Motu-nui – Quality Rams for New Zealand Hill Country
Motu-nui Rams are breeders of high performance Romney stud rams.
We are specialists in maternal and terminal sires bred specifically for the tough conditions of New Zealand hill country.
Based at the 680ha ICA Station at Whareama on the East Coast of the Wairarapa and carrying around 4,000 ewes, we produce a Romney ram that will deliver real returns to you, the commercial farmer.
With ‘efficiency’ and ‘hardiness’ our top breeding objectives, Motu-nui aims to breed ewes that can wean their body weight on summer dry hill country.
Motu-nui Rams are deeper and shorter than the traditional Romney and hold on superbly well in tough seasons while still delivering strong yields.
According to Mount Somers Station manager, Stu Neale, the Motu-nui rams are “no-nonsense sheep bred on steep hill country.”
I am often asked what makes us different from other ram breeders, and why should we buy our rams from Motu-nui?
Here’s why:
- One of the country’s largest recorded Romney flocks farmed on a single farm.
- All stock run under commercial conditions, mob- stocked on second class hill country, summer dry and winter wet conditions. The best way to test for constitution.
- 7 years of data collection and culling for efficiency; now selecting rams with good parental background based around this trait.
- All rams DNA tested for foot rot resistance and parasite resistance.
- 20 years involved in WRIG sire evaluation testing progeny for saleable meat value.
- Large numbers give us a large selection to cull heavily on feet, dags – the basics that farmers want to improve in their flocks.
- We lamb hoggets and have done so for the past 25 years. Lambs tagged at birth – chance to assess maternal abilities.
- Mothering ability is important so we do a lot of culling at lambing time to only bring forward the best mothers to breed from. The class of country that our genetics are going to can’t afford ewes that aren’t easy care.
- Full EID in all animals, with significant investment in developing software to make the most of our data collection. New updates are happening all the time.
- We sell local, with a large client base in the Wairarapa, two local franchise partnerships and a satellite flock in the South Island. Constant exchange of genetics between the 3 flocks with a Romney base.
- Proven testing ground. Experience has shown that if stock perform well in the Wairarapa climate they will shift well nationwide.
- We work with the stock ourselves and I am personally involved in day-to-day management.
Location
Photo Gallery
Contact Details
Jason Le Grove
Phone: 06 372 3841 | Mob: 027 326 7734
Email: jason.motunui@xtra.co.nz
ICA Station, Whareama. Wairarapa