Subject: Agriculture feature ideas

From: Mary Anne Gill <[email-masked]>
Date: 27 Aug 1995 03:51:07 GMT

I'm an agricultural journalist with the Waikato Times newspaper 
in Hamilton, New Zealand. It's a region where dairying is number 
one by far......
Anyway our newspaper does a regular weekly feature and we look at 
what is going on down on the farm ..... things to interest 
townies. In recent months we've covered a number of issues 
including whether or not farmers should be docking milking cows' 
tails (that got them thinking and writing), food for farmers and 
shearers, conversions from sheep and beef to dairying etc etc.
Anyone got any other great and interesting feature ideas we could 
tackle. What's the rest of the world grappling with down on the 
farm? Is water a problem? Beef prices? Septic tanks? Let me know 
some ideas.

Thanks

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 28 Aug 95 11:54:50 PDT

In article <[email-masked]>, 
<[email-masked]> writes:
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> From: Mary Anne Gill <[email-masked]>
> Newsgroups: 
misc.rural,sci.agriculture,sci.agriculture.beekeeping,alt.agriculture.misc,alt.
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> Subject: Agriculture feature ideas
> Date: 27 Aug 1995 03:51:07 GMT
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> farm? Is water a problem? Beef prices? Septic tanks? Let me know 

More and more we see in Holland dairy farmers who install a milkingrobot
They say it is more animal friendly than the milking with the machine.
With the robot the cow can come up till six times a day to the milkingplace
Espcially with fresh calfed cows that produce more than 40 liters a
day it is a reliefe for the cows to be able to drain their milk several times
a day.
Although a robot seems in the first place very distant from relation
human/animal the practical work as such is much better than 2 times 
milking a day.,

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From: Matt Eliason & Robyn Ayles <[email-masked]>
Date: 28 Aug 1995 11:46:26 GMT

> farm? Is water a problem? Beef prices? Septic tanks? Let me know 

where do you want to start???
emu/ostrich farming, cost benefits
effects of the el nino on New Zealand weather
alternaive farming ideas, ie trout in farm ponds
alternative marketing techniques for livestock/wool ie futures
oldest tractors still working in district
etc etc etc

hope that helps
ME

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From: [email-masked] (david rogers)
Date: 29 Aug 1995 01:28:46 GMT

>in Hamilton, New Zealand. It's a region where dairying is number 
It will cost you the trade off for free exchange of information, 
is that O.K.?

I work as the Ag. Specialist at a major Utility Co.in Canada. Have an
article at work which describes how farmers who put in HPS HID Lighting
in their barns get an extra $65/Cow US return by increasing winter day 
length to 18 hours.

If you are interested will send more. I am always scouting for new 
articles in Ag. hope we can trade across the Big P for Pacific.

Sincerely,

David.

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From: x (x)
Date: Tue, 29 Aug 1995 11:18:27 -0600

$65/Cow, for what period of time, each month, biweekly, the whole year?
OBTW: How much do dairies get per hundred weight in Canada? Rumor says around
$20/hundred, but the local coop's want us to beleave around $10 so they can
lower our price so as not to hurt your farmers. I really doubt their concern
for Canada's dairies.

We have found over a twenty year period how to maintain a heard average between
55 and 61 lbs of milk per day from holstein cattle through the prudent use
of adequate pasture, and simple feed while in the dairy of crushed corn, 
soybean, and minerals. Artificial stimulants or drugs are not used.

Geoff Slinker

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From: "Miles E. Jorgenson, P. Eng." <[email-masked]>
Date: 31 Aug 1995 06:51:05 GMT

You want a firecracker?  Rumor has it, Holland , and the rest of Europe 
are running out of room for hogs.  They have two choices; get out of the 
business or move around the globe.  North America is a likely welcome 
spot, but you might see if Kiwis would welcome them.  The world eats a 
pile of pork, I'll tell you.  China alone eats close to 25 million 
tonnes!

I am involved in the public side of selling communities on hog projects.  
"Not in My Back Yard" is a common roadblock to farmers establishing new 
operations.  This is usually fueled by fears of water contamination or 
sleepless nights with the smell of pig shit in your quiet country home.  
Interesting, farmers complain against other farmers, it is not always an 
urban rural problem.

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From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 31 Aug 95 13:05:28 PDT

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> From: "Miles E. Jorgenson, P. Eng." <[email-masked]>
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> Subject: Re: Agriculture feature ideas
> Date: 31 Aug 1995 06:51:05 GMT
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> Interesting, farmers complain against other farmers, it is not always an 
In Holland we have indeed that problem. Local newspapers give an easy
ear to all kind of rubbish stories from opposers of the new pigfarmers who
move from the dense pig-areas to the open areas of airabele farming
in the southwest of the netherlands.
But the pigfarmers are forced by the law to build such high sophisticated
pighouses that no smell or NH3 will escape.
The pigs in there, are better of than 2/3 of the worldpopulation.