Council Compliance
Yes, in all likelihood dairy farmers will face further updates and new rules and regulations to follow in 2022. While it might seem like the government has a vendetta against dairy farmers, this is certainly not the case as we all know you guys are the backbone of our economy! These increasing rules and regulations are simply bringing New Zealand into line with other industries by world standards.
Our best advice is to act now. If you’re already facing compliance issues, there’s a lot that can be done to not only ensure your farm is meeting regulations, but to futureproof to reduce the chances of needing to make major changes soon. Many farmers who already operate well within current rules and regulations shouldn’t have too much difficulty in adapting and progressing to reasonably foreseeable changes.
Council Consents
Further to our advice above, if you’re holding back from making improvements because you’ve still got consent for a few years – don’t!
Councils currently give a generous 25 year consent, but it’s very possible consents will be reduced to shorter terms.
Getting things sorted now will have a number of benefits:
- You can get a new consent which would then be 25 years + your remaining term.
- Inflation is likely to increase further, meaning there’s never a cheaper time to get things done than now.
- If you’re worried about affordability – the interest on borrowing money now will probably be less than what the cost of products and services will be in a few years when your consent is up for renewal.
Synthetic Nitrogen Usage
It’s already started happening – reductions in the amount of synthetic nitrogen able to be used as well as hikes in the cost to buy it!
This all makes those FREE and NATURAL nutrients found in effluent all the more VALUABLE!
More and more we’re seeing dairy farmers with underground systems investing in slurry tankers or drag hose systems, and one of the reasons is to be able to make the most of the effluent nutrients and spread it further, and in a more controlled way with minimal volitisation. This trend is likely to continue, as with the growing interest in additional natural supplements that can be added to effluent.
Dairy Pay-Outs
With high demand for our dairy, and high production it’s looking good for pay-outs to remain strong in 2022 – woohoo!
Nitrogen Application Reporting
From July 2022 farmers need to provide council with information on how much, when and where nitrogen is being applied. For cost effectiveness and convenience we’d predict a lot of farmers will choose to carry their own DIY nutrient testing kits, giving them the ability to test the levels of nitrogen in effluent prior to spreading.
Labour Shortages
Although we’re looking forward to the borders opening up to bring back some of the international workforce, there’s no guarantees we’ll see an immediate improvement in labour shortages.
Labour shortages have affected both famers and contractors with the boarders being closed, but unfortunately if/when the boarders open there is the chance this could bring the complications of increased COVID into the community.
It’s not all doom and gloom, after 2 years of COVID many of us have already adapted to working with less staff – whether that’s just been thinking outside the box or upgrading to more efficient systems. We’re also seeing a lot of farmers taking things into their own hands and investing in effluent equipment of their own rather than borrowing a neighbour’s or relying on contractors who are under the pump.
Remote Servicing Growth
Over the past few years there’s been a dramatic increase in online ordering due to lockdowns etc, but what’s been less spoken about is the increase in remote services. Along with demand, technologies have increased to allow many services that were traditionally face-to-face to be conducted remotely – and in some instances the information gained can be better!
Our online tools allow us to gain detailed information on a farm and the land when it comes to planning and designing effluent management systems, and we’re finding a lot of farmers are enjoying seeing this detailed analysis of their farm while working remotely with us.
Contingency Planning
There’s a growing trend in farmers looking to implement contingency plans with their effluent management. This is being seen a lot in farmers who already have efficient effluent systems in place looking to invest in a slurry tanker or drag hose system not only for spreading further, but as a back-up.
As council compliance measures tighten, no one wants to be caught out and end up with a costly fine, and with labour shortages contractors aren’t always able to help at short notice. This is making owning your own equipment more appealing, and some farmers are even sharing equipment with neighbouring farms. Of course for anyone with more than one farm, or corporate ownership, this is a no-brainer.
Moving Away From Disc Injectors & Dropper Booms
Overseas in the UK there’s been some controversy over the use of disc injectors and dropper booms for effluent application. Where they were once thought to be the way to go for reducing loss of nutrients into the atmosphere, some farmers have found the application has caused contamination and detrimental effects to the soil. This has caused a re-think of how they apply effluent, and applicators similar to the Nevada RainWave™ are thought to be the way to go moving forward due to their controlled, even application and minimal volitisation – we could say the UK is catching up with us!
New Zealand’s Still Leading The Way!
Last year we had the highest milk production for at least 10 years with fewer cows – we continue to lead the way in sustainable dairy farming and Nevada can’t wait to see what kiwi dairy farmers achieve in 2022! Cheers to you!