66 | nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Norlands Jerseys Euan Reeve. A leap into new A leap into new technology in the form of cow collars is boosting the performance and saleability of the in-calf cows no less than the bulls for the Norlands Jersey stud near Otorohanga in the Waikato. Owners Claire and Euan Reeve run a Fonterra supply herd of 350 registered Jersey stud cows, plus 120 R1 heifers, 50 R1 bulls and 120 R2 heifers on their 220ha of “flat to possible pine-tree country land,” as Euan puts it. The farm’s main revenue earner is milk produced at the annual rate of 130,000kg of milk-solids, but the sale of in-calf cows as well as bulls fleshes out the stud’s income. “We’re selling lines of surplus in-calf heifers and cows to all sorts of buyers who just want a few animals to top up their herds,” Euan says. “They’re the lower end of our herd but Claire and I won’t sell anything that we’re not prepared to milk ourselves: we stand behind our stock.” The stud’s bulls are also sold into the dairy industry, with much of the selling arranged by word of mouth and by various agents, including BYL Livestock and Link Livestock. The farm finds ready markets for its stock, and 12 months ago the Reeves moved to make them even better by fitting the cows with Israeli-made Afimilk collars which deliver information on reproduction, feed consumption and rumination, while also providing health alerts. “I can see this information becoming a key part of our business, allowing us to make betterinformed decisions on all aspects of our operation,” Euan says. “The collars also help to reduce key-person dependency.” Aside from the agency sales, Norlands Jerseys occasionally sells progeny at female auction sales nationwide, including Jersey New Zealand’s Jersey Pride sale in May. Hugh de Lacy 83 Kio Kio Station Rd, RD4, Otorohanga Ph: 07 873 1800 Mob: 029 833 0011 Email: johnclarkcontracting@xtra.co.nz Si-Lac f resh culture silage bacteria Coveris bale wrap film Silage covers 150 micron, underlay sheet & double covers & bags Heavy duty Pro-net and Net replacement films Baling Twines from conventional to High density Zill stack protection and weighting systems Si-Lac Extra for high moisture hay up to 25% Kevin – 027 521 8991 – Nthn NI Charles – 027 284 1400 John – 027 284 1425 – Sthn NI Simon – 027 284 1440 – Nthn SI Jared – 027 284 1401 – Sthn SI BYLLIVESTOCK.CO.NZ 0800 827 455 byllivestock "Maximising your return through personal livestock management" Specialising in all classes of livestock Dairy herds | Sheep & Beef | Replacement Stock | Bulls | Valuations Bryce Young 027 496 7411 Chris Smith 027 496 7413 | 06 756 8968 Chris Kyle 027 496 7412 | 07 883 7412 Richard Seavill 021 169 8276 Jason Roberts 027 707 1271 Harrison Levien 027 496 7410 Proud to work alongside Norlands Jerseys .(A ͠;696/(5.( 1 Progress Drive | 07 873 4004 Logan Coffey 027 208 9002 The business was founded on land that Euan’s grandparents, Betty and Cyril Reeve, bought in 1931. Cyril Reeve faced the initial task of hacking back the regenerating bush with an axe, before first registering the stud in 1935. “He probably started with just a handful of animals he was milking by hand, and today my kids are the fourth generation on the same farm,” Euan Reeve says. Euan’s parents, Glenville and Anne Reeve, took over the farm after Glenville completed his Diploma in Agriculture at Massey University in the early 1970s. The highlight of Glenville’s administration was the breeding in the early 1980s of the bull Norlands Best Max which developed a huge following that saw no fewer than 20,000 of his daughters milked on farms throughout the country. “That was a hell of a lot of AI (artificial insemination), and it was the stud’s most notable achievement to that time,” Euan says. Euan also did his Bachelor of Agriculture at Massey before returning to the farm in 2002, and buying the herd five years later. He has since continued the stud’s record of breeding “fully functional producing cows,” with wide appeal to the industry. Claire and Euan run Norlands Jerseys with the help of a farm manager and a farm assistant. “I can see this information becoming a key part of our business, allowing us to make better-informed decisions on all aspects of our operation.”
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