Short gestation dairy genetics is expected to generate more than $11 million in extra milk production for New Zealand farmers this spring, says livestock breeder LIC.

A recent revamp of the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards has seen the most significant changes in the competition’s history, say organisers.

As farmers and contractors seek more efficiencies we see average power climbing and implements getting wider, longer or heavier; but the biggest change in ten years is the increase in tractor speeds.

Versatile has a good pedigree in building tractors. Having built the first equal-wheel 4WD (D100) in 1966, the company has gone on to build machines for broadacre farmers in North America and Canada, gaining a reputation for big, strong and simple. 

German engine maker Deutz says it plans to spend Euro 26 million ($NS43m) on building a 13,500m2 production hall at its Cologne-Porz headquarters.

With pressure on farmers to tidy up their act in effluent handling, Viking Containment’s timing in introducing a new liner for storage ponds or lagoons couldn’t have been better.

Australian farmers Trevor and Anthea Saunders are dedicated Jersey breeders. Anthea controls the calf rearing on their farm in Warragul, Victoria, determined to give them the best possible start.

Nutritional scours is one of the two forms of scours in unweaned calves. The other form is pathogenic scours. 

A pland to eradicate TB from New Zealand livestock within 10 years will cut the need to test some herds and will reduce the work in some vector areas.

Using bought-in supplement to ‘produce milk for milk’s sake’ could be robbing the New Zealand dairy industry of its resilience says DairyNZ primary scientist John Roche.