52 | nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Sherraine Holsteins Sherraine’s multiple show and industry awards Russell Fredric This year has been one of both change and status quo for Sherraine Holsteins. The Holstein Friesian stud continues to haul in multiple show and industry awards for its top-flight cows and heifers, but the stud and the family-owned farm it operates from has moved. Sherraine Holsteins previously operated from a 152 hectare farm at Ohoka, just North of Christchurch which milked 180 cows. The farm and stud is run by third generation farmer Peter Sherrif along with his wife Rhonda, and their daughter Olivia and her husband Jared. Peter and Rhonda have eased back into a support role with Ohoka now functioning as a support block, with the family having bought a 186ha effective hectare dairy unit at nearby Swannanoa, run by Olivia and James as part of a succession plan. “The farm was developed as a dairy unit in 2016 by the previous owner. It’s ideally set up for what we wanted as a stud operation,” Peter says. “Because we winter milked here we have a large feed pad area here in Ohoka as well, so we are wintering the dry stock and using the new farm just as a milking platform.” Swannanoa’s rotary platform and its associated automation and technology is like night and day compared to Ohoka which had a basic 16 a-side herringbone shed, Peter says. An additional feature of Swannanoa’s operation is that the cows are [internally] carrying smaXtech boluses which transmit a range of key metrics such as inner body temperature, rumination, heat detection, water intake, and activity, as an alternative to ear tags or collars. Genetically, the focus for the herd is breeding cows that have longevity and the ability to produce high volumes of milk. Sherraine shows cows each year at the Christchurch and Oxford shows and has won champion cow with four different cows at the Christchurch show for six years out of the last nine. At the Oxford show, Sherraine’s considerable ribbon haul included Sherraine Solomon Lemon winning Champion Holstein, Champion All Breeds and Champion Best Udder, while Sherraine Legend Coco was Reserve Champion Holstein and Intermediate Champion All Breeds. “Solomon Lemon is our star cow in the herd at the moment.” A board member of Holstein Friesian New Zealand, Peter attributes the quality of Sherraine Holstein’s genetics to a century of focused breeding. “My father started the Deloraine stud in 1934, and my grandfather prior to that in 1923. It’s just been generations of breeding those types of cows; it’s always been focused on high production.” Sherraine breeds exclusively through artificial insemination using mostly North American genetics “which is in my opinion far superior to New Zealand genetics because you have a larger cow that has more capability of producing more volume”, Peter says. “It’s a lot of benefits to the industry if the cows could have a longer life.” Peter regards their ideal cow as weighing around 600kg to 650kg. Sherraine’s cows currently produce more than 100% of their body weight in milk solids annually which requires them to have good udders, while achieving longevity means the phenotype is also extremely important. “It costs a lot of money to rear a heifer to get her into milk. You’ve got to rear them from a calf, you’ve got to feed them for two years. If you’re only going to get two or three years production out of them it’s a great cost, but if you can get five or six lactations-plus out of those cows you’re decreasing the number you need to rear.” Building relationships with the North Canterbury farming community for decades! www.rangioravetcentre.co.nz Rangiora Vet Centre - Farming Providing 24/7 vet care and support for all our farmers Enhancing Lives Together admin@agrownomics.co.nz www . a g r own om i c s . c o . n z PROUD TO BE SUPPORTING SHERRAINE HOLSTEINS INDEPENDENT RESTORATIVE PRODUCTIVITY HIGHER RETURNS ADVISORY | TAX | AUDIT | ACCOUNTING SERVICES Proudly supporting Sherraine Holsteins Talk to us today for help in reaching your farm business goals. BDO Agribusiness FRAZER WEIR 027 453 5831 ROD HANSEN 021 823 875 bdo.nz/ChristchurchAgriBusiness The Holstein Friesian stud continues to haul in multiple show and industry awards for its top-flight cows and heifers.
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