Taranaki drought leaves farmers limping toward season's end
Limping towards the end of the season is how Richard Walker describes the situation he's facing due to prolonged drought in coastal areas of Taranaki.
A warning to dairy farmers: don’t try to buy yourself out of any drought.
That’s the message from AgFirst chief executive and dairy specialist James Allen in light of warnings from Niwa that El Nino conditions could cause a significant drought in many parts of the country. Already there have been signs of the El Nino conditions hitting Hawke’s Bay and Tairawhiti regions with higher-thanaverage temperatures.
Allen told Dairy News that dairying areas most at risk are Northland, the Waikato – especially northern parts of the region – and possibly Bay of Plenty. He says he’s been told by colleagues further south that Manawatū may also get hit by a drought as they have in the past.
“But certainly, the further north you go, the more I get worried,” he says.
He says many regions went into winter with good levels of supplement and says they were needed. He says now one of the key things farmers need to do is to take stock of what they have got left and start building up reserves again.
Allen says the options will vary from region to region and from farm to farm, with some opting for crops while others will focus on producing as much grass silage as they can for the season ahead.
“But equally it’s important to keep the budget in mind as well, especially given the projected lower payout, and farmers need to be clear on what action is profitable and what is not. The dynamics are much different to… two or three years ago. In past drought years, farmers have tended to hold on to poor performing animals longer, but this year getting stock off early will take the pressure off the farm,” he says.
Allen says in this regard it’s important that farmers communicate frequently and well with their processors and book stock in early. He says it’s no longer possible to ring up a company one night and expect the animals to be picked up the next day.
“This doesn’t happen anymore,” he says.
Planning is therefore critical and Allen says it’s often better getting the cull cows off early to reduce the amount of feed that might have to bought in. And on this subject, Allen says that if the drought is bad, there may be a shortage of feed nationwide and it will hard and costly to buy-in feed.
“I certainly wouldn’t be budgeting on sourcing feed from the South Island,” he says.
Allen reiterates that, given the low commodity prices, the prospect of buying oneself out of the drought is fraught.
The Good Carbon Farm has partnered with Tolaga Bay Heritage Charitable Trust to deliver its first project in Tairāwhiti Gisborne.
Education union NZEI Te Riu Roa says that while educators will support the Government’s investment in learning support, they’re likely to be disappointed that it has been paid for by defunding expert teachers.
The Government says it is sharpening its focus and support for the food and fibre industry in Budget 2025.
A European Union regulation ensuring that the products its citizens consume do not contribute to deforestation or forest degradation worldwide threatens $200m of New Zealand beef and leather exports.
A long-acting, controlled- release capsule designed to protect ewes from internal parasites during the lambing period is back on the market following a comprehensive reassessment.
Healthcare appears to be the big winner in this year's budget as agriculture and environment miss out.
OPINION: Last week's announcement of Prime Minister’s new Science and Technology Advisory Council hasn’t gone down too well in the…
OPINION: At its recent annual general meeting, Federated Farmers’ Auckland province called for New Zealand to withdraw from the Paris…