22 | No regrets going from dairy into beef Mark with a 2024 born calf. Mark, Charmaine, Stella and Logan with the cows. Russell Fredric Former dairy farmers Mark and Charmaine Will bucked the industry trend when they purchased a sheep and beef farm six years ago. Located at Bideford, their 850 hectare, 710 hectare effective farm is home to Platform Hereford Stud. “We were dairy farming in the Manawatu until six years ago and we came and bought this property,” Mark says. “We were newly married and had a baby and wanted to have our own property in sheep and beef. Charmaine came from that background and I was always keen to have a go at that.” Mark and Charmaine felt a sheep and beef farm would be less of a tie and offer a better overall lifestyle as well as being a new challenge. “I’d been dairy farming for my whole life. I was born on a dairy farm and went to university and I returned pretty much straight out of Massey and managed it for 20 years, so I was probably well ready for a change.” Thirty five hectares of the property was planted last year in production pines on marginal land, plus 15ha is in mature production pines. The farm supports 1700 breeding Romney ewes which are bought in every year for its solely terminal flock which lambs at 130%. Depending on the season the farm also finishes 1000 lambs a season. Changes are afoot to transition to Romtex ewes and to mate then to a Beltex Dorset Down cross for higher meat yields in their lambs. The farm’s cattle herd comprises 250 breeding cows of which 50 are stud cows, in addition to 160 commercial breeding cows, while another 40 are grazed for Waiohine Hereford Stud. Mark and Charmaine both have an interest in Hereford cattle and started the stud from scratch, with the foundation stock being rising two year-old heifers, five from Ngakouka Stud near Dannevirke, five from Duncraigen Stud in Southland, and five cows from Panorama Stud near Feilding. “We are breeding bulls for beef farmers mostly, so we were looking for all the good meat yield values, so EMA and IMF, and we were also looking for a cow with high milk indexes and fast growth rates, so all the basic ones.” Two years ago, Platform Hereford Stud purchased 11 in-calf cows from a dispersal stud sale at Glacier Horned Herefords, Fox Glacier. “They are just exceptional cattle. They matched what we wanted, the high growth rate, good EMA’s and high milk so that’s why we bought them. They will be crossed with a polled bull. “We are looking for a really nice temperament cow that rears a really good calf. We feed them really well and we are looking to wean calves between 250 and 300 kilograms.” This year, Platform Hereford Stud will be offering 15 yearling bulls for sale. “We aim to sell 15 bull calves in September as yearlings, we will retain five for our stud and our RURAL PEOPLE » Platform Hereford Stud 06 379 8146 | office@scottsagcontracting.co.nz | scottsag.co.nz LTD AG CONTRACTING - STOCK FEED TRANSPORT - EARTH MOVING AGRICULTURAL CONTRACTING WAIRARAPA WIDE PLATFORMHEREFORDSTUD ARE OFFERING VIA PRIVATE TREATY INMAY 2025 Enquiries: Mark&CharmaineWill | 125 Coopers Road, Masterton 06 372 4896 | FACEBOOK@PlatformHereford Stud VERYWELLBREDR2 GLACIERHORNEDBULLS SIREDBY: GLACIER UNIQUE 591 • GLACIER UNIQUE 786 • GLACIER UNIQUE 759 GLACIERMORT 779 • JANDOC LAUDER 914 Glacier Unique 786 Glacier Unique 591 commercial operation, and we are looking at selling five rising two year-old bulls in May-June by private treaty; they are the Glacier horned-bulls.”
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