Friday, March 29, 2024

Banking on steady control

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Consistency and controlling costs are the ways to make money out of deer. That’s the ethos Janice and Bryce Burnett have adopted for farming 340ha at Kauru Hill, inland from Maheno in North Otago. Bryce and Janice try to produce consistent carcase weights. Bryce tries to be consistent with farm inputs and his management. The Burnetts finish all their weaner deer, everything is killed at 100kg plus liveweight and they haven’t had to sell store since 1990s. That’s when they ran sheep as well and weren’t consistent. In one drought year they had to sell off both the weaners and lambs store.
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“That was the turning point for me as we had to nearly give away the weaners.”

They had to make a choice and the deer won.

Consistent, favourable weather would be a big help but it is out of the couple’s control though there might be the chance to remedy the impact of drought on the dryland farm. If the North Otago irrigation scheme is extended they will take a serious look at it.

The Burnetts run 750 Red hinds (Foveran genetics) and finish all the offspring plus they buy in 50-60 weaner stags in June/July to finish.

The fawning is 95% in the older hinds but down to 80% in the first calvers (15 months). If there is a rough year and the first calvers don’t get fed well they won’t be big enough to take the stag.

As a rule, they need to be 70% of their adult weight to conceive.

Key points

  • Focus on consistency and controlling costs
  • Running 750 Red deer hinds and finishing progeny
  • Had quit sheep to focus on deer and cattle
  • Drought prone and considering irrigation
  • Lucerne and high sugar grasses proving successful
  • Only one full-time labour unit

Improved genetics are making a difference. The animals are bigger and they are cutting 10% more velvet. With 500g spiker velvet worth $150/kg Bryce can afford to put more weight on them and take a hit on the schedule.

“The biggest problem is that schedule keeps sliding away from us and we end up chasing our tails.”

They kill 680 deer a year, 400 of them are spikers averaging 58kg CW.

It annoys him the farmgate price of venison is $6.80/kg when the retail price is $40/kg.

They have used contracts but the stock are killed before they put on that extra weight. Wapiti genetics were used to try to get the weights up but the animals were too aggressive.

So the focus is on estimated breeding values for weaning weight and velvet.

Bryce tried artificial insemination but at $11,000/100 hinds believes he would have been better to have bought a stag as it can be used for more than one season. They buy two stags each year at the Foveran sales in January. It is more than a sale to Bryce as it is a chance to network and it gives him confidence that he is on the right track.

Lean and keen

When we drove down Bryce and Janice Burnett’s drive a week before Christmas we thought he was waiting for us on the veranda of their house.

It turned out to be one of several scarecrows.

Pieces of wood down the netting create a visual display to stop deer injuring themselves coming into the yards.

He doesn’t weigh the deer often but even within the season EID is handy. He knew the Friesian bulls were growing at only 1.7kg/day compared with 3kg/day the previous month.

Having a quiet road is handy. Before they put in the lane system about 10 years ago they had driven the deer along the road.

One or two deer used to be injured getting them into the yards so Bryce put boards down the netting to create a visual display. It worked a treat and there are no more problems.

The internal fences are not fawn-proof as the young often climb through them into a paddock with long grass to hide during the day then go back to mum at night.

Bryce picked up a lot of skills working in Australia for five years on a sheep station, growing cotton and lucerne and working for a contractor. After coming home Bryce used to do contracting but is now too busy.

Bryce and Janice have two daughters, Renata, 13, and Shannon, 9. His parents Russell and Judith still live on the farm.

Bryce was a member of the Five Forks Young Farmers Club and eventually became the national president for 1999 and 2000.

Like any farmer Bryce would like more land but can’t afford it. For now he’s happy with the farming operation but will keep striving for consistency and improved gains while remaining vigilant with costs.

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