The Farmers Club Newsletter

The “Club Notes” for Thursday, the 21st of December 2023

By Dwain Duxson

If you can, please get your family, friends and colleagues to sign up. See the website link here.

Your mediocrity is my opportunity

There is mediocrity in every industry, and it's no different in Ag. We sometimes write about how some companies give a level of service that is below par. Granted, some of these businesses are grossly understaffed because they struggle to get people, and it also means the current people have to step up and do more, which burns them out. It's like the sales guys that say they are going to give you a quote on a Tractor but fail to come back to you; that's what pisses the Farmers off most. It's a case of doing what you say you are going to do. I reckon the headline is a great saying: the Farmer that is not getting serviced will go down the road where they do get serviced. But if you are a business that services well, as soon as you get complacent about what you do, you will find yourself back to the pack pretty quickly. Have you seen a situation where someone's mediocrity is your opportunity? Reply to [email protected]

Scaling differently

I am punching through a podcast each morning on the treadmill. The one this morning was The Financial Bloke and featured Beef Producer Geoff Birchnell from 3R Beef. Geoff is a Former accountant who has entered the stud Cattle world. The stud Cattle game is not for the faint-hearted as it's very competitive, and it takes time to build up a decent Herd, let alone a clientele. Geoff has gone about it a little differently by buying some quality Stud Cows in the drought of 2019 and then embryo transferring (ET) them to fast-track the genetics. To do an ET program, you require Recipient Cows, and with over 650 Calves from Embryos this year, that's a lot of Recipients. ET is nothing new, with plenty of the leading breeders using ET. What is innovative is how he rents the Recipient Cows. Sorta like renting a womb. This means the Cows are owned and run by someone else. So he doesn't require as much Land and can still scale with Bull like quality genetics. The moral of this story is you can scale differnelty. It doesn't have to be the conventional path. Reply to [email protected]

Leave it til February

I have a Sheep Farming mate who is in hospital with a few issues. He will come out the other side, alright, but it's just a good reminder (that he suggested) for us to do a yearly check, or if you feel something isn't quite right, make sure you see your doctor. My mate said we arguably have the best health system in the world, so we should use it when we need it. At this time of year, when Farmers who are Harvesting are working mad hours and operating large Machinery, it's a good reminder to stay safe and to read the signs. Also, after Harvest, you will be exhausted, so make sure you switch off for a while, catch up with the family and get some sleep. It's also the time of year when you get together with family, and we know by the stats it's when most disputes happen. Just be tolerant and try and avoid those situations. Ask the hard or controversial questions in February. Reply to [email protected]

End of message.

Dwain Duxson
0427 011 900

Random and associated Ag articles and images.