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PROGRAMMES 
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AngusNZ Sponsors
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PRESIDENT’S ANNUAL REPORT
TO MEMBERS, 2011
AGM 2012
It is with pleasure that I present to you this AngusNZ Annual Report for the year ending December 31st 2011.
The demand for stock of Angus bloodlines continued in spectacular fashion during 2011.As we look towards the breeds 150 years in New Zealand I am sure those who imported those first animals all those years ago would be thrilled with the way the Angus breed is dominating the beef industry in the country at this time. They knew then that Angus cattle had a quality product under that black coat. It is a product that has taken a while to be appreciated however the reason for the high demand for Angus in recent times is that same quality meat.
To rest on our laurels would be a mistake. It is unbelievable to me that we do not have a meat quality grading system in our beef industry in New Zealand. This one topic comes up consistently around the Board table when the way ahead is discussed.
We think there may be a little light showing at the end of the tunnel.
The other well known attributes of the Angus cow of course are always present, her ability to thrive, her mothering, her milking, and her fertility.
These are things that we admire about her and why we are owners and breeders of these fine animals.
Finance
With prudent financial management, we have continued to build on last year’s modest result with a more satisfactory outcome.Closer examination will reveal that a large portion of this result is due to the favourable result of our joint venture partnership investment in AngusPure, where profits have increased ten - fold. Well done Tim and your team. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of Rob and the staff of PBB for their professionalism and enthusiasm in meeting budgetary targets coupled with quality service to our membership.
Richard too deserves thanks for his work as treasurer he has carried out his task in a very workman like manner. Well done.
Promotion/ Publicity/ Sponsorship
The P and P Committee of Charlotte and her team have quite an onerous task in that the amount of money that could be spent on promotion is unlimited so it is a matter of deciding where and when is the best value. The Cattleman magazine continues to be our flagship. Rob and Anna Mackenzie spend a lot of time on making sure it is always a quality publication.You will notice that those of you who have e-mail addresses and that is about ninety per cent will be receiving a lot of news and notices via this medium. This is a very cost effective form of communication and will be the way of the future.
Our sponsors continue to give us great support. Toyota with the distinctive truck signage, Merial and FMG are our major sponsors. To all of our sponsors we are pleased to have you on board and I encourage our members to give serious consideration to supporting them all in any way possible.
NATIONAL SALE/FMG BEU
The 2011 National sale was satisfactory with the average just a little less than 2010. The champion bull on the day was Kaharau Geronimo 09-161 from the Gisborne stud of Colin Williams and Charles Dowding. This bull was later sold for stud duties at the Awanui Angus herd in Hamilton, for $10000. The top price of the sale was $28000 a bull entered by Lindsay Johnstone. Ranui W Infinity 931 who had been used in stud and was entered under the Select Sires program.Maurice once again had made a great job of presenting the FMG BEU bulls for the sale; with the Champion Bull coming from that group.
A highlight of the sale was the Queen of Hearts concept where heifer calves of all breeds were shown and sold. This went very well for the Angus heifers with prices to $11000. This price was also achieved for the pick of the Turihaua 2010 heifer drop. The proceeds from this heifer went to the Christchurch earthquake appeal.
The format over the two days worked well, and having all the sales on the one day proved to be a good idea.
The Monday night dinner at “Aberdeen” was once again a great evening with a full house and a convivial atmosphere to it.
The private on farm sales in 2011 were what could best be described as phenomenal. I thought 2010 sales were good but this year vendor’s averages have superseded them, sometimes by quite large margins. Congratulations to Te Mania on achieving New Zealand’s first million dollar aggregate and to Turihaua on their average of $9740 for eighty bulls sold.
With Maurice selling his land it was necessary to find a new property willing to accommodate the FMG BEU bulls. Rob and the team have been fortunate to obtain new grazers at Kiwitea on Paki-iti farms and this has proved an ideal move. 35 bulls have done very well and should provide an excellent line up for the 2012 National Sale. Our sincere thanks to Maurice for his work and interest over the years, we enjoyed working with you during your time with Angus.
Miscellaneous
Thanks to the Waikato Ward for hosting the 2011 Ward Tour. It all ran very smoothly and was well attended. When you go to some of the larger countries of the world the sort of camaraderie that exists amongst the members of the Angus fraternity in this country is lacking because of the distance required to meet with fellow breeders. Although we may think sometimes that Ward Tours are a bit old style I feel that it is essential that we keep these going for the fellowship that is fostered between breeders.AngusNZ AgOnline
Unfortunately the great start we had in 2010 with AngusNZ AgOnline was not repeated.The disappointment has been the reluctance of agents to buy into this new technology in 2011, however a fresh and renewed effort is taking place which you have been contacted about of recent. Please consider this option when selling your stock.
This was a very good source of income for us so it would be a big help to our finances if members could make an effort to support this selling system if you have stock for sale.
Shows
The show circuit has diminished in recent years, with Christchurch still the main A& P show in New Zealand. AngusNZ has had a high profile presence there over the last ten years. With the support of one of our main sponsors FMG it has become another function for Angus breeders to congregate and support each other. The Southland region also has a show circuit around some of the country townships which gives a lot of the younger members an opportunity to improve there cattle handling skills.Although not all on our board support money being spent on shows, we have 200 members with very diverse goals and interests and I think it is important that we cater for all.
PBB
Murray and team run a smooth and friendly office operation; those of us who are visitors on a regular basis are always warmly welcomed.The transition to ILR2 has gone smoothly and for this we thank the staff at PBBnz. Linda Rule has been as efficient as usual.
Recently the Board expanded the list of fate codes which will appear on your ADLs. The list of about 13 codes is quite detailed, we are hopeful that you will take a little time to be careful and correct with what you enter rather than just ticking ‘other’.
The PBB agreement with Massey continues to provide reliable service to our members for genetic defect and parent verification testing.
HerdMASTER v4
Customised versions of the latest HerdMASTER 4 software were launched towards the end of last year and Tammy Hendra was brought on with PBBNZ to provide technical and sales support to clients Monday – Friday.The Stud version has been well received by those members who have purchased it and sales for this have been going well. I urge all Angus breeders to contact PBB and talk with Tammy about the programme as it is a fantastic piece of software that not only makes herd management much more efficient but also allows you to comply with NAIT at the simple click of a button.
In addition, Angus New Zealand is leading the way by being the first breed to launch a customised herdMASTER commercial version of this software but we need your help to push this product out to your commercial clients. In addition to the efficiency and NAIT compliance that make HerdMASTER software a highly valuable tool, it also provides the ability for a ‘whole life traceability’ system which is becoming a topic of increasing importance. More and more customers want to know where their products have come from, so we need your help to get your commercial farmers to select this programme as their preferred option for their management requirements under NAIT, APST and the other farm options available.
APST:
In an attempt to guarantee the quality of the brand, AngusPure Ltd have opted to make it compulsory that all Angus cattle going into the branded AngusPure programmes must have an APST visual tag. This comes into effect on the same date that NAIT goes live, 1st July 2012.Tim Brittain will report further on this in his AngusPure report.
Youth/Future Beef
Our young ones continue to shine in the activities they are involved in.As AngusNZ is a major sponsor of FBNZ it is pleasing to see the line up of Angus youth at the Future Beef event at Beef Expo time. Considerable success usually comes their way as a reward for the effort they have put in. Angus youth have shone at Shows.
The first intake of our younger members for the Angus Future Initiative program came together in mid April 2011.
This program is for those under 40years and over 22years who have shown a commitment to the Angus breed and give every indication that this will continue in the future. Kelly Brittain had put together a very impressive list of speakers and places to visit over a two day period. The feedback from the eight attendees was positive and another group will take part in a similar program in 2012. A proportion of the members attending these seminars are expected to show up as leaders of our breed in the years ahead, it may be at Ward level or at National level but be assured there are undoubtedly young people with the skills required to serve our breed well into the future.
The NZ Angus Youth Trust was the main sponsor of the 2011 program. Hopefully they will provide funds again for the 2012 class.
World Forum 2013
Now just over a year out the World Forum is approaching fast. Tim and his team have been working diligently over recent months and I imagine meetings will become more frequent as the event comes closer.Nine AngusNZ representatives travelled to Argentina to attend the 2011 World Angus Secretariat Meeting and tour. While the meeting itself seemed to me to be of limited value, the period of the tour was well worthwhile in that we were able to gain some insight into the history and culture of this vast country.
While there we were able to gauge the interest in next years Forum in New Zealand and I came away convinced that there will be a lot of Angus breeders from all around the world here next year.
Tim will give a verbal report at the AGM.
Angus Pure/Steak of Origin
Our Brand AngusPure is now well recognised in all facets of the beef industry throughout the country. It is amazing how many city folk now recognise the name Angus with good quality steak.Tim Brittain continues to do a huge amount of work for AngusPure and we are all appreciative of his enormous contribution to its success. Tim as Chairman of AP will give a verbal report to you at the AGM.
Tim, Guy Sargent and our two Angus Board Members (Richard Martin and Will MacFarlane) are the directors of AngusPure.
As you will see from the 2011 accounts the income from the investment made in AngusPure is really quite significant.
The Steak of Origin competition continues to showcase Angus Beef in a positive fashion, with a very large number of the awards going to samples with Angus parentage. Please keep those entries coming in and 2012 may be the year that we clinch the big one again.
Board and Staff
Rob continues to provide our members with a down to earth style when discussing the many issues they bring up with him on a daily basis. This style, that has become his trademark, is one that our members have an empathy with and has served Rob and our breeders well. I have enjoyed my close involvement with Rob over the last two years.In September last year we appointed Sarah Davidson on a shared basis to Angus NZ to assist Rob and to concentrate on regular communication with our members and the industry through newsletters, the Cattleman, the website and the newly launched E-news. You will notice that more opportunities for members to advertise on these mediums are available so use these as you see fit.
Sarah has fitted in well at PBB and she has enjoyed meeting our members as they have her. With Rob unable to attend the Christchurch Show Sarah was present for the three days and put the camera to good use.
The Board has worked well again this year. We welcomed Charlotte Stevens to the Board this year and she brings a different and needed point of view to our table and I am sure that she will continue to be a valuable addition to our team.
I will repeat something I said in last years report: some of these positions on the Board have a very large workload attached to them. The voluntary work that is done by Board members is huge and I wonder how long we can expect the work involved to be done by volunteers. Bryan Bendall and Chris Biddles leave the Board this year after ten years of service. They have both been good value around the Board table, never shy to voice their opinion. In recent years they have been our representatives on the Board of PBBnz.
Governance
The motion passed re governance at the 2011 AGM and the ensuing road show has in the meantime been parked. The Board will look at the proposal again when time demands have eased.Australian/ NZ Co-operation
We have in the last twelve months seen a closer relationship develop with our Angus friends across the Tasman. I was present at their AGM and Field Trip in Armidale in May 2011 and was warmly welcomed. Then in July their President Mark Gubbins, CEO Peter Parnell and Bob Dent visited to canvass breeders to enter bulls in the Benchmarking program being run by the Australian Angus Assn and Meat and Livestock Australia.The Board and the Australians were pleased with the number of New Zealand members who entered eight bulls between them.
I am really excited about this project and thank our members who are taking part in it. The first results of the 2010 mating will be coming out shortly as those calves will be ready to wean.
Further to that, we will again be welcoming for the March 24th & 25th Angus Board meeting and the following AGM and Nelson Marlborough Ward Tour, Peter Parnell and Mark Gubbins and with them Michael Gadd (Vice – President) and his wife Joy to be with us.
This co-operation between our two Associations is pleasing and augers well for closer ties in the years ahead.
I have enjoyed my two years as your President; I have enjoyed the experience, meeting exciting and talented people and being at the forefront of decision making. I will miss it. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be involved.
BG Alexander.
President, Angus NZ.
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