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The Topcon Apollo CM-20, a universal row crop planting controller.
Topcon's latest product is designed to establish sugar beet and maize more accurately and help reduce seed wastage.
The Apollo CM-20, a universal row crop planting controller, can monitor planting accuracy in realtime and relay this information to the operator, allowing them to deal with any anomalies quickly.
Offering the ability to control the functions of up to 24 electrically-driven seeding units, the controller allows “on-the-fly” adjustments to avoid seed wastage, as a result of overlaps, headland misses or when operating in “short ground” in awkwardly shaped paddocks.
In addition to the auto-section function, Apollo also offers variable rate control and variable rate application of up to three additional granular products, but the manufacturer suggests its key advantage is the ability to monitor singulation and spacing accuracy and to ensure that each seed is dropped in the correct position.
This includes bends in the paddock, where turn compensation reduces the seeding rate towards the inside of the curve and increases it at the outer radius, where the seeding coulters travel further and faster.
This ensures all seeds are planted at equal distances irrespective of any irregularities in the shape of the paddock.
While it wouldn’t be unfair to call the LDV T60 “the poor man’s ute”, a change of distributor in 2023 has seen the brand raise its profile, while the recent arrival of the new LDV T60 Max Plus, will undoubtedly open the door to a wider audience for the brand.
Ag and Civil Machinery Direct, a division of Hamilton- based Waikato tractors, has recently been awarded the sole distribution in New Zealand for Kemper’s range of precision forage equipment.
While the name and technology remain unchanged and new machines will continue to carry the Novag name, all the assets, intellectual property and staff of the French manufacturer have been acquired by a new organisation called Agriculture Nouvelle Génération.
Recent rain has offered respite for some from the ongoing drought.
Having already hit the headlines for recycling broken 2.4 metre vineyard posts into 1.8 and 1.6 metre, half and quarter posts for agriculture, Repost recently hit the milestone of one million posts recycled, diverting the CCA treated posts from landfill.
The 2025 game bird season is underway with Hawke’s Bay and Southland reporting the ideal weather conditions for hunters – rain and wind.
A group of meat processing companies, directors and managers have been fined a total of $1.6 million for deliberately and illegally altering exported tallow for profit.
New Zealand’s top cheeses for 2025 have been announced and family-owned, Oamaru-based Whitestone Cheese is the big winner.
Waikato farmer, and Owl Farm demonstration manager, Jo Sheridan is the 2025 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
New Zealand’s special agricultural trade envoy Hamish Marr believes the outlook for the dairy sector remains strong.
Everyone from experienced veterinarians and young professionals to the Wormwise programme and outstanding clinics have been recognised in this year’s New Zealand Veterinary Association Te Pae Kīrehe (NZVA) awards.
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