The Citizen, 2017-03-23, Page 12PAGE 12. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MARCH 23, 2017.
New Zealand native shares grazing strategy in Brussels
Talking grazing
Ben Stewart, a New Zealand native who now works for two
large operations in Alberta and Saskatchewan, was the
featured speaker at the annual grazing information evening
at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre hosted
by Brussels Agri -Services and Tim Prior. Stewart discussed
the differences between operations in Canada and New
Zealand and how producers can maximize their animals
through various methods and strategies. (Shawn Coughlin photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Nearly 300 people were at the
Brussels, Morris and Grey
Community Centre on March 14 for
the Brussels Agri -Services' annual
grazing information night.
Tim Prior, owner of Brussels Agri -
Services and The Cowboy Loft, as
well as a producer of wagyu beef
just east of Brussels, has been
hosting the event for over a decade
and says it continues to grow every
year.
The auditorium at the community
centre was nearly full with nearly
300 people registered, although,
Prior said, some from the Hamilton
area were unable to attend due to the
nasty winter weather and poor
driving conditions.
The evening's featured speaker
was Ben Stewart, a farmer and
grazing expert from western Canada
and representative of Union Forage,
a seed innovation company also
based in western Canada.
Stewart, a New Zealand native,
spoke on numerous topics pertaining
to the differences between
agriculture in Canada and New
Zealand and innovations being made
in the world of grazing and
improving livestock yields.
After moving to Canada nearly 10
years ago, Stewart said he has been
forced to adapt at his operations
quite quickly due to the stark
differences between western Canada
and New Zealand.
The first adaptation, he said, was
to adjust to the cold weather and
shortened grazing seasons. In New
Zealand, with mild winters, fields
are green, he said, 12 months of the
year. This is certainly not the case in
any part of Canada, especially
western Canada.
Maximizing his operation's yields
and producing best results for his
customers became an instant
challenge for a farmer used to New
Zealand weather and seasons.
Stewart currently works with two
operations. One is a cow/calf farm in
Alberta with 3,500 animals and the
other is a stocker operation in
Saskatchewan with 8,000 animals.
One of Stewart's primary focuses,
he said, is to champion sustainable
operations by reducing their carbon
footprints and participating in
agriculture that does its part for the
environment.
He said that in his business, being
progressive is a must and it aids the
bottom line, in the end, for most
farming operations.
Another of the differences
between agriculture in New Zealand
and Canada, he said, is the relatively
small number of sheep operations in
Canada. Sheep farms dominate the
landscape in New Zealand.
Stewart estimated that his
operation in New Zealand likely
consisted of approximately 80 per
cent sheep and just 20 per cent
cattle. The small component of cattle
on the farm, he said, was simply to
naturally keep the farm's pastures in
good shape.
In order to do that in New
Zealand, he said, it was essential to
create thorough grazing systems for
each season in order to maximize
output and play to the operation's
strengths no matter the season.
He told those in attendance about
changing grazing systems for each
season and, for example,
maximizing grain in the spring and
summer and then moving to various
varieties of grasses, including
alfalfa, which he called "the king of
plants". He said that Canadians are
fortunate to have an abundance of
alfalfa growing throughout the
country, whereas in New Zealand,
farmers aren't so lucky.
Stewart also discussed the
importance of cover crops on
farming operations, something Prior
said was evident that day with the
wind and drifting snow throughout
Huron County.
The second speaker of the night
was Justin Burns of Barenbrug, a
company based in the Netherlands,
but with operations and facilities all
over the world.
Burns, a native of Missouri, said
that the company has spent 110
years in the business of agriculture
and it performs an important
function when discussing the
relative "age" of grass.
He discussed the age of some
strains of product in the
marketplace, saying that they are
new and have evolved over the years,
whereas many grass varieties are
decades old. With the company's
U.S. headquarters in Oregon, he said
that new, productive varieties of
grass are always being developed
that help to take grazing to new and
exciting places.
For more information on grazing
or further events and trips being
organized by Prior and Brussels
Agri -Services, visit the company's
website at brusselsagri.com.
FSA 45 Battery Trimmer 4I
ON NO .
HSA 45
Battery Hedge Trimmer
149Ne
18 V / 2.5 kg (5.5 Ib/
FSA 56
Battery Trimmer
249�.�MSRP 5269.95
36 V / 2.5 kg (5.5 Ib/
BGA 56
'attery Blower
s24
36 V / 2.1 kg (4.6 IV
959 95
HSA 25 ,
CS/Banery Shrub Shears
MSR
P S169.95
149 9.5
10.8 V/ 0.9 kg (2.0 Ib)
EggBGA 45
Battery Blower —'
MSRP5169.95
$14995
18 V / 2.0 kg (4.416/
NEW RM -ry Lawn Mow
'Without battery 'nemovable batter Integrated battery.
995 • 21 Cutting
• Onboard iStorage for Additional Battery
msnP • 3 Mowing Options: Mulch, Side Discharge, Rear Bin
• Price Includes AP 300 Battery and AL 101 Charger
Pricing on chain saws and blowers MI remain in affemumil June30,2017. Pricing on all other powertools and accessories will remain in aMactunul July
17 atp
clam STIHLCanada
ipa0ng S71HLDoaler
IBsuppllesI
5T/HL
www.stihLca
Schmidt's
Power Equipment
Schmidt's
POWER EQUIPMENT
79 Clyde St.,
Bluevale, ON
NOG 1G0
519-357-3877
schmidtspower@gmail.com