New chair for genetics governance group
Fifth-generation dairy farmer Rebecca Keoghan is the new independent chair of the Animal Evaluation Governance Group.
The smallest one has 700 cows and produces 320,000kgMS. All have modern rotary sheds and onfarm technology including Minda and MilkHub.
Keoghan spends much of her time in her office and on the road but technology enables her to know in real time what's going on at all the farms.
"Landcorp has fantastic online systems which you must have because of the distance between the farms which are scattered around the country. We have Lync calls with video calling; without my being there I can see what my farms are doing via the technology in their sheds – what time they start and finish milking, what the cows are doing, somatic cell issues, and quality and cleaning issues."
But Keoghan makes a point of visiting each farm at least once a week.
The West Coast has its own farming challenges, notably heavy rain: downpours of 40ml in a morning are not uncommon and it all adds up to 2500ml annual average rainfall. Not much irrigation is used.
The rain raises questions about where and when to spray effluent on paddocks. Landcorp has a sophisticated data gathering network giving soil moisture, temperature and rainfall to help make accurate decisions.
In the aptly named Cape Foulwind area one farm, Tram Road, a newer conversion, is near the coast and unlike the others in the area has less organic matter and sandy soil which the strong winds dry out in January. To help this farm deal with the dry and to reduce the need for supplements, Keoghan says they have planted 82ha of chicory this year on the three farms.
"We have had plantain before but we are focusing on chicory at the moment because it has high ME. It's got long root structures and with sandy soil it has worked extremely well. It does have a short life although you can run it if you like for two or three years. We got in excess of six grazings on it from January until now. In contrast to last year we haven't had to purchase imported feed to maintain production and cow condition, and haven't had to dry cows off early. We don't do fodder beet, we only grow kale and turnips moderately here, but the soils don't have enough organic matter. We grow rape really well and that's our winter crop."
In her early months in the job Keoghan focused on matters that would increase profitability and reduce dependence on supplements. That meant setting appropriate stocking levels, lifting production per cow and per hectare and getting back to the basics of good pasture management. To that end she has hired a consultant to get some 'independent' advice.
There has also been a focus on environmental issues to limit nitrogen and sediment leaching into waterways on the farms. About 123km of waterways have been fenced and riparian planted in keeping with Landcorp's policy of being a good corporate citizen. Local environmental groups have been encouraged to help with some of these projects and this has drawn a positive response from the community.
For a woman and to some extent an outsider to the dairy industry, running a male dominated business would seem a formidable task. But Keoghan says this hasn't been a problem.
"They have all been fantastic. They challenge me if they want to, but they are receptive to [ideas for] our safety culture and how we drive profitability on the farms. The boys are proud of what they do onfarm and I am extremely proud of their progress. We have received a number of environmental awards and the staff are happy; happy people work well."
Cape Foulwind is a far cry from the glamour and prestige of London's Harley Street, but taking every opportunity Keoghan has made a fulfilling career for herself and a big contribution to her company and the local community.
