Open AccessDairying - Waitaki's opportunity
Author(s) -
J. Davis
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
proceedings of the new zealand grassland association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1179-4577
pISSN - 0369-3902
DOI - 10.33584/jnzg.1996.58.2206
Subject(s) - herd , dairy farming , agricultural science , cow calf , stock (firearms) , zoology , cropping , milk production , agriculture , business , agricultural economics , geography , biology , economics , ecology , archaeology
The Waitaki Plains has 30127 ha of irrigation. The sheep, beef and cropping properties have been converted to dairy farms over recent years. Between 1989-90 and 1994-95 dairy cow numbers increased from 14 000 to 39 000, mainly as a result of large operations being established. The herd size in the same time scale has increased from 292 to 443 cows per farm. Performance has also increased dramatically, with per cow production going from 260 kg milksolids (MS)/cow in 1986-87 to 362 kg MS/cow in 1995-96. The excellent stock performance is reflected in the financial gains that farmers have made. The potential for increased performance now comes from improved grass quality and growth. Keywords: dairy conversion, dairy farming, Waitaki Plains