A key contributor to running a profitable sheep and beef farming operation is surety of water supply. This is especially important in drought-prone areas of New Zealand such as Central Otago.



Adam and Juls Lindsay own Creekside Farms on the Maniototo Plains near Ranfurly. They undertook a significant farm development, which includes irrigation, to ensure their 2,000 hectare sheep and beef operation is drought resistant.



The farm primarily runs Perendale sheep including 10,500 breeding ewes, 2,000 ewe hoggets and 120 rams. In addition they run 1,000 Merino wethers, winter 1,000 cattle and graze 800 dairy cows.

Adam Lindsay said, “When we took over the property in 2011 it had an irrigation system but it only covered 65 hectares (ha). The Maniototo Plains is prone to dry, hot summers and we needed to be more drought tolerant. We manage our farm inputs carefully, with one of those being water supply.



“We took advantage of the natural contours of the farm when planning the development which took five years to complete. We put in place a storage pond which has a capacity of up to 1.5 million cubic metres and installed four additional pivots – with the six pivots now providing coverage of 520ha. We have water rights to draw from the Kyeburn River, which runs alongside the eastern boundary of the farm, and is pumped to the top of the hill to fill the pond over a six month period. The water is gravity fed to the irrigation system during the summer months. We undertook the development so that we can make operational decisions on our terms and not be constrained due to adverse weather conditions.



“In March last year we bought in 2,000 trading cattle through the Go Beef scheme. Our Livestock Agent Ryan suggested the scheme, and it was a facility that met our needs at the time. This enabled us to hold the cattle through to spring (selling 1,000 through an on-farm sale in October 2017) and we finished the remaining cattle and sent them off in July 2018.” said Adam.



PGG Wrightson Senior Livestock Agent Ryan Dowling has worked with Adam and Juls since they moved to the Maniototo Plains in 2011.



Ryan said, “Adam is a progressive farmer and is always looking ahead to make productivity gains. Signing up to Go Beef was the right option for their farming operation last year and it worked well for them, but next year it might be procuring trading lambs to hold over the winter months. We work closely to ensure that every livestock trading opportunity is considered so they can make the most of any opportunities that arise. Their farm development has provided them with flexibility. It means that they can buy and sell stock when it suits them and they are often able to sell stock at a premium rather than due to weather conditions. They are well respected in the farming community. It is great to work with a farmer who knows the sheep and beef market well. Adam and operators like him are the future of New Zealand farming,” said Ryan.



Adam adds, “We have worked with Ryan for a while now and he knows our operation and is always looking out for opportunities for us. It works well. Our aim is to run a business that is profitable and sustainable. We fine tune how we do things, for example, lifting the lamb and beef weights year-on-year. There is always something we can do better. We try and do everything to our best ability and be proactive. We plan well ahead and work backwards. Our approach is we can control what happens on farm, but we can’t control external factors such as the lamb schedule and the weather. We farm for a drought. When we have favourable weather conditions, we have a good year. Last year for example, because of the irrigation, we were able to get through the drought and hold stock through until it rained. This meant we didn’t have to store stock. We have good access to water now, so we will continue to build up capital stock numbers and seek improvements across our business,” said Adam.

Pictured: PGG Wrightson Senior Livestock Agent Ryan Dowling views Creekside Farms’ storage pond with Adam and Juls Lindsay, along with Sarge, in the Maniototo Plains in July 2018