The Business of Dairy

This episode follows on from episode 35 “Successfully navigating farm loans” but focusses specifically on financing for large infrastructure projects such as cow housing facilities. This topic was addressed by my guest, Greg Kuchel, Senior Insights Manager at Rural Bank at the 2nd Raising the Roof conference in Hunter Valley of NSW earlier this year. Greg also touches on the evolving area of farm...

My guest for this episode is Greg Kuchel, Senior Insights Manager at Rural Bank who spoke recently at the “Raising the Roof” conference in Hunter Valley of NSW about farm loans in particular for infrastructure loans related to cow housing facilities. Greg and I had such a good discussion that we have turned this into a two-part series. This first episode covers the general principles and considera...

What were some of the features of the Top 25% of NSW Dairy Farm Monitor farms in the 2023 financial year? This month’s podcast provides insights into some of the physical and financial metrics associated with their productivity and profitability compared to that of the remaining 75% of farms in the project.   Links to useful resources related to this podcast: NSW DFMP Annual Report DairyBase Link...

With a national focus on reducing dairy GHG emission intensity by 30% by 2030, farm greenhouse gas emissions are currently getting a lot of attention. This month we take a look at what has been happening with emissions on NSW dairy farms through the lens of our Dairy Farm Monitor Project.     Links to useful resources related to this podcast: NSW DFMP Annual Report (pg. 35-36) Dairy Farm Emissions...

The 2023 financial year saw the highest average profit for the Dairy Farm Monitor participants in the 12 years of the project in NSW. Jess Bell hosts this month’s episode as she teases out what the main drivers were behind this performance with Sheena Carter. It was yet another very challenging year with more floods which had a big impact on the majority of farms across the state.  Links to useful...

Rearing heifers well is an extremely important aspect of herd management. Selecting the right heifers and ensuring they reach target weights in a specified time period is integral to the future production of your herd.  However rearing heifers is a costly exercise so thought and planning is important to ensure you get it right. Carrying too many heifers can be expensive and tie up farm resources....

With much of the State of NSW currently experiencing very dry conditions NSW DPI reached out to Tim Ford, Director at Feed Central to provide an update for the industry on the current situation and outlook for fodder supply. Tim presented this information at our recent Dairy Breakfast webinar in conjunction with a presentation from the DPI Climate team on the seasonal conditions and tools availabl...

Dairies are complex businesses requiring a very broad range of skills to manage. In today’s environment, good business management skills are more important than ever. This is recognised by industry organisations whose role is to support farmers such as the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Dairy Australia as well as farm consultants who provide individual farm support in various technical a...

Recently a farmer reference group was formed in the Mid Coast region of NSW to provide information and guidance on an economic and risk analysis of rearing non-replacement calves.  The project was led by Dan Armstrong, Senior Consultant with the RM Consulting Group.  In the analysis, Dan and his team used two of the farms as case studies where the goal was to sell the non-replacement calves as dai...

Interest in NSW and Australia in intensive dairy systems has grown significantly in the last decade due to many factors. These systems require significant capital investment, so it is important that if this is a system that interests you, you really do your homework.  Through DairyUP, a large research, development and extension program in NSW, NSW DPI with joint funding from Dairy Australia, has u...

Greenhouse gases, carbon emissions, carbon credits, mitigation strategies, emission reduction targets - these are terms that are bandied about regularly in relation to agriculture and dairying. What do they all mean and how do they impact you at a farm level? This month, my colleague Zita Ritchie interviews Blake Cheer a Dairy Development Officer with NSW DPI and Aaron Simmons, a senior research s...

NSW dairy farmers have faced many extreme weather and climatic challenges in recent years from severe and prolonged drought to bushfires and then widespread flooding.  There is no doubt we will continue to see these events and others occur in the future. We need to get better at preparing for, responding to and managing our recovery in these situations. With this in mind, last year a large collabo...

Silage is used to varying degrees and in different ways on NSW and Australian dairy farms, depending on the type of feeding system the farm has. It can be an important component of your herd’s diet and given that producing it comes with additional costs compared to directly grazed pasture, it is important to make sure you do it well to make it economical. My guest this month is Neil Griffiths, a w...

Guests Bill Fulkerson and Ken Bryant speak with Zita Ritchie about a new cultivar of kikuyu which has shown resistance to fungal infections, particularly kikuyu yellows. Key management strategies are also discussed for kikuyu. Bill is a well know dairy researcher with many years of experience, particularly supporting farmers on the Far North Coast of NSW. Ken is a dairy farmer at Bexhill near Lism...

It is coming up to a key time of the year for many of our dairy businesses, that being the autumn sowing period. There are many things to consider now to get the best outcome for your pasture production in the winter and spring period ahead. My guest this month is agronomist Josh Hack from Ag Farming Systems. Josh recently spoke at an autumn pasture and seasonal update day held on farm near Taree...

Genomics - to some farmers this is an amazing innovation that they have embraced with open arms. For others, it may be a bit of a scientific mystery but according to Rob Cooper, my guest this month it is actually very simple to use and a powerful tool that he is passionate about and would like to see more people in the industry adopt. Rob is well known to many in dairying. He was a successful dair...

NSW Dairy Farm Monitor results were recently released for the 21/22FY. Analysis of the performance of the 36 farms involved in the project showed a wide range in profitability. All farms experienced above average rainfall for the year - many of them subject to significant flooding and prolonged wet conditions which impacted on performance. However, despite the impact of the incredibly wet year and...

NSW dairy farmers have been faced with some incredibly challenging seasonal conditions over the last 2 years which has seen one in one-hundred-year floods, repeated floods and prolonged wet conditions on many coastal farms and now our inland farms as well. These conditions are not limited to NSW, most states on the eastern seaboard have been affected by the impact of la Nina. Apart from the immedi...

This month, Zita Ritchie interviews Paula Gray. Paula is a farmer form Rolland’s Plains on the Mid North Coast of NSW who farms with her husband Mick. The Gray’s have been the NSW case study farm for a project called Dairy Businesses for Future Climates which enables farmers to understand the likely impacts of climate on their farm and help them prepare to better manage the risks or changes. It is...

This month our focus is on technology and my guest is Dr Nicolas Lyons, who is Leader Dairy with the NSW DPI dairy team. Nico has had a career shaped by his involvement with dairy farm technology, both in research and on farm implementation. Technology used on dairy farms and agriculture in general is ever evolving and, if suited to the farm and farmer’s business it can help improve on-farm produc...

Kevin and Brodie Game with their young family, dairy at Bemboka on the far south coast of NSW and have worked hard at achieving their goals over the last 12 years. From small beginnings they have grown into a large and profitable business, with the inevitable ups and downs along the way. They have also just reached the end of their first year as the NSW Focus Farm which has provided them with grea...

In this episode we take a look at features of the Top 25% of NSW Dairy Farm Monitor Farms in terms of their profitability and productivity over the last 10 years. Funding from the NSW Farm Business Resilience Program enabled this project to happen. It has highlighted key physical and financial traits of the top performers such as herd size, usable land area, production, stocking rate, cow and labo...

Clear, simple systems to help you manage tasks and people on your farm can help with business efficiency and productivity. An aspect that is commonly spoken about in the dairy industry is the cost and efficiency of labour, not to mention availability, of skilled labour. In NSW labour total costs (paid and owner operator or imputed labour) on average, make up around 25% of farm operating costs acco...

It’s the 1st June - an important date in the Australian dairy calendar. Most listeners will know that under the dairy Mandatory Code of Conduct, processors are now required to announce their minimum farm gate milk price today in their milk supply agreements. My guest this episode is Janine Waller, Executive Director of Australian Dairy Products Federation or ADPF - the nations peak body for dairy...

This month we take a look at business planning – getting clarity on what your business is about, what you are trying to achieve and how you are going to get there. A report by the UK’s Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) in 2018 identified 8 factors that characterised their top performing farms, one of which is ‘setting goals and budgets’. Their findings showed that (quote) “ Far...