New Zealand firms have been receiving the message - largely through the Productivity Commission that ‘we’ are lagging behind our competitors in regards to productivity.
On paper when compared with some of the European countries this does appear to be the case.
However, I had the pleasure to spend some time on a progressive farm in the Waikato last week. This has made me wonder, regarding the dairy industry, whether there is a lag in the data coming through or perhaps, we’re not looking at the right things.
To be fair to Stats NZ the information they get is at the aggregate level and it would take a considerable lift in productivity to shift the dials appreciably. Productivity, if unused to the term can be seen as a bit vague , however the OECD provides a succinct definition which condenses down to:
Productivity is commonly defined as a ratio between the output volume and the volume of inputs. In other words, it measures how efficiently production inputs, such as labour and capital, are being used in an economy to produce a given level of output.
The Productivity Commission has urged New Zealand to spend more time researching and applying greater use of technologies in our firms. The aim is to lift outputs and, presumably, lower inputs.
So, back to the farm visit.
The purpose of the visit was to look and learn about some of the new technologies available to dairy farmers and, arguably, beef farmers - although economics may make this sector a bit more hesitant around the uptake. But there are options that look to be targeting beefies also.
The technologies in question revolved around the use of collars and inserts (this is not meant to be an infomercial and with several variations on the market readers will need to do their own research).
While the earlier models focused on animal health, feeding and fertility, the addition of virtual fence management has expanded the influence of the technologies into areas of pasture management and environmental impacts.
One of the benefits is not only that managers can control where and when animals can or cannot not go as the case may be, but there is also a permanent record of this management.
In seasons such as the North Island has been experiencing, being able to isolate over-wet areas of land preventing pugging and potential runoff into waterways etc, must be a valuable tool for pasture management but also provide the regulatory bodies with the evidence that the manager is abiding by the ‘rules’. This should help alleviate the cost of bringing in outside consultancy support plus reduce the amount of record keeping due to the seamless recording that takes place.
Just hearing that five Southland farmers have been ‘ordered’ to stop winter feeding of cows, presumably due to over pugging, adds some relevance to this.
Once the blinkers over how these technologies can be used are removed, the options expand exponentially.
GHG emissions should also be reduced, partly through the health and fertility management benefits, which should lift production efficiency while not increasing emissions but also by monitoring animal camp sites enabling better managed N2O emissions.
At the industry wide level, the collection of individual cow and herd data should allow positive benefits to occur there also.
It may require the addition of AI technologies to ‘mine’ this data to reveal trends and patterns but should provide a huge beneficial source of information. Overall the future does have some positive initiatives occurring which leads one to believe some ground changing shifts in management are occurring.
On a different note: The European Union (EU) and New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) has been signed off.
Within agriculture (with the exception of horticulture, which shouldn’t be underestimated), the FTA is a bit of a lead balloon with little to offer to meat and dairy producers while at the same time opening the door to EU products to gain easier access to here, although the doors have been open for some time. For EU exports into New Zealand tariffs will go down to zero on all products, including for key EU export products, such as:
- Pig meat
- Wine and sparkling wine
- Pet food
- Chocolate, sugar confectionary and ice cream
- Dairy products, including cheeses
At the same time New Zealand dairy and meat products have very “modest” improvements for access into the EU to ensure the “sensitive” meat and dairy industries of the EU are not threatened by New Zealand cheaper imports. Pragmatic perhaps, but still a bit galling. Also, given that the West is warned against having too much reliance on exporting to China, the FTA doesn’t do a lot to reduce New Zealand’s dependence.
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.