Dairy News Australia October 2022

THE ProfeLAC

Shipping the new normal

BY ISABEL DANDO

SHIPPING CHALLENGES have been a defining feature of the past couple of years, largely fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the world appears to have found some kind of ‘new normal’, it seems the shipping industry may have found one of its own.

Port congestion and a general lack of available containers continues to provide challenges for both importers and exporters.

In the dairy industry, the impact of such challenges is reverberating through the entire supply chain, from the inputs bought on-farm to the end product being shipped to the world.

Tight global supply and strong demand have inflated Australian grain prices from the start of this year, with port congestion adding fuel to the fire.

Here at home, the grain supply chain has faced logistical challenges from farm to port, with unrelentless global demand adding to the port capacity squeeze.

While harvest in the Northern Hemisphere typically shifts focus away from Australian grain during July to November, lower than expected yields has held interest for Aussie grain steady.

With another record harvest approaching and no sign of transport bottlenecks easing, growers have been increasingly keen to clear last season grain from storages.

As a result, average wheat prices across much of Australia dropped between three per cent and nine per cent during August.

Similar to grain, tight global supply and robust demand for fertiliser has seen prices surge over the past two years, backed by rising shipping costs.

Australia is by no means a significant importer of fertiliser product, however local production shortfalls means a large portion of product used is purchased from overseas.

This has exposed Australian buyers to delayed shipments and product security, with such uncertainty flowing through to farmers.

Port congestion has been a widespread challenge across the world, making delayed shipments an expectation in the current climate.

Dairy importers have been procuring larger volumes over less frequent shipments (where shelf life allows) to try and mitigate this supply insecurity.

As such, the typical time frames in which buyers purchase their product have begun to shift.

Additionally, high shipping costs have propelled above average dairy export commodities, as importers search for where to secure product.

Moving forward, with another bumper harvest on the cards for Australia and strong global demand for grain showing no signs of wavering, this is likely to keep pressure on shipping operations.

While plentiful supply usually causes prices to fall, such demand will ensure grain values stay elevated, only tempered by the inability to ship the product out fast enough.

Continued port congestion will also be a bugbear for Australian dairy exporters.

COVID-19 and isolation periods a way of life now, port procedures are likely to be continually impeded by the pandemic, which will weigh on procurement activity for all importers.

Writing her next chapter

BY RICK BAYNE

IN HER previous career, Liz Mackley would have loved writing this story.

It’s a tale about a journalist from a posh part of England without any knowledge of cows who becomes the Great South West Dairy Awards 2022 Employee of the Year.

But in this case, Liz is the subject of the story, not the writer, and the journey involves COVID-19 restrictions, twists and turns, self-discovery and ultimately a happy ending.

Despite having less than two years of expe rience working on a farm, Liz was pleasantly surprised and honoured to be named employ ee of the year, although she’s quick to say it’s really a team effort on her large corporate farm near Hawkesdale in south-west Victoria.

It’s a far cry from writing human interest stories and advancing into deputy news editor roles and even a stint on TV.

“I was always interested in writing and wanted to be a journalist when I was growing up,” Liz said.

Her parents were diplomats — including stints in Australia — and Liz had considered that career path, but ultimately journalism won out.

After completing a degree in English and philosophy and a diploma in journalism, she worked locally for the Swindon Advertiser before moving to Hull in Yorkshire.

“That was a bit of a culture shock,” Liz said.

“I had been brought up in a privileged part of the country but had moved to an area with one of the highest levels of poverty in the UK.

“For some reason, the community liked me even though I’ve got this horribly posh accent, and I developed some really good skills, partic ularly when it comes to human interest writing.”

After seven years in journalism, Liz started to ponder her next steps.

“I’m a good human interest writer with a good tabloid style but what’s the next step? If I went up the chain of command, I’d stop writing, which is what I’m good at and why I’m doing it.

“I went into journalism because I wanted to use my talents to support other people, to give people a voice. I wanted to live on the right side of the moral line, supporting people rather than just chasing a story.”

She’s had a connection to Australia through her father’s posting and later holidays, so decided to study for an extra year at the University of Queensland.

After a stint on a web-based news service at Berkshire, Liz decided to quit everything and take a holiday to Australia and then return to England and figure out what she wanted to do. That was in February 2020.

With lockdowns looming, Liz moved to Melbourne to stay with a friend and a month later moved to Warrnambool.

As the lockdown continued, she started writing a book but her money was running out. She applied for many jobs before eventually landing a farm role in August 2020.

“I liked cows, but knew nothing about it but thought I’d see what it was like and try something different.”

Liz worked on the farm for a few months before landing a short-term journalism job with WIN TV in Gippsland, her first broadcast experience.

An accidental convert to the industry, Liz now has long-term plans to buy her own dairy farm.

However, because journalism wasn’t recognised as a COVID working visa category and she didn’t have a sponsor, the position was short-lived.

“I was thinking of going home but really wanted to stay in Australia. I still want to drive to Perth,” she said.

She soon found a job on a new farm, Ballyduggen, owned by Aurora Dairies.

As one of 12 staff on a 1100-hectare farm with 1400 mostly Holstein cows using an 80-unit rotary dairy, Liz started as a casual farmhand, mostly milking cows. Because of her previous experience, she was soon doing rosters.

She says journalism is not only about writing and spelling, it’s also about personality, charac ter and being willing to learn. The same could apply to being a dairy farmer.

“Farm manager Phil Weller is very good at spotting people’s potential,” Liz said.

“I started from scratch but he realised I enjoy being thrown in the deep end and pick things up pretty quickly.

“I’m mainly milking cows, have done a bit of calf rearing, have been in the telehandler once and I’m learning new things as we go along.

“I’m very pushy and very direct. I quickly got to grips with the computer system and got to do the rosters and to the point of telling Phil we’ve got cows that need to be dried off, cows that are ready to calve.

“If a cow was looking a bit different in her udder or in the way she’s standing, I’d realise there was something wrong. I’m learning about health problems and the causes and thinking about what we could do prevent them from happening.”

Phil said Liz had a hunger to learn.

“She wants to know everything right now,” he said.

“Her heart’s in it and she knows you can’t learn this from a book, you have to do it.”

The award judges had similar thoughts.

“With skills already numerous from past careers including that of a journalist, Liz has been able to leap into this role with great success,” they said.

“Her abilities to learn, process and apply new skills showed her innovation and problem-solving skills.”

Liz’s mother recently visited — and learnt how to milk a cow.

“Mum says ‘we spent thousands of pounds educating her and now she’s milking cows’. She’s a bit surprised but she’s delighted that I’m happy.”

Always ambitious, Liz now plans to stay in Australia, continue learning and has long-term hopes to own a dairy farm.

“I find it no more repetitive than putting a paper to bed every day,” she said.

“You get to know the cows and it’s in the details that it gets exciting. Plus, you don’t have to lay awake at night and worry about what you’ve written in the paper.”

Still on a COVID visa, Liz can begin an appli cation for a visa sponsored by Aurora with a pathway to permanent residency in October.

“The job is simple on paper — you feed the cows, you milk the cows, you raise the calves — but you need grit and determination and to be observant,” she said.

“My passion for the animal is huge and it’s a multi-faceted job.

“I’m happy to be in such a team-focused workplace. You can’t achieve anything without other people, especially on a farm this size.”

Although she has only two years of experience working on a farm, Liz Mackley is the Great South West Dairy Awards 2022 Employee of the Year.

Liz has adjusted to life in Australia and on a dairy farm, leaving behind her journalism career.

The Hawkesdale farm owned by Aurora Dairies in south-west Victoria features an 80-unit rotary dairy.

Making housed cows happy

ANYONE THINKING about installing an intensive system will want to hear Courtney Halbach’s talk on ‘Happy houses and hap py cows’ at the Dairy Research Foundation’s Symposium in November at Forster.

An international expert in free-stall and compost design, Courtney runs the Dairyland Initiative at the University of Wisconsin.

The Dairyland Initiative provides wel fare-friendly recommendations and lameness prevention tools. She is particularly passionate about calf and cow barn design, positive tube ventilation systems and automatic milking systems.

Courtney is one of a number of speakers at the symposium session to discuss on-farm intensification.

Foundation director and symposium organiser, Professor Yani Garcia, said intensi fication was a hot topic in the Australian dairy industry.

“Courtney will be attending the sympo sium in person and will be joined by Dairy UP researchers and Australian farmers who are either considering or already taking the intensification path,” he said.

It promises to be a very interesting session, where we’ll hear the pros, cons and costs of intensification as well as keys to success.”

The session includes dairy farmers Colin Thompson and Simon Scowen, with con sultant Professor Ian Lean from SciBus, Sheena Carter from NSW DPI and Karen Romano from Dairy Australia.

Colin owns and operates Silvermere Holsteins at Cowra, milking 320 cows three

times a day. The herd has been housed in a free-stall barn since 2011 and produces five million litres a year.

Simon manages Manning Valley Dairy, at Wingham. The family-run corporate business is investigating installing a compost barn to house the 800-cow herd.

Sheena will report on a Dairy UP project that undertook an economic analysis of seven NSW

BOM SAYS LA NIÑA HAS ARRIVED

The Bureau of Meteorology has declared a La Niña event is under way in the Pacific Ocean and communities in eastern Australia should be prepared for above-average rainfall during spring and early summer.

Bureau of Meteorology head of longrange forecasts Andrew Watkins said the bureau's three-month climate outlook showed a high chance of above average rainfall for most of the eastern half of the Australian mainland and eastern Tasmania.

“During La Niña events, waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean are cooler than normal, and waters in the western tropical Pacific Ocean warmer than normal,” Dr Watkins said.

“This causes changes in wind, cloud and pressure patterns over the Pacific.

“When this change in the atmosphere combines with changes in ocean

temperature, it can influence global weath er patterns and climate, including increasing rainfall over large parts of Australia.”

Dr Watkins said while La Niña criteria had been met, most models forecast this event to be weak to moderate in strength, likely to peak during spring and ease during summer.

"La Niña is not the only driver influencing this wet outlook,“ he said.

“To our west, a significant negative Indian Ocean Dipole event is underway. We expect the IOD influence will reduce in late spring or early summer.

“The Southern Annular Mode is also in a positive phase, and likely to remain positive into summer.

“Positive SAM during summer pushes weather systems south, which increases the chance of rain in NSW, eastern Victoria and southern parts of Queensland.”

Meanwhile, flood-weary farmers and

Colin Thompson, from Silvermere Holsteins at Cowra, will be one of the speakers on the pros and cons of intensification.

dairy farms with intensive systems.

Prof Lean will report on early findings from a Dairy UP project investigating ways to lift cow productivity in intensive systems.

Prof Garcia said he was excited to be able to bring together such a dynamic series of speak ers on this very important topic.

“The combination of farmers and technical experts will create a lively discussion on how

Simon Scowen, from Manning Valley Dairy, will host the farm day for the 2022 Dairy Research Foundation Symposium in November.

research findings apply in the real world,” he said.

The symposium will be held on Tuesday, November 15 and Wednesday, November 16 at Forster, NSW.

To register, visit https://drfsymposium. eventbrite.com.au and for more information contact Kirsty Jaensch on (02) 4601 8823 or kirsty.jaensch@sydney.edu.au

regional communities are bracing for yet another soaking.

Northern Rivers farmer Neil Baker said he and his neighbours were still mopping up the mess from torrential rains earlier in the year, which had devastated Lismore and surrounding areas.

“People are trying to rebuild and get back on top of things, but another huge rain would just be devastating for us,” Mr Baker said.

NSW Farmers Business, Economics and Trade committee chair John Lowe said another La Niña was a serious threat to farmers and regional communities.

“People just haven’t had time to prepare for more rain because it has been so wet already,” Mr Lowe said.

“While output for agriculture has been at record levels because of all the moisture, in some places it will actually be stopping people from getting onto paddocks to harvest their crops.

“Catchments are so full that there will be a chance of major floods if we get too much rain in the wrong place.

“We’re just going to have to prepare the best we can and hope for the best.”

International expert Courtney Halbach will discuss welfare-friendly designs for intensive calf and cow facilities at the symposium in Forster.

Another La Niña event has been declared.

SAY MOO BAD RESULTS

Ear tags take pressure off

BY COBY BOSCHMA

ASHLEY COOK is the sixth generation of his family to farm at Laang in south-west Victoria.

The 22-year-old joined his parents Allison and David after completing his VCE in 2018. He has since completed a Certificate III in Agriculture and is now studying a Certificate IV in Agriculture at South West TAFE.

Laurel-Dale farm, where the Cook family milks a commercial Jersey herd of 330 cows, was established by their ancestors in 1877. When David returned to the farm after work ing as a mechanic in 1997, it was a mixed herd of predominantly Friesians.

“We swung to Jerseys because they suit the farm better, which has mostly light soils,” David said.

“They are lower maintenance and physical ly easier to work with and it’s easier to keep the Jerseys fully fed in our pasture-based system.

“Fortunately, our milk payment system now pays evenly for butterfat and protein.”

Picking up silent heats

The Cook family started using CowManager for fertility and cow health last season. They immediately noticed the increased accura cy when using the Fertility Module during breeding.

“We used the tags to identify heat and to double check last year but this year we are working solely off CowManager,” Ashley said.

“Last year went well and the accuracy was definitely better than tail paint. So far this year we’ve had very few returns, so it seems to be going well.”

Allison said CowManager picked up “the ‘quiet heats’ we might miss”.

“It is more accurate in the timing of which cows are ready to join and it’s not reliant on our observation.

“Often, it’s the good genetics that otherwise would be missed. That’s the bonus. It takes the pressure off us.”

24/7 health monitoring

The Cooks also use the Health Module in CowManager.

“Before we introduced CowManager we picked up on a cow’s health by observing their behaviour — was she going slow, breaking rou tine, not eating, sitting low in the paddock?” David said.

“With CowManager we can step away. Observations are more intermittent.

“We can grab the phone and trace her histo ry, see if she’s been eating in the past 24 hours; see if it drops off. We can follow the coloured graph and watch.”

The health alerts on CowManager allow them to keep an eye on the herd at all times.

“You don’t panic and call the vet. We can watch and decide by the graph if we can treat her or if we need the vet. It gives us 24/7 mon itoring,” David said.

Allison said there had been little change in their use of antibiotics.

“We use them better; we respond quicker because we have the information,” she said.

“If we pick them up half-a-day ahead of our observation, they respond to the medication better.”

Ashley said if the cows were not eating they could use pain relief and see if they came back.

“We monitor her. Sometimes that’s all it needs to kick-start eating again,” he said.

“But if she goes backwards again, we call the vet.”

Ear temperature is the key

The CowManager ear sensors are unique because they combine measuring ear tempera ture, eating, rumination and activity, resulting in more accurate and earlier alerts.

“We chose the ear tags over collars because they can rub up against trees with the collars and lose them,” Allison said.

“Our farm has plenty of native trees scat tered throughout the paddocks, so l thought a tag system would be a better option.”

They receive alerts on health and fertility on their phones and computers and have the option of sharing selected data with additional staff or vets through a MultiView function.

More relaxed farming

The Cooks have found using CowManager has made their working life easier. They no lon ger have to rely on being there at all times to observe the cows.

The improved accuracy of heat timing by just looking on the phone and knowing which cows to catch has made them all more relaxed.

“I was in Melbourne and was still able to send a message to Dad on which cows to AI that night,” Ashley said.

“We’re trying to step away from the dairy,” David said.

“To monitor from a distance and still main tain good conception rates — it frees us up and makes life easier.”

Ashley Cook is continuing the family farming tradition.

Allison and Ashley check the herd.

CowManager’s Paul Quinlan with Allison and Ashley.

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Young leader is pursuing her

BY RICK BAYNE

AS A city kid, Renata Cumming dreamed of living in the wide-open spaces.

Today she’s recognised as a young leader in the dairy industry and is doing her bit to break down stereotypes about women in the indus try and to promote farming on her Instagram account.

It’s a long way from Brunswick or her uncle’s sheep farm in north-east Victoria to the green paddocks of Naringal in south-west Victoria, but Renata is loving life as a fully-committed dairy farmer.

“I never particularly enjoyed the city,” she said.

“I was a country kid born into a city family. All my holidays were on farms. I liked the big open spaces and really enjoyed practical handson work.”

Renata never considered careers in other industries, choosing to study agriculture at Dookie in northern Victoria, following in the footsteps of her grandfather and uncles.

“I had assumed I’d end up in wool because that was my experience growing up, but there weren’t many options in the industry, coupled with finishing uni during the 10-year drought.”

However, dairy jobs were being advertised.

“Even though I’d never milked a cow, I was attracted to the job diversity and opportuni ties,” Renata said.

A friend’s father offered a job on his farm at Maffra for the calving period and she stayed in the region for nearly five years, working on different farms as a farmhand.

“As the only female on all the farms, I was often encouraged into milking and calf rearing and didn’t do much of the tractor work but that didn’t faze me too much,” she said.

Renata moved to north-east Victoria for 10 years with jobs in sales, event management and as a Fonterra field services representative.

She met her partner Matt Grant at a con ference and moved to south-west Victoria in 2020 where Matt had been sharefarming with his parents on a 243-hectare farm at Scotts Creek since 2009. Six years ago, he purchased the 121ha neighbouring farm.

Around the time Renata relocated, they fired up the dairy on Matt’s farm, and started running one herd split between two dairies, with all of the labour-intensive jobs like calv ing, joining and herd testing completed in one dairy, and the other dairy operating as a milk ing-only facility.

“We did that for nearly two years and that posed some challenges so we started looking at options for efficiency,” Renata said.

They considered many possibilities and were ideally looking to purchase a larger and more efficient farm. They were still in the market when their milk company approached them about an alternative opportunity.

“John and Kathy Dalton were looking to lease their farm at Naringal and after doing our due diligence, we could see this was a fantastic progression for our business,” Renata said.

“The leased farm is 750 acres [303ha] and we aim to capitalise on the farm’s infrastructure and productive capabilities by milking as many cows profitably as possible.

“We’ll run the 300 acres [121ha] back at Scotts Creek as an out-paddock for dry and young stock.

“There is a great calf rearing facility here to rear calves up until weaning.”

They started the lease in September, pur chasing 100 cows from John along with next year’s heifers due to calve in February, rapidly expanding the total herd to 500 to 600 head.

“John has been really generous with his knowledge about the farm, which paddocks are good at this time of the year, which paddocks

we should lock up for silage and all those pearls of wisdom gained from decades of operating the farm,” Renata said.

The Naringal farm has different soil types, weather patterns and rainfall to the Scotts Creek property, which they will need to learn. The out-paddock will complement the opera tion and has the potential to grow extra fodder to export to the leased property.

Two experienced employees are continuing on the leased farm, and a recruit is coming from The Netherlands through a 482 visa, while a retired dairy farmer will continue to help on the out-paddock.

On-farm, Renata “fills the gaps” in every thing from milking, calf rearing and bringing in the cows, manages most of the book work, oversees safety protocols using the program Safe Ag Systems and farm HR.

Being new to the region, Renata was keen to meet people, particularly local women in dairy.

She met dairy farmer Chloe Brown through Matt’s involvement with Fonterra Australia Supplier Council, and vet and dairy farmer Lucy Collins through Instagram; together they devised the first Cream of the Crop event for dairy women.

“Chloe and Lucy made similar comments about how challenging it can be to meet other women in the dairy industry and how wonder ful it is to make supportive connections when you move to a new area,” Renata said.

“Our dream was that women could feel com fortable to come together and learn about dif ferent areas of the industry, to ask questions and network, and it was a raging success.

“We had people reach out and ask is it okay to come — I only do the books or I only rear the calves. These are super important parts of a farm business but there are women who don’t value their role within a farm.

“I love the idea that we might be empower ing women to value their role in these diverse farming businesses, whatever that role may be.”

Jess Brown has joined the organising com mittee and Cream of the Crop will return next March 1 and 2.

Renata and Matt are just new to the leas ing arrangement but are already enjoying the challenges.

They have been calving three times a year, which Matt started years ago when he was doing most of the work himself and could only cope with 100 to 120 cows calving at a time, and also to suit a flat milk curve and fresh milk contract.

and accurate herd identi cation system

Sorting and Drafting

Renata was new to the area and wanted to meet people, and quickly became part of the organising team for Cream of the Crop.

Renata Cumming was recently named the Great South West Dairy Awards Young Dairy Leader.

On-farm, Renata “fills the gaps” in everything from milking, calf rearing and bringing in the cows, manages most of the book work, oversees safety protocols and farm HR.

Herd

Sensors

pursuing her dairy farming dream

“Once we’re settled in, we want to review our farming processes, including calving pat terns, feeding programs and general systems, to better align with the new farm’s capabili ties,” Renata said.

“With the farm on a fresh milk contract, we are required to meet industry best practice in areas such as sustainability, animal welfare and farm safety.

“These are things we are striving to achieve anyway so it’s great to have our hard work met with a premium milk price.”

Renata said the cows had settled well after the move from a herringbone to a rotary dairy.

“We’re loving the efficiencies. Matt was milking 160 cows an hour in the herringbone, the rotary can milk up to 300 per hour.”

Renata was recently named the Great South West Dairy Awards Young Dairy Leader, following in the footsteps of Matt who previ ously won the same award.

The judges praised Renata’s passion for dairy and the broader agricultural industry.

“She has had a diverse and exciting career in the dairy industry that has given her experi ence across milk processing, the service sector, on-farm, supporting dairy events and connect ing farmers with opportunities to sell their products,” the judges said.

“I feel incredibly honoured and humbled although I never set out to be a leader; I just do the things that are important to me,” Renata said.

“I’ve always been involved in communi ty projects. I love buying local produce and always wonder how we could better support local producers and help people improve their connection with food.”

Her Instagram account @farm.garden.table now has nearly 1000 followers and aims to bridge that gap.

“It was initially about showcasing what we do on-farm and I love the idea that I can show consumers how we are producing a quality product with love and integrity, to help them connect with where their food comes from.

“Too often I hear farmers complain about people buying cheap imports; we need be part of showcasing locally-produced products if we want to change buyers’ behaviours.”

The cows have quickly adjusted to the rotary dairy on the new leased farm, and Matt Grant is enjoying the improved efficiencies.

The Naringal farm has different soil types, weather patterns and rainfall to the Scotts Creek property.

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST ever sheep, camel, goat and Jersey milk cheese — the result of a flood-inspired collaboration between four Scenic Rim producers — has officially been launched.

Widespread floods earlier this year devastat ed many farms in southern Queensland.

Among these was Towri Sheep Cheeses at Allenview, a leading agri-tourism operator and producer of award-winning cheeses made from milk from their Awassi herd.

“The floods caused absolute devastation to our business, livestock and family farm, includ ing the collapse of our main water supply,” Towri’s Dallas Davidson said.

“Milk production went down 100 per cent as our dairy was completely flooded, and we were unable to deliver to our wonderful restaurant clients due to floodwaters and road closures.

“It was pretty horrid ... but, we emptied our gumboots, dried out our work gear and thought about how we could keep moving forward.

“Then, it hit us, we simply ask our friends — two and four-legged.”

During the drought, Towri Sheep Cheeses collaborated with Tommerup’s Dairy Farm, in the Kerry Valley on the other side of Beaudesert,

to create Moo & Ewe — a Jersey and sheep milk range, which continues to this day.

“We thought — let’s take this further,” Dallas said.

“We live in the glorious Scenic Rim, a region of dairies, of inspiring producers and of truly creative partnerships born of Eat Local Week, so let’s create a collaboration cheese.”

Towri Sheep Cheeses and Tommerup’s Dairy Farm, with Summer Land Camels and Naughty Little Kids near Boonah, pooled their milk resources.

Carolyn Davidson, Dallas’s mum and Towri’s head cheesemaker, then went to work.

After much trial and error, EWE+3 was born.

“To our knowledge this is an Australian first, and could very well be a world first,” Dallas said.

Thanks to the complexity of the different milks, EWE+3 is rich in taste.

It is a cooked, natural rind cheese, with earthy, buttery and pear undertones and a touch of sharpness from the sheep’s milk.

Some of the top restaurants in Queensland are carrying EWE+3, with inquiries already received from interstate restaurants.

It is also available at Towri’s farmers’ markets.

Cheese milks it four ways Towri Sheep Cheese’s Carolyn and Dallas Davidson are the driving force behind EWE+3.

Towri Sheep Cheeses and Tommerup’s Dairy Farm had already collaborated to create Moo & Ewe.

I WON’T BE BACK.

Foundation is ready to help

NEW CHAIR of the DemoDAIRY Foundation

Andrea Vallance wants more people to access the foundation’s funds to help them advance in the industry.

After two years on the DemoDAIRY Foundation Board, Andrea has replaced Ralph Leutton as chair and says the foundation has an exciting role to play in the future of south-west Victoria’s dairy industry.

“I love the focus on education, leadership and innovation and trying to build a legacy with the DemoDAIRY funds,” she said.

However, like other funding bodies, the foundation sometimes struggles to find suitable applicants for grants.

“People tend not to apply for scholarships or grant prospects. It’s amazing how hard it is to give money away,” Andrea said.

DemoDAIRY Foundation is well-placed to continue supporting the south-west Victorian dairy industry for many years to come, and Andrea encouraged local people to look at opportunities to apply for funding.

The foundation was formed in 2018 after a resolution to wind up the former DemoDAIRY Cooperative near Terang, with funds from the sale of the property invested into a fund.

Andrea and Bruce Vallance started dairying in 1993, initially leasing a farm and progressing to farm ownership two years later. They are now milking 800 cows off a 286-hectare milking platform.

They use an equity partnership model for the farm at Nirranda after having trialled it at

a property they owned with a similar structure in Cobram that was sold in 2018.

The equity model allowed their children and farm manager to buy into the operational part of the business.

Bruce and Andrea had no experience in the dairy industry when they started. Bruce came from a sheep, cropping and pig farming background, while Andrea was a teacher who grew up in Warrnambool.

“When we started, one of the conditions of our lease was that we attend a grass-based discussion group and we’re forever grateful for that,” Andrea said.

“That’s why I continue to push the importance of mentors, discussion groups, listening to people and learning.

“We knew nothing but we were like sponges and soaked up everything we could and sought advice from people who already had runs on the board or who knew their stuff.”

Now Andrea wants to return the favour.

“The dairy industry has been really good to us and supported our family very well, and I think there’s a responsibility for us to pay it forward.”

Andrea has been a driving force in the Timboon Agriculture Project, a contributor to local discussion groups, was part of the Target 10 committee and has been involved in many pilot groups for Dairy Australia programs.

She is also a member of the Nullawarre Community Emergency Response Team and an ambulance community officer at Timboon.

“We’re really aware of contributing back to the community and believe there’s so much capacity in the dairy industry. It has been good to us and I want to share it with other people,” Andrea said.

“We want to help people on their education, leadership and innovation journeys and hope to partner with existing bodies such as Food and Fibre Great South Coast, South West TAFE, RIST, Neil Porter Legacy, Powell Legacy Fund, and WestVic Dairy to help build something for the industry to maximise the resources available to us.”

Andrea paid tribute to former chair Ralph Leutton and thanked him for his leadership, and acknowledged secretary Ian Teese as the first point of contact and backbone of the organisation.

DemoDAIRY Foundation is keen to sponsor more people in the south-west Victorian dairy industry.

For more information, go to www.demodairy.com.au/scholarships-and-grants/ or contact DemoDAIRY Foundation secretary Ian Teese on 0427 358 987 or itag@bigpond.com

Andrea Vallance is the

chair.

Saputo to close factories

BY GEOFF ADAMS

CANADIAN MILK processor Saputo is looking at rationalising its dairy factories in Australia in its implementation of a new, fouryear global strategic plan.

No announcement has been made whether any Victorian dairy factories will be affected.

Company CEO Lino Saputo has announced they will be implementing an approach to net working their processing factories to achieve efficiencies, which has already been applied to Canada and the United States, where multiple factories were closed.

Saputo Dairy Australia has been facing a reduction in milk supply, which Mr Saputo confirmed in recent statements.

Earlier this year Saputo closed its cheese slice line at the Cobram factory in northern Victoria.

In recent months the company has announced factory closures in the US and the transfer of one line to another factory.

In an interview broadcast by Scotiabank, a Canadian-based bank, Mr Saputo outlined how the company was implementing an approach already adopted in Canada.

“It’s a model we stole from our Canadian platform,” Mr Saputo said.

“We had to think about all our assets, how much milk we are processing, which are our most effective and efficient plant, which ones should be producing more volume,

thereby allocating cap-ex dollars to increase their capacity so we can shutter others in the system.

“It’s very much the same architecture we have asked our other divisions to focus on.

“How much milk do we need to process and what are most effective plants to process it in and what plants need to be shuttered in the system?”

Mr Saputo referred to the process as “network optimisation”.

“Two platforms that have most upside for us are the US and the second one is Australia.

“Australia is very different to the US — it’s not a commodity issue, it’s more a lack of milk production issue in the country.

“Milk production has been declining by may be four or five per cent per year which means less milk for us to process, which means we need less plant in our system to be able to run our plant more effectively, more efficiently.

“By the end of our strategic plan (final year 2025,) we will have fewer plants in the US network and fewer plants in the Australian network.

“There is still some tweaking we can do in Canada, not so much tweaking in Argentina where we have two plants running super efficiently and a little bit of tweaking in the UK.”

In the address, Mr Saputo also talked about “de-commoditising” the business and moving into plant-based products.

Saputo Dairy Australia has factories at

Kiewa, Cobram, Leongatha, Maffra, Allansford, Laverton and Burnie, Tasmania. It still owns a redundant factory at Rochester.

In its financial statements for the three months to the end of June, Saputo reported revenues of $4.327 billion (Canadian dollars),

up $839 million or 24.1 per cent.

Net earnings totalled $139 million and EBITDA performance amounted to $347 million.

Saputo Dairy Australia has not responded to requests for more information.

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Saputo CEO Lino Saputo: “By the end of our strategic plan, we will have fewer plants in the US network and fewer plants in the Australian network.”

There

Industry tackles skills issues

ONE IN four dairy farmers are unable to find labour or access the skills they need on-farm, according to a survey by Dairy Australia.

“Some 22 per cent of dairy farmers were also unable to fill vacant positions within three months, with 40 per cent losing at least one or more workers,” Dairy Australia’s Verity Ingham said.

To help tackle the problem, Dairy Australia is launching a new national marketing campaign to promote the benefits of working in dairy farming and encouraging Australians to explore a job in dairy.

Featuring dairy ambassador Aussie rules legend Jonathan Brown and seven dairy farmers, the campaign showcases why working in dairy matters, highlighting factors that have shown to motivate people to consider a job in dairy.

These factors include working with animals, working outdoors, career progression, job variety and training, job security and the contribution Australian dairy makes to the community through production of a highly nutritious food.

Launched on September 24, the workforce attraction campaign will be delivered into dairying regions across TV, YouTube, radio, social media and local newspapers, and will encourage jobseekers to visit dairyjobsmatter.com.au for more information and where to go to find job opportunities in their region.

Farmers will be encouraged to take advantage of an increased interest in jobs on dairy farms, and tap into information on attracting and retaining new workers.

Ms Ingham said the aim of the campaign was to bring people into the industry — and keep them.

“Competition for jobseekers in regional areas is fierce, so finding good, reliable people is a priority for dairy farmers. Keeping them is just as important,” she said.

“We need workers on our farms to keep the milk flowing, the cheese on tables, the yoghurt in our lunchboxes and we really are looking for people who want job security, who like working with and caring for animals; people who are looking for variety, flexibility in their work life or wanting career progression.”

Dedicated Dairy Australia staff in dairy regions will also provide employment support and will help connect farmers seeking workers with jobseeker networks.

“We’ll be working with recruitment agencies and local networks to attract, connect and support jobseekers as they come into the industry.

“Promoting career opportunities in dairy with school students, universities and TAFEs will also be key to the success of this campaign.

Dairy farmers can contact their Dairy Australia regional team or visit https://www. dairyaustralia.com.au/people for more information.

Dairy Australia is launching a new national marketing campaign to promote the benefits of working in dairy farming.

Oz ops to stay

BY GEOFF ADAMS

FONTERRA NEW Zealand paid out $13.7  billion to its farmer suppliers in the last financial year.

The company has been paying a record price to its suppliers and at the release of the business’ annual results, forecast that the farm gate price was expected to remain in the NZ$8.50 to NZ$10/kg of milk solids range for 2023.

The company announced it was not going to sell off its Australian division, and also announced a $583 million after tax profit on a turnover of $23 billion, which was up 11 per cent.

Speaking at the release of the company’s annual financial results, Fonterra chief executive officer Miles Hurrell said the Australian business was going well and it would play a key role in helping them get to their 2030 strategic targets.

Some time ago Fonterra announced it was undertaking a strategic review of the Australian division, including ownership options.

Meanwhile, the company is moving ahead with plans to sell off its Chilean dairy manufacturing business, Soprole.

“As part of the strategic review of the ownership of our milk pools outside New Zealand, we continue to make progress, with the sales process for the Soprole business progressing,” Mr Hurrell said.

“Meanwhile, we’ve looked at a number of options for our Australian business and have decided that it’s in the co-op’s best interests to maintain full ownership.

“Australia plays an important role in our consumer strategy with a number of common and complementary brands and products and as a destination for our New Zealand milk solids.”

Mr Hurrell said despite tight supply, there was robust demand from global customers for dairy, which has helped Fonterra deliver a strong milk price and financial performance.

“Total group revenue increased $2.3 billion to $23.4 billion due to higher product prices, but sales volumes decreased in FY22 due to short-term shifts in demand and ongoing shipping and supply disruptions.

“Strong margins in the ingredients channel, particularly in the final quarter, resulted in an increase in our gross profit.

“However, total gross margin was down due to the higher cost of milk on our food service and consumer channels during the year.”

Mr Hurrell said the longer-term outlook for dairy remained positive.

“And in the medium-term, we expect to see an easing in some of the geopolitical events, namely the COVID-19 lockdowns in China and the economic challenges in Sri Lanka.

“This has been reflected in our earnings guidance and forecast farm gate milk price for the 2022-23 season.”

Dairy career within reach

ALTHOUGH SHE didn’t grow up on a farm, Anastasia Rea’s parents and extended family all came from dairy farming backgrounds so when it came to choosing a career, dairy was the top priority.

Anastasia, 19, is now pursuing her dream. As a 2022 Niel Black Gardiner Tertiary Scholar, she is six months into her Advanced Diploma of Agribusiness Management at Longerenong Agriculture College.

A 12-month gap year job on her uncle’s dairy farm confirmed her passion for the industry, and the scholarship made her study a reality.

It’s a long way from travelling the highways of Australia with her parents Richard and Venessa.

“My parents bought a bus and renovated it,” she said.

“We were meant to travel for two years but that turned into seven from when I was three years old.”

The family returned to Warrnambool when Anastasia was 10, and later moved to nearby Allansford. Her parents have recently returned to live in Perth.

Anastasia attended Emmanuel College in Warrnambool where she was able to study agriculture, including work experience on a dairy farm.

The gap year experience on her Uncle Eugene’s farm gave Anastasia the experience and motivation to pursue further study in the field.

“I really liked the physical work, which is

something I’ve always enjoyed, and I love working with cows,” she said.

“The early mornings weren’t too bad — I only had to get up at 4.30am so I couldn’t complain about that.”

Anastasia originally planned to study ani mal production at Charles Sturt University in Wagga but decided to look at different options.

“Longerenong was a bit more hands-on and because it’s an ag college, everyone is here for the same reason.”

Anastasia started the two-year course in February this year and says it is living up to expectations.

“It’s really good and I love the hands-on stuff,” she said.

“It’s very agronomy-based but we do lots of different things — some I already knew about but other things were completely new to me, like shearing and welding.”

Anastasia admits she probably wouldn’t be doing the course if not for the scholarship.

“I applied for it straight out of Year 12 but I didn’t really have the experience, so having the gap year was the best thing I did because it gave me the experience that I needed and that Gardiner was looking for.

“I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the Gardiner scholarship so it’s really special.

“I’m sure my parents would have helped, but I don’t think I could have afforded to go without the scholarship. It made it a whole lot easier for everybody.”

The scholarship offers up to $10,000 for each year of study.

After studying, Anastasia will consider various options for her “ideal career” and she hopes to experience working in agriculture in different parts of the world.

Although she has no set plans, she is inter ested in possible careers in stock agency, nutrition or embryo transfer.

“I definitely want to work in the dairy industry because I like working with cows, but I think I’d be happier to work on a farm rather than own one so I could still have the occasion al holiday.”

Applications for 2023 Gardiner Foundation Tertiary Scholarship close at 5pm on November 21. To be eligible, students must start their first year of full-time tertiary study in 2023 and need to relocate from home due to study commitments.

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Further information and application forms are available at: www.gardinerfoundation. com.au/ts/

Control

in Forage brassicas to increase yields

Anastasia Rea is a 2022 Niel Black Gardiner Tertiary Scholar. She is

months into her Advanced Diploma of Agribusiness Management at Longerenong Agriculture College.

Extra flood help

ADDITIONAL FUNDING from the NSW and federal governments to help primary producers recover from floods has been welcomed by a state-based farmer organisation.

The $100 million Critical Producer Grant Program will help those hardest hit by floods in NSW to restore production systems and rebuild essential infrastructure to a standard that will better withstand future disasters.

Applicants will have been required to have applied for the full $75,000 Special Disaster Assistance Grants that were made available earlier in the year and will close on June 30, 2023 — unless allocated funding is fully expended prior to that date.

NSW Farmers’ Deb Charlton said it was welcome additional support that recognised the impact on farm infrastructure following the February-March floods, and while it would not cover the full cost of rebuilding, it would provide a path forward.

“All aspects of the agriculture sector were affected — dairy, livestock, broadacre cropping, turf, vegetables, horticulture and perennial tree crops, and the oyster and mussel growers,” Mrs Charlton said.

“The financial pressures following multiple rain and flood events over successive years have left their toll — financially, physically and emotionally.

“It takes time to rebuild and re-establish production after these events, and I know there are many people concerned with the east coast of Australia now in its third La Niña.”

Mrs Charlton said the farming community had been thankful for government support this year, but acknowledged some frustration with parts of the process.

“We know due diligence must be undertaken to ensure the funding support reaches those most in need, but we are also hearing stories of delays and that can be hard for those in a tough position,” Mrs Charlton said.

“NSW Farmers has been in regular contact with agencies throughout this period and we have encouraged a streamlined assessment so any funding can deliver the support so desperately needed in a timely manner.

“With the same farmers and their communities facing the prospect of a third wet year ahead, it’s critical these processes continually improve to limit unnecessary stress.”

The

Katrina McRae is seeing the benefits of a more efficient way to monitor ‘the girls’ on her south-west Victorian dairy farm.

Data leads to ‘happy girls’

FORGET CRIME or romance novels, Heywood farmer Katrina McRae likes to read the latest data about her cows when she goes to bed at night.

As one of the first farmers in Australia to use Tru-Test Automated Heat & Health Monitoring with Active Ear Tags and Active Collars, Katrina is impressed with the information she’s getting.

“I like to lay in bed at night and go over the data and check up on what’s been going on and

make sure everything is good and all the girls are happy,” she said.

“I’ll also sit up early in the morning on the laptop before milking, to get a better idea of what’s going on, and to add my notes and update any info.

“I like to do that each day so we can stay on top of cow health; it’s pretty important this time of year when we are AI-ing.

“So far, we are really happy with how the collars are performing and also the data available

and just how easy it all is to use.”

The 227 Holstein cows on the south-west Victorian farm are like family to Katrina and her partner Kerry Cowland, so much so that she regularly refers to them as ‘the girls’.

The Tru-Test Automated Heat & Health Monitoring with Active Ear Tags and Active Collars are marketed in Australia by Genetics Australia. They were added to Katrina’s cows around the start of April.

With two-year-old son William and daughter Sophie just entering high school, Katrina wanted to improve time management while also getting a higher in-calf rate.

“One of the most important things to do is watch your cows, but we felt there had to be a better way of doing it and we wanted to cut down on the time we spend sitting in the paddock watching cows,” she said.

“Putting collars on just made sense. It gave us more time to do other jobs around the farm because the system is taking care of what we used to spend hours and hours doing every day.”

She’s already seeing the returns on her investment.

“They are picking up heat that we probably wouldn’t see and they’re also picking up cows that aren’t cycling, which is something we might not pick up till later and it could be too late.”

Katrina wants to eliminate drug use and go with a natural cycling system. She has used Cue-Mate to bring them on and in a group of 17, there were 15 that cycled on their own. Other cows that don’t cycle go into fixed-time AI.

“We want as many cows as possible cycling in the first few weeks and to get them in calf as early as possible on their natural heat,” she said.

“We’re not inducing heat or pumping them full of drugs to get them all coming on at the same time. We’re doing it when they’re ready, and we hope that will give us a higher in-calf rate.”

Tru-Test Automated Heat & Health Monitoring with Active Ear Tags and Active Collars was selected because it could be integrated with the farm’s Easy Dairy data system.

Katrina is also upgrading the draft gate to an Easy Dairy system so it can connect with the collars.

The addition of collars was a smooth process.

“They walk out of the crush with the collar on, swing their head a bit and then they didn’t even worry about it,” Katrina said.

“We have a few cows that tend to be naughty and have lost collars but we pick that up and drive to the paddock and find it.”

Katrina praised the Genetics Australia team for assisting with the introduction and teaching her how to make the system work.

She is looking to long-term benefits for herself and the ‘girls’.

“Everyone is looking for different things but in the end, we all want to get our cows in-calf and for our cows to be happy.

“We’re investing in something that’s going to make our job easier. Every day we’re looking for a way to work smarter and hopefully it will make the girls happier.

“You’ve got to have happy cows to run a dairy farm. If we look after the girls, they will look after us tenfold.”

Katrina and Kerry took over the farm from Katrina’s father Andrew three years ago, with Kerry focusing on pasture improvement and Katrina on the herd.

“The grass is growing and the cows are happy and we’re seeing the results of that in the vat,” Katrina said.

“I’m proud of how far we’ve come.”

Dairy may help with diabetes

NEW RESEARCH presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm, Sweden, shows that dairy products, especially low-fat ones and yoghurt, are associated with a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D).

Red and processed meat were linked to a higher risk of T2D but moderate amounts of fish and eggs could be eaten in their place, the Italian researchers said.

T2D is the most common form of diabetes and it occurs when the pancreas can’t make enough insulin (the hormone which promotes the absorption of glucose from blood into the body’s cells, maintaining normal blood sugar levels) and/or the insulin it makes doesn’t work properly (low insulin sensitivity).

Overweight and obesity are the main risk factors, and incidence of T2D is projected to increase. Common complications include heart disease, kidney disease, vision loss and circulatory problems, which can lead to foot amputation.

Existing dietary guidelines for the prevention of T2D recommend eating specific plantbased foods such as whole grains, vegetables, fruits, legumes and olive oil, and typically advise limiting consumption of most animal products.

However, not all sources of animal protein are nutritionally equal. Knowing how different animal products are associated with T2D would allow the guidelines to be updated, making it easier for people to choose the best foods to cut their risk of diabetes.

To do this, Dr Annalisa Giosuè — of the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy — and colleagues carried out a review of existing meta-analyses into links between different animal-based foods and diabetes.

The PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Embase databases were searched for dose-response meta-analyses of studies into the  relationship between different foods and T2D.

There was a substantial increase in T2D risk with the consumption of 100g/day of total meat (20 per cent increase in risk) and 100g/day of

red meat (22 per cent increase) and with 50g/ day of processed meats (30 per cent increase). The quality of evidence was moderate.

The research found 50g/day of white meat was associated with a smaller increase in T2D risk (four per cent).

“There are several potential reasons for this,” Dr Giosuè said.

“For example, red and processed meat are important sources of components like saturated fatty acids, cholesterol and haem iron, all known to promote chronic low-level inflammation and oxidative stress, which, in turn, can reduce the sensitivity of the cells to insulin.

“Processed meats also contain nitrates, nitrites and sodium which, among other adverse effects, can damage the insulinproducing cells of the pancreas.

“White meat, in comparison, has a lower fat content, a more favourable fatty acid profile and a lower amount of haem iron.”

Dairy foods, in contrast, appeared to protect against T2D or had a neutral relationship with the development of the condition.

Milk (200g/day) was associated with a 10 per cent reduction in risk, total dairy (200g/day) with a five per cent reduction in risk and low-fat dairy (200g/day) with a three per cent reduction. Yoghurt (100g/day) was associated with a six per cent reduction in risk.

Cheese (30g/day) and full-fat dairy (200g/ day) were found to have no effect on the risk of T2D. The quality of evidence was moderate to low.

“Dairy products are rich in nutrients, vitamins and other bioactive compounds which may favourably influence glucose metabolism — the processing of sugar by the body,” Dr Giosuè said.

“For example, whey proteins in milk are known to modulate the rise of blood sugar levels after eating.

“Probiotics are also known to exert beneficial effects on glucose metabolism, which may explain why we found that a regular consumption of yoghurt is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.”

‘We achieve

BY DANEKA HILL

IT WAS a leap of faith that brought Sarah Parker and her husband Raymond out of their corporate careers in Brisbane and into the Goulburn Valley.

But it was tireless effort that landed Sarah on a stage in Canberra, in heels and a dress, accepting a national award for rural leadership.

“I haven’t dressed up in years, then I was wearing heels for three days straight,” she said.

“I didn’t mind dressing up ... but it’s always nice to come back to the farm. It keeps me grounded.”

As she accepted the 2022 Rural Community Leader of the Year Award on September 9, Sarah was a long way from where she began.

“We came down to the Goulburn Valley with a mute, trailer, a dog and 20 cows. I was a city slicker and had no idea,” she said.

“Raymond always wanted to farm but the opportunity was never there.

“He was working in Brisbane when we married ... we took holidays for a couple of years to see the different dairy areas and the Goulburn Valley stood out as the best place for entry-level farming.”

But the pair still needed a lucky break, and it came in the form of local couple Terry and Ursula Tidcombe who knew Raymond’s grandfather.

“They were willing to lease us their farm — which was a huge gamble for them because we didn’t know anything about farming in Victoria,” Sarah said.

“Raymond likes to say: Water in Queensland is vertical. Water in Victoria is horizontal.”

That one bit of voluntary goodwill snow balled and the local community didn’t know what hit it when Sarah walked into her first UDV farm meeting.

“I was new to the area and knew no-one out side of working at Dookie college, so I went to a UDV meeting to meet people and I got inter ested,” Sarah said.

“It was Rien Silverstein at the VFF who gave me the push to join Australian Women In Ag.”

Another mentor was Cathy McGowan (former Australian Women in Agriculture president and former Federal Member for Indi) who was Mrs Parker’s lecturer at university.

“It was Cathy who encouraged me to look further than Queensland,” Sarah said.

“It takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a village to enable a volunteer.”

As the volunteering grew, Sarah’s jobs followed the trend, going from a program co-ordinator at Murray Dairy to its chief exec utive officer, then board member for Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority.

“When we moved people told me ‘when you first buy a farm, the wife has to have an offfarm job’, so I focused on doing that,” she said.

Sarah said everyone steps up and volunteers when it’s right for them.

She described volunteering as a massive mental health booster.

“It builds resilience and helps you connect with your community.

“It also helps you understand where you are and what you’re a part of.”

The post-COVID-19 move towards working from home has become a double-edged sword.

“COVID changed volunteering. Now you can have someone from the city helping out,” Sarah said.

“But I’m also aware of people in our rural communities who are working from home and not leaving the house. We need to help them connect.

“I don’t think it’s healthy to not be meeting people. Nothing beats a chat and a cup of coffee.”

Sarah said digital literacy was shaping up to be the next big hurdle for rural communities.

“If you have a poor phone connection and don’t know how to use it, you’re missing out on so much,” she said.

“When we have good phone connections, we do better than the city.

“People discount rural living, but the reality is there are more opportunities out here.”

A good example of remote technology is Sarah’s insulin pump.

“I have type one diabetes. I have an insulin pump (MEDTRONIC) connected to my phone. My phone has an app (CARELINK) that can be

achieve more together’

accessed by medical professional from any where in Australia,” she said.

“If I didn’t have internet services, my doctor couldn’t monitor me. I need phone service to use this and digital literacy and it’s made my levels as normal as anyone else.”

Sarah recommended AgCAREERSTART gap years as a great opportunity for school-leavers and those looking for a start in agriculture.

“The NFF have a student program where you do a paid gap year on a farm, and they’ll teach you everything,” she said.

“The best thing is it’s formally recognised training.”

For others looking for volunteering oppor tunities close to home, your local council is a great resource and can point you in the right direction.

Parker from Undera

New genomics facility open

NEOGEN AUSTRALASIA has consolidated its genomics, food safety and animal safety ser vices in one purpose-built location, which was officially opened in Ipswich on September 16.

The $11 million state-of-the-art Bundamba site is Australia’s largest genomics facility and provides Queensland’s only locally-based food and animal safety services with on-site ware housing, distribution and technical support.

NEOGEN Australasia’s Bobby Creasman said the new facility provided room to grow into the future and supported NEOGEN’s promise to positively impact the local, rural employment market and the agricultural industry.

“NEOGEN Australasia currently employs more than 60 staff and we expect to create at least another 25 new jobs in the next five years to ensure we can continue to meet the demands and expectations of Australia’s livestock producers and food processing companies,” Mr Creasman said.

“Our new Ipswich facility will be at the forefront of ensuring greater accessibility of genomic tools at improved value to producers, while providing more information across the livestock production value chain.”

NEOGEN Australasia now processes about one million DNA samples annually.

Its Food Safety product range covers solutions for the Australasian agribusiness sector and its Animal Safety range includes cleaners and disinfectants for farm and veterinary settings, and pest control solutions such as insecticides and rodenticides to limit the spread of disease.

“Our investment in new facilities is in keeping with our commitment to our custom ers to continually invest in developing new and cutting-edge technologies that improve their livestock and food safety businesses,” Mr Creasman said.

MAKE YOUR HERD MORE SUSTAINABLE FOR GENERATIONS TO COME

DAIRY FARMS TODAY ARE MORE SUSTAINABLE THAN EVER BEFORE with higher production per cow and fewer resources required for each kg of milk produced. Fodder and grass production, along with herd management tools and balancing herd inventory are all keys to your sustainable approach.

Many advances have occurred in the genetic industry, starting with frozen semen and more recently sexed semen and commercial IVF. Along with these technologies, genomics has changed the speed at which we are able to make genetic progress in our herds. By focusing on economic traits included in HHP$ and BPI, this Sustainability Guide provides you with targeted genetic options to genetically develop a sustainable herd by creating profitable, long lasting cows.

Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding, NEOGEN’s Bobby Creasman and Jason Lilly, State Member for Bundamba Lance McCallum, and Ipswich councillors Nicole Jonic and Jacob Madsen at the opening of Neogen’s new facility.

Poover sucks up farm waste

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST manure vacuum truck has arrived in Nowra.

The Canadian-built Nuhn Self Propelled Alley Vac will play a key role in the collection of manure from local dairy farms for the $17 million Nowra Bioenergy Facility due to open in 2023.

Innovating Energy’s industrial scale bioenergy plant will aggregate cow manure from 19 Nowra dairies, mixed with local food and organic waste, to generate renewable energy and produce nutrient-rich fertiliser.

The plant will use innovative European technology to turn farm and food waste into biogas that will generate electricity that gets fed back into the grid.

Effluent collecting machines are widely used in North America and Europe, however, the Nowra dairy farms will be the first to use the technology in Australia.

Innovating Energy founder Philip Horan said the Alley Vac was an integral part of its effluent management system and gave 19 dairy farmers the technology they needed to collect as much manure as possible from their farms.

Nicknamed the Poover, the Alley Vac is designed to vacuum up significant amounts of manure from milking and feedpad areas, and concrete and hard-stand areas, in a single pass.

Giant blades manoeuvre to follow the contours of uneven ground, a short wheelbase and four-wheel steer allows for a tight turning radius, and a full-length auger makes for fast unloading.

The purchase of the Alley Vac was made possible by a $455,000 grant awarded by the Coles Nurture Fund last year.

The Coles-funded grants program recognises small to medium businesses contributing to sustainable farming.

The Nowra area is one of the oldest dairying regions in the country and one of the flattest. When heavy rains hit, effluent can leach into the Shoalhaven River.

“The dairy farmers feel strongly about their environmental responsibilities and were impressed by the proposed facility’s green credentials and the benefits of the biogas plant for the community,” Mr Horan said.

“One of the things the farmers really understood about this project, is that it'll greatly contribute to an environmental clean-up of their farms. They’ll drastically reduce their CO2 emissions and wastewater pollution.

“The facility will produce a constant 2.2 megawatts of clean, green energy from the outset, with zero emissions. That’s enough to power 20,000 homes.

“Unlike renewable energy from wind and solar, the plant will generate baseload green energy 24/7, 365 days a year, and the output will increase to 3.3 megawatts in time.”

Mr Horan said some of the produced power would be sold to the participating dairy farmers at a reduced rate, which will cut their power bills and slash farm overheads.

The rest will be sold to the grid for the community to buy at competitive market rates.

The farmers will also enjoy free nutrient-rich fertiliser — a by-product of biogas production.

“We’re also going to see 30,000 tonnes of green waste saved from landfill,” Mr Horan said.

“We need organic food waste and farm waste to create biogas, which means local supermarkets, clubs, pubs and processing companies will play their part in the plant’s production of clean energy.”

The facility will be built at the former Nowra Wastewater Treatment Plant site in Terara, just outside Nowra, and operations will be fully enclosed, which means no noise and no odours.

“Which is great news for residents.” Mr Horan said.

Innovating Energy has lodged an Environmental Impact Statement and is planning to start groundworks once final approval is granted.

The 2022 Irrigation Australia International Conference and Exhibition is being held this month and for the first time will include a renewable energy workshop as interest in renewables explodes amid soaring electricity prices.

Irrigated agriculture plays a critical role in feeding the nation, but its ongoing sustainability and competitiveness relies on reliable, cheap, low emission electricity and diesel for the pumping of water.

According to the National Irrigators’ Council, 93 per cent of fruit, nuts and grapes, 83 per cent of vegetables, 48 per cent of dairy products and 100 per cent of rice is produced by irrigated agriculture.

The renewable energy workshop on October 6 will bring together farmers and industry experts to discuss the uptake of solar, batteries, micro-grids and agrivoltaics (the combining of solar and farming) in the sector and how emissions and power costs can be cut.

A session on future tech will see Neil Thompson, from Queensland University of Technology, talk through the hydrogen economy and how farmers could be well placed to take advantage of these new technologies.

“Recent increases in gas prices on the east coast of Australia have seen deteriorating margins in the ag sector,” Mr Thompson said.

“At the same time, volatility in diesel pricing has seen similar pressure on farms using diesel for vehicles and irrigation pumps.

“Accordingly, green hydrogen made from spare renewable energy and wastewater potentially offers some hope.”

James Stacey — an irrigator in South Australia who grows grains, oaten hay and livestock — has been using solar to reduce his pumping costs.

He had expensive power bills of $5000 to $6000 a month before installing solar. He said his power bills had now substantially reduced, with the payback in about three years.

“We’re able to export to the grid so that helps generate a small income during the winter months when we don’t irrigate much,” Mr Stacey said

“The rough payback for our solar was about three years so it stacks up economically for our business.

“It has changed the way we irrigate, too, as we used to only irrigate in off-peak times, but now we can irrigate when it’s best for the crops and for us.”

Anne Dansey from AgVic will speak about combining solar and farming on the same parcel of land.

AgVic has installed a number of solar panels above a pear orchard to test the impact on the trees, with early results indicating reduced fruit damage by sunburn and improved water use efficiency.

For information on the renewable energy workshop program, visit: https://www.icid2022.com.au/ renewable-energy-workshop/

The Nuhn Self Propelled Alley Vac will help collect manure from dairy farms for the $17 million Nowra Bioenergy Facility due to open in 2023.

High hopes for

THE TASMANIAN Institute of Agriculture and the Tasmanian Agricultural Productivity Group are joining forces to investigate improvements to centre pivot irrigation application.

The new project will evaluate the opportunity and capacity to develop a means to retrofit existing centre pivots to improve their effectiveness, efficiency, and resilience during drought.

Centre pivot irrigation is the most common form of irrigation in Australia, and the fastest growing type of irrigation globally.

It is estimated that in Tasmania alone around 3500 to 4000 centre pivot irrigators have been installed in the past 25 years.

However, centre pivot irrigators are not well suited to soils with low infiltration rates (<50mm/hr).

In low-infiltration-rate soils the rate at which water is discharged on outer spans exceeds the soil infiltration rate causing run-off and limited infiltration.

The solution is to increase the wetted footprint from the sprinklers, or increase the time that water is applied at any point around the pivot so sprinkler output can be reduced.

The project will be coordinated by Dr Marcus Hardie, University of Tasmania, soil hydrologist and AgTech leader at TIA, and operated by Dr John McPhee, agricultural engineer, contracted through TAPG.

“Many of Tasmania’s agricultural soils have low surface infiltration rates, due to a combination of inherent properties, carbon loss, water repellence, crusting and surface compaction,” Dr Hardie said.

“This results in irrigation application rates which often exceed the infiltration rate of the soil, especially on spans longer than 300 to 400 metres and when the time available for irrigation is constrained, such as when using night electricity tariffs.

“This results in run-off, erosion, waterlogging in low-lying areas, and drought in elevated areas.

“Growers are only able to apply between 5mm to 8mm irrigation a day, which is barely able to keep up with daily evapotranspiration over summer, resulting in what dairy farmers have coined the ‘green drought’, when irrigation can keep pasture green but not supply sufficient water to maximise growth.”

One concept being considered is retrofitting additional trailing spans to a centre pivot, creating a ‘Y-span’ design.

Modelling indicates that increasing the wetted footprint through such a design has the potential to reduce run-off from around 35 to 45 per cent to less than one per cent of irrigation and increase the amount of water stored in the soil from 5.5mm to 9.5mm per day.

“Such reductions in run-off and improvements in soil water storage would make a huge difference to growers who have problems in achieving adequate infiltration under the outer spans of pivots,” Dr McPhee said.

Importantly, the ability to store more water in the soil with each pass increases drought resilience as it enables growers to ‘catch up’ if the start of the season is late or there is a prolonged dry period, or if irrigation falls behind because of breakdown.

hopes for pivot boost

A Federal Government grant will allow the team to evaluate the potential of developing retro-fit centre pivot options as well as devel op the knowledge and partnerships required to enable submission of an Innovation Grant to design, build and evaluate potential solutions, such as the Y-span design.

Much of the engineering required will involve retrofitting existing components, developing sub-main connections, regulating flow rate and pressure, and re-orientation of sub-main wheel tracking.

“The likelihood of success for this project is quite high,” Dr Hardie said.

“The basic problem is known — instanta neous application rates under centre pivots are higher than soil infiltration rates, leading to increased run-off and poor irrigation efficacy.

“Not only does this waste water and ener gy, but also results in further soil damage, and sub-optimal crop production, leading to low water-use efficiency in what should be highly productive irrigation enterprises.”

The project will build on existing modelling of irrigation responses and on-ground experi ence to identify irrigation design and manage ment options that can reduce the impact of poor infiltration.

It will allow for the development of a path way to move from problem definition to design concepts, then to modelling and participant evaluation to determine which options are most likely to have success in a commercial operating environment.

A Tasmanian project will look at ways to improve centre pivot irrigation effectiveness and efficiency.

Vitamins linked to fertility

HERD REPRODUCTION performance is strongly linked to farm profitability.

In addition to high lactation performance, mod ern dairy cows need to deliver a strong and healthy calf each year to maintain farm profitability.

We also know that properly balanced nutri tion works harmoniously with the genetic ability of the cow to deliver the reproduction performance we desire in a dairy herd.

Available evidence suggest that low fertili ty of modern dairy cows is likely due to suboptimal management, especially nutrition, that does not match the genetic progress.

Several studies have shown that supple menting dairy cows with B vitamins, especially in a rumen-protected form, reduces fatty liver and improves energy balance during transition, which then results in improved fertility.

More recently, an on-farm trial conduct ed in Australian pasture-based dairy pro duction system showed the six-week in-calf rate was improved in cows supplemented with rumen-protected B vitamins during the pre-calving and lactation periods (Figure 1).

A previous study has also shown that in allyear-round calving herds, 100-day pregnancy rate was improved by 33 per cent.

Although B vitamins are co-factors and co-enzymes that facilitate various metabolic processes, such as glucose (energy) metabo lism and protein synthesis, recent advances in nutrition and genetic sciences have shown that B vitamins can directly stimulate certain genes that work in a coordinated fashion to regulate different reproductive functions.

Figure

For example, there are two key areas to improve fertility in dairy cows.

The first step to getting a cow pregnant involves a series of processes, starting from developing a viable and large follicle containing a quality egg or oocyte that will eventually be ovulated.

Research has shown that the genes that are

responsible for the coordination of these pro cesses are stimulated when rumen-protected B vitamins are fed to dairy cows during the early stage of lactation (Figure 2).

Development of a quality egg is another step to promoting a successful pregnancy. A cow that does not ovulate will not get pregnant.

The second factor to consider in improving fertility of dairy cows is the implantation of the fertilised egg (embryo) in the uterus, and growth of the foetus to trouble-free calving.

The loss of pregnancy has been linked to an unhealthy environment within the uterus and the inability of the embryo to establish a suc cessful attachment to the uterus.

Again, there are several genes that coordinate the preparation of the uterus so that the embryo can attach, be nourished and develop successfully.

When cows were supplemented with a blend of rumen-protected B vitamins, 11 genes were

of lactation.

is the level of

expressed — more than compared with cows that did not receive rumen-protected B vita mins (Figure 3).

These genes could cause changes in various important mechanisms in the uterus that will promote a favourable environment for a suc cessful pregnancy.

So, beyond acting as co-enzymes or co-fac tors, B vitamins also act directly to stimulate gene expressions for coordinated processes that lead to improved fertility.

This highlights the importance of how nutrition can be used to enhance the genetic expression and improve the performance of modern dairy cows.

To learn more about how supplementing your cows with rumen-protected B vitamins will support healthy and productive herd, talk to your nutritionist or Jefo representative.

– Dr Razaq Balogun, technical sales manager, Jefo Australia

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When is it a real emergency?

BY DR GEMMA CHUCK

THERE ARE many different diseases and conditions that affect cattle around the world.

Between countries and regions there is variation in the presence of established diseas es and the introduction of a new disease can have profound animal welfare and economic impacts.

Endemic diseases are ones that are con sistently present within a specific country or region. The patterns of spread for endemic disease and the rates at which they occur are often predictable.

What are emergency animal diseases?

According to the Australian EAD Response Agreement (EADRA), an Emergency Animal Disease (EAD) has to meet one or more of the following criteria:

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A disease that does not currently occur in Australia and for which it is in Australia’s national interest to be free from.

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A variation of an endemic disease which, if it became widespread, would have national impact.

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A serious infectious disease of unknown cause that may be entirely new.

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A se vere outbreak of a known e ndemic disease, which r equires an emergency response to help prevent an epidemic or serious loss of market access.

At present Australia is fortunate to be free from many different diseases. But changing weather patterns, increased travel habits and importation of materials and produce from EAD-infected countries can increase the risk of an incursion.

For cattle, the current EAD threats are foot and mouth disease and lumpy skin disease. Neither of these diseases are currently present in Australia but they are both present in Indonesia.

FMD is one of the most contagious animal diseases and is caused by the FMD virus. This is not the same as hand-foot-and-mouth disease in humans.

FMD affects domestic and wild clo ven-hoofed animals including cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, deer, some camelids and water buffalo. Horses and Australian feral camels (dromedaries) are not susceptible.

The virus is not a threat to human health.

In cattle, FMD is primarily spread by direct contact and inhalation of infected aerosols with movement of infected animals being the most important route by which FMD spreads between herds and farms.

FMD is the most significant biosecurity threat to Australia’s livestock industries. An outbreak could have devastating consequenc es for our community through lost production, trade and tourism.

Lumpy skin disease is a highly infectious dis ease that affects all breeds of cattle and water buffalo and is caused by LSD virus.

It does not affect other types of livestock or humans.

LSD is primarily spread by biting insects (mos quitoes, biting flies and possibly ticks). Direct contact, contaminated feed, water, milk, semen and equipment can also spread the disease.

An incursion of LSD would have severe negative animal welfare and economic impli cations along with substantial trade impacts.

How can I reduce the risk of an EAD?

The Federal Government has stringent bios ecurity measures offshore, at the border and onshore to help reduce the risk of an EAD occurring in Australia.

Good biosecurity at the individual farm level is also a critical layer of defence in the event of an incursion.

All dairy farmers should know how to protect their livestock and properties from disease, the signs and symptoms of our curr ent EAD threats, as well as how to report them.

Every visitor to your farm has the potential to inadvertently breach your biosecurity and introduce unwanted disease to the herd.

If you have concerns or suspect an EAD on your property, immediately call the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888 (free call within Australia).

References and resources: https://www.dairyaustralia.com. au/issues-and-emergencies/ emergency-animal-disease-preparedness https://www.agriculture.gov.au/bios ecurity-trade/pests-diseases-weeds/ animal/fmd https://www.farmbiosecurity.com.au/ about/emergency-animal-diseases/ https://fmdready.com.au/

Looking to improve reproduction in your herd?

Gemma Chuck works for Apiam

Health in the Dairy Operations team. Dr Gemma Chuck.

Forage harvesters upgraded

THE 9500 self-propelled forage harvester will deliver more power, precision and pro ductivity, according to John Deere’s Stephanie Gersekowski.

She said the 9500 was part of a redefined self-propelled forage harvester line-up, which included the reintroduction of the 9600 and a new horsepower level and engine for the 9700.

The 8000 series will remain the same, however, horsepower has been increased via an engine upgrade for the 8200.

“Farmers and contractors demand dura ble high-capacity forage harvesters that consistently deliver maximum throughput to make the most of peak harvest windows,” Stephanie said.

“The new 9500 is one of three models offering increased power and throughput in 2023, delivered through John Deere’s new JD18X engine which reduces revolutions per minute, while decreasing fuel and oil usage to drive further efficiency gains during operation.”

The 9500, as well as the 9600 and 9700, also comes equipped with HarvestMotion PLUS, an advanced feature synchronising engine speed with crop flow and power needs to maintain consistent crop throughput at low RPMs.

“HarvestMotion PLUS delivers an additional 18, 27 and 48 kW of power across the 9700, 9600 and 9500 respectively,” Stephanie said.

“This provides farmers and contractors with 10 per cent more productivity and 10 per cent less fuel usage per tonne harvested.”

She said the models’ upgraded spout also increased visibility and ease of maintenance.

“A new spout design will become standard across the complete 9000 series.

“The spout has a longer, optimised contour to create increased visibility and more service openings, making the machine easier to service to help farmers and contractors maximise their machinery up-time.”

Model fronts have also been redefined, and the 30R Windrow Pick-Up comes equipped with an 80cm auger, which is a 24cm upgrade compared to the 56cm standard on 6X9 pick-ups.

Stephanie said the hard iron updates complemented the tried and tested advantage of John Deere’s crop analysis and documenta tion tools.

“HarvestLab 3000, and precision guidance technology, Autotrac, all seamlessly integrate with John Deere’s forage harvesters,” she said.

“In July last year, John Deere made the dig ital ecosystem more accessible to Australian farmers by removing all ongoing costs for JDLink.

“We are seeing, now more than ever, Australian farmers using this tool for the col lection of agronomic and machine data to pow er efficient, profitable and environmentally sustainable improvements for their business.”

The John Deere 9500 self-propelled forage harvester was launched in Australia in August.

Dealership keeps expanding

GIPPSLAND AND Tasmania dealership

TTMI took over as the Case IH dealer in Warrnambool, Victoria, from Agrimac on September 1.

It will also open a branch in Colac early next year.

From its beginnings in 1972 as a Case and David Brown dealer in Trafalgar, the business has been constantly evolving.

In 2003 the name was changed to Traf Tractors and Machinery, and there was further expansion into Maffra and Leongatha, in Victoria’s Gippsland, and then further growth into Tasmania with its Longford and Latrobe branches in 2018. The name was changed to TTMI in the same year.

Dealer principal Jason Henry, who has more than 25 years in the agricultural industry, and group sales manager/director Andrew Snape, who began his career in the industry as an apprentice diesel mechanic almost 30 years ago, both grew up on dairy farms in the Gippsland region and are proud to be offering services back into these regions.

Jason and Andrew bought into TTMI in 2015 and 2018 respectively and are both hands-on directors in the day-to-day operation of TTMI.

“This latest expansion comes at a great time and the move into Warrnambool extends our reach in Victoria and, together with the opening of a branch in Colac in 2023, will further reinforce the strength of the TTMI network,” Jason said.

“It’s an area we already know so well, so have the knowledge and experience to deliver the support and service our clients expect.”

Jason said it was an exciting time for the TTMI team as they prepared for the next chapter in the business’ growth, with each

expansion presenting fresh opportunities and new challenges.

“Our existing customers can be assured we won’t be taking our eye off the ball as we continue to grow,” he said.

“In fact, the growth of our network only increases the opportunities for customers in

terms of buying power and supply, and the increased capacity of our parts and service departments.

“We’re looking forward to bringing these benefits to both existing and new customers and ensuring uninterrupted support throughout the transition period.”

TTMI’s Jason Henry and Andrew Snape.

New sales manager appointed

LARS PASEDAG has been appointed as Krone’s Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia sales manager.

The newly created role supports Krone’s distributor network in partnership with Kubota in Australia, Tulloch Farm Machines in New Zealand and their respective dealer networks.

Lars said he was excited to join the Krone team once again and looked forward to expand ing the footprint of this innovative and cus tomer-focused brand.

“Krone is going through a time of innovation with many impressive products and technology features in the pipeline,” he said.

“As a market leader in disc mowers, rotary rakes and tedders, forage wagons and trailers, round and square balers as well as self-pro pelled mowers and forage harvesters, the Krone business is ready for renewed growth.

“I look forward to supporting Krone’s expan sion in these key growth markets, while helping farmers to innovate and be successful.”

As part of the Krone team in various capac ities over the years, Lars originally worked in the Krone headquarters in Germany before moving to Australia where he joined the Kubota Australia team in 2005.

In this role Lars was responsible for the marketing and product management of Krone along with other Kubota products.

Continuing to build the Krone brand, Lars will be the go-to person for dealers and distrib utors requiring sales support and will provide expertise on sales and technical advice on the Krone product range.

He will also act as an intermediate between the Krone factory in Germany and deal ers, distributors and customers in Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia.

Krone Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia sales manager Lars Pasedag.

Fully automated and ready to take care of all milking tasks, the DairyProQ not only provides you with ground-breaking ways to optimise the workflow of your farm, it represents the perfect balance between people, animals and technology.

Ready for your next step? Learn more about how the DairyProQ can take care of milking your cows for you.