OAD arrives early in Southland
Some dairy farmers in Southland are already moving to once a day (OAD) milking because they don’t have sufficient good pasture on which to graze their stock.
The organiser of last week’s once-a-day (OAD) milking conference in Palmerston North says he is stoked at the turnout.
Gray Beagley, from DairyNZ, says 140 people attended this first national event in three years, coming from Northland and Southland, Nelson, Taranaki, South Waikato and elsewhere.
The previous conference was run by the late Professor Colin Holmes, a keen advocate and supporter of OAD.
The conference theme was ‘happiness comes before success’, with most keynote speakers telling farmers to enjoy their work and not be driven to exhaustion by the quest for profit.
“So often farmers are driven to gain the extra kilogram of milk solids that they often lose sight of things that create a happy team. The buzz and vibe in the room tells you these are guys are happy and valuing their happiness and not just the bottom line,” said Beagley.
In Manawatu, Beagley’s home region, every year he sees more farmers turning to OAD, some for part of the season to cope with weather, others taking it up full time.
They are less stressed, so are their cows, he says, so they get in calf more easily.
Otaki farmer Kerry Walker says his change to OAD two years ago has reduced his stress levels. When he was milking TAD it was uneconomic to employ an extra worker; the switch to OAD has improved the financial viability of his farm.
“Production is vanity, profit is sanity,” Walker says. “There are two sides to this -- revenue and costs; so maybe we lose a little bit of revenue but we can balance this up with less cost.
“With lower stress levels I will be able to work in my twilight years. I love farming and I don’t want to give it away. This way I can continue farming without having to do all those hours.”
The two-day conference had a day of speakers and the second day in the field, including a visit to Massey University’s No 1 dairy farm and to well-known OAD farmer Christine Finnigan’s property in Manawatu.
Brett Wotton, an Eastern Bay of Plenty kiwifruit grower and harvest contractor, has won the 2025 Kiwifruit Innovation Award for his work to support lifting fruit quality across the industry.
Academic Dr Mike Joy and his employer, Victoria University of Wellington have apologised for his comments suggesting that dairy industry CEOs should be hanged for contributing towards nitrate poisoning of waterways.
Environment Southland's catchment improvement funding is once again available for innovative landowners in need of a boost to get their project going.
The team meeting at the Culverden Hotel was relaxed and open, despite being in the middle of calving when stress levels are at peak levels, especially in bitterly cold and wet conditions like today.
A comment by outspoken academic Dr Mike Joy suggesting that dairy industry leaders should be hanged for nitrate contamination of drinking/groundwater has enraged farmers.
OPINION: The phasing out of copper network from communications is understandable.
OPINION: Westland Milk may have won the contract to supply butter to Costco NZ but Open Country Dairy is having…
OPINION: The Gene Technology Bill has divided the farming community with strong arguments on both the pros and cons of…