HERD TESTING

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 174, 8 July 1932, Page 11

HERD TESTING

HERETAUNGA ASSOCIATION. FOURTH ANNUAL REPORT. The fourth annual general meeting of members of the Heretaunga Group Herd Testing Association will be held in St. Andrew’s Hall, Market street, Hastings, on Saturday, July 9, at 1 p.m. The following is the report to be submitted to members:— Your committee of management legret having to report that for the past season our association has only been cperaUng in two groups, covering 2,183 sows, as against three groups covering J,062 cows the previous season. The result of this drop in the number of cows being tested is that this year the income and expenditure account, wifihout our being able to make any allowance for depreciation of plant, shows a loss of £7 16/11. As against the fact that we have not been able to allow for depreciation, the New Zealand Herd Testing Central Executive made us a special grant of £IOO towards our plant account, and this is shown on the balance-sheet under the heading of plant reserve account. In addition to the £IOO grant towards our plant account, we have received since the balance-sheet was .taken out, the Dairy Produce Board’s subsidy of 6d per cow and, in addition, uh ere is the Government subsidy which «W hope will be the same amount or thereabouts, thus allowing us to make a refund to our members of 1/- per cow, which will be distributed when the first payment is made for the coming season. In regard to the cost of testing in our association, your committee wish to point out the charge depends entirely upon the number of cows tested. If we could get our total up to 4,000 we could then test at 4/6 per cow without any Government or other subsidy. Members should therefore never lose an opportunity of explaining the advantages of group herd testing to their friends and thus encourage them to join the association. By doing so they will not only be pointing out to other fanners the way to improve their incomes in these hard times, but also be assisting their own association in reducing the costs of group herd testing in Hawke’s Bay. Remember, production per acre is the farmers* only means of meeting the present economic position One speaker at the recent Herd Testing Conference mentioned that his farm was showing 2001bs. of butterfat per acre on land costing £sl per acre. This he attributed firstly to group herd testing, and secondly, to reasonable use of fertilisers. Wo wish to make special mention of calf marking in connection with the group herd testing movement, and this is not fully appreciated by many of our members. At the South Taranaki Association’s Marked Calf Fair held this autumn 147 calves (six to nine months old) were sold at the average price of £4 5/-, with top price of £7 5/-. Further, your committee now knows of a practically assured market for marked rising two-year heifers for the next year or two, such heifers having been bought this year up to £8 per head. Regarding the cost of testing for the eoming season, we can definitely say that if we are able to get two groups with a total of 2400 cows that the charge will not be more than 5/6 per cow, and we hope to be able to make it 5/-, but we say again that the price depends entirely on the number of cows under test. In eonelusion. the committee again trust that all members will be present at the annual meeting and bring as many of their friends as may be interested. Mr. Hume, Dominion organiser for group herd testing, will be present at the annual meeting and will give an address on herd testing, calf marking, certification of pedigree bull calves, control system in combating mammitis and other interesting subjects. RESULTS OF TESTS. The following particulars of the results of the herd testing are contained in a table attached to the report:— In the Heretaunga Group 28 herds were tested, comprising 994 cows, which gave an average test of 250.981b5. of butter-fat in 255 days. In the Ruataniwha Group 27 herds were tested, comprising 1206 cows, which gave an average test of 250.79 lbs. of butter-fat in 251 days. The highest herd in the Heretaunga Group up to 50 cows, comprised 31 cows, which averaged 371.481b5. of but-ter-fat. The highest herd in the Ruataniwha Group up to 50 cows, comprised 33 eows, which averaged 322.601b5. of butter-fat The highest herd over 50 cows in the Heretaunga Group, comprised 59 cows, which averaged 311.491b5. of butterfat. The highest herd over 50 eows in the Ruataniwha Group, comprised 60 cows, which averaged 331.311b5. of butter-fat. The lowest her.l in the Heretaunga Group, comprised 22 cows, which averaged 140.631b5: of butter-fat in 206 days. The lowest herd in the Ruataniwha Group, comprised 28 cows, which averaged 151.351b5. of butter-fat The highest individual cow in the Heretaunga Group gave 5291b5. of

butter-fat in 313 days, and the lowest 601bs. of butter-fat in 151 days. The highest individual cow in the Ruataniwha Group gave 4851b5. of butter-fat in 273 days, and the lowest gave 441bs. in 122 days. The following are the owners’ names and particulars of the four highest herds:—P. W. Lascelles, Mangateretere, 31 cows, average 371.481b5. of butter-fat in 291 days; J. Agnew, Mangateretere, 30 cows, average 355.20 lbs. of butter-fat in 275 days; C. Rosser, Paki Paki( 60 cows, average 331.31 lbs. of butter-fat in 283 days; A. E. Morgan, Haumoana, 49 cows, average 320.831b5. of butter-fat in 288 days. An analysis of production of the 2200 cows shows that there are 600 which produce under 2001bs. of butterfat. It is estimated that there are 20,000 cows in the districts supplying the Heretaunga dairy factory, of which 2200 are tested by the Herd Testing Association. It is reasonable to conclude that the dairyfarmers practising herd-testing are the most progressive; therefore, if nearly a fourth of their herds are producing under 2001bs. of butter-fat, a quantity which is quite unpayable at present prices, the position must be that a large number of cows are being milked by the balance of suppliers that are not paying for their grazing, let alone labour and other overhead expenses.