Dairy farmers welcome NZ’s revised 2050 methane target
The Government's revised 2050 biogenic methane target range of 14-24% by 2050 is being welcomed by dairy farmers.
 DairyNZ’s farm performance manager, Sarah Speight says while pasture covers look great, farmers face a myriad of challenges.
		  	
		  
		  		  
		  DairyNZ’s farm performance manager, Sarah Speight says while pasture covers look great, farmers face a myriad of challenges.
		  
		  
		  
	  It looks good physically on farm but below the surface things are far from ideal.
That's the view of DairyNZ's farm performance manager, Sarah Speight, who says in general if one looks at pasture covers, cow condition and milk production, things aren't too bad.
She says this is amazing given the season has been all over the place with adverse weather events which have made it hard for farmers to manage their operations.
Sarah Speight says most of the maize silage has now been harvested, although yields are below last year's levels.
"But it's not as bad as originally thought," she told Dairy News.
"There have been problems with pests and the weather has delayed the planting of maize. In one case, a farmer told me he had to plant his crop three times because the weather wiped out the first two plantings," she says.
Speight says in the upper North Island the cyclones which brought heavy rainfall had a bizarre positive effect by enhancing grass growth, meaning some extra grass silage could be harvested.
She says there will be challenges in Otago, which has been hit by a drought and there may be a shortage of grass for the cows, but the South Island is pretty big and there are options to bring in feed and take other steps to mitigate the problems.
In Northland, Hawke's Bay and the East Coast of the North Island, infrastructure remains a problem with some farms still without road access. She says the bridge at Patoka in Hawke's Bay has been replaced, enabling stock access and milk collection, but other places are still cut off.
"Farmers in Northland are getting back on track with regrassing taking place and autumn calving progressing well.
"It's much the same on the West Coast of the South Island where things are looking up in terms of the farm, but it's financial issues and concern about rising costs that are causing the angst," she says.
Acclaimed fruit grower Dean Astill never imagined he would have achieved so much in the years since being named the first Young Horticulturist of the Year, 20 years ago.
The Ashburton-based Carrfields Group continues to show commitment to future growth and in the agricultural sector with its latest investment, the recently acquired 'Spring Farm' adjacent to State Highway 1, Winslow, just south of Ashburton.
New Zealand First leader and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has blasted Fonterra farmers shareholders for approving the sale of iconic brands to a French company.
A major feature of the Ashburton A&P Show, to be held on October 31 and November 1, will be the annual trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial test match, with the best heading dogs from both sides of the Tasman going head-to-head in two teams of four.
Fewer bobby calves are heading to the works this season, as more dairy farmers recognise the value of rearing calves for beef.
The key to a dairy system that generates high profit with a low emissions intensity is using low footprint feed, says Fonterra program manager on-farm excellence, Louise Cook.
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