Cutting waste a big money-saver

Dairy farmer Mark Williams (left) tells a South Island Dairy Event workshop how  lessons from...
Dairy farmer Mark Williams (left) tells a South Island Dairy Event workshop how lessons from other industries can be used on farms. Workshop leader Tony Watson is in the centre. Photos by Sally Brooker.
Dairy farmers can make their lives easier by learning from other industries, Westland Milk Products Canterbury milk supply manager Tony Watson says.

He told a workshop at the recent South Island Dairy Event at Lincoln University streamlined systems could be adapted to suit farming situations.

Doing something a certain way because that was how it was done last year was not the best reason, he said.

''Do the numbers - see if it stacks up.''

Illustrating his point was Aylesbury dairy farmer Mark Williams, who has applied systems from his former occupation as a supermarket manager in South Westland. He said he had cut wastage at the supermarket and then took the same approach to dairying.

He identified potential wastage as coming from dry cows, mastitis, lameness, feed and supplementary feed.

When he was converting the farm to dairying, he installed an Automatic Dipping and Flushing (ADF) system, having shown his bank manager the neighbour's one. The bank manager said, ''Why doesn't everyone use it?''

Tony Watson from Westland Milk Products advises dairy farmers to simplify their systems.
Tony Watson from Westland Milk Products advises dairy farmers to simplify their systems.
Mr Williams had had only one or two cows with mastitis, resulting in a ''massive saving in time, energy and money''. His staff say they do not want to go to another operation without the ADF system.

Feed wastage in the paddocks also bothered him. He calculated that if he built a feed pad, it would be paid back in two years from reduced wastage.

''It was well worth doing for us.''

The place where Mr Williams stored his feed supplements had no concrete underneath, so ''at least 15%'' was wasted. He had booked a digger to build silage pits and feed holding pads.

''You have to do your sums about the payback period,'' he told the workshop.

''If it's within two years, it's worth doing straight away.''

Staffing was another important area, as he had learned from his supermarket days.

''You've got to have a good team.''

He found a person who would make a good manager and made him a job offer he could not refuse. That man brought another staff member with him.

Mr Watson said employers ''get the staff we expect - or deserve''. Mr Williams expected to find good people and did so.

He gave himself and his manager weekends off to spend time with their families - something they prioritised. Another person was happy to have Thursday and Friday off instead.

Mr Williams said the key was to pay staff well and give them good time off - ask them what they wanted and try to help them achieve it.

Staff should be involved in goal-setting and asked how they thought the farm was going, Mr Watson said.

''They will see problems you don't,'' Mr Williams added.

Once waste had been eliminated, farmers should work out what made money, he said. That included good genetics, feeding, soils, and animal health.

''Talk to other farmers, read everything, pick up ideas and analyse them for your situation. Discuss them with your staff. They will tell you whether or not it's a goer.''

Staff should be given the chance to deal with small problems so the owner had time to tackle the big decisions, Mr Williams said.

Mr Watson advised farmers to think about small improvements to make processes run more efficiently, such as having the drugs cabinet handy to the milkers, making up a fencing kit containing everything likely to be needed out on the farm, and a lameness kit in a chillybin.

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