44 | nzdairy Fourth season is off to a flying start Ryan does his own work, where others might use contractors. Randall Johnston To Spring Sheep Milk Co–supplier Ryan McPherson, the benefits of getting into milking sheep are obvious and he says it’s great to be part of an industry that is young and still growing in New Zealand. Farming in Tokoroa and now into his fourth season, Ryan says the winter has been reasonably mild with the frosts starting a bit later than usual and things are going well in the lead-up to spring. The block is 70ha (63ha effective) and Ryan aims to be peak-milking about 1300-1400 Zealandia sheep this season. “That’s a fair bit up on last season, where we peaked at about 1050 sheep,” Ryan explains. “I initially got into sheep farming when my father (Litchfield dairy farmer Dave McPherson) heard about a sheep milking conference on the radio. I was looking for a job as an investment banker and potentially looking to move overseas, but I went along to the conference and could see that it was an awesome opportunity, just with the genetic growth and the potential of the industry. It also seemed like a good use of land that was more environmentally sustainable than other forms of farming, so I jumped in head first.” Although there was some investment involved, Ryan and his father were able to re-purpose some of the older assets that they already had in place. “We used an existing shed that we had shut down years ago, we just converted that for sheep milking and fencing up the block a bit.” Ryan does his own work, where others might use contractors, such as drilling in chicory crops, which helps to keep costs down and allows them to sow at the optimal time. DAIRY PEOPLE » Ryan McPherson This season Ryan has employed three people, a big change from just doing it by himself with the help of an assistant, which is what he has done for the last three seasons. “I needed to start working on the business, rather than in the business and in order to do that - I need to be able to have more time out of the shed,” Ryan explains. The genetic gains made in milking sheep have been notable. When Spring Sheep first started they were doing about 34 milk solids per sheep, now it’s around 60. “For the production to double in eight years is pretty phenomenal and I think there’s still some more growth to come.” That gain has been achieved via a mixture of refining the genetics and feeding the most appropriate feeds, but the increasing production output of each generation is a big factor. Their diet is predominately grass based, but they are also fed pallets containing canola meal, whole maize and minerals. Also pure whole maize on its own has proven to be beneficial for the sheep, within the system that Ryan is running at least. Maize and grass silage is also fed-out in the paddock if needs be and also chicory is always fed in the summertime. “We grow all our own maize, so about 10ha grown across the road on the support block, will be used for this operation. Our chicory is also right on our milking platform and the sheep graze that before milking and the rest of the feed is bought-in.” Apart for shearers and veterinarians; Ryan does everything himself which also helps balance the books. Ryan feels that the economics of sheep milking should start to improve, as interest rates hopefully start to drop and feed costs come down a bit and he is eager to see what further gains can be achieved on his operation and others across New Zealand in the future, as the local industry matures and continues to evolve.
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