Farm goals achieved with monitoring

Waikato farm consultant Brendan Brier believes lessons learned from the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm are easily transferred to most sheep and beef operations.

“Monitor farms provide a valuable template for family farms wanting to instil greater structure and direction around the business and can be accessed by all farmers,” said Brier.

Mr Brier has led the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm on behalf of the Waikato Innovation Park for the past three years.

The 450ha hill country Monitor Farm property owned by the Bodley family between Naike and Matira was hit hard early on in its ownership by the record breaking drought of 2010.

This saw the farm receive less than 200mm of rain over a four month period from December 2009, a record low for the region.

However having monitoring programmes in place helped bring a “no surprises” outcome with the worst of the drought, which Brier estimates cost the farm around $100,000.

This was thanks to close pasture assessment, and modelling that information using Farmax software to help predict how great the feed deficit was likely to be.

Even though the drought’s severity meant predictions on feed levels were still above the reality, they at least provided an early indicator to start purchasing extra feed in over autumn to get through winter.

Brier said a key part of monitoring any aspect of the farm’s management had to also include identifying what it was the operators wanted to achieve.

“This involves having objectives that are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound.”

Setting benchmark figures around those objectives allows farmers to know when they have been achieved, and can be physical, financial and personal in nature.

“On a physical level it may include having a target pasture level at a certain time of the year you have to achieve, and monitoring it means you will soon see if that is going to be reached. Financially it may be around reducing a pre-determined amount of debt over a certain period. Again, monitoring through the year will feed you the information to know if that is going to be achieved, without any surprises at the end.”

He likens the targets and benchmarks to having a map and using a compass with it.

“You can set off in a certain direction using just the map, but only with the compass will you know you are actually heading exactly where you need to be.”

To monitor information requires it being recorded.  Technology is making this simple, seamless and accurate.

Farmax software was used on the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm to record, track and predict pasture cover and stock weights, linking into benchmarks and performance indices.

Mentor groups on family farms play a key role in integrating the farm’s physical constraints, operator goals and experience to provide input about what direction the farm business should be taking.

In the case of the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm, the funders played a key role.  These were Beef + Lamb New Zealand together with the sponsors, including Ballance Agri-Nutrients, National Bank and PGG Wrightson.

“There is nothing, however, to stop farmers building good relationships with experts from such suppliers who can play invaluable roles in advising and mentoring.

“That mentor group assists with keeping the farm heading in the right direction, and instilling a business view on decisions being made. On the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm these decisions related to the choice of winter crops, pasture mixes and economics of lifting soil fertility and stock performance.

“Having a comprehensive understanding of where you are now, where you want to be, and how to get there are guiding principles of a monitor farm programme, as they should be for any farm.”