Lely order book 'slightly better'
Dairy automation company Lely reported a 3.4% decline in total turnover last year but notes that sales are picking up.
Lely has launched three new products to make on-farm tasks easier for farmers.
A new barn system called Lely Sphere, Lely Exos, an electric vehicle that mows, loads and dispenses grass in the barn and Lely Horizon, a “decision support platform” to replace its T4C management system.
Lely says some of its innovations are compatible for all markets around the world. However, pilot farms trialing the new products are mostly in Europe.
The innovations were launched at the Lely Future Farm Days digital event last week.
The company says the vision of the farm of the future is centred on livestock: repetitive tasks are automated, allowing dairy farmers to concentrate on things that are important to them.
Farms are completely robotised and operational 24/7. The farm of the future is based on the principle of allowing cows to move freely, so they can behave naturally, and their welfare is guaranteed, it says.
“We live in a rapidly changing world where the population continues to grow,” says André van Troost, chief executive of Lely.
“We desperately need farmers, because we expect the demand for food to increase by 70% by 2050. The impact of farming on the environment is also coming under increasing scrutiny, and regulations are becoming stricter.
“Dairy farmers therefore have to change the way they work to guarantee their future.”
Managing director of Woolover Ltd, David Brown, has put a lot of effort into verifying what seems intuitive, that keeping newborn stock's core temperature stable pays dividends by helping them realise their full genetic potential.
Within the next 10 years, New Zealand agriculture will need to manage its largest-ever intergenerational transfer of wealth, conservatively valued at $150 billion in farming assets.
Boutique Waikato cheese producer Meyer Cheese is investing in a new $3.5 million facility, designed to boost capacity and enhance the company's sustainability credentials.
OPINION: The Government's decision to rule out changes to Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) that would cost every farmer thousands of dollars annually, is sensible.
Compensation assistance for farmers impacted by Mycoplama bovis is being wound up.
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