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Lochinver Station will play host to an Informing New Zealand Beef genetics programme field day next month.
Farmers will get an opportunity to see the Informing New Zealand Beef (INZB) genetics programme in action at a field day at Lochinver Station next month.
The event on 5 March will provide insights into the seven-year INZB programme, which aims to improve profitability and enhance sustainability across the beef industry through the development and adoption of improved genetics.
Lochinver on the Rangiaiki Plains near Taupo is one of New Zealand’s largest farms and is a Beef Progeny Test site for the programme supported by Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ), the New Zealand Meat Board and the Ministry for Primary Industries’ Sustainable Food & Fibre Futures Fund.
The across-breed Progeny Test, which builds on previous progeny tests, uses Angus, Hereford and Simmental genetics to identify the performance of agreed-on traits linking with international beef and dairy beef genetics.
It will provide the ability to demonstrate the differences and similarities between the breeds, along with the benefits of hybrid vigour, and to evaluate good bulls on the same basis.
The first round of artificial insemination of Angus cows at Lochinver, with Angus, Hereford, and Simmental bulls, was carried out in January 2023. A further round has been undertaken this year.
The field day will include insights into the station’s operation with Steve Smith, business manager for Lochinver owner Rimanui Farms. There will also be an opportunity to view the cattle involved in the Progeny Test.
B+LNZ Genetics will provide updates on the programme, including results from the Beef Progeny Test data. Accredited Structural Assessment Technician Bill Austin will provide a beef class structural assessment demonstration.
Ginny Dodunski, programme manager with the B+LNZ-funded Wormwise project, will lead a session on parasite management, and Melissa Snowden, agribusiness technical support for Silver Fern Farms, will be sharing perspectives on carcase traits.
In addition to developing a beef genetic evaluation system to support a sustainable beef farming industry in New Zealand, the INZB programme is creating easy-to-use tools to enable data to be efficiently collected, managed, analysed and used by commercial farmers to make profitable decisions for their operation.
For more information and to register for the field day, visit: https://beeflambnz.com/events/blnz-informing-new-zealand-beef-progeny-test-field-day
This is the first in a series of articles from Beef + Lamb New Zealand's Informing New Zealand Beef programme. The seven-year INZB partnership, supported by Beef + Lamb New Zealand and the Ministry for Primary Industries' Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund, aims to boost the sector's profits by $460m.
A further ten commercial beef farmers have been selected to take part in the Informing New Zealand Beef (INZB) programme to help drive the uptake of genetics in the industry.
The red meat sector is poised for a strong rebound this season, with export receipts forecast to top $10 billion and farm profitability to almost double.
Progeny testing at Pāmu’s Kepler farm in Southland as part of Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Informing New Zealand Beef programme is showing that the benefits of hybrid vigour could have a massive impact on the future of beef breeding.
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New Zealand First leader and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has blasted Fonterra farmers shareholders for approving the sale of iconic brands to a French company.
A major feature of the Ashburton A&P Show, to be held on October 31 and November 1, will be the annual trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial test match, with the best heading dogs from both sides of the Tasman going head-to-head in two teams of four.
Fewer bobby calves are heading to the works this season, as more dairy farmers recognise the value of rearing calves for beef.
The key to a dairy system that generates high profit with a low emissions intensity is using low footprint feed, says Fonterra program manager on-farm excellence, Louise Cook.
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