First-time entrants who say they live and work in paradise have been announced as the major winners in the 2022 West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Industry Awards.
Kevin and Kyla Freeman were announced winners of the region’s Share Farmer of the Year Category at the annual awards dinner held in Shantytown on Thursday night.
The other big winners were Robyn Mare, who was named the 2022 West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Manager of the Year, and Lisa Peeters the 2022West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Trainee of the Year.
The Freemans are 50/50 share milkers on Mark and Julie Freeman’s 140ha Nelson farm, milking 390 cows. They won $10,895 in prizes and five merit awards.
“We entered the Awards programme to look at every aspect of our business with others to critique,” they say.
“It was a chance to analyse, learn and improve areas of weakness and identify areas of opportunities to grow.”
Kevin grew up on a dairy farm and is a trade qualified builder. He was 2IC for two years prior to sharemilking in 2020. Kyla grew up on a beef and crop farm in Canada.
The couple have three children Mylan, 4, Levi, 2, and Cole, 8 months, and believe raising kids on a farm is second-to-none.
“We have the ability to share the enjoyment of the farm with friends, family and others andlove the amount of time we get to see the kids during the day.”
Uncertainty around pay-out has proved challenging for the Freemans, especially when they began sharemilking in 2020.
“Covid was just starting to shape the world and banks were not lending freely.”
A positive attitude helps during the harder times.
“Hard days don’t last forever and there’s always something positive to look at in a day, especially happy cows full of milk!”
Kevin (27) and Kyla (24) say their low cost of production is one of their biggest strengths coupled with a higher production on a grass-based system.
“Our equity growth is something we’re proud of,” they say. “We purchased very cost-effective cows as a start-up herd and they produced 455kg/cow our first season, so we are very happy with their performance.”
The Freemans have a desire to see more young people on the dairy pathway to farm ownership and have their own clear goals and plans for the future. “We want to work our way to family farm ownership and to continue to enjoy the farming lifestyle and share it with others.”
The New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards are supported by national sponsors DeLaval, Ecolab, Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Honda, LIC, Meridian, and Ravensdown along with industry partners DairyNZ and MediaWorks.
The winner of the 2022 West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Manager of the Year category says she is proud to be a New Zealand dairy farmer producing a quality product in the most environmentally sustainable way.
Robyn Mare won $6,500 in prizes and two merit awards and is farm manager for Rob and Michelle Little on their 155ha, 310-cow Greymouth property.
A former property valuer for QV Valuations, Robyn entered the dairy industry full-time in 2017 as a farm assistant.
“I love cows and being outdoors in the elements working hard physically and mentally,” she says. “I enjoy working with machinery but mostly it’s all about the cows who are beautiful, gentle animals.”
A second-time entrant in the Awards, Robyn (43) says the programme encouraged her to think about her future and plan to progress in the industry.
“I’m going contract milking next year and I’d like to eventually be in a position to buy my own herd.”
Runner-up in the Dairy Manager category was Coenraad Jacobus Groenewald, who immigrated to New Zealand in 2016 from South Africa, when he entered the dairy industry.
“I was born and raised on a dry stock farm and I always loved farm life,” he says. “Being hands-on with the job and seeing people progress in the industry gives me ultimate satisfaction.
“The dairy industry in New Zealand is so diverse and the job opportunities are endless. It’s exhilarating to discover opportunities you never imagined existed.”
Coenraad (40) is currently farm manager on the Pāmu Farms of New Zealand 449ha, 900-cow Moana farm. He won $3000 in prizes and one merit award.
Gareth Evans placed third and won $2000 in prizes. He is farm manager for Kelvin and Heather McKay on their 81ha, 173-cow Greymouth property.
Lisa Peetershas been named winner in the 2022 West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Trainee of the Year category. The 28-year-old is herd manager for Mawhera Incorporation’s 240ha, 400-cow property in Hokitika. She won $6,300 in prizes and two merit awards.
The first-time entrant says she entered the awards programme to meet new people and test her farm knowledge as well as learn something new.
Lisa grew up on a family dairy farm in Canada where all cows are housed indoors, calve all-year round and milk twice-a-day all year.
“I was mainly helping with calf rearing and calf husbandry.”
The farm was sold when Lisa was 16 and she began a position on a sheep farm before moving to a beef bull stud.
“I was very disappointed when our family farm was sold as dairy is a tough industry to get into in Canada without family connections, so I trained as a vet nurse with a focus on large animals but mainly sport and performance horses.”
The 28-year-old came to New Zealand after experiencing burnout in vet nursing, to experience life as a work exchange student and found a position on her current dairy farm. “I fell back in love with dairy!”
Runner-up in the Dairy Trainee category was 20-year-old assistant manager and 2IC Trinity Jackson, who won $2000 in prizes.
Trinity works for Pāmu Farms of New Zealand on the 443ha, 800-cow farm at Greymouth.
Third place in the Dairy Trainee category went to 26-year-old herd manager Connor Shirley who won $1,500 in prizes and one merit award. Connor works on the Brent Riley Home Farm, on the 65ha, 200-cow farm in Collingwood.
The West Coast/Top of the South Dairy Industry Awards winners field day will be held on 13 April 2022 at 10am at 291 Rainy River Road RD2, Nelson S/N Fonterra 30970 where Share Farmers of the Year, Kevin and Kyla Freeman sharemilk. Also presenting at the field day will be the region’s Dairy Manager of the Year, Robyn Mare and Dairy Trainee of the Year, Lisa Peeters. Further details on the winners and the field day can be found at www.dairyindustryawards.co.nz.
