50 | Proud tradition continues at Wilencote Sue Russell It’s appropriate that Rural North touched base with Matt and Megan Humphreys twice in the same year; a year that has seen the young couple progress Matt’s parents farm succession plans, enabling a healthy transition from one generation to the next. And when one considers the history of this property extends back over a century now, a sense of what that succession means begins to be understood. “We feel very privileged to be given the opportunity to continue the family’s long standing history of breeding Herefords and look forward to the journey ahead,” says Megan. Parents Peter and Susie, like generations before made their mark on developing the beautiful property and there is every probability that Matt and Megan will continue to do just that. It’s been a busy year in other ways too as the couple welcome daughter Ida into the family. Capital on-farm development has also been a priority as the couple nd their feet with the stud recording and data management systems. In terms of stock, Matt and Megan completed their rst AI programme across the 2yo heifers and selected cows, choosing two sires that positively contribute to Wilencote’s breeding goals, both in terms of type and the paperwork to match. “We also anticipate bene ts in terms of a more compact calving pattern which is bene cial in terms of weighing and tagging calves at birth, as these are spread across our back country for calving.” And continuing to improve the environment has also been a focus, with the rst Farm Environment Plan created. This sets out both short and long-term environmental goals. The plan is, in time, to fence a couple of areas of natural bush and allow these to regenerate. “All going to plan this year we will also get underway with restoring a 1.5ha wetland in the heart of our bull unit.” In June the annual bull sale took place and Matt and Megan were really pleased with how they presented the bulls for sale, with a very positive average sale price attained. “There is always something to work on, and we’re hoping to improve our clearance rate moving forward.” Matt says it is really satisfying to get feedback from clients that the bulls are quiet and good to RURAL PEOPLE » Wilencote Polled Herefords ANNUAL ON-FARM BULL SALE 07 JUNE - 2.30PM 30 R2 BULLS AVAILABLE WWW.WILENCOTE.CO.NZ WILENCOTE POLLED HEREFORDS 727 Totangi Rd, Ngatapa, RD2 Gisborne Matt & Megan Humphreys 027 973 4349 Selection of 23' Sale Bulls at 14 Months Call us on 06 868 7200 Cartage of livestock, fertilizer, general farming supplies, citrus, apples, and kiwifruit. 183 Carnarvon St, Gisborne. 4010 FREEPHONE: 0800 428 429 P: 06 867 9811 | F: 06 867 3963 E: office@ehinsurance.co.nz www.ehinsurance.co.nz TRUSTED AS THE LEADING PROVIDER OF INDEPENDENT INSURANCE SOLUTIONS TO OUR COMMUNITY • Commercial • Farm • Livestock • Forestry • Insurance • Domestic • Marine • Liability • Travel PREMIUM INSTALMENT OPTIONS REAL PEOPLE HONEST ADVICE Monthly PremiumOptions available A selection of 2023 Wilencote sale bulls. Matt and Megan with Ida. work with, or that they are getting great results from using Wilencote Bulls. This year 30 rising two year old Bulls will be put up for sale. All bulls are BREEDPLAN recorded; 100k SNP DNA tested and carcass scanned, for sire veri cation and to improve the accuracy of Wilencote’s EBVs; BVDV tested and vaccinated and service tested. “We also offer a three year structural guarantee on all bulls sold.” So far the bulls are tracking ahead of their target weights. Matt and Megan are also very pleased with the consistency in type in this year’s line-up. “One of our new sires in this year’s reference sire list brings a lower birth-weight option, with his progeny still having balanced gures in terms of growth and fats – factors that are important for our commercial beef clients.” So impressed are they in the sire’s performance that they have used a yearling bull of his across a selection of their 2yo heifers. Polled Hereford arrived here when Bull Royal Gem was imported from the USA in 1929 by Matt’s great grandfather Fred Humphreys. In 1930 Fred important cow Dora Willdale. The breed is well-respected here for their temperament, structural integrity and longevity.
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