Water tests on Tatuanui farmer Johan Van Ras’ farm confirmed his worst fears: quality wasn’t up to scratch.
Food Conversion Efficiency is often misunderstood and overlooked, despite its role in profitability.
A Lincoln University Dairy Farm (LUDF) decision to use all AI and no bulls for mating has given “mixed” results and looks like it will be a short-lived experiment.
A closer watch will be kept on the NAIT accounts of farmers and NAIT users who choose not to record or confirm livestock movements, warns OSPRI.
Don't balls-up your ram selection is sage advice for farmers about picking sires as mating time approaches.
A closer watch will be kept on the NAIT accounts of farmers and NAIT users who choose not to record or confirm livestock movements, warns OSPRI.
With the culling season underway, MPI is reminding farmers that each animal is their responsibility until it is accepted by a processor or saleyard.
Despite New Zealand’s relatively benign climate lending itself well to pastoral farming, its soils can hide chronic mineral deficiencies.
A steady rise in the value of milk fat in recent seasons is due to strong consumer demand for milk fat products, says DairyNZ.
OSPRI is calling on NAIT users to reregister all their locations and to update their NAIT accounts following a key system upgrade.
Warm, wet weather creates perfect conditions for facial eczema (FE) and, given the right conditions, the risk of the disease could persist until May.
Traditionally, bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) has been considered a disease of cattle. But lately it has been found to cause infections in sheep, deer, alpacas, llamas and pigs.
It is true that the current frozen sexed semen product SexedULTRA 4M is the result of almost three decades of research and development.
Liver damage caused by Facial Eczema severely impacts animal welfare and productivity, yet many farmers are not sufficiently supplementing their cows to protect against it.
With animal welfare a key aspect of livestock farming, treatments to prevent flystrike and kill lice are crucial in sheep flocks.
Herd testing, whether it heralds good or bad news, is ultimately good for a farm’s viability and for a farmer's peace of mind.
The bonus of split calving is that you can match feed supply with feed demand throughout the year, says Neville Porteous of Te Arai Farms in lower Northland.
Ten sheep breeders have formed WormFEC Gold to show farmers that breeding for parasite-resistant genetics will strengthen flocks and save time and money onfarm.
A field trial using frozen sexed semen didn’t produce the desired results, says LIC.
NAIT says its online system is set to be enhanced by an interactive map to help users accurately define a NAIT location.
Farmers, especially in the South Island, are being reminded that while Mycoplasma bovis has captured headlines, TB is a continuing problem in small pockets of the country.
If you're selling or leasing bulls this spring, understand the risks and know the animal’s history of movement and health.
Bringing sheep into the NAIT (National Animal Identification and Tracing) system may be a way of getting more value out of the animals, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor claims.
Weaning is an ideal time to body condition score (BCS) ewes as it allows valuable summer feed to be partitioned into lighter ewes to give them a lift before tupping.
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