In their endeavour to produce high-quality wool, a Western Cape mother-son farming duo have come to rely on a wide range of livestock nutrition products produced by Voermol Feeds.
In fact, Gary Patience, who farms at the foot of the Saronsberg in the Tulbagh district, makes no secret of his magic ingredient. He says, “The lambs grow quicker and I get to wean them a little bit earlier than when I don’t use these products.”
Gary and his mother, Therecia, are the proud co-owners of the GT Agri Group in Saron. Initially, the farm belonged to Therecia’s late father-in-law. He started farming with just 20 sheep in 1969 on the very same land.
“I was a housewife while my husband worked as a teacher. I was the only one who had time to attend to the farm,” Therecia explains.
Through the years, she proved many naysayers wrong as a woman in agriculture. She scaled up the enterprise quite considerably. Today, they farm with 250 Dohne Marino sheep and about 100 red and black Angus cattle on a 95-hectare piece of rented commonage land.
Driving innovation
Gary drives much of the innovation on the farm. At 32, it feels like he’s been farming for a lifetime.
After all, he was just 10 when he got a calf to raise as a gift from his uncle which he then sold the following year. “I bought two heifers with the money, who birthed two calves. I then sold them and bought five sheep ewes,” he says.
Both wool and meat have become important commodities for the Patience family. They have become very picky about the products they use, says Gary.
“We want to produce the best wool we can, as well as the best meat we can. We’re in a winter rainfall area and our ewes are pregnant during the summer months. We lamb them in March to April, so during the summer we must give them extra feed.”
Included in the extra feed is Voermol’s Maxiwol Concentrate.
“I give them the Maxiwol, which helps with milk production in the ewes. It also ensures when the embryo is formed at conception, it gives the lamb more follicles for wool production than when I was not using Maxiwol.”
The Maxiwol Concentrate, when mixed with salt, promotes the production of wool, fibre and mutton. It contains a relatively high percentage of natural protein. It also helps to stimulate roughage intake and improve production.
the use of Maxiwol has significantly improved the wool quality of his lambs, as well as the milk production of his ewes.
Another Voermol product they have come to rely on is SS 200. A fattening concentrate, the product is used for the finishing of lambs, and sheep, and for growing out young animals.
Great products, higher profits
Gary explains that, while he still allows the lambs to graze after they have been weaned, he feeds them the SS 200 concentrate in the morning and evenings.
“I give them the SS200 mixture mixed with grain, so they can pick up weight quicker and I can get them to their goal weight a lot quicker.”
He is particularly excited by the Maxiwol Concentrate, explaining that it has changed his life and how he farms. “I met someone called Hans, from Voermol. He came out to the farm and he’s been giving me lots of great technical advice.”
Gary explains how the use of Maxiwol has increased his profits, despite his initial scepticism.
“The heavier calves I wean or the heavier lambs I wean that eventually go off to slaughter, the more money I make. I was under the misimpression that buying more feed would be eating into my profits, until Hans explained to me that, in buying some more feed, it actually increases profits.”
The ewes on their farm are producing more, and there is much quicker growth, so more money comes in much sooner.
“In the end, it (Maxiwol Concentrate) pays for itself. That’s how these products changed my whole operation, and I don’t see myself ever changing products.
“I have used other products on different trials, but I don’t think there’s any other product that can keep up with it. It is a bit more expensive than the competition, but it’s worth every penny. It makes a big difference.”
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