A guide to cow house design “suits the needs of the dairy system and is an aid to farm profitability,” says its publisher, Aztech Building.

Australian farmers Roger and Amanda Heath knew they would need to buy new machinery when they recently bought the family dairy farm from Roger’s parents Peter and Janice.

Rain in the past week may have helped farmers in Gisborne and Wairoa but the real benefits will only be felt if predicted followup rain arrives.

The future of farming described in a recent agricultural scenario is not far distant, says Nick Clark, Federated Farmers manager of general policy and chief economist.

Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum. One is a Kiwi, born and bred on a sheep and beef farm and has gone back to the farm after 20 years. The other is a Chinese woman who had never been near a farm before a New Zealand visit and thinks cows and calves are “so cute”.

Northland herd owners have the opportunity this season to be part of the DairyNZ body condition score (BCS) initiative.

Fonterra Co-operative Group Limited has reduced its milk volume forecast for the 2014-15 season to 1,532 million kgMS, reflecting the impact of dry weather on production in recent weeks.

The first of seven Grand Finalists will be determined next weekend, Saturday, February 7 as Otago/Southland starts the 2015 Regional Finals for the ANZ Young Farmer Contest in Queenstown.

Grass and feed supplies are looking good in many parts of the council despite soils drying out fast, says DairyNZ.

As in-calf data accumulates across Southland it appears the winter’s widespread swede problem hasn’t had a major impact on reproduction rates.