Gippsland - How Now Gippy Now - March 2010 Edition
GippsDairy Focus Farms
Key points from last month’s open days at Nar Nar Goon and Denison
Both open days provided an opportunity for people to visit the new Focus Farms to familiarise themselves with the layout, the herd, and activities on the farms.
Nar Nar Goon Focus Farm
Geoff and Debbie Bramley own the farm, which is just to the east of the Nar Nar Goon township; and Michael and Ancret Shipton have been sharefarming there since July 2008.
The Shiptons' had been dairy farming at a number of locations in NSW and have considerable experience in a range of systems as a holistic approach.
Michael and Ancret's Goals for the next 3 to 5 years
- Increase our income by:
- Maximising milk production and feeding efficiencies.
- Increase our asset by:
- Debt reduction
- Adding $ value/head to our livestock through genetics.
- Increasing livestock numbers.
Some of the main challenges they face in achieving these goals are:
- Getting the balance right between consuming as much pasture as possible without comprising milk production. They don't want to cut feed costs if it means they end up with hungry cows.
- Settling the new herd in and contending with mastitis and health problems.
- Arranging the calving pattern to maximise returns.
Suggested changes for improving economic performance:
- Increase the herd to 300 milking cows.
- Improve laneways in the vicinity of the dairy.
- Target pasture improvement through renovating more paddocks in March 2010 period.
Performance details in 2009-10 budget
|
|
Per Cow |
Per kg MS |
|
Milk Income Operating Surplus (unadj) |
3,027 926 |
4.83 1.48 |
Farm indicators in 2009-10 budget
|
|
Total |
Per kg MS |
|
Average milk price Pasture consumed per hectare (tDM/ha) |
305
1.8 9.7 |
4.83
3.35 |
Currently the farm is slightly ahead of the production target for 2009-10.
The table below shows FeedTest results from samples collected on the farm. The pasture test result is typical of the feed being grazed by cows during February.
Feed test results
|
|
Pasture |
Pasture Silage |
Ryegrass Hay |
|
Drymatter % |
26.3 |
25.3 |
88.5 |
Like many dryland farms in the Gippsland region there are large areas of barley grass in the paddocks. Part of the farm will be sprayed out early and resown to ryegrass, while other areas will be allowed to grow through from the ‘break’ and sprayed with a chemical to target the barley grass in paddocks. They will be sprayed between May to July.
Denison Focus Farm
The Anderson family on this Focus Farm is growing. Their son Ross has joined Graeme and Chris, while Ross and wife Kelly now have a baby girl called Taylor. This is a typical scenario on family farms which adds to the interest at this particular Focus Farm.
Farm background
- Graeme purchased the original 40 ha dairy farm in the early 1960s.
- Graeme and Chris set up a partnership with Chris's parents in the mid 70s with the purchase of the neighbouring property and built a rotary dairy
- Purchased 40 ha over the road in the mid-late 1970s for running young stock. This block has been used for milking cows over the past several seasons. An underpass was built in March 2009.
- Purchased 35 ha dryland block in late 1970s.
- Renovated the rotary in 1994 to a 32 unit.
- Feeding had always been a grass only system. They started to feed grain in March 2006.
- Ross returned home in November 2006 on wages. Started on 8% share of milk income July 2007. Recently share increased to 12% of milk income.
- After reaching a debt free position Graeme and Chris in conjunction with Ross identified that some rethinking was needed at the dairy. The result was that they started building a new 50 unit rotary early in 2009.
Farm area
- Milking area – 120 ha.
- Dryland block – 121 ha (young stock - JD area, dry cows, fodder if season allows).
- Support block – 36 ha (owned by Ross and Kelly, transfer water to milking area, young stock, and fodder).
Stock
- 430 Friesian/Jersey cross milking cows (stocking rate 3.6 cows/ha).
- Split calving herd - 120 autumn calving cows (30%) and 300+ spring calving cows (70%).
Production for 2008/09 lactation
- Milkers 380.
- Litres - 2,553,680 (6,720 l/cow or 21,280l/ha).
- Butterfat - 111,210 kg, 4.34% (239 kg/cow or 756kg/ha).
- Protein – 90695 kg, 3.55% (239kg/cow or 756 kg/ha).
- Milk - Maintenance 63% - 37%.
- Grain fed - 1,234 kg/cow.
- %off farm energy - 22.8%.
- Pasture Consumed - 14.4t DM/ha.
Production on the February Open Day
Milkers 290 (288 in vat).
Litres 22.4 litres/cow.
53.8 litres/ha (120ha milking area).
Milk Test 4.5% butterfat.
3.5% protein.
Fat + Protein 1.79kg solids/cow/day.
4.2kg solids/ha/day.
BMCC 250,000.
Feeding 4.kg Triticale.
1.0 kg Canola and 0.4kg Wheat mix.
2 rolls silage/day.
Grazing 3 ha/day.
Urea applied at 100 kg/ha.
Cost of Production
Triticale ($225/t) = $261/day
Canola/Wheat ($350/t) = $142/day
Silage @ $40/roll = $ 80/day
Urea (3 ha/day @ 100 kg/ha @ $550/t) = $165/day
Total Cost $648/day
Equates to $2.23/cow/day.
Milk Income: 22.4 lt/cow @ 33.5 c/lt = $7.50/cow/day
Income Over feed costs
= $7.50/cow/day less feed cost $2.23/cow/day
= $5.27/cow/day (or $1,518/day)
Net Litres per day: 16 lt/cow/day or 38.4 lt/ha (71% recovery).
Current Dry Stock: 100 dry cows (start calving 1 March) and 30 autumn calving heifers. Supplemented three rolls hay/day. Presently, grazing on the dried off irrigated milking area over the road.
Current Issues
- How and what to feed fresh calving autumn cows.
- Pasture renovation. Considering renovating 6 ha of new pasture. Quotes are being obtained for regrading and resowing an area near the dairy. This area will go to perennial or bi-annual ryegrass.
- Weed control (especially dock) over the autumn. Nearly every paddock on the home farm has dock growing in the pasture. Each year a couple of paddocks are renovated. They graze out and spray in mid to late February, then resow to pasture approx four weeks later with annuals and perennial ryegrasses.
- Remaining water allocation. An area of 30ha has been allowed to dry off in order to save water for the rest of the farm. They are not prepared to buy additional water. When they use the rule of thumb that 1ML will produce 1tonne of DM it is not considered satisfactory. Their opinion is take care when doing the calculations for buying more water verses alternative feed sources.
- The flood irrigation check banks in a section of the home farm have worn away. Work has been done to rebuild almost a kilometre of banks using soil from the old effluent pit area.
- Maximising pasture growth, quality and consumption. There are always a number of aspects here. As a result of carrying out some soil tests they have identified a need for gypsum on a 14 ha area. A top dressing of gypsum has been applied over the existing pasture.
- Just employed a Certificate 3 Farm Apprentice. Ross said, “The extra hands have made a difference already.”
- They have calculated they will use 20 to 30 ML water/year for their 50 unit rotary dairy for their commercial dairy shed water licence. Remember, they will be milking all year - with an autumn and spring calving pattern. Their yard wash uses recycled water from the plate cooler.
For more information about the Focus Farms project or a copy of the Open Day Farm notes, or if you would like to have your name on the extended mailing list for the Support Group notes, please contact John Gallienne 0407 863 493
The Focus Farms Project is an initiative of GippsDairy and supported by Gardiner Foundation and Dairy Australia.
