"It enables me to move bulls in and out easily and see the effect of my decisions on team average breeding values and BW. If I want to strengthen udder traits in the herd, and also want to select say three bulls from the top-five indexed bulls, it certainly is a quick way of choosing those traits without compromising overall team BW. It's very easy to navigate," says Heather.
Jeremy says the team builder was developed to give farmers power at their fingertips.
"Farmers can easily see the impact of their bull selection decisions on total farm profit."
For further details see dairynz.co.nz/bullteam
Refreshed and ready
World champion shearer Rowland Smith was immediately back in winning form last week when he returned from a competition break of more than nine months since his triumphs in the UK last year.
Apart from the first NZ Rural Games speed shear in Queenstown last month, Smith hadn't competed since May.
While continuing the daily grind of work in the woolshed, Smith's only appearances at competitions this season had been helping out or as a spectator; he was in Masterton three weeks ago at the Golden Shears, where he won the glamour Open title in 2013 and 2014.
Saturday's win came at a familiar happy hunting ground in Raetihi, where he won the Waimarino Sports Open final for a fourth year in a row.
In his 14th season of competition shearing, he has won more than 60 Open finals, his victories last year including the Golden Shears and NZ Championships Open titles, and finals at Belfast's Balmoral Show and the 50th anniversary Golden Shears of Great Britain and Eire either side of the World Championships win.
Smith has indicated he will compete in the NZ Championships in Te Kuiti this month, the competition swan song of King Country shearing legend David Fagan.
The news is not so good for World Championships teammate John Kirkpatrick, who has also had the season off with injury. After surgery on his shoulder, he had hoped to return to the competition board in time for Te Kuiti, but he says that is now unlikely.
Swede results soon
The results of an in-depth farmer survey to help understand the factors behind the toxic swedes issues that hit Southland dairy herds last year are expected to be available by the end of May.
DairyNZ's Southland regional leader Richard Kyte says DairyNZ interviewed 134 affected and unaffected farmers and 34 graziers last year as part of its study into why many cows became ill after feeding on swedes last season.
The detailed interviews followed a general short survey of all dairy farmers that generated more than 400 replies. Analysis of all the survey data is almost complete.
"We interviewed farmers across the region to help us understand whether farm management practices may have been a contributing factor. We had some delays in getting the data from the field as farmers got busy just as we started approaching them for information. Until all this analysis is complete, we won't know if we need to gather more background information. We are expecting to have the results of all this work released to farmers from around mid to late May," he says.
DairyNZ has already released results of its analysis of blood and autopsy samples it collected from dairy cows. Kyte says those findings indicated the cows experienced liver damage consistent with known liver damage from cows grazing brassica forage crops, although the visible signs of illness seemed to be more severe.
Tight times ahead
DairyNZ is advising farmers to focus on strong cash flow management as they plan the 2015-16 season following Fonterra's half-year results.
Chief executive Tim Mackle says the challenge for farmers will be working through their cash flow position for the coming season. "This season is all but over. Fonterra's Forecast Cash Payout for the 2014/15 season of $4.90-$5 helps provide some certainty for farmers.
"What we are concerned about is that the low milk price this season, coupled with a low retrospective payment this winter, about a third of what was received last year, will see many farmers dip into the red this spring. For many, they may not pop back up into the black for some time.
"Banks are telling us that many farmers will hit $1.50-$2/kgMS (kg of milksolids) in overdraft this September.
"Knowing those winter payments will drop in this next season will be second nature to many farmers. But the ones who have already forecast their cash flows are surprised at how long they stay low. They are now taking steps to put strategies in place to manage those impacts. That's a bit of a wake-up call for everyone," he says.
More than 845 people attended DairyNZ's Tactics for Tight Times events last month around the country. DairyNZ's second round of farmer events will begin this month with dates still being finalised.
"Our case study farmers are regularly updating us on their progress and talking about tackling that volatility challenge. What are they doing to manage cashflows for their businesses? We've found there's a lot of value in sharing experience amongst farmers to help everyone get through tight times," says Mackle.
For the latest on DairyNZ Tactics for Tight Times, see dairynz.co.nz/tactics.
UK spike in interest
Supply seems to far outweigh demand in the agricultural career market in the UK, where applications for apprenticeships in farming and food this year have hit 36,000, a 900 per cent increase over the past five years.
But last year the British Government helped more than 7000 young people into agricultural-related apprenticeships, an increase of just under 25 per cent. A further 3700 apprentices joined food manufacturing firms.
Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss says: "There has never been a more exciting time to be involved in food and farming and record numbers of young people are looking to this high-tech industry as a great career choice.
"From engineers to scientists, marketers or economists, the range of careers available in these sectors is vast."
The UK Government is partnering industry to provide more apprenticeships in the sector, estimating farming alone will need tens of thousands of new people this decade.
