Only a brief newsletter this month due to the focus being on making sure we keep up with the orders. It has been another record breaking month for us and we have been able to keep up with the demand through having extra staff and working longer hours. Our peak production has climbed 30% from last year.

It is has been helpful that most farmers order their meal about 2-3 days ahead which gives us targets to work to and also makes it easier for the freight company to do a number of deliveries together in the
same area.

Don’t wean too soon

At this time of year some farmers will find the temptation to wean the calves off the meal too great to ignore. However often we find those who stop the meal too soon will buy more meal in the autumn as they suddenly realise their calves aren’ t at target weights. Make sure all of your calves are up to weight before weaning off meal and monitor their weights closely. With heifers in particular the financial penalty for not meeting target weights is considerable over the lifetime of the cow.

Returned Pallets

Thank you to those customers who have returned the empty pallets back especially if they have been returned in one piece. It has become like a tractor skill test on each farm as to how well they can unload the calf meal. Most tractor drivers are great however some either need more practice or training or better forks on the tractor. If you do have empty pallets please return them ASAP. For the customers who send them back via the freight company please contact me if the truck driver is reluctant to pick them up.

It’s happened again! We have run out of printed High Octane bags and
are still waiting on our next shipment from China to arrive. Until then e will be using plain bags with some blue stripes sprayed on.

Even some of our strongest pallets don’t survive!

And a special thank you to Peter and Helen Gilder who brought back 50 pallets all the way from Waitepeka (south of Balclutha).

Prices

Barley prices have moved up by $10 per tonne in the last month and soybean prices aren’t being very kind either, however we have decided to absorb these price increases for November and review it again for December. We have reduced the amount of peas in the meal as they are still hard to find and increased the wheat and soybean meal to compensate. And over the last couple of months we have been replacing some of the barley in the diet with wheat as wheat is now cheaper and more readily available then barley (plus its a higher quality grain).

High Octane Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $734 + GST and Delivery
Low Protein Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $694 + GST and Delivery

Aoraki Calf Meal can be delivered to your farm, or you can uplift it directly from our Feedmill in Waimate

Cheers

Ken Buckingham

A difficult September

This September has been memorable for all the wrong reasons. On September 10th we had our worst wind storm in nearly 40 years resulting in us losing power for four days (also our longest period for 40 years). And such a mess to clean up on the farm with hundreds of trees uprooted or snapped. We did have to ration out some of the meal to keep everyone going over that period and I thank you for your patience.
Also during the first half of September grain prices continued to rise and while they now seem to have plateaued they are still above what I had budgeted on. We currently have to pay $50 more per tonne than what we were this time last year. We also had to go and buy soybean meal on the open market some of which was over $200 more per tonne than our earlier contracts. As a result our prices are lifting again this month by $14 per tonne. Personally I am disappointed that its another price rise as I take pride in producing a top shelf product for a mid shelf price.

Learn more here Newsletter September 2013

Cheers

Ken Buckingham

Price changes from September 1st

As stated in previous newsletters our prices are reviewed monthly and unfortunately we can no longer sustain our current prices. The reason for the price increase this month is that local grain prices have increased. It's hard to get a clear picture of what is really happening, autumn reports showed there was a good harvest and farmers still had 2012 grain in their silos which meant there was an excessive amount of grain available. However reports now indicate this has disappeared and a shortage is possible although one grain trader tells me activity has been lighter than last year and a local transport truck driver tells me they have carted very little.

September prices

High Octane Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $720 + GST and Delivery
Low Protein Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $680 + GST and Delivery

Soybean prices are also of concern and while a few months back the commentators were all saying it was going to be a record harvest and we would see prices continue to fall, the opposite has actually happened. The prices are set and traded on the futures market in USA which means it can change very quickly from a bear market to a bull market. I suspect most of the increase in price is profit for traders rather than farmers. The prices we pay in NZ are adjusted daily, based on movements in USA. We are currently still using soybean meal we contracted in April. The chart below shows the price in $USD and doesn't include shipping costs.

Freight Companies

At our feedmill we are currently taking on and training extra staff to cope with the extra workload that happens from mid-September on. It's not so easy for the freight companies to do the same. They simply don't have extra trucks available for the two months when it's really busy (busiest day last season saw 83 tonne go out the gate). Our local freight company does a fantastic job of keeping up with the demand. However it does put a lot of extra pressure on them so it's important that farmers are ready for their delivery, as when they get held up on one farm that makes them late for the rest of the day (disrupting other farmers). So please do what you can to help out in this area. Sometimes when the truck driver is busy they are also reluctant to bring back the empty pallets however we need them back ASAP otherwise we have to use less desirable pallets (harder to use with the tractor), so please have them ready and encourage the truck driver to take them. We do not charge for pallets but we do rely on you to send them back.

Future Farmers

Every year we make improvements at our feedmill, always fine tuning as well as increasing our production capacity. This year some of these improvements needed a small amount of concrete. So for the first time in a long time we decided to mix our own concrete. I borrowed a mixer and Daniel my youngest son, age 13, volunteered to do the mixing. Daniel enjoyed the experience and it made me think of the things we did as kids growing up on a farm that are no longer done. Like plunge dipping sheep, carting conventional bales of hay, feeding out that same hay with the Bedford truck. The list of jobs we did then that are no longer done today is long. And I am sure that work shaped us for our adult lives. So what jobs can our kids do today that will teach them good work ethics for later in life? I'm not sure but I'm glad I borrowed the concrete mixer.

When we were in Sweden last year we visited an agricultural training college (Telford on a much larger scale) they had their own dairy herd (photo shows part of the dairy shed), fully equipped cropping farm and a large commercial forest. Sadly though, the two most popular courses were domestic dog handling and equestrian for personal purposes.

The actual farming courses were short on numbers. There doesn't seem to be much interest in making farming a future career in Sweden.

Feedback

We had one customer comment on the fineness of the meal and I have been trying to make it a bit coarser this week. It's always a balancing act between too fine (can make it dusty) and too coarse (where you see grain particles in their dung). At times you will also see some brown nuggets in the meal this is from the molasses building up inside the mixer and auger and then breaking off. Think 'chocolate' for calves! Both the mixer and auger are cleaned down in the weekends (twice a week during peak weeks). We do welcome your feedback (both positive and negative) so please don't hesitate to contact me. Also if you have any photos you think I could use for a future newsletter please email them to me.

Cheers

Ken Buckingham

Calves now grow faster on 18% Protein calf meal compared to 22% Protein

In 1998 when we first started making calf meal it tested at 22% protein or higher and we marketed it as High Protein calf meal. During the next 7 years with experience we strengthened and improved the calf meal, switching the focus from high protein to rumen development and growth rates. We than renamed the calf meal as High Octane. However even though our inclusion rate of soya bean meal has increased and we now include wheat our protein levels dropped to 18%. Ironically our original High Protein meal is even cheaper to produce. However I have no doubt that calves are growing faster on 18% High Octane compared to the old High Protein meal. Ask me if you would like to know more.
4 on farm factors that influence meal uptake and rumen development

#Milk, once the calf is 7 -10 days old it's now common for Dairy farmers to be feeding only 4 litres of milk per calf and only once a day. This encourages the calf to eat calf meal resulting in grain fermentation stimulating the development of rumen papillae. If practical feed calves late in the day so they go to sleep after a warm drink of milk and are then hungry looking for alternative food in daylight hours. PHOTO LEFT Calf milk heater in Sweden. Calf milk will always end up at calf body temperature. It's better to achieve this with electricity rather than calf energy. Feeding cold milk to calves would be like us drinking cold coffee on a cold day.

#Meal, fresh is best. While the calf meal has a shelf life of 3 + months calf meal is a grain based product and like all grain based products the fresher the meal is the better it tastes. Once they are over 4 weeks of age it doesn't seem to matter so much. So if possible buy little and often at the start of the season. Presentation of meal is also critical. Only have enough in the pen to last 23 hours, so it stays fresh and it trains the animal to eat more if it's not there 24/7 (this is a method I have used with great success with calves and pigs). Also pay attention to the amount of trough space per animal, trough height and location.

#Fibre, avoid feeding Lucerne baleage or similar as while it will stretch the rumen it doesn't develop the papillae and is also low in DM. Independent research shows that barley straw or rough hay is what works best.

#Grass, calves eating grass before their rumen is developed means you have an animal filling their stomach with a product they can't digest, resulting in a slower growth. Our top calf rearers limit access to grass until the calves are eating a minimum of 1kg of meal per day. PHOTO LEFT Haymaking near the Swiss Alps. Three people were hand raking the hay..

Additional info

We use Bovatec as our coccidiostat and it is included at 50% above the standard rate for extra protection. We continue to include Xtract a natural product that improves digestive efficiency, promotes a healthy rumen microbial population (works similar to a prebiotic) and also Organic Selenium to improve growth, fertility, and boost the immune system. Molasses, sometimes we get the comment that our calf meal hasn't got any molasses in it. Actually we use the standard amount however our molasses is added in while mixing all the meal. Some feedmills use a different process coating their product with molasses after mixing and just as it's about to be bagged, hence the reason it goes solid in the bag.

Congratulations to the Moffat family who won the R2 section of the South Island Dairy Heifer Competition. Mike & Christine have been dairy farming in Morven for 26 years and today trade as Deltop Dairy together with their son Ryan and daughter-in-law Billie. They milk 500 cows on 140 hectares and their herd is Holstein Friesian (100 % Ancestry). The Moffat family have been using Aoraki Calf Meal for over 10 years.

PHOTO ABOVE LEFT Pouring concrete fort the effluent saucer the evening before milking is due to being at the Deltop Dairy, the saucer will hold 100,00 + Litres and the above ground storage will hold 600,000 litres.

PHOTO ABOVE RIGHT 15/7/13 the day before Mike & Christine Moffat commission the families new 54 bail rotary shed. Their first new shed in 26 years.

Price stays the same for August

High Octane Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $720 + GST and Delivery
Low Protein Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $680 + GST and Delivery

Soya bean prices are still of concern and we still advise budgeting on $720 for High Octane and $680 for Low Protein. Prices will be reviewed again at the end of August. For ordering or inquires you can normally get me on my cell phone (0800 632 548) though sometimes reception is not the best, you can also order meal 24/7 by texting and email.

Cheers

Yours sincerely

Ken Buckingham

Dear Calf Rearers

It seems unbelievable that spring calving will start next month. I must admit the weeks of March, April and May went by faster than I would have liked and while I have visited 80% of 2012 customers, 100% would've been better. For customers that I deal directly with I have been giving out windstopper jerseys for those who brought 25 ton or more, oilskin vests for 10-24 tonne and beanies 5-9 ton as thank you gifts for your 2012 purchases.

There will be no major changes to the calf meals this year. Last year we visited a high tech factory in France that is dedicated to the production of flavouring palatants. Previously I hadn't been convinced on the worthiness of palatants, however the particular palatant we now use improves glucose uptake as well as sodium and water absorption. These health benefits alone certainly ensure that it pays for itself. The inclusion rate we use means there are 750 000 000 particles of this high intensity sweetener per tonne of calf meal. We got to view excellent research data that is yet to be publicly released and we are still keeping the trade name secret. I am certain we are ahead of the pack in our use and knowledge of this product.

Raw Material prices for our main 4 ingredients

Barley

Late last spring we were offered contracts for this coming season which would have seen us paying $400 per tonne. At the time I was only paying $365 ($355 in November) and couldn't see why prices should rise 10% so I elected not to sign. Prices this year have been $365 in March and $375 in May. Often the price peaks in July/August, however this will depend on grass conditions and prices of alternatives (mainly palm kernel). It was a relatively good harvest and I know there was barley left from the previous season so there shouldn't be any shortage. However what normally happens is once the grain is safely stored grain farmers will resist selling, waiting to see if the prices will rise. Personally I still believe there is more downside risk to the price than upside but we will play the waiting game.

Wheat & Peas

Early spring last year we signed up a third of our 2013 wheat requirements which will cost us $410-$420 spring delivery. However there a considerable amount of feed wheat carried over from 2012 harvest and prices are also expected to fall. With pea contract prices up $100 per tonne, no contracts were signed. I am hopeful we can buy peas cheaper than what the contract price was.

Soya Bean Meal

Last year our target price was $600 per tonne which we got about third at this price and then it rose to over $900. This year my target was $700 and again I have a third at this price and it has since risen to over $800. Market commentary switches from forecasting price rises to price drops quite often and while they had been predicting price's to fall they in fact have gone up.

How this affects the calf meal price

Again this year our price will be reviewed on a month by month basis. For budgeting purposes I am advising customers that our July price will be:

High Octane Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $720 + GST and Delivery
Low Protein Aoraki Calf Meal 40 x 25kg $680 + GST and Delivery

However our current price is still $700 for High Octane and $660 for Low Protein and I will try to hold these prices as long as possible. Last year High Octane started at $680 then rose to $714 before dropping in November to $700. I believe in mid-season there is more chance of downward movement of prices than upward.

Housing your calves

What I have noticed during my farm visits is that when it comes to calf housing often there is two different concepts, 1 – Enough housing for all the calves and keep them all inside for 5 – 6 weeks and 2 – Enough housing for calves to stay inside only for a week or two and then reuse the pens. Personally I believe keeping them inside for 5 - 6 weeks is the optimum however it needs to be on an all in - all out basis (so the calves stay in the same pen the whole time and the calves in the neighbouring pen are of similar age) continuous flow should definitely be avoided (where the calves are moved from one pen to another). Using the same pens multiple times often results in a breakdown of calf health especially late in the season. And if you are reusing pens some suggest there are benefits in spelling the pen for 7 days between batches. Allow 1.5 – 2.0 sqm per calf, and the coarser the bedding the drier it will stay (straw has the opposite effect in that it keeps the moisture on the surface).We have reared calves outdoors with a warm draught free hut to sleep in and a small outdoor run. It did depend on the weather on how easy it was. Sunny days the calves would lie outside in the sun and fresh air, however we had to add extra bark with the tractor after heavy rain, though the calves still tended to stay healthy.

Adrian Evans with their pet steer Wrinkles who was raised on Aoraki Calf meal in 2002. Adrian farms in the Ida Valley and rears 400-700 calves per year. Adrian first used Aoraki Calf meal in 1999, since then there has only been one year when Adrian didn't use Aoraki Calf meal and that year calf rearing was disastrous for him. Adrian is adamant he won't make that mistake again.

Got any questions or if you want to know how many tonne of Aoraki Calf Meal you used last year or changed your address then please contact me: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 027 299 3484, or 0800 632 548.

Yours sincerely

Ken Buckingham