National Sales Manager - FERTCO - Ag-Recruit Limited

National Sales Manager - FERTCO

Waikato or Bay of Plenty based

Fertco is a privately owned fertiliser and animal nutrition provider established in 1999. They have been supplying North Island farmers with innovative fertiliser products for over ten years. Head office is in Mt Maunganui with outlying manufacturing based in Morrinsville.

Head office is in Mt Maunganui with outlying manufacturing based in Morrinsville. Additional dispatch facilities are in the King Country and Manawatu. Our 1500 customers farm a mix of Dairy, Sheep and Beef, Cropping, and Horticulture. Fertiliser customers are primarily based in the upper North Island.

Due to growth in market share, and the successful introduction of Mineral Boost to the market, Fertco now has an immediate need to recruit a National Sales Manager. This newly formed position can be based in either Waikato or the Bay of Plenty.

As National Sales Manager, you will report to the General Manager and be supported by Fertco’s in-house technical team. You will lead and mentor a team of six sales representatives. You will also implement systems to ensure that your agricultural customers are provided with the best service and technical advice possible.

You will spend 50% of your time developing new markets for Fertco and running your physical territory. You will drive and organise public relations and events. You will be ultimately responsible for the care of Fertco’s channel partners around New Zealand and will conduct regular sales and service reviews with them.

Competencies required for this role include:

• Proven leadership and sales management skills, with experience in a leadership role
• Experience developing and implementing reporting systems and budgets
• A strong personal background in business development
• An affinity with New Zealand pastoral farming practices
• Ability to learn and make use of new technology
• Appropriate tertiary qualification - preferred

To discuss this role in confidence, please phone either Deb Francis on 021 2245000 or Alwyn Coll on 027 2291444. Otherwise, send your CV with covering letter to apply@ag-recruit.co.nz by Monday 29 November. (Quote ref FRT18)

Nutrient leaders listen to farmers

Nutrient leaders listen to farmers

by Elaine Fisher | 2nd November 2010 BOP times

Warwick Voyce says limited resources necessitates efficient fertiliser use, a practice his company Fertco is well known for. Elaine Fisher BOP Times

A looming world shortage of raw materials and rising costs are driving changes in the New Zealand fertiliser industry that's good for the environment, says Warwick Voyce, general manager of Fertco.
"While nutrients were cheap, New Zealand's fertiliser industry operated on applying bulk nutrients to the land and while this worked well for farmers it was probably not so good for the environment," said Mr Voyce.
With costs increasing and shortage predicted, a re-think of fertiliser use was vital to ensure agriculture and horticulture in New Zealand continued to flourish while remaining environmentally sustainable, he said.
"So far, in reaction to rising cost and lack of alternatives, many farmers have simply applied fewer, cheaper nutrients which are understandable but not sustainable.
"There are still soil deficiencies and nutrients being removed from the soil and failure to address this will ultimately lead to falling production," he said.
Fertco was founded 10 years ago with a strong emphasis on eco-friendly products, and although that's still important, Warwick said the company's focus on matching fertilisers to specific soil and production needs often resulted in less product being applied, saving money.
"We remain eco-friendly but in this new era, we are also innovators in nutrient efficiency," he said.
The needs of the farmer are as important as the needs of the land and livestock, he said.

"It's as important for us to know what it is the farmer wants to achieve, be it costs savings, higher production, fewer visits from the vet or more time at the beach, as it is to assess the soil data to find out what the land needs," he said.
For that reason, Fertco consultants not only sample the soil and discuss nutrient budgets but also ask farmers a range of questions to gauge the outcomes they are aiming for. "The kinds of questions we ask are those which have been overlooked in the past. There is no point in recommending a fertiliser programme which will result in increased production if the farmer really wants a slower pace of life and more recreation time," said Mr Voyce.
Taking note of land owners' needs is one of the reasons Fertco came into being.
"A group of Waikato farmers wanted a company which approached fertiliser supply from a fresh angle. Their interest was primarily in dicalcic phosphate which, they believed from their own experiences, was a superior product to super phosphate as it gave them improved animal health and pasture growth and was environmentally friendly," he said.
Dicalcic phosphate, known as "reverted super", is manufactured by blending lime with super, before wetting the mix and leaving it to revert.
What follows is a chemical reaction in which the phosphate in the super is converted from monocalcium to dicalcium phosphate, resulting in a release rate in soil that more closely matches plant uptake.
Initially a co-operative, Fertco set up a sales consultancy force with a mandate to focus on customer service and to tailor fertiliser blends to clients' exact requirements.
A year after its formation, Fertco re-structured into a limited liability company.
"The company's head office and main manufacturing and dispatch facility has always been at Mt Maunganui because it is close to the port where virtually all our raw material enters the country," said Mr Voyce.
The company also has a granulation and drying plant in Morrinsville and additional storage and dispatch facilities in Te Kuiti and Dannevirke.
It employs 22 staff, many of whom are also shareholders.
Although fertiliser remains its core function, Fertco has recently successfully branched into the field of animal nutrition with the launch of it soon-to-be patented "Mineral Boost" dietary supplement for livestock.
"We are a relatively small company in a market dominated by fertiliser giants and while we can offer the same services they do in terms of deferred payments, and a full range of fertiliser blends, we can also offer value where other products cannot.
"For example, we have the highest dicalcic phosphate range on the market and most recently have focused heavily on offering our customers products which result in production gains and/or cost savings over more traditional fertiliser programmes."
While Fertco's core products for horticulture and agriculture are eco-friendly, it also has a range of BioGro certified organic products.
"Many of our organic products are used by conventional farmers and orchardists and that's partly because the products are affordable. We don't charge a premium because they are organic."
Fertco also supplies small block holders through arrangements with rural service stores such as RD1 and Farmlands.
"It's just as important for lifestyle farmers to fertilise their land to ensure livestock have good feed as it is for larger farmers and it doesn't have to be expensive."

P blend brings ‘rampant’ growth

P blend brings ‘rampant’ growth
Hauraki Plains dairy farmer Graham
Needham’s milk production has shot up
since he began using dicalcic phosphates 10
years ago. He milks 220 Shorthorn/Ayrshire
cows on 78ha of predominantly peat soil
in Ngatea, running an all-grass system with
a small amount of green feed maize grown
on farm to get his herd through the region’s
typical late summer dry.
Needham said he used to apply the
standard 30 percent potassic super to his
property, with “fair to middling” results.
For the past decade, he has been working
with Bay of Plenty-based Fertco, whose
products he said have really made his farm
produce.
“The ability to mix Fertco’s granulated
lime with dicalcic phosphate in customblended
mixes has seen our pH levels rise
to 6.3-6.5, which is unprecedented for peat
soils,” he said.
“This has seen the paddocks stand out
in our neighbourhood due to their
intense dark green colour and
rampant clover growth.
“Consequently, our milk
production has skyrocketed and
now sits at 87,000kg milksolids
(MS). Animal health issues are
virtually non-existent and we’ve got
an abundance of earthworms. My
sharemilker is happy and production
is still climbing.”
Sharemilker James Clothier said
local farmers reckoned this year’s
crop of maize was the best any had
seen on the Hauraki Plains. “And we
only used the Fertco standard farm fertiliser
– no special maize mixes and no extra
nitrogen [N].”
Fertco general manager Warwick
Voyce said the company has developed a
unique method of manufacturing dicalcic
phosphate that results in an eco-friendly
product with a high nutrient content.
“As well as saving money on both cartage
and spreading, our Dical range has benefits
for soil biology, animal health and the
environment,” he said.
“It also helps maintain soil phosphate
[P] levels and production, using a quarter
to a third less P, which again saves farmers
money.”
Fertco services the greater North Island
region. For more information visit www.
fertco.co.nz.

Fonterra Video

http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayb9Cw7ZhcM

Solid Energy and New Zealand Humates unlock Southland Humate potential

 

Solid Energy and New Zealand Humates unlock Southland Humate potential

26 May 2010

Solid Energy’s high-quality humates from its New Vale Mine in Southland has achieved a major milestone - gaining organic certification with BioGro New Zealand, the country’s leading organic certification agency.

Scientific testing recently confirmed that select lignite seams at Solid Energy’s New Vale Mine in Southland are a source of high-quality humates, which could play a key role in greening New Zealand both literally and figuratively.

“Humates are rich in humic and fulvic acids and these acids help retain nutrients for plants,” says Solid Energy Environmental Business Manager, Dr Paul Weber.  Early results show that the humate product from New Vale could have more than 30% humic acid.  “Our last load, which we shipped recently, had a humic acid content of 43%, which was fantastic.”

“Exploratory laboratory trials have indicated humates can slow the leaching of nitrogen fertilisers,” he says.  “This may allow plants to use more of the nutrient before it leaches away. By helping soils retain nitrogen, humates could offer financial benefits to farmers and also reduce the negative effects of leaching on aquifers and rivers.”

Dr Weber says New Zealand farmers and gardeners apply about 2,000 tonnes of humates a year but the market is predicted to jump to 10,000 tonnes in the coming years due to its increasing reputation.  “Most of the humates used in New Zealand are currently imported from Australia, involving considerable transport costs, so we hope that our New Vale discovery can provide a comparable high-quality local source,” he says.

Solid Energy has an agreement with New Zealand Humates Limited (NZH) to supply humates for the New Zealand market.  Dave Whitteker, Managing Director of NZH and an eight-year advocate of humates, says the supply deal represents an opportunity to harness New Zealand’s own natural resources in a very green way and reduce the country’s reliance on international imports. 

“Now that we’ve gained organic certification of the New Vale Mine humates with BioGro New Zealand – the local product is even more palatable for  customers,” Mr Whitteker says.  A number of his clients now use 4% to 10% humate mixed with fertiliser and agricultural limestone applications to maximise pasture and crop response.

“Further research is required on this product, under New Zealand conditions, to maximise the benefits, and trials are currently under way with Lincoln University,” Mr Whitteker says.

Dr Weber, who also manages environmental research and development for Solid Energy, concludes that the humate market is young but has strong potential.  “We are already investigating options for liquid humates that could be used for blended fertilisers, water treatment and clean-up of contaminated sites.  Watch this space,” he says.

Current Trend

Why is PhosMate so good?

Humate is getting a fair amount of scientific interest at the moment and this interest is justified. This recent Aussie insight gives us an idea as to why the Lime, phosphate and Humate in Phosmate works so well.

 

Titre du document / Document title

The use of Ca-modified, brown-coal-derived humates and fulvates for treatment of soil acidity

Auteur(s) / Author(s)

PEIRIS Damayanthi ⁽¹⁾ ; PATTI Antonio F. ^{(1 2)} ; JACKSON W. Roy ⁽¹⁾ ; MARSHALL Marc ⁽¹⁾ ; SMITH Christopher J. ⁽³⁾ ;

Affiliation(s) du ou des auteurs / Author(s) Affiliation(s)

⁽¹⁾ Centre for Green Chemistry and School of Chemistry, PO Box 23, Monash University, Vic. 3800, AUSTRALIE
⁽²⁾ School of Applied Sciences, Monash University, Vic 3800, AUSTRALIE
⁽³⁾ CSIRO Land and Water, GPO Box 1666, Canberra, ACT 2601, AUSTRALIE

Résumé / Abstract

Previous workers have demonstrated the amelioration of soil acidity with Ca-saturated, at least slightly soluble, organic materials. This study investigated the effectiveness of a new source of such materials, the humate- or fulvate-rich products of oxidation (hydrogen peroxide) of Loy Yang brown coal. The products were characterised by physical and spectroscopic measurements and by elemental analysis. Two products, one approximately half fulvate (fulvate-rich), the other predominantly humate (humate-rich) were mixed with CaCl₂ and then used to treat columns of an acid red podzol soil from Book Book, NSW. Leachate fractions were collected and analysed for pH, ionic strength, and concentration of Ca, Mg, K, Mn, Fe, and Al. After leaching (3 pore volumes), each soil column was sectioned and exchangeable Ca and Al contents were determined. The results were compared with those obtained from lime-treated and untreated columns. The Ca-fulvate-rich product was the most effective in lowering the exchangeable Al content of the soil whilst increasing exchangeable Ca and soil pH. About 90% of the reduction in exchangeable Al was due to loss of Al in the leachate rather than immobilisation. The pH increased over the top 15 cm of the column from 3.8 ± 0.1 to 4.5-5.4. The Ca-humate-rich oxidised product was less effective in ameliorating soil acidity, as expected from its chemical properties, but it increased soil pH (to 4.0-4.7) and exchangeable Ca in the top 6 cm of the column and decreased exchangeable Al in the top 12 cm. More of the reduction in exchangeable Al than for the treatment with Ca-fulvate-rich material was due to conversion to an immobile form. This material was superior to lime, which only gave significant improvement near the soil surface. The leachates from treated columns contained the same amounts of Mg, Mn, and K as a control, but more Fe was leached from treated columns, particularly that treated with the Ca-fulvate-rich product.

Revue / Journal Title

Australian journal of soil research   ISSN 0004-9573   CODEN ASORAB

New Product pHosMate designed to improve phosphate efficiency even further.

 

Any old amount is not good enough…..

Fertco advocates heavy use of customising fertiliser requirements to exactly what farmers need – not willy nilly spread as much as you can philosophies….. this is important for both the farm and environment…. here’s why.

China using 'mind blowing' amount of fertiliser

Ecologist

14th February, 2009

Overuse of nitrogen fertilisers in China is leading to rapid soil acidification and is causing lasting damage to ecosystems, according to soil study

Nitrogen fertilisers used to increase crop yields in China are having ‘extreme’ environmental consequences, according to a study from leading soil scientists.
Scientists from China, the UK and the United States measured the pH of soil samples taken from agricultural land across China in the 1980s and 2000s and found widespread acidification caused by nitrogen fertilisers.
On average, the pH of soil across the country had decreased by 0.5 in 20 years. In parts of Hunan province, in south China, the pH of the soil had dropped to between 3 and 4.
Most crops are suited to a neutral range between pH 6 and pH 8.

Intensification drive
Dr Goulding, head of soil science at Rothamsted Agricultural Research Centre, said Chinese farmers had been encouraged to use more fertilisers to drive up yields, but had not been warned about the risks.

‘The message from the Chinese government was very simple: put nitrogen fertiliser on your crops and get more yield. The result in many parts of the country is extreme acidification,’ said Goulding.
Professor Peter Vitousek of Stanford University, who worked on the study, said the amount of fertiliser being used in China was ‘mind-blowing.’
‘Whereas on a grain farm in Illinois, an average of 200 kg of nitrogen fertiliser are being used per hectare, on a maize farm in China that could be as much as 800 kg per hectare.
‘More than half of that is not going into the crop: instead it's having grave environmental consequences downwind and downstream,’ he said.

Cutting fertiliser usage
Professor Vitousek said the research had shown that farmers could cut the amount of nitrogen fertilisers used almost in half without affecting yields.
'This would be an absolute benefit to the environment and farmer costs,’ he said.

Emerging Markets view…. fertiliser

VALE Is Expanding Into Fertilizers With $1bn Stake in Fosfertil (Equities Analysts view)

This is great news. Our favorite mining company in addition to a dominant position in the iron ore markets they have deftly expanded into other minerals and now fertilizers. Vale’s Finance Director, Fabio Barbosa, stated, “Our perception is that the rapid per capita income growth in emerging markets will have a big impact on demand for protein, so there will be a structural shift in the demand for [fertiliser] which has only limited supply.” Per capita income growth in big emerging economies is the theme song for all of our investments!  As investors, we can buy better value at a better price and lower risk than developed markets.

It will also be very interesting to see if Vale begins purchasing their own ships in order to deliver ore to spot markets instead of relying on customers to collect.

Fonterra Invests In China

Fonterra has announced that it intends to invest in two more dairy farms in China to continue growing a high quality and secure supply milk on the ground.

Philip Turner, Managing Director for Fonterra China, said that the Chinese dairy industry is continuing to develop quickly but that the current supply of high quality fresh milk cannot keep up with demand.

“We are looking to help grow a safe, secure and sustainable milk supply in China in order to meet this demand and expand our customer base.”

The China dairy market is set to become the world’s largest dairy market in the next few decades and is forecast to experience double digit annual growth over the next 10 years. The Chinese Government has acknowledged that the development of the dairy farming industry is not only crucial for meeting the growth in demand, but also for developing rural communities and their livelihoods.

Mr Turner said Tangshan Fonterra Farm, Fonterra’s pilot farm in Hangu established in 2007, had succeeded in demonstrating that Fonterra can successfully produce New Zealand standard milk in China. It has reached target production levels ahead of timetable and is producing record levels of milk for China.

“We are confident that with further investment in good technology, people and high quality genetics, we can replicate this model on further farms. This will complement our New Zealand milk supply and help us better meet the needs of our key customers, who are increasingly looking for local sourcing capability.”

Fonterra has identified several possible sites for the new farms in Hebei Province and will consider partnering on the investment. However, Mr Turner said Fonterra would want to have full management of the farms.

“It is important that we keep the next two farms in close proximity to Tangshan Fonterra Farm in order to achieve efficiencies in transport, milk supply and Fonterra management.”

Mr Turner said due diligence was already underway and the aim was to complete the final long-term lease agreement by mid-2010.

Tangshan Fonterra Farm is already producing its second generation of China born heifers, following two successful rounds of calving since the farm was first established. The total herd has grown to nearly 5800 cows, around half of which have been raised from the original imported herd of Friesians.

Each of the new farms is planned to be of similar size to Hangu, with around 35 hectares of land and around 3300 milking cows, creating employment and training opportunities for 350 people in Hebei Province.

Tangshan Fonterra Farm manager and experienced veterinarian Todd Meyer said the second round of calving was proof that Fonterra had successfully adapted the New Zealand-quality herd to the farming environment in China.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better result. We have introduced new China-born blood into our herd and are meeting our production targets for high quality local milk.”

TheCattleSite News Desk