This year they added another to their growing collection, a Bronze Herd Recognition Award which they received at the 2013 Jersey New Zealand annual conference. As well as meeting the criteria for the award their herd had a recorded ancestry of between 90% and 93% to gain the bronze award.
Lance and Karen are both locals to the area with Karen coming from a farming background in Carterton but moving to Wellington to work. Lance, originally from Masterton, was already farming when they met.
For three years they were lower-order sharemilking for Fonterra in Pahiatua. During this time Karen worked off the farm at a local accountant’s office but six years ago they went 50:50 sharemilking.
It was when they bought their herd from Karen’s parents they named their stud Landell Holdings. The base herd of 250 cows is made up of Jersey and Holstein- Friesian and Jersey-cross animals, milked through a 26-aside herringbone dairy.
In addition to the 80ha effective property at Featherston where they sharemilk the couple own 48ha at Carterton which is run in partnership with Karen’s brother, where they raise Friesian bulls. They also lease 24ha at Carterton and have a further 12ha at Featherston where they raise calves.
For the 2012-13 season their production was 95,793kg milksolids (MS), a drop from the previous season when they produced 103,463kg MS but from a slightly larger herd.
The couple run the farm with the help of full time worker Isaac Kelsen who they describe as their second in command.
His fiancee Emma Stevens also helps the couple by acting as nanny to their three children Zara, Holly and Padraig when she doesn’t have other work commitments.
Karen’s special interest is the stud stock and she enjoys working with the calves. She also manages the farm’s accounts, a role where she has plenty of experience to call on.
The couple’s ultimate aim is to one day own a farm in Wairarapa, a region Lance said they love living in.
He believes a herd of around 300 is ideal for them.
“We couldn’t be factory farmers with a huge herd,” he said.
“We enjoy our cows so wouldn’t want to be too big.”
Herd achievements and support rewarded
Jersey New Zealand’s herd recognition awards acknowledge both members’ herd achievements and their support for the association through use if its products and services.
There are five areas in which members must qualify for consideration of an award. They must use Jersey Genes (must buy Jersey Genes semen for use in their own herd), must have traits other than production (TOP) and classify their entire two-year-old contemporary group of heifers and must register all animals over Jersey 12 content (excluding lease animals).
They also have to complete a minimum of four herd tests within a season and their herd must have a negative Enzootic Bovine
