Deutz-Fahr wins silver at Agritechnica 2025 for Tractor Assisted Guidance System (TAGS)
Deutz-Fahr has been awarded the prestigious silver medal at the upcoming Agritechnica 2025.
Since Mulch and Mow Ltd started business in 2004, Duane Crow has run out of fingers counting how many tractors he’s bought, but he thinks the tally is 14.
Crow has bases in Hawera and Taumaranui, from where six full-time staff mow roadsides, trim shelter-belts and do mulching for farmers. The firm’s territory takes in Mokau to Whanganui and Bennydale to Waiouru.
Over the last 14 years Crow has trialled and bought many types of tractor, but now he’s sticking with the German Deutz Fahr brand.
The fleet includes three M600 Summit units delivering 140hp from a six-cylinder engine, with a long wheelbase layout that makes a stable work platform. Add to that a 6160P featuring sharp design details and high-end technology such as auto-powershifting and programmable hydraulic output.
The ‘baby’ of the group is a 5130 TTV, a smaller but no less sophisticated tractor than its bigger brothers.
The 5130 spends much of its time in mowing roadsides or the region’s sports fields. The use of its stepless transmission helps deliver the exact speed for the job at hand, while programmable engine control and a clever steering system reduces the number of turns of the steering wheel to make turns. This makes for a very versatile tractor. Much of Mulch and Mow’s work is with rear mowers, heavy-duty mulchers and rear reach mowers powered by 140hp M600s and the high-tech 6160P units.
Crow says long wheelbases combine with high lift capacities and flow rates from the hydraulic system to make the bigger Deutz machines ideal to cope with the demands of this equipment.
“Good visibility, operator comfort and excellent ergonomics make the Deutz brand a winner for our team,” he told Rural News. “Add in the unique colour coding for the main control groups, so then operators, who generally stick to one tractor, can switch machines if required with no time lost becoming familiar with controls.”
Looking forward, an upcoming addition to the largely green fleet is waiting in the wings -- a new 6215 RC high power prime mover. This will go into service powering front and rear-mounted mowers in combination, effectively doubling work-rates, while also providing plenty of power for tough jobs.
The new addition will take the overall count to 15 tractors. However, it looks as if Crow may have to take a second sock off if he adds to the fleet, just to keep an accurate tally.
Federated Farmers says almost 2000 farmers have signed a petition launched this month to urge the Government to step in and provide certainty while the badly broken resource consent system is fixed.
Zespri’s counter-seasonal Zespri Global Supply (ZGS) programme is underway with approximately 33 million trays, or 118,800 tonnes, expected this year from orchards throughout France, Italy, Greece, Korea, and Japan.
Animal owners can help protect life-saving antibiotics from resistant bacteria by keeping their animals healthy, says the New Zealand Veterinary Association.
According to analysis by the Meat Industry Association (MIA), New Zealand red meat exports reached $827 million in October, a 27% increase on the same period last year.
The black and white coat of Holstein- Friesian cows is globally recognised as a symbol of dairy farming and a defining trait of domestic cattle. But until recently, scientists didn’t know which genes were responsible for the Holstein’s spots.
According to the New Zealand Dairy Statistics 2024/25 report, New Zealand dairy farmers are achieving more with fewer cows.

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