Friday, March 29, 2024

Accelerating at a pace

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Central Plateau Sharemilker/Equity Farmers of the Year, Donald and Kirsten Watson, sold their 4ha lifestyle block and invested money in carryover cows to accelerate equity growth and build their business.
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The former vets are in their first season 50:50 sharemilking 990 cows for Glenn and Karen Speed at Taupo, just four years after entering the dairy industry. Don runs the business onfarm while Kirsten is in charge of herd records, finances and calf rearing, but their vet skills still get used regularly.

“I think we spend half of spring being vets,” Don said.

“But we don’t miss it. We love farming. Being able to walk out the door and know we’re working for ourselves is a bigger reward.”

Their goal is to own an 800-cow farm by 2020 with their cows in the top 10% of the national herd. The herd was already in the top 20% with a Breeding Worth (BW) of 121 and Production Worth of 151.

They both grew up on sheep and beef farms, Kirsten at Dannevirke and Don at Garston in Southland. They worked as vets here and in the United Kingdom, but when they returned home, Don wanted to go farming. He managed an intensive Hawke’s Bay drystock property for three years while Kirsten continued as a vet, in between having their three sons, Riley, six, George, five, and Josh, three.

“It was a farm that had a lot of potential in it and we were able to lift production significantly. That was a learning curve in itself – to take a low productive farm and turn it around.”

They were grateful to the committed staff who worked with them.

“You can’t milk 1600 cows yourself. It was a team effort to turn the farm around. We couldn’t have grown without them.”

The couple also won the Federated Farmers Leadership Award, the Ravensdown Pasture Performance Award and the Westpac Business Performance Award.

Runners-up, Rotorua 24% sharemilkers Alistair and Sarah Coatsworth, won the BlackmanSpargo Legal Audit Award, DairyNZ Human Resources Award and the Honda Farm Safety and Health Award.

Rotorua 22% sharemilkers, Byron Horner and Hannah Massey, won the Ecolab Farm Dairy Hygiene Award and Waikite Valley 23% sharemilkers, Campbell and Katie Wheeler, won the LIC Recording and Productivity Award. Atiamuri 20% sharemilkers, Hayden and Narelle Hilhorst, won the Meridian Energy Farm Environment Award and Reporoa 50:50 sharemilker Andres Montero won the Triplejump Risk Management Award.

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