When Zoe and Jared McNair took possession of their own dairy farm in December 2021, it was with a real sense of achievement, after all, Jared had been striving for this moment since he first entered the dairy industry, as a young 18-year-old, back in the 1990s.
The couple, along with their three children Abbie, Will and Edward are now living out their own dairy dream on 224 hectares just a short drive from Nathalia, in northern Victoria.
The decision to buy came after the farm they were share farming was sold to a corporate and they decided it was time to head out on their own.
At the time there wasn’t a lot on the market and really it was only by chance they ended up where they are today.
“We looked at farms in Kyabram and Wangaratta and then someone mentioned this place, and even though it wasn’t on the market at the time, we thought we didn’t have much to lose — lucky for us the previous owners decided to sell and here we are,” Zoe said.
After selling 500 of their 800-cow herd to a farm in Tasmania, they were able to get started.
While the farm had previously been a dairy farm, it hadn’t seen a milking cow for six years, so there was a fair bit of work to do before they could get milking.
“A lot of areas didn’t have troughs or fences and there wasn’t a blade of green grass anywhere, so it was a challenge getting started,” Jared said.
The dairy needed updating which included installation of stall gates, cup removers and a new vat.
The couple milked their first cow on the new property at the end of January 2022.
Luckily, they were able to walk their herd to the new farm, the majority of which were dry at the time.
Zoe laughs as she remembers the first milking taking four hours to milk just 40 cows.
“Our cows came from a rotary, so it took a bit of getting used to,” Zoe said.
The seasonal herd is calved in autumn which not only suits the farm, but also the family lifestyle.
“We can take a bit of time off over summer with the kids and the two months the cows are dry flies by pretty quickly,” Zoe said.
Jared said the crossbreed herd aligns itself well to seasonal calving and high fertility is the key to success, there is no room for any passengers.
“We had been seasonal calving at the previous farm and decided to continue. In-calf rates have to be over 90 per cent to make it work and you have to be disciplined and cull anything that doesn’t get in calf,” Jared said.
While this is the philosophy they strictly follow with the herd, a few favourites have been given a second chance and sent to Zoe’s sister’s farm for the dry period.
Jared said a good crossbreed cow ticked all the boxes and he liked his cows medium framed and not too leggy.
The couple has no plans to milk any more cows than 280 at this stage, they think that number suits their farm size well and also allows them to grow out a few ‘beefies’ for additional income.
The farm is sown down to a mixture of summer crops, multi species pasture and oats and there are two operational centre pivots which water 80ha.
The couple is looking at sowing half this area to lucerne in the future.
“One of our focuses is to build up a healthy feed bank ahead of us,” Jared said.
Like all farmers, the couple is busy looking at ways to cut its input costs and this year they are looking to make their own bio-ferments as well as to continue to apply bio-stimulants instead of synthetic fertilisers.
Zoe has always had an interest in agriculture, she has successfully grown a wide range of Australian natives for the cut flower market for years.
The couple decided to give the multi species a go after attending a holistic management course and speaking to a number of farmers growing multi species pastures.
“We are wanting to look after our soils as well as being able to grow healthy pastures/crops for our cows,” Zoe said.
“It has been an interesting first year for us and we have been able to grow a fair bit more grass than I thought we would,” Jared said.
For now, they are focusing on getting the 141ha milking platform under control before they look to what is next.
The couple do have a full-time and part-time worker to help them out and of course a bit of free labour with the kids.
Jared said it had been great to see the two older kids, Abbie and Will, help out the farm when they want to as well.
“Jared and I milk every second weekend to give the workers time off and it is all working pretty well so far,” Zoe said.
Looking back on their first year, the couple agree despite the hard work, their journey so far has been hugely rewarding.
“There have been no short cuts and we have had to work hard to get where we are today, but you have to earn the reward and for our family it’s this dairy farm,” Jared said.