How to make raw milk reliable for calves
Feeding infected milk is high risk for spreading diseases such as M. bovis.
DairyNZ subsidiary New Zealand Animal Evaluation (NZAEL) will update the genetic base used to calculate Breeding Worth (BW) next month.
This routine update will cause a drop of approximately $185 in BW across all cows, bulls, and herds but does not reflect any loss in genetic value or animal performance.
To assist with ranking within a population, it's helpful to have a benchmark. In animal evaluation, this reference point is called 'Base Cow'. A Base Cow change causes very minimal re-ranking among bulls, cows, herds, or breeds. It simply shifts animals up or down depending on the genetic base that is chosen. Base Cow creates the yard stick to measure how much genetic progress is being made with each passing generation.
"New Zealand's dairy herd continues to make meaningful genetic improvement. Each generation of heifers enters the herd with higher BW on average, than the previous generation, leading to higher protein, fat and greater efficiency. Updating the Base Cow ensures BW remains an important and accurate ranking tool, reflecting the performance of today's dairy animals," says Andrew Fear, NZAEL manager.
From 20 June, the BW of the average dairy animal will move from $241 to $56. This shift follows the introduction of an updated reference point, known as a Base Cow, which will now be based on 2015-born animals instead of the current 2005 cohort.
New Zealand milk production is off to a strong start, with the first month of the 2025/26 dairy season recording a whopping 17.8% jump in milk production, compared to the previous season.
With adverse weather set to rain down on the Top of the South, the Bay of Plenty and parts of Northland, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says farmers, foresters, and growers need to prepare for possible challenges.
Keep up with innovation and e-commerce in China or risk losing market share. That was the message delivered at the China Business Summit in Auckland this month.
Meat Industry Association (MIA) independent chair Nathan Guy says getting meat processors involved has been a shot in the arm for the sector's key marketing initiative into China, Taste Pure Nature.
Listed carpet manufacturer, Bremworth is undertaking a $6 million expansion at its Napier plant more than two years after the site was heavily damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle.
Federated Farmers is vowing to keep the big banks accountable for their actions and to continue pushing for meaningful change in the rural lending sector.
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