Word of the day

 Stertorous – respiration characterised by a heavy snoring or gasping sound; harsh, noisy breathing; full of or characterised by loud and non-musical sounds.

Milk price up 1.1% in GDT auction

The trade weighted price index increased 1.1% in yesterday morning’s GlobalDairyTrade auction.

 

 

 

The price of anhydrous milk fat increased 2.4%; butter milk dropped 6.5%; cheddar was up .9%; milk protein concentrate was down 2%; rennet casein increased .8%; skim milk powder was down .3% and whole milk powder was up 2.8%.

Mobile milking sheds

When we were in Argentina last September we visited a farm which had a mobile milking shed.

The main reason for using it there is that the land is leased. The mobile shed enabled the lessee to have a dairy farm without investing capital which he wouldn’t be able to recoup when the lease ran out.

I can see possibilities for mobile sheds here for emergency use, for example during prolonged power cuts or after earthquakes; but I wasn’t sure if our environmental requirements would enable them to be used more permanently.

However, Milking on the Moove has posts on the mobile milking system;  mobile cowshed and & nitrate leaching of dairy cows;  and mobile milking system: alternative to sharemilking which suggest it could be done.

Friday’s answers

Thursday’s questions and answers are here.

I enjoyed them so much I’m awarding everyone who asked or answered questions an electronic basket of berries.

Any questioner who stumped us all can claim an electronic berry brownie by leaving when s/he leaves the answers in the comments below.

P.S. Assuming Richard and Robert answered your first question correctly, many happies, Gravedodger. Hope the year ahead is a good one.

International Time Queen to speak at dairy women’s conference

Robyn Pearce, the much sought after ‘queen of time management’, will show hundreds of busy dairying women how to ‘get a grip’ on their priorities and be the ‘master of their time’ when she speaks at the Dairy Women’s Network annual conference in Nelson on March 20 – 21.

Robyn is an international expert in time management who grew up on her parent’s South Rotorua dairy farm, was married to a Waikato sheep farmer for 15 years and is now mum to a sheep and beef farmer, who is also a director of Beef + Lamb NZ. She raised six children, including her intellectually handicapped foster son and is a grandmother to 16 grandchildren.

As well as training, writing, blogging and speaking about time management in New Zealand, Australia, the US, Great Britain, Europe and the Middle East, Robyn’s rural family background means she understands the everyday challenges that dairying women face when managing their time.

“Farm production and productivity is very much geared toward land and animal outputs, but how we manage our time also affects the bottom-line – if we’re not productive that will be reflected in the farm’s productivity and, more importantly if things are really out of control, the wellbeing of our family and our own health can suffer.”

She is a regular columnist in the New Zealand media, and admits the reason she teaches time management is because she used to be “very bad at it”.

“I can honestly say I have walked in those shoes! My time management skills almost put an end to my real estate career in the 80s and 90s. I was kicked out of meetings because of being late and I burnt out numerous times from overwork and poor time habits. I really do understand how it feels to be out of control!”

Thankfully a friend cared enough to give her the push she needed to adopt a few basic time management principles – igniting Robyn’s passion for the subject and transforming her greatest weakness into her major strength, and an international business.

Today she helps large national and international corporates train employees to better manage their time, including Rabobank, QBE Insurance, National Bank, NIWA, the International Cricket Council – Dubai, Academy for Chief Executives – UK and Beiersdorf NZ & Australia (makers of Nivea & Elastoplast), to name a few.
She says overload is being felt in all walks of life – and it’s as prevalent on the farm as it is in the corporate world.

“When you are overloaded you’ll look around your kitchen, your office, your paddock or shed, and you’ll feel like you don’t know where to start. It’s at these times, as things keep flying at you, that it’s really important to know what to take on and what to push back on. I love showing people how to do ‘helicopter thinking’ – to rise above everything going on, get perspective, and then work on the tasks and projects that will make the greatest difference.”

She added that the Dairy Women’s Network conference was an opportunity for people to step back and take the time to reflect on the things in their lives that really matter.

“We all don’t take the time to work on prioritising the really important things in our lives in a meaningful way – whether they are the way we use our time, the way we manage our home offices, the time we spend together as a family or any other business activities we have – we need to be sure that we are always only putting time and energy into the things that are going to make the biggest difference.”

Joining Robyn at the conference is a world-class line-up of speakers including Olympian Mahe Drysdale; Minister of Women’s Affairs, the Hon Jo Goodhew; Parininihi Ki Waitotara (PKW) Farms Limited Trustee Hinerangi Edwards; and Blue Duck Station owner and eco-warrior, Dan Steele. The conference theme is ‘Taking down the boundary fences’ and will cover subjects as diverse as animal nutrition, environmental constraints and developing future leaders.

You can see more here.

Rural round-up

Groser welcomes new OECD-WTO report on international trade:

Trade Minister Tim Groser has welcomed the OECD-WTO’s estimates of “Trade in Value-Added” at the launch of the new database in Paris.

“This new data estimates trade in value-added terms, which helps convey the interdependencies of global value chains and reveal who ultimately benefits from trade,” Mr Groser says.

“Engaging internationally is crucial to all countries’ future prosperity. New Zealand is especially well connected to global value chains in the agriculture and food sectors.”

According to OECD estimates, 81 percent of New Zealand exports’ value is created domestically. This is higher than the OECD average of 72 percent, reflecting both our geographic distance and the importance of agricultural products to our exports. . .

Fonterra trading scheme adds new dynamic for farms -

The introduction of Fonterra’s Trading Among Farmers (TAF) share trading scheme has added a new dynamic to the market for dairy farms, and has potential to put downward pressure on farm values, Real Estate Institute of NZ rural market spokesman Brian Peacocke said.

The introduction TAF last November has been a spectacular success and probably far greater than Fonterra could ever have have anticipated, according to market participants.

The units, which do not carry voting rights and which can be owned by the public, last traded at $7.45 – a 35.5 per cent premium their $5.50 issue price. The success of the units has rubbed off on the value of Fonterra shares, which can only be traded by farmers. The shares last traded at $7.42 compared with a pre-TAF “fair value” share price – set by Fonterra – of $4.52. . .

Depression in rural communities a concern:

With a disproportionate number of suicides in the rural sector, Federated Farmers is calling for a proactive approach to solve the problem.

Hawke’s Bay farmer and the province’s Dairy Chairperson, David Hunt, has experienced depression first hand. He knows just how frightening and lonely it can be. Here is his story:

“A farmer suicide recently compelled me to come forward, as I have great respect for what John Kirwan has done for mental health and I wanted to share my experience to help farmers. What helped me accept my depression were the people opening up to me about theirs. There is no shame in it, depression is a hereditary illness that causes a chemical imbalance in your brain, there’s no choosing what illness you get,” he says. . .

Education will help quad bike safety – Jeanette Maxwell:

Quad bikes have been in the news following two deaths and several injuries over the Christmas and New Year period.

Most incomprehensible was the incident in which 6-year-old Ashlee Shorrock suffered serious injuries after being flung from a quad bike that veered off a Hawke’s Bay road late at night. What were she and the four adults also injured in the crash doing on the bike in the first place?

However, while it may not seem like it from the intense media coverage, quad bike deaths and serious injuries remain relatively rare despite the 100,000 machines in New Zealand.

While quad bikes are dangerous if mishandled and the farm toll is serious and must come down, we fear that politicians will respond to the media coverage by jumping at ”solutions’ . . .

Chance to win a free paddock and boost productivity:

Federated Farmers hopes all farmers will enter the Pasture Renewal Charitable Trust’s (PRCT) ‘Win a Free Paddock’ competition which begins on 20 January and runs through to 28 February.

All farmers are eligible to enter for three chances to win $8000 worth of products and technical advice used in the pasture renewal process.

“Federated Farmers is proud to support PRCT’s work in this area because pasture renewal is a core farming activity improve pasture quality, which in turn brings greater productivity, increased returns, improved animal health and more farm management options,” Federated Farmers board member and New Zealand Grassland Association executive member Anders Crofoot says. . .

Seafood New Zealand Chief Executive announced:

The chair of Seafood New Zealand, Eric Barratt, today announced that Tim Pankhurst has been appointed chief executive of Seafood New Zealand effective from April 2013.

Mr Pankhurst is currently the general manager of the Communications and Media Industry Training Organisation (CMITO) and Print NZ, as well as having an advisory editorial role with the Newspaper Publishers’ Association (NPA). He was previously chief executive of NPA and is a former daily newspaper editor of The Dominion Post, The Evening Post, Waikato Times and The Press. . .

Husqvarna joins the Sponsor Family of the ANZ Young Farmer Contest:

New Zealand Young Farmers are proud to announce Husqvarna NZ have partnered with the ANZ Young Farmer Contest as prize sponsors of New Zealand’s Ultimate Rural Challenge.

Husqvarna is a leading manufacturer of outdoor power equipment, designed to work in the toughest of conditions. One of the oldest industrial companies in the world with more than 300 years of history and experience, the Husqvarna Group today is the global leader in outdoor power products for forestry, lawn and garden care. . .

Integrity of elections requires action

More than a year after the last election not one of the many cases of possible electoral fraud referred to police by the Electoral Commission has gone to court.

Police are sitting on more than twenty open investigations referred to them for prosecution under the Electoral Act by the Electoral Commission.

Truth has obtained details under the Official Information Act that reveal Police seem to have no interest in prosecuting offences and breaches of the Electoral Act.

Of the 32 cases referred, 6 have lapsed because the prosecution time limit has expired.

62 dual vote referrals remain open and un-prosecuted.

Headline cases referred by the Electoral Commission that remain open with little or no progress are the Green party worker Jolyon White’s alleged vandalism of National’s signs at the 2011 election, several of Labour’s flyers including their ‘Stop Asset Sales’, ‘Prices are Rising faster than wages’ and ‘Ohariu Census’ pamphlets.

Only 3 cases have been closed, with no action or prosecution resulting. . .

The integrity of our elections depends on all involved as candidates, voters and in administration obeying the law.

Those who don’t should face consequences and that should happen in a timely manner.

If, as is obvious, the police either can’t or don’t want to deal with breeches of the electoral law another body must be given the powers to do so.

TRUTH believes Edgeler is on the money, for minor offences substantial fines against political parties and individuals that break Electoral Law need to be instant and issued by the Electoral Commission, for larger breaches like Labour’s 2005 pledge card rort an Independent Commission Against Corruption needs to be established, not unlike Australia has.

To continue with blatant and repeated breaches remaining unpunished encourages political corruption, we need to maintain our top position in the Transperency International corruption rankings as the least corrupt nation in the world. Enforcing the law would go a long way to achieving this.

Whichever body or bodies get the powers to deal with alleged breeches of electoral law must have the means to act during the election period before election day or very soon after it.

Justice delayed in these cases could potentially alter election results.

Learning

“We don’t all have to make mistakes, some of us can learn from other people’s,” he said.

“Yeah, but some of have to be the other people,” she said.

January 18 in history

532 – Nika riots in Constantinople failed.

1126 – Emperor Huizong abdicated the Chinese throne in favour of his son Emperor Qinzong.

1486 – King Henry VII of England married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV.

1520 – King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeated the Swedes at Lake Åsunden.

1535  Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro founded Lima, the capital of Peru.

1591 King Naresuan of Siam killed Crown Prince Minchit Sra of Burma in single combat,  this date is now observed marked as Royal Thai Armed Forces day.

1670  Henry Morgan captured Panama.

1778 James Cook was the first known European to discover the Hawaiian Islands, which he named the “Sandwich Islands“.

1779 Peter Mark Roget, British lexicographer, was born  (d. 1869).

1788 The first elements of the First Fleet carrying 736 convicts from England to Australa arrived at Botany Bay.

1813 Joseph Glidden, American farmer who patented barbed wire, was born (d. 1906).

1849  Sir Edmund Barton, 1st Prime Minister of Australia, was born (d. 1920).

1854 Thomas Watson, American telephone pioneer, was born (d. 1934).

1871 – Wilhelm I of Germany was proclaimed the first German Emperor in the ‘Hall of Mirrors’ of the Palace of Versailles.

1882 A. A. Milne, English author, was born (d. 1956).

1884 Dr. William Price attempted to cremate the body of his infant son, Jesus Christ Price, setting a legal precedent for cremation in the United Kingdom.

1886 Modern field hockey was born with the formation of The Hockey Association in England.

1889 Thomas Sopwith, British aviation pioneer, was born  (d. 1989).

1892  Oliver Hardy, American comedian and actor, was born (d. 1957).

1896 The X-ray machine was exhibited for the first time.

1903  President Theodore Roosevelt sent a radio message to King Edward VII: the first transatlantic radio transmission originating in the United States.

1904 Cary Grant, English actor, was born (d. 1986).

1911 Eugene B. Ely landed on the deck of the USS Pennsylvania stationed in San Francisco harbor, the first time an aircraft landed on a ship.

1913  Danny Kaye, American actor, was born (d. 1987).

1916  A 611 gram chondrite type meteorite struck a house near the village of Baxter in Stone County, Missouri.

1919  The Paris Peace Conference opened in Versailles.

1919  Ignacy Jan Paderewski became Prime Minister of the newly independent Poland.

1919 Bentley Motors Limited was founded.

1933 Ray Dolby, American inventor (Dolby noise reduction system), was born .

1943  Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: The first uprising of Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto.

1944 Paul Keating, twenty-fourth Prime Minister of Australia, was born.

1944 The Metropolitan Opera House in New York City hosted a jazz concert for the first time. The performers were Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton, Artie Shaw, Roy Eldridge and Jack Teagarden.

1944 – Soviet forces liberated Leningrad, effectively ending a three year Nazi siege, known as the Siege of Leningrad.

1945 Liberation of the Budapest ghetto by the Red Army.

1954  Tom Bailey, English musician (Thompson Twins), was born.

1955  Battle of Yijiangshan.

1958 – Willie O’Ree, the first African Canadian National Hockey League player, made his NHL debut.

1969  United Airlines Flight 266 crashed into Santa Monica Bay resulting in the loss of all 32 passengers and six crew members.

1974 A Disengagement of Forces agreement was signed between the Israei and Egyptian governments, ending conflict on the Egyptian front of the Yom Kippur War.

1977  Scientists identified a previously unknown bacterium as the cause of the mysterious Legionnaires’ disease.

1977 – Australia’s worst rail disaster at Granville, Sydney killed 83.

1978  The European Court of Human Rights found the United Kingdom government guilty of mistreating prisoners in Northern Ireland, but not guilty of torture.

1980 Upper Hutt’s Jon Stevens made it back-to-back No.1 singles when ‘Montego Bay’ bumped ‘Jezebel’ from the top of the New Zealand charts.

1994 The Cando event, a possible bolide impact in Cando, Spain. Witnesses claimed to have seen a fireball in the sky lasting for almost one minute.

1997  Boerge Ousland of Norway becomes the first person to cross Antarctica alone and unaided.

1998 Lewinsky scandal: Matt Drudge broke the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky affair story on his website The Drudge Report.

2000 The Tagish Lake meteorite hit the Earth.

2002 Sierra Leone Civil War declared over.

2003 A bushfire killed 4 people and destroyed more than 500 homes in Canberra.

2005 The Airbus A380,, the world’s largest commercial jet, was unveiled at a ceremony in Toulouse.

2007 The strongest storm in the United Kingdom in 17 years killed 14 people, Germany’s worst storm since 1999 with 13 deaths. Hurricane Kyrill, caused at least 44 deaths across 20 countries in Western Europe. Other losses included the Container Ship MSC Napoli destroyed by the storm off the coast of Devon.

2009 – Gaza War: Hamas announced they will accept Israeli Defense Forces’s offer of a ceasefire.

2012 – SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (Protect IP Act) were opposed online on internet by Blackout (2012 Wikipedia blackout).

Sourced from NZ History Online & Wikipedia