Kverneland to debut Alentix fertiliser spreaders at Agritechnica
With Agritechnica just around the corner, it’s no surprise to see manufacturers drip-feed some information of new products worth a closer look.
Kverneland Group, part of the Kubota Corporation, has acquired 80% of Italian company ROC, best known for its mergers/swathers.
Like other machines in the marketplace, the layout sees a conventional tine-based pick-up reel that lifts the crop onto grouper belts for central, left, right or split delivery. If required, the machine can make further passes to move "grouped" swathes together to feed high powered self-propelled forage harvesters or large square balers.
The concept is said to be finding favour with increasing numbers of large-scale farmers and contractors, who wish to merge large areas of grass quickly, but also treat them more gently and avoid leaf shatter. This is important in crops like Lucerne or alfalfa, both traditionally grown in drier areas and with crude protein levels of up to 20%, making them valuable crops.
Compared to tine-based swathing or raking solutions that move crops laterally across the ground to form a larger swath, the merger concept helps reduce the amount of foreign objects like stones, removes the risk of broken tines and reduces crop contamination from soil or ash.
Formed in 1996, the ROC company, based in Rimini on Italy's east coast, offers a range of front or rear-mounted, trailed and self-propelled variants, with working widths from 4.90 to 12.20 metres, the largest machine capable of bringing up to 50 metres of grass into a single large swath.
Meat co-operative, Alliance has met with a group of farmer shareholders, who oppose the sale of a controlling stake in the co-op to Irish company Dawn Meats.
Rollovers of quad bikes or ATVs towing calf milk trailers have typically prompted a Safety Alert from Safer Farms, the industry-led organisation dedicated to fostering a safer farming culture across New Zealand.
The Government has announced it has invested $8 million in lower methane dairy genetics research.
A group of Kiwi farmers are urging Alliance farmer-shareholders to vote against a deal that would see the red meat co-operative sell approximately $270 million in shares to Ireland's Dawn Meats.
In a few hundred words it's impossible to adequately describe the outstanding contribution that James Brendan Bolger made to New Zealand since he first entered politics in 1972.
Dawn Meats is set to increase its proposed investment in Alliance Group by up to $25 million following stronger than forecast year-end results by Alliance.
OPINION: Voting is underway for Fonterra’s divestment proposal, with shareholders deciding whether or not sell its consumer brands business.
OPINION: Politicians and Wellington bureaucrats should take a leaf out of the book of Canterbury District Police Commander Superintendent Tony Hill.