Waikato farmers Dean & Ang Finnerty have expanded their dairy cow operation into a successful goat milking enterprise as well PAGE 10 Turning challenge into opportunity AUTUMN 2022 www.waterfordpress.co.nz
2 | nzdairy Page | 8 Page | 40 Page | 78 Page | 18 Page | 62 Waving goodbye to the farm Another short-staffed year for farmers Global demand drives NZDG growth The rise and rise of Speckle Park During the summer hundreds of Kiwi farmers have a different reason for checking their smartphone MetService app. It might just be that the surf’s up! Without a change in government policy, farmers will be short staffed, says Chris Lewis, Federated Farmers spokesperson for Employment and Immigration. New Zealand Dairy Goats (NZDG) is riding a wave of exponentially increasing global demand for goat’s milk products. Speckle Park is growing rapidly in popularity with the breed securing the top three position in New Zealand for highest use beef breed by the dairy industry. Page | 15 CONTENTS >> Index | Page 112 These conditions are prescribed for the sake of understanding between the Company and its clients. Advertising is charged for on the basis of space taken up using a standard tabloid page. Actual space may be reduced during the printing process but this will effect all advertisers equally so no credit will be given for any reduction in size due to processing. The Company reserves the right to alter, change or omit entirely any advertisement or article that it considers to be objectionable or which may contravene any law. In the event of a failure on the part of the Company to insert advertising as instructed the Company may publish the advertisement at the first available subsequent reasonable date unless the advertisement features date sensitive material. Every care shall be taken to publish the advertisement in accordance with the advertisers instructions as to page and position but the Company reserves the right for whatever reason to place advertising in a different position and in doing so shall incur no liability whatsoever. Advertisers must advise New Zealand Dairy immediately of any error or omission in advertisements and shall work constructively to remedy the situation which in the first instance shall be a rerun of the corrected advertisement in the next available issue of New Zealand Dairy. Where advertisement proofs have been faxed or mailed to the client 48 hours prior to the nominated printing cutoff time acquiesce shall be taken as confirmation and acceptance. Corrections made by telephone shall be accepted but the Company reserves the right to decide whether a further proof should be faxed or mailed to the client. Accounts for advertising are due for payment within seven days of publication of the newspaper. Accounts not paid within this time may incur a penalty of 3% per month until the account is paid. Any debt collection costs incurred by the Company will be added to the account of the debtor. Views and opinions expressed in New Zealand Dairy are not necessarily those of the editors, Waterford Press Ltd or publisher. New Zealand Dairy welcomes contributions from freelance writers & journalists. All articles published at editors discretion. New Zealand Dairy accepts no responsibilty for loss of photos or manuscripts. nzdairy Printed by: Published by: 16,453 printed copies Christchurch Office 112 Wrights Road, Addington, Christchurch Phone 03-983 5500 PO Box 37 346 www.waterfordpress.co.nz Queenstown Office 70 Glenda Drive, Queenstown 9300 PO Box 2581, Wakatipu MANAGING DIRECTOR James Lynch james@waterfordpress.co.nz EDITORIAL Editors Randall Johnston randall@waterfordpress.co.nz Paul Mein paulmein@waterfordpress.co.nz Journalists Kelly Deeks, Russell Fredric, Richard Loader, Kim Newth, Karen Phelps, Sue Russell, Virginia Wright SALES ROOM Adam Feaver, Chris Graves, Megan Hawkins Mandi King, Allan J Knowles, Chris McPhee, Lisa Moffat, Colin Morais, Chris Pearce, Alasdair Thomson sales@waterfordpress.co.nz PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT General Manager Luke Lynch luke@waterfordpress.co.nz Graphic Artists Connor Gosnell, Anton Gray, Nick King, Sophie McCleary, Liki Udam. art@waterfordpress.co.nz CONTENT COORDINATORS Ann-Marie Frentz, Alissa Crosby OFFICE AND ACCOUNTS Manager Helen Bourne accounts@waterfordpress.co.nz Jill Holland reception@waterfordpress.co.nz Milking Shorthorn the right breed Innovative Kiwi start-up going a long way Zac Tocker reckons he and his brother Russell got into the milking shorthorn breed just at the right time but the secret might now be out of the bag. In the true spirit of an innovation Future Post Ltd origins has that number eight wire ring of finding a brilliant solution to a challenging situation.
| 3 nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Brendan and Tessa Hopson Moving into 50/50 sharemilking Russell Fredric Paeroa couple Brendan and Tessa Hopson have worked hard and smart to achieve their goals while achieving a top industry award in the process. The couple have been equity partners and lower order sharemilkers for the past five years, peak milking 315 cows on 108 hectares effective. From next season the 2020 Auckland/Hauraki Dairy Industry Awards Share Farmer of the Year winners are moving to a 50/50 sharemilking position at Paeroa milking 650 cows. Their existing herd will make up half of the new herd. They both grew up on dairy farms. Brendan started his working life as a builder, while Tessa completed a degree in tourism management, but saw dairy as their ultimate destiny. After living in Australia and travelling over a four year period they returned to New Zealand where Brendan worked on a high input, system five farm with split calving. Two years later they bought into the equity partnership and began lower order sharemilking. They now have two children, Toby, 3, and Ollie 18 months. “I guess for us, we had plans to learn as much as we could, that’s probably why we threw ourselves in the high input system, split calving situation.” Preparing their award entry helped with assessing the direction of their business on the back of achieving a significant goal which was to lift the production per cow by 20% to 400kgMS, or 90% of their body weight. “A big one for us was getting the reproductive performance where it should have been and that has given us options to selectively cull and increase the genetic makeup of our overall herd, so that was a big one for us.” “Looking at more efficient cows, that’s the way forward for us. As a new business the big driver for us was debt reduction and having options at the end of year five.” Fundamental to achieving this efficiency was weighing the stock and benchmarking the likes of live-weight targets and body condition scoring more intensively. The ability to finance a higher order position was also helped by the steadily recovering dairy economy following the farm gate milk price crash eight years ago. Tessa says they have been in a unique position during the past five years as both equity owners and lower order share-milkers and will reap the rewards of their decision making and the gains made in the herd.“Now we are in a position to be able to buy those cows and take them with us [for the] next season.” The new herd comprising 330 cows was the first they looked at, but happened to meet their criteria, Brendan says. “I guess we were chasing a specific herd, quite well figured, quite a good fit for the current herd we run.”Being on the cusp of achieving a significant goal is validation of their decision to mark out a career in the dairy industry, he says. “For us it’s a great career choice, we love what we do, we get to include our family. “Obviously as it’s farming there’s plenty of variables, every day’s different. It’s a great way to put food on the table not only for us, but for the rest of the world.” Tessa holding Ollie and Brendan holding Toby Hopson. 118 Normanby Road, Paeroa | 07 862 8263 | paeroafarmservices.co.nz "Growing and supporting stronger communities" Tessa & Brendan Hopson PROUD TO SUPPORT PAEROA egional ransport 2020 td REGIONAL TRANSPORT • LIVESTOCK CARTAGE 021 790 296 rtlstock@gmail.com
4 | nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Barwell Farm Post-floods, family farm legacy in good shape Mark, Stacey and TJ in the barn (top). Photo: Dianne Malcolm. Mark and Stacey (below) with children James (3) Paige (11) & Olivia (8) and Maree & David. Kim Newth On the side of a track at Barwell Farm, Greenstreet - just west of Ashburton - stand five young trees, planted last year to represent the past, the present and the future. Having weathered damaging floods last May, this 200ha family dairy farm is in good shape and taking a long-term view. Each tree has special significance: one is for Rod and Daphne Stewart who bought the farm in 1955 as a sheep and cropping operation, before converting to dairy in the early 1980s. Another is for their son David and his wife Maree, who took over the reins in 1991. David and Maree began succession planning five years ago, with this being the first season of the land being leased to their sons TJ and Mark Stewart, along with Mark’s wife Stacey, who grew up in rural Tasmania and has a dairy background. The third tree is for them, while the fourth is for the next generation that includes Mark and Stacey’s children, Paige, 11, Olivia, 8, and James, 3. The final tree represents a fifth generation of Stewarts that may one day farm here too. It is a strong statement, considering the heavy impact from last year’s flooding event here. Yet TJ, Mark and Stacey have made remarkable progress towards recovery in just a matter of months. “We’re actually up on production, which has blown us away and we’re hoping to increase winter milk production going forward,” says Stacey. Situated between the north and south banks of the Ashburton River, Barwell Farm and its 530-cow herd took a real pummeling in the floods. It was thought 14.5ha had been lost forever beneath riverbed rubble and a big cleanup lay ahead to clear another 20ha. “It was very hard, but fortunately we had a lot of outside support, help and guidance to help us work our way through it. Looking at the farm today, we can’t quite believe how far we’ve come. We were able to save around 9.5ha of land we thought was lost and have planted some of it in kale and rape. The other 20 hectares has been regrassed and is back to normal.” The wintering barn that David and Maree built in 2014 was very helpful after the floods, put to use as a safe place to continue feeding cows for longer, giving time for pastures to recover. Currently, the farm does 50/50 split calving in spring and autumn but is moving towards 30 spring/70 autumn to continue making best use of the barn. Another legacy of David and Maree’s stewardship is the farm’s rotary 50-bale shed, built in 2004. Advances in irrigation have supported the growth of this family dairy operation through the years, with 1970s border dyke irrigation updated with RotoRainers in the 1990s. Two years ago, pivot irrigation was established over 100ha. Riparian planting lost to last year’s floods is rapidly being restored. Under Synlait’s Lead with Pride programme, new plants were put in along 2km of waterways last year with more planting planned for the coming three years. David and Maree use Adam George Fencing to keep everything in order. Beside the farm track, five special trees are growing steadily stronger, symbolizing this family’s tenacity and commitment to the land. AdamGeorge Fencing 021 1039095 adamgeorgefencing@outlook.co.nz Rural • Urban • StockYards • Sheds • Lifestyle • Maintenance Proud to be a long term nutrient partner for Barwell Farm
| 5 nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Barwell Farm Situated between the north and south banks of the Ashburton River, Barwell Farm and its 530-cow herd took a real pummeling in the floods. 0800 MOLASSES (0800 665 277) 03 236 6089 www.wintonstockfeed.co.nz FEED IMPORTERS NATIONWIDE Molasses Preferred supplier to Barwell Farm *RW (ႉXHQW" 'HDO ZLWK LW
6 | nzdairy Chris and Desiree Virginia Wright Chris and Desiree Giles met as teenagers in 2000 and after a year of living and working in Auckland they decided it wasn’t for them. Chris had grown up on a dairy farm in the Kaipara, Desiree on a duck farm in Rodney, so it was an easy transition when, in 2002 at the ages of 20 and 19 respectively, they left to start their first year farming together on a dairy farm in Northland. As Chris puts it they “farmed their way south from there”, gradually moving up the ladder of responsibility. By the time they got to Southland in 2008 they were on the lookout for their “forever farm”. All the moving they had done had made them keen to avoid the traditional path into farm ownership which often involves leapfrogging from farm to bigger farm, and they were looking for alternatives. By 2012 Chris and Desiree were milking 600 cows as 50/50 sharemilkers, 30 km’s north of Gore, when Chris went into town to buy a spade, saw an ad for a farm for sale, and went straight out for a look. Even though it was at that stage a sheep and beef farm Chris knew a good thing when he saw it and the decision to buy was almost instantaneous. The “almost” was the time it took for Desiree to get her head around what they were doing given that their second child Andrew was only six weeks old while his older sister Danielle was three. Then, having found the farm, they needed the money to buy it. “We knew we needed shareholders so we put a memorandum of information together and went out to find people to buy into our vision,” explains Chris. The net result is Waimumu Downs, three kilometres out of Gore, owned by an equity partnership of seven, with the initial 147 hectare farm immediately Waimumu Downs milks 550 mostly Jersey Cows on 280 hectares near Gore. DAIRY PEOPLE » Chris & Desiree Giles converted to dairy. Chris and Desiree run the farm as contract milkers for the partnership who are “strangers turned into friends,” as Chris puts it. “We do the budget, we get the okay from the shareholders, and we do all the day-to-day running of the farm. We have regular get togethers with the others throughout the year, so we’re quite social as a group,” he says. Eight years on the 147 hectares have grown to 280 hectares milking 550 mostly Jersey cows, and the slew of awards they’ve won over the last couple of years is testament to their environmentally friendly approach, not only to the farm but also to their community. In 2020 the Giles entered the Balance Farm Environment Awards. “A lot of people do it once everything’s perfect but we entered to benchmark where we were at and see where we could improve,” says Chris. Waimumu Downs was runner-up overall for the Environmental Awards but within that they won the Balance Agri-nutrient Soil Management Award, the Agri-business Management Award, and the Dairy NZ Sustainability and Stewardship Award. In the same year they were nominated for and won the 2021 Gore Environmental Community Award and in 2021 they were nominated for and came third in the Sharemilker of the Year Fonterra Farm Sustainability Award. As far as their farming practices are concerned it was clear they were already well on track with their efficiencies and their stewardship of the land, and the feedback confirmed they were doing the right thing with the way they were addressing winter grazing. “We had been growing fodder-beet crops for VETSOUTHARE PROUDTO SUPPORT CHRIS AND DESIREE GILES BALCLUTHA | GORE | WINTON | INVERCARGILL | LUMSDEN | OTAUTAU | CLYDEVALE | TAPANUI 0800 VETSOUTH | vetsouth.co.nz
| 7 nzdairy Giles ‘farmed their way south’ Alan, Danielle, Debbie, Chris, Andrew and Desiree Giles. DAIRY PEOPLE » Chris & Desiree Giles about 100 cows and in-calf heifers. Now those 100 lighter cows, our in-calf heifers, and our calves are on all grass and bailage,” explains Chris. The rest of the herd spend the winter on a big loafing pad they installed with their initial conversion, alongside a concrete pad which holds their winter silage and to which the cows can help themselves whenever they like. Their original consent included the need for Riparian planting and the Giles partnered with local Marae and Environment Southland to establish a nursery. They worked together to grow seedlings which they then took back to plant out the two kilometres of Charlton River running the length of the farm. The stream walk along the river and the wetland area they’ve created provide an important focus the Waimumu Downs Project and the work Chris and Desiree do in the community with schools. The publicity around their various awards spread their story far and wide throughout the region meaning schools from as far afield as Queenstown were coming through before Covid made things logistically difficult. While Covid may have impacted on their community work their work on the farm continues to bring results. “We’re doing well over 100 percent of liveweight,” says Chris, “the Jerseys are very efficient cows doing about 440 – 450 kg’s per cow.” Their eight years of hard work are paying off and while the plan is ultimately to buy out the other equity partners, there’s no rush for Chris and Desiree, who are happy to keep going as they are and see what the future brings. BETTER BEET LTD Contact Erik 027 204 8019 • betterbeetltd@gmail.com Fert Wholesale Direct Ltd Farmers, are you concerned about improving your fertiliser efficiency and environmental footprint? Then Fert Wholesale Direct Ltd can help, as we have helped Chris and Desiree Giles. The ONE System which through independent trials shows a doubling of response to N. And more recently, our Revolutionary Compound Urea/SOA product where every granule contains both forms of N. Contact Shane Harold on 021 0235 6491 or shane@fertwholesale.co.nz 0800 SGTDAN (748326) Gorton Street, GORE Ph: 208 3965 E: admin@sgtdan.co.nz Your electrical and refrigeration specialists in Southland and South Otago • Farm vat refrigeration and pre cooling • Heatpumps • Dairy services • All electrical maintenance and installation Hayden Baxter 027 765 8427 or Hamish Heaslip 027 215 0362 contact@handh.co.nz Contracting Limited • Farm Drainage • Track Maintenance • Silage Stacking • Conversion Work • Root Raking • Rock & Gravel • General Maintenance Phone: 027 435 8236 • Email: dyneskatrina@gmail.com Proud to support Chris & Desiree Giles Earthmoving & Drainage Contracting Throughout West Otago/Eastern Southland
8 | nzdairy Waving goodbye to the farm Russell Fredric DAIRY PEOPLE » Surfing for Farmers Farmers are used to working around the weather, but during the summer hundreds throughout New Zealand have a different reason for checking their smartphone MetService app. It might just be surf’s up, that its time to wave goodbye to the farm for a few hours and wrangle the ute to a weekly Surfing for Farmers event. The brainchild of rural real estate consultant Stephen Thomson, Surfing for Farmers was launched in 2018 and is held in 21 locations nationwide. National coordinator Jack Dustin says the organisation aims to promote the mental well-being of farmers through creating the opportunity to get off the farm and switch off, “It’s about creating the habit to get off the farm, so when farmers do fall on dark times they have surfing as tool in the toolbox to help them get back on track. This involves connecting with other farmers and rural people in a totally different environment, enjoying sea air, salt water, surf therapy, a barbecue and a yarn, Jack says. Farmers need no previous surfing experience. Each event is completely free of charge with wetsuits, boards, surfing coaches and the barbecue provided by Surfing for Farmers generous sponsors, Beef and Lamb NZ, Ballance, Jarden, Rabobank, Bayley Real Estate and Meridian, along with a huge number of regional sponsors Because farmers’ wives or partners are equally important, they are also most welcome and often represent half of the number surfing and socialising. Children are also welcome to attend to make it a family event, but because surfing equipment is limited priority is given to adults. The weekly events are run by a regional coordinator and while there is good nationwide coverage there are also gaps yet to be filled in some regions. A typical reaction from first-time farmers is to question why they had not done this type of thing long before. Some go further and buy their own gear. “Once they’re in the water and they realise it’s actually something they can do they eventually commit to buying their own boards and wetsuits “It’s all about connecting with other farmers and rural people in a totally different environment,” says Surfing for Farmers national coordinator Jack Dustin. and throughout summer because of the surf coaching they increase their knowledge of the waves. “They are really upskilling themselves and head down to the beach and go for a surf beyond our programme.” “A guy in Northland who had been living up there for five years and hadn’t met any friends because he had been working on the farm the entire time without creating time for himself to get off the farm and because of Surfing for Farmers, he found a few guys of his age and was then able to connect with these guys.” One young farmer who was experiencing his first drought went to surf and ended up relating to an older farmer who had experienced several droughts. The experienced farmer offered some helpful advice and reassured him that he would make it through. Stephen Thomson says he was inspired by watching the Netflix documentary Resurface in which a war veteran suffering post-traumatic stress disorder discovers a surf therapy programme that helps traumatised soldiers heal while riding the waves. “I saw the model and had an idea that we could use that as a way of getting farmers off their farm and help them and improve their lives and give them an opportunity to relax for a couple of hours,” he says. As an amateur surfer, he well understood the benefits of getting on the water. After some “arm twisting” he raised about $12,000 in three days which was enough to hire equipment, secure coaches and float the programme. “All we really needed was the farmers and on the first day 25 turned up and we just went from there.” “I’ve been blown away by the impact we’ve had in Gisborne and the impact we’ve had around the country and the longevity of it so far, so I’m pretty stoked.” “All we really needed was the farmers and on the first day 25 turned up and we just went from there.” Incalf heifer Sale - 12th May 11.00am 1221 A Camerons Line, RD5 Feilding Peter 06 323 2711 or Letitia 027 344 9023 40 IN CALF JERSEY HEIFERS • SIRES OF HEIFERS • ELLIOTTS REGENCY CASINO RIVER VALLEY VICTORIOUS • RIVER VALLEY CECE CHROME FERDON CHROME VOLVO • NORTH AMERICAN GENETICS PRODUCTION CONSISTENLY OVER 500 MILK SOLIDS PER COW 2021 South Island Jersey Champ, Allandale Tbone Brielle, her maternal sister sells in star lot; Allandale Victorious Bethany
| 9 nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Surfing for Farmers When the stresses of farm life feel like you’re being hit by onewave after another We’ll help you catch the next wave and ride it the country. It’s a fantastic and fun stress-buster. All lessons are free, surfboards and wetsuits are provided, and there’s a BBQ after. Rabobank, a proud supporter of Sur ng for Farmers RAB0082-NZD
10 | nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Finnerty Farms Dean and Ang Finnerty. Karen Phelps Farming can be a tough business but sometimes the hard times turn out to lead people on paths that benefit them further down the track. This was certainly the case for Waikato farmers Dean and Ang Finnerty who have managed to expand their cow dairy operation into a successful goat milking enterprise as well. A series of events jointly led to their decision to move to dairy goats. It was just a few years ago they knew absolutely nothing about goat dairy farming so Ang says they had to learn rapidly. They have a 138ha farm on Paeroa-Tahuna Road where they milk 285 dairy cows through a 32-a-side herringbone shed and decided to diversify into dairy goats when their son James was intolerant to dairy milk and the incredibly high price at the time of goat milk infant formula coupled with the environmental pressures farmers are facing got them thinking. When Covid-19 hit it had a negative impact on the price of goat milk infant formula internationally. The couple’s shares in Dairy Goat Co-op meant they could only supply a certain amount of milk so when their goats started producing twice that amount they needed somewhere to sell it to avoid animal health issues that would come with drying off lactating goats and to keep their staff employed. NIG Nutritional were looking for more suppliers at that time so Dean and Ang asked Ang’s parents Ray and Arna Curtin, who owned a dairy farm near the couple’s farm, if they wanted to get into the goat industry and further diversify. This saw Dean and Ang rapidly built another herd home and milking shed on the Curtins’ farm. The plan was once they hit their milk supply quota to ship the already milking does down to the new shed and for Ang and Dean and their staff to travel down and finish off the season. Then in June they could start supplying the Dairy Goat Co-op again by bring in the young stock which they had reared as replacements. “But we saw the writing on the wall as with Covid-19 we knew the downturn was going to last longer than we had hoped. With the shares we had in Dairy Goat Co-op our business simply wasn’t viable.” This led them to the difficult decision to sell their shares and to start supplying both farms to NIG Nutritional. “We had to pivot and they were hard decisions as we loved the co-op model but in the end it’s worked out really well and enabled us to grow quickly.” The goat herd numbers are approximately 900 on their 38ha farm (Ang’s brother Vince is a partner in Turning challenge into opportunity Goats are high performing dairy animals, with very specific nutritional requirements. Support this performance the right way. Give your goats the correct level of trace elements – no matter what feed system you use. Find out more about custom mineral supplementation by talking to your vet or the Agvance team today. NEW PRODUCT CONVENIENT EASY-TO-HANDLE SHAVINGS BALES Contact us on 027 495 0000 or email moorey@abscarriers.co.nz Our quality kiln-dried shavings are now available in 100-litre bales! 5 x 1 litre bales is equivalent to 1 wool pack but easier to stack and handle. JACK & SUE TESSELAAR | PH 07 884 7974 | 0800 956 106 • Maize Planting & Harvesting • Loaderwagon Silage • Baleage - Rounds & Squares • Cartage • Cultivation • Hedgecutting • Spraying • Crop Planting Accounting Services | Business Software Support | ACC Risk Management Business Advisory | Governance | HR Assistance Payroll Services | Tax Specialist Advice | Trust Admin & Trusteeships MORRINSVILLE | MATAMATA | THAMES | HAMILTON HELPING BUSINESSES THRIVE p] 0800 866 191 e] mail@cooperaitken.co.nz w] cooperaitken.co.nz Raewyn Cunliffe & Russell Murphy Ultra-Scan King Country 021 452 624 CALL US FOR YOUR GOAT DEHORNING Trusted Qualified Dehorning Specialist
| 11 nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Finnerty Farms Goats can deliver a huge amount of milk solids. this goat operation) and on 40ha of the 182ha dairy farm of the Curtins they are milking around 1000 goats through the new 50-a-side double up milking shed. There is also a 96m x 65m covered goat barn, with pens and feeding units. Dean’s sister in-law, Sharon Finnerty, is the farm manager and Ang and Dean employ a team of four full time and two part time staff over both farms as well as being hands on themselves. They have three breeds on their farms: Saanen, British Alpine and Yorkshire. Ang says dairy goats are very different to dairy cows. “Someone once said to me there is just four hours between a live goat and a dead goat and they were right. Goats tell you with their eyes and ears when they’re not well and you need to react on the spot.” Ang says that goats are very curious animals with a lot of personality – super cheeky. She says feeding is another big challenge as goats are fussy eaters. But get their nutritional needs right and they are also super producers. “Goats are like Ferraris. In terms of milk conversion they can deliver a huge amount of milk solids. A 500kg dairy cow might deliver 500kgs/MS if fed right but an 80kg goat will deliver 160kgs/MS. To achieve this they need high octane feed so nutrition is key.” The farming operation is a real family affair with all parties aware that succession planning must be at the forefront of any decisions made in their individual operations. “We make decisions jointly as a family,” says Ang. “We also share equipment and staff as needed and generally help each other out.” Ang says the aim is to get each goat dairy operation to 1000 goats and to maximise production. “We are learning all the time and having a change from cows has been so exciting. We just want to continue to optimise our production and do even better.” McLarens Rural Services McLarens Rural Services has been proudly serving the Morrinsville community for over four decades. When it comes to dairy farming plant, e luent systems and outdoor power equipment the team at McLarens Rural Services have a wealth of knowledge to share with customers. With around 20 sta , the longest of which have served over 20 years, McLarens Rural Services is ready to assist. McLarens Rural Services are the agents for GEA o ering Milfos and Westfalia equipment and Houle e luent systems. It is also dealers for DAB and Lowara pumps. McLarens Rural Services o ers team members with engineering quali ications ready to advise on new dairy plants and upgrades to existing plants. McLarens Rural Services supplies and installs equipment as well as servicing any brand of plant. With ive registered NZMPTA testers on sta , McLarens Rural Services can complete annual dairy machine checks for farmers to the QCONZ testing standard. It also o ers a 24/7 emergency breakdown service to get farmers’ plant up and running again as soon as possible in the event of an unexpected issue. With a retail store supplying all the consumables farmers’ need, McLarens Rural Services o ers a one-stop-shop solution. There’s not much the team at McLarens Rural Services can’t tackle. A good example is the recent supply of automatic cup removers for the Finnerty Farms goat dairy operation. The other side of the business is outdoor power equipment and McLarens Rural Services is a Stihl dealer. It o ers the full Stihl range plus Masport President and Rover lawnmowers and Cub Cadet ride-on mowers. The highly quali ied McLarens Rural Services team can service all makes and models of outdoor equipment including chainsaws, line and hedge trimmers, post hole borers, concrete saws and waterblasters to name but a few. McLarens Rural Services also o ers a small outdoor power equipment hire leet. McLarens Rural Services is still family owned and operated. Started by Graham and Jenny McLaren in his double garage in Morrinsville in 1980, their son Tony and his wife Jan took over the business in 1993. Tony had been working there for many years and is proud to be carrying on the family business. McLarens Rural Services loves supporting the local community that is the backbone of its business. This includes sponsoring sports teams, schools, the local A & P show and Piako Triathlon. Based at 8 Allen Street in Morrinsville, McLarens Rural Services o ers a showroom, retail store and workshops. The business is growing as Morrinsville expands and customers also include residential and commercial clients. With a focus on always delivering customers a top quality sales and service experience that they can rely on, McLarens Rural Services looks forward to supporting the Matamata and Piako regions into the future.
12 | nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Milkabit Goat conversion the right move for couple Virginia Wright In 1968 Jean and Alan Noakes purchased a small dairy farm on the Manukau Harbour from a returned soldier who had settled on it at the end of the war. By 2003 their son Hamish had returned to the farm with his wife Tina and their two children. It was becoming increasingly difficult to make a living from the 40 hectare home farm so in 2013 the decision was made to change to dairy goats. They were still milking cows when they made that decision and they set about sourcing the goats by collecting surplus doe kids from other farms. “I’d milk in the morning then I’d drive out and pick up the kids and bring them back and nurse them so it was quite busy,” says Hamish in what is clearly an understatement given he was picking up anywhere from 20 to 50 kids in a day. They started their operation with 700 kids and now, eight years later, what used to support 170 cows supports no fewer than 1400 mixed age goats. It’s a family affair involving not just Hamish and Tina but his children Casey and Tiernan and a very supportive team. “Tina does people and I do the animals,” says Hamish, “and we had all hands on deck feeding the kids to start with.” Getting the kids through the winter was just the beginning. The cows were milked through to February then dried off and sold as the conversion got underway, which meant converting the 16 bale cow rotary to a 34 bale goat rotary. The shed has since been replaced with a GEA 80 bale rotary which has reduced milking times from 9.5 to more like 5-6 hours with twice the number of goats. On the land it meant moving all the wires from the top of the fences down to the bottom as goats like to shimmy under the wires; moving all • to page 14 Kids at play on the Noakes’ Manukau Harbour goat milking farm (above). Feeding grass to the goats (below). 0800MOLASSES (0800 665 277) 03 236 6089 www.wintonstockfeed.co.nz FEED IMPORTERS NATIONWIDE Molasses Proud to work with Milkabit Proud to be preferred supplier to Milkabit Dairy Shed Installa�ons, Altera�ons and Upgrades. Dairy Maintenance and Consumables. Dairy, Commercial and Domes�c Water Treatment. Dairy, Commercial and Domestic Pumping. Pool & Spa Chemicals, Water Tes�ng and Valet Service. Pool and Spa Installations and Maintenance. 311 Pollen Street, Thames | 07 868 6214 | accounts@thamesfarm.co.nz | www.thamesfarm.co.nz COME TALK TO THE TEAMAT THAMES FARM FOR THE BEST ADVICE ON THE PENINSULA, HAURAKI PLAINS & FRANKLIN DISTRICT
| 13 nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Milkabit The flock of commercial milking goats are housed as they are not bred to survive without shelter. McLarens Rural Services McLarens Rural Services has been proudly serving the Morrinsville community for over four decades. When it comes to dairy farming plant, e luent systems and outdoor power equipment the team at McLarens Rural Services have a wealth of knowledge to share with customers. With around 20 sta , the longest of which have served over 20 years, McLarens Rural Services is ready to assist. McLarens Rural Services are the agents for GEA o ering Milfos and Westfalia equipment and Houle e luent systems. It is also dealers for DAB and Lowara pumps. McLarens Rural Services o ers team members with engineering quali ications ready to advise on new dairy plants and upgrades to existing plants. McLarens Rural Services supplies and installs equipment as well as servicing any brand of plant. With ive registered NZMPTA testers on sta , McLarens Rural Services can complete annual dairy machine checks for farmers to the QCONZ testing standard. It also o ers a 24/7 emergency breakdown service to get farmers’ plant up and running again as soon as possible in the event of an unexpected issue. With a retail store supplying all the consumables farmers’ need, McLarens Rural Services o ers a one-stop-shop solution. There’s not much the team at McLarens Rural Services can’t tackle. A good example is the recent supply of automatic cup removers for the Finnerty Farms goat dairy operation. The other side of the business is outdoor power equipment and McLarens Rural Services is a Stihl dealer. It o ers the full Stihl range plus Masport President and Rover lawnmowers and Cub Cadet ride-on mowers. The highly quali ied McLarens Rural Services team can service all makes and models of outdoor equipment including chainsaws, line and hedge trimmers, post hole borers, concrete saws and waterblasters to name but a few. McLarens Rural Services also o ers a small outdoor power equipment hire leet. McLarens Rural Services is still family owned and operated. Started by Graham and Jenny McLaren in his double garage in Morrinsville in 1980, their son Tony and his wife Jan took over the business in 1993. Tony had been working there for many years and is proud to be carrying on the family business. McLarens Rural Services loves supporting the local community that is the backbone of its business. This includes sponsoring sports teams, schools, the local A & P show and Piako Triathlon. Based at 8 Allen Street in Morrinsville, McLarens Rural Services o ers a showroom, retail store and workshops. The business is growing as Morrinsville expands and customers also include residential and commercial clients. With a focus on always delivering customers a top quality sales and service experience that they can rely on, McLarens Rural Services looks forward to supporting the Matamata and Piako regions into the future. PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH MILKABIT LTD
14 | nzdairy Making the mix for the goats. DAIRY GOATS » Milkabit • from page 12 the gateways down for the same reason and putting hot wires around native plantings and wetland areas. The flock is 80% Saanen, a Swiss breed, with the remainder a mix of Toggenburg, also Swiss, British Alpine and Nubian. “They’re commercial milking goats so they’re not bred to survive without shelter” explains Hamish. “Goats don’t have lanoline in their skin and can’t shed water, and they don’t handle rapid change of temperature, intense cold or heat. “They are browsers, not grazers and never become immune to the worms which naturally live at the depths they reach when they’re forced to graze pasture. “We tried them outside for three years but they’re now fully housed, with their grass cut and brought to them several times a day, a situation they seem to enjoy. They hate the cold, they hate the sun, and they really hate the rain. If we leave the gates open and they wander outside they’ll turn around and walk straight back in again.” The family enjoys the breeding side of things and improving the stock quality, taking care to always bring in bucks from outside blood lines, especially from some of the smaller dairy goat breeding farms who have spent years carefully nurturing the sort of traits that they’re after. “They often breed them for showing as well as production so they’ve got good formation, a square udder with strong attachments, good posture, and we look for a goat with good feet that stands well over them,” says Hamish. Although the market for New Zealand goat milk around the world has been affected by Covid like almost everything, the company Milkabit supplies, New Image Group(NIG), is still taking everything they and all their other suppliers have to offer. “They pick the milk up and take it to their factory in Paerata 10 minutes down the road, it’s ideal. We’ve been with them from the very start and I really enjoy working with them,” says Hamish. The bottom line for Hamish is that goats return a lot more per hectare than cows but there are other reasons why he’s happy with the decision they made nine years ago. “They’re awesome with such beautiful personalities,” says Hamish. “They’re all your friends, they come out for scratches, you come out of milking and you’re clean, they’re just such a pleasure to work with.” Safe to say he won’t be milking cows again any time soon. “They’re awesome with such beautiful personalities,” says Hamish. “They’re all your friends, they come out for scratches, you come out of milking and you’re clean, they’re just such a pleasure to work with.” We keep you growing Proud to support Milkabit Bryan Sharp Sales 027 406 2540 Duncan Inder Sales Manager 021 960 854 Power Farming Auckland Auckland 7 Adams Drive, Pukekohe 09 239 1200
| 15 nzdairy The company has a 185 hectare farm near Matamata and supports 3600 goats housed in two sheds covering 12,000 square metres. DAIRY GOATS » NZ DAIRY GOATS Global demand drives NZDG growth Russell Fredric New Zealand Dairy Goats (NZDG) is riding a wave of exponentially increasing global demand for goat’s milk products. Established late 2019, the company has a 185 hectare farm near Matamata which employs 14 staff and supports 3600 goats housed in two sheds covering 12,000 square metres. The goats are milked through an 80 bale rotary parlour; this is soon to be complemented by a second shed with two 46-a-side herringbone parlours. The industry is very much in its infancy in New Zealand. NZDG chief executive Rob Milne said the company was formed to take advantage of the growing dairy goat industry and to provide its investors with a “safe” opportunity to further grow the industry, while creating greater diversity in agriculture in New Zealand. The establishment of NZDG effectively broke a near monopoly that previously existed in the industry, he says. “We’ve actually quite significantly changed what that landscape looks like in the last 12 months. We’ve had quite a number of nutritional blenderpackers come on board.” NZDG has partnered with New Image Group, a leading New Zealand-based health and nutritional product provider that processes NZDG’s raw milk. New Image Group operates a purpose-built spray plant and packing facility. Its brands include nutritional products sold in many countries throughout the world. The relationship with the group is a good synergy for NZDG’s vision and goals, Rob says. “They have a keen interest in the long-term sustainability of the dairy goat industry in New Zealand. They’ve got a big driver to build market and build product. They are the ones pioneering goat’s milk butter and milk powder in New Zealand.” Skyrocketing demand for NZDG’s milk means its herd will nearly double to 6000 next season. Most of its product goes to China. “Last year was pretty slow with China being locked down, but we’ve had very strong exports this year to China and, if I take the amount we exported this past year, we will probably increase that by 300% to 500% next year. “That’s because China’s coming so strongly back online.” Despite China being an important market, NZDG is seeking to diversify as much as possible to other countries including India, however that country’s tariff of 60% currently makes it unviable. Last year the farm started milking about half way into the season and produced about 140,000kgMS from about 1800 goats. Goats are extremely efficient at converting feed into milk. Fed a balance of grass and mixed rations, NZDG’s goats typically produce 120% to 130% of their body weight in milk solids. This efficiency is further enhanced by goat’s milk powder currently achieving $NZ15,0000 to $16,000 a tonne, compared to the bovine equivalent fetching around $NZ5300, Rob says. Goat’s milk naturally has the A2 protein and has several benefits over cow’Ss milk. Its fat globules are naturally much smaller in size and its protein composition can help with digestive health. Because it is lower in lactose it can also be more suited to lactose intolerant people. Goats are extremely efficient at converting feed into milk. ELECTRICAL KING 24 HOUR EMERGENCY SERVICE www.kingelectrical.co.nz MATAMATA Phone: 07 888 7578 TIRAU Phone: 07 883 1130 RURAL, RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL BUILDERS Ph: 07 871 4986 E: info@gibsonconstruction.co.nz www.gibsonconstruction.co.nz WHERE QUALITY IS NEVER COMPROMISED
16 | nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Tiddy Partnership Demand for infant Russell Fredric It has been a good decade for a Morrinsville family to make a buck in the dairy goat industry, but the global impact of the covid panedmic is creating some caution around future demand. Accountant Joseph Tiddy is a co-director with his father and mother, Howard and Irene Tiddy, in Dubs Farm which leases the 39 hectare block it operates on from his parents. Former cow farmers, they have been able to develop a successful goat milking business, initially running from the 39 hectares since it was established in 1999, Joseph says. “It has been a fantastic way for existing dairy farmers to diversify away from cows and that’s happened a lot.” While the burgeoning dairy goat industry has had a good run during the past ten years, the current mood is not “super-positive”, he says. While most dairy goat farms run an indoor system, from October 2021 Dubs Farm has been dedicated to supplying New Image Nutritionals from its outdoor grass-fed system. There are pros and cons with both systems in terms of production, animal health and public perception, Joseph says. Genetically, goat farming is the same as any other livestock, with a focus on good producers in balance with other traits. Former cow farmers, the Tiddy’s have been able to develop a successful goat milking business. “You are also selecting for good feet, goats hooves require trimming and that can really affect their health.” Reproduction is entirely through natural mating, which is the case for most New Zealand goat farms, as artificial insemination in the industry is not widely established, Joseph says. Joseph is unambigious about the effect of the covid pandemic on an industry that has been oriented around producing infant milk formula; every single dairy goat producer would have been very heavily impacted by the reduction in demand. “It has been really fantastic for a lot of suppliers. Mum and Dad have been able to build a pretty successful farming operation off the back of the dairy goat coop (DGC) and others too, but the impact of covid on the market for infant milk formula has been pretty rough.” “It’s certainly a limiting factor right now; if there’s a limit to demand for your product then there’s going to be a limit in your ability to accommodate any expansion.” Through NIG there is the possibility of a liquid milk market supplied by goats farmed outdoors and the potential of attracting a premium for the milk from these, Joseph says. While the ability to expand through existing supply channels appears to be constrained, he believes NIG’s push to expand into different product categories will benefit the industry as a whole. “It’s certainly a limiting factor right now; if there’s a limit to demand for your product then there’s going to be a limit in your ability to accommodate any expansion.”
| 17 nzdairy DAIRY GOATS » Tiddy Partnership milk formula hit by covid pandemic Young Moss Tiddy is right at home on the farm. A challenge issued during a dairy discussion group to Chris Lewis of BakerAg two decades ago resulted in the creation of Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM) software-based tool. DSM is a near real-time tool that takes inancial and production information through the milking season, showing farmers each month how they are tracking against their budget and, if they wish, against other farms that are using the DSM. The program was developed in 1999 as New Zealand dairy farming stakeholders started asking important questions about farm systems, a ordability of higher feeding levels and relative pro itability across farms. The Pirinoa (southern Wairarapa) discussion group challenged Chris Lewis to develop a way to provide an apples-for-apples comparison of physical and inancial performance for di erent farms. Twenty-three years later the tool has become a comprehensive service. Two essential points embedded in the original tool have remained and are an important point of di erence when compared to other benchmarking tools: • DSM is a tool to analyse the current season being farmed rather than looking backwards at what has happened. • DSM is not anonymous. Because members, with agreed rules around con identiality, see each other’s information with names at the top of each column, there is no hiding the truth. With this tool and service, participants can see how they are performing against planned results, why there are di erences and what their peers are achieving. Originally, all the reporting was via a spreadsheet, but that was soon outmoded. In the early 2000s Macfarlane Rural Business, through Jeremy Savage, joined forces with BakerAg and invested into the DSM website which collated the data and generated the reports. The next tranche of development was to join FARMAX with the DSM website. The power of this collective technology meant farmmodels and scenario planning were backed up by valid data. Farm-to-farm comparison can be within a consultancy irm, across a group of participating irms, across a region, by farm system type and virtually any other grouping of farms. This huge pool of in-season farm system information with like analysis gives vital insights into what makes for successful farm systems, in real time. The data and analysis are collected in a consistent manner across irms and the monthly nature of the reporting process means there is a constant stream of decision support information. Other consultancy irms that have since joined this collective are Ag irst, Transform Agri and Terry Carr of Agriconsult. DSM is transitioning to full control by FARMAX as they step up to lead the next stage of development which rolls out more analysis and reporting, including environmental indices. Dairy Systems Monitoring
18 | nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Chris Lewis Another short-staffed year for farmers Chris Lewis, Federated Farmers spokesperson for Employment and Immigration, says it is near impossible to find any casual staff: “There are no backpackers, no holiday makers – there is just no-one.” Kim Newth Without a big change in government policy around how the country re-opens to the world, farmers face another year of short staffing, says Chris Lewis, Federated Farmers spokesperson for Employment and Immigration. “We’re now going into a third year with an exhausted workforce, and it really is putting stress on the whole industry,” he says. “We’re all crying out for labour and we’re all struggling, and it’s not just a farming issue either. We have these incredible shortages of teachers, ICU nurses and doctors too and many other industries are in the same boat.” New Zealand’s border is reopening in stages from late February with priority being given to New Zealanders and other eligible travellers from Australia and then, from mid-March to Kiwis and travellers from the rest of the world along with skilled workers earning at least 1.5 times the median wage. Further class exceptions for critical workers will be considered by mid-April. Chris says the focus on bringing in skilled workers on higher wages makes little sense from a dairy farm perspective as higher paid managerial jobs are not the ones farmers need to fill. “Those mid-range and senior roles are already filled by New Zealanders. In fact, what we really need right now are people who can come in with minimal or little experience and do that job of putting cups on cows,” he says. “The Government has got the horse and cart the wrong way around.” Federated Farmers, Dairy NZ and the Dairy Women’s Network have been lobbying on the sector’s urgent need for more international workers for some time now. Two hundred border exceptions for dairy workers were made last year, but this has done little to ease the problem. “By the end of January, out of 200 exceptions for dairy, only 20 had got in. Getting people through MIQ has been a slow and frustrating process and there is a lot of red tape. There were tractor drivers given approval to come into the country last year but by the time all the required paperwork has been processed by three or four organisations the maize will have been harvested.” He suggests other countries such as the US are being more proactive about recruiting agricultural workers, leaving New Zealand at risk of missing out. Farmers often hear the argument that they should employ more New Zealanders to fill the gaps, but Chris observes that the dairy workforce is already employing thousands of Kiwis. Migrants typically only make up 12-13 per cent of the workforce. “New Zealand’s unemployment rate is very low. A lot of rural areas are at zero unemployment so I don’t know how we can attract the best, the brightest and the smartest when there is actually no-one to attract at all.” Chris has firsthand experience of the recruitment headache. He farms at Pukeatua, south of Hamilton, milking 970-1000 cows, where there is a big focus on retention – “but during calving we usually employ two to three casuals but now it’s impossible find any casual staff. No-one is doing any casual work. There are no backpackers, no holiday makers – there is just no-one.” “Those mid-range and senior roles are already filled by New Zealanders. In fact, what we really need right now are people who can come in with minimal or little experience and do that job of putting cups on cows. The Government has got the horse and cart the wrong way around.” Te Awamutu Phone: 07 871 6781 Putaruru Phone: 07 883 3423 Otorohanga Phone: 07 873 8500 Milking Systems Effluent Management Refrigeration Water Reticulation Milk with confidence
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