NZ Dairy Autumn 2021

38 | nz dairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Aokautere Farms Gains from infrastucture, wetland investment Sue Russell G rant Bell is a director of a family owned farm- ing company, Aokautere Farms Ltd, based five minutes from Palmerston North. The dairy farm has an effective footprint of 150 ha on which 525 cross-bred tending Friesian cows are milked. “We are aiming for a three-quarter Friesian cow, animals that will still be a good size but also with the production benefits gained from hybrid vigour,” Grant explains. The farm supplies Fonterra and production has averaged 270,000kgMS over the last three years. When NZ Dairy spoke with Grant early March the farm was experiencing reasonable rain showers; the first rain, he says, for about six weeks. “We’re used to getting dry here however normal- ly we would have expected to go dry earlier than we have this season. We are always prepared for a dry summer and we always have plenty of additional feed ready to feed on our feedpad. If we don’t use it all we carry it over for next year.” The decision to provide more food to the cows at these times is based on pragmatics. “It costs us more to feed them well of course, but while they are milking we’re also earning income. If you don’t feed your cows well and keep them milk- ing as best you can through the summer you aren’t going to be able to fully reap the rewards of cheap milk when the autumn rains come”. Grass silage is predominantly fed through the summer when protein is lacking in the cows diet while maize silage is fed during the shoulders of the season. “Quality grass silage has a good level of protein to offer. We also add Palm Kernel Expeller to the feed to provide additional energy and help put weight on the cows. We generally add 2kg/cow/day of PKE whenever we are feeding supplement on the feedpad”. At mating, AI is used for the first two cycles using • Fertiliser Spreaders • Grain Feeders • Weed Wipers • Fertiliser Sprayer • Gravity Bins Proud to be supporting Aokautere Farm | info@walco.co.nz NUTRIMIX customized minerals according to your farm requirements Nutrimix are proud to have been working together with Grant & Rachel Bell through customised minerals and nutrition advice for more than 8 seasons nutrimix.co.nz | equine.nutrimix.co.nz PHONE: 0800-Nutrimix (0800 68874649) | EMAIL: info@nutrimix.co.nz The decision to invest in a new effluent system, including a three million litre effluent holding tank, has future-proofed the farm long-term. LIC A2 Friesian and A2 cross-bred semen. Grant uses A2 semen because it is priced simi- larly to standard semen and over time will result in a higher proportion of A2 cows in the herd. “Testing your herd for the A2/A2 gene and then selectively mating with sexed semen is expensive and at the moment there isn’t the financial benefit as there is a limited market for A2 milk where we are situated, so the use of A2 semen is a cost effective way of working slowly toward an A2 herd in the meantime” says Grant. In another departure from normal practice, the family-owned farm has set up a share milking company. In a normal share-milking arrangement the farmer owners the land and infrastructure while the share milker owns the cows and machinery and the milk income is split. • to page 41