Cow and farmer friendly
Cows benefit from robotic milking. They are more relaxed, healthier, and reward farmers with more milk.
Dairy automation specialist Lely has developed a version of its Discovery robot to remove manure from solid floors, unlike the original which could only push muck through floor slats.
The Discovery Collector contains a vacuum pump to ‘hoover’ up manure after first softening it with a front mounted water nozzle, then using a following spray to wet the floor to prevent it becoming slippery.
On board, two water bladders of 70L capacity are filled from a docking station at the end of a cycle, and in a neat piece of design, the bladder containing the manure expands as the water tanks empty.
After a run, manure is emptied from the machine at a designated dump site.
The Collector navigates independently using in-built sensors, following an easily programmed, pre-determined path at pre-determined times.
Available in Europe in early 2017 and elsewhere later in the year.
http://www.lely.comAnalysis by Dunedin-based Techion New Zealand shows the cost of undetected drench resistance in sheep has exploded to an estimated $98 million a year.
Shipping disruption caused by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea has so far not impacted fertiliser prices or supply on farm.
The opportunity to spend more time on farm while providing a dedicated service for shareholders attracted new environmental manager Ben Howden to work for Waimakariri Irrigation Limited (WIL).
Federated Farmers claims that the Otago Regional Council is charging ahead unnecessarily with piling more regulation on rural communities.
Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand for their products.
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