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Saving peat with a barn: A barn housing 1000 Holstein Friesian cows won the 2023 Waikato Regional Supreme Award at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards, for its commitment to productive genetic gain and precision effluent management. Those genetics have shown their true value since the cows moved into the barn system, Arjun says. Sheryl Haitana visited the three siblings who are the fifth generation of the Singh family dairy farming in New Zealand "We were System 5 before the cows went in the barn and the cows were producing 500kg MS/cow, now they're producing 750kg MS/cow. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the challenges faced by dairy farmers in New Zealand due to a decrease in milk prices and an increase in on-farm costs. Despite these challenges, successful dairy farming systems remain the same. The article highlights the importance of pasture utilization and the ability to adapt to changes in pasture supply for increased profitability. It also examines the performance of the top 10% of dairy farmers, who achieve exceptional results in terms of net margin over feed. The article concludes that pasture management is the key driver of profitability in the dairy industry. [Extracted from the article]

The article discusses the importance of support for women and mothers in the workplace, particularly in the dairy farming industry. It highlights the need for employers to provide accommodations such as parental leave, childcare, and good working conditions to help women have successful careers and retain them in the industry. The article also includes a special report on optimizing feed and profitability in dairy farming. The author expresses gratitude for their time working for the magazine and acknowledges the changing nature of the industry. The article concludes with a mention of succession in the dairy industry and thanks the editor for their advocacy for New Zealand dairy farmers. [Extracted from the article]

The article profiles Daniel and Paula McAtamney, contract milker, share farmers and recipients of the 2018 Canterbury Share Farmer award in New Zealand. Topics discussed include the progression of their careers in dairy farming, educational backgrounds, personal and career goals, the challenges of working with other people and an overview of their farm operations and management strategies.

The article profiles Steve Gillies and Amy Johnson, recipients of the Waikato Share Farmers of the Year. Topics discussed include their contract milking for a farm in Putaruru, New Zealand, their plan to buy a herd of cows and stay on the farm sharemilking, goal for a farm ownership, family and educational background and their strategy for making a System 5 operation successful.

The article focuses on the efforts made by operations manager Paul Clement and safety manager Angie Saywell of the Theland Farm Group, to maintain safety of the 13 Canterbury farms owned by the Group in New Zealand. Some of the safety measures adopted by the farm are discussed. Clement informed that the health and safety policy helped the company assess the risks associated on the farm including the hazards that can kill, which were cattle, machinery and vehicles, heights and drowning.

The article offers information on the 10-year grace period in the Healthy Rivers Plan Change in Waikato Regional Council in New Zealand in 2017. The plan provides dairy farmers the chance to first understand and make alterations to lessen the environmental impact from their businesses. The Plan Change 1 aims to lessen discharges of nitrogen, microbial pathogens, sediment and phosphorus to improve water quality by 10%.

The article focuses on the success of the dairy farm owned by couple Steve and Nina Ireland in Canterbury, New Zealand. It highlights the couple's strategy of choosing and breeding the right animals that meet the needs of the market in the country. It also mentions the qualities of animals that the couple are maintaining for their breed which helped them successful in the operation.

The article focuses on newly-weds Derek and Laura Dudley from New Zealand who got the offer to take over the family dairy farm that fit their plans to improve their work/life balance. Topics discussed include the farm at Awarua, near the Invercargill-to-Bluff highway, that was milking 400 cows and had been run by a manager for 10 years and their advice to those who are thinking about a career change to have a better work/life balance.

The article focuses on dairy farming in the lee of the Southern Alps that presents challenges for the effluent system at Hill Park in New Zealand. Topics discussed include Charles and Jan Whitehead's dairy farm that runs along the main road up to the Mt Hutt ski field, upgrade and retrofit of the effluent system over the years as requirements have changed and the process of emptying the tank.

The article profiles Simon and Hilary Vallely, sharemilkers and recipient of the 2018 Southland/Otago Share Farmer award in New Zealand. Topics discussed include their 50:50 sharemilking deal in a farm in Gore, work ethics, the quality of their relationships as one of their key strengths, reasons for developing a business in the dairy industry and their goal of farm ownership.

The article profiles Carl Wilmshurst and Anna Boulton, share farmers at Kowhitirangi Valley farm in New Zealand and recipients of the 2018 West Coast/Top of the South Share Farmer of the Year award. Topics discussed include their success with pasture management, other awards received, use of their pasture management to boost milk production, contract milking business and challenges during winter time.

The article profiles Owen Clegg and Hollie Wham, share farmers in South Taranaki, New Zealand and recipients of the 2018 Share Farming awards of the Dairy Industry Awards. Topics discussed include their work ethic, their first sharemilking job, challenges they faced during a wet winter, family and educational backgrounds, debt reduction as their priority and plan to get to an equity partnership in 10 years' time.

The article profiles Richard and Wendy Ridd, sharemilkers and recipients of the 2018 Dairy Industry Award (DIA) Manawatu Share Farmer of the Year in New Zealand. Topics discussed include their goal of building their own dairy business within the family's fourth-generation Ashhurst milking platform, aspirations to be carbon neutral dairy farmers in the future, their off-farm activities and a comprehensive strategy plan to maximize profitability on the farm.

The article profiles Tim and Melissa Parsons, recipients of the 2018 Central Plateau Share Farmer of the Year award. Topics discussed include contract milking on Trinity Lands' Tokoroa farm in New Zealand, family and educational background, career progression in dairy farming and other awards they received. Also mentioned are the greatest challenge for the future of the dairy industry and their advice for people starting out.

The article profiles Reece and Natasha Cox, recipients of the Bay of Plenty Share Farmers of the Year in New Zealand. Topics discussed include their goals for farm ownership and professional careers in the dairy industry, their first season contract milking in a farm in Tauranga, New Zealand, educational background and highlights of their career in dairy farming. Also mentioned are their dairy farming operation progression and the challenges in the dairy industry and their coping strategy.

The article profiles Chis and Sally Guy, share farmers at a Karaka farm in New Zealand and recipients of the Auckland/Hauraki Share Farmers of the Year award. Topics discussed include the production success of the farm during their first season 50:50 sharemilking in 2017, successful rearing of heifers and beef calves, employment history and their decision to change their farming operation. Also mentioned are the challenges in the dairy industry and their coping strategy.

The article focuses on a case study on the dairy industry injuries presented at the first Health and Safety Association of New Zealand Conference, which was held in Wellington, New Zealand. The study was by Justine Croft, a MBA student of the Massey University, who wanted to identify and compare the learning-from-incident process in a large dairy farming group. The barriers to learning included unwillingness to report incidents and fear of blame.

The article offers information on the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 in New Zealand that is applied in dairy farms. Some of the safe working practice include identifying risks and finding practical ways to manage them. It is noted that accidents and injuries have to be recorded, machines have to be maintained and use of personal protective device for employees.

The article discusses irrigation practices of dairy farmers Roger Bates and Sue Bates and contract milkers Tony Dodunski and Clare Pate at their farm in Canterbury, New Zealand. Topics explored include the availability of water resources in the region to support the farm, the reliance of the farm on the Central Plains Water (CPW) irrigation scheme, and strategies being used by the farm to make the most of its water resources such as effective pasture management and once-a-day milking.

The article discusses the bull breeding programme of New Zealand dairy farmer Alister Hall. Topics explored include the commitment of Hall to producing bulls with high protein breeding value index, remarks from Hall about the necessity of breeding efficient cows to ensure farm productivity, and brief details about the cattle supplementation, milksolids production, and herd maintained by Hall in his dairy farm.

The article reports developments in the dairy farming industry in New Zealand as of February 2014. It features the operation of the Westline Farms near Tapanui, which considers the skills of its lower-order sharemilkers Stu McGarvie and Sarah Huffidine as its main strength. The owners of the equity partnership farm include Southland farm consultant Ivan Lines and his wife Vivienne, and Riverton dairy farmers Vaughan and Megan Templeton.

The article features dairy farmers and married couple Bryan and Jenny Clausen of Gordonton, New Zealand. It describes the daily routine of the couple on their farm. Every year, Jenny holds an open day as fundraisers for Waikato causes, such as Waikids health services. Their milk production has increased from 312 kilograms (kg) milksolids (MS) per cow in 2009-2010 to 354kg MS/cow in 2011 and 423kg MS/cow in 2011-2012.

The article features dairy farmer Gavin Roden of Otaua, New Zealand. Roden is also the chairman of the organising committee of the Dairy Industry Awards (DIA). It relates how he came to New Zealand from Nottingham, England and ended up in dairy farming. Also discussed are farming challenges and successes achieved on the farm.

The article reports on the challenge faced by Northland, New Zealand dairy farmer Richard Dampney in complying with the requirement of keeping stock out of waterways. According to Dampney, the nature of his land makes fencing impractical in economic terms. The exclusion of livestock from waterways is a requirement imposed by dairy cooperative Fonterra and Dampney states this threatens the future of their dairy farm business. He adds that it will be detrimental for him to fence off steep banks.

The article highlights the right feed balance strategy employed by farmers Ali and Rob Sherriff, owners of Huirimu Farms at Arohena, Waikato, New Zealand, for their high-producing Friesian-cross herd. The farmers use a combination of feeds that is different from the previous low-cost farming strategy. It shows the dairy conversion at the farm and credit is also given to farm consultant Parry Matthews for helping them apply his principle of fully feeding cows.

The article offers information on the environmental approach of dairy farmers Jim Hitchcock and Barbara Hitchcock in Rotorua Lakes, New Zealand. It mentions that further financial investment into the farm environment is set in view of the Environment Bay of Plenty's (EBOP) plan on land use change. It adds that soil test is done every year and the farm is broken down into separate blocks.

The article offers a look at the challenges and opportunities gained by West Coast, New Zealand farmers Tane Little and Rachel Little from establishing a focus farm. For the farmers, four years of monitoring was helpful for their pasture growth rates and has served as a valuable farm management tool. The Littles agreed to become involved in the monitoring project even though they knew it meant they would be opening themselves up to scrutiny.

The article explores how Robin Barkla, owner of a dairy farm, managed his farm/property located at Thompson Road, Edgecumbe, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand into success. Barkla has confronted the challenges brought by the drought in their area through irrigation wherein at first he has coped up with the cost he incurred in the process. Part of the success that Barkla thinks he is owed to was the help from the Federated Farmers representatives and from the Fonterra Shareholders Council.

The article explores the success of cattle raisers Wally Kite and his son, Zane Kite, who owns the Kiteroa Ayrshire, a dairy farm located in Ohaupo, New Zealand. Noted is that the family has a herd of 210 Ayrshire cows at a milking platform in an 80-hectare property and another 18 hectares used for grazing another 100 heifer calves. Moreover, the Kites regard the Ayrshire cows as a good breed of cows as it lasts well and produces more milk.

The article reports on the impact of the series of floods on dairy farmers in Golden Bay, New Zealand. According to the author, three major floods hit the area within a period of five months from 2010 to 2011 and resulted in damaged farms and lost revenues. Farmers stated that the volume of water in each succeeding flood was worse than the last and higher than the usual levels they experienced in the past. They also revealed that the lesson they learned from the disaster.

The article discusses the significance of the Barrhill Chertsey Irrigation (BCI) dairy farmer cooperative scheme in Canterbury, New Zealand. The low cost of the BCI consent hearing is attributed to the quality of the consultative process through the late 1990s. The scheme is currently managed by the original cooperative and Electricity Ashburton. Also noted is the importance of storage to the Canterbury Water Management Strategy.

The article focuses on mating management in dairy farms in New Zealand to improve mating performance. It explains how successful mating management can lead to more milk production and profit for farmers. Compact calving is essential to successful mating because it will gives cows longer time to recover from calving to mating. Farmers are advised to review the current pre-mating heat detection process with all farm staff. It outlines the options available for farmers in dealing with non-cyclers.

The article features dairy farmers Tony and Sue McDonnell of Milton, New Zealand, who sharemilked for Ewing Farms, which eventually financed them into buying the property in 1996. They then bought the second farm, Haddington Farms, from Tony's mother. According to Tony, despite their herd's 100 percent recorded ancestry, their record-keeping habits are the same with those of other farmers. As of June 2010, they have 23 contract matings with Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) for next season.

The article focuses on the success of the family-owned dairy farm owned by couple Tim and Megan Parsons in Canterbury, New Zealand. It provides overview of the couple's strategy in surviving the curve ball in the operation through the help of their clearly-defined governance and management techniques in day-to-day operation. It also provides brief information of the financial performance and productivity of the farm.

The article focuses on the success of the family-owned dairy farm owned by couple Morris and Linda Barlow in Waikato, New Zealand. It chronicles how Morris and Linda started the business and made it a success through hard work, determination and careful management. It also mentions the couple's strategy of making a succession planning for all concerned to ensure that their children will be fairly and equally shared.

The article discusses the dairy farming business of the Wilton family from Waikato, the only dairy farmers in New Zealand to continuously supply the same dairy company for 100 years. Topics discussed include the family farm's supplier relationship with Tatua Co-operative Dairy Co. since 1914, history of the family farm which was established by Henry Herbert Wilton, and farm dairy and crops produced by cousins Bruce and Roger Wilton.

The article highlights the benefits of becoming a focus farm, as experienced by Taranaki, New Zealand-based farmers Chris and Kathy Prankerd. The couple's focus farm is part of a three-year project of the dairy organisation DairyNZ aimed at better use of pasture and supplements. It details how the Prankers improved the mating performance of their herd and provided higher farm operating profit after becoming a focus farm.

The article discusses the highlights of a milking skills workshop held at Telford, New Zealand on March 5, 2013. Most of the 130 farmers who attended the workshop found they have been putting cups on cows the wrong way. Consultant Aidan Bichan reveals that carpal tunnel, tennis elbow, broken arms and rotator cuff shoulder injuries are common among people who work on dairy farms. The workshop is part of the DairyNZ MilkSmart III initiative.

The article reports on the introduction of the DairyLink program to dairy farmers in Tararua, New Zealand. According to the author, the project is a partnership among dairy farmers, DairyNZ, Federated Farmers, Fonterra and the Horizons Regional Council. It aims to increase the productivity of dairy farms and improve environmental efficiency. He reports that field days focusing on the project were held in the farms of Geoff Arends and Ester Romp in June 2011.