During April, DairyNZ began Pasture First workshops, promoting a renewed focus on pasture as the key driver of farming competitively through both high and low milk price situations. At these workshops farmers calculated pasture and crop eaten per hectare for the 2015-16 season on their farm and were then challenged to determine how much they could realistically target next season.
The general consensus was more pasture could be harvested off the platform. However, this would be achieved in a number of different ways.
For some it was through manipulating the stocking rate to better match pasture supply and demand throughout the season, ie setting a stocking rate to allow the farm to go pasture-only for part of the season. For others, perhaps all that is required is some brushing-up on the fundamentals of grazing management.
A highlight of the workshops was the area maps that were created, enabling farmers to compare their pasture and crop-eaten figures with their local community.
Some areas saw a range of 11 tonnes drymatter (DM) harvested right up to 17t DM harvested on the same road. This encouraged farmers at both ends of the scale to openly share their stories and ideas with no sense of competition. At the end of the day, that’s the real outcome of these types of events – farmers working together to help improve their farm systems and reset the competitiveness of the industry.
Restoring farmer confidence in pasture is important, because when well-managed it is a complete feed. One tonne per hectare of extra pasture drymatter eaten adds $300 a hectare to the bottom line. And who wouldn’t want to pocket that?
Aaron Traynor is a DairyNZ consulting officer in North Waikato.
