Australian dairy’s new generation of farmers and industry leaders
Meet the Australian dairy industry’s young guns reshaping the sector.
Many urban Australians have a fond, if antiquated, perception of the typical dairy farmer. Their minds probably turn to an image of a bloke in his early 60s with a weatherbeaten face, wearing a flannelette shirt and a terry-towelling hat.
A whole new generation of young Australians are breaking down the old agricultural stereotype, showing the dairy industry - and wider Australia - that there is much more to farming than rolling up their sleeves in the milking pit.
They’re learning, leading and taking to social media to bring the urban consciousness around Australian dairy into the 2020s.
SHAELYN VAN BRECHT
Hailing from Ringarooma, in northeastern Tasmania, Shaelyn Van Brecht is one of many young farmers keen to highlight dairy’s winning ways.
She features in a Dairy Australia ad campaign, Be Legendairy, Eat Aussie Cheese, which encourages people and especially women to buy and eat more local cheese.
“When the camera crew was filming they told lots of bad cow jokes to try to get me to relax,” Shaelyn said.
Shaelyn milks up to 480 cows — a mix of Friesians, Jerseys and crossbreeds — at her parents’ dairy farm, where she has worked full time since 2016.
“You have to get up early and you have to be a hard worker if you want to be on a dairy farm, but there are lots of rewards.”
KIERAN BOURKE
Like Shaelyn, Kieran Bourke knows that consumers not just want to taste dairy — they want to see it on camera too.
When the Queenslander produced a video showing a day in the life of a dairy farmer he didn’t expect it to become a social media sensation.
The video was produced as part of the University of Queensland’s Thank A Farmer week in late 2015 and complements the Legendairy communications initiative.
“Dairy farming doesn’t start and stop with putting the milking cups on — there’s a lot more to it than that,” Kieran said.
The family farm located close to the Gladfield Valley, near Warwick, is owned and operated by Kieran’s grandfather John, father Kevin and uncles Paul and Shane.
MELANIE ACKERLEY
Melanie grew up on a beef farm at Connewarre, a short drive south-east of Geelong near Barwon Heads.
After meeting now husband Paul, they established a dairy farm at Larpent, just west of Colac.
“Five years ago, I’d never reared a calf. So I started from the ground up, in a way. We’re now milking 170 cows,” she said.
While establishing their dairy operation, two future farmers arrived in the form of four-year-old son Harrison and one-year-old daughter Connie.
“It’s been challenging for most dairy farmers for the past few years but it’s been worth it,” Melanie said.
“What I’d really like to see in the coming years particularly, is for the Australian public to value milk more, value food more and acknowledge the work that goes into making that food on the kitchen table.”
KIRSTEN DAVIS
Kirsten grew up in the Yarra Valley and has family ties to the beef industry. But while at university, she discovered a passion for dairy and the career opportunities within it.
“You could say I had a non-traditional path into the dairy industry,” Kirsten said.
“I started a Bachelor of Agriculture at the University of Melbourne on a pathway to becoming a vet but could see there were so many opportunities in dairy worth exploring.”
Kirsten has undertaken internships with the National Centre for Dairy Research at Ellinbank as well as DataGene whilst completing a Master of Agricultural Sciences majoring in Animal Science.
She found herself developing a passion for herd improvement as she began her sales career working for Herd Improvement Co-Operative Australia at its Korumburra, Warragul and Maffra sites.
ASHLEE BUCKLEY
Originally from Willow Grove, a short drive north of Moe, Ashlee enjoyed helping out on her family’s farm as a teenager.
While studying at Chairo Christian School in Drouin, a career in the classroom was mulled over but her family links and a certificate two in agricultural studies tipped the balance from preschools to paddocks.
“Mum and Dad (Kathy and Barry) said to look at all my options and I did think a bit about being a kindergarten teacher, but there’s no job like being a farmer,” Ashlee said.
“I had the certificate two in agriculture and was able to do a school-based apprenticeship on the farm. At the start, it was just good fun to be out of school but by the end of (the apprenticeship) I was thinking more and more about farming.”
MIRANDA KNIGHT
Working in the famed dairy district of Jindivick, Miranda has only been in the sector a few short years but has already made an impression.
“I was thinking about a career in dairy when I was at high school,” she said.
“Dairy is a big part of this part of Gippsland and I was able to do a certificate two in agriculture when I was in school. There’s so many opportunities in dairy, I thought I’d start at the bottom and work my way up.”
Miranda has served as a member of Gippsland Young Dairy Network as well as an Ag-Challenge discussion group.
SAM AND PETER DOOLAN
The third-generation farming brothers have captured the attention of environmentally sustainable primary producers nationwide.
Sam and his wife have been farming in the Warrnambool region for the past 14 years, with Peter and his wife, Bonnie, coming back on farm about seven years ago.
“Peter was a qualified electrician but decided to come back to the farm,” Sam said.
“The farm was established by my grandparents ... they started here. Grandpa ran a sheep farm down the road while he was getting the dairy up and running.”
Joining a local landcare network about five years ago proved a fortuitous decision for the Doolans.
A suite of changes were made on farm, including the planting of thousands of new native trees to create shelter for cattle. Solar panels were also installed, which has changed the nature of how the farm uses energy.
BRODIE HILL
An agricultural science graduate, Brodie Hill has examined the use of plantain as a transition feed as a way of combating milk fever.
Brodie says milk fever normally affected cows in the three weeks before and after calving.
The incidence of clinical milk fever in Australian dairy herds is between 2 per cent and 5 per cent, however subclinical milk fever impacts about 50 per cent of cows.
Special supplements such as lead-feed pellets could be used in the period before calving to try to prevent milk fever. However, Mr Hill said this could be difficult in pasture-based systems and was costly.
WILLIAM RAE
Born and bred on a dairy farm, William had his sights set on a career in the family business from an early age and participated in agriculture classes at Warrnambool’s Emmanuel College.
William and his parents, John and Sara-Jane, run a two-farm operation with 330 cows. William manages the lion’s share with 200 on his farm.
After finishing high school, he spent several months working on farms in northern Victoria, which gave him a new-found appreciation of his home region’s greener pastures.
“I worked on a sheep farm, did a bit of hay contracting,” he said.
“Water is the big difference. It was interesting to see how other farmers deal with different challenges up north; you have to operate in a different way.”
CARLIE BARRY
Alongside husband Owen, Carlie Barry milks about 600 Jersey and crossbred cows in the Camperdown region.
The former Fonterra area manager has also served as the state president of the Victorian Young Farmers, as a member of the Warrnambool Cheese and Butter supplier advisory forum and is a graduate of the Marcus Oldham rural leadership program.
Carlie ran for the Dairy Australia board a few years ago. While ultimately unsuccesful this time around, she made a positive impression among farmers.
“Historically, younger farmers and share farmers haven’t had as strong a voice on the DA board, along with other dairy groups,” she said.
CALLUM MOSCRIPT
The Leongatha South farmer remembers attending the 2004 International Dairy Week and being somewhat miffed that his family’s entry was less prized than a competitor.
“It’s funny what you remember. I was 11 or 12 at the time and had a fascination with cows and cattle sales,” Callum said.
“(Our entry) went for $3000 and the top one went for about $10,000 and I didn’t understand why one cow could be worth $7000 more than mine. I suppose I was pretty competitive.”
That competitive streak led to Callum being the top-priced vendor at the 2017 International Dairy Week.
“There’s something to be said about how dairy can give you the opportunity to develop your own asset. When you’re working for someone else, you’re developing their assets. Dairy provides that freedom,” he said.
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