Displaying items by tag: maize

Maize silage is an essential part of many dairy farm systems. Research shows that yield is king, and for on-farm growers, the most profitable hybrid is almost always the highest yielding one.

While starting forage maize under biodegradable plastic has been about for a while in the UK, particularly in marginal areas of the north and west, new research is showing that the practice can have major effects on both maize quality and financials.

By the middle of September, the grass silage making season will be well underway.

New Zealand research and farmer practice shows that pasture-based dairy systems supported by maize silage can be highly profitable. I have written about this topic extensively in the past.

Fonterra recently announced a forecast milk price range for the coming season of $7.25 to $8.75 per kgMS, with a midpoint of $8.00 per kgMS.

The success of some of the early Māori adopters in the kiwifruit industry is starting to catch on.

From time to time, I get calls from anxious growers who, for whatever reason, have been unable to sell all their maize.

The other day I read a couple of articles that made me think. The first, published in Stuff was on a report by Otago and Victoria Universities on the number of Kiwis at risk of getting bowel cancer because they live in areas with an elevated water nitrate level.

There has been a mixed response by the agriculture sector to the recently released Climate Change Commission’s 2021 draft report. 

It seems basic human nature that when things are tough, we become very focused on surviving. We concentrate on doing the essential things that will enable us to get through the pressure or difficulty we are facing.