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Lifetimewool pays off for Australian woolgrowers
03 Nov '08
5 min read
Owner and manager of 'Austral Park', Coleraine, David Robertson, said the project has been a revelation.
“We run a fully commercial operation with 7,000 merino ewes on 1200 hectares, and this project has had the biggest impact on my management in all the years I've been in farming.
“It has dissected and analysed all the key factors for animal production.
“From the work, I've made major productivity gains by moving away from a mentality of managing age-group mobs over the year, and instead allocating available feed according to individual animal requirements.
“I've realised that our pastures can be used far, far better and we cannot overlook the importance of green feed through the summer-autumn period.
“The message for industry is that the lifetimewool project is a recipe for precision farming in the sheep industry, harnessing the capacity of our pastures and animals, and moving to optimal productivity,” he said.
Guidelines and tools have been produced for wool producers in different regions of southern Australia and it is important that wool producers look up the recommended profiles for their region at www.lifetimewool.com.au.
Ms Hogan says Lifetime Wool has also delivered numerous other outcomes to industry.
“More than twenty thousand producers and industry service providers have been involved in field days, training, events, seminars and workshops. There are 3000 producers now managing 7.7 million merino ewes according to lifetimewool guidelines, and many extension staff and private consultants are incorporating lifetimewool findings in their recommendations. The benefits of improved ewe reproduction and higher marking percentages have also resulted in benefits for prime lamb producers.
“As more sheep producers adopt lifetimewool, the $15.4 m annual benefit to the industry will grow.”
To support this, lifetimewool recommendations have been incorporated into the industry Best Practice program - Making More from Sheep - which will continue to be presented at industry events and training opportunities.
Also:
* AWI's grower networks will continue to deliver lifetimewool principles to growers
* The Sheep CRC has incorporated lifetimewool principles into its reproductive performance programs
* For extra details on specific condition score targets and for guidelines on how to achieve them refer to lifetimewool.com.au.
* The lifetimewool website (www.lifetimewool.com.au) will be maintained and all products and tools will be available to industry, both producers and consultants.
“We run a fully commercial operation with 7,000 merino ewes on 1200 hectares, and this project has had the biggest impact on my management in all the years I've been in farming.
“It has dissected and analysed all the key factors for animal production.
“From the work, I've made major productivity gains by moving away from a mentality of managing age-group mobs over the year, and instead allocating available feed according to individual animal requirements.
“I've realised that our pastures can be used far, far better and we cannot overlook the importance of green feed through the summer-autumn period.
“The message for industry is that the lifetimewool project is a recipe for precision farming in the sheep industry, harnessing the capacity of our pastures and animals, and moving to optimal productivity,” he said.
Guidelines and tools have been produced for wool producers in different regions of southern Australia and it is important that wool producers look up the recommended profiles for their region at www.lifetimewool.com.au.
Ms Hogan says Lifetime Wool has also delivered numerous other outcomes to industry.
“More than twenty thousand producers and industry service providers have been involved in field days, training, events, seminars and workshops. There are 3000 producers now managing 7.7 million merino ewes according to lifetimewool guidelines, and many extension staff and private consultants are incorporating lifetimewool findings in their recommendations. The benefits of improved ewe reproduction and higher marking percentages have also resulted in benefits for prime lamb producers.
“As more sheep producers adopt lifetimewool, the $15.4 m annual benefit to the industry will grow.”
To support this, lifetimewool recommendations have been incorporated into the industry Best Practice program - Making More from Sheep - which will continue to be presented at industry events and training opportunities.
Also:
* AWI's grower networks will continue to deliver lifetimewool principles to growers
* The Sheep CRC has incorporated lifetimewool principles into its reproductive performance programs
* For extra details on specific condition score targets and for guidelines on how to achieve them refer to lifetimewool.com.au.
* The lifetimewool website (www.lifetimewool.com.au) will be maintained and all products and tools will be available to industry, both producers and consultants.
Australian Wool Innovation Limited
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