48 | RURAL PEOPLE » Ximena Puig and Alvaro Luzardo Equity partnership goal has been reached The couple enjoy their work life balance and their passion for the industry is encouraging to their team. Aimee Wilson A young North Island sharemilking couple has just bought their first farm as part of an equity partnership, increasing their herd numbers from 480 to 1100 next season. Alvaro Luzardo and Ximena Puig were named the 2024 Hawke’s Bay/Wairarapa Dairy Share Farmers of the Year, and have just kept on progressing since then. Their company Maitha Holdings has partnered with Geoff Arends and Ester Romp to buy the farm next door to the 164ha Eketahuna property, where they will continue as 50/50 sharemilkers. Finding out about the farm sale on December 20 was the best Christmas present they could wish for, and the couple are very much looking forward to getting stuck in. Their next job is to concentrate on building their resources - including finding new staff and sourcing machinery before the June 2 takeover. When the farm came on the market, the couple put in the best offer that they could afford in the tender process, and they couldn’t believe it when they were successful. “To me it’s a dream. It’s hard to believe and it won’t actually seem real until we set foot on the land,” Alvaro said. Originally from Uruguay, Alvaro was backpacking around New Zealand in 2013 before settling on a farm in Ashburton, and then convinced his now wife Ximena back to join him in New Zealand when they returned in 2019. The industry has been good to them in terms of mentors and support, and now they offer their staff the same opportunities. The couple enjoy their work life balance and their passion for the industry is encouraging to their team, who also reap the rewards of working hard but with adequate time off. Ximena and Alvaro’s end goal has always been farm ownership, “so for us it’s a great opportunity to have that next step as equity partners with people we already know.” They are excited to see how they can improve the farm over time, and seeing it grow. “We have to make it work because now we have more skin in the game,” Alvaro said. “We have to make it work because we’re really invested in it.” What they have learned over the years is to be disciplined and committed, “but you also have to enjoy it.”There will be many new challenges along the way with farm ownership, including dealing with resource consents and financial planning. But having previously managed a 1200-herd dairy farm in Canterbury, the couple have plenty of experience in running a large-scale operation of similar size.“Having something new, something unexpected - it just makes it more interesting.” The couple say they are always looking for new changes and challenges in life, and this was exactly 61 Short Rd, Pahiatua, New Zealand, 4982 brandfmurdoch@xtra.co.nz 06 376 7181 | 0274 778036 MURDOCH TRANSPORT Specialising in livestock cartage & general freight transport in the lower North Island region Alexanders are proud to support Alvaro Luzardo and Ximena Puig what they needed. The takeover in winter also coincides with Ximena finished up as regional manager for the Hawkes Bay Wairarapa Share Farmer of the Year competition. Every past winner has a responsibility for helping organize the following year’s regional competition. “It’s a way of giving back to the community so other people can get involved.”
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