A CONTRAPTION to feed out silage and hay has been awarded the Agri-Innovators prize at the Henty Machinery Field Days.
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Ungarie district farmer Pat Daniher won first prize for his ‘Daniher Bale Feeder’.
A beaming Mr Daniher said he would be taking his trophy “straight to the pool room”.
“It’s a real buzz to win,” he said.
His winning contraption consists of a remote-controlled conveyor belt. The unit can be mounted onto the back of a ute or a box trailer.
“The farmer just needs to load a round or square bale onto the converyor belt, tie the bale strings to the holes I’ve created and roll it out from there,” he said.
“There’s no need to climb onto the back of a ute.”
The idea for his bale feeder was sparked on Christmas Day two years ago while he was “keeping in good nick” on a treadmill.
“I looked down at my feet and thought, I could use this system to help me in the paddock.”
He hopes to sell his product, which is manufactured locally, to other farmers.
“The feeder can be used to make things easier and safer. I hope it helps elderly people and people working on their own.”
The Agri-Innovators award is open to tertiary students, farmers, backyard tinkerers and innovators.
Entries can be any agribusiness invention, ranging from a mobile phone app or computer software program to the largest tillage machinery.
Mr Daniher was joined at the Henty Field Machinery Days with his wife, Margaret. The couple farm at “Leyton”, Girral via Ungarie.