2008 Winners

2008 Supreme Award

2008 PPCS Livestock Farm Award

Mark and Nicky Morrow

The Morrows share a strong connection to their land; they grew up neighbours and their forebears settled in the Mayfield district west of Ashburton three generations before they were born.

This is a strong farming partnership with the work and management load equally shouldered. Mark and Nicky farm sheep, beef and deer on 1030ha of flat, stone boulder country. One property, but separated into three distinct units - Mark’s family farm “Montalto”, Nicky’s “Thornycroft” and a 96ha block set up as a “techno system” for bulls.

Through their years together they’ve aimed to balance the pursuit of growth within the boundaries of what the environment they know so well is capable of.

It’s this balance that is important to the Morrows, and which has brought them to the attention of the award judges who have commended them for their “excellent stock management policies in a fairly harsh environment”.

Explains Mark: “We have a habit of tackling some hard to do ventures so we have to permanently ask ourselves if we are doing the right thing.

“We can’t take the land with us but we certainly are here to look after it while we have it.”

There have been times, they say, when they’ve bought more property “and some people have thought we were silly”.

But that strong ability for self-scrutiny has always kept them going forward because of their confidence they were doing so for the right reason – their own satisfaction in a business sense, not family obligation.

“We have expanded our business three and a half times and ended up being in a strong position,” says Mark, “but there’s nothing easy about it. You’ve got to be careful when you start to make those calls; Nicky and I make them together.”

Being part of the monitor farm programme for a time was a positive experience says Mark. “We found that really beneficial from a management point of view.” Both Nicky and Mark recognise the importance of off-farm involvement. Nicky is the current president of the Mayfield A & P show, and Mark is a past president. Such things are valuable, they believe, and not just to “give back” to the community. They point out the contact helps networking for your business and enables you to mix with people on common ground.

Says Mark: “If you isolate yourself on your farm, you can miss out on a lot.”

Now in their early 50s, the Morrows have a good degree of personal satisfaction, but the current lack of profitability in farming sheep concerns them. Mark points out the return on a $30 ewe held on the farm for six months is “not bad”.

“But the return on a ewe farmed for 12 months is terrible. Costs have beaten us and we have to move on,” he says.

Mark likens their current position as “having achieved round one”, and sees a change of focus as they enter “round two”, succession.

But, typically, his view is not just behind their farm gate. “The whole sheep industry has to get it right,” he says. “At the moment no one can afford to run a sheep farm. These past few years, it’s been frustrating trying to get the sheep side of the business to grow, and it’s the same for everyone.

“Taking the cash out of the system for any period of time has a lot of obvious worrying outcomes with perhaps the biggest one being that it seriously affects farm succession.”

The Morrows have three children. Sophie (19) is at university, Miranda (23) is doing her o/e and Ben (24) has just returned home to the farm after some years of agricultural work and travel.

Ben is now one of three employees on the farm; he’s looking to lighten up his parent’s workload. Each staff member is in charge of stock movement and maintenance in their own areas.

The award judges like that all who work on the farm have clear lines of responsibility, writing after their farm visit: “Staff are given responsibility and they hold regular meetings. Nicky has compiled an excellent booklet on their farming policies and management strategies for staff to follow.”

Stock numbers last year stacked up like this: 5000 ewes, 1220 hoggets (grazed off farm in the winter), 180 breeding cows, 60 rising 1 year (R1) heifers, 122 carryover cows, 1000 R1 deer, 220 R2 deer, 290 R1 bulls and 660 R2 bulls.

Their stocking policy is a response to their environment and leans towards a high proportion of deer and rising two-year-old bulls. “We are dryland farmers so that flexibility to be able to have animals ready to send off and kill is very important, “ explains Mark.

The Morrows plan for snow in the winter and dry summers.

“When things happen here, they happen fairly dramatically,” Mark wryly says.

Several years ago, a big snowfall saw them use up one year’s worth of supplementary feed in three weeks. So they plan to keep two years ahead of their feed requirement, making their own supplementary feed. This is mostly fine chop silage but this year, in response to low sheep returns and also with a nod to Ben’s experience and interest in cropping, they are introducing 100ha of cereals.

Their long-term view of the land and aim for sustainability extends to many aspects of their farming. Planting trees for shelter and aesthetic value is an ongoing tradition, established by Nicky’s mother, Gwylfa Gerard, “a great tree lady”.

Likewise, it is part of farm practise to “stay on top” of weed control (using muscle and management, minimal chemicals), maintain a high standard of general tidiness, including responsible disposal of the small amount of baleage wrap and, Mark’s personal priority, fertiliser.

“I always like to know we have kept the fertiliser up, then if things turned to custard for a while, we’d be able to duck for cover.”

PPCS Livestock Farm Award:
What the judges said…

• Very good integration of cattle and sheep in the grazing management.
• Breeding programs are in place to finish stock earlier.
• Excellent employee hand book has been compiled outlining animal health plans, farming principles and adverse event plans.
• The farm is well laid out to assist with stock movement and management.

Supreme Award:
What the judges said...

• Excellent farm productivity supported by a high level of animal welfare, a desire to minimise environmental impacts and cost effective management
• Strong financial planning for diversification and off-farm investment
• Excellent contribution to community as past monitor farm and involvement with local A&P society.

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© 2007 Environment Canterbury