Tag Archives: South Island

Nearly two million more lambs, but still third smallest lamb crop

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Nearly two million more lambs have been tailed this spring, according to the latest figures, which also forecast 8.4 percent more available for processing this season. 

Lamb Crop 2012, the latest report from Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Economic Service, shows that an estimated 26.9 million lambs were tailed, 1.9 million more than last year.

Even then, this will be the third smallest lamb crop since the early 1950s. Only the previous two years were lower.

This year’s increase was due to slightly more ewes mated (+0.6 percent) and the sheep being in good condition thanks to favourable feed conditions before mating. There was also an increase in the number of lambs born from hoggets, according to Economic Service executive director, Rob Davison.

“The average lambing percentage across the country was 123 lambs born per hundred ewes – up from 119 in 2011.”

Davison said this result confirmed the pregnancy scanning results from earlier in the year, signalled in September’s New Season Outlook 2012-13.

“There were pockets of unfavourable weather in some areas during lambing, but farm management practices ensured good lamb survival,” Davison said.

In the North Island, there was a small increase (1.2 percent) in the number of breeding ewes compared with last spring and good lambing weather, combined with stock in good condition, drove the lambing percentage up from 118 percent to 123 percent.

In the South Island, ewe numbers were the same as last season, but the number of lambs born was higher. The lambing percentage increased from 121 percent to 123 percent and the weather was a lot better than the year before.

“Significantly there was a sharp increase in the number of lambs from hoggets because more were mated due to favourable feed conditions. Also evident, was a structural change to a younger flock, with more than usual older and poorer performing ewes culled before mating.”

The B+LNZ Economic Service forecasts that there will be 20.5 million lambs available for processing in the 2012-13 season – up an estimated 8.4 per cent. This contrasts with last season’s 18.9 million, which was the lowest since 1960-61.

The increase will be partially offset by an expected 2.1 percent decrease in average carcase weight to 18.3 kg. This follows a return to more normal climatic conditions after good growing conditions last season saw lambs reach a record 18.7 kg.

Other key points from the report are:

  • North Island export lamb slaughter estimated to increase 12 per cent to 9.9 million, an increase of 1.1 million lambs
  • South Island export lamb slaughter estimated to go up 5.3 per cent to 10.6 million, an increase of 500,000 lambs
  • While there will be more lambs, there has been a sharp correction in lamb prices – $5-6 per kg early in the season, compared to over $8 per kg in 2011.

New venison plant for Alliance Smithfield

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Alliance Group’s $8.6 million new venison plant at its Smithfield site, near Timaru, is now operating at full capacity.

New Zealand’s leading meat processor and exporter is processing up to 420 carcases a day at the plant, which serves the company’s upper South Island suppliers.

Until now, Smithfield has only processed sheep and lamb, so the venison plant marks a major milestone for Alliance. More than 50 workers are based at the venison plant, which operates most of the year.

Murray Behrent, general manager of livestock says: “Alliance Group has invested in Smithfield as part of its dedication to delivering exceptional product quality and food safety standards. It is also a reflection of our confidence in the region and we have received great support from our suppliers, who are producing the quality livestock that we require.”

“Smithfield is yet another example of Alliance Group’s ongoing investment to ensure we meet the needs of our suppliers,” he adds.

The outlook for venison remains positive and the investment at Smithfield showed the company was focusing on processing a variety of products for global markets, says Behrent.

ViaScan to be installed at Smithfield in the next year

The new venison plant was built to accommodate Alliance’s innovative ViaScan meat scanning technology, which will be installed within the next 12 months at Smithfield, the company says.

ViaScan visually analyses carcases measuring the lean meat, fat and bone, to capture yield performance levels. It has been available since 2003 for analysing sheepmeat, and is already in use at eight Alliance Group plants. The company announced it was first to be extended to its venison suppliers at the Alliance Makarewa in Southland in July this year.

Along with providing suppliers with the opportunity of improving returns, ViaScan also aligns farmers with current market information and helps them with decision-making and the selection of good genetics.

“Exceptional product quality and food safety standards are vital for Alliance Group’s export market,” said Behrent when announcing the move. “We’re targeting high-end consumers with discerning palates who rate meat quality highly when making purchasing decisions and ViaScan helps our suppliers produce the quality livestock that is required.”

ViaScan will also mean suppliers can measure the performance of each individual carcase, particularly when the National Identification and Tracing Scheme (NAIT) is introduced in February 2013 for deer, says Behrent.

Smithfield is one of the three Alliance premises selected by Marks & Spencer to provide chilled New Zealand lamb for its UK retail stores. It is also one of the five first plants to introduce the new Ovine Post-Mortem Inspection system of sheepmeat carcase checks this year.

In 2011, Alliance Group completed a $15 million project to upgrade its Mataura beef plant in Southland.

Alliance getting ready for new season

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Meat processor and exporter Alliance Group, like many others, has been busy getting ready for the new meat export season. The company has announced new plant and process modifications at two of its South Island plants, Pukeuri and Lorneville, recently. 

Additional shift and modifications at Pukeuri

Alliance is to provide an additional shift at its Pukeuri plant as it ramps up cattle processing in the peak period, the company announced last week.

The third shift at the plant north of Oamaru will enable the company to process 880 extra cattle a week through May and June when the cattle throughput traditionally hits its peak. the third shift will also offer about 80 existing employees from the sheep and lamb processing shifts a longer season.

Alliance Group is currently undertaking a number of modifications to the plant, including extending the cattle yards ahead of the change.

John Brader, general manager of processing at Alliance Group, says the additional third shift was necessary to ensure Alliance continues to meet the needs of its suppliers.

Alterations have been made in Alliance’s systems to accommodate the additional cartons, giving more flexibility to which blast freezers or equilibration chillers the product can be directed, he explained.

Pukeuri processes more than 10,500 sheep and lambs a day. More than 900 staff work at the plant, which is the largest employer in North Otago. It is estimated the plant injects around $100 million into the local economy each year.

New rendering plant at Lorneville

In addition, Alliance announced that it has also completed the construction of the building for a new $13 million rendering plant at it’s Lorneville plant near Invercargill. Rendering machinery is now being installed in the 1,121 square metre building. The facility, which is designed to reduce Alliance’s energy and operating costs, as well as improve product recovery, is expected to be commissioned in October.

The new plant incorporates the latest technology, including a Press Dewatering System, which uses less energy and produces high quality products. When fitted with a waste heat evaporator, the process is virtually ‘zero waste’, resulting in high product yields and low wastewater output.

The first stage in a larger rendering redevelopment project, two further stages are proposed in the future. The complete project is said to save 9,000 tonnes of lignite and more than 1.5 million hours of electricity a year, enough to power 170 homes a year, the company says.

John Brader says the new rendering plant represented the largest single investment at the Lorneville plant for more than a decade.

“Completion of the building marks a major milestone for the development. Rendering remains a significant contributor to Alliance Group’s income and the investment in the latest technology will ensure we maximise revenue in this area.

“Alliance measures energy use and the associated greenhouse gas emissions from its plant to assist in making good business decisions.

“Since 2000, Alliance Group has reduced greenhouse gas emissions from energy use at its processing plants by 26 percent per unit of production and total fuel use has been reduced by 32 percent.”

Almost 2,000 people are employed at Lorneville, which is New Zealand’s largest sheepmeat processing plant.