Couple's first year on farm working well
Water has been feast or famine for Brendan and Avril Lane during their inaugural season on their first dairy farm.
The couple milk about 380 crossbred cows on their more than 100ha effective property Matau Farm at Inch Clutha, a delta between the branches of the Clutha River, downstream from Balclutha.
The Lane family supplies The a2 Milk Company, which recently gave them $35,000 to launch a sustainability project.
Their project aims to increase water-use efficiency on Matau Farm, including the installation of a system to recycle green water from the effluent pond to clean the yard at the milking shed.
Matau Farm gets allocated 51,000 litres of water per day through the Bruce Water Scheme, Mr Lane said.
"It is quite a constraint for the number of cows we are running here."
A new green wash system would allow them to use less water, which would lower the level of the effluent pond.
The project outcomes would make the farm more resilient, he said.
"Everything that will help us minimise our water use is going to be of a huge benefit to us."
Most of the herd had been dried off and produced more than 141,000kg of milksolids on their first season on Inch Clutha.
The couple felt fortunate to have worked for people who have helped them progress in the industry to farm ownership.
Brendan and Avril Lane have been given $35,000 from the milk company they supply for a project to increase water-use efficiency on their dairy farm at Inch Clutha. PHOTO: SHAWN MCAVINUE
Neither of them had a background in dairy farming.
She was raised on a sheep, beef and cropping farm in Scottish town Dunbar, on the coast southeast of Edinburgh.
Their business name, Dinnae Ken Ltd, a Scottish phrase for "I don't know" was a nod to their Scottish connection.
He was raised on a sheep and beef farm in Waimate, South Canterbury and Moa Flat, West Otago.
During his teenage years in West Otago, he gained experience working for "exceptional dairymen" Tony Roberts and the late Noel Caulfield.
"That's what planted the seed, those guys and what they could do with cows and their passion for the industry."
The pair met when she was on a working holiday in New Zealand and they then travelled abroad together.
When they returned home, he worked as assistant manager running a milking shed and a crew for Stewart Eden in Riversdale, Northern Southland for a year in the 2009-10 season.
They accepted an offer from Peter Templeton to lower order sharemilk about 360 cows in Kelso, West Otago for about two years from 2011.
After that farm sold, they went lower order sharemilking for Murphy Farms Ltd in Waimate for five years from 2013.
They accepted an offer to 50:50 sharemilk on a farm in Morven, South Canterbury, which had its herd "wiped out" by Mycoplasma bovis.
In Morven, they milked 880 of their own cows on a 230ha farm for six years from 2018.
Heavy rain flooded about half of Brendan and Avril Lane's dairy farm at Inch Clutha in October last year. PHOTO: SUPPLIED
Their herd produced more than 2100kg of milksolids per hectare, about 560kg of milksolids per cow, a "huge" milk production, requiring minimal imported feed due to strong pasture management.
"It was an amazing place and super efficient and that got us into a financial position to get us to the next step," Mr Lane said.
They took over Matau Farm on June 1 last year.
"Inch Clutha is the jewel in the crown of South Otago for growing pasture — it has incredibly fertile soil."
The selection process of which 380 cows to take to Inch Clutha from their herd of 880 included selecting those which produce A1 protein-free milk, so they could supply The a2 Milk Company.
Early calving cows were selected to maintain natural fertility in the herd.
Cows which could handle being milked once-a-day while maintaining production were selected to protect the business if pressure was put on the herd for any reason.
Any surplus cows and heifers were either leased or sold.
By breeding an efficient herd with "super-high" production and breeding worths had allowed them to progress quickly in the industry.
The selection process had resulted in a herd having an 80% six-week in-calf rate and a 7.5% empty rate.
Most of their heifers were set to calve on Inch Clutha about July 12 last year, a few weeks earlier than similar herds in South Otago.
The first three months' weather on Matau Farm were "amazing" and calving was finished by mid-September.
Then the pressure was put on the herd due to more than 200mm of rainfall in 48 hours in early October last year.
PHOTO: SUPPLIED
More than half of Matau Farm was flooded, he said.
Fortuitously, rubber matting was installed across the milking shed, yard and exit race before the deluge, giving the herd somewhere to stand and eat during the flooding.
The cows could be fully-fed and maintain production during a time of pressure by being healthy enough to sustain once-a-day milking rather than a twice-a-day.
As the cows had proven they could perform the adverse conditions in South Otago, they could easily sell 90 of them to make the most of strong demand for quality cows and to make room for the heifers coming through.
"They are great cows we are selling — it is so hard to do."
Mrs Lane said as the cows handled the once-a-day milking so well, the frequency had been maintained for all the season.
"We carried on because it was good for them and good for us. The cell count was low and there was no lameness, the cows are really happy so we didn't need to change it."
Mr Lane said from once-a-day milking, their herd, on average, produced more than 370kg of milksolids per animal, despite 45% of them being heifers.
The average milk production in New Zealand is 400kg milksolids per cow.
If the milking frequency was increased to twice-a-day to lift production it could come at a cost, such as the health of the herd's feet or reproduction, especially if pressure was put on again.
Other benefits of once-a-day milking include having more time to repair fences and pasture and spend with their three sons Cameron, 14, Fergus, 13, and Robbie, 11.
"They are great outdoor boys — they love fishing, hunting and motorbikes," Mr Lane said.
shawn.mcavinue@alliedpress.co.nz
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