The Rural Voice, 1993-03, Page 37This could eventually be a family
member but not necessarily. He
described the employment of a share
milker as his "old age pension."
Share milkers are left to handle the
day-to-day decisions while the farm
owner has final say on any major
change. A third party can be called
in to settle any
dispute that may
occur but this is rare,
said Paterson. "There
are poor owners and
there are poor share
milkers but it soon
gets known around
the neighbourhood."
Accompanying the
increased optimism in
dairying has been a
rise in land prices.
Paterson has seen a
doubling in the price
of his property over
the past two years
from $3,000NZ per
acre to $5,000 per
acre. (The Canadian dollar is now
worth $1.50 in New Zealand
currency.)
A popular method used to
determine farm prices is dollars per
kilogram of milk a farmer is able to
produce with that rising from $18NZ
to $30 in the last two years. Also, the
price of cows has jumped from
$600NZ a piece to $1,000.
Paterson stated that he is not
worried about too many farmers
replacing their sheep sheds with
milking parlours though he's well
aware of the cyclical nature of
dairying here. He believes the prices
being paid for cows and land "have
gone over the top" but they will
eventually right themselves. It is all
part of the business.
"The average dairy farmer here
has a good idea what is going on,"
said Paterson who represents local
dairy farmers on the Federated
Farmers, a national farm
organization. Because they are so
dependent on export markets they
have to be aware of the world trade
situation as much as current national
trends. The lowering of farm
subsidies around the world through
the General Agreement on Tariff and
Trade (GATT) talks has provided
encouragement.
In New Zealand, the ruling
government is urgently selling many
crown corporations into the private
sector and has virtually eliminated all
farm subsidy programs in an effort to
deal with the national debt.
Perhaps the most important people
in the dairy industry in New Zealand
are the salesmen who work for the
national dairy board. They are
responsible for making the deals that
will allow for
the 200 dairy
products
produced to
reach
consumers
willing to buy
them, and the
better the deal
they strike, the
higher the
lump sum
payment at the
end of the
dairy year can
be.
Currently
the factory that
Paterson ships
his milk to in Reporoa, seven
kilometres away, is considering
expansion. They have received
strong interest from potential new
Acco
in
mpanying
creased
optimism has
been a rise in
land prices
producers who must apply for
approval of contracts before any milk
can be accepted. Successful
applicants are then required to
purchase shares in the company
equalling 50 cents per kilogram of
milk they plan to ship, half due
within the first year of production
with the rest paid over four years.
Paterson grosses just over
$200,000 per year in his operation
which he estimates to be slightly
above the national average for returns
per acre for dairy farms. He reckons
the minimum size for an economic
dairy unit at 170 cows. Two brothers
on a nearby neighbouring farm are
milking 1,400 animals.
Comparing dairying in New
Zealand to Canada, Paterson noted
how much more intensive operations
are in Canada with nearly everything
the cow needs being brought to her
and everything she produces being
carried away. Also, the Canadian
Holstein is a much bigger animal
with the average New Zealand
Fresian weighing just 500 kg and
producing an average of 3,000 litres
of milk per lactation.
Costs here are much lower. He
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MARCH 1993 33