Modelling Highlights Profit Lift
Fully renewing a Canterbury dairy farm in a mix of Array and 4front ryegrasses could lift profitability by more than $1,500/ha while cutting reliance on imported feed.
Latest National Forage Variety Trials again show Forge NEA ahead of its nearest competitor, especially in winter and spring, he adds.
With the median calving date for NZ seasonal dairy herds now two or three weeks earlier than it was 20 years ago, this pattern of seasonal growth is only going to become more valuable.
Kerr has spent 40 years in the industry with Barenbrug, the company behind Forge NEA.
"Cool season home grown feed is immensely profitable in today's dairy systems, not to mention highly emissions-efficient," he says.
"Through the North Island and upper South summers are more erratic; late autumn, winter and spring are the most reliable seasons for farmers. These are the time when you pay the bills, and I can't see that changing.
"Anything that performas as consistently as Forge in the cooler months of the year offers farmers a practical, cost-effective adaptation to emerging climatic trends."
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Utilising more pasture, of higher quality, at home is good for both the bottom line and the environment because it reduces emissions intensity, Graham says.
"If a three-to-five-year hybrid fits your system, why would you opt for something less than the best?"
Forge NEA's yield advantage comes from a step-change in ryegrass genetic gain that has yet to be beaten.
In the five years since it debuted in the NFVT, two old hybrid ryegrass cultivars have left the market, and three new ones have been released.
Runner-up in the latest NFVT results is Forge's cousin Shogun NEA12, which offers high yield and quality for those wanting a shorter-term hybrid and for summer dry areas is a great 1-2 year pasture fit.
"We're very proud of both of them," Kerr says.
"But the biggest endorsement comes from the farmers who have captured the significant benefits of their cool season growth, and continue to sow them."
