Boots Off, Brains Unplugged
OPINION: Across the country, farmers are juggling stock, pasture, animal health, fertiliser, contractors, staff, weather, cash flow and an endless list of jobs that cannot wait.
Rural professionals from Ballance, ANZ, regional councils, Pioneer, HerdHomes and Headlands are travelling around the country talking about how farmers can lift production and profit on properties while decreasing environment impact in a friendly fashion.
Pow says while New Zealand dairy farmers have traditionally set stocking rates to levels that could be maintained in periods of stress and viewed effluent as a waste product, they could more than double the production of their farms on similar sized sections of land with smart grazing and effluent management. "In Northland the average production is around 500kgms/ha but there are guys out there getting 1000kgms/ha off the same country and it's the same all over the country."
Pow says top producers aren't largely relying on bought in feeds but instead focus on effective usage of on farm resources like effluent. "Effluent is god's gift from the cow to the soil."
Topics for discussion include pasture maintenance, on-off grazing, supplement use, overall management and use of Farm Dairy Effluent (FDE).
Speakers from Headlands NZ and the Waikato Regional Council will also be presenting at the event to discuss the region's changing environmental footprint and how to farm to get optimum results for the minimum environmental impact.
Seminars will be held in the Springdale Hall on June 24 and Tiara War Memorial hall on June 25 from 10am.
Further events will be announced in the near future.
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