Green light for acquisition
The merger of two of the country’s largest animal nutrition companies won’t lessen competition, the Commerce Commission has ruled.
Nothing competes with grass when it comes to cost effective feed. But when grass supply is short, ProGibb SG is the next best thing, says Farmlands Manawatu field manager Mike McLean.
He says for no more than 16c/kgDM (including application costs), New Zealand’s first and most widely tested plant growth regulator for pasture presents a compelling financial argument this spring.
“Few inputs can offer the same return in the current economic climate, but for many farmers ProGibb SG has become part and parcel of cost-effective farming no matter what the budget looks like.”
McLean says the product is “proven to work, and there’s good trial data wrapped around it as well”.
He estimates at least 50% of his clients now routinely use ProGibb to boost DM production in spring and autumn by 30-60% within three weeks of applications.
One user is Himitangi dairy farmer Owen Greig, with 2400 cows on two milking platforms and a sizeable run-off. He started using ProGibb SG three-four years ago and now aims to apply it on both milking platforms several times a year, spraying up to 200ha a week at the busiest times and complementing it with solid urea.
His first goal was to shift his spring balance date and he says pasture supply now matches cow demand 7-10 days earlier than it used to. “Now we’re using it in early autumn too, to help build our covers back up after summer.”
Either way, he says, “it’s growing grass for the cheapest possible price at the time of the year when you need it most.”
Rural trader PGG Wrightson has revised its operating earnings guidance, saying trading conditions have deteriorated since the last market update in February.
It's been a bumper season for maize and other supplements in the eastern Bay of Plenty.
Leading farmers from around New Zealand connected to share environmental stories and inspiration and build relationships at the Dairy Environment Leaders (DEL) national forum in Wellington last month.
AgriZeroNZ, a joint venture fast-tracking emissions reduction tools for farmers, is pouring $5 million in a biotech company to develop a low emissions farm pasture with increased productivity gains.
Fonterra is teaming up with wealth app provider Sharesies to make it easier for its farmer shareholders to trade co-op shares among themselves.
Te Awamutu dairy farmers Doug, Penny, Josh and Bayley Storey have planted more than 25,000 native trees on the family farm, adding to a generations-old native forest.
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