Waikato Dairy Winners Enter Equity Partnership

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11pm, 12 March

Waikato Dairy Winners Enter Equity Partnership

The winners of the 2012 Waikato Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year, Barry and Nicky McTamney, take the next step in their dairy farming career in June when they enter an equity partnership.

The couple took out the top award and collected more than $15,000 in prizes at the Waikato Dairy Industry Awards held at the Bledisloe Hall, Mystery Creek, attended by 450 people last night. The other big winners were Thomas White, who took out the Waikato Farm Manager of the Year title, and Mark Jacobs, the 2012 Waikato Dairy Trainee of the Year.

Barry and Nicky McTamney are currently 50% sharemilking 275 cows for the MacLennan Family Trust on an 82ha farm near Otorohanga.

In June they will become equity partners and managers of a 500-cow farm at Maihiihi and they plan to purchase it outright within 10 years.

They say a key to their success is keeping it simple. “Simple, repeatable systems provide consistent performance in the face of climatic and economic volatility. Thorough recording and monitoring enables informed decisions to be made early, versus reactions to be made too early or too late or not at all.

“And while we run a simple system, our focus on getting the basics right has provided our business with added income streams.”

The couple, who hold a Bachelor of Applied Science in Forestry and Agriculture (Barry) and Diploma in Veterinary Nursing (Nicky), has worked their way up the industry in the past 10 years. They say the awards reinforces goals and the steps needed to achieve these goals.

Te Awamutu lower order sharemilkers Hamish and Katie Flett placed second in the Waikato Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year contest, winning $8500 in prizes, and Te Awamutu equity farm managers James Kinston and Jennie Macky were third, winning $4500.

The Dairy Industry Awards are supported by national sponsors Westpac, DairyNZ, Ecolab, Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Honda Motorcycles NZ, LIC, Meridian Energy, Ravensdown and RD1, along with industry partner AgITO.

Waikato Farm Manager of the Year, Thomas White, is contract milking 390 cows for his parents, Philip and Maree White, on their 112ha Putaruru farm. He won $10,000 in cash and prizes.

It was the first time Mr White, aged 23 years, had entered the awards. “I entered for the opportunity to benchmark myself and to get feedback from the judges on my strengths and weaknesses.”

He says a strength is farming on a good farm, in a good district and community. “Another key strength is being able to work together as a family to achieve our individual personal and business goals.”

Mr White, who has a Diploma in Agriculture, says he plans to progress through sharemilking to farm ownership.

Pukeatua contract milkers Nathan and Vanessa McCluskie placed second in the farm manager contest, winning $5100 in prizes. Third place went to Andrew Satherley, a Waharoa farm manager. He won $1500 in prizes.

It has been a goal of the 2012 Waikato Dairy Trainee of the Year, Mark Jacobs, to enter the dairy awards for the past two years. This year he entered and won, taking home $5500 in prizes.

“I primarily entered the competition to gauge my skills against my peers, gain important and helpful industry connections and for the experience of competing.”

Mr Jacobs, aged 25, is currently herd manager on a 400-cow farm owned by Sir Patrick Hogan at Cambridge.

He has been dairy farming for four years and is currently studying with AgITO to improve his skills and knowledge. He plans to continue studying towards a Bachelor of Agriculture while also progressing in the industry to become general manager on a high input, large scale dairy farm.

“In the short term I would like to work overseas and gain some perspective on how dairy farms are run and how dairy farming is perceived around the globe.”

Waihou farm assistant Ben Schnackenberg, 25, was second in the Waikato dairy trainee contest and Cambridge farm assistant, Mike Shaw, aged 22, was third. They won $800 and $450 respectively.

All three winners will now compete for the New Zealand Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year, New Zealand Farm Manager of the Year and New Zealand Dairy Trainee of the Year titles and a prize pool of nearly $140,000 in Auckland on May 12.

Waikato Sharemilker/Equity Farmers of the Year, Barry and Nicky McTamney, will host a field day on April 3, while Waikato Farm Manager of the Year, Thomas White, will host a field day on the Putaruru farm he manages on March 27. Further details on the winners and field days can be found on www.dairyindustryawards.conz.

Sharemilker/Equity Farmer Merit Awards:
• Blackman Spargo Legal Audit Award – Shanan & Debbie Wellman
• Staples Rodway Financial Recording & Monitoring Award – James Kinston & Jennie Macky
• DairyNZ Human Resources Award – Hamish & Katie Flett
• Ecolab Farm Dairy Hygiene Award – Andrew & Kelly West
• Federated Farmers of New Zealand Leadership Award – John Assen & Aaron Price
• Honda Farm Safety and Health Award – Shanan & Debbie Wellman
• LIC Recording and Productivity Award – Shaun & Catherine Terry
• Meridian Energy Farm Environment Award – Hamish & Katie Flett
• Ravensdown Pasture Performance Award – Barry & Nicky McTamney
• Westpac Business Performance Award – Barry & Nicky McTamney

Farm Manager Merit Awards:
• NZ Farmers Livestock Livestock Management Award – Nathan & Vanessa McCluskie
• Effluent & Irrigation Design Farm Environment Awareness Award – Thomas White
• DairyNZ Human Resource Management Award – Andrew Myers
• RD1 Farm Management Award – Thomas White
• Westpac Financial Planning and Management Award – Nathan & Vanessa McCluskie

Dairy Trainee Merit Award:
• AgITO Farming Knowledge Merit Award – Mark Jacobs

ENDS

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