Business Rural Winter 2021

22 | Hunting offers further revenue stream Station Peak’s Olivia and Michael Pavletich with family children Jack, Sophia and Elise. Virginia Wright M ichael and Olivia Pavletich are lower-order contract milking on Station Peak Dairy on the north bank of the Waitaki River in South Canterbury. They’re running two dairy sheds milking 2100 cows on 1447 hectares of mixed terrain. “We’re 630 platform,” explains Michael, “and then 600 hectares of hill and around 220 or so support land that we winter our cows on.” Ordinarily the hill country would also have cows scattered across it in the winter but they’re in the process of fencing off the waterways and doing anything else they still need to do to meet the new regulations. In the meantime they’re running their cows on the developed, flat, riverbed country in the bottom of the valley and making the most of the rest of their land. “In parts of the steeper hill country, and adjoin- ing it, there’s some rolling hills which we’ve devel- oped over the years into cropping country. Included in that is 50 hectares of flat, irrigated support land, and over winter we’re going to be irrigating another 37 hectares of our flat, riverbed country as well.” The cows are wintered on a combination of DAIRY PEOPLE » Station Peak Dairy: Michael & Olivia Pavletich PHONE 027 433 5523 DAVID O'NEILL CONTRACTING LTD Proud to be associated with Station Peak Dairy • PLOUGHING & CULTIVATION • FINE CHOPPED SILAGE • MULCHING • FERTILISER SPREADING • DIRECT DRILLING • GENERAL CARTAGE • BALAGE • RUT BUSTING • GRAIN HARVESTING Calum Reid - Registered Electrical Inspector 0800 360 063 or 027 436 8700 calum@calect.co . nz • www.calect.co.nz Dairy Systems Irrigation Domestic Security Systems 24-Hour Service Member Electrical Contractors Association of NZ MASTER ELECTRICIANS On Call 24/7, Calect is available day or night. We reschedule other work to PRIORITISE faults so that they are fixed as quickly as possible. NO MATTER WHAT, WE’RE ON THE JOB! A fixed price guarantee on EVERYTHING quoted. An extras needed for the job will be requoted. FREE QUOTES Electrician Services - we take on anything Electrical We have 10 vans & 15 electricians available to everyone in the North Otago, South Canterbury & Mackenzie Basin areas. fodder beet and kale, with the kale used at the end of winter to transition the cows back onto the dairy platform pasture. Once the work in the steeper country is complete Michael will put it back to good use next winter. “I might raise some beef calves out of our cows and finish them. Plus at this time of year I usually buy some culls because the schedules at the works aren’t much good, so I just carry them through for six weeks, to around the middle of July, by which stage the prices have improved so I send them off and take that margin. It’s a good wee money earner,” explains Michael. Another money earner they’re embarking on involves using a middleman to build some checks and balances into the revenue stream offered by hunters wanting access to the Pavletich’s farm. “We’ve got deer, and we’ve got wallabies in quite a bad way. And because we’re down by the Waitaki River people can go trout fishing or there’s game-birds like ducks and geese and there’s often deer and pigs coming off the river as well.” Michael’s parents, Julie and Kieran, offer ac- commodation in part of the old homestead they’ve converted into a bed and breakfast, or there’s an option to stay in the woolshed or simply pitch a tent. Michael signed them up for Hunting HQ a few months ago. “It’s kind of like Trademe,” he ex- plains, “so hunters have to join as well and there’s feedback, so when people want access to the farm I have to approve them and I can check their history. If they’re no good they won’t be coming. The really “We’ve got deer, and we’ve got wallabies in quite a bad way. And because we’re down by the Waitaki River people can go trout fishing or there’s game-birds like ducks and geese and there’s often deer and pigs coming off the river as well.” • to page 23 Station Peak offers accommodation in part of the old homestead converted into a bed and breakfast. 0800 367 365 www.essentialnutrition.co.nz Proud to support Station Peak Dairy MCM CALVING • MCM MATING • MCM LACTATION CALCIUM BOLUS • SUREPULSE LINERS