Palm kernel test rolling out
Fonterra is to begin testing for palm kernel use from next week but the results will initially be for advisory purposes and farmers will not incur demerit points.
In an email to farmer shareholders, head of Farm Source Taranaki, Scott Walls, said the dairy co-operative was ready to roll out nationwide testing of milk for fatty acid changes caused by palm kernel expeller (PKE).
The test would provide a score on a fat evaluation index which was based on Fonterra’s milk fingerprinting technology for measuring milk fat composition, Walls said.
A pilot study of 200 farmers around the country had confirmed the test was accurate and fit for purpose and supported Fonterra’s original voluntary PKE guideline of three kilograms of PKE per cow, per day as a good rule of thumb across the lactation season.
Fonterra would provide support to farmers with results indicating PKE use in excess of the recommended daily limit and results would initially be for advisory purposes only, he said.
The use of the word ‘‘initially’’ was a sticking point for Taranaki farmer Matthew Herbert, who said there needed to be clarification around how and when testing would be conducted and the penalties which could be imposed.
‘‘Fonterra needs to clarify if or when grades will come into force if PKE is found to have been used in excess of that 3kg per cow, per day,’’ he said.
‘‘There also needs to be clarification about how often it will be tested. Is it going to be every day, every couple of days or a rolling average? Farmers also need to know how long they have to make changes before penalties will be imposed on their business.’’
Herbert, who milks 360 cows at Kaponga, said restricting PKE use could have serious consequences for those farmers who were already in a tight financial situation.
‘‘I understand where they are coming from and that palm kernel usage is causing processing issues for them but Fonterra need to work together with farmers to overcome that issue,’’ he said. ’’Increasing palm kernel usage has changed the New Zealand dairy industry and we now need to start having a conversation about what it will mean to highly indebted farmers if they need to replace that feed.’’ For West Otago farmer Bruce Eade, the issue was one of red tape.
Although he had never used PKE as a supplement, Eade said it was increasingly difficult to comply with the rules and regulations imposed on dairy farmers.
‘‘It used to be that someone would come and inspect your shed and talk about how clean your plant was,’’ he said.
Now it’s five minutes in the shed and the rest is about animal welfare and the environment.
‘‘I’m all for animal welfare and looking after the environment, but it’s like the dairy industry has got too big too fast and people are milking too many cows to be able to afford an alternative feed [to PKE].’’
Green Party MP Mojo Mathers, however, said it was great to see Fonterra taking the step to begin testing for PKE content but called on the co-op to take it further.
‘‘It would be even better if Fonterra followed Landcorp’s lead and dropped PKE altogether,’’ she said.
‘‘The heavy use of PKE represents a massive risk to our brand for our dairy products. Fonterra sources its PKE from [Singapore-based supplier] Wilmar, which is in the centre of a controversy over its use of forced and child labour - highlighted recently in a report by Amnesty International.’’