Rewarding farmers who embrace sustainability
Winners of DairyNZ’s Sustainability and Stewardship awards in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards have their eyes firmly fixed on progressing a positive future for New Zealand dairy.
“I represent the next generation of farmers, I know the challenges we face and I believe we are in a position to grow, innovate and continue to do things better,” he says.
He says it’s time farmers embraced new technology and innovation to tackle environmental sustainability.
Coombes lives at Taupiri, north Waikato, 2000 milking cows, plus dairy support and dry stock cattle, on 750ha.
Open to trying something new, he is in the process of phasing out his fleet of quads for new electric farmbikes.
“I’ve got seven Ubco 2x2 electric bikes, and they are great,” says Coombes. “They are quiet and easy to operate. I’m passionate about sustainable farming and reducing emissions.”
Coombes says he first heard about the Ubco bikes at Fieldays two years ago. “I’ve always been interested in innovation so these caught my eye.” With regulatory and political pressures making demands on farmers, Coombes believes new science and technology will be vital.
“These days we are farming in a ‘fish bowl’ and that means that the wider community in New Zealand is looking at farming, and so is the international community and our export markets. So we must look at new ways to improve sustainability onfarm.”
He believes scientific developments and technology hold the key.
“Farmers can take heart in some of the innovative discoveries happening in NZ,” he says.
He cites as an example CRV Ambreed’s LowN Sires, a genetic discovery announced in March, with potential to reduce nitrogen leaching on farms by 20% within 20 years. The company identified and selected bulls genetically superior for a new trait related to the amount of urea nitrogen in milk. Cows bred from these bulls are expected to excrete less nitrogen in their urine which will, in turn, reduce the amount of nitrogen leached from grazed pasture.
“This could save NZ 10 million kg in nitrogen leaching a year, based on the national herd number of 6.5 million dairy cattle.”
Then there’s the plantain Ecotain, launched last month by Agricom, designed to reduce nitrogen leaching from urine patches by up to 50%.
He believes agricultural leaders need to get into the conversations about science and technology and how they can help farmers.
“It’s important for our industry leaders to communicate the latest scientific developments, products and technology to grass-roots farmers,” says Coombes. “I’d like to see agricultural leaders collaborating more and communicating better on science and technology, and making that a part of the ‘story of dairying’.”
