incorrect setup with the indicators.

Just another thing we farmers need to be good at.

It’s definitely a multi-skilled vocation.

We shouldn’t just believe everything these sales people tell us though. Some of the products are needed but there’s no such thing as a silver bullet in farming. After all, they have sales targets to meet and “those farmers will buy anything to increase production”.

Our job onfarm is to know enough about the technical stuff to hold them to account and question them and make sure we actually need their product. Beware the glossy brochures and the promises of higher production. It’s never as easy as that.

We’re all enjoying a time of high prices - lamb, beef and milk are at or near the top of historical pricing. It’s great for the cashflow, until the invoices start to arrive. It’s easy when the cash is flowing in to spend it but hard to keep some of it back to do boring but necessary stuff like pay off debt.

We’ve been lucky enough to do some expansion in land recently. With this comes another shepherd and the associated housing requirements. Hells teeth! What a drama. We ended up buying a tiny home that will buy us time until we renovate a cottage. But with all the supply chain drama going on at the moment, it wasn’t a simple exercise.

Thankfully, our new shepherd is working out really well. She has come through one of the more recently formed training schemes that have sprung up around the country. We need to support these programmes by employing the graduates when we get the chance.

The builders and electricians had this problem maybe 10-15 years ago when the old apprenticeship schemes were wound up. Those industries owned the problem and now they have heaps of young people getting into those trades.

Our industry needs to invest in these young people or we’ll go the way of the dinosaur.

The next step for us all will be figuring out a way for these clever young ones to own farms.

Maybe we could remove the pine tree subsidy that is taking decent land out of production. Nah that would mean we have to rely on the government.

A snowball in hell has more chance.

On the plan for the next few weeks will be to get some peas and brassica seed harvested, probably buy a few more lambs and maybe some cattle, finish the vaccination programme for the young ewes and then the rams will be going out in a bit over a month.

The annual cycle will start again and I’ll wonder that it only seemed like a couple of months ago that we last did this. I must be getting old.

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March 2022

HOME BLOCK

Aria

Give young ewes a chance With a strong red meat market the twotooths are getting extra rations to see if they can produce the goods, Dani Darke writes.

“It was like this when I got here, you can’t prove a thing!”

O

NE OF THE THINGS I MOST ENJOY about farming is being able to try out something new. It’s been four years since we put in our intensive bull-beef systems, and apart from some tinkering around the edges since then, we haven’t really changed too much.

So I’m looking forward to giving something new a try, and in the hope of increasing scanning rates, I have convinced hubby that we have a go at feeding grain to our two-tooths.

It’s something I’ve wanted to try for a while, and with a very dry summer at hand, I managed to get the idea over the line. Perhaps it’s something that eastern North Islanders do on a regular basis, but to some of us ‘West Coasters’ it has seemed to be a bit extravagant for our climate. However, my maths makes it look like a no-brainer.

With the red meat market going strong, every extra lamb on board is dollars in the bank. As well as that, normally we kill any two-tooth that doesn’t get in lamb, which seems such a waste, and I am determined to give that young ewe every possible chance at turning up with at least one lamb, but hopefully two.

So, after talking it through with our farm consultant, we will start them off on sheep pellets at 50g/day with a bit of salt for taste, then slowly add in whole barley, before fully moving to barley and increasing their intakes to 250g/day.

We will start a month out from tupping and finish not long after the ram goes out so we don’t cause too much disruption (unless we are still really short of feed).

It sounds like it can be a challenge to get the ladies on to it, but I’m hoping our handful of pet lambs that had nuts at rearing will get everyone else started,

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March 2022

"Give it a couple of years and he will be ripping up a gully sending lambs in all directions, and I think my beloved will be wearing a different look altogether."

otherwise they will be locked in a small paddock until they can be convinced to eat it.

Sadly, hubby lost two of his favourite dogs a while back, and ever since he has said ‘yes’ to every pup on offer, with the hope that in one of them he will find the next star. Our kennels are now pretty much a nursery, with two older dogs to try and keep everybody else in line.

Fortunately, the neighbours’ ram lambs keep getting into our front paddock, making for a good wee mob of training sheep. We’ve always brought-on our own dogs, but with so many and the old dogs rapidly getting older, it’s looking like one of the more promising heading pups will be sent away for some professional training.

To the kids' delight, our pups spend their first few months living up at the house - chewing boots, stealing jumpers, and generally making a nuisance of themselves. It makes for well-handled, and well-socialised wee dogs, spending their days being cuddled on the trampoline, or playing under the garden sprinkler.

However, when I woke up a few mornings ago and found the latest Huntaway pup had torn apart a large cushion from my recently purchased outdoor lounge, I just about hit the roof. Hubby looked particularly sheepish, but it’s fair to say at the moment that he may like this pup better than he likes me.

I have to admit, ‘Rua’ is pretty cute, and hubby looks at him like he is in love. Inevitably though, give it a couple of years and he will be ripping up a gully sending lambs in all directions, and I think my beloved will be wearing a different look altogether.

Meanwhile, I have requested a puppy reprieve and a cap on kennel space to try and curb some of this silliness.

13

HOME BLOCK

Hertfordshire, England

When is a subsidy an incentive?

England’s restrictions on Covid are now lifted and life is pretty much back to normal for Robert Hodgkins.

W “I buggered up and tried to do some smart breeding and matching ewe traits with ram traits, but had to run ewes and lambs together to avoid having mega amounts of groups.”

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E ARE ENJOYING GOOD GRAIN prices and good lamb prices at the moment - our last load of lambs went for an average NZ$240, average 19kg deadweight.

However, fert has more than doubled from last year, electricity and fuel are up 20% and we have had our first reduced subsidy payment as it heads down to £0 over the coming years.

So almost to the pound there is no change in fortunes - just extra requirement on the overdraft to fund the fert increase until we can sell some of this expensive grain, with Putin on the border of Ukraine UK futures wheat has shot up, harvest delivery grain is sitting at about $370 a tonne (August 2022).

For all the talk about the United Kingdom farming without subsidy we're seeing areabased payments turn into 'sustainable farming incentive' payments. It appears our business will go from claiming a payment on a scheme to seven payments on several schemes which could replace the previous subsidy payment between them crazy.

Even crazier we've seen climate change protesters take to glueing themselves to the 10lane main circular motorway around London.

We've had a couple of physical setbacks this winter, we cannot get our planning application for our dairy building through the local authority and both of our shepherds have moved on within a month of each other, both wanted to head nearer home. We were really sad to see them go so we've been recruiting hard and had some great applicants, we've managed to replace them both and we're excited to see what Fraser and Robbyn will bring to the business.

Our arable manager and his wife have welcomed a beautiful baby boy to the world and hopefully by the time you read this Monty will have passed his BASIS (professional agronomy

qualification) exams.

Sheep scanning is done with 174 on the ewes.

Looks like we have 3080 lambs hitting the ground in April.

Romney ewe lamb scan is down at 91%, we usually do 120. Recorded ewe lambs were way too small and looked like they were struggling. I buggered up and tried to do some smart breeding and matching ewe traits with ram traits, but had to run ewes and lambs together to avoid having mega amounts of groups. Lambs definitely suffered running on less good ground.

The commercial Romney ewes’ lambs on turnips were almost too fat with some of them shearling size.

Pure Romney ewes managed 173% overall with a lot of two-tooths in the mix.

As a general impression ewe condition score is very good across the whole flock, we are in really good shape going into the spring - I just have to make sure I don’t do anything stupid over the next six weeks!

Our Mzuri drilled cereal crops have come out of winter well, we are starting on the spring drilling shortly, spring barley, then on to the peas, the borage and then the quinoa.

As mentioned earlier we are cutting back a little on fert this year, most of the spring barley will be going into ground that has had sheep on it this year so we are hoping the sheep grazing will have given us 20-30kg/ha of N. To try and quantify that we have invested in a Trimble greenseeker for the tractor which is Trimble’s version of an N sensor (it’s a camera-mounted sensor that “sees” how green the crop is and then adjusts the fert requirement “on the move”). At the very least it is a new toy for Monty to play with. In financial terms it's probably unlikely to save us much N but it will target what we have at the points in the field that need it.

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March 2022

HOME BLOCK

Oxford

Lean on a gate and talk to a mate The season flicks from mid-summer to mid-winter day after day for vet Amy Hoogenboom.

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HE TEMPERATURE AND RAIN GAUGE right now are both suggesting we’re more likely in some month of winter, rather than mid-February. Between these outbursts of wild weather and the “C” word that we are all sick of hearing about, this long skinny landmass and its population have endured one of the most challenging summers on record.

Being plunged back into the “Red traffic light” setting has caused great uncertainty for the viability of many events this year, including the Future Beef Hoof & Hook competition held annually in May which attracts almost 100 competitors alone from across New Zealand.

The weekend-long event is designed to enable youth from a variety of backgrounds to discover and learn about opportunities within the NZ beef industry, it is centred on a prime beef cattle competition, alongside hands-on modules.

Being on the executive committee for this event and working through the deliberation process of whether it will go ahead or be cancelled for 2022 has been a difficult process. There are many other considerations besides just how many people can be at the event. Many of our entrants have already put in hours breaking prime cattle to halter, event sponsors have different guidelines around what events they can attend.

Is it financially viable to run at reduced competitor capacity and, of course, what would be the reputational damage to the competition if there were to be a cluster of cases related to the event? By the time this column is published the committee will have made a definitive decision, Country-Wide

March 2022

“Arrived in Windwhistle and where is my wallet?

On the bench at home… %#$^&#!”

but Thursday’s meeting can’t come quick enough at present.

One thing I prided myself on during my veterinary career was never getting caught short on fuel, I definitely got lost a couple of times but never ran out of fuel as a couple of colleagues did.

So, you can guess what the next story is about, can’t you. And while I am still filled with a sense of embarrassment that I can write this story, I’m still alive and I feel we all need a little something to laugh about a little these days.

I was heading to the tip top of Lake Coleridge for the afternoon to visit some clients, I should have filled up on my way through town the day before but forgot. And the one hang-up with having a company vehicle is you tend to only have fuel cards for certain outlets and for me by the time the fuel light came on, the nearest fuel card stops were both 30km away (doable probably).

There was no way I was making it to the top of Lake Coleridge with the fuel in the tank.

That’s fine, I thought, there’s a fuel stop in Windwhistle and I’ll use my personal card. Arrived in Windwhistle and where is my wallet? On the bench at home… %#$^&^%$#! And so I sheepishly called the farm managers who were out with 20 litres of diesel as soon as they could.

This was a great reminder of just how caring and supportive rural communities are of each other.

In the words of Craig Wiggins, don’t forget to ‘Lean on a gate and talk to a mate’ this week, there has never been a greater need to stay connected, communicate, look out for one another and take care of ourselves.

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HOME BLOCK

Balfour

Hemp keeps the glass overflowing Blair Drysdale spills a little milk but makes sure it’s glass half-full.

A “My advice to those that are being surrounded by plantations of pines, sort out your fire plan, fire breaks, escape routes and firefighting capabilities, because we are only a decade from largescale disasters on this front.”

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A stunning looking hemp crop should yield a lot of nutritious seed.

NEW YEAR, A GREAT HOLIDAY AND the glass overflowing with positivity for what lies ahead. It’s easy to get bogged down with the current goings on and be a bit negative about anything and everything. But just put to one side for a minute, Covid, overarching and poorly drafted proposed legislation, our arrogant and naïve Government, protests and a speaker of the house who’s tone deaf and is behaving like a petulant child….... (deep breath) and it’s not all bad.

As food producers we’ve had relative freedom of movement throughout this crisis, the ability to continue working in the great outdoors, commodity prices have been relatively strong (barring strong wool) and we still have our businesses with the door still open.

There are definitely some severe corrugations on the road ahead with our production input costs, minimum wages rising again and a Government still printing money, which is all driving inflation to a 30-year high. Hopefully these are all shortterm issues, some of which can be changed with a change of Government next September, definitely something to look forward to.

Harvest got underway on January 10 with the oil seed rape which yielded well given its establishment battles last autumn.

The barley was just an average yield and then it was a stunning crop of autumn-sown oats that met its maker with a 9.4 tonne to the hectare yield. As I write, we’re having a frustrating wheat harvest due to average weather but the yields are amazing. The wheat harvest will be interrupted with the hemp and camelina needing to be harvested as they are both time-critical due to bird pressure. You can only keep thousands of sparrows at bay for so long with a gas gun and a shotgun.

Our hemp crops have been hit hard by very large rainfall events the last two seasons, so it's really

satisfying to have nailed establishment this year and to have a stunning looking crop this season which should yield a lot of nutritious seed.

The hemp is what keeps our glass overflowing here with its potential and some exciting projects and prospects on the horizon for Hopefield Hemp.

We certainly understand the frustrations and limitations of the commodity based industries where we’re all just price takers.

I’m not sure I’d still be farming if it wasn’t for the hemp and a direct link to the consumer. Producing food for the ungrateful masses is a tough gig sometimes, but as a nation we’re bloody good at it and should be proud of that.

What really frustrates me is the unabated sale of productive sheep and beef units to corporates, both national and international, to be planted into Pinus radiata for carbon forestry. Seemingly the powers that be think carbon credits, or money changing hands as it really is, is somehow going to solve global atmospheric carbon dioxide levels.

If anyone can explain to me how money has ever solved and will ever solve problems like this, then I’m all ears. Because to be perfectly honest I think the whole scheme is a complete have that will just cost us huge amounts of money and solve nothing.

All while developing nations continue burning colossal amounts of coal and contribute the largest amounts of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

My advice to those that are being surrounded by plantations of pines, sort out your fire plan, fire breaks, escape routes and firefighting capabilities, because we are only a decade from large-scale disasters on this front.

Anyway, it’s time to go and fetch the milk bottle from the fridge to top my glass back up given I’ve spilt a fair bit while writing this. Many thanks to all our environmentally friendly and hard-working dairy farmers for putting in the effort getting that milk to our fridge.

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March 2022

HOME BLOCK

Punakaiki

He Waka and the stages of grief After digging a tractor out of the mud, Richard Reynolds goes digging into the He Waka Eke Noa proposals.

When the tractor got stuck at Punakaiki and the bigger tractor and the bigger, yellow digger all failed to pull it out...thus began Richard Reynolds’ stages of grief.

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HAVE BEEN GOING THROUGH A GRIEF cycle lately. No major deaths, hand-cutting or job losses this month - just coming to terms with the Zero Carbon Act and resulting agricultural emissions pricing options to be found in He Waka Eke Noa. I, like many people, years ago was in the first stage of grief - DENIAL. I am still meeting many farmers and, more concerning, rural professionals in this stage.

The argument tends to go that the Government is not that stupid to shut down New Zealand’s economic engine, it’s all too complicated and I just don’t have time to follow it. Most commonly though is, ‘it does not affect me and what can I do about it?’

The five stages of grief do not have to follow the prescribed order. After getting a tractor stuck in a marginal block of land, failing to get it free with the second tractor and failing with the brute force of a digger, I managed to free it by showing a helper how to tie posts on to the wheels.

This all happened 17 days ago when we were wet.

I now look out across paddocks turning a new shade of brown every day and wish I could get a tractor stuck now.

So when DairyNZ and Beef and Lamb sent me an email about He Waka Eke Noa or emission taxing for agriculture I entered the BARGAINING stage.

Here I had a block of land that was starting to cost money. I can plant it in trees, earn money and save the world, winner!

After reading through the proposal I started to feel ANGER. The more research I did the more anger I felt. My area could only be planted in natives and this can cost upwards of $13,000/hectare versus my plan for poplars homegrown approaching $700/ha.

It looks to me like there is some choosing of which Country-Wide

March 2022

"I am depressed about the innovation and patch protection that has happened from our industry leaders and also the level of farmer interest.”

science we want to accept.

I am also told that for dairy the rate of tax will be about $0.05/kg milksolids (MS) in 2025. There are no predictions on what the cost would be in 2050, which is not that far away really.

The lack of information and research that I have found has led to DEPRESSION. I have asked many rural professionals, from bankers of varying colours to a senior member of the Reserve Bank, and DairyNZ and I have not found any that have done research as to what this could mean for their clients.

From the look of it for dairy farmers a bit of pain, but for sheep, beef and especially deer this could mean lots of pain. All this work at present may be of little use as the modelling shows a reduction in greenhouse gases of 1%. This has not made James Shaw the Minister of Climate Change very happy and there is still the option of the Government taking stronger action.

The line that is repeated is that the less feed eaten the lower GHG emissions, a more truthful line is the less produce made the lower the GHG emissions.

I have to say I am depressed about the innovation and patch protection that has happened from our industry leaders and also the level of farmer interest. A pop quiz on the subject with a group of farmers over beers showed very low engagement on a topic that will have more impact on farming than clean waters.

I am now ACCEPTING that I have to go to one of the meetings coming up and organised by Beef + Lamb, Federated Farmers and DairyNZ. I have also accepted that walking away from the land where I got stuck makes both financial and environmental sense.

• First published in NZ Dairy Exporter, February 2022.

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BUSINESS

He Waka Eke Noa

ROADSHOW FEEDBACK In part two of the series on Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership’s (He Waka Eke Noa) CountryWide attends the roadshow and gathers feedback.

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BY: LYNDA GRAY

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farm-level levy appeared the most equitable pricing model for agricultural emissions at the He Waka Eke Noa Agriculture Emissions Pricing Proposal roadshow at Alexandra.

Omakau dairy grazers Anna and Ben Gillespie were among the 50 people at the roadshow, but Anna was doubtful if the work needed to get the system up and running would be done in time for the January 2025 deadline.

A more achievable alternative - and one promoted by He Waka industry partners B+LNZ and DairyNZ - was a processor-level hybrid levy that would transition over five to 10 years to a farm-level levy, she says.

The interim period would give time for the set-up of administration systems, development of emission-reducing technologies, as well the opportunity for farmers to voluntarily enter emissions management contract (EMC) or a sequestration management contract (SMC) under the processor-level hybrid scheme, entitling them to rebates.

The talk about SMCs, EMCs, GWP*, GWP100, multiplier effects, and some of the science and reasoning underlying agricultural emissions was complex at times and a lot to take in over two hours.

However the presenters Colin Glass and Nick Tait (DairyNZ) and Sam McIvor, Andrew Morrison and Nicky Hyslop did a good job of explaining the jargon, the

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March 2022

“We can’t be half-arsed, and we can’t have the farming community saying they don’t support this… we know there are still things that need to be changed (with the proposals) and that’s why we need farmers to have their say now.”

pricing proposals, the lead up to the creation of He Waka and why they believed ETS was not a good option for farmers.

ETS not a good option Glass said the ETS was a government controlled capped and traded carbon market under which farmers would have no influence on the carbon price. He Waka offered the agriculture sector the opportunity to influence this.

He Waka was an improvement on the ETS because it gave farmers choice and control over how they managed their emissions. It recognized the different warming impact of methane through a split gas and pricing approach, recognized carbon sequestration from a range of on-farm vegetation not

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included in the ETS, and reinvested levy money raised from emissions pricing back into the agriculture sector.

The crowd was canvassed through online interaction platform Slido for specific answers to questions, and general feedback.

They could also feedback online or by mail after the presentation. About half the crowd chose to comment using Slido, and to the big question, ‘what is your preferred pricing system option’, 18 chose the processor-level hybrid levy with transition to a farm level levy.

Feedback questions General feedback questions included how an accurate calculator that everyone would agree on would be developed to quantify emissions given the inconsistencies between the B+LNZ and Overseer in greenhouse gas calculation. What and when would the actual rather than theoretical costs of the proposed systems be known. There was also concern at how imposition of yet more regulation would have on the mental health of farmers.

Colin Glass said one of the big advantages of the He Waka partnership and approach was that targets would be revisited and reviewed and was an opportunity for the partnership to push back on any unrealistic expectations. Some in the audience obviously felt any review or changes would work in the Government’s favour.

Comments such as ‘do you honestly think the Government will let us claim credits at full price yet only allow us to pay 10% of the cost of emissions?’

When asked if He Waka needed to push back harder with the government for more realistic emission targets and time frames Andrew Morrison said yes, but so too did farmers.

“I’m being blunt, but we can’t be halfarsed, and we can’t have the farming community saying they don’t support this… we know there are still things that need to be changed (with the proposals) and that’s why we need farmers to have their say now.”

Getting agreement on the best pricing option within He Waka, a partnership of 13, as well as government backing will require compromise from all parties.

“It’s a bit like coming up with a plan for succession of the family farm… you have to be realistic, and the best outcome usually means that everyone around the table walks away slightly unhappy.”

Dirt money Soil sequestered carbon is not recognised by He Waka.

A handout at the roadshows said soil carbon has been considered but will not be accounted for in the meantime because there is a lack of New Zealandbased scientific evidence to accurately measure it.

“This is because NZ soils are unique – what works in other countries might not work here.”

However, He Waka promises a “pathway for integrating soil carbon sequestration into the system which will require further investment into research and development.”

West Otago farmers Nelson and Fi Hancox back the need for this R&D. “We know that if we don’t cultivate, we build carbon in our soil… we should be paid for that,” Nelson says.

He estimates that across their three West Otago farms comprising 3000 hectares they’ve increased sequestered carbon by 2% since 2000.

Deducted from this amount would be the carbon emissions for each farm which they’ve estimated using the B+LNZ calculator at 5 tonnes/ha at one, 4t/ha at the second, and 3t/ha at the least-developed. Factoring in the value of soil-sequestered carbon along with shelter belts, native tussocks and manuka would leave them, and probably a lot of other farmers throughout the country, in an equilibrium or credit situation.

“If you’re going to charge farmers on one hand, you need to pay them as well for what they have sequestered.”

Correction A summary of the Processor-level pricing option was missing from ‘What’s behind He Waka?’ in last month’s issue. We apologise for the confusion this may have caused.

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BUSINESS

He Waka Eke Noa

OPTION 3 ETS

OPTION 2

OPTION 1

A NEW OPTION FAIRER, HELPS STOP PINES As an alternative to the He Waka Eke Noa proposals, a group of sheep and beef farmers have come up with what they say is a more equitable solution, James Hoban writes.

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group of sheep, beef and deer farmers have developed an alternative to He Waka’s proposed options.

Since 2014 Ben Ensor has been one of Beef + Lamb NZ’s leading farmers. He has been on their environmental reference group since 2016 and he is one of the farmers who has got off the side-lines and tackled poor policy head on.

Since 2014 he has chaired farmer groups in North Canterbury, most recently the Hurunui District Landcare Group which is one of a number of community initiatives setting the gold standard for farming communities looking to demonstrate environmental stewardship and work on achieving sensible regulation.

Beef + Lamb NZ has built a network of farmers like Ensor across the country. They are sheep and beef farmers who have poured countless hours into understanding environmental policies and offering feedback and solutions when things get difficult.

They are not stirrers and they are well informed.

Ensor is a member of the group that developed the alternative proposal and is at pains to point out that in offering this alternative they are not wanting to be unnecessarily difficult. They are farmers who value community, family and who are sharply aware of long-term consequences of poor policy. The group’s members cannot subscribe to He Waka in its current form because they know it will lead to good sheep and beef hill country being planted in permanent trees.

Ben understands the extent of damage that will occur to towns like his hometown of Cheviot when jobs and people disappear from a district. He understands the challenges of nutrient allocation, three waters and biodiversity but believes that in terms of potential damage to hill country futures, He Waka could trump them all.

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“We think a progressive pricing system should be used on a per-hectare basis,” – Ben Ensor.

This story is similar for other famers Ben is working with. Rick Burke, Roger Dalrymple, Graeme Gleeson, Simon Hales, Mark McCoard, Karen Middelberg, John Somerville, Justin Stevens and Kerry Worsnop. They are familiar faces when it comes to environmental advocacy. They have been go-to people for the sheep and beef and deer sectors and they have led the charge on thorny issues in their own communities.

That they have been unable to accept He Waka’s options one or two in their current format should make industry leaders pause for serious thought.

Instead of labouring the points of what they believe is wrong with He Waka, the group members have spent many hours of voluntary time trying to find a workable alternative. This has led to the public release of a two-page open letter for farmers to consider in time for providing feedback on He Waka.

Behind the letter is a lot more research and information they are willing to share with anyone who wants more details on how they have arrived at their position.

Having spent several years working to fix local nutrient rules that almost every interest group, including the regulator, admits were broken, Ensor is horrified at the prospect of a poor outcome being adopted.

“We know how hard it is to change things once they are in place.

“If we accept one of the options and then try to change it, the Government might quite reasonably tell us ‘you guys came up with this and actually we’ve got other things we need to do’.”

The key reasons the alternative is being proposed is that both He Waka options hit extensive sheep, beef and deer farms the hardest. Their proposal lobbies for a per hectare emission pricing mechanism.

“We think a progressive pricing system should be used on a per-hectare basis,” Ensor says.

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He says this single universal metric allows equal examination of emission across all farms and has a strong focus upon loss to the atmosphere and therefore warming.”

The group believes their proposal would more fairly reflect the contributions from extensive farms and incentivise the right behaviours. The authors are aware that this approach would be asking intensive farmers to do more of the heavy lifting but make no apology for that because the He Waka options are stacked against extensive systems.

Ensor said intensive farms also have more levers to pull to reduce emissions, compared to a relatively low input hill country business.

“Both (He Waka) options favour intensive systems.”

He says any system with breeding animals achieving slower growth rates, which are inevitable on extensive hill country with lower pasture quality, do not come out well.

The net result is that these options are a bad deal for extensive farmers and they will lead to more farmland going into trees.

“We need to be honest about it.

“Afforestation will negatively affect all farm types, rural businesses and our communities.”

He Waka’s architects are pointing to the ability for sequestration to be recognised at farm level as a reason why the proposal offers greater hope than the ETS. Ensor says unfortunately, the sequestration farmers can be credited for is limited and is a red herring riddled with fish hooks. It is being used to buy support when in reality much farm-level sequestration would not be recognised.

“We are being asked to pay for all our emissions but we cannot claim all our sequestration.”

The group is concerned neither He Waka options provide a fair process, are likely to cause challenging administration, are not adequately informed by up-to-date science

and will not fairly address land use impacts of the environment.

Ensor says they support the intent of option one, to hold individual farms to account for their own emissions. However due to the differences in efficiencies between farming systems the options will place the highest relative cost on extensive farming systems despite the fact they have the least environmental footprint.

“This will result in the continued afforestation of extensive hill country properties offsetting the emissions of more intensive farming.”

The group is proposing an alternative that advances and transforms He Waka’s option one.

Ben says they prefer the farm-level option as it gives individual farmers the responsibility for managing their business.

He says option one is better for sheep and beef with complex systems but option two might look simpler for dairy farmers.

Option one is being painted as expensive but under option two farmers will have two separate contracts to manage credits for sequestration and mitigations.

“It is hard to imagine that the management and administration of these contracts will be simple or inexpensive.”

The group can certainly not be accused of trying to dodge environmental responsibility or lacking the commitment to put time into developing workable solutions.

“We firmly believe that every farmer has a personal responsibility for the use of natural resources.

Ensor says there are large differences in farm systems, production levels and notably the externalised loss of contaminants, including greenhouse gases, to receiving environments. This needs to be recognised.

The group is asking for farmers who agree with their proposal to submit their support to He Waka before Sunday, March 27, 2022 via email: yourfeedback@hewakaekenoa.nz

For further information contact: Ben Ensor ssco@outlook.co.nz Graeme Gleeson gbg.redley@xtra.co.nz

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He Waka Eke Noa

Doing the numbers on proposals BY: DEANE CARSON

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he He Waka Eka Noa (He Waka) pricing consultation is raising questions with clients and Agribusiness Consultants has fielded many questions looking for an independent viewpoint. To inform our position we have calculated what our average sheep and beef client levy may be paying under the proposed schemes.

We have a database with more than 290,000 lambs sold from Southland. Our average client is 451 effective hectares on gently rolling country and we have entered typical nutrient use, land use, stocking rate, and production data into Beef+Lamb NZ emissions calculator. The result is just under 2000 tonnes of carbon equivalent emissions per year or 4t CO2 equivalent per hectare per annum.

He Waka proposed three options – a fallback position if the sector cannot agree to pricings of entering the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), a farm level levy, and a producer/farm levy hybrid option.

Using the He Waka pricing expectations of 5% commitment and $85/tonne of CO2 our client commitment would be predicted to be $8350 for commitment to the ETS by 2025. Using forecasts of $138/t CO2 and a 10% commitment, calculations suggest our

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Agribusiness Consultants’ figures were arrived at using the company’s database of more than 290,000 lambs sold from Southland.

average client would pay $27,100 by 2030.

Within a five-year period the levy could be over 300% greater, due to expectations in carbon price increases and taking the commitment level to 10%. This is considered as the fallback position if He Waka cannot come up with an accepted pricing.

“...we expect many farmers will not want either of the He Waka options proposed, initiating the fallback position of the ETS.” Calculating the proposed farmer level pricing of $0.11/kg methane, the same farms would be $9040 for 2025. There may be some shelter belt and indigenous offset that could make a significant difference for some clients. But for others, areas are so small that it is possible the cost of certifying the offset would mitigate the value.

An additional cost to this levy is the

administration cost of calculating/auditing these commitments and this could be in the vicinity of 25 hours at $190/hr = $4750, costings that could also be applied to the ETS. There is no certainty around what the methane price might look like in 2030 and so no pricing is possible as it has been done with the ETS. Supposedly a committee would be responsible for that. And there is very little understanding on how that committee might be formed or made up.

Raising many questions.

We have not calculated a producer hybrid levy, but it is reasonable to conclude from the consultation document that the cost would not be vastly different to the farm level levy unless you are a farmer with a potential for indigenous offset. In which case the farm level levy would benefit you.

The conclusion from these calculations is the numbers are significant. The Beef + Lamb NZ economic service reports that class 7 farms lost about $5000 a year in working capital between 2012-2021. Therefore, examples of ways typical farmers may meet this levy are reductions in principal repayments, investments, drawings, capital into plant, vehicles or buildings. In short reductions in the local economy. Reductions

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that are unlikely to sit well with farmers.

Reductions that may make some farms no longer viable.

It is impossible to ignore the obvious though. Our high-performing clients will find such costs manageable, and so it is likely that if these pricings become a reality a common mechanism to meet the rising costs is rising land use intensity or performance. Completely the opposite of what the market is asking from farmers.

This is one of the key reasons we think the metrics behind the calculations need to be reviewed. While the farm level and producer hybrid concepts use a split gas approach to emissions, they do not use the metric from which the split gas concept was developed.

Under that metric (GWP*), reducing methane emissions by 0.3% per annum could result in no cost from methane, the biggest contributor to proposed levies.

Under GWP* increasing emissions could be treated in a manner four to five times as harsh, deterring perverse/unwanted behaviours in a great fashion or looking past or even rewarding desired outcomes.

Our calculations suggest that under this metric the levy applied to our average sheep and beef client could be more like $2500 rather than $9300 (based on stocking rate decreases and performance increases over a 20-year period reported by B+LNZ economic service to Southern Southland Class 7 farms). Quite simply the reductions in stocking rates with increases in performance have seen drops in methane emissions, although not enough to meet the goal of 0.3% for no cost to be applied to methane.

A common question from clients is “will agreement on pricing mandate the government to incrementally tax us more”.

Without that question being answered, we expect many farmers will not want either of the He Waka options proposed, initiating the fallback position of the ETS. A position where farmers may still feel they can argue for a fair outcome.

This approach will no doubt open the industry to criticism. However, there remain many unturned stones when considering the right path forward, and we hope that a clearer and fairer pathway is paved before agreement is met.

• Deane Carson is an ag consultant with Agribusiness Consultants.

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March 2022

Qualified support for levy BY: JOANNA GRIGG NORTH CANTERBURY FARMER Mark Zino would pick the farm level levy out of the two main He Waka Eke Noa greenhouse gas agricultural pricing options.

But he’s not that happy about it. He sat through the first webinar and plans to attend another and also the in-person workshop, if space.

“The whole thing’s got big issues and I can see Beef + Lamb and Dairy NZ have got a hard job trying to find a way through.”

They are doing their best to find a solution that suits 25,000 different farming businesses, he says.

“That’s a lot of farmers to work with.”

His gut feeling is that accounting for onfarm emissions must be done at the farm level – days stock spend on the farm.

He says a tax at the processor level option two, when an animal gets killed, means it all falls on finishers. It also doesn’t reward a farmer who grows lambs with fewer emissions.

“If we are all in the canoe together, then it needs to be fair for all types of farmers and be geared to drive change onfarm.”

He says the finisher would have to pay all the levy although the lamb, calf or deer is sometimes born and raised on a separate breeding farm.

“The breeding property has emissions too.”

For such important and groundbreaking legislation – a first in the world – he believes it’s being rushed through.

“Farmers need a year to work it through, not two months.”

He has issues trying to resolve that NZ farmers are very efficient at growing meat in terms of emissions per kilogram when compared to other farming countries, but are going to be the first globally to be taxed.

“I feel a bit like a sacrificial lamb on the world stage.”

Mark Zino farms in Canterbury and believes if everyone is in the canoe together, then it needs to be fair for all types of farmers.

He says is really about burning fewer fossil fuels and providing the world with high quality food from efficient farming systems.

One thing is very certain for him. He is not in favour of the proposed 2008 cut off for eligible exotic forest, shelter belts or riparian strips to be included as offsets.

They say this is because the satellite imagery is not good enough until 2008, but it just wipes a whole lot of our farm amenity plantings off being eligible and we have records of what was planted and when. It’s about 40 hectares.

Farmers have paddock plans, diaries and records that can show tree planting back to 1990.

Farmers should be given credit for all of their onfarm trees for sequestration value.

“If you want to levy me for emissions, you’d better let me claim all of my sequestration onfarm, otherwise it is simply an unfair tax.”

He also argues green grass under irrigation should be counted.

The proposed administration costs are a bit frightening, he says. Zino would like to see every proposed levy dollar stay onfarm to be invested in emission reductions. This could be externally audited to ensure emission reductions are happening.

“It is very obvious that a levy is a very inefficient way of delivering emission reductions onfarm - most of the money will be wasted in bureaucracy before it even hits the farm level, to actually reduce emissions.”

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BUSINESS

Farmer view

Vegetation questions dominate BY: LYNDA GRAY

FIFTY-FIVE PEOPLE ATTENDED THE He Waka Eke Noa roadshow in Milton, Otago.

Clarification was asked about new exotic plantings or those not in the ETS, if they would qualify for He Waka. Nick Tait, developer at DairyNZ said a wider range of vegetation would be included as He Waka was designed to circumvent the particularly prescriptive rules of the ETS. Another question was if farmers would be penalised for onfarm deforestation between 2008 and 2025. Tait said farmers would not be penalised because it did not look retrospectively at forests that had been established.

“We are looking for additional components of that sequestration, if you’ve deforested you wouldn’t be penalised.”

It was confirmed farmers would not have to pay for biological CO2 emissions from stock under any of the suggested frameworks.

Other questions asked about implementation of the system, and if there would be any flexibility from the Government. For example, would the Government consider going direct to farmer level but make it start from 2028, without going into the ETS to avoid the cost of a two-system transition? B+LNZ chairman Andrew Morrison said whatever farmers decided, there would be a cost to build the system. They would not build anything which would become obsolete quickly. The system would be built so it could transition.

Morrison said the question was, do we go through a stepped or hybrid solution or are we able to commit and go hard to get to farm level directly?

“That is what we really need farmer feedback on, because if we are to go for it,

24

Kerry Irvine on his farm bought in 2020.

Electronic results from the list of concerns provided at the meeting was: • Ensure the sector remains profitable and internationally competitive 67% • Recognises onfarm actions that reduce emissions 60% • Recognises sequestration from existing and new onfarm vegetation 40% • Any revenue raised is recycled back to the agricultural sector 40% • Clear and simple system with low administration costs 33% • Reduces the amount of emissions farming generates 27% • Scientifically robust and transparent process that aligns with matauranga Maori 20%.

there’s got to be a real commitment from everyone.”

The more farmers who choose to use mitigations and get rewarded then would the rewards be lower? And, who sets the price for each tonne of emitted methane?

Were other questions asked.

Will farmers get credit for what they do, from the country and from the economy?

B+LNZ chief executive Sam McIvor said the challenge within NZ society was it had become more and more removed from agriculture. NZ was one of the most urbanised countries in the world and the knowledge about agriculture and farming, and what farmers did was pretty limited.

The challenge was to communicate what the rural sector had done, and was doing for the climate, water, and animal welfare, to the community. “We need to continue to work on that.”

Those at the meeting who gave electronic feedback, preference for the processor-level hybrid levy with transition to farm-level levy had 69% support, and 31% for the farm-level levy option.

Demands need to be fair and equitable Tasman farmer Kerry Irvine says farmers have their part to play in controlling climate change and greenhouse gas emissions, while also needing a sustainable and profitable industry to lay the foundations for future generations. But he says any demands on farmers need to be fair and equitable.

Kerry and his wife, Pam, leased their 700-hectare farm (380ha effective) for several years before buying it in 2020. The former shearer is also Federated Farmers Meat and Wool chairperson for the region.

Still assessing He Waka Eke Noa he definitely does not support agriculture going into the ETS and says there are better ways for farmers to play their part.

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March 2022

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March 2022

BUSINESS

Opinion

LET THE MARKET DO ITS JOB BY: DR DENNIS WESSELBAUM

E

very new year brings a long list of resolutions (ask gym owners) and forecasts from experts about what the year will bring. This piece is one of these forecasts, which when we look back in December, will hopefully be more accurate than my prediction about who will win the 2022 Football World Cup (Germany, of course).

Let me begin with the obvious: Covid-19.

Vaccinations, improved medical treatments, face coverings, and behavioural changes will allow us to lift restrictions.

By now, 93% of eligible New Zealanders are double vaccinated and the Government is transitioning to living with the virus rather than trying to eliminate it at every cost. This has major implications for the recovery of NZ’s economy, where service industries contribute about two thirds of GDP. Getting rid of lockdowns and re-opening the border will be important policy changes.

However, the Government is still behind other countries in using rapid antigen tests and building hospital capacity.

What are the big economic topics we will be talking about in 2022? These will be: inflation, interest rates, house prices, labour supply, and bad economic policy decisions.

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March 2022

Recently, inflation has featured prominently in the media. In May 2021 when inflation was still officially at 1.5%, I warned in an opinion article that inflation would soon become an issue (which was disregarded at the time).

Inflation is high because of stronger economic growth than expected, supply chain problems, loose monetary policy, and large fiscal spending. Fiscal spending seems to have stopped increasing further, but supply chain issues might be with us for a while, especially when Omicron leads to many people having to isolate themselves for seven to 10 days.

With high inflation, the Reserve Bank will have no choice but to increase the interest rate (OCR, technically). The idea is that higher interest rates will slow investment and consumption spending, because they make saving (for households) more attractive but borrowing (for business) more expensive. These monetary policy changes typically work with a delay of a couple of quarters.

The impact on the housing market will be a worry. House turnovers are down, housing stock is increasing, and the change in prices appears to be slowing. What is worrying are the so-called “repayment deficiencies”.

These are loans, where actual repayments are less than scheduled. This number has

increased from about $85 million in the September 2019 quarter to $230m in the December 2021 quarter and has been steadily above $200m for almost two years now.

Combine this trend with rising interest rates and some highly leveraged borrowers only able to fix interest rates for one or two years and we might see a tipping point in the housing market – which will see some winners but more losers.

The labour market is another important market for me this year. Yes, unemployment is very low, but are these permanent jobs?

Will migration pick up again when the borders open? Will we see something similar to the “Great Resignation” in the United States, where people quit jobs and either take time off (potentially due to disruptions to childcare or children’s education – notice that applications for home-schooling in NZ are increasing) or easily find a new job due to high levels of vacancies?

These turnovers can be costly for the economy, because every transition creates transition costs. With higher inflation, workers would likely ask for higher wages, which could further fuel inflationary pressures.

Finally, under the Ardern governments it appears that it does not matter whether a policy will lead to good outcomes, if the policy “feels” good.

The absence of informed economic decision-making and Labour’s wellbeing mantra can be seen in a long list of recent economic policies. Examples include fair pay agreements or the proposed unemployment insurance scheme.

Both these address non-existing problems.

They will also have adverse effects on the economy and the unemployment insurance scheme would also lead to an income tax increase, with negative implications for investment and consumer spending.

Who knows what else will come in terms of economic policy? The Climate Change Commission report’s recommendation, if implemented, would be extremely costly for NZ. What we need are policies that increase our productivity and make us competitive.

What we should do is heavily invest in infrastructure and education. Let the market do its job and do not create more friction and obstacles for businesses.

• Dr. Dennis Wesselbaum is a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Otago.

27

BUSINESS

Covid-19

Send stock asap when ready to go As Omicron spreads through New Zealand, Country-Wide looks at the impact on killing space.

BY: JO CUTTANCE

I

f animals are ready for the meatworks then send them, Otago livestock agent Rob Fowler advises farmers worried about an Omicron outbreak in processing plants.

There was no use worrying about what would happen to meat processing plants when Omicron became widespread.

“Worrying about that was the same as worrying about a rugby score before the game was played.”

The best thing farmers could do was to get on with it and send stock when it was ready.

NZ meat workers union national secretary Daryl Carran believed processing plant workers were well-prepared for an omicron outbreak. Good procedures were put in place at the time of the original Covid outbreak.

“They wear more protective gear than a surgeon doing surgery.”

Carran said, it would not be as alarming as it could have been. There had been good consultation with the Government and very good protocols put in place to keep people safe.

However, what he thought would put

28

pressure on the system was a combination of drought where farmers needed to offload stock, and a widespread Covid outbreak.

The meat companies best prepared for this would be those which had recognised staff needed to be well-paid, Carran said.

The entry point wage needed to start at a minimum production rate of $27/hour and there needed to be a clear path of retention to keep people in the industry, he said.

This included finding a way to sustain staff during the winter months. Wages needed to be at a level where people could save money, and with a contract that banks would accept for someone wanting to buy a house.

Carran said it was a tough job, and meatworks needed to attract Kiwis into it.

Time to plan Alliance Group general manager livestock and shareholder services Danny Hailes said the slower-than-expected spread of Omicron across the country had given them more time to plan for its arrival.

He did expect disruption over the coming months, but plans were in place to lessen the impact of Covid on their workforce and meet the needs of their farmers.

“How we respond to our people being

required to self-isolate or a positive case being identified at a processing plant will depend on the circumstances.”

With an extensive plant network, they could move livestock between different regions, if and when required. The day and night shifts were also kept separate, he said.

Hailes said although plans were in place, they might be forced to scale back processing of available supply.

As a guide, only shareholders would be able to supply livestock when processing capacity is under pressure. There would also be priority processing for platinum and gold shareholders. Animal welfare issues, such as farmers experiencing dry conditions, would also be considered.

Waiting times would vary depending on plant, region and livestock mix requirements. As at February 9 the North Island average was two weeks for lambs and ewes, and four weeks for cattle. The South Island average was one to two weeks for lambs, three weeks for ewes, two to three weeks for cattle, and three weeks for deer. Farmers needed to keep in contact with their agent to be kept up to date with changes, he said.

Silver Fern Farms general manager supply chain Dan Boulton said they had a

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March 2022

“They wear more protective gear than a surgeon doing surgery.” relatively late processing profile for ovine and bovine this year. This was because they were short of about 550 staff across their processing network.

Boulton said they had focused on unlocking all available processing capacity, this included upskilling workers to cover vital roles.

“To meet our primary objective of getting animals off farm, we may need to prioritise throughput rather than spending the extra time needed for some value cuts,” he said.

The extent to which this would be implemented would depend on the type of impact experienced at each site, combined with livestock flows in that region.

Boulton said navigating the impact of Covid over the last few years meant they had a strong business continuity planning process in place, particularly at processing sites. Animal welfare was a big focus.

Weather and feed reports, along with

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March 2022

onfarm pressures communicated to them via their livestock agents were regularly fed into the operational planning to ensure prioritisation of getting the right animals off farm as best they could manage.

Follow protocols Farmers needed to understand the importance of getting stock to the plants and follow the protocols of trucking companies to ensure drivers were available.

If anyone on a farm was infected stock could still be picked up for processing.

Livestock agents and the trucking company must be informed.

Hailes said the person or people infected were not to be present at the time of pickup and all Covid protocols needed to be adhered to.

Transporting NZ chief executive Nick Leggett said Omicron could decimate the driver workforce, through drivers getting

the virus and/or having to isolate because they had been exposed to it.

In January the trucking industry called out for more drivers. Leggett said they were looking for people who had a Class 2, 4, or 5 licence, suitable for a heavy vehicle.

This was to link people with transport companies in their area to try and fill some of the gaps if and when the supply chain flow became critical.

“We might only be talking about a shift or two, but every licence holder who is willing and able to lend a hand, will help keep New Zealand’s supply chain running,” Leggett said.

Transporting NZ ran a live Covid-19 page on their website which provided key industry information about Covid-19.

• www.transporting.nz/industryinformation/covid-19-disaster-management

29

BUSINESS

Market outlook

Price good,

SPACE TIGHT

F

armers shouldn’t bank on getting heavy cattle away to the works when they want, even if contracted.

Anecdotal evidence reports farmers were having to hold prime cattle onfarm early February, up to four weeks beyond the original contracted supply date. This had not occurred in previous years at the same time of year. Unit loads of uncontracted cattle in Hawke’s Bay booked pre-Christmas, were still onfarm mid-February.

Reasons given from processors were holdups with chilled freight space and labour shortages. With Omicron causing worker stand-downs, this will only worsen.

Back in December, ANZCO Foods sales and marketing general manager Rick Walker, said livestock numbers had been manageable so far, but due to the seasonal production curve, they were actively looking at plans B and C for Q1 2022 when supply from farmers will materially increase.

He said they were now working on Plans D, E and F. “There are so many variables as to how it will roll out.”

The rate of Covid spread, the policy on close contact stand-down and onfarm feed supplies were just three unknowns.

“We do know that, in Australia, the

30

BY: JOANNA GRIGG

Omicron outbreak saw a 30% drop in staff at work and a resulting 50% drop in capacity.

“Their government eased isolation period rules but they are still 25% behind in meat production.”

The New Zealand kill season 2021/22 for beef is down on the previous season so there are plenty of animals out there to be processed, he said.

“My message to farmers is do not delay processing for the sake of 10kg – get them killed in a timely fashion and manage your risk.”

Kill space issues Farmers are having kill space issues already, so this might be easier said than done.

Walker said the natural consequence of less space is a drop in demand for cattle and drop in the spot price.

He said ANZCO was conservative in signing up cattle for 2021/22 contracts although he didn’t know the scale of reduction.

“We are also looking at simplifying the beef cut mix, putting more meat into frozen than chilled and reducing boning work.”

“This does affect the bottom line though.”

In the February Market Update Report

ANZCO described it as the start of a period of massive uncertainty during the next two to three months.

It has the “very real potential to impact our already thread-bare labour force, our ability to process animals in line with your expectations and needs, and our capability to get product on trucks and ships to our markets and customers”.

In their pre-Christmas Market Report, Silver Fern Farms said global demand for beef remains strong. This is helped by the United States domestic cow processing forecast to be down 6%. On the flipside Brazil is now allowed to sell young cattle into China, presenting “real downsized risk for beef pricing”. Port clearance in the US remains an issue with the total number of container ships either at berths or waiting offshore increasing 25% since early November.

Trend to lighter cattle Canterbury saleyard activity seemed unaffected as of early February. There was a small trend to see lighter prime cattle than normal being presented for sale. Mick Withers, Livestock Representative based in Canterbury with Rural Livestock, said the Canterbury saleyard buy and sell patterns didn’t feel that dis-similar to 2021.

“Saleyard beef sales in Canterbury were business as usual.”

Buyers were seeking to top up their store cattle numbers due to good feed being around. Some prime cattle coming off farm were slightly lighter than usual, closer to 550kg than 580kg. This could be motivated by concern about killing space down the track, he said.

There were good numbers of steers in the February 1 Canterbury Park sale, with full races.

“We haven’t seen this for a long time in February.”

The kilogram price is up on 2021– with 600kg steers sold early February topping the sale at $3.29/kg liveweight.

He said there was money to be made with finishing so strong demand for quality stock.

“Last year’s heifer calves are coming to sale now, to make space before the autumn calf sale season begins.”

If killing space was limited, holding cattle was probably not an issue as long as rain arrived.

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March 2022

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31

BUSINESS

Opinion

With 28,0000ha gone, how much more of Gisborne Wairoa region will be sold to carbon miners to plant in pine trees?

Guilt trees destroying farming Gisborne farm consultant Peter Andrew protests the move to carbon forestry in his region.

32

T

he potential loss of local stations such as Huiarua, Matanui and sadly many other properties to the carbon pine forest bandwagon are an absolute disgrace and embarrassment to us as human beings/farmers. The pioneers who developed and farmed this land would be spinning in their graves if they knew we were letting this happen.

This farmland is top-performing country and one of the best places to grow grass in this country. There is no better indicator of the quality of the land and its productive capability than when in 2001 Huiarua was announced winner of the Gisborne Wairoa “Farmer of the Year” competition.

This long-term loss of the productive use of the land is in complete conflict with our core role of being kaitiaki (caretakers) for our district for our children. Aren’t we meant to leave this place more productive than we found it, not destroy the opportunity for

future generations to use the land?

If we don’t care about the future of this place anymore, how we leave it for our children, we may as well let the weeds go and throw rubbish out the car window!

Carbon offset is an absolute con job.

It means you can use power to irrigate land in Canterbury as long as you plant a guilt tree in hinterland such as Gisborne.

Shouldn’t every hectare of our land be treated evenly and with the environmental respect that it deserves. Every land user should be addressing their carbon responsibility rather than planting our healthy, productive land in carbon landfills that will never ever be harvested.

If you are serious about saving the planet, don’t fly or use the air conditioning unit.

As a consultant, I have been involved with the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) process for overseas purchasers who want to buy land in NZ and then farm it.

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March 2022

It is a very robust, professional, and costly process for our potential buyers who want to farm our land.

The main focus is on how the potential buyer is going to improve the economy, the employment and the environment. It is an extremely rigorous process, which I fully support.

Huiarua and Matanui employ about 11 full time permanent workers.

Then there is the direct employment of shearers, schoolteachers, fencers and musterers.

The next layer is the service industry such as stock agents, fertiliser pilots, beekeepers, truck drivers, veterinarians, and meat workers etc. These are all hard-working Kiwis that currently have jobs that feed off these two farms.

Table 1: AgFirst database 2021

2020

Average

Total

Per Effective Hectare

Per Effective Hectare

Per Effective Hectare

Over 28,000ha

Gross Income

1015

1146

1081

30,268,000

Expenditure

708

706

707

19,796,000

Surplus

307

440

374

Effective Area

1120

1142

1131

“How can an overseas owner who will spray out with a chopper, plant pines for carbon and walk away even be considered?”

The first place these people spend money is critically in Tokomaru Bay and then in the greater Tairawhiti district. There are huge financial multipliers for Huiarua and Matanui which trickle down through these delicate economies.

How can an overseas owner who will spray out with a chopper, plant pines for carbon and walk away even be considered?

It makes a mockery of the process.

In this district there is an unbelievable 28,000 hectares of land which looks very much like it is heading into carbon landfills.

So what are the financial consequences to this district and New Zealand?

Financial impact on the district AgFirst Gisborne has more than 100 sheep and beef farms that they analyse the financial statements for each year.

Table 1 shows the income, expenditure, and surplus over the last two years. The two years are then averaged to provide a more accurate figure.

The loss of the 28,000ha will mean that each year there is going to be almost $20

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March 2022

Huiarua Station was the winner of the Gisborne Wairoa Farmer of the Year competition and now destined for pines.

million of expenditure that is no longer going to be spent in this community. The largest part of that expenditure at 26% is wages with a total of $5.2m every year that will not be paid in wages.

The $20m in expenditure is just the start as we all know the multipliers within our region.

In contrast the carbon traders will spray out the grass, plant into pine trees and walk away. I don’t think the carbon traders will spend the money in the main street of Gisborne or grab a paua pie each time they go through Tokomaru or Tolaga Bays.

Some would suggest these farms will be used for commercial forestry and countering some of my concerns. However, many of these properties are a long way from the port down a challenging road. Why risk harvest when you can bank the carbon

money and walk away.

In the past when the country has been in trouble the farmer has come to the rescue producing more from less with the lambing percentage increases being a great example.

But how can we do this now when there is no land to work with? I would suggest the NZ dairy farm is already maxed out and horticulture has many challenges.

The futility of this land loss is even worse when you consider planting pines is not considered by the experts as a long-term solution to carbon concerns.

So next time you go through Tokomaru Bay make sure you buy a couple of paua pies, as I suspect the carbon traders are living it up in a different city.

• Peter Andrew is an agribusiness consultant with AgFirst.

33

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March 2022

BUSINESS

Forecasting

Meteorologist Ben Noll.

Pushing the science of forecasting BY: ANNE HARDIE

A

new forecasting tool being developed by NIWA is designed to forecast drought and dry conditions so farmers and growers can be better prepared.

NIWA meteorologist Ben Noll says scientists will use a weather model released in the United States in 2020 and refine it for New Zealand’s complex terrain. It will involve some “data science and deep learning” to understand the NZ context.

Initially it will be developed to forecast 35 days ahead and then it will be extended to three and then six months as researchers try to push predictions further out.

“We are trying to determine if a drought is likely,” he says. “Whether or not drought has a higher probability in the next two seasons.”

The new forecast tool will sit alongside the New Zealand Drought Index which was developed and launched in 2017. It measures the status of drought across the country and measures the duration and

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March 2022

intensity of recent dryness. In other words, it is an observation of drought once it has happened.

NIWA also provides seasonal climate outlooks each month that look three months ahead, but they are not drought specific. The new tool will try and foresee the potential for dryness and drought and therefore limit the risk of being caught out by drought. Until now, NZ meteorology has been using a climate model with a 100km resolution which describes the distance between nodes on a grid.

That will move progressively toward a resolution of 5km which will in effect give them more detail for locations within NZ’s terrain.

Noll says NZ has many regions where mountains closely border farmland – such as Tasman – where current forecasting struggles to predict weather. Increasing the resolution will increase the ability to forecast within a region.

Past models looked at weather patterns such as El Nino and La Nina to predict seasons, whereas this model will take that

information plus more data and techniques to better predict what lies ahead. Noll says there is huge potential to improve the accuracy of the modelling and then push it out to the masses through the web.

“The goal is to push the science as far as we can with current meteorology.”

The new forecasting tool will be available on the NIWA website at the end of 2023 and will supplement other tools used by farmers. Noll says it will give a bit more clarity for farmers and growers when they are planning. Earlier dry or drought warnings can help determine stocking levels, water storage and feed management options.

“There is going to be another summer like the one in 2019-20 and there will be more events with increasing frequency. So to have all our ducks in a row now will set New Zealand up as a nation to cope with those events.”

Development of the new tool will cost $200,000 and is being jointly funded through the Ministry of Primary Industries and NIWA.

35

BUSINESS

Covid-19

Prepare for

DISRUPTION Be prepared, is the advice for farmers facing the prospect of a widespread outbreak of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 virus, Sandra Taylor writes.

W

ith Omicron case numbers expected to spike in the coming weeks, farmers are being encouraged to plan for possible supply chain disruptions and an outbreak of the Covid-19 variant on their farm.

Waikato-based Total Ag consultant Rob Macnab is likening the possibility of supply chain disruption to a drought.

McNab says processing space is already tight in many parts of the country, but if processors had to close down due to an outbreak of Covid-19, it could be a very different situation.

“It would take us back to the closures due to industrial action in the 1970s and 80s, only this time farms have better infrastructure and pasture species.

“However, it still won’t be easy.”

He is encouraging farmers to be proactive and consider utilising firm store markets in many parts of the country and think about onfarm management strategies in case they are forced to retain prime stock. This includes determining what stock classes should get priority feed.

Weaning calves early, for example, will reduce feed demand from cows and allow the focus to be on feeding the weaners.

With prime stock, McNab says farmers

36

need to ensure stock have plenty of water and that lambs are shifted regularly.

“Draft them and look after the top lambs so that when the works re-open you have the ability to get rid of them quickly.”

Going into mating, lifting the condition of lighter-condition ewes should be the top priority as they will generate the best return on the investment in feed.

In order of priority, McNab says the focus should be on ewes, then lambs then replacement stock.

While it is too early to make a decision about not mating hoggets to preserve feed for other stock classes, Rob says it should be considered as part of the scenario planning if the worst were to happen with prolonged processing and transport disruption.

Farmers in some areas, such as the Northern Waikato where he is based, are facing drought-like conditions which is adding pressure to farming businesses.

“We always expect it to be dry at this time of year, but this year the severity and speed of the drought has caught us all out.”

McNab recommends farmers in areas facing weather-related feed shortages are proactive and sell stock into regions where there is still plenty of feed.

“Utilise those store markets now, you won’t regret it.”

As well as scenario planning, he suggests farmers prepare an alternative budget.

While prices and therefore the budget looks good at the moment, he encourages farmers to consider what the budget would look like if they had to sell prime cattle at a lower weight or price.

Most importantly, farmers need to look after themselves as well as their business.

Everyone is in this together, he says, so it is important farmers stay connected with friends, family and neighbours, even if it is just a quick catch up to see how they are.

“Don’t get isolated.”

Identifying levers to pull Southland-based Agribusiness farm consultant Deane Carson is encouraging farmers to make a plan and identify between three and five levers they could pull to ease any feed pressures that may arise.

“There are more risks on the table than most years.”

These levers will be different for each farmer depending on how their systems are run, location and climate, but they should order the options in a ‘least opportunity cost’ fashion.

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“It would take us back to the closures due to industrial action in the 1970s and 80s, only this time farms have better infrastructure and pasture species.”

Common options are: • Lime – for the small nitrogen effect it stimulates • Drafting lambs to lighter weights – the opportunity cost of doing so ranges from 20-34 cents depending on an individual’s view of the store and prime market.

• Growing an extra paddock of rape or summer forage if there is a risk of carrying cattle into the winter.

• Giberallic acid to get farmers through a short spell of low feed levels.

• Urea – the cost landed is about 37c/kg drymatter (DM).

If there is a risk farmers cannot get mixed-age or two-tooth ewes to greater than 66kg for mating, there is margin in using nitrogen fertilisers to generate this effect (based on some assumptions). Urea can still be justified if it is used to lift the liveweight of light ewes or two-tooths to over 66kgLW for mating.

Carson says the greatest priority for feed is lifting the condition of tail-end

PLANNING FOR OMICRON • Make a plan- similar to a drought plan • Utilise strong store markets • Consider weaning calves early • Identify three to five levers in the farm business which can be pulled • Priority feed lighter ewes

of ewes for mating. This can return 50c/ kg DM, far more money than what would be generated by finishing lambs or cattle based on price expectations.

If feed shortages were to become more significant, he would expect questions to be raised about capital stock, buying in feed, mating mixed-age ewes at lower weights and grazing out.

He says these are not on people’s radars.

Planning workloads One North Canterbury farmer spoken to has already organised a work plan with his staff in the event of a community outbreak.

They have divided the farm into areas, and individuals will take responsibility for different parts of the farm. This means they will not be working together, minimising the chance of the whole team and their families getting sick at the same time.

Seed reps are reporting that farmers are getting in early to get seed and agrichemicals onfarm in case transport is disrupted. This will allow farmers to get on and get their autumn sowing down without delays.

Industry check-list Seven industry organisations, along with the Ministry for Primary Industries, have put together a Preparing for Covid-19 onfarm checklist for farmers.

Broken into four sections, the checklist covers how a farm operates and what

would need to be done in the two to three weeks after an outbreak. This would give a friend, neighbour or casual worker the information they would need to ensure animal welfare was maintained if the whole farm team was sick. The checklist also lists information that would help the Medical Officer of Health, such as the names of staff, family and industry people who live on or visit the farm on a daily basis, along with the vaccination status of family and staff. The final section covers personal well-being.

These are available on industry-good organisations’ websites.

Lessons from across the ditch Australian National Farmers Federation chief executive Tony Mahar told Radio New Zealand that his advice to NZ farmers was to make sure they had a plan.

Farmers should be doing everything they could to maintain their business, keep their employees, contractors and supply partners informed and have plans in place if Covid were to make it on to the farm.

He also suggests limiting the number of people going on to the farm to reduce the risk of exposure.

In Australia, there were reports of farmers sending stock to their processors and processors sending them back because of staff shortages, but this wasn’t a regular occurrence.

Mahar says there has been a lot of disruption, but for the most part they had been able to manage.

• Sow an extra crop of rape or summer forage • Draft and maintain the top cut of lambs so they are ready to go when transport/processors are back on track • Reduce the number of people coming on to the farm • Think how the farm can operate to minimise transmission between farm staff.

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BUSINESS

Ram sales

Support and interest in the double-muscled terminal breed Beltex was reported as good.

Country-Wide asks ram breeders how their selling season has been.

Kikitangeo dispersal a season highlight BY: LYNDA GRAY

T

he dispersal sale in mid-January of Gordon Levet’s Kikitangeo Romney stud was a highlight of the ram selling season.

The Wellsford stud was registered in 1922 by Gordon’s father and uncle in 1922. Gordon took over the stud in the early 1950s and has been a prominent force in sheep breeding, particularly animals with resistance to internal parasites. He decided to disperse the sheep because there was no obvious stud principal successor, and the stud did not fit in with plans for the family farm now run by his daughter and son-in-law.

About 700 sheep were offered at the Wellsford saleyards.

Gordon said there was a good saleyard crowd and intense online interest leading

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to a 20 minute meltdown of BIDr, which prevented two former presidents of the NZ Romney Association buying their rams of choice. Sixty-five of the 75 rams offered sold. The top price was $7500 and the average $1700. All of the two-tooth ewes on offer sold at prices ranging from $200-$800.

“It’s good to know that they’ve gone to farmers throughout the country and most at affordable prices.”

The biggest buyer at the sale was Meadowslea Genetics, South Canterbury.

They now have 130 Kikitangeo ewes that they intend to run as a separate internal parasite resistant flock.

Meadowslea Genetics had its own southern sale in February at the Grant family’s farm near Gore. All of the 30 Romney-cross and Kelso maternal rams, and most of the 60 Kelso terminal rams were sold.

The across the board average of $950 was up about $150 from the same sale last year.

The top price was $2900 for a Romney.

“There’s a bit of uncertainty around the markets but there was good competition for the top-end maternal rams which is a good sign,” Meadowslea principal David Giddings said.

Prices were also slightly ahead of last year at Craigneuk in the Maniototo. All but six of the 275 rams were sold, and the price average was $1360 across the Dorset Down, South Dorset, Halfbred and Quarterbred offering.

The prices reflected the general positivity in lamb and mid-micron wool markets, Johnny Duncan, Craigneuk owner said. The top price was $5000 for a Dorset Down.

Purebred Beltex ram lambs sold for an average of $5500 and a top price of $11,500 at Beltex NZ’s November sale. There will be

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“There’s a bit of uncertainty around the markets but there was good competition for the top-end maternal rams which is a good sign.”

21 on offer at the March sale and Beltex NZ co-owner Blair Gallagher is hoping for a similar price outcome.

Online platform BIDR was proving to be a valuable selling platform and would become more widely used as people became confident in using it.

“It’s worked well for us, especially with Covid.”

Support and interest in the doublemuscled terminal breed was good but he felt that the ram breeding industry in general was at a crossroads given the ongoing reduction in the national sheep flock.

“The reality is that there are too many ram breeders and it’s becoming increasingly competitive… I think that to stay in the breeding game nowadays you’ve got to get bigger or be squeezed out.”

Aussie market hot Derek Daniell, Wairere Rams principal said ram lamb sales have picked up on last year and are nearly back to where they were three to five years ago. However, numbers were well below the highs reached in 2006.

Despite the redlight setting people were still coming through, Daniell said. Though the Wairere team had done more picks this season than in the past for clients that might have come and picked themselves.

Daniell said he was very pleased he also farmed in Australia where the ram market was hot. In November, in Australia, they sold 1400 rams at an average of $4000, mostly with NZ genetics. On average similar rams are $300 - $400 more expensive in Australia to New Zealand.

Daniell said Australian farmers were looking for self-replacing maternal stock.

“Difference is Australia is a growing market with more sheep wanted, compared to New Zealand which is a shrinking market,” he said.

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George Williams.

A boomer season at Tinui The most successful ram selling season yet has George Williams smiling.

The Williams annually sell 700-750 rams and, for the past three years, have held a successful off-farm October auction for their terminal Suftex/Beltex, with excellent support from repeat buyers creating good demand. This year’s auction of 80 rams had a 97% clearance rate, with the remainder sold onfarm.

The maternal rams are sold privately at Grassendale in the yards.

Prices this season were $1000-$2000 per animal, across the board.

“What’s become really apparent is farmers are prepared to get behind wellorganised flocks with scale investment in technology and R&D. People see the benefits, and that’s what creates the demand,” George says.

There’s strong enquiry for ram hoggets, which are sold as two-tooths in November.

George paid credit to his team, saying the people around them and staff are ultimately what it’s all about.

“It’s lots of fun. Taking away all the outside stuff, within the farm gate it’s a good time to be a farmer. A season like this, how enjoyable is it to be feeding your stock well and farming your farm?”

One of the best parts of his job, he says, is the interaction with successful farmers and learning from them all, whether they buy two or 20 rams.

“It’s a real privilege to be given that opportunity.”

Feeling positive about breeding Despite a diminishing national ewe flock and the incessant march of pine trees in the Wairarapa, Zandy Wallace has good vibes about being in the ram breeding game.

Annually, Wai-iti sells 500-600 rams across the three breeds, and this season they were up on numbers across all breeds, selling out of Suftex completely.

Wallace said the Romneys were consistent, in part helped by the recent acquisition of Waiohine Romneys, and also strong growth in the lower South Island, predominantly from word of mouth.

An observation has been of clients leaning towards the Romtex to “open” up their sheep a bit and perhaps be able to move from six to 12 month shearing.

He said Suftex sold themselves.

“Having a terminal ram for those people coming to pick their maternal ram makes sense.”

It is early days, but Zandy says things already look promising for next year, with indications of strong demand and new orders for significant numbers of rams already coming in.

While sticking to their traditional selection traits, the Wallaces have tweaked things to include a few new traits to consider and measure – FE tolerance, worm resilience and dag score.

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LIVESTOCK

ON FA R M

EROSION-PRONE LAND BRINGS PINE PROFITS While sheep and beef are the focus of Waipari station, trees to protect eroding land bring in the money, Russell Priest writes. Photos by Brad Hanson.

M

ark Warren doesn’t like pine trees, but he does like the returns.

Faced with alarming erosion on his family’s 1300 hectare (1000ha effective) Waipari Station, 33km southeast of Waipawa, Mark planted trees in 1983 to address the problem.

For the last 40 years he has been reaping the benefits not just slowing erosion but the financial gains.

Predominantly a sheep and cattle breeding and winter lamb finishing enterprise, Waipari (meaning the place where the water runs out of the hill) is tough coastal hill country rising from near sea level to 444 metres. It’s prone to prolonged droughts and intense easterly storms, while nor-westerly winds can be equally destructive.

Contour is 25% flat to undulating, 60% strongly rolling to moderately steep and 15% steep to very steep while soils are derived from crushed argillite and soft mudstone and consist of 75% clay loam, 13% silt loam, 11% sandy loam and 1% other soil types.

Annual rainfall varies between 1200-1500mm a year with most arriving from the east and the majority falling in winter and spring. The station is well balanced in terms of aspect.

A total of 270ha of about 300ha on Waipari not regularly grazed by livestock is planted in pines and other trees.

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Looking south over coastal Waipari.

About 110ha of trees are in the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).

Waipari has been in Mark’s family for 140 years, bought by his great grandfather Reverend Samuel Williams in 1880. Mark was raised in Geraldine, South Canterbury, the son of an Anglican minister.

From an early age he was interested in farming and after leaving school, he worked on stations in Canterbury and the Mackenzie Country. He gained an agricultural diploma from Lincoln, spent 18 months as a diesel mechanic and even juggled working on a Canterbury cropping farm with being a professional ski patroller.

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Having always been run by managers, Mark was the first family member to assume a hands-on role.

In 1982 Mark took the opportunity to work on Waipari with a view to managing it for the many family stakeholders. He was appointed manager in 1983 at the age of 24 to a business which was financially in trouble. Three weeks after taking charge David Lange became prime minister and Rogernomics was about to present Mark with further challenges.

The station had only three stock-proof paddocks (now more than 120) and no fertiliser had been applied for three years.

The previous year’s lambing percentage was 56%, calving 60% and farm working expenses represented 99% of the station’s gross farm income. But Mark was fit, determined, and prepared to think on his feet while constantly working 14-16 hour days.

“However, being dyslexic I often do things in a different way to a lot of other people,” he says.

He quickly recognised the precarious state of a significant percentage of Waipari and in spite of having little money, Mark planted 70ha of pines in 1983. This was harvested in 2007/2008.

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Gullies fill with silt “While I’ve been here I’ve seen whole gullies fill up with silt so some of the early plantings were with poplars and willows and that was hard going.”

Mark reasoned that planting production forestry not only slowed erosion but provided a financial buffer if pastoral farming was threatened by the likes of foot and mouth. What’s more, trees grow particularly well in the crumbly mudstone. After a year in the ground they can withstand the dry summers whereas pastures can struggle.

“Our soils can produce oversized pine

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trees in 24 years, and if you plant the right genetics the trees have excellent form.”

About 85ha is in first rotation radiata pine, 170ha second rotation, 8ha is in Tasmanian blackwood, 4ha is in lusitanica, 0.5ha is in macrocarpa, 0.5ha is involved in a ground-durable eucalyptus trial and 2ha is in natives under a QEII covenant. Mark believes the area in trees could expand to 350ha.

What appeals to Mark about trees is not only their financial viability but their low labour requirement.

‘Once they’re planted you just sit back

Farm facts: • Waipari Station, Central Hawke’s Bay. • 1300ha (1000ha pastoral, 300ha trees and waste land).

• Sheep and beef breeding and winter lamb finishing.

• Over 255ha production forestry (pines).

• Planted trees to slow erosion • Sequester 37t at the carbon price of $75/t is $2775/ha/year.

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Above: Bridgette Haldane and Mark Warren with painting of his great grandfather Thomas J.C. Warren on the wall behind.

and watch them generate about $1000/ha/ year.”

While the ETS tables show pine trees sequester carbon at 26 tonnes/ha/year, trees in his area were doing 37t which on the carbon price of $75/t represents $2775/ha/ year.

He also cites a 20ha block of pines planted on extremely unstable Waipari country when harvested, they netted almost as much as the GV of the whole station at the time of planting.

Waipari’s economic farm surplus from its livestock enterprises of $450/ha/year (in a good year) pales in comparison with the forestry figures in spite of the sheep and cattle being run on the best country (class 4/5).

Mark has a predetermined price for harvesting his pines. He’s established that the most cost effective area to harvest is 30ha every three years.

“Shifting high performance harvesting gear around costs $20,000-$30,000 so to justify this a reasonably large area needs to be harvested,” he says. “But by the same token anything larger is too big to plant and tend at once and too large an area is lost for grazing.”

Establishing pines can’t be grazed for two years after planting. Shorn hoggets can graze a newly planted area after two years, ewes after three, young cattle after four and other cattle after five.

Wide-spaced planting of poplars on steep areas within a paddock where the easier contoured areas can be cultivated is another area of interest. Mark believes areas with sheep tracks should not be cultivated as they are inherently unstable and planted in poplars instead.

Poplars provide shade and feed He cites the benefits of poplars as shade and feed for stock when in leaf, the ability to access nutrients deep in the soil, and once the leaves have fallen the grass beneath them provides valuable winter/spring feed.

They also sequester carbon at about 20t/ ha/year (average over 10 years) and at $75/t this represents a potential return of $1500/ ha/year in carbon credits. However, as Mark points out, any business created by the stroke of a pen can be deleted with a stroke of the same pen. He views carbon credits as a form of rural bitcoin.

These days, Mark has adopted a handsoff approach within the operation. Dayto-day running has been handed over to the management team of Adam and Holly Price. Mark gives Adam a reasonably free management brief but he still plays a major

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role in marketing stock to optimise their returns.

“You’ve got to reward good managers not only financially but also with responsibility so they can put their mark on a property.”

Under the Livestock Incentive Scheme ewe numbers on Waipari had risen to 8000 before Mark took charge. These were quickly dropped to 6000 with the lambing percentage increasing to 100.

Today Waipari winters 4000 Romney ewes (at an average lambing percentage of 150) based on Te Whangai (De Lautours) bloodlines, 4000 hoggets, 40 rams, 270 Angus Hereford cows (including R2 heifers), 100 R1 heifers, 100 R1 steers and 15 bulls.

An interesting feature of the station’s livestock business is that only a few Romney lambs are killed off their mothers.

“Even if we have a good spring like last year and we get lambs up to weight they just don’t yield. Our country is just not good enough at present to finish a significant number of stock off pasture so we leave it to those that are better at doing it.”

Instead Waipari markets its lambs in several ways. It has been a supplier member of Atkins Ranch since 1990, so lambs are killed off crops during the winter and spring at 22-24kg carcaseweight returning up to $230/head. An increasing number of the terminal-sired lambs along with their castfor-age mothers are sold in the spring as ewes with lambs at foot.

“This way we don’t have to worry about getting rid of the old ewes after weaning.”

Waipari is the first sheep farm in the world to achieve G.A.P. 4 accreditation (an animal welfare market standard that requires proof that sheep live on pasture throughout their lives) and more recently it was one of 22 farms in NZ to gain regenerative farming certification from the Savory Institute via a pilot programme through Atkins Ranch. Both these add significant value to its lambs when sold through Atkins Ranch.

Waipari runs a two-flock system with about two thirds of the ewes (A flock) going to Romney rams and a third (B flock ewes) to terminal sires. Mark calls the latter the “old and uglies” because they represent all the one-year ewes plus any ewes deemed unfit to breed replacements from.

Mated to Kelso terminal sires on March 1, these ewes are lambed on the earlier coastal country with many of the one-year ewes being sold with lambs at foot in late October/early November. This frees up land

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Left: Lambs on coastal finishing country looking south.

Below: Young pine trees.

for the remaining B flock ewes and their lambs enabling between 300 and 400 to be drafted off mum at an average of 17kg CW. No terminal lambs are docked.

“This system suits the early country and generates valuable cash flow. We’re working towards selling all one-year ewes with lambs at foot.”

Rams must be easy care Ram-out date for the A-flock MA ewes is April 1 and two-tooths April 15. Rams are out for 2-2½ cycles at an initial ratio of 1:100 but some rams may be pulled out in

the second cycle if low in condition or there is excessive fighting.

Mark entrusts Hamish de Lautour to select his Romney rams but specifies they must be structurally sound, have a background of easy care with some worm resilience as well as good survivability and fertility/fecundity.

Ewes are scanned for singles, twins and dries with all dry-dries being culled.

Replacement two-tooth ewes are selected from ewes scanning twins.

“I’m seriously questioning the value of scanning because it’s hard on the ewes and labour and expensive. It’s useful when

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feed is tight and for separating single and multiple-bearing ewes for lambing, but I’ll leave the final decision to the manager.”

Average lambing percentages are around 160% for the MA A-flock ewes, 140% for the two-tooths and 135% for the B-flock ewes.

“We’re never going to get as high a percentage in the B-flock because it’s mated a month earlier, however that’s the trade-off if you want early lambs.”

The steeper, harder country is home to the A-flock ewes during lambing and because they are genetically selected to be easy care no lambing beat is carried out.

Romney lambs are generally weaned in early January and drenched, crutched and fly-dipped. If feed is plentiful, they are reunited with their mothers on the hills as Mark believes they do better if they have access to milk for as long as possible before weaning. At weaning some lambs are put on crops of raphnobrassica, lucerne/clover, plantain/clover/chicory and others on pasture. Ewes are shorn in January as are sometimes the ewe lambs in February.

“We’re moving into more of a lower-cost, simpler model of farming so we won’t be sowing as many crops as we have in the past.”

Growing at a moderate rate the unshorn,

undocked Romney male lambs are killed progressively through Atkins Ranch from June through to November.

“We don’t shear our lambs because it’s more cost-effective to shear them when they’re almost a year old. What’s more, research has shown they grow just as well in the wool as they do out of it.”

Lambs are assembled in groups of 200300 based on their weight. Starting with the heaviest the groups are in turn introduced to winter-active forage barley (ME 13 - sown in March) at 15/ha which accelerates their growth rates (up to 700g/day) before being killed at 23kg CW ($220-$230).

Hogget mating is not practised as getting them up to a satisfactory mating weight and doing them well through to two-tooth mating is too difficult given that nearly all Romney lambs born are retained over the winter.

Crossbreds grow faster than pure Angus

Mark (left) with his second son Henry.

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Waipari runs 270 Hereford Angus-cross breeding cows including in-calf R2 heifers.

Mark believes the crossbred progeny grow 7% faster than pure Angus.

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“We used to run 500 cows but had to spend too much time feeding hay which wasn’t cost effective, was dangerous and wrecked the soil so we’re now a half breeding, half store cattle operation. This country’s warm in the winter so you’re better to feed just grass.”

The store cattle act as the station’s safety valve. All weaners are wintered with R2 steers being sold as forward stores in the spring/autumn depending on the feed situation and cull 2yr heifers are killed for local trade. Waipari also has a sharefarming arrangement with Poukawa’s Bill Buddo whereby animals are valued before they leave Waipari and the value added at Buddos is shared.

Maintaining pasture quality and cleaning up roughage over the winter is the cows’ role. Bull-out date for cows and R2 heifers is November 13 with bulls left out for two cycles achieving an overall calving percentage of 88-90% (cows scanned in calf/ calves weaned).

Besides structural soundness Angus bulls are selected using both the AngusPure Index and the Angus Self-Replacing Index while the Hereford Prime and Export indexes are used when selecting Hereford bulls.

Heifers have been mated to Wagyu bulls for the last two years and while this has virtually eliminated any calving problems the progeny have been difficult to market and can be a bit temperamental.

“We run all suitable 15-month heifers with the bull and nature decides which ones get in calf.”

Cows are calved on the hills while heifers are calved on grass behind an electric fence which is shifted twice a day.

“I find if they are given a small break in the morning and a larger break at night they tend to calve during the day and spend the night eating.”

Calves are weaned in late March/early April at 270-280kg however if there is an abundance of feed they are left on the cows for as long as possible.

Waipari is well served by an extensive laneway system, satellite yards and excellent all-weather tracks designed to accommodate heavy vehicles carrying logs. Olsen phosphate levels range from 22-25 while pHs lie between 5.8 and 6.0. Average annual fertiliser application is 250kg/ha of super.

“We poured a lot of fertiliser on at 300400kg/ha when it was cheap (less than 2 lambs/tonne) but this year it was too dear so we’ll hold off applying any more until the price comes back. Our fertility levels are pretty good.”

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Mark preps lunch before heading on farm.

Mark operates two separate businesses; Waipari Forestry Ltd. and Waipari Station Ltd. and also runs a four-wheel drive consultancy company Hillseekers 4WD NZ Ltd. In 1992, Mark was awarded Hawke’s Bay Sheep and Beef Farmer of the Year achieving a 15.9% return on capital.

Being an entrepreneur, Mark has developed numerous businesses in his lifetime one of which was selling bottled water from springs which emerge from limestone country on Waipari at 425m asl. He has even written a book entitled

“Many a Muddy Morning”, which records the extreme challenges of surviving, and thriving under Rogernomics. His latest project involves developing a rocketlaunching pad on Waipari on a site near the sea.

Mark has four children; Emma (32), William (25), Henry (24) and Jacko (22).

Henry works on Waipari with Mark and has been joined this summer by Bridgette Haldane who is completing part of her practical requirements for a BAgSc at Massey University.

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LIVESTOCK

Genetics

The wonders of genetics

With a lengthy background in genetic improvements, Ken Geenty reports on progress so far.

G

enetic gains can provide spectacular improvements in animal performance and profit.

The beauty being the gains are multiplicative, cumulative and permanent.

Similar in principle to compound interest, and well worth having. But the wonderful benefits from genetics won’t happen if management, including feeding, husbandry and animal health, aren’t up to scratch.

Even though improvements from genetics and management are very much interdependent they are different in nature.

The multiplier and permanent effects of genetics being very different to the more incremental, and sometimes inconsistent, management improvements.

For example, management steps such as more fertiliser to boost pasture growth, increased subdivision for better feed planning, improved internal parasite control and strategic use of forage crops, can all be influenced in various ways by good, bad or indifferent seasons.

Contributions by genetics and management are summarised in the well known equation:

P=G+E P – animal performance (phenotype) G – animal genetics (genotype) E – environment, including management.

Choosing the genes, or ram selection, may mean only a few short-term decisions whereas management is a longer-term commitment in both putting the processes in place and maintaining pressure to reap the rewards each year.

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Your investment in better genetics will be in one-off chunks whereas management tends to be a combination of one-offs and repeated spends during the year. It’s highly likely the cost:benefit equation will stack up admirably for each.

The same principles above and following apply equally to cattle and sheep.

Choose a like-minded ram breeder An essential step towards effective genetic gains for commercial farmers is to choose a ram breeder with similar breeding objectives to yours and markedly higher levels of performance to aspire to. If you stick with this breeder it’s likely you’ll close the production gap in the first 5-10 years then follow their upward trend.

Useful tools for locating ram breeders are on the Beef + Lamb Genetics website blnzgenetics.com/ram-selection-tools including a flockfinder smartphone app and a ram value calculator. Use ‘bullselection tools’ for cattle on the same website.

To ensure each year’s investment in superior genetics is doing the job you should replace on average about 20% of your ram or bull team annually.

Remembering about 80% of genetic improvement in your flock or herd comes from sire selection with the rest from choice of female replacements.

As well as having the essential tools for genetic gains, however, a basic understanding of animal breeding developments is an important background for both commercial farmers and ram or bull breeders.

Livestock genetics has its basis on Austrian mathematician Gregor Mendel’s original theories on dominant and recessive

inheritance of human diseases some 150 years ago. Since these early discoveries, mainly due to single genes, population or quantitative genetics as we know it today has evolved. Along the way a whole host of opportunities have been discovered with farm livestock including groups of traits controlled by single genes or groups of genes, and which can be quantitatively measured. Genetic improvement can then be made for single traits or those grouped in a selection index.

The keys to genetic gains being identification of the economically important traits such as reproductive rate and animal growth. Then identifying levels of inheritance for individual traits, or the ratio of genetic and phenotypic variation, and selecting animals that are going to effectively pass benefits on to their offspring. Heritability is generally lowest for traits most environmentally affected like reproduction whereas the likes of liveweight gain are in the higher bracket.

A key tool is estimated breeding values (EBVs) which for particular production traits use heritability, production deviations from the flock average, correlations with related traits and information on relatives.

The latter is estimated by use of BLUP (best linear unbiased predictions). Using tools with this smart genetic wizardry allows breeders to effectively carry out their genetic improvement with confidence.

Progressive breeding schemes Over the 70s to 90s decades this author had the privilege of working alongside some outstanding New Zealand geneticists and breeders who have moulded the various genetic parameters into ever improving systems, often in collaboration with overseas colleagues, leading to progressive

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breeding schemes for farmers. In the early days Massey’s iconic Prof Al Rae alongside then Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Dr Ted Clarke, followed by Drs Alan Carter and Neil Clarke at Ruakura, were leading figures in establishment of our early commercial breeding schemes in the 1960s and 70s. About seven commercial animal breeding bureaux for individual farmers and group breeding schemes sprang up over following decades culminating in the late 90s in joint formation under management by this author of Sheep Improvement Ltd (SIL) by the Meat and Wool producer organisations.

The breeding components were facilitated by a new generation of geneticists including the likes of Massey’s Profs Dorian Garrick and Hugh Blair and Agresearch’s Dr John McEwan. Beef cattle were catered for offshore with the Australian scheme, Breedplan, based at the University of New England, offering similar genetic tools as for sheep.

An integral part of the breeding evolution has been innovative involvement of leading farmer breeders and group breeding schemes. Some 15 sheep sire reference and central test groups made enormous contributions to effective uptake of genetic improvement across the country. Most breeds were represented including Auckland, Wairarapa and Southland Romney groups represented respectively by Bob Steed, Bill Hume and Russell Welsh. Coopworth, Corriedale and Perendale schemes were led by John Wilkie, Charlie Ensor and Charles Nairn respectively. Derivatives of these breeder groups still exist in various forms today.

During the latter stages of quantitative genetics developments has been the startling advent of genomics. This new dimension gets down to the basic building blocks and coding for genetic expression coming from the polynucleotide DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). Laboratories around the world now have the capability of identifying from an animal’s blood or tissue sample chunks of DNA called SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) related to productive expression of individual genes or groups of them.

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Greater genetic reach Application is association of particular SNPs with quantitative gene expression in particular traits. The resulting genomic EBVs, calibrated against the quantitative measures, allows much wider use in animal’s relatives, giving greater genetic reach. The technology also allows use of genomic EBVs in younger animals as the production related measurements have been made on their relatives.

"To ensure each year’s investment in superior genetics is doing the job you should replace on average about 20% of your ram or bull team annually. " Genomics allow wider use in expensive or hard to measure traits such as meat eating qualities. Another advantage is quicker genetic gains through shortening generation intervals from genomic measurements in younger animals.

This author experienced genomonics in action a decade ago in the project team of the Australian sheep information nucleus programme. Both quantitative and genomic EBVs were estimated in some 25,000 lambs over five years at eight locations across Australia. Led by brilliant geneticist Prof Julius Van Der Werf this development clearly illustrated the power and application of genomics with widespread use and impact.

In NZ a modern generation of geneticists and breeder groups work in association with B+LNZ Genetics developing from SIL the new sheep improvement scheme nProve and replacing the Australian Breedplan with customised NZ beef genetic improvement tools. These exciting new developments will provide breeders with ongoing and smarter opportunities to carry out their all important sheep and cattle genetic gains.

49

LIVESTOCK

Onfarm

Jim and Kim on the farm with Ned (2) and Ben (1).

DEBT REPAYMENT FOCUS PAYS OFF A family succession plan has seen a young couple establish their own farming operation in North Canterbury.

By Annabelle Latz. Photos supplied.

50

F

arm succession can be a great thing if it’s talked about openly and honestly. This approach has seen Jim Burrows and Kim Marshall call Glenlake, an 840-hectare sheep, beef and crop farm at Waipara, their home since April 2018.

Jim’s parents Paul and Mandy are dairy farmers from Mid Canterbury, and in 2017 they arranged a meeting with their two sons and partners, and their trusted adviser to discuss how everyone could be helped to be set up for the future. Everyone left that meeting on the same page, and was told things may not necessarily be equal, but they would be fair.

“Mum and Dad wanted to help us get into something while we were still young, rather than when we were in our 50s or 60s. The deal was that we had to have a good business model, we were not just going to be given cash,” Jim says.

Prior to the move, Jim, 36 and Kim, 33, were Marlborough-based living up the Awatere Valley where he was managing 550ha for the Peter family. Kim, also from Mid Canterbury originally, commuted each day into Blenheim where she was a chartered accountant, specialising in business advisory for WK Advisors and Accountants.

She has continued this line of work from Waipara on a part-time basis and travels to their Christchurch and Blenheim office when needed.

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March 2022

About 12 years ago Jim and Kim did start to plan for the future financially, even if they weren’t sure what the exact picture would be. They bought 50 dairy cows and leased them to Jim’s parents.

The lease was a replacement heifer for every three cows, which grew to 100 cows plus every other age group.

“That started the capital, we then started selling age-group heifers. We also bought grazing lambs to put in the vineyards around Marlborough.”

Life was busy, juggling these side hustles alongside his full time manager position, but it did feel good putting some extra funds away for the future.

Jim admits he had become resigned to the fact he may have to be a manager perhaps forever, because climbing the rung of the ladder to farm ownership often seemed a financial impossibility.

His parents were dairy farmers, and he had no interest in following in their footsteps.

“They had watched Kim and I build our personal assets over the previous eight years, and I remember mum saying ‘we knew you were so ready,” which is when they brought us all together to talk about succession.”

Pushing the go button High country farming is where Jim’s heart truly lies, but this farm in North Canterbury was too good not to consider, even though Kim thought it would be well out of their price range.

“The agent talked us into ‘looking at it,’” she says.

Jim says it was also down to timing everyone was coming out of rough times with the Global Financial Crisis and the farm had been on the market a few years.

North Canterbury had been through a prolonged drought, the owners finally wanted out, and with that, their offer was accepted.

So with this rolling hill farm a realistic possibility, the go button was pushed.

They cashed up the stock they were leasing out. With those funds, a loan from the bank, and from Mandy and Paul, they managed to buy their own farm and stock.

The young couple had never had debt before this, believing in the philosophy that if they didn’t have the cash, they didn’t need it.

“Having debt with that many zeros on the end of it almost didn’t seem real, but we were excited to start building our future,” Jim says.

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March 2022

Longdowns at Glen Lake are the favoured sheep breed, because of the exceptional growth rate.

Financial analysis 2019

2020

2021

Total area

840

Eff area (ha)

795

Key Performance Indicators GFI/ha

$1275

$1276

$1276

GFI/SU

$177

$171

$165

FWE/ha

$555

$541

$478

FWE/SU

$77

$72

$62

FWE % GFI

44%

42%

37%

$3760

$10,360

$14,196

$64,463

$55,364

$55,562

Expenses Casual labour Contract - Drilling, hay and balage, spraying and spreading

Having their own place to invest in and run to the best of its capabilities was the best feeling, and with Kim’s financial skills, they could not have been happier.

“It felt like home from the first night,” Kim says.

They were not prepared to just go out and buy ewes for capital stock during their first winter there with the risk of value drop, so opted for dairy grazing and fattening lambs and store cattle to generate income without out laying more capital.

That first winter was tough, and Kim was also commuting to Blenheim fairly often for her job. They were break-fencing 1100 cattle and grazing 3000 mixed-breed lambs to start them off.

“I’d be shifting 15 breaks a day, often by head torch, but it was worth it,” Jim says.

Jim and Kim agree their financial performance for the past three years has been good, with their gross farm income (GFI) about $1276/ha and $171/su.

“We have been very financially focused, paying down debt when we can, or leveraging against our equity to invest in other opportunities. This is still a very big focus for us, however work/life balance is definitely something we still need to work on… one day,” Kim says.

They made a point of running as lean as they could when they did start to buy capital stock, waiting 12 months before employing a casual worker one to two days a week.

This meant they had the stock paid off in the first six months. Running lean included using contractors instead of buying

51

machinery which meant the best person doing the job, minimal capital costs and repairs and maintenance. Careful spending for everyday items also played a big part.

Their lean approach reflected in their ability to repay the debt, which in turn kept the bank happy, Kim says.

This worked in their favour particularly a year after being on the farm when the neighbours’ 170ha farm came up for sale. It was their goal to add more scope to the farm, but this premature opportunity was too good to turn down.

“We thought this property might come up for sale in the next five years, not one. However, the bank was very supportive in helping us fund the next property, as we had proven we could be very aggressive with our debt repayments,” Kim says.

They’ve since approached the bank again, to lend against their equity to mobilise funds they can invest.

“You’ve got to leverage what you’ve got and make your money work by investing it.

The bank sells you money “The bank’s job is to sell you money, not look after it - when inflation is over 5% and bank interest is 0.5%, you’re pretty much going backwards if you have money sitting in savings doing nothing,” Jim says.

In 2019 they ran their farm working expenses

Being caught short on feed and water made Jim grateful it was bulls he had, not steers.

“We have been very financially focused, paying down debt when we can, or leveraging against our equity to invest in other opportunities.”

Half the farm had a lack of shelter, and Kim and Jim plan on planting more poplar poles this coming winter.

52

at 45%, 2020 was 42%, and 37% in 2021.

“Most farmers sit over 50%, so we’re doing pretty well for this country,” Jim says.

Their first son Ned was born in November 2019, Ben just over a year later in January 2021.

Glenlake is early warm, healthy country, lambing in late July. Great fertility means they can focus on growing quality legumes, particularly lucerne, sub clover and if they happen to get some summer rain red and white clovers.

“When we arrived four years ago the farm had been used for service bulls and there hadn’t been a sheep on it for 10 years,” Jim says.

The first priority was fencing and replacing any small troughs with 750-litre troughs to increase water reliability.

Anything Jim could get a tractor over that was growing browntop has been replaced with lucerne, herb and clover mixes, a tetraploid ryegrass and some permanent ryegrass mixes.

He has sown another 30ha of lucerne this season, with 90ha already in the ground.

“Our biggest focus is on growing legumes, for maximum production and for profitability.”

Everything flatter, north facing or the drier paddocks is in lucerne but for grazing rather than balage. This does come with its challenges like stock deaths for ewes because of lack of fibre

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March 2022

Kim and Jim have bought registered heifers and cows from KJ and Oregon in Wairarapa and Waiwheta in Waikato to form their own stud Glenlake Angus.

and subsequent gut problems. Jim admits it’s good bloat country too, with the lush short spring seasons.

Clover and chicory make up 45ha of the farm which the hoggets are grazed on with lambs at foot until weaning, resulting in good production.

Looking around the farm this summer, it’s lush and the stock are thriving.

But they have had some very hard lessons along the way too.

The first year at Glenlake plenty of rain fell, so they bought 300 yearling bulls on top of all the trading stock already on, predicting plenty of growth.

Then the worst thing that could happen, happened.

“We had a dry autumn, and that is the biggest killer,” Jim says.

Being caught short on feed and water made him grateful it was bulls he had, not steers. They managed to get through, but it was a good reminder that in North Canterbury you’re never too far away from a drought.

Buying capital stock was something Jim and Kim did not rush into, their philosophy being that capital stock is a long-term game, as once it’s paid off, it’s all profit and less working expenses.

“It’s all about timing,” Jim says.

On the farm they have 1500 maternal ewes that lamb about 148%. They will buy in 1000 one-year-old ewes this year in

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March 2022

Key points • 840-hectare sheep, beef and crop farm at Waipara • Started building capital by leasing and selling dairy cows • Their capital, bank loan and family money bought the farm • Good communication around family succession • Leveraging against their equity to make money work • Tight on costs to pay debt quicker • Gross farm income about $1276/ ha and $171/su

January to mate to Polled Dorset rams. There are 500-700 hoggets, which have scanned at 127% for the last two years and weaning 95%. Longdowns are the maternal breed of choice because of their exceptional growth rate along with great fertility. The average weaning weight is about 38kg, with the hogget lambs about 33kg.

Snow could not have fallen at a worse time last winter, with it being mid-lambing season, their lambing subsequently dropping by 12%.

“If I’d age-scanned into tighter groups I’d have been able to prioritise shelter,” Jim says, adding that having your own farm is one big constant learning curve.

The rams go out about February 25, with

the plan to wean on November 15.

“Normally 70% of the lambs are off to slaughter, aiming to kill at 20kg off their mum in the first draft. We keep the weights pretty high, aiming for 21kg post-weaning.”

Longdowns aren’t flushed, and scan at about 175-180%, without looking for triplets.

Every three weeks after weaning they will draft more for slaughter. From November store lambs are bought, and over the summer there’ll be about 4000 which are fattened to 21kg and then sold off again.

They shear every six months and usually break even on the ewe wool. They don’t drench the ewes, but because they’re fed so well there is very little pressure on them.

A dabble with Merinos They’ve dabbled with a few fine-wool breeds like a Merino over Longdown hoggets, but they just weren’t achieving the desired lambing percentages or growth.

Kim says Jim’s strength is being adaptive, looking for opportunities, and having not come from a sheep and beef family, he has no set tradition to follow.

“We aim for a minimum return of 20c/ kg drymatter on trading stock and often do twice that, and it’s what we balance our business decisions on,” Jim says.

The replacement lambs and ewes are shorn at weaning, and the ewes condition scored.

53

“I think this is actually the best time to condition score - you have heaps of time to put the weight back on rather than a month before tupping.”

On the cattle side of farm operations, they own about 100 mixed-age cows, half are stud Angus. They will also winter 200300 trading cattle, 100 R1 dairy heifers and replacement studs.

Prior to Glenlake, Jim had worked on two Angus studs, and has always been keen to start his own. They have bought registered heifers and cows from KJ and Oregon in Wairarapa and Waiwheta in Waikato to form their own stud Glenlake Angus. There has also been some embryo work to help get them started, and Jim thanks his industry friends, Paul Hickman of Taimate Angus, and Angus Peter of Brackenfield Angus, for this.

They will not be keeping any commercial replacements, and these cattle will be phased out as studs replace them. They will sell all the stud bulls as yearlings in October or November.

Fertile land for crops gives Jim and Kim plenty of options for feeding throughout the year. The ewes run on grass and winter crop from weaning until lambing, then are tailed on to lucerne. They grow brassica and fodder beet for the trading cattle. Once the ewes come off their lambing paddocks they’ll go on to the lucerne, and these grass paddocks are kept under control by the cattle in late spring.

Some years they may halve the stock numbers by Christmas because of the dry, and if it’s a good summer they will buy more lambs.

“This system helps keep the feed under control,” Jim says, adding that pinch points for feed are around late summer and August/

The biggest focus is on growing legumes, for maximum production and for profitability.

September, so they budget on growing lots of winter feed in autumn.

For mating, they put stud cows to stud bulls as well as using some AI and embryo programmes. There is a focus on what he sees as maternal traits such as calving ease and constitution/rib fat, scrotal circumference, mature cow size and days to calving in particular.

Jim says the focus on growth will come, but with a lot of beef cattle being pushed into the harder country many are not fed well enough to express their full potential growth at a young age anyway.

Calving happens mid-August for the stud side, and September 1 for the commercial stock.

Stud calves are tagged and weighed at birth. This year the calves were genomic

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54

tested as well as having their usual DNA parent test, to try and gain greater genetic predictability. All of the cows are boxed up after mating and rotationally grazed to clean up rough feed.

“We have to chew it off in the summer so that it comes away in the autumn again.”

The cows are easy care, just the stud side needs some extra attention and work at calving.

On the commercial side, Hereford bulls are sold as service bulls for the dairy market, and the heifers head to China.

“There’s been a delay with this because of Covid-19, but it’s well-worth it for as long as it continues.”

Their stud numbers are slowly growing, and Jim said if there was demand for the sires, they could grow it.

“But for now it’s about demand. We certainly have the scale for up to 300 cows with what we have now, if we were to stop trading cattle.”

They have not invested heavily in machinery. Instead they have a team of contractors, agents and suppliers with whom they have built great relationships.

After a main focus on production, it will be good to turn a bit more focus to the cosmetics of the farm.

Last winter they began planting some trees, including 2ha of natives and 10ha of scattered poplar poles, 850 in total.

“Half the farm had a lack of shelter, and we’re planning on planting twice as many poplar poles this coming winter,” Jim says.

Being part of the ETS scheme is also an additional draw card, although first and foremost they are for shade and shelter.

Country-Wide

March 2022

0096553

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Talk to your vet about everything you need to know about NZ’s copper deficiency and the best way to manage it for long term gains.

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March 2022

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55

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56

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March 2022

LIVESTOCK

Stock check

Changes ahead for a vet

Vet Trevor Cook body condition scoring sheep. What will he be doing in 2032?

Vet Trevor Cook body condition scoring sheep. What will he be doing in 2032?

Vet Trevor Cook takes a look ahead to see what changes to farming might do to his business.

E

arlier this month I spent a day in my business looking at what 2032 would look like and what, if anything , we should do to be viable then. Would we need to be doing new things or would it be more doing what we do now but differently.

There is no correct conclusion but nevertheless some strong signals suggest business as usual is not an option. The rate we are losing farms to trees for a start is likely to continue so reducing animals to service is real.

Dairy farms converting to bull farms is underway and also likely to continue which has a much lower demand for veterinary services. If the worst outcome from decreasing methane happens, lowered stocking rates, then just as for trees, fewer animals to service. But what would happen if lamb meat became a very highly valued product and was selling from the farm for $300, the need to or the return on supporting very productive sheep could increase the need for service.

It was a very exciting day but hardly one that came up with a host of actions that would protect us.

Doing this exercise for farming businesses usually does not go beyond five years and most often captures new polices and their installation over that time. I use a budget template that extends for five years and another that tracks the impact of debt reduction and increased profit over a 10year time frame.

The capital position at the end can be dramatic enough to trigger change. But seldom does such navel gazing for farming business look at a changing environment.

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March 2022

At some stage soon though we are going to have to do this. Even just for managing increased costs which are unlikely to reduce.

A 30% increase in fertiliser costs is huge and really puts the pressure on to produce as much as possible from each kilogram of pasture grown.

The cost of animal health inputs has not changed much for many years. Of the big three inputs, vaccines are relatively standard and little changes from year to year, just a gradual increase.

“It was a very exciting day but hardly one that came up with a host of actions that would protect us.”

They made their big jump a few years ago.

From time to time I see vaccines being used unnecessarily, but equally I see under-use of vaccines. The effect of over or under use is usually not visible which means the underuse is covering something that is not a challenge.

Not the same can be said about trace element supplementation. Underuse and overuse is widespread. Because there is a subclinical component to any trace element deficiency the need or otherwise cannot be based on what is observed.

A 5% to 10% drop in liveweight gain in yearling cattle with low copper is not observed unless good weight gain monitoring is in place. But that level of loss can be caused by many other factors and it

being attributed to low copper is unlikely to happen. A monitoring programme must sit alongside any trace element supplementation programme.

The interesting one is worm drench where there is intense competition which has kept a real lid on prices. Generics kept the pressure on prices and it is only the so-called new families that remain high.

There is no competition for these other than between the two. Such level of competition does not occur with any other animal health products. To some extent this low price for drench has contributed to the demise of their effectiveness.

The standard drivers of profit never change. Producing as much as possible and getting paid as much as possible make up one side. The costs of production make up the other. We have varying influence over all of these components and this is most apparent in those successful farming businesses that have very consistent profit.

To me that says that they have a lot of control over what they do and leave less to outside influences.

Unexpected costs can really upset any level of control. The big rain of early December in my region did so much damage to fences and tracks. Money just has to be spent to allow farms to continue to be functional. That same rain swamped houses on the town boundary that sit at the base of my hill paddocks. Somehow their owners thought I was responsible for water running downhill. It has taken all of my willpower to show some empathy knowing full well that I will not be spending anything on it.

That rural/suburban divide comes in various forms.

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LIVESTOCK

Hogget grazing

GRAZING AWAY FROM HOME Grazing hoggets off farm has benefits, reducing costs and risks, but there are negatives, Tom Ward writes.

T

he decision to graze hoggets off farm needs to be carefully thought out. It is determined by farm strengths and weaknesses, management priorities, and personal preferences. Any analysis is very sensitive to variations in pasture and crop growth rate.

Grazing hoggets off farm is useful in the following scenarios: 1. As a drought response, benefiting both pastures and livestock.

2. To reduce stocking rate in order to do the remaining stock better or to introduce a more profitable livestock enterprise.

3. To improve the grazed off hoggets’ growth and fertility.

1

Drought

Grazing off is the cheapest with 20 to 35 cents per kg drymatter (DM) consumed, the cost depending on whether the rate is $2/head/week (25c/kg DM) or $3/ head/week (35c/kg DM) respectively. At a pasture ME of 10.0, price/MJME is 2.5c.

The benefit to pasture of removing some animals can be considerable, and grazing off reduces the costs and risk associated

with growing summer or winter crops in a dryland environment.

There are some negatives. One is the livestock owner will probably not be able to take the sheep off the grazier’s farm whenever he wants. At other times, he might not be able to get the hoggets on to the grazier’s farm exactly when he wants.

Another consideration is the cashflow cost of grazing off farm. This results in some farms, probably the smaller or more indebted units, choosing to sell their ewe hoggets in a severe drought.

The attitude of these farmers in this situation is to minimise costs and may be an entirely reasonable decision. The hoggets will be replaced by breeding back up (and reducing ewe numbers or retaining aged ewes in the short term) or buying ewe lambs or two-tooth ewes when feed allows.

2

Reducing stocking rate

Extra feed is left as a buffer against poor growth, i.e. standing hay. On some South Canterbury hill country farms the upper valleys are left rank and used for drought and other times of poor growth. In

Graph 1 an additional 104,000kg DM, about 1000kg DM/grazed hectare, is available from the grazing off of 350 ewe hoggets from February to November. In practice this may be poor quality feed, and it is only 7.3% of total feed.

Extra feed can be used to try to increase production and profit from an existing enterprise or new livestock enterprises.

Where the extra feed is allocated to improving farm performance there can be considerable value. However this can also be a disappointing experience as the cost of grazing off is significant, even at $2/head/ week, shown in Table 2.

The winter/spring period is the most valuable for the breeding ewe enterprise.

While the grazing cost may be as low as 20 cents/kg dm, and fattening gross margins can exceed 25c/kg DM, a whole farm budget suggests significant increases in physical performance, and product prices, are needed to produce an adequate increased profit.

Graph 2 depicts a farm with higher altitude and expected summer dry. It shows a substantially greater average pasture cover, for the grazed off option (green line), at

Table 1: Supplementary feed options Product

Description

Price/t

DM %

Price/kg DM

MJME/kg DM

Price/MJME

Balage

200kg DM

$600.00

33%

60.00c

10.0

6.00c

Barley

1t bag

$450.00

85%

53.0c

12.90

4.10c

Bulk

$400.00

90%

40.00c

10.0

4.00c

Pitted

$400.00

35%

40.00c

10.70

3.73c

PKE Maize silage

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Country-Wide

March 2022

both start and end of the season. This reflects the hoggets being grazed off from February to November. In summer, due to the greater number of lambs finished before the end of December, and to the larger ewe size, the two lines are relatively close together. In this particular year, with February growth rates only 20kg DM/ha the average cover falls quickly (in fact remains barely feasible at its lowest point), and recovers, due to the destocking in January of the surplus ewe lambs and all the wether lambs, and the replacement ewe lambs going to grazing in February.

Grazing off the ewe hoggets, has utilised all the extra feed and improved the ewe enterprise performance, with the results shown in Table 3.

Graph 1 2600 2400 kg DM/ha

2200 2000 1800 1600 1400 1200 J A S O N D J F M A M J Countrywide hoggets off (lamb traded) Countrywide self contained

3

Graph 2 2200

If an animal receives sufficient feed it is really easy to grow a ewe lamb to 65kg LW by two-tooth stage, however many farmers do not. For some, growing replacements is always difficult, either due to high altitude (South Island), randomly dry summers (Canterbury, Marlborough), or animal health issues (Northland).

If Farmer A sent ewe lambs to Canterbury in a dry season he buys ewe replacements. Last year replacement ewe lambs went off in February 2021 at 27kg LW, returning in Nov 2021 at 70kg LW

2000 kg DM/ha

Improving ewe hoggets growth rate and fertility

1800 1600 1400 1200 J A S O N D J F M A M J Hoggets grazed off from Feb to Nov All livestock grazed on

Table 2: Extra feed to lift production Grazing price

Ewe liveweight

kg DM fed/day

Liveweight gain

$1/head/week*

43kg

1.0

50g/day

Grazing cost/kg DM 14c

$2/head/week

50kg

1.4

50g/day

22c

$3/head/week

50kg

1.4

50g/day

31c

Lambs only, review April.

Table 3: Grazing on vs grazing off Ewe hoggets Lambing percent (weaned) Kg meat sold (carcase) Kg wool sold Kg total product sold SU wintered

Grazed on

Grazed off

Change

123%

146%

19%

68,243kg

71,861kg

5.3%

6724

7407

10.0%

74,967

79,268

5.7%

2457

2436

(1%)

Kg Liveweight wintered

138,283

132,521

(4.2%)

Gross Income

352,097

403,151

14.40%

Total Farm Exp (incl depn)

144,422

173,205

19.90%

Farm profit pre tax

207,675

229,946

10.70%

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March 2022

(too big). This year he would prefer to have the ewe hoggets at home but is in for the long haul so will work with the grazier. Benefits were bigger two-tooths, bigger other stock, less winter crop. A quite high altitude farm so replacements do well down country. A very good farmer with a lot of trading cattle.

Farmer B sends hoggets off from April to November, in a drought, the twotooths returning much improved on what they could ever do themselves. As with Farmer A this freed up feed for the mixedage ewes in winter and spring. If it had not rained this summer he would have sold the hoggets.

Farmer C, in a very summer dry area, has grazed ewe lambs off for no more than three months in a drought on occasion, as any longer he feels is throwing good money after bad – i.e. no later than February, as droughts can be long lasting. He sells the lambs and replaces them when the drought is over by gradually breeding back up. He is a very good stockman with two-tooths already a good size, and sells all lambs by mid December, mostly fat. The farmer is already mating the ewe lambs - if over 50kg LW at mating (750 of the 850 are), and of these 85% get in lamb and produce 110% lambing. Again, cattle are gone by Christmas.

Farmer D breeds replacements and in a drought would only ever sell the ewe lambs. His drought management is about not spending money.

Farmer E, in a summer safe environment, grazes 2000 hoggets off for 10 weeks from September to November at $2/head/week. That’s a cost of $40,000 and he needs only 400 lambs from those additional ewes to break even. He does not feel the need to factor in the full wintering costs of the additional ewes.

Farmer F is in the same summer safe environment and has a greater area of easy country on which to fatten and grow-out lambs. He keeps his hoggets at home and lambs them.

Our local Beef + Lamb Economic Service field officer sees an improvement in the physical and financial performance of farmers who move to grazing their ewe hoggets off. They produce better twotooths and stay with the grazier so do not need to go looking for grazing in a drought.

• Tom Ward is a South Canterbury farm consultant.

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LIVESTOCK

Wool

SELLING TO MAXIMISE RETURNS Three main systems are used to buy wool from the farmers’ clip, Richard Gavigan writes.

A

ccurate wool statistics are hard to come by, but it’s thought that auction, private sale and forward contracts to supply now account for about 40%, 50% and 10% of the New Zealand wool clip respectively.

The fine wool market is buoyant, prices for strong wool are still low, but understanding how different selling systems operate can help in decision-making to maximise net wool returns.

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Auctions held on alternate weeks

The first public auction of wool in NZ was in Wellington in 1854, and in the 1890s auctions were regularly held in Christchurch, Wellington and Napier.

By the 1950s, wool sales were held in eight centres: Invercargill, Dunedin, Timaru, Christchurch, Wellington, Whanganui, Napier and Auckland.

When wool sampling was introduced in the 1970s, rationalisation of the selling centres reduced auction venues to four and finally two: Christchurch and Napier.

Today, sales are typically held every second Thursday at each centre, with North Island and South Island sales held on alternate weeks.

The sale of wool by auction is organised by a wool broker. It is mandatory that all NZ wool brokers belong to the NZ Wool Brokers

Association which sets the conditions of sale and ensures standards and regulations for the sampling and testing of wool are adhered to.

While there is typically no signed contract for service between wool brokers and their farmer clients, brokers act as specialist wool selling agents and perform a number of important functions. Those listed below are covered by the wool broker’s consolidated selling charge, which ranges from 15-30c/kg of greasy wool: • Transporting the wool from the broker’s depot to the wool store. The farmer must pay for cartage from the farm to the depot.

• Receiving and checking the wool into the store.

• Weighing the bales and issuing a weight note to the farmer.

• Sampling the bales to obtain grab samples for inspection by potential buyers and core samples for the pre-sale testing of fibre diameter, colour, vegetable matter content and yield (extra tests are available). Farmers must pay an additional $100 lab fee for the wool test certificate.

• Producing a catalogue containing the details of all wool to be sold.

• Valuing the wool to establish its market value. This enables the farmer and their wool broker to set a reserve price and provides the auctioneer with a starting point for bidding.

• Displaying the wool grab samples to potential buyers.

• Running the auction.

• Communicating the sale price (c/kg clean wool) to the farmer.

• Handling all documentation and financial transactions.

• Paying the proceeds to the farmer 11 days after sale (“prompt date”).

• Storing unsold wool for up to six months.

After six months, wool can still be stored but at the farmer’s cost.

Additional broker activities may include: • Preparing the wool to rationalise very small or mixed lines or divided bales and fadges of wool into commercially acceptable sale lines.

This includes binning (20-25c/kg greasy wool) which requires wool to be separated by type and placed in bins to be pressed later.

And grouping (14-16c/kg greasy wool) which involves matching bales of wool of the same type and yield from different farms to make larger, more saleable lines.

• Reducing bales that weigh more than 200kg.

This is a mandatory service, as overweight bales cannot proceed through the sampling system, and can cost $16/bale plus a binning charge for the amount of wool removed.

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Some wool brokers do not charge for reducing overweight bales.

• Selling wool electronically. Wool brokers and their farmer clients may agree to sell wool online, with very similar preparation and costs to the traditional auction system.

Top two advantages 1. Wool is fully tested and specified so farmers know exactly what they are selling and what it should be worth.

2. Competition between buyers encourages the best price the market will pay on the day.

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Private selling and brokers

A private buyer buys wool directly from the farmer. Private or in-shed selling has existed in NZ for almost as long as auction.

Some of the earliest private wool buyers were from overseas. NZ-based merchants quickly recognised that lines of farmers’ wool could be sorted, amalgamated and, after scouring, exported at a profit to the sales in London or direct to an international merchant or processing mill.

Today, some wool brokers also buy wool in-shed. While all private buyers buy wool directly onfarm, they can differ in how they sell that wool on.

Some are involved in wool exporting in their own right, some buy to fill firm orders from exporters and/or mills, some buy wool speculatively to make up lines which they offer for sale to exporters, and some sell using a combination of practices.

The price offered in-shed usually starts with exporters’ orders and associated prices, with the private buyer making allowance for their operational costs and profit margin to establish their buying price.

There is usually no signed agreement between the private buyer and the farmer, and because wool is not handled and displayed for sale by auction, private buying can be a lower-cost activity.

Buyers buy wool in-shed on the basis of a visual inspection, sometimes backed by the

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testing of a sample taken by hand from the bales in the woolshed. Some wool bought privately is later tested at the farmer’s expense to provide objective information for making up exporters’ orders and onselling.

Whether selling privately or through the auction system it is important that buyers are able to physically see and touch the wool. It can be very difficult to assess the potential scoured colour of wool from a photograph, and being able to handle the wool is essential when subjectively assessing fibre diameter and yield.

Faults such as sheep marking products and sub-standard clip preparation, and the type of vegetable matter present, can really only be identified by looking at a representative sample of actual wool.

A private sale is usually finalised on a Wednesday evening before a Thursday auction, with private buyers phoning in their c/kg greasy offers to the farmer.

Competition between buyers can be enhanced by inviting more than one buyer to quote on a line of wool as it is unlikely that one particular private buyer will always be able to offer the best price on the night.

When four or five private buyers are involved, it is not uncommon for the highest and lowest offers to differ by 2030c/kg greasy. Once the wool has been purchased, it is transported to the private buyer’s store at no direct cost to the farmer and payment is made 14 days later.

Top two advantages 1. Lower cost selling system.

2. Wool can be sold and paid for quickly after shearing.

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Contracts

While contracts to supply wool direct from the farm to a manufacturer at a future date have been in use since the 1990s, their prevalence has grown significantly in the last decade. Today, up to 70% of NZ fine wool production is supplied on contract, and contract use in crossbred wool supply is also evolving.

Wool contracts can differ widely in their

conditions, but all are very precise in their terms. Some operate for a single year, while others can run for as many as 10 years.

In most cases the contract price is set at the beginning of each season. Supply requirements are very specific, with wool characteristics such as fibre diameter, colour, vegetable matter content, staple length and staple tensile strength set out.

The month of supply is specified, and minimum wool preparation standards in the woolshed are applied to both fine and crossbred wool contracts. If wool does not meet the contract specifications it reverts to farmer ownership to be sold, often through the auction system. In some cases, the wool may be diverted into a different contract.

In most cases, only part of an annual wool clip is sold on contract, with other types of wool that do not fit contract specifications sold conventionally.

Contracts typically carry similar charges to auction, with contract fees similar to, or in some cases above, the level of a wool broker’s consolidated selling charge and the wool testing lab fees charged separately.

Cartage to a wool storage depot is the farmer’s responsibility. Payment for contracted wool is most often made by the intermediary (e.g. wool broker) facilitating the contract, usually within four weeks of the wool arriving at the store.

Top two advantages 1. Gives certainty of price.

2. Provides production signals with wool characteristics clearly specified.

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LIVESTOCK

DNA testing

CHASING MR GOLDENBALLS’ MUTATIONS In pursuit of Wiltshire lambs who might have inherited the Myomax lean muscle mass gene, farmer and geneticist Nicola Dennis tells how the family went about the testing process.

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wrote about our plans to do DNA testing in our sheep a little while back and I’m sure you have been on the edge of your seats wondering how it went. If you are not a regular reader, I will bring you up to speed.

We have Wiltshire sheep (one of the woolless breeds), they run wild and free on our steep, coastal hills. Last mating, one of us got trigger happy on BidR and bought a fancy-pants ram.

In her defence, this ram was a bargain compared to the other much more fancy-pants rams that she was outbid on.

The new ram, Mr GoldenBalls, has the Myomax or GDF8 mutation which increases lean muscle mass in sheep.

We want to introduce this mutation into our flock because we think it might give our completely hands-off sheep a bit of a market edge if/when we want to start selling lambs for breeding. So we decided to DNA test Mr GoldenBalls’ lambs to find out who inherited the Myomax mutation.

The equipment We ordered the tissue sampling equipment from Allflex via Farmlands. There was a bit of toing and froing on the phone as all parties tried to interpret my order.

To be fair, I did disturb the balance a bit by including custom-printed calf ear tags in the same breath. The equipment costs were more expensive than the estimates in my previous article. Inflation is it’s own pandemic. The sampling gun cost $170, the tissue sampling units were $5.49 each and the calf tags were $4.48/pair.

We use those tags on all our ewes because they are easy to read from afar (which is the closest you will get to our sheep) and we hardly ever lose any. That’s impressive since our sheep view our fences as mere guidelines. But looking at

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that tag cost in black and white, it was a bit extravagant for this use.

The tissue sampling equipment is a kind of ear tag gun and some boxes of liquid-filled vials (tissue sampling units). The vial goes into the gun, the trigger is depressed and released to reveal a needle. This punches a small hole out of the sheep’s ear which lands in the vial. Under each vial in the box there is a place to write the animal’s tag number which makes matching the sheep to the vial fairly straightforward.

We were a little perplexed about how to get the vial back into the box after sampling because the plastic vial holder comes off when the needle is exposed (our pockets were bursting with these little plastic things by the end) and we ended up awkwardly shoving the vials through holes in the box.

Later we were told vials don’t go back in the box, it is fine to mix them all together in a postage bag. A handy tip that evaded us and all the people who read our “please help” post on Twitter.

Taking the samples Tailing would probably be a good time to sample lambs, but we don’t dock our sheep. So we rounded ours up in early November. Being pretty close to weaning weight, they were old enough to have an opinion about this intrusion. But they were also a good size to just cram up in the chute and take it like grown ups.

One family member felt his pet sheep “Zippy Zappy” should be put in the priority queue for testing.

Zippy Zappy’s punch site bled a lot more than anticipated.

In the following sheep, it didn’t seem to matter where we took the sample, blood was on the cards making our yards

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look a touch suspicious. But, Zippy Zappy forgave us very quickly and happily spent the afternoon tricking other lambs into coming up the chute for their turn.

As Zippy Zappy betrayed her bio-family, we tried to guess which lambs had the Myomax mutation. Our clipboard contains comments like “chubby wee bum” and “very niiice”. Zippy Zappy was, of course, the best sheep in the whole wide world.

We did not sample all our ram lambs. This might have been a mistake. A handful of our ram lambs had tiny scurs on their heads and one had full-blown weapons-grade horns. It might have been useful to have the genotypes of our horny regrets to help get to the bottom of the issue.

What is a SNP chip?

Single Nucleotide Polymorphysms (SNPs) are single points in the genome that are known to be variable. Without knowing what that part of the genome does, it is about as useful as it sounds. But when used as part of a large collection, say 60,000 SNPs on a chip (i.e. 60k SNP chip), then you get a good sample of the variation taking place across the whole genome. This is handy for parentage analysis and can also be paired with performance records to calculate genomic breeding values. The chip bit of SNP chip is fairly self explanatory, the analysis takes place on a chip. Well, the company that makes them would prefer that we call them bead-based microarrays, but they look like computer chips and they are read by computers. So chip it is.

on the right track.

Science has yet to offer up many clues on the location of the shedding genes in sheep so there wasn’t much to look at there. But again every single lamb was 100% shedding so what, pray tell, would I do with that information anyway. The time will come when I think of something to do with all these sheep genotypes, but today is not that day.

The lab stuff Sending the samples was simple. There was a submission form to download from the AgResearch GenomNZ website which needed to be ticked, signed and posted with the samples.

What was my name and contact details?

Which tests did I require? I ticked them all and then wrote “Horns” and “shedding” in too. Just in case they were hidden options.

Did I want a 60k SNP chip or an HD chip?

On the form I said I wanted a 60k SNP chip because 600k HD chips are for the Harry Hardouts with extra special sires.

I also wrote a short note on the form asking for them to send the raw SNP information, if possible. And, yes of course, I hereby allow GenomNZ to access data from my flock on SIL (Sheep improvement Limited), even though we are not SIL registered.

I went down to the local dairy and forced all the boxes into a postage bag and sent them away.

When they received our care package, GenomNZ sent us a “sample receipt” showing all our scrawls neatly typed out into a table.

The genetic results came via email just before Christmas, after the usual set of Covid delays. A four-week turnaround is usually the norm. Once we had the results AgResearch sent us a three page “Customer Account Application Form” which asked us to list our average monthly trade purchases at three businesses with whom we operate a major trading account. It seemed overboard for genetic testing, and I told them so. In the end, we agreed to abandon the credit application and went with a bog-standard invoice. The bill was $26 per lamb, in case you were too polite to ask.

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The verdict

The tissue sampling units and what not to do with them after sampling.

The results Results for the gene tests came in a spreadsheet. This housed Myomax (called GDF8 by AgResearch for trademark reasons), GDF9, Inverdale and Booroola (which are three different types of fertility mutations), BCO2 (causes yellow fat) and Micropthalmia (an inherited eye disease).

Half of our lambs had a single copy of Myomax, sorry I mean GDF8 (wink wink), which was to be expected, but exciting nonetheless. None of the lambs spiced it up with any of the other tested mutations which was probably for the best.

GenomNZ apologised that they were not accredited to test for “Horns” or “Shedding” but gave me the raw SNP data to play with to see what I could find. A few SNPS were omitted for commercial reasons and samples don’t tend to yield every single one of the 60 thousand SNP results.

For the “OAR10_29546872.1” SNP that the internet told me was a possible marker for the polled gene in sheep, I could only find results for 19 of our lambs. And since I had neglected to test any rams that actually had horns it wasn’t that easy to tell if I was

We had a lot of fun genotyping our sheep.

Was it over $2000 worth of fun? Possibly not. We have a handful of Mr Goldenballs jnrs that look good enough to save from the works. Maybe we can recoup our costs by selling them. We have one spectacular ram lamb (looking at you, number 212) that was a real stand out. Good on paper, even better in the yards. Having that not-so-woolly Adonis probably makes it worthwhile on it’s own.

We also know which of our replacement ewes are carrying the mutation and their DNA results are stored with AgResearch if we want to get into parentage/pedigree analysis further down the track.

We can also be reassured that there is a decent correlation between lambs with “chubby wee bums” and the Myomax mutation. Although it has to be said that with excellent growing conditions in Otago this season, all bums ended up suitably chubby. But some of those bums were better off on the boat to China.

Will we do the testing again next season?

Yeah, I think so. If I can find something to do with my growing collection of Myomax Wiltshires, then the rest of my family will probably think so too. Oh and in case you were wondering, Zippy Zappy is now a bonafide member of the Myomax family. She, however, doesn’t identify as a sheep so her contributing to the breeding programme is not a given.

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OBITUARY

Colin Harvey: The ultimate entrepreneur BY: GLENYS CHRISTIAN

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ncare founder, Colin Harvey, was remembered as the “ultimate entrepreneur” at his funeral service in Auckland in early February. The 76-year-old died while body surfing at Lang’s Beach in lower Northland.

He was born on a Taranaki dairy farm then completed an agricultural science degree at Massey.

He started work as a sales rep for Pfizer in Auckland, where his friends from university, now vets, quickly became his customers. The company was later taken over by Coopers-Wellcome.

Colin completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Auckland University and in 1985 with patents expiring for some animal health products saw the opportunity to set up Ancare with fellow worker and accountant, David Johnson. The company was to grow from its start in small offices in the suburb of Glenfield to make sales into Australia, Ireland, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the Middle East.

Simon Wright, a former vet and friend, says Colin was thought of highly.

“He was an icon in vet professionals’ eyes.”

Later they belonged to the same book club in Auckland where he says members were “overwhelmed by his outpouring of enthusiasm and ideas”. In one instance he chose a book on the Middle Eastern political situation to be read, then invited his youngest son’s father-in-law, a professor of political science at Cambridge University, to join their later discussion by Zoom.

“He seized the day, didn’t he?”

In 1988 he founded the Animal Remedy and Plant Protectant Association which he chaired, and was involved in the formation of the new Hazardous Substances Act and the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines Act. The trading assets of Ancare were sold to Merial in 2007 and in the following year Colin was made

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an Officer of NZ Order of Merit. In 2014 Merial acquired the remaining research and development assets of Ancare which he had operated as a separate development company.

As well as farming the 11,000-hectare Lake McKay Station in Wanaka he chaired Zelam, a Taranaki research and development company, before it was sold to Swiss company, Lonza. He was involved in the founding then chaired Country TV as well as the Hobbiton theme set in the Waikato.

Russell Alexander, Hobbiton’s chief executive, told the funeral service how Colin had cut scrub on his father’s farm in the 1960s. When approached about the use of farmland by director, Peter Jackson’s film company, he said Colin was the perfect person to ask for advice as staff numbers were boosted by 250 in five years. He became chairman in 2011, a role which was to have changed hands every year, but he remained in it.

“He was the ultimate entrepreneur,” he said.

“He was always coming up with new ideas.”

He was also chair of Mastaplex, ran consultancy

Lake Mckay Station.

ANIDEA and was a council member of Massey University. His latest venture was another animal health innovation he was exploring with the Otago Innovation project team at Otago University.

He is survived by his wife Mary, and children Brett, Damian, Nicky and Gerard.

“He was an icon in vet professionals’ eyes.”

Peter Jackson: Affco saviour BY: GLENYS CHRISTIAN

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eter Jackson, a former chairman of meat company Affco has been remembered as an industry leader at a turbulent time, who was widely credited with saving the company from financial difficulties. He died recently, aged 75.

The eulogy given by Tom Mandeno, a past director of the Wool Board, the Meat Board and Meat and Wool NZ, as well as a second cousin, told of Peter being born in Wairoa and being brought up in Te Akau, in southwest Waikato. He was head boy at Southwell School and head prefect at Kings College, later becoming chairman of both their boards of governors.

Deciding on farming as his future he completed a Massey University Diploma in Sheep farming in 1966, catching the eye of Professor Al Rae, then head of the sheep husbandry and animal genetics department.

“I believe Prof Rae saw in Pete a sheep breeder with the potential to make a significant contribution towards lifting the productivity of the New Zealand sheep flock,” Mandeno said.

“The professor’s assessment was correct and Pete’s establishment of the Piquet Hill Stud and work with the NZ Romney Development Group and other progressive breeders has resulted in the spectacular productivity gains of the NZ sheep flock.”

The stud strongly supported performance recording and selection for structural soundness, screening more than 100,000 ewes and for 40 years

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recording through Sheeplan, Animalplan and SIL. More recently there’s been a strong emphasis on facial eczema testing and now sires selected for that programme are also tested for worm resistance, with results so far being encouraging.

In 1981 a Nuffield Scholarship took him to the United States, Europe and United Kingdom. He joined the board of Affco, then the country’s largest meat company, in 1987 and became chairman two years later. During his chairmanship, which ended in 1999, there were a number of failures of meat plants around the country such as Fortex and Benmore due to high bank debt.

With Waitaki’s failure Affco took over its North Island assets and Alliance its South Island assets.

Much overseas travel was the order of the day due to Affco having a number of offshore joint ventures in the UK, China, Europe and Canada.

He was also a director of New Zealand Wool Services International, set up by the Wool Board, chairman of Mount Linton Station in Southland, and had governance roles with two other large scale operations, the Sisam farm at Whakatane and the King Country’s Maraekowhai Station.

Two sons, Thomas and William, joined the Piquet Hill Stud business in 2003 then 10 years later went into partnership to buy it. William later bought the stud, and the dairy bull lease services he and Thomas had set up and the farm, now comprising 1600 hectares.

Peter is survived by his wife, Prudence and sons Samuel, Thomas, William and James.

“...Prof Rae saw in Pete a sheep breeder with the potential to make a significant contribution towards lifting the productivity of the New Zealand sheep flock,”

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ANIMAL HEALTH

Antibiotics

Antibiotic-free lamb Overuse of antibiotics overseas is often blamed for disease resistance, Sara Sutherland writes.

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mong consumers, there is an increasing concern around issues such as animal welfare and antibiotic resistance in meat products. This has led to the development of quality assurance programmes with several leading meat processing companies, giving premiums to farms that can prove their lambs are produced under certain conditions.

These lambs can then be marketed as, for example, “antibiotic-free”, “raised without GMOs, Antibiotics or Hormones”, “highest level of ethical production” and even “Gluten free”!

Why antibiotic-free? Some of the responsibility for development of antibiotic resistance has been put on overuse of antibiotics in confinement agriculture operations overseas (particularly in developing countries). This is not the way

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we use antibiotics routinely in New Zealand, where there is virtually no mass treatment of entire mobs of animals with antibiotics.

The main reason we don’t use antibiotics this way is because our country’s biosecurity standards keep out certain diseases that are difficult to control without preventive antibiotics.

Antibiotic products used appropriately (in an individual animal for a specific illness or disease likely to respond to that, and following our responsible use of antibiotics standards) and slaughtered after an appropriate withholding period (and meat is vigilantly checked at slaughter to find any animals where this was not applied) is not a risk for developing resistance. But consumers are not always aware of just how ethical and sustainable NZ meat is.

The advantage of an “antibiotic-free” scheme is that it gives consumers extra

confidence in the way the animals have been raised. The disadvantage is that it implies meat not sold under these schemes is not “antibiotic-free”, even though it is.

The programmes I investigated are Silver Ferns Farms, Alliance group, Ovation, and GAP4/ Atkins Ranch (which should cover the majority of the schemes available to farmers). Here is a summary of the main features:.

• None of these protocols stipulate antibiotics must not be used or held on the farm.

• Each of these programmes stipulates animals that are treated with antibiotics must be identified – some schemes stipulate how they should be identified (i.e. a red tag in each ear), others leave that up to the farmer.

• Lambs identified as treated with antibiotics must be sent to slaughter

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"The advantage of an 'antibiotic-free' scheme is that it gives consumers extra confidence in the way the animals have been raised. The disadvantage is that it implies meat not sold under these schemes is not “antibiotic-free”, even though it is." separately, and slaughtered in a separate line. Farmers need to send a separate ASD form with the lambs being slaughtered as antibiotic-free.

• Breeding stock can be treated with antibiotics – indirect treatment does not stop the lambs being marketed as antibioticfree (i.e. if you give antibiotics to a ewe with a bearing her lamb can still be sold as antibiotic-free even though it may have consumed antibiotic metabolites through the milk).

• Finishing farms can’t sell lambs they have bought in as Ab-free unless they have documented proof of the farm of origin’s involvement in an Ab-free scheme.

• There is variation in the intensity and timing of auditing these schemes on the farm – each scheme involves some sort of auditing, mostly through AsureQuality.

• If a farmer has a disease outbreak that requires use of antibiotics they miss out on the premium for those lambs but it would not compromise their involvement in the Ab-free scheme.

• The premium to farmers for selling lambs as Ab-free varies from 5c/kg to 20c/kg carcase ($1-6/head).

Each of the people I spoke to indicated these schemes were increasing in popularity and the majority of their farmers would supply some lambs through the Ab Free lines. I was focusing on programmes for lambs, but equivalent programmes exist for beef and deer.

Discussions with farmers seem to indicate most farmers who are part of these schemes go above and beyond these requirements.

For example, if I discuss the use of antibiotics in breeding stock some will say “oh, we can’t use any antibiotics on farm!” They may want to make it easier for farm staff, or not want to risk an animal being treated and not identified.

I am concerned about potential animal welfare issues in these cases. In other words, I am concerned farmers may withhold appropriate antibiotic treatment to make it easier to stick with these schemes, and that animal welfare may suffer.

Routine prophylactic use of antibiotics should be avoided – no use of antibiotics in healthy animals is a realistic and achievable goal. There is minimal use of antibiotics in sheep and beef systems anyway. Where an animal is sick from a disease that is likely to respond to antibiotics it should be treated (or euthanised). In the very rare situations where there is a conflict between animal welfare and market access requirements, animal welfare has to come first.

I wholeheartedly support farmers getting a premium for not using prophylactic antibiotics – it is great that overseas consumers can recognise at least some of the benefits of our remarkable NZ production system. Where there is an issue it seems to be one of farmers misunderstanding the criteria or not wanting to take the risk of falling foul of an audit even if they are following the rules.

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What would the ideal scheme include?

I think antibiotic-free schemes should include provision for antibiotic use in individual cases where veterinary input has determined antibiotics are necessary to maintain a standard of animal welfare. I think schemes should make it much more clear that where antibiotic treatment is necessary then withholding treatment in order to access those premiums is never acceptable.

I also would like to see farmers get a premium for routine use of pain relief. In animal welfare terms I think this would result in better outcomes than the current schemes.

• Sara Sutherland is a Wairarapa veterinarian, this article was written in August 2021.

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CROP & FORAGE

Beef feed

MAIZE

STACKS UP

Cracking the code of the right variety, irrigation and wind protection sets maize up as a winner for a southern beef operation. Story and photos by Lynda Gray.

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isconceptions about maize and its potential in the southern half of the South Island are well and truly dispelled by results at the Paterson family’s Matakanui Station.

This is the seventh year the crop has been grown under irrigation in the extreme Central Otago climate. The 18-hectare crop is sown, harvested and ensiled by the Patersons and it costs about 12 cents/kg/drymatter (DM) based on a crop average of 20 tonnes. The silage is fed in buns to young cattle from May until the end of August.

“It’s been the game changer for our beef finishing system, because we’re able to add weight to young cattle over winter,” Andrew Paterson says.

He’s more or less cracked the formula for a successful maize growing system which hinges on good shelter to prevent wind damage, irrigation and Pioneer maize hybrid variety P7524.

Before establishment, the soil is tested to assess fertiliser requirements which for the latest crop led to a pre-sowing dressing of a 400kg urea, 300kg DAP and 300kg potash super mix.

“We’ve found maize to be a hungry plant, but the flipside is that it produces a high utilisation feed.”

The ground is usually deep-ripped, and a rock mulcher used to blend in the fertiliser and further crush the seams of rock and stone in the lowerlying country.

This season’s crop was sown in the third week of October by a fourrow vacuum maize planter Andrew bought second-hand. It’s a slow job,

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“We’ve found maize to be a hungry plant, but the flipside is that it produces a high utilisation feed.” taking two days, but it’s done on time and according to the Patersons’ timetable rather than a contractor’s.

When the Patersons started out with maize they used Pioneer hybrid variety P7124, it was faster maturing but didn’t yield as well so they changed to P7524.

It’s sown at 120,000 seeds/ha at a depth of 110mm and in rows 750mm apart.

Weed control is important and can be managed with either a pre-emergent or post-emergent spray. At Matakanui usually a pre-emergent spray is sufficient but this season due to a fathen problem a pre and post-emergent spray was needed.

Urea is applied in two 200kg dressings, the first at Red Band gumboot height in early December, and the second about two weeks later at thigh height.

The crop gets 7-8mm of water a day from sowing until two weeks before harvest.

Irrigation helps mitigate frost damage with the evaporation of applied water raising the air temperature.

“We’ve found that with irrigation maize can withstand minus 3 degree frosts.”

The maize is harvested in late March/early April by a Claas chopper with a maize front.

Harvest is dictated by drymatter content which needs to be 35-36% to produce the higher starch content silage for cattle.

Once the maize is off the ground, ryecorn is sown.

Until this year, a maize and lucerne silage bund was made and fed to a single mob of cattle. They achieved daily liveweight gains of about 1kg a day. Also, a substantial percentage hit marbling specs for Alliance Group’s Pure South Hand Picked premium beef programme adding another $1/kg to beef returns.

Continues

Left: Andrew Paterson inspects Matakanui Station maize crop in midJanuary. Below: Matakanui R2 cattle feeding on a maize silage bun in 2021. They achieved a daily average liveweight gain of about 1kg.

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“We couldn’t fatten and marble in the middle of winter without the maize.”

This year a couple of changes are being made to the feeding system. In the past the silage has been a mix of lucerne and maize but this year the lucerne will be left out.

“We’ve noticed that the cattle will pick through the silage to get to the maize so we’ve decided it might be better to feed the lucerne in hay instead.”

Also, three buns will be made and fed to three mobs segregated into weight ranges. Andrew is interested to see if this will streamline management and further improve feed utilisation, if it does, he’ll add another paddock of maize next season.

Past experiences hinder uptake

growers had the choice of 71 and 75 CRM varieties, which require less heat units to reach maturity.

“Maize breeders have made significant genetic yield advances in the short maturity segment, and we now have hybrids that have been evaluated and proven in West Otago, the Taieri and as far south as Edendale,” Dick says.

These southern crops are on dairy farms but there’s opportunity on dairy support, and beef finishing systems such as Matakanui Station where he has provided technical advice and support for the past five years.

“Maize silage is a great option for putting weight and condition on beef cattle, heifers and in dry cow grazing operations.”

The basic requirements for a successful crop are good shelter, starter fertiliser according to soil testing, and a good soil to seed bond to encourage even germination. For optimal establishment the soil temperature should be 10C and rising at sowing.

Weed and pest control is also crucial.

He quotes typical maize silage yields of 16-28 tonnes DM/ha at a cost of 13-28c/kg DM, the higher cost reflective of an all-contract seeding, spraying, harvest and ensiling system.

Maize silage is a high-energy (10.8-11.0 MJME/ kg DM ), low-crude protein (average 7.5%), its low protein status meant that it needed to be fed alongside high quality pasture or lucerne.

“Maize breeders have made significant genetic yield advances in the short maturity segment, and we now have hybrids that have been evaluated and proven in West Otago, the Taieri and as far south as Edendale.”

Pioneer Otago-Southland area manager Darin Dick, says the maize mindset is the biggest barrier to wider uptake of the crop in the region.

He says that mindset is based on past experiences before the development of newer high-yielding short-maturity hybrids which have been selected for South Island growing conditions.

Ten years ago the comparative relative maturity (CRM) of commonly grown hybrids were in the high 80s and early 90s, now Otago and Southland

Amazing run Maize has both male and female flowers on each plant. The maize tassel is the male part that produces the pollen that pollinates the ears to form the kernels. The tasseling or pollen-shedding stage is a crucial part in the plant’s development which leads to the growth of a single cob which delivers more than half the total drymatter yield.

The ideal harvest time for maize silage is 30-38% DM.

Right: Growing a lot of high quality feed in a small area is one of the benefits of growing maize, Andrew says. Below: Matakanui grows Pioneer P7524 a high yielding short maturity hybrid suited to South Island growing conditions.

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CROP & FORAGE

Onfarm

Taming a prickly problem Pasture redevelopment has been part of the solution to an infestation of nodding thistle, Lynda Gray writes.

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he prickly problem of nodding thistle has influenced pasture development at Mt Pleasant.

Paul Murcott (36) has battled the biennial weed since taking on management of the North Otago farm five years ago using two-stage pasture establishment, HT brassicas, and MCPA. When he started out, ryegrass, cocksfoot, clover and plantain were direct-drilled in spring and sprayed with MCPB about a month later. Unfortunately, the spray wasn’t the silver bullet he hoped for; although it knocked back thistles it also had the same effect on clover.

“We found that the clover didn’t fire or persist, and the spray was costly.”

A rethink and discussion with Sam Sturgess, Catalyst senior agronomist, led to a two-stage new pasture development plan. Now a mix of ryegrass and cocksfoot is direct-drilled in spring. It is lightly grazed in summer by ewes and lambs, then sprayed with MCPA before stitching in clover and

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Kate Macgregor and Paul Murcott. Paul says the Mt Pleasant development was a lot more work than anticipated but an enjoyable challenge.

plantain in the autumn. The change has reduced the thistle problem and greatly improved clover performance. The MCPA is also cheaper than MCPB ($30/hectare compared with $90/ha). Many would argue that the cost saving in spray is cancelled out by the increased fuel and tractor time of the two-stage process. But Paul says it’s the end result that counts. Sam adds that if nodding thistle takes hold in a single stage established pasture, it’s more than likely that a second run with a tractor and drill to stitch in clover will be needed anyway.

The pasture redevelopment process at Mt Pleasant kicked off with the soil testing of every paddock. The process and resulting fertiliser plan were overseen by Paul’s partner Kate Macgregor (39).

“Because we were spending a lot of money on irrigation and subdivision, we were mindful of lifting soil fertility so we could maximise the production potential of the new pastures,” Kate says.

The farm was split into different

management zones with an associated target Olsen P range of 25-30 (irrigated areas); 20-25 (dryland paddocks), 18 (higher altitude paddocks); and 15-18 (gullies). The across-farm pH target is 6.

“It’s at the high end but we’ve found it’s about the right level for optimal soil health and structure.”

On the more difficult dryland country HT swedes precede the permanent pasture.

It’s Paul’s preferred swede because of its herbicide resistance and palatability.

“We’ve tried other varieties but have found that the ewes perform better on the HT swedes. They suit our sheep and our system.”

The better dryland country has been developed with Italian ryegrass, fodder beet then permanent pasture.

Sub clover in the mix Sub clover was added to the clover mix for the first time in autumn last year. It’s not grown widely in North Otago, but it has

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Nodding thistle remains a problem at Mt Pleasant but is now confined mostly to the laneways and the perimeter of paddocks.

Farm facts • Owners: Rogan and Michelle Borrie • Farm manager: Paul Murcott with support from partner Kate Macgregor and full-time employee Jake Matthews • Sheep breeding, lamb finishing, store and finished Friesian bulls • 880ha spanning 120 – 500masl. Comprises 100ha irrigation, rolling to steep dryland gully and river faces, higher altitude tussock blocks.

• Wintered Stock: • 2700 MA ewes (Coopdale) • 800 hoggets (Coopdale & Romney) • 300 R1 & 100 R2 Friesian bulls.

Kaura Hill, North Otago

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potential as an early and persistent legume in the drier parts of the region.

About 40ha was established with the goal of providing early season quality feed for lactating ewes.

“The goal is to get more lambs away in our weaning draft,” Paul says.

Ewes were set-stocked and lightly grazed the sub clover paddocks from August 20 until the first week of October. It’s too early to gauge the success of the legume but that should become obvious with seed set over the next year.

In line with the pasture developments has been changes to the stock run. Although Paul has stuck with Coopdales, he has bought in Romney hoggets, which will be mated to Romney rams to see how they compare.

The breeding cow herd was dispersed, and the cattle side is now focused on the supply of store and finished Friesian bulls sourced from the Borrie-owned dairy farms.

“It makes sense for us because we have a ready supply and they’re easy to quit if we need to.”

In autumn 300 bull calves arrive at about 200kgLW. They graze pasture, then winter on fodder beet. About a third are sold as stores in spring, a third finished in autumn and 100 taken through and finished off fodder beet in the spring.

Mt Pleasant’s major makeover Pasture development has been one strand of a major makeover at Mt Pleasant. It included an all-weather four kilometre central laneway, the upgrading of stock water, installation of pivot irrigation and establishment of tree and shelter belts.

There’s also been 20km of subdivision fencing mostly completed by Paul.

At the same time an environmental farm plan, a requirement for all North Otago Irrigation shareholders, has been developed and tackled.

Rogan and Michelle Borrie bought the dryland farm in 2017 which was extensively run with 2500 ewes and 70 beef cows.

The Borries own three North Otago dairy farms milking 2300 cows and three run-off blocks, all part or fully irrigated. Dairying is

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their focus, but Rogan has always had an interest in sheep and beef farming. His father converted a sheep and beef farm to dairying back in the 1990s and following time at Telford Farm Rogan progressed his farming career through dairying.

When Mt Pleasant came on to the market Rogan went along for a look with a friend. It sparked his interest and he saw it as an opportunity to diversify the pastoral business. It was also another platform to finish some of the Friesian bulls from the Borries’ dairy farms.

After buying the farm the next question of where to find a farm manager was answered by Kate, who at the time was Rogan’s fertiliser rep. Rogan had heard Kate had a boyfriend (Paul) moving to North Otago who was on the lookout for a farm manager’s job. Rogan did a bit of background checking on Paul, then quizzed Kate about him, asking if he might be interested in the role. Paul jumped at the opportunity, moving with Kate to Mt Pleasant in May 2017.

It’s been full-on ever since with the farm development as well as becoming parents to Mac in 2020. Their second child is due at the end of March.

For Paul Mt Pleasant was the perfect next step from Koromiko Station, a 12,000 stock unit sheep, beef and deer enterprise at Cheviot in North Canterbury where he was stock manager and learnt a lot.

The Borries had no particular brief for Paul on

Four pivots, installed over the last five years, irrigate 84ha.

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“If they are sprayed with MCPB when they are young seedlings you can knock them hard without any damage to the grass or clover...”

exactly what they expected to happen in terms of development beyond adding value through subdivision, regrassing, and irrigation. Throughout the process Paul, Kate and the Borries were in regular contact about what was planned and happening so there were no surprises.

There’s about 55ha of development left.

Paul says he didn’t anticipate the scale of the project but has enjoyed the process.

“It’s been a great opportunity for Paul, and we’ve been very lucky to have the positive support of Rogan and Michelle,” Kate says.

Kate, a self-employed certified nutrient management adviser, has also been a great support overseeing fertiliser, nutrient and environment plans.

Rogan says dairy farm income, plant and machinery has helped underwrite and fast forward development of the farm.

“Having the heavy machinery in-house has given us the ability to do the development faster and more efficiently.”

He says that Paul, with Kate’s support, has proven to be the ideal manager.

“I couldn’t expect more.”

Knock it early, knock it hard Nodding thistle control with MCPA has been the best option at Mt Pleasant.

Kerry Harrington, Massey University associate Professor in weed science says from his research and experience MCPB rather than MCPA is the best way to deal with the weed in new pastures.

“If they are sprayed with MCPB when they are young seedlings you can knock them hard without any damage to the grass or clover, whereas MCPA will severely damage clover seedlings.”

Nodding thistle typically established after autumn rain in older pastures that had died back over summer. Autumn germination could be minimised by keeping the pasture dense and competitive, not over-grazing in summer by using supplementary crops such as lucerne, as well as selecting droughttolerant species such as cocksfoot and Phalaris.

In established pastures MCPA or 2,4-D could be used although these could suppress clover growth so should be applied at lower rates while the thistles are seedlings.

Clopyralid (e.g. Versatill) mixed with MCPA or 2,4D was the best treatment for resistant plants but was a last resort because it caused considerable damage to clover.

An option with mild nodding thistle infestations was to wait until just before the first seeds formed and weed wipe them with clopyralid or glyphosate.

Grubbing them out with a hoe beneath ground level was the best way to deal with minor outbreaks.

Three biological control agents have been introduced over the years to tackle nodding thistle: a receptacle weevil, crown weevil and seed predator Urophora solstitialis, but none have been overly successful.

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CROP & FORAGE

NZ farming

LOOKING BACK TO LOOK FORWARD Kerry Dwyer reflects on a 40-year-old review of pasture management and animal production.

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n doing some research for another article I came across a presentation that Dr Ray Brougham made to the New Zealand Grasslands Association in 1981. Forty years later it is well worth summarising some of what he said at that time because it is still pertinent in the 21st century.

Brougham was one of the leading NZ grasslands scientists of his day, working for the DSIR for much of his career.

Brougham cited much of what he had seen in his life and work since the early 1930s in this address, some of which is unknown history to today’s farmers. The computer chip was only getting started in 1981; the personal computer and cellphone didn’t exist.

Pastoral farming in 1930 In his address Pasture Management and Animal Production” presented in 1981 he first looked at what NZ pastoral farming looked like around 1930.

In the early 1930s the average dairy farm milked 23 cows, producing 160kg MS/cow/ year. There were 72,000 dairy farmers who

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milked about 1.67m cows.

There were no income taxes.

The average sheep per farm was 1027, average fleece weights about 3.5kg. About 8% of all stock were lost annually and lambing percentages averaged about 85%.

The national flock was 17.5m breeding ewes.

In 1930 there were about 4000 tractors used in farming.

About 500,000ha was in field crops, with wheat and barley yielding between 2-2.5t/ ha of grain and ryegrass seed yielding under 500kg/ha.

In 1930, 450,000t of superphosphate was applied to about 950,000ha of pasturelands. Total sown grassland was about 7.5m ha.

Work was being started on the use of copper and cobalt to cure bush sickness.

Some significant developments from 1930 to 1981 Cultivar development and seed certification was begun to improve pasture plants. White clover was proven to be of value in soil fertility build-up.

It appears that rotational grazing was first put into practice in NZ in 1928 on a Manawatu farm and in 1931 the use of rotational grazing showed an increase in milk production from 320kg MS/ha to 440kg MS/ha. It was found that rotational grazing usually became important only at high stocking rates. (Stocking rates at the time were considerably lower than in 2022) Other major developments in animal management were: artificial breeding; non-stripping of the dairy herd; the use of penicillin and other drugs; planned and synchronised mating.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s there was considerable concern at our abilities to compete with synthetic fibres and margarine.

In 1954 Dr C.P. McMeekan stated in the NZ Dairy Exporter that the NZ farmer had three major efficiency cards to play: a) the untapped potential in the application of existing knowledge; b) the inter-changeability of the major types of animal production; c) the untapped potential in the application of future knowledge.

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The scene in 1981 The average dairy farm was milking 123 cows on 80ha, producing 270kg MS/cow/ year. There were 17,000 dairy farmers milking about 2 million cows.

The average sheep flock was 2,750 ewes producing 5.25kg of wool and almost 100% lambing. The national flock was just under 50 million breeding ewes.

The future from 1981 The scope for increased animal production over the next 50 years is very high.

(Ray Brougham then looked at various factors that would allow this prediction to be true) Improved cultivars and new species: It is only at the highest production levels that improved pasture cultivars are being shown to be of value in increasing production.

The genetic potential of improved plants can only be expressed when management enables this to occur.

Some very significant increases in meat production per hectare are shown, attributable to the use of improved clovers.

Pasture Management: In our farming systems, the leaves and green parts of pastures trap and use up to 4% of incoming visible light in the photosynthesis process.

In nature some associations of organisms or plants trap up to twice as much.

There is plenty of scope to devise systems that will utilise higher proportions of incoming sun’s energy.

Nutritive value: Much improvement has been made to the quality of feed eaten by animals throughout the year, and there is scope to improve further.

Utilisation: We do not utilise a high proportion of feed grown each year on the average farm, we will need to develop systems of management that obtain increased utilisation of feed grown.

Plant nutrition and soil fertility: Some 1970s research showed that the grazing animal is not really an aid in soil fertility build-up as previously thought, rather it has a strong influence on the leaching and volatilisation of nutrients through concentrating these in dung and urine.

One can envisage the day when the level of fertiliser usage will be more closely linked to the level of production desired.

Pasture pests: The removal of chlorinated hydrocarbons (e.g. DDT) cost NZ agricultural production. The future control of pasture pests and diseases will be by the integration of different methods and approaches to control.

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“The average sheep per farm was 1027, average fleece weights were about 3.5kg. About 8% of all stock was lost annually and lambing percentages averaged about 85%. ” Irrigation: In all regions, water limits growth during some period of the year. Yet NZ has only a relatively small area under irrigation, and in systems of irrigation that some consider extremely wasteful of water.

Plant Breeding: The development of plants with better photosynthetic capacities, and more efficient water and nutrient use, higher and more regular nitrogen fixing capacities, increased nutritive value and better tolerance to pests will occur through the efforts of geneticists and plant breeders.

Animals: Does the future see completely automated milking parlours a reality?

In the next 50 years production levels will probably be at least twice present (1980) levels, and possibly much more. The average dairy farmer (of 1980) is producing at about the level of the top farmer in the 1930s, so there is plenty of opportunity for further development. All that is necessary will be some independent and creative thinking, some hard work, and the right incentives.”

Today there are about 11,000 dairy farms in NZ, averaging 155 hectares per farm with 445 cows per herd, producing about 390kg milksolids (MS)/cow/year. There are about 4.9 million dairy cows.

In 90 years that is 85% fewer dairy farms, milking 19 times more cows per herd, producing 240% more per cow, with 290% more total cows.

In 2021 there were 23,000 sheep and beef

farms in NZ, averaging maybe 2000 sheep per farm on 650ha average. Fleece weights were about 5kg per sheep and lambing 133%. The national flock is 16.5m breeding ewes.

In 90 years that is maybe half the number of sheep farms, producing 40% more wool and 48% more lambs per ewe, with 5% less breeding ewes.

Finding how many tractors there are today is difficult, and do we count the ones sitting under the trees?

In 2021 there was about 150,000ha of field crops, with wheat averaging close to 10 tonnes/ha of grain and barley 7.5t/ha.

Ryegrass seed yields average about 2.5t/ha.

In 90 years that is about 70% less arable area, with yields increasing 300-400%.

Total sown grassland is about 7.4m ha, similar to 1930. Fertiliser applied is equivalent to 1.7m tonnes of superphosphate and 980,000t of urea.

In 1930 we were a country of cattle farmers (72,000 dairy farmers included), then sheep increased in numbers and declined again.

We again seem to be a nation of cattle farmers.

If you are interested in more detail, Brougham’s works have been reviewed

by Warwick Harris in Revista PASTOS, 1993.

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WHAT TREE TO PLANT AND WHERE 78

ENVIRONMENT

Trees

Peter Arthur gives advice on what tree to plant and where.

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f you are wanting to plant some trees the first thing to do is look about you and see what thrives in your area.

You will see pines, eucalypts, poplars, willows and macrocarpas. These are all easy, bullet-proof trees that have withstood droughts, frosts, gales and pests and diseases.

Look a bit closer and you will probably see oaks, silver birches, golden elms, redwoods, horse chestnuts, liquidambars, London planes, cedars, tulip trees and walnuts. Again, they are all good, tough trees.

On the steeper country and in gullies and waterways, there will be natives, either forest remnants or recently planted. In open paddocks you will often see patches of kanuka, manuka, totara and cabbage trees, the latter rapidly declining in number.

For good advice as to what grows well in your area join the NZ Farm Forestry Association and go to their local field days.

Their emphasis is too much on pines, trees for timber and carbon credits , but they also have members who are interested in what they term amenity planting. This is what appeals to me, trying to make the farm an attractive place to be.

I have blocks of pruned pine trees, incomprehensible carbon credits and about 80 hectares of steep papa gorges which have never been cleared of the native vegetation - kowhais, hoheria, rangiora, lace barks, karamu, pittosporums, mahoe, flax, tree ferns, kanuka and manuka. Also goats and deer but no possums for the last 15 years or so, due to TB-control poisoning.

About 45 years ago I planted about a dozen each of kauri, matai, totara, kahikatea and rimu in patches down the gorge. Goats, deer and possums got everything bar the rimu which is now a nice little group. None of these trees had any barricades to protect them.

In another area, amongst kanuka and manuka I planted some totara in 44-gallon drums. One or two have survived but these have had their tops chewed out by cattle.

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For the last 50 years Peter Arthur has been playing around with amenity trees.

I have only recently heightened these barricades.

In yet another gorge I direct-sowed the seed of black walnut (Juglans nigra) under scrub and kanuka with no protection and some of these have grown into quite nice trees. The gorges are fenced off so there are no sheep or cattle, only goats and deer.

For the last 50 years I have been playing around with amenity trees and visiting Eastwoodhill Arboretum , near Gisborne, Hackfalls Arboretum, Tiniroto, between Gisborne and Wairoa, and many other plantings to see what I liked the look of.

Hackfalls is particularly interesting as it is grazed with sheep and every tree is labelled so you know what you are looking at. Every tree was started off with an individual Weldmesh netting barricade.

Now I have about 500 different tree species on the farm, some thriving, some struggling. Some are in groups of 10, others just in ones or twos to see if they will grow here. The surprise has been deciduous Asiatic magnolias which are remarkably tough and very spectacular in the late winter. Oaks are a winner and I

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“The surprise has been deciduous Asiatic magnolias which are remarkably tough and very spectacular in the late winter.” have several thousand of them. There are about 600 different species of oak, half of them coming from Mexico. I have about 80 different species and the autumn colour of some of them gives me great pleasure.

The late Bob Berry, of Hackfalls, made eight trips to Mexico collecting acorns and his trees are now producing seed. Some of these oaks, which are evergreen are very fast growing, and at the Guthrie Smith Arboretum at Tutira are keeping up with eucalypts and poplars.

Not sure how mine are doing by comparison. They could be producing very good timber one day.

In 1807 the British navy bombarded Copenhagen and captured or destroyed the Danish fleet. The Danish Navy asked the Forest Service to plant 90,000 oaks to build replacement ships. About two years ago, or 210 years later, the Forest Service contacted the navy to say their trees were ready...

If you haven’t planted trees before, start with something tough and easy to grow, a poplar, plane tree, willow or oak. There is nothing like initial success to get you going.

Many years ago Paulonia elongata was heavily promoted as the perfect farm tree and many in this district fell for it and did small plantings. Frost got the lot and many of those who tried it were so disappointed they have never planted another tree.

Two out-of-print books “Trees, Farms and the New Zealand Landscape” by George Stockley and “Trees for the New Zealand Countryside—A Planters Guide” by John and Bunny Mortimer are both excellent references as to what to plant where. The Mortimers travelled round NZ and took photos of mature specimens so you get a good idea as to what the tree will eventually look like.

In most photos there is a horse, fence, dog or person to give some scale.

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ENVIRONMENT

Emissions

Dutch face up to manure BY: SHARL LIEBERGREEN I WAS SHOCKED TO READ LATE last year that the Netherlands is not only planning for a massive reduction in livestock numbers, but the new Dutch government is going to buy out farmers to achieve the reduction.

A sum of €25 billion has been earmarked through to 2035 to tempt farmers to walk away from one third of their livestock.

It’s worked in the past. By July 2021, 278 pig farms had requested a subsidy from a previous scheme to end their farming operations, leading to a 6.7% reduction in the nation’s pig sector.

Manure is the issue, from a variety of livestock including 3.8 million cows, 102m chickens, 12m pigs and 600,000 goats.

The Netherlands is renowned for being a major exporter of food globally, but with that comes a lot of waste. In 2020 livestock in the Netherlands produced 489m kg of manure, which contains a lot of nitrogen, which emits a lot of ammonia.

The Netherlands produces four times the European Union average of nitrogen emissions with farmers carrying 3.8 livestock units per hectare of agricultural area, the most intense in the EU.

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The Netherlands is seeking a transition to ‘circular agriculture’ or “Kringlooplandbouw” which aims to balance nature and agriculture.

Feed, manure, soil, animal welfare and other innovations are brought together with non-binding contributions from banks, suppliers, the processing industry, the retail sector and consumers all working together to support the transition, enabling conscious choices of food purchases and products made in the Netherlands with origin labels.

The issue isn’t new for Dutch farmers.

Who knew, but the “Netherlands nitrogen crisis” is well documented and has been at the centre of agricultural policy for some time. Excess ammonia deposition into the environment and atmosphere has led to acidification and eutrophication of natural habitat and a loss of biodiversity.

To mitigate this, the government wants to halve nitrogen emissions by 2035 with the funds being available for buy-outs, innovation, and technical measures as a way to meet the EU habitats directive.

Environmental regulation has been increasing for some time. Growth in the

agricultural sector and development plans on farms are stifled. Farmer protests have been strong to say the least. Yet livestock numbers across the EU have actually been in decline for the past 20 years. A reduction in cows and potentially production, has been rectified by dairy farmers feeding their stock more and better-quality feed. Unfortunately, this has resulted in no reduction in ammonia levels, thus a vicious circle.

The Netherlands is not the only country legislating on pollution caused by agriculture. The United States slaughterhouse industry is facing tougher water pollution control standards with a need to pre-treat wastewater. About 73% of slaughterhouses that pass wastewater on to sewage plants have exceeded the limits of their permits.

Wales is now a nitrate vulnerable zone with tougher rules being set for controlling pollution from slurry and fertiliser. India’s government has introduced guidelines for air and water pollution from the remaining 30% of chicken farms, previously exempt because they were smaller scale.

As a result of tight new policy and the €25b carrot, some Dutch farmers are jumping the fence and moving operations to Belgium, Germany, Denmark and even Canada. But many other EU countries are also suffering from pollution and it is feared the problem is simply being shifted from one country to another.

While Dutch farmers are excellent practitioners, the intense nature of their farming systems may simply exacerbate issues that are ramping up in other places.

Austria, Croatia, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Spain already exceeded their EU ammonia emissions levels back in 2017.

Fortunately, NZ farmers have grabbed the bull by the horns and implemented a number of measures to mitigate against pollution from nitrogen. More appropriate forms of irrigation; changes to grazing patterns and moving cattle off vulnerable pastures; new infrastructure like mootels and feed pads; and of course, kilometres of fencing to keep stock away from waterways.

It’s also generally appreciated that NZ has hit peak-cow as dairy cow numbers have at least plateaued if not reduced in recent years. Not that we don’t have our own nitrogenous issues, however, with nitrate levels in some regions being a concern and our own regulations to grapple with.

• Sharl Liebergreen is an AbacusBio consultant.

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Carbon mining exposed A Southland farmer has stripped off in protest at policies encouraging carbon farming, Annabelle Latz writes. Photos by Chris Sullivan.

Gore farmer Logan Evans surveys his neighbour’s property which has just been sold to “Carbon Mining” investment company for $14million.

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nce you plant an entire farm in trees as a carbon farm, that’s the farmland gone, forever.

The day before Christmas, 2021, Southland farmer Logan Evans bared all in a video posted on the GroundswellNZ Facebook page. He was expressing his disgust and concern about the government’s solution to reducing carbon emissions.

In the background of the video was Logan’s neighbour’s 1100-hectare property, a rolling sheep and beef farm. It was sold recently to the overseas company Ingka, the parent company of IKEA, for carbon farming, or ‘carbon mining’ as it is often referred.

Logan says this country is being sold for carbon forestry.

A handful of local farming families tried to buy the farm, the highest offer of $10.8 million being far short of the $14.3 million price tag offered by Ingka to plant

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it in trees. Logan admits he can’t blame his neighbours who sold.

“We just can’t compete with it though, can we.”

He says he shares many fellow farmers’ concerns, that any overseas person wishing to buy less than 1000ha of forestry rights per calendar year, or if they are an Australian citizen or in some circumstances an Australian entity, are not even required to obtain a consent from the Overseas Investment Office.

As a committee member of GroundswellNZ in Southland, he’d been talking to fellow members about the best way to get traction about this issue with a video.

More clicks clothed A previous video about water quality Logan had posted received 230,000 views, but it was suggested more traction could be achieved if Logan’s face was in it.

He took this suggestion one step further, and decided to have more than just his face showing.

To keep his modesty, he held a container of glyphosate spray he said will soon be applied to his neighbours’ farm to destroy any existing vegetation.

Logan was hoping the video would turn into clickbait.

“I wanted to get at least a couple of hundred thousand views, and ended up with 60,000 which was a bit disappointing.”

Anyone who knows him will appreciate he was not comfortable taking his clothes off for the video, he says.

He believes rural New Zealand knows what’s going on with carbon mining and can appreciate what a poorly thought out policy it is. But urban NZ doesn’t understand that once a farm is mined for carbon, it’s gone from food production forever.

“All the readers seeing this article will

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know what is wrong, but the main thing we have to do is motivate the rural people of NZ to tell this story to their urban friends, and explain that policies like this are worse for the environment, not better.”

Logan says 25% of NZ’s native vegetation is on sheep and beef farms.

These conflicting policies enforced by the Government are putting this under threat as these are the areas that suit carbon mining.

It is ridiculous to think NZ can plant some of its best food producing land in trees for carbon mining and it will solve the world’s problems, he says.

“Meanwhile global emitters carry on their pollution, but market the fact they are carbon neutral – this is an absolute joke.”

The trees taking up precious farmland only have a certain life span, and after about 100 years they will start dying, and emitting carbon.

“I am no scientist, but why are we not deciding where we want to be in 100 to 200 years, why has this government only got a two-year plan?”

He says the Government is looking for

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Logan with farm workers Jade McCall and Cam Peat

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a solution to tick a box at the next United Nations summit but NZ’s environment and economy will suffer the consequences.

Fears about family’s farming future Logan, 40, is the third generation on his family’s 3300ha sheep and beef farm Mt Peel in Otamita Valley, Southland. He and his wife Nicole have three young children, and he fears farming may not be an option for them.

“That is the concern isn’t it, that is what I am here for, so my kids have the opportunity to farm, own and run a business in New Zealand.”

‘When it hits your back door, it wakes you up and you think to yourself “holy shit this is real”.

He believes many traditional farming families are being driven out because of unworkable regulations, which makes them ripe pickings for carbon mining and the average NZ farmer can’t compete.

“When we lose these families we lose generations of environmental stewardship, we lose the life blood of our communities.”

Carbon farming by big overseas corporations like Ingka is demoralising for all the farmers

Logan working sheep in his yards.

Logan with his children (L-R) Matilda (3 1/2), Max (7) and Trelise (9).

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who have been planting trees and looking after the environment for decades.

“NZ farmers are doing so much amazing environmental work, but our story is not being told.”

Logan says the solution for reducing greenhouse gases is not blanket planting in short-term pine trees, it is in reducing pollution and better-managing our existing natural landscapes.

The urban public might think the government is doing the right thing and helping the planet, but the truth is otherwise. “.. as the world’s most efficient farmers, we want to feed people but this government is restricting this ability at a very rapid rate.”

Logan is confident Groundswell will continue to work hard to spread the word about unworkable policies such as carbon farming, and would like to see levy bodies do more too, telling positive environmental stories of NZ farming.

There may be another video or two coming from Logan, you’ll just have to keep an eye out.

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COMMUNITY

Advice

Dear Aunty Thistledown, Can you kindly explain the RCP, GWP, IPCC, and all the other wordjumbles that mean my livestock are eco-terrorists?

Are we all going to die? I can’t even keep rhubarb alive and they want me to start farming beans or something.

Sincerely, Slightly Panicked

Dear SP, Yes we are all going to die, there is no amount of environmentalism that will render any of our darling readers immortal. If it helps, everyone says that Buddha says that life is suffering. If that doesn’t bring you inner peace, then you can tell it to your rhubarb plants. Or pop a plant protector round them. Everyone says that rhubarb leaves are toxic, but that has yet to stop the birds, rabbits and possums.

Anywho, I can’t help thinking that saving the planet would be a little easier if they didn’t use so many damn acronyms.

Let's see. The IPCC is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is a group that reviews climate change research for the United Nations (i.e. the UN). Think of this as like a potluck lunch, but instead of bringing lamingtons, governments bring their scientists. The idea here is that governments can pool resources Country-Wide

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to keep abreast of the latest science developments. The reality is that scientists get together every six or so years to inform politicians, with increasing certainty, that they need to do something about the cars, cement, and coal etc.

This is kind of related to the COP (conference of the parties) which is when the politicians get together and make promises to do something about the cars, cement, and coal etc.

The RCPs or representative concentration pathways are the forecasts for how much greenhouse gases will accumulate in the atmosphere, depending on how much the politicians do about the cars, cement, and coal etc.

They range from working very hard to keeping temperatures within 1.5 degrees of warming (RCP 1.9), through to “we’ve found more oil, tell Noah to ready the ark” (RCP 8.5).

The GWPs or global warming potentials are a form of accounting.

They are just about as tedious and loopholey as every other form of accounting.

Carbon dioxide is the main greenhouse gas, it is released into the atmosphere everytime we burn something or breathe out. But there are eight or so other gases that humans are releasing that can also cause issues. The GWP is essentially a form of currency exchange to “convert” the measurements of other greenhouse gases into “carbon dioxide equivalents”.

Let's look at the greenhouse gas, methane.This is the bugbear of cattle, sheep and rice farmers, but methane is also released by much less wholesome human activities, such as landfills and fossil fuel production. Methane is less abundant than carbon dioxide (i.e. measured in parts per billion rather than parts per million) and it hangs around in the atmosphere for a much shorter duration (i.e. a half life of about 10 years vs 120 years), but while the methane is there it is about 28 times better at holding in heat than carbon dioxide.

Here’s where the bickering starts. If you

had equal amounts of carbon dioxide and methane, you couldn’t just say that methane is “worth” 28 times more than carbon dioxide, because after a decade half your methane has disappeared.

So you would have to say methane is worth such-and-such amount of carbon dioxide over such-and-such period of time. If you choose 100 years (GWP 100) then methane ends up being worth about 20-40 times the carbon dioxide, if you choose 500 years then it ends up being 5-6 times. Then there is GWP* which is a method of adding more value to methane when it is first released and then less in it’s later years. The idea being that stable amounts of methane emissions over long timeframes are less harmful than large pusles of methane emissions released today. And if you didn’t roll your eyes at all that and growl “who cares, just do something about the cars, cement and coal” then you, my dear, have no future in politics.

Aunty Thistledown.

Cali Thistledown lives on a farm where all the gates are tied together with baling twine and broken dreams.

While she rarely knows what day it is, she has a rolodex of experts to call on to get the info you need. She’s Kiwi agriculture’s agony aunt. Contact our editor if you have a question for her terry.brosnahan@nzfarmlife.co.nz

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COMMUNITY

Footrot

problem dissipated.

“Numbers varied year to year, especially with hogget numbers,” Graham says.

Australia was making the wool price picture look good at the time, guaranteeing $7/kilogram, then $8/kilogram.

Market flooded

Graham Reed checks a fleece in the woolshed at The Grampians.

Beating the footrot curse BY: ANNABELLE LATZ

A

pparently, a few decades ago you’d need your temperature taken if you were thinking of farming Merinos in the North Canterbury high country.

With an annual rainfall of 1100mm and clay-based soil, out the back of Culverden neighbouring farmers the Reeds and the McRaes knew not everything was in their favour, but it was a challenge they were willing to accept, and they don’t regret it.

Graham Reed and Beau McRae have been great mates for nearly 50 years. Graham and his wife Anne moved to The Grampians from Sheffield in 1973 when Beau and his wife Georgy were on Glens of Tekoa just down the road.

In the mid 1970s Beau’s flock was all halfbreds with no wethers, but relying on the market of selling store lambs was no longer quite cutting it for the account books.

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Knowing he needed a change in direction, Beau chose to focus on a bigger type of Merino which he could cross with a halfbred, riding the wave of the juggle between retaining vigour and producing a stable type of sheep.

Graham followed suit a few years later, departing from his 15-year tenure of Corriedale breeding at The Grampians, due to the frustration with the wool market and the price of meat.

“I figured I could grow better wool on Merinos and get better prices,” he says.

Graham and Beau both ran split flocks for a while, keeping their foot in the door of the lamb prices that did pick up again.

“Crossbreeding did pay the bills, but so did the wethers,” Beau says.

They both ran substantial stock numbers, which varied in ratios of halfbreds and Merinos over the years, eventually both choosing Merino flocks once the footrot

Beau recalled Australia flooded the market at such smart prices, so prices then fell by half in the 1990s.

“But even at $7/kg, it was still better than what we were getting for the halfbreds.”

Back in the 1980s, land development subsidies, stock incentive schemes and suspension loans all created a colourful picture for New Zealand farmers.

Through the 1990s the fine wool struggled at about $7/kg. The NZ Wool Board threw farmers a lifeline by setting the minimum price.

The wool began to stockpile in NZ and even more so in Australia, the demand for high end clothing such as Italian suits not quite being at the rate some had predicted.

Farmers started to chase the mid micron range, and even up to 19m which was deemed the best option for sports clothing because it was durable and comfortable.

“It was all about the prickle factor, and the quality of the wool,” Graham says.

Another factor taken into account when producing Merinos in less traditional Merino country, was the necessity to run more cattle. But they made a great job of cleaning up the native land, Merinos following and finishing off the job. Both farmers ran between 40-50% cattle stock units.

The flipside was that the higher the ratio of cattle, the less parasites in the sheep.

In the earlier days, all the sheep would go on the native blocks in the autumn, and they’d lamb at about 85%. This method was tweaked in later years, whereby just the wethers would go out on the native land and the ewes would stay on higher-quality pasture.

Footrot strikes Top dressing was a good solution to increase feed, because quality wool was all about that, but “then came the footrot”.

“We were spending a lot of time tipping over sheep,” Graham says.

It worsened in the 1990s with severe cases where sheep would find it difficult to move around and eat, creating breaks in the wool.

“The average condition score would be

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well down, there was no doubt about that.”

Beau was also battling with carpal tunnel syndrome in his hands from the constant foot trimming, so some tough decisions were being considered and there were thoughts about whether to carry on with Merinos or not.

But then there was a turning point.

Near the end of the decade came the development of the footrot gene-marker test, thanks to Professor Jon Hickford from Lincoln University.

Early days of the test involved blood testing Merino rams around the South Island, to see if there was a genetic link to footrot.

Beau and Graham were both an instrumental part of this research, having been involved in the local branch of Federated Farmers and knowing about access to the Ministry of Agriculture’s Sustainable Farming Fund. So they applied for $300,000 to utilise this technology and arrange for stud rams around the South Island to be blood tested, given fellow farmers would get on board.

“It was about promoting this genetic technology, we worked out that the best approach was to give the money to stud breeders to test their own rams,” Beau says.

A dozen studs around the South Island took part, the goal to find out what key sires did or did not have strong genetic links to footrot resistance.

It was revealed that one particular MHC (major histocompatibility complex) gene called DQA2 was associated with sheep having a greater or lesser likelihood of developing footrot. This research became the basis of a gene-marker test that enabled sheep breeders to identify sheep that were considered less likely to develop this debilitating condition.

Footrot resistance Beau says the main thing they learned was there was a genetic factor involved in footrot, it was quite heritable, and they could breed sheep that were resistant to it.

“We’d start culling and stop treating, because beforehand we’d basically been breeding it.”

Rams were ranked on a score of one to five, depending on the level of alleles, a gene variant (one of a pair of genes that appeared on a particular chromosome if the DQA2 gene was prevalent). Therefore, the idea was to have two ones which meant they were reasonably resistant.

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Old mates Graham and Beau still catch up regularly, both on smaller blocks in Waikari, North Canterbury.

Beau admits it really hurt to cull an $800 ram or ewe with quality fleece because it had footrot.

“That was a real lightbulb for me, we never knew there was a real genetic influence at all,” Graham says, adding that once they changed their method from treatment to culling and stopped vaccinating straight away, everything changed.

It took about five years to see a difference, but it was a game changer in Merino farming and once they stopped tipping sheep all the time, they wondered how they ever did it.

Into the 21st century, and Graham says farming Merinos began to paint a different picture.

“Footrot was no longer an issue for us, we

didn’t need to trough or anything.”

In the early 2000s wool prices were at the lowest they’d been, while cattle prices were good and the fat lamb market wasn’t looking too bad either.

Thus began a shift in focus to breeding a dual purpose sheep, pushing carcaseweight and good constitution while retaining the quality of the fine wool. Breeding for internal parasite resistance also became a reality.

Producing an animal they are proud of is what Graham and Beau find most exciting about the Merino industry, where they can offer a product in high demand around the world.

“It’s pretty satisfying to have a better clip, and if you get more weight too then that’s the deciding thing,” Beau says.

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SOLUTIONS

Breaking the mould wins

Heybarn co-founder Tom Brownlie (left) with shed owner Barry McClellan.

Tinder for sheds BY: REBECCA GREAVES THE UNUSED SHED ON YOUR farm or lifestyle block could be the solution to someone else’s storage or workspace needs.

Heybarn is the new online platform that connects shed owners (hosts) with those looking for space (renters) – kind of like Tinder for sheds.

It is a two-sided marketplace that caters for both property owners and renters online. It was designed specifically with farmers and lifestyle block owners in mind.

Co-founder Jaimie Hunnam first hit on the idea when she struggled to find a place to advertise a shed on her property for rent.

Launched in the Manawatu and lower South Island, the plan is to extend the platform to the whole of New Zealand, and eventually Australia.

Jaimie said security and privacy were top concerns, and the exact location of a shed was never disclosed on the site.

The host has the opportunity to look at a renter’s profile before approving their interest.

“You have complete control over

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access and viewing, down to the times of the day the renter can access the shed.”

Jaimie said research showed there was not enough storage available in NZ and even if someone lived in the back blocks, it’s likely someone would be interested in shed space.

“It’s an opportunity to do something new and creative with what you have, gain some passive income for minimal work…”

It is free for renters and hosts to list on heybarn. There is a $20 connection fee where a renter or host can ‘hold’ an advertisement and contact the person before anyone else does. The recipient can accept or decline that interest after they’ve viewed the profile of the other party.

Additionally, a 3% commission is charged per month to the host for use of a heybarn rental agreement, and to run rental payments through the site.

“That’s what we recommend as the lowest-risk path, but there’s no obligation to go through us, you can do your own rental agreement. The feedback we had was that people preferred to go through a third party and be hands-off.”

RHYS ROBERTS’ entrepreneurial approach to primary production has won him the 2022 New Zealand Zanda McDonald Award.

The Zanda McDonald Award, now in its eighth year, Rhys Roberts, 2022 Zanda supports talented and NZ award winner. passionate young professionals in the ag sector from Australia and New Zealand.

He is group chief executive of the MidCanterbury Align which operates seven farms, and a market garden, which are vertically integrated with a yoghurt brand and milk processing facility.

Roberts will receive a trans-Tasman prize package centred on mentoring, education and training tailored to his needs.

Charlie Perry, who lives and works on his family owned and operated wagyu beef farm at Gurya, in Northern New South Wales took out the 2022 Australian Zanda McDonald Award.

His focus on building a future workplace has resulted in creating a market garden that feeds his team through the fruit, vegetables, meat, poultry and eggs from their farms. All of the team are on fully flexible rosters, and can manage their own schedules, choosing shifts that suit them. This frees them up of about 1000 hours combined per year, which they reinvest into the community.

Award patron Shane McManaway says Rhys is highly ambitious, and he’s prepared to break the mould of the past and do things differently.

Some of the results he’s seeing, due to his innovative approach, are nothing short of exceptional.

The award interviews and presentation were originally going to be held in Martinborough, but this changed to an online format as a result of the sudden Covid alert level change to red.

Roberts will receive a professional development package that includes an all-expenses paid transTasman mentoring trip to high-performing farms and businesses in Australia and NZ, $10,000 towards further education, and networking opportunities.

The award would normally crown one winner from across Australasia, but in response to Covid-19 related travel restrictions, an Australian and a NZ winner will be crowned this year.

More? visit zandamcdonaldaward.com

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Salt block relaunched HARVEST BLOCKS HAS BEEN RElaunched into the rural market this season with the new-look Harvest Salt block from Dominion Salt.

First introduced in the 1990s as a competitor to imported rock salt, the unmineralised salt-only 20kg uncartoned block is part of the Summit salt block range.

It’s pressed from salt taken from the salt stockpile at the Dominion Salt solar recovery site at Lake Grassmere in Marlborough and marketed as 60 x 20kg uncartoned blocks wrapped on a 1.2 tonne pallet.

This year the Harvest block has been reintroduced in convenient new packaging.

“This consists of two sling bulk bags each containing 30 x 20kg salt blocks wrapped together on a pallet,” explains Dominion Salt rural market manager Colin Perkinson.

The 1.2t pallet presentation remains, but with the added advantage to merchants and farmers of two sling bulk bags that are easily and safely lifted by the merchant store forklifts and the average farm tractor and easily transported by farm utes to drop off points.

Merchants have the option to sell Harvest as either a full two-sling pallet (1.2t) or single slings (600kg). Handling is safe and easy with no need for store staff or farmers to physically handle the blocks through the

delivery system.

The 600kg sling bulk bag can also be slung under helicopters and flown to the areas where the blocks will be used.

“It’s ideal for use with wethers on back blocks, for example,” In 1990 trials on block weathering were conducted at Tara Hills and Ruakura Research Stations.

“For a number of years farmers had been claiming that rock salt weathered at a slower rate than pressed salt blocks,” Perkinson says.

Dominion Salt had developed Summit Rock as a longer-lasting product and wanted to test its weathering rate against imported rock salt.

The results were conclusive – Summit showed a markedly slower rate of erosion/ weathering when compared to imported rock salt.

At Tara Hills Summit lasted 1.8 times longer when exposed to weathering elements.

• Visit www.dominionsalt.co.nz

New era for companies TE AWAMUTU-BASED FERTILISER COMPANY TERRACARE HAS bought Fertco.

Fertco bought TerraCare from the Macky family on February 8 this year.

Fertco chief executive Warwick Voyce says Fertco and TerraCare have always shared similar philosophies in regard to looking after clients and the environment, and Fertco aims to add TerraCare’s branded products to its already comprehensive range.

He says the purchase is akin to an amalgamation, rather than one being taken over by the other.

Fertco, a Bay of Plenty company based near the Port of Tauranga services the Bay, Waikato, and King Country regions. TerraCare, with a factory in Te Awamutu, has a customer base in the Waikato, King Country, Manawatu, and lower North Island.

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Fertco’s Warwick Voyce.

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FARMING IN FOCUS

Mark Warren onfarm at Waipari Station. Top right: The old shearing shed. Above: Incoming storm.

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Top left: Nicola Dennis’s ZIppy Zappy. Top right and centre right: Early days at Waipari. Centre left and above left: Logan Evans and family on their Gore farm. Above right: Paul Murcott at Mt Pleasant.

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