SURPLUS FARM PRODUCE

Taranaki Daily News, 10 December 1931, Page 16

SURPLUS FARM PRODUCE

EXTRA FEED FOR STOCK WHEAT AND POTATOES. CANTERBURY INVESTIGATION. The possibilities of a substantial increase in farm production in Canterbury, by using surplus wheat and potatoes for feeding dairy cows and. sheep, have been set forth in a bulletin prepared by Canterbury Agricultural College, Lincoln. It explains that there is a double gain to be secured: the direct increase in the returns from livestock and the improvement of prices for the crop of produce by the utilisation of the surplus, or, in the case of wheat, by avoiding the loss on wheat sold overseas. ’ , “-Surplus wheat for Canterbury, if fed. to livestock, is capable of returning at least 3s a bushel more to the grower than it will return if sold at present outside New Zealand,” says the bulletin. "One million bushels so used would improve the net cash returns by £150,000. Surplus potatoes fed to stock at pre-sent-day prices could similarly improve the returns by an additional £2 a ton, and this over 83,000 tons exceeds £150,000. Thus the net income of the. farmers in Canterbury could be improved by £300,000.” INCREASED BUTTERFAT.

Information collected for the last five years from one of the largest dairy companies has shown year after year that the average cow in Canterbury is producing just 75 per cent, of the amount of butterfat that she should produce if she were fed better. and calved earlier. Ten bushels of grain or its equivalent, one ton of potatoes, fed in addition to present feeds at the rate of three pounds of grain per day in June and July and at the rate of 61'b. per day during August and September until the grass comes, would result in an average increased production of s'2lb. of butterfat. This would be. made up of an improvement of 301 b. in the 25 per cent, of cows now calving in August and an improvement of 6Olb. in the remaining 75 per cent, that do not calve until September. This, with butterfat at Is per lb. means an increased return of £2 12s per cow, equivalent to over 5s per bushel of wheat or £2 12s per ton of potatoes. In this way for the 70,000 dairy cows in Canterbury up to 700,000 bushels of wheat or 70,000 tons of potatoes could be used. BREEDING EWES AND LAMBS. Experiments at Lincoln College with winter feeding of w-heat to breeding ewes led to the conclusion that the mortality among ewes and lambs could be reduced, the saving over the flocks on the smaller farms in Canterbury, comprising 1,750,000 sheep, being estimated at 180,000- lambs and 40,000. ewes; At the rate of 201‘b. of wheat in 80 days for each sheep, these small flocks (chiefly on wheat-growing farms) would eat about 400,000 bushels of wheat a year. Reckoning lambs at 15s and ewes at 10s, the return for 180,000 lambs and 40,000 ewes would be £15’5,000, and £1015,000 for 600,000 bushels gives a gross return of 7s 9d for every bushel fed. By a similar calculation potatoes fed to ewes would return at least 30s a ton. Since better management of grass is capable of supplying the feed required on most farms to fatten these extra lambs, a large proportion of the increased returns would be profit. MORE FIRST QUALITY LAMBS. From freezing works returns it is calculated that of 2,250,000 lambs exported from. Canterbury about 600,000 are second quality. Taking the weight as 51b. less than that of prime lambs and the return as Id per lb. less, this represents an annual loss of .£150,000. The bulletin says it is established beyond doubt that 251'b. of wheat is capable of giving an increased live weight of 101 b. per lamb —i.e., 51b. of carcase. On this basis 250,000 bushels of wheat fed to 600,000 second quality lambs, if fed separately, would show an increase in lamb revenue of £150,000, which would mean a gross return of 12s a bushel for every bushel so >fed. This is not fully practicable, but can be applied partially by owners drafting lambs earlier, selling only first quality Jambs and then feeding wheat to the remainder while Their chief feed supply still lasts. 'Similar results have been achieved by feeding peas at the same rate per head. The 12s a bushel is made up half from an improvement in quality and half from an increase in the weight of the lamb —i.e., 301 b. of second, quality lamb by becoming first quality is worth 2s 6d more, and an increase in weight of 51b. at 6d per lb. is worth 2s 6d more. These improvements amount to 5s per lamb, and since this is obtained 'by eating 251 b. of grain it is equivalent to a return of 12s per bushel, as quoted above. In every case where improvements are obtainable they are possible because of subnormal production of stock in Canterbury, and would not he possible where stock are already giving maximum returns. When all these items are brought under one heading it appears that the present sheep and cattle on the smaller farms of Canterbury could consume about 1,330,000 bushels of wheat and should give, at a conservative estimate, an increased gross return of approximately £500,000. It is not suggested that every farmer in Canterbury should feed grain to stock. Some already feed well, but for every stock-owner who feeds well there is at least one who feeds poorly, and where poor feeding is practised results better than those outlined could be obtained.