Sam Woodford is the manager of the NZ Superfund beef fattening property at Kaiwera east of Gore in Southland, running up to 4200 Friesian bulls and Angus cross at the peak of the season, on 1200 hectares of rolling to steep country.
Sam took over managing the corporate farm in early 2018, and a key priority for him in setting the operation up was to get Tru-Test weighing equipment in.
“I had used Tru-Test on a previous farm so I was pretty keen to get it going here.”
The farm uses the latest model Tru-Test load bars the HD5T, the Tru-Test XRS2 stick reader and the Tru-Test XR5000 weigh scale indicator. It scans animals six weeks in its 18-month fattening programme to achieve optimum weight for processing.
All the data is downloaded to Datamars Livestock so it can be easily analysed by Sam back in the office, and his city-based managers, and uploaded quickly and easily for NAIT compliance.
“We have got specific weights we think animals need to reach at particular times of the season. [Datamars Livestock] lets you know if you are tracking right and also gives my management the opportunity to look at what is going on.”
Sam says using a weighing and EID system is key to the corporate farm achieving its current annual goal of a 7 percent profit dividend.
“Weighing products are a big investment but it certainly helps our business stay on track with what we are trying to achieve.”
And he would recommend that management approach to other farmers who have specific livestock weight goals in their operation.
It means he can identify if individuals or groups of animals are not achieving expected weight gain. “If you weren’t weighing them you would not know to what extent that was occurring. There would be animals that would slip under the radar.”
“You can see they put on 1.5kg last week but only 1 kg the next week, and you can work out why. If some animals are doing better than others it is normally the feed they are on.”
Sam eagerly awaited the release of the new Tru-Test HD5T load bars. “We had a window of time, and it was worth the wait.”
Sam says he’s noticed the HD5T model is superior to previous versions. “At times we have small calves go over our big crush and it’s still very accurate, even if the calf stands at one end.”
Due to advanced technology, unlike their predecessor, the heavy duty HD5T load bars do not have stabilisers, making them easier to install under any crush, they have a 5 tonne capacity, and are more durable with improved performance in harsh environments.
Sam says another plus is that the HD5T load bars were quick and easy to install, and adding to the service his Datamars Livestock representative installed them for him.
He says the Tru-Test products are reliable and user-friendly and keeps his operation on track with what it wants to achieve.