Pasture productivity under pressure despite continued improvement in sheep and beef production efficiency

Abstract

Pastoral hill country landscapes are the cornerstone of New Zealand’s sheep and beef sector. A growing body of evidence indicates that pasture productivity gains in New Zealand have stagnated or, in some cases, declined over recent decades. The use of methods to back-calculate animal intake from livestock energy requirements and energy concentration of pasture on offer, has proven effective in the assessment of home-grown feed for dairy, and to a limited extent, for sheep and beef. This paper explores the complexities of extracting similar information to that of Gobilik et al. (2021) to extend regional data (Class 4 lower North Island Hill Country) beyond 2011 to current times using data from the B+LNZ Sheep and Beef Farm Survey. Our analysis suggests that estimated feed demand has remained flat despite continued gains
in livestock reproductive performance indicators, consistent with heightened pressure on pasture supply. This divergence is critical for livestock managers where home-grown feed is so prominent in terms of forage supply. The present analysis relied on stock-unit based feed-demand proxies rather than a comprehensive set of animal production characteristics, and further work is needed to integrate detailed farm-level measurements and improved estimates of livestock liveweight and liveweight changes, to improve the assessment of pasture productivity trends.