Farming family wins competition with top management

Every blade of grass counts on the Mavor family's intensive North Otago sheep and beef operation. Pasture management is King on the family's Oamaru farm. Pastures are measured and monitored and stock managed to ensure they are maximising productivity from every kilogram of drymatter grown. The Mavors success as meat producers was recognised when they recently won this year's Rabobank Lincoln University Foundation Farmer of the Year competition reports Country- Wide. The driver of the Mavors' simple yet intensive farm management system is contracts, and the family have contracts with both Five Star Beef and Canterbury Meat Packers (CMP) who buy their lamb. Colin, who runs the farm with his wife Denise, son Stefan and Stefan's wife Teressa, says it is the deadlines contained within these contracts that get them out of bed in the morning. But the confidence to deliver is only made possible through a recently installed irrigation system and a very reliable water supply. Five years ago the family, who are shareholders in the lower Waitaki irrigation scheme, installed their k-line irrigation system which has enabled them to water 250ha of the 625ha they farm. The k-lines are on a 12 hour irrigation cycle applying 32mm, but like everything on the farm, soil moisture levels are monitored through an aquaflex and hand-held moisture probes. The irrigation has lifted drymatter production from 5000-7000kg DM/ha, (which is what is produced on the dryland part of the farm) to 14,000-15,000kg DM/ha. Doubling drymatter production has allowed the Mavors to change their farm system from a predomin­ately sheep operation to one in which cattle is the dominant class of stock. They now winter 750 Angus steers and another 400 are purchased in spring. All of the steers are delivered to Five Star at a minimum of 440kg.