Sheep, Sheep Handling
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New Zealand agri-tech company Te Pari is expanding its international product line with the purchase of the award-winning agricultural range, Vetmarker®.
Te Pari’s recent acquisition of Vetmarker® from Fenemor Innovations includes all trademarks and patents associated with the sheep docking apparatus. The patented products have been designed to minimise lamb distress and increase efficiency, during lamb docking and tailing procedures.
Te Pari global sales manager Jeremy Blampied says the acquisition means the Vetmarker® patented products will remain under Kiwi ownership and product manufacturing will shift from the North Island to Oamaru.
“We are delighted to introduce the state-of-the-art Vetmarker® products into our Te Pari offering,” he says. “They are complementary to our sheep-handling portfolio and fit nicely within the livestock handling and animal management ecosystem.
“We expect to have the first Te Pari Vetmarker® product line ready for distribution this year, in time for the upcoming lambing season.”
With a global distribution reach, Te Pari plans to export the Vetmarker® system to farms around the world, particularly in Australia and the UK.
“Globally there’s a shift towards precision animal management, when farmers manage animals on an individual basis, rather than on a group basis. This is certainly happening in Australia and the UK, and the Vetmarker® products align with this,” adds Blampied. “NZ will always be a key market for Te Pari, however, there are now more than 75 million sheep in Australia, and 20 million sheep in the UK, which is similar to NZ. Our numbers here are actually declining.”
Fenemor Innovations owner Gillian Fenemor says the time is right to sell the product line and she is thrilled the Vetmarker® system will stay under Kiwi ownership with Te Pari.
“We started everything from scratch and are really proud of what we have achieved over the years,” she says. “When Jeremy approached us about selling recently, we knew it was time. We have also been Te Pari customers for 25 years, and we look forward to seeing the Vetmarker® continue under their ownership.”
Blampied adds: “Our ethos at Te Pari is really about efficiency. We want to help farmers make more money with less time and the Vetmarker® tools fit the bill perfectly, enabling farmers to efficiently handle animals individually.”
About the Vetmarker® weighing products
Created by Taihape farmer John Fenemor, the Vetmarker® model was designed to minimise lamb distress while maintaining task efficiency. Lambs are placed into the Vetmarker® weigh apparatus and rollers cradle them down the apparatus. The bespoke design gives farmers easy access for docking and tailing procedures.
The Vetmarker® product range is the only patented agricultural model in New Zealand with a bespoke feature to ensure lambs land on their feet when exiting the machine. Further adaptions have been made to the design, including features such as a spray unit to mitigate flystrike.