9 October 2008
Four years after winning an environmental award, Wairarapa farmers Matt and Lynley Wyeth are continuing to improve the sustainability of their hill country farming operation ‘Spring Valley Enterprises’. The couple, who farm an 800ha sheep, beef and deer unit near Kaituna, west of Masterton, won the Livestock Award in the 2004 Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
Proving that profitable farming and good environmental practices go hand-in-hand, the Wyeths also won the Wairarapa Hill Country Sheep and Beef Farmer of the Year award a year later. Matt says sustainability continues to be an important focus for the long-term viability of the farm. He says it’s also a big issue for the industry in general. “It’s going to be crucial for the marketing of agricultural produce that we can show consumers we are serious about reducing our environmental impacts.”
Over the last four years the Wyeths have continued to plant trees – for both shelter and erosion control – while also fencing off some waterways and wetlands. Grazing management is carefully controlled, with mature cattle kept off vulnerable areas to reduce the risk of soil damage, and in 2005 a feed pad was constructed to further decrease pressure on pastures. This pad is used to winter heavy classes of stock, such as bulls, and a silage stack next to the feed pad means “the cattle come to the food rather than us taking it to them”. This method of supplementary feeding reduces fuel costs and emissions. Effluent from the feed pad is collected and spread around the farm.
Matt and Lynley entered the Ballance Farm Environment Awards “basically because we wanted to tap the brains of the judges”.
They are constantly seeking information from numerous sources, including farm discussion groups and various agribusiness professionals. Participating in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards gave them access to a wide range of expertise “for free” and Matt says it was a thoroughly worthwhile experience.
He and Lynley have maintained contact with many of the people they met through their involvement in the awards and Matt says he enjoyed being a judge for a couple of years after their win. “It was great to get out there with like-minded people and travel around looking at other farms.”
He believes many farmers would benefit from entering the awards. “The judging process is very relaxed and it’s a great way to get good advice. You’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.”
Entries for the 2009 Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards close on October 27.
For information on entering the Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards, contact Pip Dalgliesh, Wellington regional coordinator, phone (06) 378 8008 or email wellington@bfea.org.nz