MANAGEMENT
MACHINERY & PRODUCTS
AGRIBUSINESS
Regenerative system spins farmers wheels. PAGE 25
NZ farmers get a look at the best of Europe. PAGE 30
More trade is the best way to sustainably feed humanity. PAGE 19
TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS JULY 30, 2019: ISSUE 681
www.ruralnews.co.nz
More Fonterra woes SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
FONTERRA IS facing a backlash from Australian farmer suppliers worried that the co-op could pull out of the extremely challenging market. Victoria farmer Mark Billing, who stopped supplying Fonterra from July 1, told Rural News the long term viability of the company in Australia “is starting to worry us”. Billing, a fourth generation dairy farmer, had been supplying Fonterra since it fully took over Bonlac Food’s operations in 2005. He served as a director of Bonlac Supply Company
that represents the co-op’s 1300 farmer suppliers in Australia and he chaired the advisory group Bonlac Farmers Forum. He isn’t the only high profile Bonlac member to take supply away from Fonterra. In July last year, former Bonlac deputy chairman Aubrey Pellett quit and now supplies Bega Cheese. Billing believes 25 to 30 farmers have left Fonterra in recent months, taking away about 100 million litres of milk to other processors.
“We are talking about bigger farmers taking their milk elsewhere. 100m litres may not be big in NZ but that’s a lot of milk over here,” he told Rural News. Billing milks 400 cows in Larpent, southwest Victoria, and says leaving Fonterra wasn’t an easy decision. “For my heart it was difficult because we have been supplying milk to make the champion Western Star butter. But for my mind it was easy because of the lack of communication
from Fonterra. “Most processors sign up guaranteeing a base minimum milk price for the season. Fonterra is still refusing to do this.” Billing says alarm bells started ringing among Bonlac members when Fonterra in April 2016 followed the former co-op Murray Goulburn in suddenly dropping its milk price. For May and June that year, most farmers received an average milk
Birds eye view ON LARGE isolated farms the 4WD ute has definite limitations. Ruth Allanson knows this, and at Fieldays she showed an impressive alternative -- a light aircraft that can easily handle the toughest of farm airstrips. She flew up from Haast to Hamilton airport en route to Fieldays in an Italian two seater, P92 Taildragger Tecnam aircraft. Then she had it trailered over to Mystery Creek. There are 11 different Tecnams, ranging from two- to 11 seaters. The smaller models suit private use or flight training and the larger flying into tourist spots. The basic two-seater sells for about $145,000, and an upgraded model -- the one on display -- sells for $200,000. Allanson says Tecnams are popular with farmers, and she estimates about 100 are privately owned in NZ.
TO PAGE 4
CAMPAIGN GAINS SUPPORT PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
FIFTY SHADES of Green campaigner Mike Butterick is encouraged by the level of support his group is getting from farmers and other rural people. He says it is succeeding in raising awareness of the issue of too Mike Butterick many trees being planted. Butterick has had positive talks with Shane Jones and Damien O’Connor and he thinks they understand the issue. Everybody is trying to get to a desired outcome, he told Rural News. “Reaction from farmers is huge, and not just farmers. Provincial business people and employers are also supporting us. We are there for provincial people to voice their concerns as well.” Butterick says the campaign has taken a lot of his time and has grown into an unbelievable beast. It’s all about democracy, getting motivated and taking action, he says. It started when someone telephoned him about the issue and he decided to take the lead. “I am passionate about rural and provincial NZ and feel that something is wrong and I want to put it right.”
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS 3
RMA overhaul proposed
ISSUE 681
www.ruralnews.co.nz
PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
NEWS ��������������������������������������1-16 AGRIBUSINESS ����������������18-19 MARKETS �������������������������� 20-21 HOUND, EDNA ���������������������� 22 CONTACTS ����������������������������� 22 OPINION ����������������������������22-24 MANAGEMENT �������������� 25-26 ANIMAL HEALTH �������������������27 MACHINERY AND PRODUCTS ���������������������� 28-30 RURAL TRADER �������������� 30-31
HEAD OFFICE Top Floor, 29 Northcroft Street, Takapuna, Auckland 0622 Phone: 09-307 0399 Fax: 09-307 0122 POSTAL ADDRESS PO Box 331100, Takapuna, Auckland 0740 Published by: Rural News Group Printed by: Ovato Print
ENVIRONMENT MINISTER David Parker says the Resource Management Act is not working as well as intended and he is planning a comprehensive overhaul of the legislation. The RMA, introduced nearly 30 years ago, needs a cut in its complexity and costs to better enable urban development and environmental protection. Parker sees as unacceptable this cornerstone law ‘underperforming’ in a country that values environmental protection and decent housing. “Our aim is to produce a revamped law fit for purpose in the 21st century. While not the sole cause of the housing crisis, planning rules are partly to blame. Environmental outcomes have been disappointing and freshwater quality has been going backwards.” Parker claims amendments made to the RMA since 1991 have added to its complexity. He says it is close to twice its original length, making the legislation more and more unwieldy to interpret and hampering its effective implementation. And there has been too little spatial planning in and around growing urban areas. “We need to create a system that
Advertising material: davef@ruralnews.co.nz Rural News online: www.ruralnews.co.nz Subscriptions: subsrndn@ruralnews.co.nz ABC audited circulation 79,553 as at 31.03.2019
better enables economic growth within environmental limits and which aligns the economy with the environment. Further ad hoc patch-ups and workarounds are not the answer. We need a thorough overhaul of the law,” he says. The overhaul will be led by a panel chaired by retired Appeal Court Judge Tony Randerson, who Parker says has
extensive legal and resource management expertise. The panel is expected to propose reform by mid-2020, including drafts of key legislative provisions. Meanwhile, Parker says the Government will press ahead with work to improve freshwater quality and urban development, protect highly produc-
tive land and indigenous biodiversity, and reduce waste. These are urgent and cannot wait for the RMA comprehensive reform plan, Parker says. He hopes a Bill to amend the current RMA will be introduced in the next few months to address these urgent issues pending the comprehensive rewrite.
Meat outlook good, but...
CONTACTS Editorial: editor@ruralnews.co.nz
Environment Minister David Parker.
PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
A ROSY outlook on sheepmeat needs to be slightly tempered by market realities, one meat company suggests. A Rabobank report by animal proteins analyst Blake Holgate says prices to late-season October as high as mid $8/kg can be expected. And possibly even higher. Alliance general manager livestock and shareholder services Heather
Stacy says prices are firm in their key markets. “But we need to be mindful of issues such as Brexit coinciding with our chilled lamb programme for the UK and the wider potential for volatility with foreign exchange levels,” she told Rural News. “As a cooperative, it is important to us that sheepmeat price levels are sustainable for farmers over the long term.” Beef + Lamb NZ’s chief econo-
mist Andrew Burtt says broadly they agree with Holgate. But BLNZ is a bit more conservative than his “at least as high as the mid $8 mark per kilo we saw last year” for the remainder of the season. “Our view is that prices will be about $8.40/kg on average for all lambs during the fourth quarter of the meat export season, ie July-September,” Burtt told Rural News. “We are in the process of preparing our New Season Outlook which
considers the factors.” Holgate says restricted global supplies and strong international demand are set to keep sheepmeat prices at elevated levels, Holgate said in a recent podcast -- New Zealand sheepmeat – Mid-year Outlook -- that strong market fundamentals during the current season had given sheep farmers healthy returns in recent months. These fundamentals are set to persist for at least the rest of 2019.
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
4 NEWS
Spray delays costly PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
THE ENVIRONMENTAL Protection Agency (EPA) is unapologetic in the face of criticism by Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) that it needs to speed up its approval of crop protection products. HortNZ cites a New Zealand Institute of Economic Research’s (NZIER) report released last week by Agcarm which estimates that a one year delay in approval has cost $7 million to $70 million in lost GDP over a decade. HortNZ says in particular that it wants faster approval of environmentally friendly products. “Our industry cannot currently operate effectively without pesticides,” says HortNZ chief executive Mike Chapman. “But where they can our growers are progressively lessening their use and want to move to products that are as environmentally friendly as possible.” HortNZ and the industry want to work with the EPA to speed up the approval of organic and synthetic products that fight pests and diseases in the most sustainable, environmentally friendly way possible, Chapman says. But Clark Ehlers, EPA’s acting general manager of hazardous substances and new organisms,
HortNZ chief executive Mike Chapman.
says their job is to protect people and the environment. “In the past four years we have strengthened our processes for the way we assess hazardous substances for approval,” Ehlers told Rural News. “It’s never a straightforward process and is highly variable, depending on the type of substance and its intended use. “We also know that growing numbers of NZers are increasingly concerned about chemical use, and the time we spend assessing each application reflects those concerns.” But Chapman says the cost estimate of delays can only increase given consumers are demanding that their food is grown with minimal environmental impact, using as few and
as friendly crop protection products as possible. The NZIER report says the industry believes the EPA moves “extremely slowly” on its approvals “taking little account of economic issues that impact on crop protection companies, their customers and the economy”. This application of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act could have unintended consequences, it says. It could maintain the amount of ‘harder’ substances in the NZ environment and impose an ‘opportunity cost’ of slowing the introduction of newer ‘softer’ products to the market that could improve productivity for farmers and economy. The NZIER report showed that NZ’s economy would lose up
to $11.4 billion without crop protection products and that crops would lose 30% of their value overall. The report also covers forestry, pasture, field crops and vegetable production. Agcarm chief executive Mark Ross says the report highlights the importance of the crop protection industry to NZ’s economy. “The industry has an important part to play in supporting the economy, and it is vital for producing safe food and protecting our environment. It develops tools to manage biosecurity incursions which damage our native species and crops,” says Ross. Crop protection products have a far reaching impact on our land based industries. Without them many industries would incur significant losses. Horticulture, for example, would lose 75% of the value of its crops. A severely reduced kiwifruit production would have resulted from the deadly 2010 PSA outbreak. Vegetable growers would incur losses of about 88% without crop protection. In many cases it would not be possible to grow commercial quantities of crops without these products. In other cases, yields would be much lower and the economic impact of this would be substantial, Ross says.
Payout for PGW shareholders NIGEL MALTHUS
PGG WRIGHTSON shareholders should receive the proceeds of the sale of its seeds business in the coming few weeks. Almost all (99.95%) voted for this at a special shareholders meeting on July 23 that considered two resolutions.
The first resolution was the proposed distribution of about $234 million of capital back to shareholders, at 31 cents a share. The money is from the $421m sale of PGW Seeds to Danish seeds giant DLF, decided by the board a year ago and approved by PGW shareholders in October.
PGW chairman Rodger Finlay noted the shareholders’ strong support for the cash distribution. “We will now make application to the High Court seeking final orders to implement the scheme,” Finlay said. “Assuming orders are made by the court, we would expect the scheme to be implemented and
payment made to shareholders in early August.” The second resolution sought shareholders’ support to revoke and amend PGW’s constitution to comply with new NZX listing rules. Voting was 98.82% in favour. Meanwhile, former chief executive Ian Glasson stepped down at
the end of May following the successful settlement of the seeds business sale. Stephen Guerin took on the role in an internal appointment from June 1. “Settlement of the sale of the seed and grain business was a significant milestone for PGW and will result in some material changes for the business,” Finlay said.
Aussie farmers desert Fonterra FROM PAGE 1
price of A$1.90/kgMS. “That came as a high business shock and some of us are still recovering from that,” he said. The recent financial woes to hit Fonterra globally made some suppliers more worried. “Globally, the way Fonterra is going the divestment of assets is of concern. The long term viability of Fonterra in Australia is starting to worry us. “Their knee jerk reaction in Australia shows there’s no clear strategy over here. They don’t communicate effectively with shareholders. “Fonterra Australia has so many pricing systems that it’s ridiculous. Not everyone can access those prices and family run small farmers are being pushed out by the pricing system.” Fonterra is restructuring its Australian business and this month announced the loss of 25 jobs at its Melbourne head office. The latest Global Dairy Trade figures confirm the drop in Australian milk collections. For the 11 months to May 31, Fonterra’s collections reached 115m kgMS, down 19.8% on the previous year. May collections were 8m kgMS, down 31.4% on May last season. Milk production in Australia is down about 9%. Fonterra Australia managing director Rene Dedoncker says the co-op is clear in its commitment to Australia. “We’ll continue to deliver a return to our shareholders, and offer a competitive milk price to our farmers,” he told Rural News. “Although we know that we still need to work hard to rebuild trust with our farmers as the events of 2016 still weigh heavily on their minds.” He pointed out that around 25% of Australian farmers changed processor in the last 12 months. He says based on figures from Dairy Australia, this compared to an average of 10% per year since 2015. “Like many processors, we have had losses, but we’ve also had new farmers join us.” Meanwhile, Billing says the sharp drop in milk volumes has increased competition to the extent that a major processor will need to shut up shop. “They can’t all operate with the reduced volume. We think it will be Fonterra.” Billing says during his time as Bonlac Farmers Forum chairman he realised the co-op wasn’t listening to their concerns.
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS 5
Tighter rules planned for NAIT and border biosecurity PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
MAJOR CHANGES are afoot to tighten up the biosecurity and NAIT legislation and rules. Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor says the Biosecurity Act, now 26 years old, was developed for a different world. Threats to biosecurity in New Zealand then were not appreciated as they are now. “We have a changing climate internationally which changes the profile of pests that could affect NZ agriculture,” he says. “A quantum leap in trade and tourism sees more goods and parcels coming into the country. We need a law flexible enough to deal with changing and emerging threats as they occur.” Changes will be made in areas of obligation, such as airlines and airport authorities which will need to better support biosecurity, O’Connor says. The Gov-
“We have had growing awareness about the importance of biosecurity in the last few years and we have to build on that and support people to minimise the risk.” ernment wants to ensure everyone takes reasonable care and that when failure occurs those who contribute to the risk take responsibility. “That is one of the issues to be looked at carefully by officials developing the changes and by the parliamentary select committee when the law is drafted.” O’Connor says while there will be penalties for lawbreakers, he doesn’t believe penalties necessarily drive behaviour change. “We have had growing awareness about the importance of biosecurity in the last few years and we have to build on that and support people to minimise the risk.”
DATA OWNERSHIP CONCERNS FARMERS ARE welcoming proposed changes to biosecurity regulations but are less keen on proposed Government ownership of NAIT data. They say this is data private to farmers and that it was never included in the initial NAIT review. “We can see the public interest in a robust traceability system given its crucial role in managing responses that the public contribute to,” says Dave Harrison, Beef + Lamb NZ. “While most of the proposed changes are focused on improving the effectiveness of NAIT, the proposal for the Crown to take ownership of NAIT data is something that was not included in the initial NAIT review.” Harrison says any changes to the ownership and use of farmer data in NAIT will need careful study. BLNZ wants the Government to work with farmers to ensure the issues are addressed by the parliamentary select committee. DairyNZ also supports moves to strengthen biosecurity but is also not keen on the Government owning farmer data. “Ownership of farmer data is something we want to be involved in, so farmers concerns are fully addressed,” chief executive Tim Mackle says. DNZ will work with the Government and its partners and wants farmers to have a say on the Biosecurity Act through the consultations.
Biosecurity is complex given some people’s lack of English and poor understanding of the importance of biosecurity to NZ, O’Connor says. But cases of blatant abuse of biosecurity laws are few.
Damien O’Connor
NO MORE EXCUSES ACCEPTABLE NAIT NEEDS to be more robust in tracking every part of the livestock system, O’Connor says. This would run from animal tagging through to input into the system, including verification by NAIT and feedback to farmers. We are demanding farmers fully implement the NAIT system, he says. “Faults have been identified in the legislation, the system and areas of non-compliance. So we have the responsibility to make changes in the law and the system to make it easier for farmers if we are expecting them to fully imple-
ment traceability that works,” he says. Commenting on complaints that the NAIT system is hard to use in some locations where broadband is poor, O’Connor acknowledges some farmers’ difficulties. So the system must be designed so as not to require farmers to spend long sessions on the internet. They need to be able to download chunks of data, and better interface with LIC’s Minda database is needed. “NAIT is basically a sound system, but it’s never been fully tested because of some [farmers’]
non-compliance. Many farmers who use NAIT say it works well, but it needs integrating well with other systems. “These are technical aspects which have to be enabled through sound legislation. Some of the changes to be made will be based on advice we are getting from experts.” O’Connor says Mycoplasma bovis has raised awareness of NAIT compliance and the need to tag all animals. There needs to be a tightening on exemptions for not tagging animals. Some loopholes in this area have been abused.
“A lot of farmers want those farmers who are not adhering to the law penalised and punished because the system is only as good as it weakest link.” Changes to the Act will be staged. Matters of response, GIAs on farm biosecurity practices and compensation will be dealt with immediately, resulting in a bill before Parliament in one year. Other aspects will be seen to a year later. There will be wide consultation and proposed changes will go before a parliamentary select committee.
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
6 NEWS – CLIMATE CHANGE
How strong is the goodwill? The primary sector is sceptical about whether the Government’s plans to move on climate change issues will actually incentivise farmers to make changes on farm to reduce gas emissions. Peter Burke reports. BACK SLAPPING was the rage recently at Parliament as Government ministers and primary sector leaders hoorayed their plans to work together to tackle climate change. Journalists heard Climate Change Minister James Shaw refer to this “historic moment” -- a coalition of all the agriculture levy paying organisations plus Federated Farmers, dairy and meat processors, Maori and Irrigation NZ. Shaw noted the remarkable shift in the agricultural sector over the last few years and in particular the last few months. The result is all the parties striking a deal to work together, he said.
Ministers Shaw, O’Connor at the announcment.
Shaw is very happy about the agri sector saying it wants to lead on climate change and reduce emissions. “For years, leading farmers have been putting in place incredible innovation up and down the country to increase efficiencies on farm. [Now to take] this good practice and roll it out
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across the entire country,” he said. But Shaw agrees the technology to solve some of the problems is yet to be invented or proven. Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor also pointed up the agriculture sector and Government working together. O’Connor stressed NZ’s reputation for pro-
ducing the world’s finest food and the world’s consumers demanding to know how food is produced. They want to hear about animal welfare and climate change in particular, he said. “We now have competitors claiming ‘zero carbon’ beef and food. So we have to step up and match [consumers’] expectations in the marketplace,” O’Connor said. “My concern is that we give the right signals to the right people to get the right change in practice, and the correct balance in getting profitability. But we must also get change in farm practice.” Also talking up the unified approach was
Alison Stewart, chief executive of the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR). For the first time, she said, the livestock sectors and the plant based sectors are working together addressing a challenge. “We are not just addressing the biogenic methane issues, but also the carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide issues.” So having the plant sectors talking to the livestock sectors will contribute to innovative farming that will allow us to move forward, Stewart said. Stewart believes the whole sector is collectively agreeing the way forward and will help each other out in the process.
ETS TAX ‘NONSENSE’ NATIONAL’S CLIMATE change spokesman Todd Muller has described as “absolute nonsense” the Government’s plan to make farmers start paying for agricultural emissions. “To simply take the New Zealand agriculture sector, which is the world’s most emissions efficient food producing sector, and say that the future for that sector is to tax it, before there’s an opportunity to apply technology that hasn’t appeared yet, I think is nonsense,” Muller told TVNZ’s Q+A programme. Muller says agriculture should not be included in the ETS. “That particular proposal looks to sheet that cost back to the sector at a manufacturing level,” he explained. “The Interim Climate Committee itself said that if you actually wanted to drive change in an agricultural context you’d price emissions on farm, but that can’t be done at the moment.” Muller says farmers don’t have the tools to be able to effectively measure their on farm emissions, and don’t have any tools to mitigate or reduce those on farm emissions. He has “total confidence” that technology will be developed to mitigate the effects of climate change in the agricultural sector. “You first of all measure, then you can manage. You apply innovation then you can change. I have total confidence that this technology will appear.”
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS - CLIMATE CHANGE 7
The ag sector’s vision PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
HE WAKA Eke Noa (Our Future in Our Hands) is the agri sector’s blueprint and commitment to dealing with climate change. Uniquely all 11 partners from the livestock, processing, horticulture and arable, Maori, apiculture and irrigation sectors, and Federated Farmers, have signed this document which is unprecedented. Squabbling is often the norm. The 14-page document outlines their collective commitment to working with the Government in ‘good faith’ on the challenging issue of climate. It acknowledges the need for change and that they want to share in the Government’s aspirations to shift to producing higher value products. It says urgent action is needed but points out the obvious -- that few farmers know what practical actions they can take to meet some of the broad objectives set by Government. “If NZ is to make a differ-
ence in climate change we need to stand shoulder-to-shoulder under a common set of values and principles,” the document says. The document is both aspirational and pragmatic, because by uniting to face the Government they make it harder for the latter to ignore them. Divide and conquer is no longer an option. Some important milestones are proposed over five years, as signalled in the report. For example: 2021 - the proportion of farmers who understand the actions they can take in respect of greenhouse gases (GHGs) will have increased from 50% to 90% 2022 - farmers will know their
farm emission numbers 2025 - a system of farm-level accounting and reporting of agricultural emissions will be in place. All farms will have a farm
environment plan in place, and 70% of them will agree they are managing their GHGs in accordance with their farm plan. The report also acknowledges the present work done by many groups including DairyNZ with its Dairy Environment leaders programme, Miraka’s Te Ara Miraka scheme which rewards farmer excellence, and Fonterra’s recognition and reward scheme. It notes the value of competitions such as the dairy industry awards, the Ballance Farm Environment Awards and the Ahuwhenua Awards, all promoting industry role models. It also notes that DairyNZ has reprioritised its research funding into sustainability initiatives and has been spending on GHG mitigation initiatives. It mentions similar initiatives by other members of the group.
Website aims to help NEW TECHNOLOGIES will help reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. But meanwhile farmers must remain as efficient as possible. So says Dr Harry Clark, director of the New Zealand Greenhouse Gas Research Centre (NZAGRC) and a member of the Interim Climate Change Committee (ICCC). He says the new website www.farmingmatters.nz, recently launched by NZAGRC, will equip farmers and rural professionals to assess and manage on farm emissions and adapt to a changing environment. The website initially focuses on methane, which makes up 70% of NZ’s agricultural emissions. And it will soon cover nitrous oxide and strategies for adapting to climate change. “Methane belched out by ruminant livestock such as cows and sheep is a problem for NZ,” Clark says. Researchers in NZ and overseas are investigating technologies that might help to reduce methane emissions by livestock. Methanogen vaccines and inhibitors are also under development to try to cut methane emissions by 30%. New formulations and alternative products are being investigated. But until such technologies are available Clark says farmers can look to cut emissions by small improvements in every aspect of their operation. Clark says there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. Instead individual farmers can best figure out how they might cut their farms’ emissions without harming profits.
23/07/19 12:02 PM
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
8 NEWS - CLIMATE CHANGE
Farm lobbies propose a better way PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
ALL THE agricultural sector groups pointed to their willingness to work with the Government. But before the ‘love in’ at Parliament had ended, cracks – albeit small – were appearing. For its part, the Government appears to be backing a proposal by the Interim Climate Change Commission (ICCC) to immediately introduce a levy on farmers to help fund research into climate change. This levy would be skimmed off at processor level, ie by the meat and dairy companies. All agreed that farmers need to change and be incentivised to do so, but there the two groups part company. To emphasise this point the agricultural
“The minister says it’s to give the right signals to the right people and the farmers and growers are the people who make the change.” coalition unveiled its paper ‘He Waka Eka Noa – Our Future in Our Hands’ which offers an alternative that would see industry-good organisations (eg DairyNZ, etc) leading the change without the need for a levy. While the agri sector supports the change, the members argue that a levy taken off at the processor level would not incentivise farmers to change. Andrew Hoggard of Federated Farmers says the levy approach could in fact encourage the wrong sort of behaviour. “For example, the levy
might incentivise farmers to go out and buy more PKE to produce more milk to pay the levy or tax.” Hoggard instead suggests building farmers’ knowledge about farm emissions and drawing their attention to new technologies to help them reduce these. The agri industry’s proposal for industry-good groups to work with farmers would be more likely to result in emission cuts. Hoggard reminded his audience that farmers are not doing nothing. They are not unwilling to change, they just a lack
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An unusual alliance: Beef + Lamb’s Andrew Morrison, Maori representative Mike Smith and Fed Farmers’ Andrew Hoggard.
the tools for the job, he said. “Unlike an [alternative] fossil fuel powered vehicle, there is no ‘electric sheep’ equivalent for farmers. But there is the potential for methane inhibitors or a vaccine, albeit some years away from proof and coming to market,” he said. Beef + Lamb NZ chair Andrew Morrison agreed, saying the main thing is
to incentivise farmers’ behaviour and get there quicker. “We believe that an [obligation for a] processor point of levy won’t drive or recognise the right behaviours,” he said. “We see our proposal as another option. “This whole coming together is unprecedented. Now our concerns are to drive behaviour change on farm
and in river catchments. We want to reward farmers and drive the behaviours as quickly as we can.” Tim Ritchie, chief executive of the Meat Industry Association, says processors and marketers recognise the benefits of finding a solution to agricultural gas emissions. But he says the levy concept as proposed by the ICCC is just another
tax and a very simplistic solution. “The minister says it’s to give the right signals to the right people and the farmers and growers are the people who make the change,” Ritchie explained. “In our view, the best way to get them to change is to give them the responsibility for setting up the process and therefore holding them accountable for actually achieving it.” The Government proposal is still not set in concrete as both the ICCC report and the alternative agricultural coalition report are now out for consultation with a decision expected in a month or two. But regardless of their differences, there is little risk of serious damage to an apparently genuine desire to work together.
Gun register likely to misfire – Feds MISGIVINGS ABOUT the practicality and cost of a firearms register are likely to dominate feedback from rural people on the second round of proposed Arms Act amendments, says Federated Farmers. Feds rural security spokesman Miles Anderson anticipates support for many aspects of the changes, especially tighter controls on firearms ownership and licensing. “When firearms are used irresponsibly or illegally in New Zealand it is often farmers who suffer the consequences in the theft of livestock, poaching of wild animals or the risks of dangerous behaviour. Hopefully some of these proposed changes will help to prevent that,” Anderson says. But he says the registration of firearms is a contentious issue. Feds has previously opposed compulsory registration of all firearms because of complexity and cost, and questionable safety benefits and likely success. “We haven’t had a firearms register in NZ for almost 40 years.” A new register will cost plenty -economically and socially, he said. “We are very interested in how the police propose to practically manage common activities such as the loaning of firearms between
Feds security spokesman Miles Anderson.
two licensed individuals.” But Anderson says Feds will consult its members on the whole range of amendments before submitting. “We are pleased to see that this time there is a reasonable consultation period. This is a very important issue for farmers and we need to get it right.” Anderson says Feds will also comment on some of the earlier changes to firearms laws. He says that since the initial changes in April the current pest management criteria have proven unwork-
able for farmers and land managers who still need to use semi-automatic centrefire rifles. “Pest animals can be found in very high numbers on some private land and the right tool is needed to [kill] them humanely and effectively,” Anderson says. “Continued access to these firearms under strict controls is essential for both our primary industries and indigenous biodiversity. “We will use the second round of consultation to revisit this important issue with the select committee.”
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS 9
Westland sale; signed, sealed and delivered NIGEL MALTHUS
SENIOR STAFF of the Chinese dairy giant Yili will arrive this week to take the reins of their new acquisition Westland Milk Products. Through its subsidiary Hongkong Jingang Trade Holding Co, Yili takes 100% of the shares in Westland, marking the end of a farmer owned co-op founded in Hokitika in 1937. A spokesman for Yili said senior people would arrive on August 1 in Auckland where they will likely front a media conference, then fly to Hokitika on August 2 to meet their new staff and civic leaders and tour the factory. Under the deal, Westland’s 400 farmer shareholders will immediately be paid $3.41 per share -- a total of $246 million. The rest of the $588 million purchase price will cover the struggling coop’s debts and liabilities. The deal also promises suppliers a guaranteed milk payout matching Fonterra’s for the next 10 years. The sale cleared its final hurdle on July 18, with approval of the
sale by the High Court. The court had initially ordered a shareholders’ meeting for them to consider and approve the sale scheme. At that meeting, on July 4, it was passed by a majority of 93.79% of votes cast, representing 89.87% of total number entitled to be cast. In its July 18 ruling, the court said it was satisfied that relevant statutory provisions had been complied with, and the proposed scheme had been fairly put to the shareholders who were properly informed and fairly represented at the meeting. The Takeovers Panel also had no objection to the sale proceeding under the Companies Act. The Overseas Investment Office had also consented to the proposal. Speaking before the High Court ruling was delivered, Yili Group chief executive Jianqiu Zhang said his company’s goal was to become the most trusted health food provider in the world. “We are very hopeful that our offer will be accepted by the High Court so that we can work towards creating a
strong and secure future for one of New Zealand’s most trusted brands.’’ Meanwhile, a group of former Westland shareholder farmers still owed money by Westland are hoping Yili will now “do the right thing” and pay them out promptly. They are among a number of former shareholder farmers who sold out prior to the sale but have yet to be paid for their shares under a clause in the co-op’s constitution enabling pay-
ment to be delayed for up to five years. They had asked the OIO to block the sale until they were paid, on the grounds that it was not in NZ’s interest for an overseas company to retain the benefit of that debt --about $11m. Spokesman Pete Williams says Yili does not need the money. “It’s negligible for them. I would have thought they would do the moral and decent thing. Obviously the
Westland board aren’t prepared to do that.” Williams says there are now 12 former shareholders in the group and they would make an effort to contact the rest of the creditors making up the $11m. “The problem is that we don’t know [who they are]. We’ve never been able to see the information from Westland. The only correspondence we’ve had back from Westland is our correspondence provoking a
response,” Williams told Rural News. “If we hadn’t gone to them we wouldn’t even have known that we just rolled over to become an unsecured creditor of Yili.” Under the Overseas Investment Act, the OIO could apply a NZ interest test to the sale of farmland, but that did not apply to the Westland sale. “As Shane Jones said, the way the Overseas Investment Act is set up
at the moment it allows certain things to happen that are not in NZ’s best interests,” Williams says. In its ruling, the OIO noted that Westland owns two milk processing plants, in Hokitika and Rolleston. It also owns small portions of residential land adjacent to those factories, used primarily for noise buffers to plant operations. “The residential land is sensitive under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 and requires consent. The processing plants are not located on sensitive land and are not subject to consent. “The applicant has satisfied the OIO that the individuals who will control the investment have the relevant business experience and acumen and are of good character. The applicant has also demonstrated financial commitment to the investment. “The applicant has also satisfied the OIO that the residential land is likely to continue to be used for incidental and non residential use, being a noise buffer and accommodation for factory workers.”
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
10 NEWS
Rural maternity plea to go before Parliament PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
CLUTHA-SOUTHLAND MP Hamish Walker hopes a recommendation on the Lumsden maternity centre will go to Parliament this week after health select committee deliberations. He has also called for an independent review of Southland District Health Board’s (SDHB) decision to downgrade the centre from a birthing unit to a maternal and child hub. That decision was officially tabled at the select committee hearings last week and should be voted on this week. Walker’s ‘Save the Lumsden Maternity Centre’ petition with 5000 signatures went to Health Minister David Clark in April. Walker told Rural News he is bound by confidentiality so he can’t talk about what was said at last week’s health select committee meeting. They have heard from a number of experts and
Clutha-Southland MP Hamish Walker.
hope the committee will report back to Parliament next week. Walker says SDHB has its own review underway, but looking only at the implementation of the hub model
not the strategy itself. That only looks at equipment, staffing, etc, he says. “The first line of the terms of reference for the review states that they are not looking at the strategy in terms of
how this decision was made.” Hence he has called for an independent review of the overall strategy. Walker says it is acceptable for the Minister of Health to remain hands off from SDHB until a problem has been raised. “Only the Government can save this. When it was downgraded in early May I wrote to the health minister warning that the emergency equipment in the Lumsden and Te Anau hubs was missing. This posed enormous risk to the rural community because if someone needed to have an emergency birth the basic lifesaving critical equipment was missing,” Walker says. “And then we had an unfortunate case in late May. The midwife [decided] when someone came in facing an emergency birth to leave the Lumsden emergency hub because it lacked vital lifesaving equipment. That’s when a mother was forced to
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give birth under scary degrading circumstances in an ambulance on a rural Southland road. “In the next month, four ladies gave birth without making it to a primary birthing unit. Risks will remain until full services are returned to Lumsden.” Walker claims the College of Midwives is so concerned that they will fund a 24/7 second midwife based at Lumsden. But the SDHB has not confirmed whether that midwife based there for emergency births may help out with appointments or post-natal care. “So it is already halfway to being reinstated at the moment. The DHB and the Government need to front up, admit their mistake and reinstate full services. “There is currently a huge risk to rural Southland mums and babies until Lumsden is reinstated, which National has pledged to do if we are elected government next year.”
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS 11
New lepto study kicks off PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
PEOPLE NEWLY diagnosed with leptospirosis or suspected with the disease will be asked to take part in a nationwide study. Lead researcher Associate Professor Jackie Benschop of Massey University says this started last week. The study is for cases which will get into the health system from now on. Those people will be asked to consent to being enrolled in the research, says Benschop, a veterinary epidemiologist researching the disease for 10 years. They will mainly be referred by district health boards’ medical officers of health. But in Northland, Te Kuiti, Wairoa and Waipukurau the researchers will deal directly with GPs on suspected cases. “People who have had leptospirosis previously – I am quite interested in them but for a later study,” she told Rural News. “This study is for new or what we call incident cases, from now and for the next 18 months.” Benschop wants rural people to be aware of this because if they catch leptospirosis they may expect to get a request to be part of this study. “I would very much like them to consider being involved. The study has full ethics approval, people’s privacy will be protected and the information we gather will
inform intervention strategies. “We will look at people who are ill with leptospirosis and compare them to controls -- people who have not had leptospirosis but are approximately matched for age and sex and are living rurally.” Some rural people will get a letter and then a phone call to be asked if they will be a ‘control’ participant. Benschop says emerging trends in leptospirosis have shown it to be primarily a disease in rural people, but there is an increase in cases that don’t have traditional farmer or meat worker exposure. “Even within the groups that we know get leptospirosis, we know we have issues in the use of protective gear, vaccinations and new strains – so it is time for a hard look at what are the risk factors. “That is the key objective of the study: what are the key factors for a person getting leptospirosis in New Zealand?” Hence they want to study 150 new cases and 300 control participants. She says the study is crucial because in NZ we are in a state of change with new strains emerging. Benschop believes it is likely there are more rodent and flooding pathways to leptospirosis. “While we still have direct risk factors, ie close contact with livestock,
RURAL WOMEN BACK STUDY LEPTO’S INCREASING prevalence among New Zealanders not usually known to be at risk is concerning, says Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ). “Historically leptospirosis mainly affected men in farming and meat work occupations. But recent notification data shows that the number of cases in non highrisk occupations is increasing with more women being affected,” says national president Fiona Gower. “Researchers at Massey University believe these changes indicate a shift in the way the disease is being spread, animals that carry it, and changing variations of leptospirosis. “RWNZ is pleased to hear that Massey University is researching these changes, including people more at risk. We encourage being part of the study by contacting the university. “We have been involved in the leptospirosis work done by Massey since the 1970s -- fundraising for research and running awareness campaigns. “Leptospirosis has devastating effects on people who catch it, their families and rural communities,” says Gower.
new risk factors need to be investigated,” she says. “We want to think about interventions because this is a really nasty disease. About two-thirds of people go to hospital, and about a quarter to a third of people have long term effects.” She says one advan-
tage of working with GPs in the regions is the likelihood of detecting leptospirosis cases early so as to culture the bacteria from samples taken before the person has started on antibiotics. These will be compared to the genetic ‘fingerprint’ of their animals, and to possums or vermin in the
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
12 NEWS
Hot milk demand likely to hurt Fonterra in Australia SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
COMPETITION FOR raw milk in Australia has reached an all-time high this year, leading to big processors such as Fonterra losing farmer suppliers, says dairy analyst Steve Spencer, Freshagenda. With the Australian dairy season underway on July 1, farmers have chosen their processor for the new season. New and smaller processors paying big prices for raw milk are winning suppliers, Spencer claims. “Right now most of the action is over in terms of farmers moving companies. In May and June and the first couple of weeks in July it was probably the most intense competition ever seen,” Spencer told Rural News. Spencer believes the three biggest processors in Australia – Fonterra, Saputo and Bega – would be the worst affected. He says fresh milk processors like Lion Dairy and Lactalis (formerly Parmalat) have probably lost the least, although he points out it’s hard to be precise as most processors don’t reveal their milk supply information. Australia’s dairy industry has faced challenging times over the last two decades. In 2000 the industry produced nearly 11 billion litres of milk,
says Dairy Australia. In the 2017-18 season the industry processed only 9.2b litres. Spencer believes last season’s milk production will be 8% lower. This season is forecast to be 4-5% down, mostly due to weather and high input costs. “There are still a lot of farms at risk in Northern Victoria/Riverina with water and grain costs remaining high and a number of farms hanging in for something to change,” he says. “There has been a good amount of rainfall in the past few weeks but on the ground it has been patchy. Storage levels in the major North Victoria dams have not lifted materially. They remain at about 45% of capacity after going as low as 40%.” For big processors, low milk production causes overcapacity issues. Fonterra has closed its Dennington plant and Bega closed a small plant in Melbourne. However, Spencer doesn’t expect many more plant closures. “Overcapacity is certainly a big elephant in the room with the reduced intakes in Northern Victoria and the long haul costs to move milk from other regions. But no major closures have been announced other than the Denning-
FARMERS LOST TRUST IN PROCESSORS
Steve Spencer
ton plant closed by Fonterra, and Bega shutting a small outer Melbourne plant much earlier. “The two big cheese plants (Saputo and Fon-
terra) are the most affected in throughput but closure is unlikely in the short-term. Capacity will be reduced or mothballed to save costs.”
FORMER FONTERRA supplier Aubrey Pellet believes it’s possible for milk flow and dairy farmer confidence to recover as farm margins improve. “This looks promising as we see higher farmgate prices and where seasonal growing conditions lead to more home grown feed and more plentiful and cheaper purchased feed markets,” he says. “This spring will set the scene for these feed markets for the year ahead.” However Pellet, who switched his supply from Fonterra to Bega last year, says many farmers have lost confidence in the Australian milk processing sector. Pellet was deputy chairman of Bonlac Supply Company, which represents the interests of Australian farmers supplying
Fonterra, until he resigned in July last year. “Many farmers feel no value has been placed on loyalty in the supply relationship and for various reasons are looking at their supply options, often for the first time,” he says. “Currently, due to the lower milk volumes supply, options for farmers have actually increased as more processors look to secure direct farmer supply as inter-company milk purchases become more difficult and drought in high population states drives the domestic market to focus more on Victorian dairy than ever before. “Competition for milk is driving prices, but for farmers there is limited transparency.”
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
14 NEWS
Landcorp hides details of promotion DAVID ANDERSON
STATE OWNED farmer Landcorp – rebranded as Pamu – refused to release most of the details and costs of a self promotion campaign running on a political and news website. As revealed in our July 2 issue, the state farmer has entered into a “content partnership agreement” paid for by the taxpayer with Newsroom website, where the online publisher is to run five articles covering “innovations and new ways of farming being introduced by publicly owned farmer”. As of July 24, three of the five articles have so far been published. Rural News filed an Official Information Act (OIA) query on May 16 requesting more details about this deal
and asking, among other things, how and why this content partnership arrangement was made and who gave approval for it? On June 20 Landcorp’s senior legal counsel Kim Elwood replied to the OIA confirming that chief executive Steven Carden had approved the deal. The state farmer’s lawyer also released 24 completely blanked out pages – out of a total of 46 pages – of correspondence between Pamu and Newsroom in relation to the deal. Many of the remaining 22 pages released were also partly blanked out. One of the reasons it gave for the heavily redacted material was section 18 (d) of the OIA, claiming the information requested was publicly available via other sources. Elwood then
Pamu chief executive Steven Carden approved the content agreement.
referred Rural News to an answer given by the minister responsible for Landcorp, Shane Jones,
in reply to a written question on the same subject posed by National’s agriculture spokesman,
Nathan Guy. However, Jones’ nebulous response provided little reasoning for the move and skirted
around giving any real answers. Pamu also claimed the reasons for releasing the blocked-out documents to Rural News came under section 9(2) (a) of the (Official Information) Act and it withheld releasing other parts of the documents – noted above – under sections 9(2)(i) and 18(d) of the Act. It argued that … “withholding the documents is necessary to enable Landcorp to carry out commercial activities without prejudice or disadvantage (s9(2)(i)). “Landcorp is a stateowned enterprise and under section 4 of the State Owned Enterprises Act 1986 has the principal objective of operating as a successful business, and to this end being as profitable and efficient as comparable businesses
not owned by the Crown. Release of the documents would prejudice Landcorp’s ability to enter (or disadvantage Landcorp’s position in entering) into commercial arrangements and prejudice and/ or disadvantage Landcorp’s ability to conduct its business.” The state-owned farmer further defended its heavy censorship of information provided to Rural News under the OIA because… “Public interest considerations that favour disclosure of the documents do not outweigh the reasons for withholding them.” This cagey behaviour defies claims by Pamu’s owner – the Government – that it would be the “most open and transparent ever elected” when it came into office in 2017. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
RURAL MEDIA HABITS
THE FACTS! ● ● ● ● ● ●
88% of farmers read rural print at least weekly 79% of farmers say print is their preferred format 82% of farmers are influenced by rural print 77% of farmers use rural print for business and research 74% of farmers pay attention to the adverts in rural print 90% of farmers act as a result of reading rural print
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The Rural Media Habits Survey 2018 is independent research conducted by Perceptive Research on behalf of the majority of rural publishers. Participants were screened to exclude lifestylers and ensure a robust sample of 820 Commercial Farmers. Results show the majority of farmers read rural print, find it highly relevant to their businesses, and that it influences their purchasing decisions more than all other media.
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
NEWS 15
Growing resistance worries arable sector NIGEL MALTHUS
INITIAL RESULTS from the first national survey of herbicide resistance in arable farming have shown surprising resistance to glyphosate. Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) senior research advisor Phil Rolston says nine of the 48 farms sampled – nearly 19% -- showed some resistance to glyphosate. “We had some haloxyfop and pinoxaden resistance turning up, and that’s not a surprise because we’ve had farmers self-reporting some problems before. But finding glyphosate turning up on some of them was a surprise.” The MBIE funded survey is a five year project in which FAR takes weed seed samples from farms randomly chosen from its database, and the samples are germinated then tested against a variety of herbicides by
AgResearch Ruakura. The survey started last summer on farms between the Waimakariri and Rakaia Rivers. FAR staff collected wild oat, brome and ryegrass plants from wheat and clover paddocks on the 48 farms, which represent about 20% of all cropping farms in the district. Resistance has so far been identified in ryegrass on 13 of the farms (27%). No resistance was found in any of the bromes and the results from the wild oat testing are not yet available. The survey showed a wide range of resistance, Rolston says. “Some farms showed [resistance in] more than 90% of the plants being tested, but others were down as low as 5%.” The survey identified ryegrass resistant to Group A, Group B and Group G herbicides. Group A includes
clethodim, haloxyfop-P and pinoxaden. Group B includes iodosulfuronmethyl and pyroxsulam. Group G is glyphosate. “The results of this survey, particularly on glyphosate resistance,
are causing us some concern,” said Rolston. “We are now working to understand how to manage such resistance on cropping farms.” The survey will probably move into South
The facts
Phil Rolston
Canterbury next summer and Ashburton district the year after. It should eventually cover all major
cropping districts including in the North Island.
What to do if you are concerned about resistance on your farm: ●● Check paddocks after herbicide application and remove any plants which have ‘escaped’ treatment ●● Do not allow any ‘escaped’ plants to go to seed ●● Contact your agrichemical rep or FAR if you believe that ‘escapes’ are the result of resistance, rather than application conditions ●● Consider the use of non-chemical weed control.
STRAWBERRY LEVY GETS NOD A LEVY will help modernise the $35 million strawberry industry, says Michael Ahern, executive manager of Strawberry Growers NZ Inc. This may include expanding its $8.8m export industry. Ahern explains that newcomers to the industry have different growing seasons and they are prolonging the season. “There will be export volumes at times of the year when we don’t produce at the moment. So that’s a positive,” he told Rural News. Current production is intensely seasonal, with a big surge from October to early December. “One of the benefits of the booming trade is we have a lot more flights coming into the country, and then going out, more importantly, to a huge range of destinations. “Everything has to be air freighted with strawberries, they are not a sea freight product. There are freight possibilities we could only have dreamed of 30 years ago.” The proposal for a compulsory levy received 84% support on an individual grower basis and 71% on a weighted volume basis. Voter return was 30.67% by number of eligible voters and an estimated 71.99% by weight. This now allows Strawberries NZ to proceed with an application to the Minister of Agriculture. Ahern hopes that approval will come through by Christmas, with final legislation in place by the end of February, so the new funding mechanism can be introduced by the new season. Another key issue behind the levy proposal for Strawberry Growers NZ is that it is currently funded by one dominant plant producer, which is a 100% subsidiary of the industry body, Ahern says.
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
16 NEWS
Nitrate management important to irrigators NIGEL MALTHUS
NITRATE LEVELS in Christchurch’s drinking water are not expected to exceed safe drinking levels in the future, says Waimakariri Irrigation Ltd. The company has stepped into a debate on nitrate levels in underground aquifers following recent media coverage. WIL chief executive Brent Walton says it will be an important issue with local and regional elections coming up, but any debate must be focused on science. A 2017 Environment Canterbury investigation into potential groundwater flows under the Waimakariri River into Christchurch aquifers had predicted a long-term increase in nitrate levels. However, Walton says two key
points made in the ECan modelling seem to have been overlooked. “The first is that any future nitrate increases in the Christchurch water supply are not expected to exceed safe drinking limits. Christchurch water will remain safe to drink,” he told Rural News. “ECan’s report says that while it is possible, during the next 50 to 100 years, that nitrates in aquifers below the main part of Christchurch might increase, the levels are predicted to remain below the maximum acceptable value [based on recommendations from the World Health Organisation].” He adds that the second key point is that ECan’s modelling is based on the premise of current land use continuing into the future. “We know that land
Waimakariri Irrigation Limited (WIL) chief executive Brent Walton. SUPPLIED
use is already undergoing a change,” Walton says. “Extensive environmental mitigation continues to be undertaken by Waimakariri farmers and, with rapidly advancing technology, nitrates and other environmental management can only improve.” WIL operates and manages a run-of-river irrigation scheme with
resource consent to take water from the Waimakariri River, delivering water to about 200 farmer shareholders over 23,000ha north of the river between Oxford and Rangiora. Walton claims WIL is not running away from any responsibility and farmers accepted they have a key role to play in reducing nitrate levels.
“There is not one WIL shareholder or farmer in this catchment who wants to see, or be responsible for, increased nitrate levels,” he says. All WIL farms that irrigate 20ha or more (about 108 properties) are required to have a farm environment plan (FEP), independently audited each year. Walton said every
farm will be at good management practice (GMP) by 2020 and most will be either a B or an A audit by September. “Our shareholders have invested heavily in infrastructure, including modern irrigation systems, sophisticated effluent systems, fenced off waterways and riparian plantings to improve water quality and reduce their environmental footprint.” Flowmeters, weather stations and telemetry monitors are being installed on all WIL properties to ensure efficient water use, by applying precisely the right amount of water, at the right time. Farmers are provided with daily, weekly and monthly recommendations on whether to irrigate via a mobile app. Walton says farmers
are part of their community too. “They have children and wider families. They are as concerned for the future wellbeing of their society, culture and environment. “They take far more than their own economic wellbeing into account when they’re making decisions about the future operation of their farms.” He says the farming sector has made massive improvements in the past five years, and there is clear motivation to keep that momentum going into the future. “Our shareholders are here for the long term. I can assure the public that farmers are not sitting around waiting for the magic wand to appear. Rather than a cause, we want to be seen as part of the solution.” says Walton.
Timber prices take a tumble PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
NEW ZEALAND’S export price of timber fell by as much as 20% over June due to an oversupply in China, and these aren’t expected to lift in the short term. The specialist research firm IBIS World says the drop in prices is another fallout from the China-US trade war, plus a biosecurity issue in Europe and more timber coming out of South America. It is likely to reduce revenue for both the forestry and logging and timber re-sawing and dressing indus-
tries in NZ, IBIS World says. Senior industry analyst Michael Youren says while prices appear to have bottomed out, the current price is still slightly lower than the five year average. “Prior to last month’s rapid fall, timber prices had been growing steadily due to record domestic and foreign demand. As a result, the current market price is significantly lower than a year ago,” he says. An oversupply of timber in China is the primary driver. China is the largest market for NZ’s timber exports – likely 70.7% of export revenue. Tariffs between the US and
China have reduced Chinese demand for raw wood as manufacturers there produce fewer goods for US markets. “Tariffs have reduced demand for timber used as an input in manufacturing processes, with consumers in the US likely to demand fewer goods manufactured in China as they seek to avoid higher prices,” Youren says. “In addition, a widespread spruce beetle outbreak has changed forestry conditions in Europe, with the market being flooded with cheap timber as a result. “This trend has compounded the effects of reduced Chinese demand on timber prices.”
Plantation operators in Europe have sought to harvest trees earlier than usual, before they can become infested. Increased availability of timber from South America has further reduced timber prices. Large shipments of wood from Uruguay have become available in China. “This wood has been of slightly lower quality than is usually available… and is being sold at lower prices due to low demand in South American markets,” says Youren. Falling timber prices will most directly affect NZ’s forestry and logging industry. Timber is NZ’s third-
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largest export, largely driven by plantation forestry due to many Government restrictions on native forestry. Youren says price conditions are not expected to lift much for a few months, as current stocks must be worked through by export and domestic markets. “NZ operators could benefit from increasing timber exports to other countries, such as South Korea and India. But prices are likely to remain low globally as oversupply prevails in multiple markets.” @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
18 AGRIBUSINESS
Rural contractors focus on recruitment MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
HARVEST SEASON approaches and with it the usual workforce headaches. Growers in Hawkes Bay, Marlborough and Bay of Plenty are faced with bringing in workers from the Pacific Islands or employing uncommitted locals. Rural contractors also struggle to get skilled operators to operate harvesters. Rural Contractors New Zealand (RCNZ) says that due to the seasonal nature of the job – especially during the peak period of September to April – its members are only able to get the work done by bringing in experienced overseas operators, particularly from the UK. There are few experienced staff to meet a huge shortfall. An industry overview, by Infometrics,
“We need to address the problem of staff shortages at a local level, by bringing people forward to train inhouse, as it may not always be possible to bring in the required numbers from overseas.” says the rural contracting industry in NZ contributes $1.51 billion to GDP, encompasses 6822 enterprises and employs about 22,800 people. Nationally, that means 0.6% of GDP, 0.9% of employment and 1.2% of total business units. Last Christmas, Immi-
As harvest season approaches agricultural contractors will be looking for staff. Insent: RCNZ chief executive Roger Parton.
gration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway introduced a simpler, employerled system for the issue of temporary visas for skilled regional workers, a move that was welcomed by the RCNZ.
For the 2019-20 season, RCNZ has helped to get 149 workers for 46 of its members, under the current approval in principle (AIP) process. RCNZ is also working with the Ministry
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of Social Development (MSD) to create greater awareness of career opportunities in the sector and attract more NZ workers to its ranks. A new initiative will see local contracting operations working with WINZ to recruit staff. They will require a driving licence, be drug-free and have the right attitude and a desire to work. Two 10-day ‘boot camps’ will be run at Waiouru and Balclutha during September/October. These events will bring potential candidates up-to-speed on health and safety, life skills, employment and personal development skills, and basic tractor and machinery operation. After returning to work at their employer’s operation, the candidates will be supported by an approved industry training provider, eventually working towards a New Zealand
Certificate in Contracting – Level 3. “We are seeing annual growth in all areas of our members’ operations, including revenue and job numbers,” says RCNZ chief executive Roger Parton. “We need to address the problem of staff shortages at a local level, by bringing people forward to train in-house, as it may not always be possible to bring in the required numbers from overseas.”
Parton says the work with MSD is a first step in what will be a long haul to produce skilled operators leading to the success of their businesses. At the recent RCNZ annual conference, in Nelson, its board agreed to fund placing interactive career-focussed electronic terminals in schools via the Career Coach programme, to showcase the technology, automation and opportunities in agricultural contracting.
NOT JUST A NZ PROBLEM THE SHORTAGE of skilled operators is not just a New Zealand problem. Contractor associations report similar problems in Holland, France, Germany and Ireland. In Ireland, Mike Maroney, the chief executive of Farm and Forestry Contractors (FCI) says it is hard to find people to drive machines.” “Traditionally, young lads always wanted to drive tractors, but there’s been a change of mindset.” Moroney also says youngsters are also less experienced, partly due to the lack of practical machinery training at agricultural colleges. This has many causes: many young-
sters prefer to sit at their computers. In Holland the contractors’ association ha started an information campaign in primary schools. In Ireland, pay rates and the seasonal nature of the work also impede staff recruiting. Employers traditionally quote pay rates as net rate in the hand, typically €500-600 per week. Contractors need to adopt a payroll system that reflects real time and allows employees to claim the allowances they are due. The FCI says experienced EU-domiciled machinery operators should have their skills acknowledged with a European Certificate, allowing them to work in any of its member states.
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
AGRIBUSINESS 19
More trade is best way to sustainably feed humanity – expert PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
MSD_Nilvax_RN_02b
GLOBALISATION IS the only way to feed 9.6 billion people by 2050 with a healthy diet on a healthy planet, says a global food expert. And there is no vegetarian wave moving across the planet, he says. Some regions, such as Southeast Asia, need more red meat and eggs, says Australian doctor Sandro Demaio, chief executive of the global foundation EAT, in Norway. EAT tackles human malnutrition and planetary challenges such as climate change. Demaio spoke at the Produce Market Association A-NZ’s HortConnections conference in Melbourne, attended by Rural News. His words have implications for Australian and NZ agriculture. Demaio says there is a discrepancy worldwide in the quality and quantity of food we can grow on a hectare of land -- partly about “climate and access to water”. “We need to think about that. We need to be growing food where it is going to grow most efficiently.” Demaio disputes any
“Some countries will obviously be exporters, but with others we will need to strengthen multilateral relationships to ensure trust exists so that long term our global trading system will be able to feed a growing world.”
obsession with winding back globalisation. “In fact the only way we are going to feed 9.6 billion people is to dramatically increase trade”. Countries must get over the idea of food sovereignty or the historic need to produce enough food for an entire country. “Some countries will obviously be exporters, but with others we will need to strengthen multilateral relationships to ensure trust exists so that long term our global trading system will be able to feed a growing world,” Demaio said. The biggest challenge now is not just to produce more food from present resources, but to produce more of the right food. “It sounds simplistic, but we live on one planet, we have one global food
system. Food needs to be grown where it can be grown most efficiently with the limited amount of resources we have.” He says globally we are under-consuming fruit and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and healthy oils. But the South Asian region is under-consuming in different ways. “We will need to increase red meat consumption by most Southeast Asians… and eggs. There is a huge investment now in scaling up egg production in Africa and the same need will emerge in the Southeast Asian region.” The nutritional potential of eggs for the most vulnerable people worldwide needs to be realised. That includes the young, especially young women, who need animal-sourced protein in general.
Alessandro Demaio speaking at the recent Produce Market Association A-NZ’s Hortconnections conference in Melbourne.
A BIT OF MEAT ON THE SIDE WHILE VEGAN and vegetarian numbers in Europe and North America are stable, interest is surging in ‘flexitarianism’ – a plant based diet with some meat. “There is no vegan wave moving across the world and everyone is going to give up meat tomorrow,” Demaio explains.
“But people are interested in the meat they are eating in a way they haven’t been previously.” This holds a challenge to meat producers and an opportunity “because those same people are interested in paying more for quality meat”. “How do we shift the economic incentives and levers to ensure we
put more vegetables on the plate or move to farming practices that better support farmers and farming communities and give them a fair wage? Demaio asks. “How do we take consumers with us so policymakers are able to rethink the market incentives and the fiscal policies that allow us to make that transition?”
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
Rabobank supports clients from farm to fork in
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100 000
farmers to connect Content supplied by Rabobank – Grow with the bank farmers for farmers with by worldwide , founded 12630
20 MARKETS & TRENDS
global agribusiness research analysts sharing market outlooks
Sheepmeat outlook rosy Tight global supply Restricted global supplies and strong international demand are set to keep sheepmeat prices at elevated levels over the remainder of this season and into the next, according to Rabobank animal proteins analyst Blake Holgate. Discussing New Zealand’s sheepmeat market in a recently-released podcast New Zealand sheepmeat – Mid-year Outlook, Mr Holgate said the strong market fundamentals experienced throughout the current season had resulted in healthy returns for sheep farmers over recent months.
at least the rest of 2019, Mr Holgate said the outlook for New Zealand sheepmeat pricing was “very positive”. “We expect to see pricing levels out to the end of the season in October at least as high as the mid $8 mark per kilo we saw last year. And there could even be some upside potential on top of this,” he said. “This positive sentiment is anticipated to continue into the new season – underpinning ongoing strong pricing – with exact pricing levels to be largely determined by global supply and the degree of local shortterm procurement pressure driven by the flow of stock to the processors.”
Outlook positive
Supply tight
And with these fundamentals set to persist for
Mr Holgate said sheepmeat supply out
Get
land to lift domestic production given where ewe numbers are at,” he said. “Similarly, our major export competitor Australia is unable to lift production due to drought conditions which have driven capital stock levels of sheep to amongst the lowest levels seen in100 years.”
Demand high
of both New Zealand and Australia – the key exporters of sheepmeat
to international markets – was expected to remain tight over the coming
year. “Global supply of sheepmeat is likely to
remain tight in the next 12 months with limited capacity for New Zea-
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On the demand side, Mr Holgate said global lamb markets continue to perform well, with demand and in-market pricing for key cuts solid. “Over the next 12 months we expect to see global demand for sheepmeat remain strong with African Swine Fever (ASF) predicted to reduce China’s domestic protein availability during this period. This will support strong Chinese demand
usiness ysts et outlooks
Rabobank supports clients from farm to fork in
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
MARKETS & TRENDS 21
COUNTRIES
Content supplied by Rabobank – Grow with the bank founded by farmers for farmers is likely to remain in New Zealand exporters’ favour, and, in fact, we are forecasting the New Zealand dollar to drop further to US 63 cents within 12 months, as monetary policy loosening moves faster in New Zealand than in
the US,” he said.
Some risks While all signs point to a “rosy” next 12 months for New Zealand’s sheepmeat sector, Mr Holgate says, a number of downside risks could adversely impact
sheepmeat pricing should one, or a combination of these, eventuate. These include concerns over a slowing global economy, an over-estimation of the impacts of ASF and the fallout from Brexit. “Increasing concerns about a slowing global
economy and, in particular, the risk of significant slowdowns in either or both of the US and Chinese economies could have a significantly negative impact on pricing,” Mr Holgate said. “There’s also a risk the speculated demand
increase for animal protein stemming from ASF isn’t as high as estimated. Getting up-to-date accurate data on the scale of ASF is challenging and there is a risk of overestimating the protein gap. “Brexit is a further downside risk as it’s still unclear how this will play out and affect demand for New Zealand lamb over the coming 12 months.”
Podcast The full podcast can be found on the RaboResearch channel via any podcast app or at this link http://raboresearchfoodagri.libsyn.com/ nz-red-meat-mid-yearoutlook-part-1-sheepmeat This podcast is the first of a two-part podcast series focused on New Zealand red meat. Part two, the outlook for New Zealand beef, will be released in early August.
Blair Holgate
for a range of lamb products, and particularly mutton,” he said. “In addition, US demand for sheepmeat should remain firm off the back of a prolonged period of US economic expansion which has led to increased rates of red meat consumption and more disposable income
to spend on expensive products like red meat.”
Lower dollar Mr Holgate said a weaker New Zealand currency was another factor anticipated to play into the hands of New Zealand sheepmeat producers. “The exchange rate
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
22 OPINION EDITORIAL
EDNA
Change tune NEW ZEALAND’S farming sector is often targeted by any number of different pressure groups wanting to blame it for one or other of the world’s problems. This is not helped when merchants of doom such as Greenpeace, Fish & Game, Forest and Bird, SAFE and various politicians continue fanning the flames of discontent. They use the agriculture sector as the whipping boy for a myriad issues such as degraded freshwater, high meat and milk prices, foreign ownership sales, farming animals and now climate change. So the development of the agri sector’s blueprint and commitment to dealing with climate change – He Waka Eke Noa (Our Future in Our Hands) is a big move for the sector. It is unprecedented to have all 11 partners in livestock, processing, horticulture and arable, Maori, apiculture and irrigation, and Federated Farmers, sign such a document. The 14-page document outlines the sector’s collective commitment to working with the Government on the challenging issue of climate. The document is both aspirational and pragmatic. But it also points out the obvious – which industry critics either choose to ignore or refuse to concede – that currently there are no practical actions farmers can take to meet the Government’s proposals to reduce on farm emissions. It argues that the fastest progress towards managing NZ’s biological emissions will be by focusing on farm based technologies that reduce emissions, rather than the Government’s proposal to impose an interim processor level cost on emissions. As National’s Todd Muller eloquently put it: “To tax the world’s most emissions efficient food producing sector, before there’s an opportunity to apply technology that hasn’t appeared yet, is nonsense.” The document also shows the huge amount of work done by many agriculture sectors to benefit the environment. And it notes the value of competitions such as the dairy industry awards, the Ballance Farm Environment Awards and the Ahuwhenua Awards, all promoting industry role models. The doom merchants must now note the facts and acknowledge not only the unique problems NZ’s agriculture sector has in reducing its carbon footprint, but also the huge amount of work being done to achieve this goal. These critics may gain satisfaction in seeing NZ’s agriculture sector taxed out of existence to meet this country’s climate change obligations. But this would be a pyrrhic victory with the gap left in the market by our exiting producers filled by less carbon efficient farmers around the world.
RURALNEWS TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS
HEAD OFFICE POSTAL ADDRESS: PO Box 331100, Takapuna, Auckland 0740 PUBLISHER: Brian Hight ......................................... Ph 09 307 0399 GENERAL MANAGER: Adam Fricker ....................................... Ph 09 913 9632 CONSULTING EDITOR: David Anderson .................................. Ph 09 307 0399 davida@ruralnews.co.nz
Want to share your opinion or gossip with the Hound? Send your emails to: hound@ruralnews.co.nz
THE HOUND No farmers A MATE of the Hound reckons the outcome of this year’s Young Farmer of the Year contest should be a real concern to New Zealand’s Young Farmers and the annual competition itself. This year’s winner – the youngest ever in the competition’s history – is not a farmer, but a Fonterra marketing executive in Auckland. Neither were the runner-up or third place winners farmers. They were, respectively, a technical field rep and a vet. Says this old mutt’s concerned source: the fact that none of the winners actually endure the real, daily rigours of farming makes the title of the contest – perhaps the event itself – somewhat questionable.
Impractical
Careful
Meatheads
NOT CONTENT with slapping extra costs on the country’s farmers in the form of an ETS tax, impossible targets to cut methane and impending charges to improve water quality, the Government now wants more. These politcians want to bang an extra tax on the humble farm ute so they can subsidise the cost that wealthy, smug, urban flexitarians incur for their new electric cars. Your old mate reckons Fed Farmers’ Andrew Hoggard summed it up nicely: “Taxes don’t cut it and farmers need practical solutions to live in a zero-carbon world.” Hoggard also perfectly summarised the total impracticality of the Government’s EV policy in saying: “An EV may be ok to go to town for the groceries, but a Nissan Leaf isn’t ideally suited to towing a silage wagon or to cart a load of fenceposts around the farm.”
YOUR OLD mate notes that Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor (also a local MP) loudly disapproved of Westland Milk directors and shareholders overwhelmingly voting to sell the co-op to Yili. What did he expect? That the company stay in local hands and go broke instead? Perhaps he wanted Westland’s farmer owners to take a lower offer and miss out. Or did he, as a good socialist, want to nationalise the company? It might also have been worth O’Connor noting – before stating that ‘every Westland director should be blacklisted from further governance roles’ – that his own brother was recently a board member and so also helped oversee the co-op’s demise.
YOUR CANINE crusader reckons it might be time to reinvent the old ‘Punch a Pom’ campaign, calling it ‘Cuff a Vegan’. The ‘Punch’ campaign ran in the 1970s to honour the late, great All Black prop Keith Murdoch who was sent home during the 1972-73 tour of the UK after he whacked a security guard. This surge of would-be ‘cuffatarianism’ grows out of recent news that vegans are creeping around NZ supermarkets slapping stickers on meat urging shoppers not to buy it. The ‘antimeat’ stickers have appeared on packaging in several supermarkets and more stores have reported being targeted by vegan activist groups. The Hound suggests giving a slap around the ears with a nice bit of steak to any smelly, unkempt, anaemic types sneaking around the meat counter at your local supermarket.
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
OPINION 23
Science and fairness asked for by farmers CORINA JORDAN
CLIMATE CHANGE is a hefty challenge, and sheep and beef farmers feel its effects in more frequent floods and extreme droughts. This is why Beef + Lamb New Zealand (BLNZ) backs the objectives of the Zero Carbon Bill and why – as a sector – we’ve already announced a target to be net carbon neutral by 2050. BLNZ backs the Government’s targets of net zero by 2050 for the long lived gases CO2 and N2O. Getting CO2 under control is critically important because fossil fuel emissions will ultimately affect whether or not the world succeeds in combating climate change. Where BLNZ differs is the proposed targets for methane. Whereas the targets for CO2 and N2O are net targets – meaning they can be offset by planting trees – the target for methane is for a gross reduction of 24 - 47% by 2050, with a 10% reduction by 2030, meaning absolute methane emissions have to be reduced. This is important because a net zero target for long lived gases means those gases will still be contributing additional warming until 2050, whereas the Government’s steep targets for gross reductions in methane mean farmers will be effectively cooling the planet to offset an inability, or unwillingness, to deal with fossil fuel emissions. It essentially means farmers are being asked to do more than other sectors of the economy. BLNZ decided this by using the latest science on methane’s role in climate change. Scientists, such as Professor David Frame of Victoria University of Wellington and Professor Myles Allen of the University of Oxford, have found that gross
reductions in methane of just 0.3% per year are required for methane to no longer add additional warming – effectively the same as what net zero will mean for carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide from 2050. This science has been crucial for informing BLNZ’s submission on the Zero Carbon Bill. It’s why we’ve advocated for a gross methane reduction target of 10% by 2050 (the same as 0.3% per year) and up to a further 12% net reduction (the ability to offset methane emissions) if required. This further 12% net reduction reflects the fact that if other countries do more to reduce their emissions, then more needs to be done on methane reductions. But having this as a net, rather than a gross, target gives farmers flexibility in meeting it given the large amount of uncertainty on how other countries may perform in meeting their Paris Agreement commitments. We’ve also proposed the Government investigates a gross reduction target for CO2. As things stand, theoretically all CO2 emissions could be offset by tree planting, which would serve as only a temporary carbon sink and not address the real issue. Finally, while submissions on the Zero Carbon Bill are now closed, another climate change matter is being considered by the Government – the approach they’ll take to farm level emissions pricing. Two options are before the Government. Option one is the Interim Climate Change Committee’s recommendation for an interim processor levy until 2025 to fund the development of a farm level emissions pricing model. Option two – the Primary Sector Climate Change Commitment – has been put forward by 11 primary sector groups to fund the development of
this farm level emissions pricing model out of existing revenue streams without the need for an interim processor levy. Farmers are
encouraged to go to the Ministry for the Environment’s website www.mfe.govt.nz and click on ‘Action on agricultural emissions’
and have their say in support of option two. • Corina Jordan, is the environment policy lead manager at Beef + Lamb NZ.
Beef + Lamb’s Corina Jordan.
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
24 OPINION
We’re on board, but don’t kill the cash cow TIM MACKLE
DAIRY FARMERS in New Zealand are world leading producers of low emissions milk. We have a reputation for sustainability and we want to keep it that way. While we are committed to playing our part in the transition to a low emissions economy – alongside the rest of NZ – it must be done fairly and consider the science as well as the economic impacts. There is more in the Zero Carbon Bill that we agree with than we disagree with, but we have serious reservations about the Government’s proposed 2050 methane reduction target of 24 – 47%. We believe it goes well beyond what science requires and will put a huge strain on our economy. There is also a lack of robust analysis of the implications for dairy farmers. This is a fundamental issue, given the significant role of the dairy industry in NZ’s economy. DairyNZ estimates
The dairy sector has serious reservations about the Government’s proposed 2050 methane reduction targe of 24-47%, which it believes will have major implications for NZ’s economy. Inset: Tim Mackle.
that with an up to 50% cut in methane, dairy farmers total profit could reduce by 33 to 42% in the 2030-2050 period. This is a substantial loss
of income and is at least ten times higher than the cost of $2500 per farm estimated in the Government’s analysis. The impact on rural
communities and the wider economy could be huge. DairyNZ is calling for the 2050 target to be reduced to up to 24%
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depending on circumstances and regularly reviewed while the science remains unsettled. We are also seeking that farmers get recognition for their planting as a way of offsetting emissions. Farmers are putting a lot of effort into planting on their farms, which have water quality, biodiversity, biosecurity, and greenhouse gas benefits. Policies must see farmers getting recognition for this as every bit helps. This figure reflects a fair-share reduction in methane required to stay below the 1.5 degC threshold and is broadly in line with the analysis of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, New Zealand Agricultural Environment, and other climate scientists. We believe our position is an ambitious but fair approach informed by science Recently, the Government’s Interim Climate Change Committee recommended that agriculture be brought into the Emissions Trading Scheme for five years until a farm level pricing
mechanism is devised. We have opposed this recommendation. We are firm in our view that bringing agriculture into the ETS at the processor level is a blunt instrument that amounts to little more than a broad based tax on farmers before we have the knowledge, support and tools to drive the practice change that will reduce emissions. Instead we have joined with 10 other farming groups, such as Federated Farmers, DCANZ, FOMA and Beef + Lamb NZ, to launch an alternative to manage agricultural emissions: He Waka Eke Noa - our future in our hands. This is an unprecedented sector-wide proposal to work constructively and collaboratively with the Government, Maori and iwi to make real and meaningful changes at the farm level to reduce emissions. This proposal is posi-
tive in that it doesn’t just identify a problem: it provides a clear pathway forward and a way for the primary sector to work with the Government rather than just impose regulations. There is a real and tangible five year work programme to build an enduring farmlevel emission reduction framework and help farmers and the wider rural sector to provide options to reduce their footprint. Dairy in New Zealand has changed and innovated over the last 30 years, and we will continue to do so into the future. We can do this if the settings and support are right. • Tim Mackle is chief executive of DairyNZ
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
MANAGEMENT 25
Regenerative system spins farmer’s wheels LEESTON CROPPING farmer Simon Osborne likes to point out that all life is a symbiosis. “No organism exists in its own right. It’s always an interaction between living organisms, and soil itself could be classified as a living organism,” he says. Osborne recently had the chance to explain his philosophy when he hosted field trips for attendees of the Foundation for Arable Research conference at Lincoln. “850 million years ago the first life forms on land were a symbiosis of fungi and bacteria,” he explained. “And the first plants were a symbiosis with fungi on their root systems. Those fundamentals hold true today.” Osborne practises what he preaches but also points out that he’s still learning. What was 20 years ago called conservation agriculture is nowadays more commonly called biological or regenerative farming. This is characterised by no tillage, co-planting of species that support each other, leaving crop residue on the ground to feed the soil, and minimal chemical intervention. Osborne says reading up on biological farming “really spun” his wheels. “It’s got plenty of scope for failure so you can get some disastrous results and learn some spectacular things,” he explained. “I know they say when
NO SPRAY, LESS WEEDS “SINCE I’VE been doing this I haven’t had to use herbicides to clean up weeds,” Osborne explained. “Plants change the soil physically and they change it chemically. If you have the right change in chemistry then it does a whole lot of beneficial things for you further down the track. “One of those things is a less favourable environment for weeds to grow.” This year his farm will produce linseed, peas, vetch, oats, hybrid radish, wheat, ryegrass, some phacelia and crimson clover for seed, and a bit of hemp. “When it comes to cropping you’ve got to find groups of plants that work together, to make it less favourable for those off species, which in another part of your rotation you might be trying to encourage,” Osborne explains. “Often our best crops are our worst weeds. You’ve got to change that year to year and I’m still exploring the possibilities and learning a lot.”
you shove your finger in the light socket you get an electric shock, but I’m actually going to do it because I want to know what it feels like.” The first thing eliminated was a lot of PKS fertiliser, after soil tests sent away to the Environmental Analysis Laboratory in Lismore, Australia, showed “massive amounts” of everything the land needed. Osborne says the key is learning how to harness it and that’s where biological function came in. A combination of cover crops and residue retention builds up humus in the top layer of the soil. “But the real key is the carbon pathway through having a growing plant pumping down into the roots and exuding carbo-
hydrates into the soil to feed the soil biome which then feeds back to the plant.” This approach is epitomised by the paddock of ryegrass being grown for seed, where the FAR field trip visitors gathered. The ryegrass was drilled along with crimson clover and the herb phacelia, and at this stage of the crop it’s the feathery fronds of phacelia that completely dominate the paddock. Osborne says the traditional view is that all plants compete with each other for space, light and nutrients, but he says that’s not actually the case. He says the exudates that come out of the roots from different plants can perform together to improve the soil biology, which in turn leads to the plants being
fed properly. “What I’m trying to achieve, and what I’m learning, is finding plants that grow well together,” he told field day attendees. “Not just co-exist, but actually enhance each other’s performance.” He says the ryegrass paddock had far more weed-suppressing growth than it would have from any of the three species planted alone. Meanwhile, Osborne added that the mix of legume, herb and grass created a more diverse food source for beneficial bacteria, fungi, insects and nematodes. For the next step, the paddock will be grazed by sheep throughout winter. Osborne says the ryegrass would – counterintuitively – be grazed “to within an inch of its life”. But adds it would then “go nuts” in spring, producing seed for harvest in about January. The phacelia is not expected to survive the grazing, and any clover that survives would not be enough to contaminate the seed crop at harvest, he says. Once the crop is harvested, the straw will be left on the paddock which will then be grazed until the following spring. Osborne says he will use the longest rotation possible – at least four years – before putting seed ryegrass in the same paddock again.
Rural News
Leeston farmer Simon Osborne explains his no-till farming practises to field trip visitors to the recent Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) conference at Lincoln. RURAL NEWS GROUP
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A ryegrass paddock on Simon Osborne’s Leeston farm co-planted in phacelia and crimson clover. RURAL NEWS GROUP
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
26 MANAGEMENT
Triplet system a success on farm and at bank The Dawkins family are Beef + Lamb New Zealand Innovation farmers working to maximise triplet lamb survival via an indoor lambing system now in its third year. This has unexpectedly benefitted the whole farm system and has cut lamb losses. This second of a two-part series looks at the costs and benefits of the indoor system. THE TRIPLET bearing ewes are brought into the shed for lambing, after which they spend 24 hours in a bonding pen before being moved to a nearby paddock. In the first year of the BLNZ Innovation Farm project, the Dawkins put the ewes and lambs onto the headland of a vineyard for a few days for close monitoring. Last year, they went straight into a paddock – which simplified the process although they were still checked daily. Orphan lambs are also reared in the shed and fed cow colostrum (from a dairy farm the Dawkins have an interest in), lamb pellets and muesli. Richard Dawkins says that in 2017 they found the orphan system to be very labour intensive with multiple feeds every day. Last year, they made a gravity feeder that gave the lambs ad lib access to milk. This cost a fraction of the price of more expensive automatic feeders and was more efficient than filling milk-
The Dawkins family say the benefits of their indoor triplet system have been far reaching.
IT’S WORTH IT In 2017, this system generated an extra 215 lambs (based on historic data of 24% lamb losses) which at $139/lamb was worth $29,885. In 2018, the Dawkins had an extra 252 extra lambs which at $148 generated $37,296. Less costs, this made for a profit of $18,653 in 2017 and $26,785 in 2018. Everything is included in these costings including some capital costs, market prices for supplements and all labour valued at $20/hour.
train feeders several times a day. The lambs were weaned onto lucerne weighing an average 18kg. The first of these lambs, which were growing at an average of 260gm/day, were sold on December 13 weighing 41kg. The balance of the lambs were carried through for finishing and sold in February. This year the Dawkins will be using a whey based milk powder. While this costs more than colostrum, they hope it will raise growth rates and will be easier to manage than the 1000L totes of colostrum. Last year, three ewes were lost to bearings,
but Chris Dawkins says a highlight was not having any metabolic issues in their ewes. This will be a challenge to replicate, but ewe weights and body condition will be closely monitored all year. Metabolic conditions are associated with changes in body condition, weight and diet, but the family’s composite ewes transitioned indoors with ease. Abortion has been an issue in the Dawkins ewe flock. Last year, they lost 8% of potential lambs despite having vaccinated to reduce losses to disease related abortions. This year they are monitoring the ewes
closely with multiple scannings, blood tests and autopsies. After going through the indoor system and being closely monitored for seven days, the triplet ewes and lambs are run onto a red clover and plantain pasture mix. This high quality forage drove average lamb growth rates of 337gm/ day and enabled 55%of these lambs to be sold at weaning at 38.7kg. Richard Dawkins says that last year they had comparatively poor lamb growth rates farmwide, due to very wet weather. But with 30ha more lucerne developed
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for lambing this year, they’re expecting better triplet growth rates and clearance at weaning. Overall, the Dawkins’ achieved a 163% lambing from a 192% scanning across their two-tooths and mixed-age ewes. “This is very rewarding, as we believe
there has been too much focus on high scanning percentages in the past, whereas the real target should be the number of lambs alive at weaning,” Richard Dawkins says. The family say the benefits of the indoor triplet system are farreaching. It has improved
twin and single lamb survival in their outdoor ewes by making more feed and shelter available for them. It also allows Chris to focus on these ewes as Richard looks after the triplets indoors. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
ANIMAL HEALTH 27
Don’t sacrifice science for ideology CONTRARY TO recent suggestions in the media, there is very little credible research supporting the success of homeopathic treatment of mastitis in dairy cows. In fact, reviews published recently covering research since 1970 concluded that ‘homeopathic treatments are not efficient for management of clinical mastitis’. A second review covering research since 1981 concluded that ‘the use of homeopathy currently cannot claim to have sufficient prognostic validity where efficacy is concerned’. In plain English, if you want to cure your cow, use the antibiotics which have been the subject of rigorous research and been shown to reduce infection. And, of course, suffering. Animal welfare is of increasing concern to consumers, and untreated mastitis is painful. Humans suffering from bugs reach for antibiotics to the extent of over-use, yet the regulations for organic milk mean that antibiotics are a last call and generally mean the cow suffers in the same way as without treatment (shown by no difference from the placebo treatments). People supporting homeopathy have suggested that lack of response indicates that the treatments applied were not the right ones -- implying that homeopathic experts know better than the scientists doing the research. This
In plain English, if you want to cure your cow, use the antibiotics which have been the subject of rigorous research and been shown to reduce infection. COMMENT
Jacqueline Rowarth may well be the case but the relatively new concept of ‘individualised homeopathy’ has been examined scientifically without finding any support for the assertions. EU research published in Veterinary Record last year involved 180 lactating cows in a blind, randomised control study which included placebos. ‘The study results indicated that the effectiveness of individualised homeopathy does not go beyond a placebo effect and successful treatment is highly dependent on the specific mastitis pathogen’. In the Journal of Dairy Science in 2017, another group of researchers examining production as well as cure concluded that their ‘blinded, randomised clinical trial for homeopathic mastitis treatments did not show differences in clinical cure rate, disease duration, milk yield, or SCC after clinical cure between placebo and homeopathic treatments, indicating that a specific treatment effect was not present for homeopathic remedies for mastitis’. As well as animal welfare, other factors should be considered in organic
milk production, such as the environmental impact. The general belief is that organic methods are better for the environment than conventional systems, but this overlooks the yield implications. For well-run dairy operations, milk production from organic farms is generally 20-36% lower than from conventional farms. This means that to produce the same amount of milk, more land is needed, potentially impacting on native land and biodiversity. Of further concern is that greenhouse gas (GHG) production and nutrient loss are higher per unit of production from organic farms than conventional farms. For the same amount of milk produced, conventional farms are more efficient and have less environmental impact. These differences are more pronounced in the northern hemisphere than in New Zealand, and reflect housing (organic cows generally have to have access to pasture for at least 120 days a year in the US and EU) as well as productivity. Massey University’s research indicates that costs of production are higher for organic milk
than for conventionally produced milk, particularly during drought (or flood or anything that detrimentally affects expected pasture growth) because of the difficulty in sourcing organic feed supplement. Recognising the decreased production and increased cost, the payout for organic milk is generally higher than for conventional milk. Whether the premium offsets the opportunity cost depends on the season. In the supermarket, the price for organic milk is 60% greater than standard milk (in a comparison of same brand and 2L bottles) but producers aren’t paid 60% more on farm. The extra cost in the supermarket reflects dedicated processing facilities and what the market can stand in the consumer desire for the product, whether that desire is or isn’t based on fact. Producers and consumers have choices in New Zealand, and some agricultural leaders are trying to show what they think is a better way for production. The results from scientific research should not be sacrificed for ideology. • Dr Jacqueline Rowarth CNZM CRSNZ HFNZIAHS
Nitrate poisoning SARAH JONES
NITRATE POISONING usually occurs in late autumn or winter when nitrate levels in the feed are high, particularly during a flush of growth after a dry period. Cattle are most susceptible to nitrate poisoning, and the onset of symptoms is rapid. Feed testing by a laboratory prior to grazing will accurately identify nitrate levels and help manage the risk of nitrate poisoning. It all depends on what is absorbed versus what is used by plants. When plants are growing well they quickly take up nitrate from the soil. Under good conditions (plenty of sunshine) the nitrate taken up by the plant converts to nitrite and then finally into plant protein. If plant nitrate uptake from the soil is greater than conversion to plant protein, then nitrate can accumulate to abnormal levels. When this feed is consumed it causes nitrate poisoning. Common symptoms of nitrate poisoning include animals appearing staggering and weak, gasping for breath, collapse and coma leading to death. In
severe cases, if an animal ingests a toxic amount of nitrate in an hour, it can start to show signs of poisoning shortly afterwards. By the time an animal starts showing symptoms of poisoning it can be too late to reverse the situation. Don’t let hungry stock graze on feed with high nitrate levels. Supplement extra feed like hay or silage, feed only low levels initially as rumen can adapt to higher nitrate levels, and avoid fertiliser applications or keep them low. An accurate indication of nitrate levels in the feed can be obtained by getting samples tested by a laboratory. Planning testing ahead of grazing is required to ensure that you receive your results prior to the stock starting to eat the pasture or crop. Laboratory testing results showing nitrate levels under 5.0 g/kg DM is considered safe to feed under all conditions and do not feed >17.5 g/Kg DM. A feed with nitrate levels between 5 – 17.5 g/Kg DM can be fed under certain restrictions. • Sarah Jones is business development manager, Eurofins Agri-Testing, independent scientific laboratory.
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28 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS
Grease is the word MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
GREASE KEEPS the wheels of agriculture turning – probably for longer than we realise. The Egyptians used a lubricant made from limes with olive oil. In the 19th century, soap was added to oil as a thickener, effectively making grease as we know it today. And in an agricultural slant in Sweden, black slugs (Arion ater) were used as axle grease on the wooden shafts of farm carts. Many greases today have emulsifying agents derived from soaps of different types depending on application. The nature of these soaps can be used to influence temperature resistance (relating to viscosity), water resistance and the chemical stability of the grease. Those of a certain age will remember the days of ‘tractor oil universal’ and grease being just that, so if they did use a grease gun it was pot luck what was inside. And there were big buckets of grease for sucking up into an empty grease gun -- a third in the gun, a third on the outside and a third on your hands and overalls. Today the youngsters on farm have the luxury of replaceable cartridges. The quality of grease can vary from supplier to
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John Deere dealership gave an interesting snapshot of the wide array of job specific materials on offer. Multi-purpose grease, as the name suggests, is a good option for most situations. SD polyurea is intended for severe applications and designed to minimise wear at high speeds or under heavy loads, while also resisting heat degradation. Lithium complex remains stable in high
supplier, often reflected in the cost. So it makes sense to choose grease specifically suited to the job at hand. That might be as simple as lubricating a bearing, a universal joint or a suspension unit. Or at the other end of the spectrum, the grease might be to lubricate shafts rotating at high speed or where the lubricant might encounter foodstuffs. A recent visit to the parts department of a
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temperatures applications. Multi-purpose extreme duty synthetic is designed to tolerate extremes of temperature, from as cold as - 42.7 degrees C to 232 degrees C at the other end of the scale. This product uses Teflon, contains no silicon and is food grade certified, non- toxic and odourless. It is said to suit lubrication, sealing, protecting and insulating electrical components. Other specialised products include a corn head grease that can be used in gear cases running up to 1000rpm, where it turns to a heavy gear oil as work temperature increases, but reverts to a grease after cooling, helping to reduce leaks. HD lithium complex includes 3% molybdenum, making it suitable for withstanding shock loads or where sliding frictional forces may be high. But it doesn’t suit use in wheels or roller bearings. HD water resistant grease is especially suited to wet environments, resisting rust and corrosion, and also protecting wash-out and spray removal. So, with the harvest season near, it might be prudent to grab a box of replacement cartridges. Hopefully the Law of Sod won’t kick in the next time you grab the grease gun, only to find it runs out after two pumps.
A logistical storm is brewing for regional field days in 2021.
REGIONAL SHOWS MIGHT NOT BE ALL GO! REGIONAL FIELD days organisers are already locking in dates for their annual showcases. But a logistical storm is brewing for event contractors and exhibitors. Usually in March the cycle starts with Northland, heads south for the Central Districts event at Feilding, then crosses Cook Strait to the South Island. Timing usually allows a two-week gap between each show, allowing knock down, relocation and site building for the next expo. But in 2021 the South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) will be at Kirwee, Christchurch on March 24-26, the week before Easter weekend. This would allow only three days to shift inter-island from the Central Districts show and set up for the next event – a move that even SIAFD describes as impossible. In late April this year SIAFD asked the organisers of the Northland and Central districts to consider changing their dates so as to reinstate the two-week gaps. But they declined the request, in Central’s case because of
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contractual agreements with the Manfield Park site owners. During these discussions SIAFD considered changing to the days immediately before the Easter weekend, but rejected the idea. They said they might incurr higher costs over the long weekend, eg extra security, attract fewer volunteers because of the holiday, and the site lessor would have had to give up the land for longer. SIAFD organisers also looked at February or after Easter -- again no good. In February most farmers would still be harvesting and after Easter the weather would be questionable and the days shorter. Rural News understands SIAFD decided to stick with its proposed dates against the advice of event contractors. Several exhibitors say this timing will create severe logistical problems, ie preparing a second set of exhibits to avert the problems of limited haulage time. Some exhibitors say they may have to reconsider the size of their displays or even drop out of one event. – Mark Daniel
CSL004
■ MACHINERY REVIEWS ■ MANAGEMENT HEADER ■ AND MUCH MORE... HEADER Ferist et quati aut pedici te vollab imod quamet atur soleniet quiatibu. PAGE 23
RURALNEWS TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS
Ferist et quati aut pedici te vollab im quamet atur sole quiatibu.
PAGE 24
RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
MACHINERY & PRODUCTS 29
Yank tank makes it hard to go back MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
ONCE YOU go large it’s hard to go back to regular, goes the old saying. Like the time this reviewer recently spent with a RAM 1500 truck, then a week later he was back in a humble ute. Dubbed the ‘baby’ of the RAM range by some, the 1500 is about 213mm shorter, 49mm lower and one tonne lighter than the 2500 series. But at 5.8m it’s longer than the Ford Ranger (5.3m) and is 2.02m wide versus the Ranger’s 1.86m. Starting out as a ‘left hooker’ in the US of A, the RAM comes to Aotearoa New Zealand via a plant in Melbourne where it is re-engineered to right hand drive. This isn’t just a ‘conversion’, but engineering that conforms to original factory
The new RAM 1500 truck: What’s not to like?
standards. Our ride was the 1500 Laramie Crew Cab, identified by its deep chrome bumpers, large sunroof, cavernous cabin with five adult seats and a rear tub 1.7m long and 1.3m between the wheel arches. You climb up into the
cabin on standard sidesteps. Inside, the pilot’s seat and all other upholstery is swathed in high grade leather with quality stitched accents. A large, full colour touchscreen dominates the centre dashboard, allowing logical access to all vehicle functions plus
audio, navigation, rear view camera and connection to two mobile phones simultaneously. Twin gloveboxes, a cavernous centre bin and many cubbyholes offer a place for all your stuff. If coffee is your thing notice the swag of cupholders. And if you need to work,
the rear seat squabs lift and in-fill panels drop, to form a full width platform behind the front seats. Start up is via push-button, working with keyless entry, causing the glorious 5.7L V8 Hemi engine to growl into life. It has 395hp and 556Nm of torque. Hear
that ‘V8 growl’, then a slick twist of the rotary drive selector gets things on the move. The 8-speed transmission slips through the ratios effortlessly, while steering wheel mounted buttons allow manual selection. But why bother? Just let the vehicle do its ‘thang’. NZ spec vehicles get a 3.92 ratio final drive, meaning the big RAM is no slouch on the road, making the 0 to 100km/h dash in a tad under seven seconds. On the road, the truck’s bulk is no problem, aided by its commanding driving position and lots of respect from other road users. The ladder chassis and rear coils should have some effect on handling. But even given a run of wet windy days in Waikato (unless you were
stupid) the 1500 handled with aplomb -- better than some other high spec utes. It felt ‘planted’ and under control, helped by its hefty kerb weight. The V8 burble easily becomes addictive, only going off song when the cylinder de-activation system cuts the motor to four cylinders when cruising. Fuel consumption was about 12L/100km, helped by the legal maximum speed coming up at about 1050rpm. What’s not to like? Maybe the foot operated park brake that will thwart short drivers: it needs replacing with an electronic version. And the exterior rear view mirrors need to be one third larger. The only question now is: “Are you a Whopper man or will a Big Mac be enough?”
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KEMPER GETS CRACKING KEMPER, THE John Deere owned maker of row-independent rotary headers, is allying with Scherer, US, to offer corn crackers/kernel processors for self-propelled forage harvesters. JD has been installing Scherersourced units in its harvesters for the last year. Kemper will distribute the processors and replacement rollers for other brands in Europe, Far East, Middle East, the CIS Sates, Asia-Pacific and South America. Scherer will manufacture products to Kemper’s design specifications, with metric dimensions, in the Kemper brand colour and marketed under the ProfiCracker brand name. The manufacturer says the ProfiCracker units have exceptionally robust rolls, shafts and bearings. And
the TwinCut surfaces milled into the rolls will ensure perfect processing, even under longer chop length strategies. Bearings are lubricated with an ‘oil mist’ helping them to run cooler. This has the added bonus of a bearing monitoring system for temperature that alerts operators to problems. A clever, patented design allows the roller assembly to be hinged open, and the layout allows easy maintenance and a quick change of rollers. Kemper, of Stadtlohn, Germany claims 50% of the world’s best known brands of harvesters are equipped with its rotary maize/corn heads. As part of its deal with Scherer, Kemper will also supply replacements rolls for the Claas and Krone brands. – Mark Daniel
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
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The group toured the KV factory in Kerteminde, Denmark – where all the company’s mowers, mower conditioners, rakes, tedders and bale choppers are manufactured.
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MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
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POWER FARMING’S biennial farm machinery tour of Northern Europe recently took in the latest technology in cultivation, seeding and grassland machinery. Group members saw the latest gear distributed by Power Farming and how contractors use it in the regions they visited. Sales staff from Power Farming took the 82-strong group -farmers and contractors -- first to DeutzFahr country at Lauingen, southern Germany. Here in Europe’s most modern tractor plant, where SDF builds the series 6, 7 and 9 higher-power models, the tourists saw tractors being made then tried them on a test track. Day two saw the group head north, stopping to visit Frank
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Scholz’s contracting business near Frankfurt. Scholz explained the challenges of contracting during short seasons and farmland being swallowed up by industrial development on the outskirts of the city. Heading north to Kverneland’s Soest seed drill factory, the visitors saw the latest developments including the high speed SX precision planter, the 4m U-drill and the DG 12m seed drill that should be a great fit on large Canterbury paddocks. After traditional hospitality at a farm owned by the president of KV Export, Martin Nordhaus, the group headed west to visit the DSV Seed research station. They got an overview of the area from Kai Tegels, of Canterbury, who originally came from Germany and whose father helped set up the research farm.
In Amsterdam, they visited Kverneland’s Nieuw Vennep factory, seeing the latest technology at the home of ISOBUS and experiencing the new range of T series sprayers and high-speed, geo spread fertiliser spreaders. The next stop was Stavanger, Norway, where the visitors saw the famous plough factory. Of interest to the farmers and contractors was the carbonising heat treatment of the plough mouldboards. Boards spend up to 12 hours in a kiln to create their legendary hardness and durability, before they emerge as whitehot lumps of steel that are cut and moulded into the finished product. A highlight for many was seeing the original Kverneland forge where the product manager Stein Kverneland’s great-grandfather started the business making
scythes in 1979. Grass was next on the menu, with a flight to Denmark and the KV factory in Kerteminde. Once the home of Tarrup, this factory produces all the company’s mowers, mower conditioners, rakes, tedders and bale choppers, which the tour group saw in action at a nearby farm. The last leg of the trip saw them head to Galway in the west of Ireland and Ballinrobe, the home of the now famous McHale brand whose factory has 3ha under cover. In typical Irish spring rain, the company demonstrated its complete range to the Kiwis, even producing bales weighing 1200kg, a testament to these machines’ ability to do the job done in any conditions. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // JULY 30, 2019
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Boots! GUMBOOTS! RAINWEAR SALE! lace up
$133
valued at $320
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plain TOE
PLAIN TOE (without Scuff Guard)
steel TOE $50 valued at $120
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