NZ Dairy Summer 2020

| 13 nz dairy 0800 feedsystems I SHED EED SYSTEMS EED MILLI G SOLUTIO S GRAI STORAGE SOLUTIO S G PIG & POULTRY E UIPME T 0800333379 "Replacement parts and after sales on call service" Central Silo Systems Ltd were delighted design, supply and install a rotary dairy in shed feed system, with molasses addition and On Farm Feed Mill package allows Bassett Farms the ability to control their feed costs, produce the highest quality feed throughout the season to suit the nutritional requirements and seasonal changes. It is always good to hear some of the ts from the end user like Bassett Farms and their improved conception and birth rates, reduced ailments, even cow lameness and of course improved milk production and animal condition score. Central Silo Systems Ltd installed the system and we continue to provide back up after sales service and support to Bassett Farms. e currently providing repeat business and our own installation team silo and new auger to the SKIOLD DISC MILL for increased storage capacity. experience of feed systems, Grain storage solutions and on farm feed mills system to ensure peace of mind to the end us install is of high quality and built to last. ng a On Farm Feed Mill with a SKIOLD DISC MILL over a standard in shed feed system and other mills on the market. High quality built to last. BENIFITS OF A FEED MILL with a SKIOLD DISC MILL: • A set of discs on a SKIOLD DISC MILL can grind 10,000 – 25,000 tonne of grain until spare parts are needed. • Mill the grain to the desired particle size with a SKIOLD DISC MILL to ensure maximum nutritional value. • Eliminate any wasted grain by a simply turn the handle to accurately mill the grain ensuring all grain even pinched grain is utilized for maximum conversion. • Having your own grain Silos allows you to either grow your own grain or buy whole grain in bulk at the right time of the year when prices are generally cheaper, lowering annual supplement feed costs. • Storing grain in your own silo/s eliminates additional grain storage costs. • A Meal Mixer/Blender on load cells, provides a guarantee that all ingredients and minerals are in the feed and at the desired inclusion rates. • Make and mix blends on demand. Add powdered and granulated minerals and proteins like DDG, PKE, Mag & Lime, zinc etc. to any recipe for the perfect blend. It even eliminates dusting. • Guarantee the cows are getting the best diet for the best results and at the right time during the season to suit nutritional needs. • Quickly and efficientl y change the diet/blend & inclusion rates when required. • A Fully automated feed mill reduces labour and saves costs. DAIRY PEOPLE » Bassett Farms an efficient, productive, sustainable farm • to page 14 When the opportunity to introduce irrigation to their milking platform came up in 2008 this helped further resolve their goal to improve their feed- ing capacity. Drying out wasn’t a problem but the irrigation meant they could realize their potential to grow a lot more grass. “For a lot of the Wairarapa it’s a matter of holding out through late summer un- til the rains come in autumn, but for us, December through March is when we grow a lot of our feed.” In their first season with irrigation on 85 hectares of the milking platform they were milking around 400 spring calving cows, but they found they didn’t have enough mouths on the ground to eat all the additional feed. They decided that instead of keep- ing their carry-overs through to the following milk- ing season they would calve these carry over cows, totalling 50 – 60, in December and milk around 450 cows at their peak around Christmas time. The year they brought in the additional calving they increased their milk production by 18,000 kilos from around 210,000kg to between 225,000kg to 230,000kg milk solids. The Bassetts differ from more traditional Wai- rarapa dairy farms in other ways as they’ve adapted their practices to maximize their resources. “We were struggling to grow our heifers out on the stony run-off so we now graze them out for a year and instead of growing the grass to feed them we grow 80 hectares of our own barley. It gives us a condensed energy source to feed the cows and it means we can be in full control of any supplements we’re using. By growing it ourselves it means we only need one full time worker, Andrew Pike, who’s been with us for 28 years. And as a bonus we also get all our winter straw.” The Bassetts have just come off a two-year in- tensive development phase getting fully up to speed with effluent ponds and an underpass. Thanks to the earlier developments bumping up production A feedpad has overcome the problem of wet paddocks in the spring.