August 29th 2008
Inter-island challenge set by farmers
The message was clear at the end of the Rissington Breedline Annual Conference - improvements in productivity must be made - and it was a message that could not have been heard louder from farmers themselves. The commercial motivations are obvious but it might just be that the $500 bar tab is the biggest incentive of all.
In the spirit of true inter-island rivalry, South Island farmers have put a $500 bar tab wager on the fact that they can out perform their North Island counterparts on their ability to meet the specifications for supplying Marks & Spencer with Primera® lambs this coming season.
While this might be a light-hearted approach, how they achieve it will not be. As Eketahuna farmer Dave Nelson said in his closing "it is all too easy to lose sight of the fundamentals of driving up productivity, not attacking costs".
Dave Nelson was just one of many farmers who addressed the conference, all of whom had similar messages about productivity, specialisation and keeping focussed on understanding the needs of the consumer.
At the end of the 2 days around 150 people left the conference feeling buoyed by the reassurance that they are all heading in the right direction and that there can be a great future in the sheep & beef industry.
"The conference provided me with tangible information on how the right people and tools can improve our business" Ian Strahan.
We would like to thank everyone who addressed the conference and those who were able to attend.
