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Maize silage has long been critical to livestock farmers' conservation choice for winter feed, so it's no surprise to see harvester manufacturers looking at new ways to make the crop more productive.
In the early days the crop needed to be cut extremely short to ensure all the kernels were cracked and digestible, then the corn cracker systems of the late 1980s allowed an increase in crop length, while achieving the same result.
A silver medal will go to Claas at Agritechnica in Germany in mid November for its recently launched MCC Max maize silage conditioning system for its Jaguar range of self-propelled forage harvesters.
Using a pair of rollers with a saw tooth profile and 30 angular segments, the system combines friction, cutting and shearing to intensively condition the grains and release the maximum amount of digestible starches (which increase energy levels), as well as shredding the stalk material at chop lengths up to 22mm.
This can increase feed value, and there advantages in the ensiling process, not least by achieving better levels of consolidation at longer chop lengths.
Surplus maize silage could find buyers in the burgeoning AD gas production industry from a common silage clamp.
Well known for its dominance in the harvesting arena, Claas has channelled its engineering excellence and a deep knowledge of the ag industry with the Fieldays release of the 2025 facelift Claas Arion 600C Evolution and Claas Night Edition Arion 660 tractors.
As I write this article, we have just had our first frost in the Waikato, a change in weather signalling that winter is upon us.
Silage making is both a science and an art, but Claas says it offers onboard technology featured in its Claas Perfect Partners to help farmers make silage more efficiently and effectively.
This season's dry conditions have made one thing clear: not having enough feed on hand can bring your season to an early close.
Claas has recently celebrated the 250,000th CLAAS mower – a Disco 3200 FC – rolling off the production line in Bad Saulgau, south-west Germany.
Dairy farmers are set to benefit from the radical sweeping changes the Government is planning to make to the regulations that form part of the Resource Management Act (RMA).
The reported surge in interest in dairy conversions should be put into the context of falling overall cow numbers and improving environmental performance, says DairyNZ.
New Zealand's top trade official has told dairy farmers that their sector faces the most trade barriers internationally.
Waikato sharemilker Matthew Zonderop had no inkling that one day he would become a matchmaker for cows.
The coveted post of Federated Farmers' national dairy chair will see a two-way contest at the Federated Farmers annual meeting later this month.
Research lending to the production of dairy products that benefit the elderly and improves the overall wellbeing of all people is a key focus of Fonterra's Research and Development centre, based in Palmerston North.
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