30 | Technology drives stud forward An opportunity two years ago to add a South Suffolk stud to the farm was too good to pass by and there are now 70 ewes. Ange Davidson On 400 hectares of steep hill country inland from Gisborne, Mark and Rose Candy are embracing new technology to continually improve their Mangahauhau Hampshire and South Suffolk Stud. DNA testing and electronic ear tags are fundamental to the stud operation which is an amalgamation of four Hampshire studs that Mark has purchased over the past seven years. “Because of the steep country, it’s impossible to tag lambs at birth and the stud relies on DNA testing to establish parentage. Electronic ear tags keep everything in the system. Sheep come through the race and get clicked with the scanner wand and we can match that animal’s DNA,” says Mark. “The technology available is incredible and the results are really accurate.” Mark and Rose run 300 Hampshire stud ewes and will sell around 1100 Romney commercial ewes as a terminal cross. In December they sell about 100 rams, mostly at the Matawhero sale yards and from their home. Terminal lambs are being drafted for the freezing works by mid-November. An opportunity two years ago to add a South Suffolk stud to the farm was too good to pass by and there are now 70 ewes. “They really impressed me! They’re big bastards and appear to be really robust plus they have a good carcass,” he says. Other technology used at Mangahauhau is Eye Muscle Scanning lambs to measure carcass quality and meat potential at the rib when the lamb is 200 days old. Intra Muscular Fat Scanning (IMF) shows marbling in the meat which is an indicator of quality and taste. With this information easily accessible, a premium can be paid for a top-quality carcass at meat processing plants. RURAL PEOPLE » Mark and Rose Candy “Hampshire score really well in IMF and now that we can measure these genetic improvements through technology, we can see what’s working. We can see the results coming through from the past six years and it’s really rewarding,” says Mark. Results are plugged into a Sheep Improvement Limited (SIL) performance recorder run by Beef + Lamb NZ, an industry standard index for sheep based on reproduction, lamb survival, lamb growth and adult size. Results can then be compared to other breeds. Alongside the stud Mark and Rose run 160 Angus cows with local Orere and Rangatira genetics. The Angus is the favoured breed for Gisborne’s steep hill country and calves are sold at weaner fairs in April. A couple of drones are another successfully adopted technology at Mangahauhau. The drones are used for checking stock at lambing and calving as well as monitor the state of dams on the farm. “It’s instant information! We can check everything out several times a day and in minutes,” he says. “Modern technology is bloody brilliant.” Mark and Rose work on the farm together and are often helped by their sons Ben and Mathew. This year the family are tackling a number of regenerative planting projects on steep faces and waterways around the farm. A 50/50 funding boost from the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council has been a great encouragement for Mark and other farmers in the area to get started. INAUGURAL ON-FARMSALE 9am, 26June 2023 1761 Pehiri Road Ben & Kylie Johnson 06 867 8089 orerestation@farmside.co.nz Featuring the first sons of the $104,000 Turiroa Ragnar also starring sons of Kaharau Outlander, Kaharau Bayley&Waiterenui Theo GISBORNE | 743 Gladstone Rd | 06 867 9405 | gisborne@evs.co.nz WAIROA | 46 Freyberg St | 06 838 6099 | wairoa@evs.co.nz www.evs.co.nz Proud to be supporting the Mangahauhau
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