Sharemilkers adopt cutting-edge tech
Award-winning Waikato dairy farmers use cuttingedge tech to continue the family legacy, writes Bonnie Flaws.
An award-winning sharemilking couple have turned to cuttingedge technology to help future proof their dairy farm. Sarah and Aidan Stevenson, both 31, say that since adopting hi-tech ear tags to monitor their dairy herd, cow deaths have reduced from 4 per cent to 2 per cent a year.
Aidan Stevenson said the devices could also tell if a cow was in heat, which had improved the mating success of the herd.
The ear tags work by monitoring the cow’s temperature and activity, with data transmitted to routers placed around the farm.
If a cow’s temperature changes or their activity levels drop, an alert is sent to the farmer’s mobile phone.
The couple were among the first to use the tags, which had led to early detection of illness, and therefore earlier treatment, Sarah Stevenson said.
The couple recently won the
Share Farmer of the Year category at the Waikato Dairy Industry Awards.
Sarah Stevenson grew up dairy farming and is the sixth generation of her family to farm.
The family has been on a farm near Morrinsville for the past 20 years but farmed in the Bay of Plenty before that.
The couple bought the herd from Sarah Stevenson’s mother, Sue Williams, after her father, Keith Williams, died.
‘‘It was dad’s herd and we feel a lot of attachment to both the land and the cows, so to still have those in the family is amazing,’’ Sarah Stevenson said.
The herd of 340 is made up of 80 per cent friesian and 20 per cent jersey breeds.
Aidan Stevenson grew up on a lifestyle block in Morrinsville and worked as a builder before becoming a farmer.
Sarah Stevenson looks after their three young children and takes care of the office administration. A registered chartered accountant, she still works part-time for a company in Matamata but is currently on maternity leave with her 10month-old son Zac. Aidan Stevenson runs the farm.
The couple have been farming together for eight years and sell their milk to Tatua. They have no plans to diversify away from dairy but are interested in either taking on another sharemilking job or lease farm.
‘‘My granddad always said ‘stick to your knitting girl, don’t get distracted’. Dairying is what we know and love and I feel very passionate about it. We have got a strong focus on building equity and debt reduction, which is really important. Our main goal
‘‘We have got a strong focus on building equity and debt reduction ... Our main goal is farm ownership.’’ Farmer Sarah Stevenson
is farm ownership,’’ Sarah Stevenson said.
Dairying was a safe industry to be in to weather the storm the coronavirus had created, she said. Milk was seen as safe and nutritious, especially because of New Zealand’s pasture based farming system, she said.
The couple now rear their calves on the farm, after reducing stock numbers.
In the past they had trouble finding sufficient quality grazing for them, which led to the decision to do it themselves.
They were able to ensure calves met target live-weights on time and it was easier to ensure their wellbeing, Sarah Stevenson said.
They had also been breeding bulls, as her father did.
Breeding company LIC has bought two bulls from them in recent years for its premier sires team.
In spring this year they are expecting more than 40 contract calves to be born and screened for selection.
Sarah Stevenson said the future of dairying was bright, despite a raft of legislation coming down the pipeline that would affect farming operations.