Following the four pillars

Shane says at the end of last season Ngāi Tahu modelled various systems scenarios looking at environmental and financial outcomes.

The decision was to cut stocking rates from an average of 3.6 to 3.2 cows/ha and dramatically cut the amount of imported feed.

One of the farms is involved in the Pasture 21 study, rolling out lessons learned on the Lincoln University Research Dairy Farm lower stocking rate high efficiency farmlet trials.

Shane says as farms come out of forestry into new grass it takes time to build fertility and organic matter. High rates of nitrogen fertiliser (up to 370 units N/ha) have been necessary to get nutrients cycling, break down sticks left in the soil and boost pasture production with imported supplement used to achieve production targets.

Supplement has included grain, grass silage and maize silage. Ngāi Tahu Farming has a policy of no palm kernel driven largely by iwi concerns.

Average annual pasture production is 14-14.5t DM/ha with utilisation of 85%.

“This past season we’ll have similar costs to others but because we’re still not long out of trees we’re not quite growing the grass we expect to eventually,” Shane says.

Bought-in feed had been up to $1.15/kg MS in the budget in previous years but this year it’s back to 50c/kg MS.

As well as the reduction in quantity to about 500-700 kg DM/cow that cut in cost has also been achieved by swapping out maize silage (37c/kg DM cost) on four of its farms this season for fodder beet (8c/kg DM) grown on the milking platforms to transition cows in the autumn.

All cows are wintered off on fodder beet on support land within Te Whenua Hou.

Shane says farm working expenses have dropped from $5.10/kg MS last season to $4.35/kg MS in the 2015-16 season with budgets prepared for this coming season at $3.60/kg MS.

Ngāi Tahu Farming has made use of Fonterra’s guaranteed milk price in the past and locked in 70% of its production at $5.25/kg MS on the three farms that supply Fonterra for the 2015-16 season. The other four farms supply Synlait, with three of those supplying milk on an A2 milk contract which gives a premium. Shane says overall the farms’ milk price averaged out at $4.60/kg MS for this season.

Looking to the future the farms want to push the top line numbers as well as hold costs down.

Using beef bulls over follow-up cows to reduce wastage in terms of bobby numbers and boosting stock sale income is one way of doing that with a beef programme being a good fit with Ngāi Tahu Farming’s other drystock ventures.

Farm Facts
Te Whenua Hou
Farms: Te Ahu Pātiki and Maungatere
Total area: 645ha effective
Peak cows milked: 2068
Production total: 867,000kg MS (2015-16)
Pasture eaten: 12,270kg DM/ha
Bought-in supplement: 500-700kg DM/cow
Farm working expenses: $5.10/kg MS (2014-15), $4.35/kg MS (2015-16)