Page 6 - National Poultry Newspaper

Supporting a future of higher welfare learning
Hydro Innovations and the EchoStorm Venturi Aerator rescued the Flying Fish Cove Winery in Western Australia.
EchoStorm Aerator to winery rescue
HYDRO Innovations received a call from Damon Eastaugh of Margaret River Fly- ing Fish Cove Win- ery one night, smack bang in the middle of vintage – the most hectic time.
mounted aerator could be retrofitted to re- place his existing sur- face aerator easily. The solution
cated annual certifica- tions for servicing and maintenance.
Benefits of the instal- lation
Damon’s wastewater surface aerator had broken down!
The team at Hydro Innovations were able to explain to Damon the benefits of the bank mounted EchoS- torm Venturi Aerator and pinpoint the exact model to fill his re- quirements.
Not only was Da- mon happy with the pump and price, he was thrilled that Hy- dro Innovations could get the system to him and have his problem solved in less than four weeks, including transporting from the east coast to Western Australia.
Not the most desir- able situation to be in during a pandemic to complicate issues of potential repair or re- placement.
The benefit of the EchoStorm Venturi Aerator over a sur- face aerator is that the equipment is mounted on the bank of the la- goon.
Damon was not dis- appointed with the re- sults his new purchase delivered.
Flying Fish Cove Winery was in need of a simple, reliable and efficient replacement system and fast.
This makes for sim- ple and easy mainte- nance and servicing, which in turn means the equipment is more likely to be regularly serviced and have a longer lifespan than aerators that are dif- ficult to access.
Shortly after instal- lation, the winery’s biological oxygen de- mand had gone down by 1400ppm from the previous month.
The problem
Damon had heard of bank-mounted aerators and was excited to hear more about how effec- tive they could be and how much simpler the maintenance would be, so he would not have to experience this annoy- ing and costly situation again.
The EchoStorm Ven- turi Aerator does not need any special equip- ment such as cranes or row boats, nor does it require any compli-
Hydro Innovations keep a wide range of products in stock, which was instru- mental in solving this problem quickly and effectively, and with the restrictions from the COVID-19 pan- demic.
Damon also wanted to know if the bank-
WHEN it comes to mak- ing the world a better place for farm animals, consumers play an influ- ential role.
ter farm animal welfare grows, we are confident that we will see more improvements within the industry.
Being a driver of change
chicken industry is some- thingwecanbeveryproud of, but we need contin- ued support to see more egg-laying hens and pigs farmed to higher welfare standards.
We have the power to communicate with com- panies and brands our preferences through the products we buy.
Your role as a consumer
It’s important to remem- ber that farming to higher welfare standards gener- ally has more overhead costs, is more labour inten- sive and uses less animals, making production more costly.
This means that if you choose to eat meat, eggs, dairy or fish, you are an important driver of change for farm animal welfare.
While a growing number of Australians are looking for plant-based alterna- tives, the majority continue to include products from animals in their diet.
So, if your favourite brand doesn’t have RSPCA Approved eggs or pork, get in touch and let them know that animal welfare is im- portant to you.
Every year, hundreds of millions of animals are farmed in Australia to meet demand for food.
If you choose to eat meat, eggs and fish, here’s how your support for farmers and brands that care about farm animal welfare has a flow-on effect, leading to more animals being farmed to higher welfare standards.
With the industry’s ex- tensive uptake of the RSP- CA standard and the hard work by farmers across the country, chicken that’s farmed to higher welfare standards has never been more accessible.
In 2020, more than 660 million of these animals were meat chickens.
The RSPCA has shared the journey it has been on, working with farm- ers, retailers and well- known brands through the RSPCA Approved farming scheme to im- prove animal welfare for Australian meat chick- ens.
Our success in the meat
It is therefore crucial that animal welfare is a leading consideration when farm- ing animals into the future.
When it comes to buying higher welfare chicken, Australians are in a fortu- nate position.
Explore what the scheme means for animals and the journey the RSPCA has been on for the past 25 years at the new immersive impact webpage – rspcaapproved.org.au – all of which has been possible because caring Australians support a future of higher welfare by choosing RSPCA Approved.
Ultimately, consumers are the driving force for change.
With the uptake of our animal welfare stand- ard across the industry, we’ve seen increased space per bird, better lighting, good litter qual- ity and the provision of perches and enrichment for more than 3 billion meat chickens since 2010 – that’s huge!
We know our work is far from finished and there is more that can be done to continue to improve animal welfare.
Our best chance at doing this is by incre- mentally raising the bar within our standards, while keeping farm- ers participating in the scheme.
As public awareness and consumer and re- tailer demand for bet-
If your favourite brand doesn’t have RSPCA Approved eggs or pork, get in touch and let them know that animal welfare is important to you.
Planning a commercial poultry development
IF considering a devel- opment to a commercial poultry facility in Aus- tralia, there are a quite a few informative and detailed documents and resources available.
• Application of best practice in the design, construction, opera- tion and management of broiler farms to satisfy relevant environmental standards
Two that have been pre- pared and published by the NSW Department of Primary Industries are ex- cellent resources for any- one contemplating build- ing a commercial meat chicken farm or wanting to improve the manage- ment of an existing one.
• Preparation, assess- ment and determination of broiler farm development proposals through the planning permit system
To access the ‘Best Practice Management for Meat Chicken Production in NSW’ and ‘Better Site Selection for Meat Poul- try Developments’ docu- ments, visit dpi.nsw.gov. au
This code has recently been revised and is avail- able at agriculture.vic.gov. au
In Victoria, a code for the establishment and op- eration of chicken farms has been developed.
An additional resource to assist chicken farmers meet their environmental responsibilities and manage their risks in this respect is the National Environmental Management System for the Chicken Meat Industry, available from the AgriFutures Australia website agrifutures.com. au
This code sets require- ments for the:
• Siting and size of broil-
• The on-going monitor- ing of broiler farm op- erations through routine audits.
Page 6 – National Poultry Newspaper, February 2022
er farms
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