increase font size
A TIKORANGI dairy farming operation is the inaugural winner of the 2014 Taranaki Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
It was described by judges as an outstanding example of best dairying practise.
The region's first Supreme title was presented to Gavin and Oliver Faull, Faull Farms, and their sharemilkers, Tony and Loie Penwarden, at a special Ballance Farm Environment Awards ceremony on April 3.
The Faull Farms Ltd/Trewithen Partnership also collected the Ballance Agri-Nutrients Soil Management Award, the LIC Dairy Farm Award, the Massey University Innovation Award and the PGG Wrightson Land and Life Award.
Gavin and Oliver are directors of Faull Farms Ltd, which owns the 371ha property near Waitara. The Penwardens have been sharemilking on the farm since 2004 and currently milk 850 spring-calving cows and 300 autumn-calving cows on a 282ha milking platform.
Last year the operation produced almost 488,000kg of Milksolids (MS) and this season it is on target to achieve 540,000kgMS.
BFEA judges described the business as a strong example of dairying and what can be achieved with "two businesses combining effectively to service the aspirations of both".
Judges were impressed with the determination of the partners to achieve best practise in all areas, noting the outstanding adoption of technology and innovation, excellent per hectare and per cow production levels and an "admirable focus on people".
Cows are milked through a high-tech 60-bale rotary dairy which is fully automated to enable the collection and analysis of a comprehensive range of performance data. A former farm dairy has been converted into a calf-rearing complex with a computer controlled feeding system.
Brendan Attrill of Caiseal Trust in Taranaki has been announced as the 2025 National Ambassador for Sustainable Farming and Growing and recipient of the Gordon Stephenson Trophy at the National Sustainability Showcase at in Wellington this evening.
OPINION: For the first time in many years, a commonsense approach is emerging to balance environmental issues with the need for the nation's primary producers to be able to operate effectively.
The grass may be growing again in the drought-stricken coastal area of Taranaki, but the outlook for many farmers there is far from rosy.
Limping towards the end of the season is how Richard Walker describes the situation he's facing due to prolonged drought in coastal areas of Taranaki.
Only this season’s $10/kgMS bumper payout has saved some dairy farms along the Taranaki coast from absolute disaster due to the present drought – dubbed as one of the worst ever for some.
The country's second largest milk processor hopes to produce its first commercial butter within two months.
There's no doubt that vehicle manufacturers at Fieldays saw a steady stream of rural folk treading the boards.
Fonterra's co-op model and what it does for New Zealand has lured one of its bright stars back on board.
Farmer lobby Federated Farmers is reporting a growth in membership, for the first time in decades.
New Zealand's Ruminant Biotech says that while it has big goals, the scale of the problem it seeks to solve requires it.
The upheaval in the Middle East may have eased the fall in global dairy prices last week.
