Key performance indicators and pastoral farming

30 January, 2006

PASTORAL : MEDIA RELEASES 2006

Farmers attending the Northland Pastoral Farming Group annual conference at Waitangi on February 24 will have their horizons lifted beyond on-farm matters.

Keynote speaker David Graham, a farm accountant, dairy farmer and Ballance Agri-Nutrients chairman, is to address the challenges facing New Zealand to remain internationally competitive. “Science plays an important part in enabling us to maintain and enhance our position,” he said.

As a member of an Institute of Chartered Accountants initiative for a national financial database and benchmarking system for the dairy industry, Mr Graham will speak about key performance indicators. “They can be used to measure our competitiveness, and for the industry to decide what factors need attention,” he said.

There is no bigger question facing farming than environmental sustainability.

The government would like to see New Zealand turned into a park, but that would be at the expense of export earnings. “Farmers have to find the balance between commercial and environmental aspects while remaining financial viable,” Mr Graham said.

As farmers bid up land prices they put pressure on themselves to intensify production, which then flows on into environmental issues.

The conference at the Copthorne Hotel and Resort, Bay of Islands , is part of the Sustainable Farming Fund Northland pastoral extension project, supported by Enterprise Northland, Ballance AgriNutrients, Hine Rangi Trust Northland Regional Council, Northplan Investment Specialists, Summit Quinphos.

AgResearch chairman Rick Christie will also be a keynote speaker.

There will be six concurrent sessions in the afternoon on nutrient budgeting, overcoming endophyte problems, kikuyu management, nitrogen use (including inhibitors), fodder crops and clover management.

Wherever possible the presenters have been asked to use Northland research work and to make sure examples from elsewhere in the country are relevant to Northland. A majority of the presenters are Northland-based researchers, consultants, service providers and field officers.

The conference will be held on Friday, February 24 from 10.30am to 4.30pm . The cost will be $40 (GST inclusive) per person or $70 per farm or business.

Farmers wishing to attend need to register through Enterprise Northland, phone 09 438 5110, P.O.Box 1762 , Whangarei.