Meetings on drought recovery planned

Press, 6 October 1989, Page 18

Meetings on drought recovery planned

Three animal industries workshops looking at drought recovery strategies and aimed at pastoral farmers on the east coast will be held at Akaroa, Cheviot and Fairlie. The workshops have been organised by the animal and veterinary sciences group at Lincoln College and the college farmers’ committee.

The timing of the workshops was critical because farmers would soon decide what stock to carry through the summer, said

the co-ordinator, Mr Denis Elvidge. Farmers will have to decide how many ewe lambs to retain as breeding replacements, how many male lambs to keep as heavyweights, and the number of two-tooth and cast-for-age ewes to cull. The workshop would not try to provide answers, but get farmers to consider the options and appreciate some of the decisions, said Mr Elvidge.

The first session will concentrate on short term

consequences of the drought and strategies for the use of feed surpluses caused by lower stocking The second session will concentrate on longer term strategies, such as stocking levels, and the final sessions will look at different ways to plan, finance and manage drought recovery. The workshops will be held at Akaroa on Friday, October 27, at Cheviot on Tuesday, October 31, and at Fairlie on Thursday, November 2.