Waikato Dairy Award Winner Passionate About All Farming Opportunities

The major winner in the 2023 Waikato Dairy Industry Awards has a genuine passion for all things farming and believes there are many opportunities within the dairy industry for those who are willing to work hard and push themselves.

For the first time, a sole female farmer has won the Waikato Share Farmer category.

Aleisha Broomfield was announced winner of the region’s Share Farmer of the Year category at the Waikato Dairy Industry Awards annual awards dinner held at Claudelands Event Centre on Wednesday evening. The other big winners were Sam Dodd, who became the 2023 Waikato Dairy Manager of the Year, and Natasha Price, the 2023 Waikato Dairy Trainee of the Year.

Aleisha is a 50/50 herd-owning share milker on the Dibble Family’s Tauhei Farms Ltd 86ha Te Aroha farm, milking 245 cows. She won $15,828 in prizes and four merit awards.

She was runner-up in the same category last year and believes working on her business was a key benefit of the awards programme.

“As well as learning more and improving my business, I enjoyed meeting the other entrants and regional teams,” she says. “It was great to have the recognition of hard work.”

The 33-year-old was born and raised on a dairy farm in Patetonga and says farming is in her DNA.

Aleisha holds a Bachelor of Agricultural Science with First Class Honours from Lincoln University and a New Zealand Diploma in Agri-business.

The former DairyNZ Consulting Officer and PrimaryITO tutor says her favourite part of farming is the cows. “I absolutely love the cows!”

“I’ve always wanted to be a farmer and give future children the rural upbringing that I had,” says Aleisha. “I really enjoy working with the animals, in particular growing exceptional youngstock, and having happy, healthy cows that have low SCC and high in-calf and production results.”

She also identifies a traditionally stressful time on-farm as her favourite – calving.

“It’s also important for me to continually develop, so I have been doing a lot of training which helps improve the business and keeps you motivated.”

Aleisha is proud she is a sharemilker in her own right, with an 82% 6-week in-calf rate and 52,000 SCC.

Together with her partner James, she is about to realise a life goal and purchase a dairy farm.

“James and I have both worked really hard in our own businesses to get to where we are today,” explains Aleisha. “We are going into business together in June to purchase our own dairy property which has been a goal for both of us for a long time.”

“Anyone who knows either of us will know that there will be lots of vigorous debate on farm – particularly about what colour cow we are going to milk!”

The second-time entrant would like to improve the rural-urban divide to ensure that others – both nationally and internationally - can see the great work farmers are doing.

“I’d like to help attract more people to the industry who can see the benefits of running their own businesses and provide more support for those people as they progress up the ladder, so they stay dairying.”

“There are some headwinds and challenges but as an industry we need to work together to all pull in the same direction.”

Aleisha believes the strengths of her business lie in the proven on-farm performance regarding cows and pastures.

“I have a genuine passion for all things farming, particularly pasture management which allows us to get good performance at a lower cost than others.”

“Excellent cost control in the business as well as personally has allowed me to make strong profits year-on-year and build equity.”

Future farming goals for Aleisha include the dairy farm purchase in June. “James and I would like to grow that dairy farm to a decent size where it can support a staff member, run a profitable business, and grow our family.”

The New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards are supported by national sponsors DeLaval, Ecolab, Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Honda, LIC, Meridian, Ravensdown, and Trelleborg, along with industry partners DairyNZ, MediaWorks and Rural Training Solutions NZ.

Chloe Mackle was named Runner-up in the Waikato Share Farmer category. The third-time entrant was the 2016 Southland/Otago Dairy Trainee of the Year and was named Runner-up in the 2018 Southland/Otago Dairy Manager of the Year category. She won $8,428 in prizes and one merit award.

Chloe is contract milking 215 cows on Neil and Sonnie Kirk’s 69ha Leamington property.

The friendships she formed as a dairy trainee during the national study week are still strong and she credits the Awards programme for bringing these people into her life.

“The networking and connections I’ve made through the Awards are a huge benefit of entering.”

The 30-year-old is excited about the future of dairy farming in New Zealand

“The primary industries are an exciting place to be. We are resilient, flexible and adaptable. I think there is plenty of opportunity going forward to keep being good stewards of land, breeding efficient cows and working with great people.”

Chloe believes the dairy industry is unique in its progression routes from farm assistant onto manager, through to contract milker, LOSM, 50/50 and farm ownership.

“People can choose where they want to sit in that progression route, that is special. I know of no other industry with such progression options.”

If she could change one thing about the dairy industry it would be that farmers would back themselves more. “Tune out the negative and realise the good stuff they’re doing,” she says.

During harder times, the cows needing to be milked every day keeps her motivated, as well as making feed choices based on strategic decisions. “It’s encouraging to be able to see the production go in the vat from the feed choices made the day before.”

Chloe holds a Diploma in Agriculture and a Primary ITO Modern Apprenticeship and identifies challenging times as opportunities to learn to work within her skillsets and capabilities and remembering that ‘comparison is the thief of joy’. “There are many ways to skin a cat and it is okay to grow your business the way that works for you.”

Chloe is proud of her year on the AWDT Escalator programme this year, of growing her stock numbers and of the networks and relationships she has formed.

She identifies the people around her business as a huge strength. “I have a great support network, from fellow farmers, rural professionals, mentors and friends, DairyNZ consultants, agronomists, fertiliser reps, the list goes on and I wouldn’t be half the farmer or able to run my business without them.

Chloe also believes her ability to work within her values holds her and her business in good stead.

“Do the right thing and do it every day. Look after the land, look after the cows, and look after the people. Honesty and fair play are non-negotiables.”

Nathan and Rebecca Hubbard placed third in the Share Farmer category and are 50/50 sharemilkers for Yvonne Ruffell on her 120ha property, milking 380 cows. They won $6,079 and one merit award.

Nathan was the 2014 Waikato Dairy Trainee of the Year and believes the Awards programme opened up all of the job opportunities they have pursued so far since 2014.

Nathan (35) and Rebecca (38) believe the dairy industry is evolving at a steady pace, and are excited to be part of that and farm to a high standard.

“We consciously farm across our operation, from taking care of the land, the people we work with and our herd,” they say. “We are excited to push ourselves to succeed and be the best we can be, while creating a great world class product.”

“We will continue to actively be involved in the industry, and will seek further opportunities to immerse ourselves within different sectors of the industry, such as DairyNZ, LIC, and the Dairy Industry Awards programme.

Future farming goals include to securing a lease farm and with their long term goal being farm ownership.

The winner of the 2023 Waikato Dairy Manager of the Year category was the 2020 Taranaki Dairy Trainee of the Year and National Runner-up in the same category and says the benefits of entering the Awards programme include benchmarking himself against others, networking and access to further skills and knowledge.

Sam Dodd won $10,025 in prizes and four merit awards. He is Farm Manager for Belinda Wilson on her 252ha Te Awamutu farm, milking 800 cows.

Prior to entering the dairy industry six seasons ago, Sam was studying to be a paramedic. He made the switch to dairy farming and enjoys working outside with animals and the responsibility that comes with that.

“You can see progress and see how your decision-making benefits the business.”

The 26-year-old believes one of the most exciting things about the future of dairy farming is the number of people changing careers to begin dairy farming. “They bring new skills and perspectives.

Challenges have included extreme weather events from drought through to floods and Sam is grateful that he works for a very supportive family who have allowed him to have the growth and opportunities to be where he is today, and he also cites them as a strength of the business.

“On and off-farm support is huge and getting off-farm and staff inclusion is incentivised.”

Sam identifies being solution-based as a strength of the business. “No matter what happens or where we are in the business, there is always a solution which means less stress and panic.

Matamata Farm Manager Sicelo Nene was runner-up in the Dairy Manager category, winning $5,600 in prizes and one merit award. He works on Ben and Stacey Watson’s 90ha, 300-cow property.

Entering the 2022 Southland Dairy Trainee category was a major eye-opener for Sicelo in identifying key areas that he needed to improve, and other skill sets that he hadn’t considered prior to entering.

“I had a great experience as full-on as it might seem at first, not knowing what to expect on skills day.”

“One of the other takeaways of my experience was just seeing how other farmers and industry partners come together under one roof,” says Sicelo.

“Regardless of your level of experience, at the end of the day you leave with long life friendships and people you can lean on for advice moving forward.”

Growing up in South Africa, Sicelo was always interested in dairy farming and completed a Level 6 National Diploma in Agriculture majoring in Animal production from Cedara College of Agriculture, South Africa.

“I completed Primary ITO Level 3 in 2021 and am currently completing my level 4 course to get a good grasp of the NZ system of farming. This really helped me to understand the bigger picture of what we were doing on the farm and our system.”

Sicelo is excited about the future opportunities for everyone in the dairy industry. “There’s never been a time like this where it’s literally an open field for anyone who’s keen to work hard for a career progression path.”

The 30-year-old is grateful his employer has allowed him the freedom to adopt technologies that can enable efficiency, accuracy and are user-friendly.

“Since we have relief staff helping over some weekends or as needed, I was worried about consistency in procedures and processes.”

“I created a QR code procedural system to incorporate existing on-farm policies, allowing us to cater for all types of individuals with their preferred way of receiving information to better apply themselves in a safe and efficient way,” he says.

“I have since applied this in my milk harvesting, vat wash procedures, health & safety and effluent management.”

“Everyone is exposed to different technologies today and we need to be in the forefront to make our systems efficient.”

2IC Sarah Fagg placed third and won $3,250 in prizes. She works on Rhys and Catherine Newland’s 142ha, 440-cow farm at Matamata.

“Entering the Awards programme last year forced me to ask more questions and delve deeper into my knowledge to discover and understand more of exactly what I was doing and why,” explains Sarah.

“It opened my eyes to different aspects of the farm that I hadn’t necessarily given too much thought to in the past; it was “something we always did, therefore we do it now”, rather than understanding why it was we were doing so.”

The second-time entrant says the programme also allowed her to reflect on her achievements. “It highlighted how far I had come in my profession and filled me with a sense of pride, especially to then come out of the Awards with the Merit of ‘Emerging Talent’.”

“I felt a tremendous amount of pride, and a fresh load of confidence in my abilities, and it excited me with what I could potentially do in the future.”

The 2023 Waikato Dairy Trainee of the Year is Natasha Price who was encouraged to enter the Awards by her employers (who are previous Waikato Farm Manager category winners) and her Primary ITO advisor.

“For me, the awards present an opportunity to not only further my practical and theoretical farming knowledge, but to also gain valuable connections with like-minded and progressive people in the industry.”

Natasha is working as a farm assistant/2IC for Paul and Kate Manion on their 108ha property at Kiwitahi, Morrinsville, milking 280 cows. She won $7,750 in prizes and one merit award.

Growing up on a small dairy farm on the Hauraki Plains, Natasha never considered dairy farming as a career option until she was helping her Dad on the farm during the 2020 lockdown.

“I always enjoyed spending time with the cows on farm and had many friendly pet cows, however my knowledge of running a farm or the industry as a whole was limited.”

I spent a lot of time in lockdown researching farming as a career option on Dairy NZ and Primary ITO’s websites and the clear career progression and variety in day-to-day tasks were really compelling to me,” she says.

“I was also pleasantly surprised with the large female presence in the industry and the scientific research that forms the basis of everything we do as farmers. These factors made farming seem like a pretty perfect fit for me and after almost two years working on a farm, I can still say what I love most about farming is hanging out with cows every day.”

Natasha holds a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Zoology and Ecology at Massey University and completed Dairy NZs Go Dairy course in 2020. She is currently completing a New Zealand Apprenticeship in Agriculture with Primary ITO (level 3 and 4).

Natasha is excited about the use of technology in the dairy industry. “I’m interested in the development and integration of science to make farming more efficient, humane and better for the environment.”

“I am lucky enough to work on a farm that uses a cow monitoring system for cow health and mating. Every day I see the benefits for staff and the cows and am eager to see how scientific technology in the dairy industry changes and evolves in the future.”

Natasha’s future farming goals are specific and include an OE working in the agriculture sector before returning to New Zealand to be 50/50 sharemilking then venturing off-farm into an agriscience role where she would like to give back to the industry through scientific research.

“Another goal is to complete the Kellogg Rural Leadership Program as I believe this will be an important step in understanding the primary sector and developing my leadership skills.”

Runner-up in the Dairy Trainee category was Lauren Randall who won $1,950 in prizes and one merit award.

The first-time entrant was encouraged to enter by her employers, friends and Primary ITO advisors and was keen to expand her knowledge and see where she was sitting in terms of her development.

Lauren is Farm Assistant for the 2021 Fonterra Responsible Dairying Award winners Pete Morgan and Ann Bouma, on their 230ha, 605-cow Te Awamutu property. Future farming goals include continuing to increase her knowledge, skills and abilities and make contacts in the industry.

Lauren holds a Bachelor of Arts Event Management and worked in the events industry for eight years. “I had never been near a cow until I met my partner in 2018. To spend time together I would go out on farm on the weekends and help with whatever she was doing.”

“I fell in love with farming because of the variety of each day and the wide-ranging skill set you develop. I learnt so much not even being employed on the farm I could only imagine what I would learn doing it day-in, day-out.”

“I have learnt so much in the last few years, developing skills I never knew I was capable of, using my previous career skills to assist me in excelling in areas such as reporting, recording, analyzing data, and through this I have become very interested in reproduction.”

Lauren is excited about the future of the dairy industry and believes there is a bright future for the younger generation to do well if they choose farming as a career.

“Rather than choosing a career where you’ll have to study for years, pay off student loans and sit at a desk, farming can be a career for progression and owning your own herd and/or land.”

Third place in the Dairy Trainee category went to 19-year-old herd manager Kirwyn Ellis, winning $1,250 in prizes. He works for Hamish and Sheree Germann 135ha, 460-cow Te Awamutu farm.

The Waikato Dairy Industry Awards winners field day will be held on 24 March 2023 at 10.00am at 241 Mikkelsen Road Te Aroha S/N Fonterra 76323 where Waikato Share Farmer of the Year, Aleisha Broomfield share milks. Also presenting at the field day will be the region’s Dairy Manager of the Year, Sam Dodd and Dairy Trainee of the Year, Natasha Price. Further details on the winners and the field day can be found at www.dairyindustryawards.co.nz.

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