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Sars Hyde feeding in the paddock with a BvL 27.
Canterbury sharemilkers Steven (‘Sars’) and Ange Hyde are raising their cows to a new level, comments Webbline, whose BvL feed mixer the Hydes bought last winter.
The Hydes are into their second year of 50/50 sharemilking 1200 cows on a 300ha property for Nigel and Jane Reith at Ealing.
Last season, the Reiths could see the need to fine tune their operation so they bought a stand-off feed pad.
“With this facility being built we could see the benefit of a mixer to maximise production,” Sars says. “We tried a couple of brands and settled on the BvL V-Mix 27. The feed pad and mixer save us pasture and minimise wastage, especially on the shoulders of the season.”
The farm operates two centre pivots, has 100ha under a Rotorainer and 30ha using K-Line sprinkler.
The BvL is an exceptional machine, he says. “It’s easy to drive. I mostly run it on my John Deere 6920. However when needed I run it on a John Deere 6330 (100hp) and it handles it at a pinch, so I have tractor flexibility.
“At 27m3 we have excellent capacity: on a milker’s mix we can get up to 11 tonnes mixed with total accuracy.
“We chose BvL because of its build quality, mixing capacity and consistency. The asymmetrical bin design of the BvL facilitates fast mixing. Using a figure-eight mixing pattern it achieves a consistent mix in a short time.
“In the spring we were feeding the milkers a mix of silage, straw and fodder beet and found that the beet chops up very well also”.
Sars says the farm increased to 30,000kgMS solids in the spring, building up to October.
“It was a result of knowing the farm and cows better, the calving pattern and the mixer. I would equate that extra milk to a third of each, so in short I can attribute at least 10,000kgMS of spring production to the BvL and this was only by feeding in the paddock; we didn’t have the feed pad finished then.”
Webbline Sales manager Glen Malcolm says the Hydes’ experience is not uncommon.
“Sars is running a low cost system and has proven that the BVL Mixer dovetails nicely into that low cost operation. Even with the lower forecast payout, we are still selling, leasing and hiring BVL Mixers as farmers are looking for ways to get more out of their cows.
“We have run the figures with many of our clients on the economics of running a mixer on a $4.70/kgMS payout and it still stacks up.”
Webbline Agriculture specialises in forage harvesting and feeding equipment, seeking to provide clients with help in planning for the right equipment to do the job, Malcolm says.
“It’s not always the cost of the machine that is most important, but that what a client buys will provide the greatest benefits to his operation.”
Tel. 0800 932 254
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