Page 41 - 2020 NZ Hereford Magazine

Industry Focus

Beef

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RAISING BEEF CROSS CALVES HAS VIRTUALLY ELIMINATED BOBBY CALVES
FROM A MANAWATU FARMING OPERATION AND ADDED A VALUABLE EXTRA

INCOME STREAM.

WORDS JACKIE HARRIGAN PHOTOGRAPHS BRAD HANSON / SUPPLIED
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN NZ DAIRY EXPORTER 2019

JAMES TENNANT AND HIS FAMILY from Rongotea have been Next to calve are the Hereford Friesian white-faced cross
using beef bulls to add value to their excess dairy stock for the calves – and the family rear 240 heifers and bulls to 100kg on
past 13 years and have a painless system. the dairy platform before they are transferred to their nearby
Rearing calves and selling at 300kg through the Feilding sand country run-off blocks at Oroua Downs. James also rears
Saleyards has meant the family could largely move away from 50 on his own account for a small farm he owns separately from
bobby calves while adding income to their bottom line from the the family trust.
dairy beef cross calves. All of the bulls are steered so that steers and heifers can be
The 250-hectare milking platform milks 660 cows and targets run together.
300,000kg milksolids (MS), depending on the season, on the Fed on grass and baleage through the winter, James says
unirrigated flats that can dry out in the summer and get heavy the beef crosses are no trouble to get to 300kg in time for the
underfoot in winter. The herd is milked from 1 August, calving spring yearling sales where they are sold through the Feilding
through to early June, making up extra autumn production after yards in lots of 20 on the spring grass market.
a dry summer spell.
James and his brother Richard run the dairy farm, with spring THIS PAGE, TOP TO BOTTOM: James Tennant on farm in the
Manawatu; Near to 500 calves are reared at the farm.
help from their parents Peter and Barbara, and they have three
Filipino staff working for the season. Another brother, Andrew, is
managing another drystock farm at nearby Tangimoana.
The Tennants’ herd is 80% Friesian and the rest Jersey and
crossbred, and six weeks of AI with Friesian semen breeds the
replacement heifers for the herd.
After the six weeks of AI, the herd is tailed up with the teams
of Ezicalve Hereford bulls from Mike and Cath Cranstone’s
Riverton stud at Fordell.
Near to 500 calves are reared at the farm, with Peter
and Barbara in the calf shed helping with the calf rearing.
Replacement heifers are the oldest calves and number around
150, with 100 Friesian bulls reared alongside them.
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