NEWS
MACHINERY & PRODUCTS
Ireland’s ‘green lamb’ project a model for NZ?. PAGE 6-7
Kubota release new tractors. PAGE 30
AGRIBUSINESS NZ agritech builds relationships PAGE 18
TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS MARCH 24, 2020: ISSUE 697
www.ruralnews.co.nz
Ag to weather storm WE’VE GOT THIS!
NIGEL MALTHUS
CORONAVIRUS COULD make the 2008 Global Financial Crisis look like a walk in the park, claims economist Cameron Bagrie. However, he says there are still aspects of the New Zealand agriculture industry that look “really damn good,” he told a recent DairyNZ Farmers’ Forum. “Personally, I’m looking at getting exposure to the dairy sector. There might be a bit of an issue over what price I’m prepared to pay, but I like the long-term prognosis. “But it would be ignorant not acknowledge and take you through some of the stuff that I’m seeing at present, because it is disturbing.” Bagrie was a keynote speaker at the series of Farmers’ Forum events recently held throughout the country. He admitted to having to change his presentation each day, as the fastmoving crisis progressed and countries closed their borders. He told the Canterbury forum – held on March 12, before the Government imposed self-isolation on all overseas arrivals and banned large gatherings – which credit markets were starting to go off. “You can bet your bottom dollar those cruise ships around the globe have got debt on them. They need those ships to be operating. Airlines have got debt. Airports have got debt.” Transport was in “wholesale collapse.” Bagrie said discretionary spending would go out the window, but New Zealand needed the containers of
Many commentators say agricultural exports are going to be vital to our economy due to the impacts of the Covid-19 outbreak on the tourism and the forestry sectors. Last week, the first shipment of kiwifruit left Tauranga bound for Japan. The Baltic Pearl, carrying just over one million trays of SunGold Kiwifruit, will reach Japan’s Tokyo and Kobe later this month. In 2018, kiwifruit exports earned more than $2.1 billion in sales of New Zealand fruit – around half the earnings of all the country’s horticulture exports. - PHOTO: JAMIE TROUGHTON DSCRIBE MEDIA
goods coming in to send the full containers back out. “What we’ve got at the moment is an absolute supply chain mess. And even if Coronavirus goes away in the next two weeks – which, let’s be honest, it’s not going to – it’s going to take six months to get the shipping lines, the distribution capability, back into place.” The message for any business was around liquidity and cash flow. “Make sure you’ve got a bit of a buffer, go have those honest conversations with the banks.” Bagrie said that when things get
tough, the quality players rise to the top of the pile. “We tend to see a bit of a shake-up. And quite often those shake-ups can be pretty healthy, if they force a little bit of change within an industry.” While businesses could not control what’s going on globally they can manage the small things. “Microeconomics is those small things, the little things in front of your eyes that you can control. They determine success or otherwise.” Businesses expecting the pace of change to slow are “smoking pot,” said Bagrie.
Plant-based and alternative proteins are now economic reality and the only way to respond to being disrupted is to innovate at a faster pace than the disruptors can get distribution capability. “You need to learn to take more risk. Why? Because not taking risk is no longer the risk-free strategy.” Taking risk had to be evidencebased, he said. “But sitting there, standing still, putting your head in the sand, no matter whether you look at disruption or what’s going on around the globe in regard to Coronavirus, is not a strategy.”
AMIDST THE corona virus upheaval, one thing is certain – agriculture will see the NZ economy through. The world still needs to eat and trade channels remain open. The bedrock of country’s economy is still agriculture and our main export is of course food. Farms and orchards will carry on, and with our biggest market China turning a corner with its COVID-19 situation, demand for our produce will remain strong. The fundamentals of food supply and demand remain strong. To get us through, farmers will need our support. They’ll need good, trustworthy information. They’ll need the usual inputs from the service and supply parts of the industry. They’ll need some breathing space from political moves that might restrict their ability to operate efficiently. Rural News is a trusted source of information for farmers and we will help keep our farming and rural communities connected. With large scale rural events banned for the foreseeable future, the role we play in keeping the sector connected and informed is more vital than ever. In the parlance of these somewhat unsure times, you can be assured that Rural News will keep calm and carry on. – David Anderson – editor
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 3 ISSUE 697
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Sector critical for NZ PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
NEWS ��������������������������������������1-15 MARKETS ��������������������������� 16-17 AGRIBUSINESS ����������������18-19 HOUND, EDNA ���������������������� 20 CONTACTS ����������������������������� 20 OPINION ��������������������������� 20-23 MANAGEMENT �������������� 24-25 ANIMAL HEALTH ������������26-27 MACHINERY AND PRODUCTS ���������������������� 28-30 RURAL TRADER �������������� 30-31
PROTECTING FARMERS and key workers in the rural sector must now be a high priority as the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic start to hit this country. Rowena Hume, Beef+LambNZ’s engagement and communications manager, says the primary sector is critical to NZ. “If we look after the people in the agricultural sector, we are looking after NZ.” Last week, BLNZ cancelled all its events as part of a plan to protect food producers and others in the red meat supply chain to ensure the flow of primary exports. As well, the red meat industry body has suspended all international travel for staff and restricted domestic travel. It has also sent out
an email to all producers setting out the steps BLNZ is taking to protect farmers and those in the supply Rowena Hume chains. Hume says what the Covid 19 has shown is the importance of the agricultural sector for NZ. “For next little while agricultural exports are going to be vital because we are seeing the impacts on the tourism sector and also the forestry sector,” she told Rural News. “Hopefully agricultural trade will keep happening.” She said the reasoning behind BLNZ cancelling its events and travel is to protect farmers and ensure that
RETHINK POLICIES HUME NOTES that, at present, many farmers are suffering stress from drought as well as the threat of a raft of new environmental legislation. She says this is the time when both government and policymakers should be seriously rethinking some of these policies and asking whether these are right thing to do in the current
they and others in the red meat supply chain don’t get sick. Hume says the meat processing companies are quite concerned at the moment that if a staff member got sick they may have to close down the plant – hence the plans and protocols to protect the people in the ag sector. “We also want farmers to feel some
economic environment. Meanwhile, in an email to farmers, Beef+LambNZ says it will be looking at other ways it can stay in touch with each farmers and get the tools and information needed: such as social media; potential delivery of workshops online; podcasts; webinars; and emails.
pride and be aware that they and those in the processing industry are really important at this critical time. We have seen trade start to come back on line in China – so there are some positive opportunities for us going forward,” she says. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
Fundamentals looking good HEAD OFFICE Top Floor, 29 Northcroft Street, Takapuna, Auckland 0622
CAMERON BAGRIE says dairy fundamentals looked pretty good, despite the GDT dropping in the past three auctions. “I looked at those results and I thought ‘hallelujah’ - because of what I’m seeing across red meat, across seafood, across forestry.” The income side of the ledger needed to hold up through this period of uncertainty but there were longterm opportunities. Emerging economies such as India and China would evolve and shift up the income scale, and the proportion of their GDP that goes to consumption would “absolutely rocket up”. Agriculture sector debt, especially dairy, was a point of vulnerability and
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 CONTACTS Editorial: editor@ruralnews.co.nz 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
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still needed to come down. Although very concerned about the global economy, Bagrie said dairy was moving into a period of comparative advantage. “New Zealand’s in a real healthy space. We’re heading into this period with a breeze at our back. “I’m not sure New Zealand’s gonna be okay this time around, but I think our one is gonna be relatively light compared to what I’m seeing elsewhere around the globe. “In the long term, agriculture looks good, but no illusions there’s gonna be some short-term challenges.” – Nigel Malthus
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
4 NEWS
Rules driving farmers out
Back in the black SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
SUDESH KISSUN sudeshk@ruralnews.co.nz
NEW FARMING rules around sustainability are driving elderly farmers out of the dairy industry, says agri-economist Phil Journeaux. He says over the past three years, there’s been an increase in farmers, in their 60s and 70s, looking at other options. Journeaux, AgFirst Waikato, spoke at a Smaller Milk and Supply Herds (SMASH) seminar in Te Aroha last week. Attended by about 50 farmers, the event went ahead despite the coronavirus outbreak. Phil Journeaux Journeaux told Rural News that he was getting on average one enquiry a week over the past three years. “Now this doesn’t sound much but there’s been an increase,” he says. “We are getting reasonable amount of inquiry particularly from older dairy farmers with small dairy farms: they are looking at the option of what do I do next.” Journeaux says there’s a range of reasons for farmers thinking of quitting dairying. Some are thinking retirement, but proposed environmental regulations are one of the main drivers. “They are getting sick of all the pressure coming on the dairy industry, particularly on the environmental side. “And they are thinking, before I spend lot of money to deal with this I need get out.” Horticulture is attracting a lot of
interest among these famers, but options are wide ranging: recently two farmers advised by Journeaux converted into chicken farming. The dairy sector is expecting a milk payout of around $7.30/kgMS this season: a competitive payout by industry standards. But Journeaux says dairy farmers suffered “a helluva fright” in 2015 when the payout slumped to $3.90/ kgMS. “It has certainly improved from that but our monitoring says the average dairy farmer needs 6 bucks to break, even 7 bucks if they can pay off the principle debt. “We are in that range but these farmers are thinking I’m not seeing myself getting ahead that much at 70 so I am out.” At AgFirst they run through options for farmers looking to get out of dairying: doing financial, risk and environmental analysis for them. The final decision rests with the farmer. Journeaux told the SMASH seminar that farmers must do their homework before choosing their new venture. He says it is very important to know the value chain the farmer is getting into. Like the dairy industry, horticulture, pipfruit, kiwifruit sectors have strong value chain and extension service. “But if you choose something like nut crops, they have a pretty weak value chain: if you do those sorts of things, you will end up with the task of creating the entire value chain.”
FONTERRA FARMERS are happy with the co-op’s solid turnaround in performance, says Shareholders Council chairman James Barron. Barron says the co-op has made good progress on its strategy to cut costs and reduce debt. Farmers are also happy with Fonterra reaffirming its forecast farm gate price of $7 to $7.60/kgMS in its interim result announcement last week. Barron notes that the forecast payout is the highest since 2014, when Fonterra paid out a record $8.40/kgMS. “It’s a great time to be supplying healthy and nutritious products to the world,” he says. He also backed the board’s decision not to declare an interim dividend due to uncertainty over coronavirus. “It’s a prudent measure and farmers support the move: it takes into account the uncertainty times we are facing.” Fonterra, last week, announced normalised earnings before tax of $584 million, up from $312m the previous year. Net profit rose to $501m, up from $72m last year. Net debt was reduced from $7.4 billion last year to $5.8 billion. Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell says the co-op has delivered this through stable underlying earnings from Ingredients business, improving gross margins in Foodservice and reducing operating expenses. “Our Foodservice business has definitely been our standout performer in the first half as we’ve grown our sales to bakeries
Fonterra Shareholders Council chair James Barron.
and coffee and tea houses across Greater China and Asia.” The co-op is continuing its strategy of reducing debt by selling non-core assets. The sale of DFE Pharma and Foodspring brought in $624 million. Hurrell says this helped reduce net debt by 22% or $1.6 billion. He says the co-op has built on the work done in 2019 and has continued to reset its business, introducing a new strategy, reorganising and resizing its teams so there is greater focus on customers, and at the same time, significantly lifting its financial performance. “We are now a very different co-op to this time last year – we’re prioritising New Zealand milk and staying focused on what we know we’re good at and what makes a difference to our farmer owners, unit holders, employees and communities. “While there’s no doubt the world is experiencing an almost unprecedented situation and
response to COVID-19, I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made so far against our four priorities for 2020. “These are to hit our financial targets, reduce our environmental footprint, build a great team, and support regional New Zealand. By achieving these, we will take strides towards our long-term goals of Healthy People, Healthy Environment and Healthy Business.” Fonterra’s key financial targets for 2020 are to meet its earnings guidance of 15-25 cents per share, achieve a gross margin in excess of $3 billion, reduce debt so it is no more than 3.75x its earnings and ensure capital expenditure is no more than $500 million. Hurrell is pleased with the progress and momentum Fonterra has achieved in the first six months of the financial year, but cautions that Fonterra is now operating in a very different global context as a result of COVID-19. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
Nine AboutFacts P Fertilisers Regarding Meeting Water2025 Quality Limits TenBasic BasicFacts Fertiliser You Must Know and Adopt2025 to Meet Water Quality Limits: Dr Bert Quin
Fact ofsoluble solubleP Pfertiliser is by far largest causecause of P run-off andand leaching, andand thetherefore decline of in the thedecline qualityinofthe Kiwi waterways. FactA. 1. The The overuse overuse of is the by far the largest of P run-off leaching, quality of Kiwi waterways. Fact 2. Once you have Olsen P levels that are more than a third of the P retention (ASC), application of additional soluble P is very prone to loss to the
Fact B. True RPRs maintain high production as well as soluble P, but are far, far less susceptible to run-off and leaching. And RPR is cheaper! environment. Fact 3. If you want to build up your soil P in an environmentally-protective way, simply apply RPR. It does not get leached or lost directly in run-off, but
Fact C. Quinfert Algerian RPR isforthe only low-cadmium, internationally- recognised true RPR available in New Zealand. releases P in a sustained fashion plants.
Fact 4. There is nothing to lose and everything to gain. RPR-based fertilisers are even cheaper than super-based products as well! Added sulphur bentonite
Fact D. It doesn’t meet the industry-backed Fertmark 30-minute citric acid solubility test, introduced about 40 years ago. (sulphur 90) is far more efficient than the excess sulphate in super.
Fact 5. Following 1-4 above will greatly reduce P run-off and leaching. This should be done before anything else, and the situation reassessed before
Fact E. So what. This test is not used anywhere outside NZ. It has been widely criticised as not being fit for purpose, given the knowledge spending huge amounts of money! that exists today, because it gives artificially low solubility tests for RPRs that contain free lime or dolomite.
Fact 6. It is nonsensical to give in to pressure to install expensive mitigations riparian strips, excessively large wetlands and ‘phosphorus walls’ when you have no idea of their long-term effectiveness and maintenance costs, and before you have established whether changing to sustained-release RPR is all Fact F. Quinfert Algerian RPR contains 7% free dolomite. This is a plus. But the dolomite consumes citric acid, meaning the Fertmark test you need to do! gives an artificially low solubility result. Fact 7. in any case simple fenced-off 3-metre wide grass riparian strips are essentially as effective and vastly cheaper than more complex strips. Both reduce bacterial and sediment losses. Neither will have any significant long-term beneficial effect (on a whole -farm basis) on soluble P and nitrate-N loss. Fact G. In agronomic trials, and in the ‘Watkinson Dissolution’ proposed replacement Fertmark test, Quinfert Algerian RPR at least matches But grass strips can be harvested in summer to be fed out, to improve P and N cycling. the performance of other true RPR’s as a maintenance P fertiliser. Fact 8. In a nutshell, for maintenance of P levels any genuine RPR (not an RPR/Boucraa mix please!) can be used. Just check the Cd content. For low fertility situations or low rainfall, use a blend of RPR and high-analysis soluble P. Fact H. If you want your P to be available in 30-minutes, use straight super, TSP, DAP or MAP. Fact 9. For N, rather than granular urea, use prilled urea, sprayed immediately prior to, or during, the spreading with urease inhibitor. Use of N can be literally cut in half with big savings. Fact I. If you want a licence to farm from 2025 however, I strongly recommend that you start using RPR. It’s as simple as that. Fact 10. Potash is more efficient, and must less likely to cause metabolic problems, if applied in small doses 4 times a year, adding up to 50-60% of the total annual amount you are using now. Easy to mix with your prilled urea. Leaching of anions like nitrate will be minimised as well.
For more info. email Bert Quin on bert.quin@quinfert.co.nz, or phone 021-427 572, or visit www.quinfert.co.nz For more info, email Bert Quin on bert.quin@quinfert.co.nz, or phone 021 427 572, or visit www.quinfert.co.nz
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 5 Support rural businesses – RWNZ
Is China back? SUDESH KISSUN
PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
WE NEED to make sure that our rural businesses are well supported, says Fiona Gower, Rural Women NZ national president. “With the lack of tourists coming through we need to ensure the small businesses can survive because without them we don’t have a community,” she told Rural News. “Once they are gone it is really hard to get them back. She says digital communication will also Fiona Gower play an important part in the coronavirus response. Rural Women has been looking at the best way to communicate with members about the situation, which includes getting the correct information out such including links to the Ministry of Health. “There is a lot of hype out there and it’s making sure that everyone gets the correct information. “Our members and rural communities are pretty resilient and innovative and have plenty of initiative. Because of where we live we can be pretty self-sufficient. “We can still go to work because we won’t be in the room with 50 other people. We can carry on with the work we are doing which is really important.” While huge events on the rural calendar such as the Central Districts and National Fieldays have been cancelled, New Zealand will be better off if we can prevent the spread or community
introduction of the disease. “We will have to look at more innovative ways of being a community because it is really important that we are supporting each other. “We have to look at ways possibly to do that rather than face to face in meeting situations or in social situations.” Gower says the rural sector has a number of “amazing’ groups and it needs to support their initiatives. She adds that rural communities also need to ensure that people are safe and not isolated. “We have to think how farm workers who are living on their own can cope, making sure they are well and all the rural communities are kept safe. “This is a pretty tough time but the rural communities have been through some tough times. “This is just another to show how resilient we can be, how innovative we can be and how we can actually make the least worst, or the best, of the situation.” Meanwhile, Gower says it is a matter of wait and see on whether rural and boarding schools will close. “We must ensure that doctors, medical centres and hospitals are not overwhelmed.” She says technology will be really important. “This will be a real issue for families that don’t have decent internet or computers if schools closed. We need to make sure those children are well looked after.”
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THERE WAS a silver lining to the fourth straight drop in global dairy prices last week: demand in China is recovering. Takeaway figures from last week’s Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auction shows demand for dairy in China is picking up, albeit at a slow pace. Westpac head of NZ strategy Imre Speizer noted that last week’s auction was expected to be the first to be significantly affected by the coronavirus outbreak, with global containment measures accelerating in early March. However, the 3.9% fall in the GDT price index was of a similar magnitude to the three previous auction falls (-4.7%, -2.9%, and -1.2%). Since the outbreak gripped global financial markets in late January, whole milk powder prices have fallen 13.5%. Speizer says this decline is more moderate than that seen for other globally traded commodities, for example sugar
The latest GDT shows Chinese dairy demand is picking up.
-31%, wheat -17%, copper -17%, US lumber -30%. Brent crude oil has been an extreme case, plunging 59%. “The evidence to date is that during this pandemic, dairy commodities have outperformed most major commodities, perhaps a testament to demand for core foods with health properties,” he says. NZ’s key export product, whole milk powder, fell 4.2% -- a
much smaller fall than futures market predictions of a 9%-11% drop. At US$2797/metric tonne, WMP is at its lowest level since January 2019. The low point of the past few years was $2599 in November 2018. Skimmed milk powder prices fell 8.1%, butter rose 0.3%, anhydrous milk fats rose 1.0% (despite volumes being increased due to higher South Island production), and cheddar cheese rose
2.6%. Last week’s GDT regional breakdown shows North Asian demand (a proxy for China demand) bounced back from a weaker showing at the previous auction. Speizer says this is consistent with data showing new virus cases inside China have slowed significantly, as well as anecdotes of economic activity in China starting to normalise. Rabobank’s senior dairy analyst Emma Higgins agrees that China is displaying “signs of dairy demand spluttering back to life” However, Higgins points out that much of this increase is recovering lost ground seen in prior GDT Events. Total Chinese demand in this GDT is still lower by almost 20% year-onyear. Rabobank expects the ongoing impacts of the virus, in combination with a build-up of milk powder stocks and a lift in Chinese milk production, will result in a 19% fall in Chinese dairy import volume in 2020.
$7-PLUS STILL ON THE CARDS DESPITE FOUR consecutive drops in Global Dairy Trade (GDT) prices, analysts are sticking with a payout of around $7.20/kgMS for this season. Westpac’s Imre Speizer says the futures market for 2019-20 farmgate milk price remains stuck at $7.20/ kg, where it has been since early February.
Speizer notes that this unsurprising given 80% of the season’s production volumes, as well as most sales, are known. “That is in line with our own forecast for this season of $7.20,” he says. Rabobank’s Emma Higgins anticipates a milk price $7.35/kgMS, a decline of 35c.
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Last week Fonterra reaffirmed its milk price range of $7 to $7.60/kgMS. For the 2020/21 milk price, futures are predicting a price of $6.20/kgMS, from a pre-virus peak of $7.30 in January. Both Westpac and Rabobank are reviewing their 2020-21 forecast prices and will report in the coming weeks.
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
6 NEWS
Ireland’s ‘green lamb’ project Can you imagine buying green lamb for the Sunday roast? In Ireland that is rapidly becoming a reality – although don’t take the term literally. Irish agricultural scientists are embarking on a research programme called ‘green lamb’. It also has a New Zealand connection as Peter Burke found out when he was in Ireland and met up with Dr Tommy Boland at the University College of Dublin’s (UCD) research station near the Irish capital. THE TERM ‘green lamb’ could easily set one’s imagination going in all directions. However, in fact, the objective of the project is quite simple, to improve the quality of Irish lamb by improving the quality of the pasture so that farmers can earn more money. The idea is identical to what agricultural scientists at Massey University and other research institutes are also working on. No surprises there, because Tommy Boland
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has been to Massey and enlisted the help of Paul Kenyon and Peter Kemp who’ve been responsible for developing a similar project in NZ. However, there are differences – climate and the size of sheep flocks in the respective countries two major ones. For a start the average flock size in Ireland, according to Boland, is 107 breeding ewes and – like NZ – the total the number of breeding ewe is on the decline. Most people who farm sheep
in Ireland have other employment off the farm “We have about 2.7 million breeding ewes in the country, which is down from a high of just over five million in the mid-1990s,” Boland told Rural News. “That means we have lost about half our sheep to dairy and to beef. “In the early days, a lot of farmers got involved in sheep production following the introduction of milk quotas in the mid-1980s,” he adds. “At that time, there
was a lack of knowledge and experience on how to farm sheep and there was certainly a lack of infrastructure on a lot of those farms for managing sheep. But in recent times farmers realised there were easier ways of making money than running sheep – especially with dairy offering better prices.” Boland says the green lamb project is designed to develop ways that will demonstrate to sheep farmers that there is money to be made in
Dr Tommy Boland
sheep if they change. He adds that for many this will not be possible, especially for farmers in the west of Ireland in Mayo and Galway and in eastern areas in County Wicklow – where the topography of the land makes pasture improvement difficult.
However, Boland is quick to point out that even on the lowland farms there is a huge variation in sheep performance. Green lamb, he says, is about creating better quality pasture and reducing the amount of concentrate feed and
other supplements to ewes and lambs. Irish farmers house their sheep for about four months of the year – as much to stop pasture damage as to protect them from cold wet winters – and farmers have to feed supplements during this period. “The problem is that
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 7
a model for NZ? much of the grass silage is of poor quality – due to the pasture its cut from,” Boland explains. “Consequently, this feed does not meet the ewe’s energy requirements in late pregnancy and early lactation. He says to make up for this deficiency, concentrates such as grain have to be fed. “On a lot of our farms there is old permanent pasture that is running out of power. Compounding this is the fact that few Irish sheep farmers have a re-grassing policy to improve the quality of their pasture.” To that end, Boland and other ag scientists in Ireland are doing what researchers in NZ are doing – creating new pastures that are more resilient and powerful in the sense that they better
The average sheep flock in Ireland is 107 breeding ewes.
meet the energy needs of sheep. The have three goals. “We are looking at improving the quality of grass silage by incorporating red clover into the silage sward – so our silage sward will be a mixture of perennial ryegrass and red clover,” he
explains. “The red clover will bring a higher protein content to the silage and it will also add a higher digestibility value to the silage. The second action is to develop multi species swards in the main pasture by creating a mixture of perennial ryegrass,
white and red clover and herbs – such as chicory and plantain. Boland says the third objective is the sowing a special finishing crop for the lambs. They are using Redstart, which is a hybrid between kale and forage rape that over the years
GETTING THE MESSAGE ACROSS in Ireland has been shown to be a good product for finishing lambs. He says with Redstart lambs can grow at 300 grams per day in the autumn period – whereas on most of the permanent pasture swards they will only be doing something like 150 grams per day. The Green Lamb programme also has a focus on genetics and improving lambing percentages across all breeds. The average lambing percentage is about 130%, which Boland says isn’t bad. But it has been at this level for a number of years and there is room for improvement. He believes a target of between 150% and 160% is realistic. A lot of research is being done to improve the genetics of Irish sheep.
FOR TOMMY Boland, and other scientists involved in the project, the challenge is getting sheep farmers to adopt their findings. In their favour is the state funded agricultural research, advisory, policy and training organisation, Teagasc – which provides quality, independent advice to farmers. He says there are also a number of private consultants involved and in Ireland there is a huge effort going into knowledge transfer. “The Department of Agriculture have funded a lot of discussions groups over the last five to ten years, where sheep beef and dairy farmers and actually get paid for attending these groups where knowledge is exchanged,” Boland told Rural News. “However, the jury is out to some extent of how successful that has been as it would appear that some farmers come along to get the extra money, but in the end may not be so engaged in the long-term knowledge transfer. He’s also noticed that as the funding has been cut back the numbers of farmers attending such groups has declined. That aside, like NZ, Boland believes that there will always be some farmers who are looking to change and improve their position, while others are just happy with the status quo. “What we need to bear in mind – in an Irish context – is that a lot of our farmers, certainly our beef and sheep farmers, are part time,” he explains. “In these situations – there is much less incentive and motivation to change the farming systems or spend money to change it.”
16/03/20 12:56 PM
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
8 NEWS
Agriculture struggles with GHG policies PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
HIGH LEVEL policy agreements on greenhouse gases – such as the Paris Agreement – are challenging both policy
makers and scientists, according to an international scientific expert in this field. Professor Bob Rees, of Scotland Rural College in Edinburgh, says national policy makers
are trying to implement the consequences of that agreement. However, he doesn’t think those who developed these big agreements worked through the details and how these might apply to
individual sector – such as agriculture “We need to know a lot more about what agriculture needs to do,” he says. Rees thinks there is a misconception of where
Bob Rees
“We need to know a lot more about what agriculture needs to do.”
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the emissions are coming from and that plans can be rolled out to farmers to tell them what they can do to reduce emissions on their farms. He says one easy way to reduce emissions is for farmers to be more efficient, which will reduce their costs and reduce emissions. However, he points out that this is a complex issue and education and training needs to be provided. “Often there is inertia in the farming sector because people want to do what they have always done and doing things differently is not always attractive,” he explains. “I think the farming industry needs support from people – such as policy advisors, farm advisors and researchers – to implement some of the technologies that are available.” Rees believes some areas of farming change is inevitable and, in some areas, it will be painful. He says in the UK it’s
widely known that a large proportion of emissions come from livestock and that some farmers are inefficient and are being propped up by subsidies. “In some cases, we are subsiding a sector that isn’t producing very much food, but is producing a lot of greenhouse gases. We have to target that and say that’s not the right way of managing that land and there are other land uses – such as forestry – which will be more profitable that will also cut carbon. “But I also concede that, in some areas, we can simply improve efficiency and provide some carbon technologies and inhibitors that will help reduce emissions and we can carry on doing some of the things we are doing already.” Rees rejects the notion that farming is being unfairly targeted saying that other sectors – such as transport – are equally unhappy about the way they are being treated.
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THERE HAS been a lot of talk about the need for people to eat less meat as part of a global plan to keep livestock numbers at a sustainable level. However, Rees points out that meat consumption in China and India is growing rapidly as these economies become more westernised. “The trajectory of meat consumption in both those countries is steep and that is not compatible with the planetary resources that we have,” he claims. “If China and India were to reach the level of meat consumption that we have in Europe and America, we would need another two planets to support it. We just haven’t got the land.” However, Rees has a positive view of the dairy industry. He says dairy in some parts of the world like the UK Ireland and NZ is using grass to produce protein in way humans couldn’t do. “So humans can’t eat grass and derive protein from it, whereas cattle can. Dairy production is a rational thing to do.” Rees says dairy is a source emissions and way has to be found to bring emissions down be it making changes in the milk parlour, the feed or feed additives.
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 9
Jobs aplenty in kiwifruit sector PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
THE SITUATION with coronavirus is very fast moving, says NZ Kiwifruit Growers Inc (NZKGI) chief executive chief executive Nikki Johnson. “At this stage we are monitoring the situation closely, especially in terms of its potential impact on labour,” she told Rural News. It is too early to tell the extent of disruption that coronavirus will have on its labour, but NZKGI took the prudent measure of launching its labour attraction strategy last week. “We expect that there will be backpackers already in New Zealand that we hope will stay and assist us with harvest.” The labour attraction strategy also aims to attract New Zealanders, as a first priority, to pick and pack in the kiwifruit harvest. “We are also encouraging students and retirees, particularly those who live close to packhouses and orchards to come and work with us. We are also working with industries that may be impacted by job losses as a result of Covid-19 to join the industry.” NZKGI is in discussions with a wide range of sectors where there may be availability for people to join the kiwifruit She says at this stage they do not see the
harvest at risk. “However, we will need workers to help with harvest and we encourage everyone who can assist to take jobs picking and packing kiwifruit,” she says. “We are particularly welcoming those from industries where there may not be enough work available currently such as tourism, hospitality and forestry that are local to our kiwifruit growing regions.” The organisation publicised last week that more than 20,000 seasonal workers are needed. Picking of New Zealand’s kiwifruit crop is underway. Johnson says the sector expects harvest of around 155 million trays of kiwifruit this year and expects to need more than 20,000 workers across the harvest and post-harvest period. Johnson says significant volumes of kiwifruit are expected to be harvested this week and remain high well into April. Final picking takes place in June. “The gold kiwifruit are ready first and it’s a very short turnaround to get that fruit off the vines and into the packhouses. Then the green variety will be ready and it’s full on till early winter.” After a shortage of 1,200 workers at the start of the 2018 harvest, NZKGI developed and implemented a labour attraction strategy for the
GETTING THE WORD OUT A NUMBER of promotional tools are being used to get the word out about the need for kiwifruit workers. These include the NZKGI’s popular Little Green and Gold Book, a comprehensive 14-page guide to jobs in the industry, introduced in 2019. An updated version available in both print and electronic form was released earlier this month. The organisation’s Facebook page, Kiwifruit Jobs NZ, also introduced for the 2019 season, was another highly popular point of contact for potential workers, reaching more than 250,000 people in 2019. A video featuring backpackers working in a Te Puke orchard, which was released in both English and German versions, also gained wide exposure, receiving 54,000 views. The 2020 campaign will again emphasise the social media channels, while a video highlighting Kiwis working in the sector has also been released.
2019 harvest which was largely successful, she says. More than 20,000 seasonal workers will be needed to harvest and pack this year’s kiwifruit crop. PHOTO: JAMIE TROUGHTON DSCRIBE MEDIA
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
10 NEWS
Positives and negatives for rural NZ PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
THERE ARE some positives for rural people as the covid-19 virus spreads to NZ, according to the chairperson of the Rural General Practice Network Dr Fiona Bolden. She told Rural News that it will be easier for rural people to isolate themselves when the major outbreak hits. But Bolden says it’s very important that farmers and rural people follow some of the key guidelines for protecting oneself being put out by the Ministry of Health. She says stopping the spread of the virus can be achieved with basic things like good handwashing and making sure that surfaces are clean because the virus
can stay alive on a surface for a few hours. Bolden adds that other things – such as keeping a social distance from people are really important. “When you cough, do so into your sleeves or the elbow of your arms rather than your hands. Then when you get ill, isolate yourself so that you don’t spread it around to other people,” she explains. “You might be perfectly alright yourself, but your 80 year-old neighbour may not be and could be in the 3% that we know are going to die from this virus if they get it.” Bolden says in rural areas, testing for Covid19 may not be done at medical centres – it may be done at elsewhere so it would be worth ringing
your medical centre to check this out. She says some of the testing may be done in people’s car outside the medical centre. Bolden says, at this stage, not many tests are being done. But she says this will change when the disease takes a hold in NZ. “A key message is don’t walk in and out of medical centres with coughs and sneezes etc because we have a lot of vulnerable people in there we are trying to keep well,” she adds. One of the problems that will likely occur Bolden says is when large numbers of people swamp medical centres wanting to be tested. What is known, she says,
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Bolden is reassuring people living in rural areas that their health professionals – doctors and nurses will be fully up-to-date with the latest information about Covid 19. She says the Ministry of Health has an excellent source of information on its web site which is available to both health professionals and the public. She says rural professionals are being advised to look at this site, which is being updated daily. “The Rural College of GP’s has a Q&A on a page as well which deals with common questions and ties them into the Ministry web site for answers. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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is that even if 90% of people get Covid 19, most will just get a very mild illness. Bolden also adds that while there are some advantages in living rural, there is certain frailty in services with some areas having just a sole medical practitioner and some none at all. “We are trying to keep those people as well as possible and supported so that they can do their jobs. The next thing we are going to have to do is move to a phase where we are going to have to do an enormous amount of testing because Covid -19 is a notifiable disease and we need to map the spread of this across the country even if people have got mild symptoms.”
THE HEAD of Massey Universities College of Health, Professor Jane Mills says the Covid-19 pandemic is going to be very challenging for NZ. Like Fiona Bolden, Mills says the key message is to comply with the directives of the Ministry of Health. “I think rural New Zealanders need to follow the same advice that has been provided to urban New Zealanders from the Ministry of Health in terms of how to protect themselves and stay safe during this time which is going to be very challenging,” she told Rural News. Mills says a lot of the data coming out of other countries is that maintaining a ‘social distance’ is very beneficial in terms of reducing that community spread of the virus. She says this means people not being in large groups and gatherings. According to Mills, the required level of screening will be there for rural people, but she says in terms of acute care, there are fewer services and that poses prob-
lems if the disease spreads quickly. “One of the great advantages we have now is social media and the internet which opens up communication channels and provide that consistent message. The Ministry of Health have been working very hard to ensure that that the communication channels are very clear and open to all health professionals and also the general public and so they are to be congratulated for that.” She says data from other countries shows that only 1% of people who catch the virus need critical care. However, Mills warns that while this is only a small number, it will test our health services. Currently Massey University has a number of students training to be health professionals. Mills says at this stage no decisions have been made by the Ministry of Health as to what role these and other students training in the medical area may play in the future.
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 11
Filipino dairy workers caught out PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
MANY FILIPINO dairy workers have booked trips home for their annual leave in the quiet time on farm, but are now in limbo about whether to go. Filipino community leader, Bob Bolanos, a former dairy farmer who acts as a spokesman for the migrant community, says others have already
lated, many have spouses who work in retail in supermarkets and stores, or restaurants and fast food. They are in contact with the public daily and therefore more likely to get infected. Bolanos says many Filipinos, because of the immigration policies, are taking courses to upgrade themselves. “The immigration policy dictates they have to reach a certain quali-
“The immigration policy dictates they have to reach a certain qualification and salary level otherwise they will be sent home.” returned back to the Philippines for their annual vacation and are now in lockdown there as authorities impose strict measures to curb the virus. He told Rural News, in the dairy industry, the typical time to go home is winter, which is June and July. Or the quieter time on farm in March and April and come back for the drying off of cows in May. Many already have those trips booked. “The Philippines is now in lockdown and this has affected a lot of people who have bought the tickets ahead of time. “This virus caught us flat-footed in January and now it has become worse so that is a big concern not only for the Filipinos, but for their employers because they might be stuck in the Philippines and not able to come back. “So it is a decision they have to make whether to cancel the trip home or not. So that is a big concern.” He wants to reinforce to his people that it is probably not advisable to travel at this time. “ “Filipinos should cooperate with the local and national government to stop this thing (virus).” On the local front, in many high dairying areas such as Ashburton there is a big Filipino population. While on a dairy farm it is possible to remain fairly iso-
fication and salary level otherwise they will be sent home.” But what he is hearing now is that classes are being suspended because of coronavirus. “Obviously that affects their schedule for qualifying. A lot of these people are eyeing progression or promotions in their farms and together with that obviously the salary upgrades that immigration requires. So it is worry for some Filipinos who are not able to attend their courses.” Although the dairy industry has always had a lack of manpower, farmers will now be more reluctant to hire from overseas. Ever since he arrived 14 years ago there was always a demand for workers and not enough local people applying for positions. “There is a lockdown apparently now in Manila and recruitment agencies that are processing workers can’t work. And on the other side the farmers are afraid of bringing them people who might be infected.” Bolanos says he typically gets a lot of calls from dairy farmers wanting Filipino workers, but senses they now prefer to hire them locally. He says there has not been advice on the coronavirus situation from the dairy industry or DairyNZ other than advice about washing hands etc. But
he presumes they can only be guided by what directly comes from the Government. “The biggest impact for the Filipinos is the travel. A lot of these people have already
booked their flights and they typically go home at a certain time because of the nature of the work. There are people already in the Philippines wondering if they will get back in time.”
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
12 NEWS
Primary exports hit, but outlook strong PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
DOWN $1.3 billion! That’s the impact of the corona virus on the primary sector export returns, which has just been revealed in the latest Ministry for Primary Industries Situation and Outlook
Report. In December, MPI were forecasting that primary exports for the year ending June 2020 would be $47.8 billion – now this has been reduced to $46.5 billion a mere 0.5% up on the 2019 total. MPI is warning that the future outlook is
and forestry sectors have been particularly badly hit. But it points out, in the last month, dairy commodity prices have softened where the average price on the GDT fell 7.5%. MPI says there has been weakness in milk powders, butter, and
uncertain and further downward forecasts are possible. The report states that while the geopolitical tensions on trade such as Brexit and the US-China trade war have eased somewhat, Covid-19 has added new uncertainty for NZ primary exporters. It notes that the seafood
anhydrous milk fat. However, despite the disruptions in Chinese markets, North Asian buyers have continued to be active in recent auctions, with volumes traded higher than at the same time the previous year. It adds that prices for cheese and casein have
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continued to strengthen. MPI predicts that continued declines in key commodity prices will impact farm gate milk price payouts, but says – given the strength of current export prices – strong payouts are still likely and will continue to support dairy farmer profitability this season. It predicts an average likely payout of $7.15/ kgMS. While revenue from the dairy sector is down on the December forecast, it is still ahead of the previous year and is expected to earn about $19.2 billion in total. The report also notes that despite the drought in major dairying regions, milk production for the first eight months of the season was up by 0.5%. Meat and horticulture exports are also forecast to take a hit with revenue from meat down by $220 million and horticulture by $110 million. MPI says the meat industry has also been affected by the drought and early kills of stock have led to a shortage of cold store capacity. It also notes that some meat products are being diverted to lower value markets. However, on a positive note, MPI believes that Chinese consumers will still require imported protein due to reduced Chinese supplies of pork caused by the outbreak there of African
Swine Fever. It adds that with lower red meat exports from Australia, due the aftermath of the drought and bushfires, demand for NZ meat will continue. The other positive sign is that China appears to be recovering somewhat from Covid-19. While there still problems, there are signs that goods are starting to move through the ports. MPI is also forecasting that, despite fluctuations in the schedule, meat prices are likely to remain at near recent highs. Horticultural revenue to the end of June is forecast to drop slightly on previous predictions. But at nearly $6.3 billion, it is still good with MPI expecting demand to remain strong in the long-term. Covid-19 is expected to have some impact with slightly lower prices for kiwifruit and apples. The as yet known factor, says the report, is the fate of the NZ dollar – which has already weakened since the beginning of this year. MPI says should the weakening in our key agricultural commodity prices continue to worsen, they would expect further adjustments in the NZ$ to help offset some of these effects for primary sector exporters. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
14 NEWS
Hort sector cautious, but unfazed PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
CRISIS BRINGS out the best in people and that is already happening now, says Horticulture NZ chief executive Mike Chapman. People get together to find solutions without necessarily waiting
for government, he told Rural News. The industry was not fazed by the Government announcing 14 days self-isolation for anyone coming into the country. “Most of our organisations were applying those rules anyway,” he says. “Because we are really concerned about
our workforce with the harvest underway for kumara, kiwifruit and apples it is really important we protect our workforces at the packhouses, in the field with the picking gangs etc as much as we can. “We really tightened up before the Government did on making sure
The industry is in harvest and it has jobs for people who are physically well. He understands the tourism downturn is pretty significant. That releases backpackers and Kiwis. “Our focus is picking up Kiwis if we can. That is what we are doing.
we had the best protection in place for people. “We are not surprised. We think the Government has made a really prudent step and we support it.” We will all need to work together to “really address the massive problems we have got coming down line”, he says.
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“In the last couple of weeks we did an exercise where we listed across the country the vacancies we have. At this point for workers we have 1000 vacancies.” They have worked with the industries where jobs are being lost and they called the Government into a meeting on what could be done to link displaced workers with job opportunities. “At the local level people who know each other are working together,” he says. “Crisis brings out the best in people and that is the case. “People do have initiative, they do work together, there is no need to wait for the government to fix things. They get on and do it.” The community spirit was seen when the kiwifruit industry was struck with Psa. “It is amazing how people respond and what happens when trouble strikes and that is what we are seeing and it is great. “And the fact that we are all here to look after and help our fellow Kiwis is exactly what it is about.”
But nevertheless for the current harvest they are definitely short of labour as usual. “That means we have jobs available. “And if you talk to the apple or the kiwifruit sector - it is about if you get your product picked and packed you have then got to get it shipped. At each of those levels there is the issue ‘is there enough labour for picking and packing?’, and then ‘is there enough shipping to get our product offshore?’ “Two thirds of our products are exported so if we can get it overseas there is an enormous demand for healthy food. And the demand in New Zealand is enormous as well. “But in terms of sustainability we need to be able to export because that is where we generate a lot of our income for our fruitgrowers. “For vegetables growers less is generated by export. But exporting food is really important, it is part of the economics of making growing financial in New Zealand. “And that is why we have got to have ships to get the produce out.”
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
NEWS 15
Review begins, but many questions remain FEDERATED FARMERS remains sceptical that Overseer can become a valid regulatory tool. This is despite the recent appointment of a panel to review the software. The first part of the review will look at Overseer’s suitability as a decisionmaking and regulatory tool. The panel is expected to report back on that by the end of the year. Farmers have long voiced concerns that the software, originally promoted as a planning tool, is increasingly being used by regulatory bodies as a potential compliance tool. Feds’ water and environment spokesman, Chris Allen says the review is very timely and long overdue. “We need to know what its strengths and weaknesses are, given that no-one really gets to look under the bonnet into how it really works.” Allen emphasised that he was not knocking Overseer. He said it did a good job of benchmarking “what-if ” scenarios, but gave differing results with frequent updates and changing models. He questions whether it could come up with “a single number” for regulatory purposes. “What sort of signal is it sending farmers or land users when the number you got five years ago has no relevance to the number you get today?” Allen says a lot of data inputting had to be done with “workarounds” to get meaningful results. “We would probably take a lot of convincing,” he told Rural News. “We’d say it would be quite a few years away until it would be an appropriate thing
The panel ●●
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Chair: Dr Ian Johnson – agricultural modeller (Australia) Dave Clark – dairy industry and research consultant Dr Brent Clothier – principal scientist, Plant and Food Research Dr Donna Giltrap – research leader for agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and mitigations, Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Dr Clint Rissmann – founder of Land and Water Science Ltd Dr Nick Roskruge – associate professor in horticulture, Massey University Dr Peter Thorburn – chief research scientist, Commonwealth Science and Industrial Research Organisation (Australia) Dr Robin White – associate professor of integrated beef systems management, Virginia Tech (USA).
to have as a regulatory tool. “After all, water quality will not improve because of Overseer; it will improve because of practises on the ground.” A joint announcement from the Ministries for the Environment and Primary Industries said the review was a major part of efforts to improve decision-making tools for use on-farm. “The eight independent and internationally-recognised environmental specialists will look ‘under the bonnet’ of Overseer to critically assess its modelling capability and explore potential improvements for its use,” said Ministry for the Environment deputy secretary, water and climate change, Cheryl Barnes.
Fed Farmers remains skeptical that Overseer will be a valid regulation tool, despite the current reivew of the software. Inset: Fed’s Chris Allen.
“The panel’s conclusions and assessments will be critical to New Zealand’s future approach to land management. We must be confident that Overseer is the right tool to drive sound land management decisions and improve freshwater quality.” The panel is expected to meet first on March 30 and report back by the end of the year on the first part of the review. This will be an assessment of whether Overseer’s modelling approach is fit to use as a decision-
making and regulatory tool. If this is the case, the second part will then look at which aspects should be subject to a more in-depth review. This is expected to take place over a year. Meanwhile, MPI acting deputy director-general, policy & trade, Ruth Fairhall says an additional $4 million per year has been allocated to a new contestable fund to commission longer-term research to develop and evaluate new technologies and systems to improve freshwater quality.
“More knowledge about different farming and growing technologies will enable us to fine-tune environmental models including Overseer to more accurately calculate potential impacts of different land management practices.” Fairhall said the collaboration between government and industry, combined with leading-edge science, will ensure environmental models can be applied at the grassroots level for better freshwater management decisions.
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
global agribusiness research analysts sharing market outlooks
16 MARKETS & TRENDS
Rabobank supports clients from farm to fork in
40
COUNTRIES
100 000
12630
farmers to connect Content supplied by Rabobank - Growing New Zealand Together with worldwide , a Better
Dairy’s corona hangover THE OUTBREAK of the coronavirus is a significant event that is weighing on market sentiment and the 2020 outlook. The underlying assumption is that many of the disruptions in China will normalize by the end of Q2 2020. Rabobank believes
there has been a shift in the global market fundamentals. A material reduction in China’s 1H 2020 import requirements looms over the global market balance. Chinese dairy import volume is forecast to fall 19% in 2020. It is essential to assess
this within a historical context. The forecast reduction in China’s 2020 imports is not expected to be as severe as the 2014-2015 destocking, which resulted in a decline in liquid milk equivalent (LME) imports of more than 35% over 12 months.
Against this backdrop, milk production is growing in the export regions. The combined milk pool of the Big-7 dairy exporters gained momentum in the closing months of 2019. Looking forward, Rabobank forecasts the export engine to hit its straps in Q2 2020 with a growth rate of 1% − marginally higher than the five-year average of 0.8%. There are some supportive developments for global market balance. The impact of drought in New Zealand’s North Island is limiting production availability as the season winds down. This has partly countered the disruption in trade volumes to China. While Oceania’s commodity prices have retreated, the declines have been relatively modest (see Figure 2).
EU
EU MILK production gained momentum in the closing months of 2019. Milk production increased 1.0% YOY in November and 1.4% in December, resulting in +1.0% YOY for Q4 2019 and +0.6% YOY (+966,000 metric tons, or mt) for the full year (see Figure 3). The primary EU member countries contributing to the growth were Ireland (416,000 mt), the UK (240,000 mt), and Poland (229,000 mt). Milk volumes in Germany and France – the two largest milk-producing countries in the EU - finished close to the previous year’s levels despite the recovery in 2H 2019. The EU is carrying a smaller herd into 2020. In 2019, the EU-28 dairy
herd declined by 280,000 head (-1.2% YOY). In most regions, lower cow numbers were offset by increasing per cow yields. Farmgate milk prices continue to improve but there are headwinds ahead for further increases. Since October 2019, the EU-28 average milk price increased by EUR 0.42 to EUR 35.36/100kg in January 2020. The average milk price for 2019 at EUR 34.43/100kg posted a modest year-on-year gain
of EUR 0.32/100kg.
US
US 2019 milk production increased a meagre 0.4% compared to 2018, the lowest YOY increase since 2013. States experiencing the most significant losses ranged from the Corn Belt through the Northeast. Milk production should begin to grow closer to the long-term trend of 1.5% YOY in 2020 (see Figure 4). The number of licensed dairy operations
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usiness ysts et outlooks
Rabobank supports clients from farm to fork in
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
COUNTRIES
Content supplied by Rabobank - Growing a Better New Zealand Together decreased at a faster rate than usual, down 8.8%, with a loss of 3,281 operations in 2019. In most cases, this was a result of consolidation, with states like Minnesota and Wisconsin experiencing significant declines in the number of farms, but steady to increasing milk supply. Mild weather conditions are contributing to greater output and discounted surplus milk. The well-supplied milk markets at this time of
year raise concerns about what the next couple of months may hold, given that we have yet to enter the spring flush. The looming threat of the coronavirus raises additional market uncertainty. The coronavirus will not impact milk production but could impact the ability to process the milk.
Australia
DECEMBER 2019 marked an important milestone for the dairy sector. For
the month, the combined milk pool of the southern export region expanded. This was the first monthly increase since mid-2018. National production grew by 0.5% in January, confirming minimal impact from the bushfires. Season-to-date milk production stands at 5.6bn litres, down 3.7%. The turnaround so far has been led by Tasmania and Eastern Victoria, which account for 32% of Australia’s milk produc-
tion (see Figure 6). Rabobank is forecasting Australian milk production to finish 4.9% lower by the end of the 2019/20 season at 8.4bn litres. Australia’s milk pool is in a good position to rebound in the new season. But constraints to recovery exist – namely the need to rebuild herds. At the halfway mark of the season, Australian dairy export had fallen by 6.9% YOY to 383,000 MT. A return to growth in milk production will bring some welcome relief for dairy exporters. More milk in the system will boost plant utilisation and a return to growth on the exportable surplus in Q2 2020.
NZ
WEATHER HAS been volatile at both ends of the islands, impacting milk production differently. Seasonal, dry conditions have hit many North Island regions and parts of the South Island, hampering milk flows.
MARKETS & TRENDS 17
On a milksolids basis, January 2020 milk production increased by 1.1% YOY. The 2019/20 season-to-date collections are now just 0.4% higher than last season. February 2020 data will illustrate further pressure on milk collections (see Figure 5). There is a risk that the milk production season finishes abruptly in the North Island if significant rain is not received through the final weeks of March. While marginal
economics support supplementary feeding, some farmers may choose to conserve feed and preserve cow condition prior to winter and call the season to a close early if seasonal conditions remain unfavourable. Accordingly, Rabobank has revised lower its expectations for milk collections across the 2019/20 season, and now anticipate milk production to decline by 1% for the full season. New Zealand dairy
export volumes will be negatively impacted through 1H 2020. This is due to weaker trade to China as a result of the coronavirus and strong 2019 comparables. Fonterra has held its 2019/20 forecast farmgate milk price range. The range remains NZ$ 7.00/kgMS to NZ$ 7.60/kgMS. Based on a weaker forecast for Q2 2020, Rabobank now anticipates a milk price of NZ$ 7.35/kgMS for the current 2019/20 season.
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
18 AGRIBUSINESS
NZ agritech builds relationships PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS with other Kiwi agtech leaders and innovators was a surprising outcome for some attending the high-profile evokeAG event in Melbourne last month. Among those was Priya Wallabh, strategic development manager for Ecolibrium Biologicals, who attending the event for a second year. Ecolibrium Biologicals is a bio agritech company based in Pukekohe making sustainable pest control solutions. Wallabh says biological pesticides have been around for a while, but the aim of its products is to give growers the same experience as using a synthetic ag-chem. “We know in order to compete with ag-chems and for growers to make that change they need to have the same experience in terms of efficacy, quick knock down, price points etc,” she told Rural News. “So, it gives them the same result, but in a more sustainable way.” Ecolibrium has been in operation for about two years, but the founder Stephen Ford has been working on the technologies for many years. Wallabh says she is lucky to have been able to go to evokeAG both years and found it valuable for
What’s evokeAG? ❱❱ The Melbourne event evokeAG was a two-day international event all about innovation in agriculture. It drew delegates from the entire agriculture network from across the Asia Pacific region and internationally. ❱❱ The New Zealand mission was led by Callaghan Innovation in partnership with NZTE, Agritech New Zealand, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and the Ministry for Primary Industries.
the discussions, educational sessions and networking opportunities. “A main reason I went was networking and integration into a larger ecosystem,” she says. She came out with more leads than she expected. “Networking with all the international delegates was great. But it was surprising the degree of networking we did with each other, with the almost 70 delegates from New Zealand. “We are such a small country but most of us did not know each other’s companies or technologies even existed. “Overseas people might know who we are, but within New Zealand we didn’t know each other so it was really important for us to connect. For instance why go all the way overseas to source out things which are just in your backyard? That was a valuable lesson for us.”
Start-up ag-tech companies go through the same challenges such as fundraising, entering markets etc. “It is good to have people who share your experiences.” A trip to Mildura for about 20 Kiwis after the Melbourne conference helped cement this. They visited a smartfarm, nursery, fertiliser facility and one of Australia’s largest wineries and almond processing plant. It was great to see the ‘fruit bowl’ of Melbourne where the city gets most of its grapes and citrus,” she says. “All farmers have their own challenges – I come from a farming family myself in Bombay Hills so I understand this firsthand - but Mildura has its own unique set. “They are constantly battling dust storms, fires and droughts. Wallabh says one thing that carries across farmers in every single region
Pryia Wallabh
is resilience. “They just keep on carrying on. But because they are resilient they are more open-minded to adopting new technologies to help combat those problems.” Previously it had been traditional, intergeneration farming. “But now farmers are more open minded
because Mother Nature is delivering more challenges than they have solutions for,” she adds. “The weather seasons are changing so cropping patterns change, you plant varieties suited to summer but now summer is drawing out into winter… “In Aotearoa we may not have the same prob-
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lems as Australia, but we share the bond and empathy of being growers and we can count on that happening here to some degree. “This is a positive thing as these challenges are driving innovation and innovation drives opportunity.” @rural_news
QUIET ACHIEVER ECOLIBRIUM BIOLOGICALS is in an interesting space, Wallabh says. “We are only a young company but we are not really a start-up because we have surpassed all those things. She says they have already commercialised two products and have another product going to registration to be released this year. “In New Zealand and Australia we are not as well known. We have partnered exclusively with Farmlands, Yates and Yates subsidiary Organic Crop Protection and that has provided cohesion and momentum into the local market. “But overseas everybody, all the multinationals, know who we are. “So it has worked back to front for us. Overseas they understand the need for biologicals because synthetic ag chemicals are under regulatory pressure to be withdrawn. She says they have realised they need to find replacements quickly otherwise how are farmers going to grow the food? “The traditional business model is you start off locally and then you venture out into Australia and then overseas.”
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
AGRIBUSINESS 19
A rock to both the NZ and Moroccan economies PAM TIPA pamelat@ruralnews.co.nz
NEW ZEALAND farmers probably do not realise the contribution they are making to the economic and community life of people in Southern Morocco, says Hajbouha Zoubeir, president, Phosboucraa Foundation. The region has been supplying phosphate rock for New Zealand fertiliser for 40 years. Both Ravensdown and Ballance use the raw material. Zoubeir heads the
chairman, Maoulainine Maoulainine, says some recent commentary about phosphate rock shipments to New Zealand has at times been selective and misleading. Morocco’s OCP Group is the largest supplier of phosphate rock, phosphoric acid and phosphate fertilisers in the world. It manages just over 70% of the world’s known reserves of rock phosphate – enough to last at least 500 years at OCP’s current production rate.
‘Western Sahara’s’ phosphate rock has physical properties that make fertiliser granules more stable so they don’t break down or powder. foundation that manages mining company OCP’s corporate social responsibility and community investment programmes in Southern Morocco. She was in New Zealand recently to deliver the message that the southern region of Morocco – or so-called Western Sahara – is meeting international standards in its mining operations. She claims these operations are benefitting the local people with numerous programmes from education to training and health. “We want to say to New Zealand people that we are looking to the future and working on sustainable activities and programmes to make people have a better life in the southern region,” Zoubeir told Rural News. “We are really thankful to Ballance and Ravensdown, our clients we have been working with for more than 40 years now, for helping make this happen.” Phosboucraa Foundation was created in 2014 and its programmes includes –to name just a few – agricultural education programmes, research and development, health centres, a university, secondary school and industrial training centre. Phosboucraa company
Just 2% of OCP’s managed reserves are located in the Western Sahara – where most of New Zealand’s phosphate rock comes from. This phosphate is chosen because of its suitability to New Zealand’s specific soil conditions and environmental constraints, Maoulainine says. ‘Western Sahara’s’ phosphate rock has physical properties that make fertiliser granules more stable so they don’t break down or powder. This makes it easier to transport and apply accurately, thus reducing waste. OCP’s operations in the region are run by Phosboucraa. The company takes no dividends from Phosboucraa with all profits reinvested in the region to maintain and expand operations and to support the local community. ‘Western Sahara’ is classified by the United Nations as a non-self-governing territory – one of 17 worldwide, including Tokelau which is administered by New Zealand. The United Nations has developed a doctrine, which allows and encourages trade and investment in non-self-governing territories to promote economic development and provide opportunity to the local population. “New Zealand, through
companies such as Ravensdown and Ballance Agri-Nutrients, should be proud to be associated with the economic development of the region …. which have direct positive impact on the local popu-
lation,” says Maoulainine. “OCP and Phosboucraa have worked rigorously to ensure that all operations and activities comply and exceed all relevant standards, including those established by
the United Nations.” Phosboucraa is the largest private employer in Western Sahara, employing almost 2,200 people – 75% of whom are locals.
Phosboucraa Foundation president Hagbouha Zoubeir.
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
20 OPINION EDITORIAL
EDNA
Still the bedrock AMIDST THE corona virus upheaval, one thing is certain – agriculture will see our economy through. The world still needs to eat and trade channels remain open. The bedrock of New Zealand’s economy is still agriculture and our main export is of course food. Farms and orchards will carry on, and with our biggest market China turning a corner with its COVID-19 situation, demand for our produce will remain strong. In fact, even when the outbreak was peaking in China, prices didn’t suffer as much as expected. In particular, dairy prices held firm. Forward demand for meat is also strong, buoyed by the impact of China’s swine fever outbreak. The fundamentals of food supply and demand remain strong and while there’s a case for reducing our dependence on Asian markets, we’ll be glad of our trade relationship with China during the coming months. To get us through, farmers will need our support. They’ll need good, trustworthy information. They’ll need the usual inputs from the service and supply parts of the industry. They’ll need some breathing space from political moves that might restrict their ability to operate efficiently. And they’ll need to know we’ve all got their backs and are grateful for their, often unheralded, contribution during these unprecedented times. It is reassuring to know farming will get through in relatively good shape. Other parts of the economy will not be so lucky: Travel bans will be devastating for businesses and workers in tourism and the Government’s business support package will be crucial. Job losses, however, are already happening in that industry. Agriculture is a huge job generator and the Government should be looking to help redundant workers from the tourism industry into the seasonal and permanent jobs in the primary sector. With restrictions on immigration, demand for labour will be high. There are still some roadblocks in farmers’ way. Dry conditions remain a problem in many areas. More government assistance will help tide over the hardest hit until the rain returns. Banks need to do their bit as well and loosen their lending restrictions, while the Government needs to change its tone towards farmers. The country is going to need farmers and the primary sector more than ever.
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THE HOUND Bonkers!
Put it down
THE HOUND reckons news that an Austrian billionaire has been granted consent to purchase an $8m Hill Country farm, is living proof that the NZ First’s billion tree policy is a disaster for farming in this country. The Overseas Investment Office (OIO) has granted Wolfgang Leitner consent to buy the 800ha property located in Kotemaori, Wairoa and convert it to forestry. The property known as Ponui Station currently has 714ha being grazed by sheep and beef stock. Leitner plans to plant a further 640ha of commercial forest, it currently has just 14ha of existing commercial forestry. According to the real estate listing the farm is described as “clean, healthy country, sought after scale, and opportunity to extend farm capability.” Meanwhile, this isn’t Leitner’s first farm purchase in NZ, having been granted consent to buy the $4.5m, 489ha Ngapuke Station in Gisborne last September.
YOUR CANINE crusader notes that the woke folk at Landcorp – sorry Pamu – were recently crowing about recording a net profit after tax of $68 million for the half year ended 31 December 2019. While this may look good on the surface, your old mate reckons it is not as flash as it seems. Actually, in real terms, the result for the half year was a gain of $22 million. However, once you strip away the $7m the state farmer slashed in costs and a one-off gain of $6m from the sale of its shares in Westland Dairy – then it is more like $13 million. However, when you consider Landcorp’s total asset base is $2.16 billion – then it is a very poor return for taxpayers. This further begs the question just how chief executive Steven Carden can justify an annual salary of $795,950 when his organisation’s return is so poor and why taxpayers are still lumbered with carrying this dog?
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Discriminatory? YOUR OLD mate sees that the animal welfare extremists at SAFE are currently advertising for a new staff member. Going by how this group operates, the Hound reckons it will see the successful person joining a bunch of unemployed, nutjobs illegally breaking into farms, piggeries and hen houses in the middle of the night and stealing animals. However, what really caught your old mate’s eye was that the advertisement for the position specifically asks for: “a committed vegan”. Is this not highly discriminatory against any non-vegans who may wish to apply for the role? Is this type of anti-carnivorous advertising allowed? Imagine the outrage if an organisation advertised for a role that was so blatantly prejudiced and suggested that only committed Christians, or men, or heterosexuals, or able-bodied people, or non-Maori could apply? It would be rightly condemned and banned.
Flying high THIS OLD mutt would like to know how the sanctimonious Green Party and its MPs can continue to lecture everyone about the evils of climate change and how we all have to act now to save the world? The latest parliamentary expense disclosure shows that, on average, Green Party list MPs are outspending Labour, National and New Zealand First list MPs on air travel. The average air travel spending for non-ministerial Green Party list MPs was $9816, compared to New Zealand First’s $8059, and National’s $7332, and Labour’s $6499. Your old mate reckons this is a clear case of the smug Greens not walking (in fact, taking first-class flights instead) the talk on climate change. Mind you it’s not the first time, back in March party co-leader and Minister for Climate Change James Shaw weakly defended his huge international travel expenses by claiming his enormous carbon footprint was offset by planting trees. Yeah, right!
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
OPINION 21
Proper water strategy vital TODD MULLER
IT’S BEEN pleasing to see some much-needed rainfall over the past few weeks. However, for many of you, this is nowhere near enough and drought continues to bite. The reality is that it will take more than a sprinkling of rain to combat the effects of drought. What is really required is a long-term strategy that manages and implements our water in a responsible and efficient way. Our farmers are the most efficient producers of food and fibre in the world. But it’s hard to keep this high standard when crops aren’t growing and there’s no access to a reliable water source. Farmers are facing new challenges with hotter, drier and more volatile conditions. And, unfortunately, our water infrastructure is not good enough to address this in many regions. New Zealand’s water discussion over recent years has been too one dimensional and betrays its true importance. While irrigation has been held up by many as simply enabling intensification this is not how we should be approaching it. Water storage utilised effectively has positive impacts on the environment, economy and our communities. It can be utilised to support renewable energy generation, improves water flow and recharges
aquifers. It enables land use change and helps farmers maximise market opportunities. It also improves municipal water supplies and provides vital food security by ensuring crops don’t wither up and that stock are well fed and watered. National is determined to enable water to unlock our economic potential and safeguard our rural communities. We’ve already committed to a Water Infrastructure Fund that will service both urban and rural infrastructure. We view water storage as a critical infrastructure necessity that needs Crown investment. Access to water brings with it responsibility. Farmers must continue to improve their efforts to farm within sciencebased limits and meet the highest environmental standards. However, considering the environmental strides made in recent years I’m confident we can get there together. In New Zealand an environmentally sustainable farming operation is not just a source of pride within the community, but an asset to pass down to future generations. The previous National Government supported and invested in water storage through Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd. One of the Labour/ NZ First/Greens first acts of Government was to disband this, leaving New Zealand
with no specific fund for water storage. This was a hugely regressive act and has stalled our nationwide water strategy significantly. While the Government has signalled some investment through the Provincial Growth Fund, the reality is that it is a scattered and incoherent
our water flow out to sea while our towns run out of water and our farms dry up. National will provide water storage that delivers for your business, delivers for your environment and delivers for your community. • Todd Muller is National’s agriculture spokesman
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
22 OPINION
Tightened US rules an opportunity that were only (100%) fed grass (forage) after being weaned from their mother’s milk. The diet must be derived solely from forage, and animals cannot be fed grain or grain by-products and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season until slaughter. This means 100% grass fed animals are never confined to a feedlot. Forage consists of grass (annual and perennial), forbs (e.g., legumes, Brassica), browse, or cereal grain crops in the vegetative (pre-grain) state. Hay, haylage, baleage, silage, crop residue without grain, and other roughage sources may also be included as acceptable
NATHAN BALSINGHAM
THE UPDATED US Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule for “grass fed” or “pasture fed” milk or meat is very restrictive. But, if managed prudently, it could actually give New Zealand farmers a market advantage. The rule, which was published in December 2019, will exclude a lot of our competitors, who will not be able to eliminate grain from their feed, from this valuable market. According to the USDA “Grass Fed” or “100% Grass Fed” claims may only be applied to meat and meat product labels derived from cattle
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NZ grass-fed beef could see an uptake under new US regulations.
feed sources.” Grass fed milk and meat are considered healthier with better taste and flavour and animals raised as grassfed have better animal health, animal welfare and climate change outcomes. Grass fed milk and meat has a better omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio, higher levels of antioxidants, lower risk of E. coli infection and antibioticresistant bacteria and are, therefore, better for consumer health. Grass fed cattle produce beef that is tender because it cooks faster due to the higher concentration
of conjugated linoleic acids (unsaturated fats). The well-marbled meat, in the opinion of many connoisseurs, is bettertasting than grain-fed beef. According to the UN FAO, rotationally grazed pastureland sequesters 50% more carbon than the equivalent area of forestry. By increasing pasture production, we can increase carbon sequestration even further and earn significantly more carbon credits than forestry. Zest Biotech, based in Pukekohe, has developed a pasture spray, Biozest,
that is reported to significantly increase pasture productivity. Louise and Neville Williams, certified organic dairy farmers and Ballance Farm Environmental Awards winners in Karapiro, did a trial on baleage. The Biozest treated paddocks produced 13 bales/ha on average, the untreated control paddocks averaged just 7 bales/ha. There was a 78% increase in baleage overall. Mike and Janelle Kelly in Orongo, near Thames carried out a similar trial and produced 12 bales/ ha from the treated paddocks and 5 bales out of the untreated control paddocks. There was a 129% increase in baleage overall in the Biozest treated paddocks. If our farmers can improve pasture productivity on this scale, they can safeguard our grass-fed brand – which is valuable in all markets. The increased carbon fixed in pasture will make a significant contribution to our climate change management obligations – increasing the likelihood that farmers will earn, rather than pay, carbon tax. It will also prevent productive land being converted to forestry. • Nathan Balasingham is chief technical officer, Zest Biotech, Auckland.
WEED APP FARMERS CAN now measure and better manage weeds on their property with the help of a phone app developed by AgResearch. The ‘Grassland Cover Estimator App’, launched in February, provides an estimate of the percentage of a paddock that is occupied by a weed. This enables the productivity lost due to the weed to be calculated and used in a cost-benefit analysis for a proposed control operation. AgResearch principal scientist Graeme Bourdot says it will have broad appeal among a wide variety of users working directly or indirectly in the pastoral sector, including farmers, regional council biosecurity officers, rural professionals, farm advisors, scientists and students. He adds that the feedback from farmers had so far been very positive. “It’s a simple-to-use but powerful, enabling measurement of the cover of
any component of a natural grassland or sown pasture including any weed, desirable pasture plant, diseased plants, bare ground etc. The app keeps track of ‘present’ and ‘absent’ observations made by the user and uses this data in a method known as ‘Step-point Analysis’ to calculate the percentage of the paddock that is covered by the weed or other component of interest. It also enables the data to be exported for more detailed analysis including mapping of the cover estimates for the paddocks on a farm. The precision and accuracy of the cover estimates generated by the app are subject of an ongoing collaboration between AgResearch and Joe Neal, a weed science extension specialist at North Carolina State University. The app is available, free to use, on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
OPINION 23
Time to stop acting the goat on export markets In his latest article looking at the NZ goat industry, Garrick Batten questions – despite relatively stable and slowly increasing goat meat schedules – why have NZ export quantities varied greatly between countries and years. IN THE five years from 1978-1983, exports to Trinidad and Tobago varied from 170-500 tonnes and Fiji from 60-200 tonnes. Meanwhile, from 1980 both Reunion and the USA started to import small quantities of NZ goat meat. By 2008, Reunion exports were worth NZ$8.57 per kg, but the USA $5.70. By 2018, the North American market at $NZ 9.55 was taking nearly four times as much goat meat as Reunion at $NZ10.18. The wild export tonnage fluctuations from spot trading in earlier years have been replaced by more consistent volumes with an evened kill. Even so, the follow-
ing figures for rounded tonnages of each of the last four years from a range of markets show fluctuations continuing as exporters fill holes. China: 18-0-5-16, Fiji: 24-2-2-4, Malaysia: 0-12-37-0, Trinidad and Tobago 45-36-141-14. This pattern continues to demonstrate a lack of committed market development to capitalise on market opportunities – such as the huge US demand where NZ could never fill the annual shortfall if we could supply what is required at highly profitable prices noted earlier. Northern hemisphere markets – such as North America – have seasonally fluctuating domestic sup-
plies that are the opposite of ours to fill and complement local supply without upsetting them. In addition, there are significant market price increases at Christmas, Easter and other ethnic festival times that coincide with lower domestic supplies from their seasonal production pattern. Specific ethnic consumer needs vary, but are often for small, whole carcases that can also suit NZ produce. It will be interesting to note if exporters reflect schedule changes to capitalise on the expected 2020 North American market shortfall – magnified by reduced Australian supplies with drought and fire losses.
Garrick Batten
North America takes about half our exports and US commentators are forecasting more than $US 3 per lb live for domestic prime carcases, with store-condition carcases closing in on this
price – reducing the usual 20% discount as supplies shorten. Resulting retail carcase prices in the main consumption areas of the north-east states and west coast at festi-
val times are forecast to reach $US9 per lb live by the next northern winter’s end – and even $US10 at Christmas and Easter 2021. While there are always advantages in supplying several markets to spread risks, current North American prices, with market demand and potential, indicate a market development opportunity. That requires farmer commitment to supply consistent, required slaughter numbers of the requisite animal specifications for exporters to build on. But as farmers respond to price signals, and market devel-
opment takes time, cooperation and coordination between parties is required. NZ Premium Goat Meat Ltd is one exporter currently blazing a trail. It is paying a guaranteed $6 per kg – plus free freight – for 15-20kg+ CW well finished carcases of any breed for a specific South Korean market. • Garrick Batten is a former agricultural diplomat and MAF regional manager of advisory and technical services. He was the developer of NZ Kiko meat goats now popular in USA and a pioneer of dairy goat farming, stud master for leading cashmere flocks and industry life member.
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
24 MANAGEMENT
Fertiliser reduced, production holds NIGEL MALTHUS
STATE-OWNED FARMER Pamu has been able to reduce nitrogen input on its Waimakariri dairy farm while maintaining milk and grass production, by using fertigation – the application of fertiliser through irrigation. The farm applied 42% less nitrogen last season compared with the previous season, while both grass and milk production remained comparable with past seasons, according to research by Lincoln University masters student Tommy Ley and Irrigation NZ’s technical manager Steve Breneger. Pamu installed the fer-
tigation system on the farm in November 2018. Ley and Breneger are conducting a study into
Fund, with support from Ballance Agri-Nutrients, Fertigation Systems and Molloy Ag.
Their study included two experiments at two different sites using fixed amounts of fertiliser, as well as the farmscale trial at Pamu. its effectiveness. Grass production is similar and milk production up on previous years, said Breneger. “The numbers are still stacking up that it’s actually being quite a positive move.” The pair’s research is funded by the Sustainable Farming Futures
They spoke at an innovative “The Secret’s In The Soil” presentation day at Lincoln, where nine different teams all presented updates into various research projects on the theme of irrigation’s effects on soil. Ley and Breneger’s study aims to determine whether fertigation
Researchers Tommy Ley, far left, and Steve Breneger explain their project during the “speed dating” segment of an innovative event at Lincoln in which scientists presented updates into several research projects then had a series of face-to-face chats with journalists and others attending the event. RURAL NEWS GROUP
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improves yield, nitrogen use efficiency and clover content in perennial ryegrass/white clover pastures, and whether it has lower nitrogen losses, compared with conventional fertiliser. Their study included two experiments at two different sites using fixed amounts of fertiliser, as well as the farm-scale trial at Pamu. Ley said fertigation allowed farmers to apply fertiliser when it was needed, in a liquid form, and more frequently. “It essentially means you can maintain lower constant nitrogen in the soil. Therefore you’re going to reduce the amount of total nitrogen losses you can possibly get from the pasture.” Fertigation was commonly used in horticulture systems, but there was a lack of literature into its use in pasture, he
said. Breneger said that like all the big corporates, Pamu was looking at how to achieve the reductions in N-leaching they have to make over the next few years. Installing their fertigation system was more about tailoring it to be sustainable, not just increase yield or milk, he said. The system chosen by Pamu uses a 30,000 litre nurse tank near the shed, and then a 5,000l trailer which is towed to the base of each pivot as required. Alternative systems might use pipelines to each pivot, which would be the high capital cost option, or individual fixed tanks at each pivot, which would mean frequent onfarm access by non-farm staff. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
MANAGEMENT 25
Aquaculture – an opportunity to diversify Total nitrogen content and dissolved nutrient profile of dairy and aquaculture effluent. Data are averages from a range of scientific journal articles. Water temperature is the key to aquaculture as the second part of this article on aquaculture will explain in the next edition of Rural News.
DAMIAN MORAN, BENIE CHAMBERS & MATT PLANT, PLANT AND FOOD RESEARCH
AQUACULTURE IS the fastest growing animal production sector, experiencing global annual growth rates of 6% over the past 15 years. Aquaculture production recently exceeded wild harvest of aquatic foods, and according to the FAO, consumption of aquatic food has risen steadily over the past 60 years to an average of 20 kg/person/year. Aquatic animals are nutritious, there are a diverse range of species and product opportunities, and the feed conversion efficiency of ‘cold blooded’ aquaculture stock is generally superior to that of terrestrial agricultural animals. It’s attributes like these that have investors, landowners and farmers increasingly interested in the potential for aquaculture production as a method to diversify land and water use in NZ. As part of the Our Land and Water National Science Challenge, PAMU commissioned AgResearch and Plant & Food Research to consider how a Canterbury dairy farm might adapt their land and water resources to include aquaculture production. Despite abundant freshwater resources there is very little land-
based aquaculture production in our country to use as case studies for diversification. And while there are many international examples of integrated agri-aquaculture systems, it’s difficult to directly apply overseas models at home, for the same reasons many farming systems tend not to be directly transferrable between nations. There are numerous biological, geographic, environmental, economic, political and cultural factors which means there needs to be some home-grown adaptation and innovation to make integrated agri-aquaculture systems work for our corner of the world. Aquaculture will thrive if we can do it more efficiently and with a lower carbon and nutrient footprint than everyone else, and if we create products with unique selling points and market value that cannot be replicated elsewhere. Using the water twice – fertigation using aquaculture waters One of the best ways to develop low nutrient footprint production is to integrate aquaculture outputs into the wider farming ecosystem. By designing systems that utilise the effluent
water from aquaculture systems for agricultural fertigation is a great example of integrated production. Aquaculture effluent waters tend to have fewer dissolved organics than dairy farm effluent, and the nutrient profile is generally well suited to rapid uptake by plants. In addition, having aquatic stock reared in tanks, ponds or raceways means all nutrient outputs are contained and readily transportable in effluent waters. The challenge to making aquaculture fertigation work well is having sufficient storage capac-
ity for effluent water so that it can be used when needed. Figure 1 gives an overview of the concentration and types of nutrients in aquaculture waters compared with those from farm dairy effluent and dairy cow urine. The total N concentration of effluent from aquaculture sources is much lower than dairy effluent point sources. The nutrient composition of aquaculture effluent differs from that of dairy effluent in some ways (specifically in the calcium and nitrate concentrations), but is similarly dominated by
organic nitrogen, ammonia, and phosphorus, providing opportuni-
ties for fertigation. The organic nitrogen component of aquaculture efflu-
ent is mostly comprised of suspended solids such as uneaten food, faecal material and microbial flocculent, and if necessary these can be concentrated and removed via filtration, flocculation, foam fractionation and hydrodynamic concentration. The ability to capture and re-direct all effluent discharges from aquaculture systems gives farmers the potential to fully control and integrate nutrient flows from aquaculture into agriculture.
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
26 ANIMAL HEALTH
Managing winter feeding a priority GOING INTO autumn, Beef + Lamb New Zealand is encouraging farmers to think about how they will manage their winter fodder crops – particularly in a year when feed resources are likely to be tight. B+LNZ general manager North Island Matt Ward says it has been a challenging summer for many regions and this will place extra pressure on limited feed resources. He says while winter crops have been struggling, they will still be a valuable source of feed in winter. Ward encourages farmers to be thinking about their stocking rates, identifying and fencing off critical source areas (if they have not already done so) and planning for managing stock in extreme weather events. Beef+Lamb says improving winter grazing practices is a major priority for the organisation – from both an environmental and animal welfare perspective. “We are continually updating farmers on best-practice environmental and animal welfare management advice so they can use winter fodder crops while minimising their environmental impact and ensuring the highest
Farmers need to be thinking now about winter grazing regimes.
standards of animal welfare are maintained,” Ward says. “Ensuring winter grazing goes well requires year-round planning.” Ward says an ungrazed buffer of three to five metres should surround any critical source areas – which are defined as waterways, springs, gullies
or any areas over which water may run in winter. Meanwhile, he advises matching the crop and the paddock with the stock class (lighter stock on heavier soils) and using the FeedSmart app to calculate feed allocation and how many stock the crop will feed for how long,
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is a good place to start. “Ideally a run-off paddock or feedpad would be available for standing stock off in heavy rainfall events or snow, so soils are not damaged and the risk of run-off is minimized. Shade and shelter should be available to stock at all times, as should fresh water.”
Farmers could also be thinking about the direction of grazing. Breaks should be long and narrow and placed across the slope and stock grazed from the top of the paddock so the crop acts as a filter for run-off. Ward also suggests farmers consider using portable water troughs, which can be shifted with the break and prevent stock congregating around a single water source. The positioning of supplementary feed also needs to be considered, to prevent or minimize pugging and run-off. “Many farmers are under a lot of pressure going into winter, and it is critical that best management practice is adhered to when it comes to grazing winter feed crops if we are to retain these as a valuable winter management tool,” he says. Ward adds that B+LNZ will be conducting a major media campaign to get the right information to farmers this year as well as holding a number of events around the country so farmers can be kept up to date with winter management strategies. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
ANIMAL HEALTH 27
High risk for parasites and fly strike EXTREME WEATHER conditions are increasing the twin risks of internal parasites and fly strike on sheep. While the bottom of the South Island deals with extraordinary amounts of rain this summer, farmers in much of the rest of New Zealand face the other extreme as feed supplies dwindle under an extended and intense dry period. Boehringer Ingelheim New Zealand’s veterinary parasitologist Dr Abi Chase is cautioning farmers this summer’s weather pattern poses a blend of high risk factors requiring careful management in coming weeks. “We are seeing average pasture cover start to come under pressure from lambs lifting their grazing intake and competing more alongside ewes.” Without enough grass to dilute worm populations, it becomes critical to keep worm populations in lambs down, reducing the risk of worm contamination of pasture before the next summer grazing rotation, where cover may be even shorter again. “Meantime the intermittent rainfall we have experienced is more than enough to boost parasite larval growth rates – on a lower pasture cover it means the higher parasite levels are concentrated within that lower pasture cover. “Parasite management when it is drier is a huge thing, particularly when we are getting smaller showers of rain falling irregularly. “Only 5mm of rain
is more than enough to boost L3 larvae to come up onto the pasture and be ingested.” Fighting worms is best managed with good data on the worm enemy, and faecal egg counts (FEC) s are the best way we currently have to better understand that enemy. “We witnessed a big surge in FEC samples through labs last season, and want to keep that momentum up. “Getting an FEC in summer means you are not just checking worms from the leftover contamination of ewes, you are instead getting an idea of what parasite challenge the lambs have been under,” says Chase. Knowing this and working with your vet means a comprehensive programme can be put in place that will protect the productivity of an increasingly valuable lamb flock. Incorporating internal parasite control with fly control over summer also makes sense, not only for saving time and yarding but also because acting on one helps reduce the risk of the other. “You need to consider an effective internal parasite control alongside fly control, helping reduce dagging, which are a risk to maggot infestations.” Flystrike is an ever increasing risk as average summer temperatures climb, and the humidity that accompanies intermittent rainfall helps boost fly larval populations quickly. There are also few parts of New Zealand where the Australian blow fly has not penetrated, bringing a need for some farmers to
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completely revise their summer parasite control programmes. The fly’s potential resistance to traditional treatment chemicals like triflumuron has only
brought greater urgency for more farmers to revise their programme. Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health has integrated its Cyromazine based product Cyrazin
with ivermectin to create Cyrazin KO as an effective “one stop” maggot and fly control treatment for summer. @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
Abi Chase
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
28 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS
Smart hedges; minimal debris MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
WHILE MOST New Zealand hedges and shelterbelts are kept under control using locally manufactured machines. However, many of these rely on inertia – meaning that large pieces of debris are often left in roadways or paddocks, leading to problems with punctures or hoof ailments respectively. This has led to increased interest in European-built machines that use hydraulically driven rotors with flails, such as the Shelbourne Reynolds range
The layout of the machine sees an integral 230 litre hydraulic reservoir and integral cooling system. brought to NZ by Hamilton-based Ag and Civil Machinery Direct. Importantly, the design of these machines sees any debris “chopped” to a small particle size that after cutting is deposited back in the hedge bottom. The company reports that despite a range of 12 models, most interest is around the high-capacity machines in the HD 800 series. It says the HD 875 VFRT is proving to be the
most popular. Featuring a five-point mounting system that combines axle brackets and subframes. The machine offers parallel arm geometry and a telescopic boom to achieve reach of 6.2 to 7.5 metres and 1.6m rearward and 2.5 metres forward reach. This means that during operation visibility is particularly good as the cutting head will typically be alongside the
Hamilton-based Ag and Civil Machinery Direct’s product manager David Williams with the Shelbourne HD 876 VFRT hedge cutter.
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which allows proportional control. This also enables the variable reach and telescopic functions to be used simultaneously. For transport, the boom can be slewed to 103 degrees from the lateral position, bringing it well behind the tractor to reduce overall transport width. Standard equipment includes a reversible fan on the oil cooler system, head and arm float functions and auto break back reset. Options include hydraulically adjusted head rollers, twin accumulators, debris blowers to “sweep” roads and a hi-vis kit that includes stickers and strobe lights. Product manager David Williams suggests the HD 875 VFRT is best suited for attachment to six-cylinder tractors of 140+hp. www.agandcivilmachinery. co.nz
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side entry to the tractor. The layout of the machine sees an integral 230 litre hydraulic reservoir and integral cooling system. This allows oil flow from the 85hp hydraulic pump to be delivered to a 1.5 metre cutting head that also incorporates an 85hp motor. The cutting head carries multiple swinging, cast steel “T” flails that leave a smooth finish, while also offering roller options for use with units dealing with roadside verges. Looking at the construction in more detail, high grade steel is used extensively in the boom design, while also incorporating 60mm diameter pivot pins fitted with phosphor-bronze bushes. For the NZ market, the favoured control system uses an electric over hydraulic configuration,
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RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
MACHINERY & PRODUCTS 29 AN OLDY, BUT A GOODY THEY SAY there’s no point in trying to re-invent the wheel, but over the years some useful attachments have made them more functional. Kyne Steel Spike Wheels are designed and manufactured primarily for fencing contractors and farmers, which gives the ability to work in wet and slippery conditions or operate in steeper country with reduced risk.
BASED NEAR Hawarden in North Canterbury, Patoa Farms has operated for more than 20 years. Along the way, it has scooped numerous awards for its farming operation and environmental performance, including winning the Lincoln University Foundation’s South Island Farmer of the Year in 2014. Today, the farm runs 5500 breeding sows, living outdoors in their natural environment, a practice that is falling out of favour with many pig farmers “Pressure is coming on farmers to have a good environmental profile and we are putting a lot of effort into that,” says owner Steve Stern. “We measure what we do so we are more aware of what we are doing, and we try to use the best science that is available.” Although Stern stepped back into a governance role in 2013, his daughter Holly oversees the day-to-day running of the business, which in total employs around 60 people. Like any large-scale operation, to run efficiently, means choosing the right machinery. So, when a new tractor was on the wish-list, with a Valtra N93, a N92, a T151 and an elderly B900 already on the farm, a 405hp Valtra S394 ticked all the boxes. On arrival, the new Valtra got straight to work powering a rock crusher, turning items removed from hump and hollowing paddocks into gravel for roading throughout the farm. Lately, it’s getting an easier life, mainly towing a 42m3, triple-axle K-Two ejector trailer, which is used to move compost, alongside carting silage. Valtra tractors are manufactured in Finland and are popular in North Canterbury. However, local Valtra dealer at Northern Tractor Services Simon Moir believes Patoa Farms has the only S394 tractor in New Zealand so far. The Valtra S range features six-cylinder, 8.4 litre AgcoPower engines, in six power ratings from 270 to 405 hp. Combining the twin-turbo engine and a stepless transmission, which allows it to move seamlessly through speed changes, the manufacturer suggests that operating at lower engine revs, resulting in lower exhaust temperatures, delivers lower fuel usage, increased durability and reduced maintenance. A large, spacious cab provides drivers with a comfortable work environment, while also utilising the smarttouch user interface, allowing precise, logical control of all the tractors key functions and preferred operating parameters.
via a pin and spring clip attachment. While these will help improve traction, the spike wheels also allow operators to work longer in wet conditions. When used on the front axle, they also provide excellent braking and holding ability, a particular advantage for fencing contractors establishing fence lines on steep slopes. www.kyneequipment.co.nz
CONTROL SO ADVANCED, EVEN WE’RE AMAZED HOW SIMPLE IT IS TO USE. GILTRAP FERTILISER SPREADERS NOT ONLY COME STANDARD WITH A WORLD CLASS TOUCH SCREEN CONTROL. PEACE OF MIND COMES STANDARD AS WELL.
KEY FEATURES:
With precision spreading rates, spinner speeds and border spreading at your fingertips, you’ve got total control to nail every job perfectly.
and border spreading — Optional electronic scales to precisely measure the load and amount spread — Checks spreading rates — Provides automatic rate calibration with scales fitted
— Precision and flexibility to vary spreading rates electronically — Touch screen control for spinner speeds
NEED EVEN MORE CONTROL? For those wanting more advanced control and measurement there is an upgrade to include GPS functionality. This will enable coverage mapping of jobs as they are done for proof of placement, and add prescription maps through the USB port for variable rate spreading.
TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR SPREADING TALK TO US ON 0800 804 458 OR VISIT WWW.GILTRAPAG.CO.NZ
TRACTA62695_RN_FS
Valtra 5394 is pick for porkers
Available for front or rear wheel fitment, the design sees a mounting disc clamped to the original tractor wheel just like a dual wheel assembly. The spikes or spades can be fully extended for the worst conditions or terrain, partially extended for just a little help, or fully retracted to allow moves between jobs without removing the entire assembly. Adjustment is made quickly
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
30 MACHINERY & PRODUCTS / RURAL TRADER
Kubota release new tractors of the shuttle, engine memory, linkage and auto shifting. Other highlights include new, heavy duty front and rear axles, Kubota’s Bi-speed system delivers a turning radius of 4.5m, hydraulic flow
MARK DANIEL markd@ruralnews.co.nz
A SOLID farm and construction machinery result was largely responsible for the 3.8% rise in Kubota Corporation’s revenue last year to around US$17.5 billion (NZ$27.7 billion). Revenue from the company’s agricultural (including Kverneland, Great Plains and engines) and construction machinery divisions was up by 2.9% to US$14.3 billion, (NZ$22.6 billion) accounting for nearly 82% of total sales. More than two-thirds of 2019’s revenue came from outside of Japan, with increased sales of tractors and construction equipment in North America and Europe. Nearer the Japanese base, saw stagnation in China, a drop in Australia caused by the severe drought, while Thailand was showing an increase in sales. Looking ahead, Kubota Corporation predicts further growth for its farm equipment and construction machinery for the remainder of 2020. This is particularly
at 115l/min and a 7-tonne rear lift capacity. The company suggests the new 6002 will cover market sectors that are not covered by the MGX or M7001, delivering a compact, yet high performance option.
Kubota Corporation report a 3.8% rise in revenue for 2019.
in the North American and Asian markets, with forecasts of a consolidated revenue of around US$17.6 billion (NZ$ 27.9 billion). One potential fly in the ointment is the coronavirus, with the company saying that it is difficult to estimate the negative impact that the spread of the virus might have on its overall results. In other news, Kubota recently used the Spanish FIMA show to release its new M6002 series tractors. The new range
comprises three models, the 121hp M6122; 131hp M6132 and 141hp M6142 – each with an additional 20hp power boost during transport. Power is provided by a four-pot 6108 Kubota engine, mated to an eight stage, powershift transmission that hits 40km/h at 1640 rpm. It is fitted with the Xpress function that allows the operator to stop the tractor, then restart by just using the brake pedal Reaching its top speed
LASER FF95 DIESEL HEATER The low emission Laser FF95 is 92% efficient, and can be installed in Clean Air Zones throughout NZ. DIY install or we can arrange. Stylish cabinet suits any home. Ultra quiet & easy to operate (Manual or Automatic Operation) - simply press a button - the thermostat controls the 3 x heating stages automatically.
The Paeroa-based Whyteline team took out the NZ dealer of the year for one of two branches.
Top dealers on the Case of 40km/h at 1640rpm, the eight-speed powershift transmission is new. So too is the Xpress restart function, which allows the driver to stop the tractor with the brake
m Made in Japan since 1991 – sold in NZ since 2005 m Diesel is approx. 30-50% less than “on demand” Electricity or Gas m Our installation advice is free – installers NZ wide. m It uses the same fuel as your Tractor or Ute m No wood to cut, cart or store m No ashes, no soot, no dust, NO indoor diesel odours.
Installs on any external wall. No fire surround or hearth required. The almost invisible “through the wall” Flue is supplied and installs in less than an hour. (NO TALL FLUE REQUIRED). On the coldest winters day the 9.5kW Laser FF95 delivers more heat than 2 or 3 average Heat Pumps. Leave internal doors open and “surplus heat” will spread throughout your home. The Laser heater is supplied with standard “through the wall” flue assembly, “everything to make it go” except for the fuel tank and the copper pipe that connects the Laser FF95 to the fuel tank. Sole NZ Agents:
Electric Ltd (Est 1939)
25 Taurus Place, Christchurch
pedal without using the clutch. A mechanically-suspended cab and premium seat combine with a multifunction lever armrest that provides control
$3890 incl. GST
CASE IH’S ANZ annual conference, held recently in Hobart Tasmania, named its Dealers of the Year for New Zealand The top New Zealand dealers for 2020 were Whyteline and Cochranes of Canterbury taking out the honours. Taking out the title for businesses with one or two branches was Whyteline of Paeroa. Meanwhile, Cochranes of Canterbury, took the award for operations with three or more depots, with outlets at Amberley, Ashburton, Leeston and Timaru. Both operations are family-owned and operated. Whyteline, based in the North Island, has been around for 40 years, while Cochranes in the south was established more than 65 years ago. Brand Manager for Case IH New Zealand, David Silk, praised both businesses. “Whyteline and Cochranes are both well-established businesses with experienced and knowledgeable staff,” he said. “They both recognise that outstanding customer service and after-sales support are key to success in this industry and their respective Dealer of the Year wins are testament to their ‘go the extra mile’ business ethos.”
DOLOMITE
PH: 0800 379 247
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www.ruralnews.co.nz
CLOSING DOWN SALE! - BUFFALO BOOTS
After 25 years of providing workwear to New Zealand farmers - our rainwear & footwear is the best it has ever been - however we are unable to get the prices &/or sell the quantities we need to remain viable. We have a reasonable amount of stock on hand, but anticipate this will sell quickly. Thank you to all our customers who have supported us over the years! Earthwalk Buffalo Boots have NEW WAXY thick buffalo hide uppers which are 175% more crack and water resistant than normal leather. The nitrile rubber outsole won’t crack, split or break down in soil. It is stitched to the leather upper... PHONE
9am-5pm
0800 16 00 24
SLIP ON
LACE UP
$115
$120
valued at $280
valued at $320
STEEL TOE X (with Scuff Guard)
STEEL TOE X (with Scuff Guard) PLAIN TOE (without Scuff Guard)
STEEL TOE (without Scuff Guard)
sold out of size 9, 12
PLAIN TOE (without Scuff Guard) sold out of size 6, 8, 12 ONLINE
earthwalk.co.nz
CHEQUES
earthwalk, r d 2, palmerston north
NEW WAXY BUFFALO LEATHER! 175% more crack resistant Leather Traditional Stitched on soles Wide Fit Nitrile Rubber Outsole Heavy Duty Elastic Sides (Slip On) Outsole won’t Crack or Split Calfskin Tongue & Collar (Lace Up) NEW WATERPROOF INSOLE! NEW DURABLE LUXURY FOOTBED
sizes: 6 - 13 (NZ)
please add $12 freight per order
RURAL NEWS // MARCH 24, 2020
RURAL TRADER 31 tunnel houses Grow vegetables all year round Very affordable and easy to install New Zealand designed and made 35 years producing tunnel houses Range of models sized from 2m - 8m t/f
03 214 4262 |
e
T T T T T
info@morrifield.com
CRAIGCO SENSOR JET • Robust construction • Auto shut gate • Total 20 jets • Lambs only 5 jets • Side jets for lice • Adjustable V panels • Davey Twin Impellor Pump • 6.5 or 9.0hp motors
735 +GST
The magic eye sheepjetter since 1989
Quality construction and options • Get the contractors choice Featuring...
• Incredible chemical economy • Amazing ease 1500+ per hour • Unique self adjusting sides • Environmentally and user friendly • Automatically activated • Proven effective on lice as well as fly • Compatible with all dip chemicals • Accurate, effective application
SHEEP JETTERS SINCE 1992
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PH 06-835 6863 • MOB 021-061 1800 JETTER VIDEO: www.craigcojetters.com
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07 573 8512 | dipping@electrodip.co.nz – www.electrodip.com
Free Range & Barn Eggs
Quadbar introduces the new $
FLY OR LICE PROBLEMS?
SUPPLIERS OF:
FLEXIBAR
• Nest boxes - manual or automated • Feed & Drinking • Plastic egg trays
Flexibar includes all the safety and convenience features of the Quadbar with the added advantages of: • A flexible joint that allows the bar to flex rearwards in the event of contact with an overhead obstacle
QUALITY PRODUCTS MADE IN EUROPE OR BY PPP
❖
• Made in NZ • Saves lives • Flexible Weighs 14.6kg
A trusted name in Poultry Industry for over 50 years ❖
• The joint facilitates some sideways flexibility before locking and becoming more of a traditional crush protection device • In the event of a rearwards flip there is negligible movement from the flexible joint
Recommended by Worksafe. ACC subsidy available
• The top section of the Flexibar can also be easily removed for transportation inside a vehicle.
For a Quadbar, call me, Stuart Davidson, owner of Quadbar NZ. Phone: 021-182 8115 Email: sales@quadbar.co.nz or for more info go to www.quadbar.co.nz
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0800 38 44 50
Phone: 0800 80 8570
$1200
+ GST & Freight
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ONE STOP WATER SHOP 300mm x 6 metre .......................... $410 400mm x 6 metre .......................... $515 500mm x 6 metre .......................... $690 600mm x 6 metre .......................... $925 800mm x 6 metre ........................ $1399 1000mm x 6 metre ...................... $2175 1200mm x 6 metre ...................... $3475 ALL PRICES INCLUDE G.S.T.
CULVERT PIPES
New Zealand’s CHEAPEST Culvert Pipes! FREE joiners supplied on request. • Lightweight, easy to install • Made from polyethylene
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ON HYDRAIN FARM GRADE CULVERT PIPES Size
Pricing
225mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$34.00 per metre
300mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$78.00 per metre
375mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$92.00 per metre
450mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$119.00 per metre
525mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$150.00 per metre
600mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$192.00 per metre
675mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$205.00 per metre
750mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$215.00 per metre
825mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$235.00 per metre
900mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$265.00 per metre
1050mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$325.00 per metre
1350mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$375.00 per metre
1500mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$460.00 per metre
1650mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$520.00 per metre
1950mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$807.00 per metre
2100mm Farm Grade Culvert Pipe
$907.00 per metre
CONTACT YOUR LOCAL BRANCH FOR BULK DEALS NOW! Limited stocks available
hyndsrural.co.nz
0800 496 377
Call free Monday to Friday 7.30am to 5.00pm CONDITIONS: For full address details please see our website www.hyndsrural.co.nz or phone us for your nearest store. All major credit cards plus Farmlands, Rural Co cards accepted. Special prices and discounts valid from February 15th to May 31st 2020. Discounts are off Hynds normal retail price. Actual product supplied may be different to that pictured but identical in quality and price. Promotional items are strictly while stocks last. All prices are per metre and include GST. Lengths are generally 2.5mtr in length however can vary by size. All prices exclude transport/delivery costs unless otherwise stated.