Rowarth appointed DairyNZ deputy chair
DairyNZ has appointed Jacqueline Rowarth as its first deputy board chair.
DairyNZ's general manager of extension, Andrew Reid, says dairy farmers are looking closely at their feeding systems in the light of the low payout.
The payout has come as a shock to a lot people and farmers are now challenging their own farming systems, he says.
Anecdotally they don’t appear to be changing from one system to another, but rather are looking at refining and cutting costs in their existing systems.
“People are destocking or making sure they are not carrying passenger cows through this current season.
“They are making best use of home grown feed instead of buying supplements. And they are looking at all farm inputs.”
Reid says many farmers have been through tough times before and they are now hunkering down to ride out the storm of low prices.
Many farmers got rid of passenger cows in the late spring in anticipation of a tight season, reducing reliance on supplementary feed.
But Reid says the cold wet winter has been a problem in many areas so the use of supplementary feed is going to be a focal point over spring.
The prospect of El Nino raises issues for farmers, he says. Southland farmers are already talking about growing fodder beet to take them through next winter.
Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford is claiming “some real success” on the 12 policy priorities it placed before the Coalition Government.
Federated Farmers is throwing its support behind the Fast-track Approvals Bill introduced by the Coalition Government to enable a fast-track decision-making process for infrastructure and development projects.
The latest report from ANZ isn’t good news for sheep farmers: lamb returns are forecast to remain low.
Divine table grapes that herald the start of a brand-new industry in Hawke’s Bay have been coming off vines in Maraekakaho.
In what appears to be a casualty of the downturn in the agricultural sector, a well-known machinery brand is now in the hands of liquidators and owing creditors $6.6 million.
One of New Zealand’s deepest breeder Jersey herds – known for its enduring connection through cattle with the UK’s longest reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II – will host its 75th anniversary celebration sale on-farm on April 22.