NZ Dairy Autumn 2021

102 | nz dairy Large scale operators ready to pass on baton Karen Phelps T he Van Leeuwen Dairy Group is in the process of restructuring, which will see one generation start to take a back seat and the next take a greater role in the family business. Aad and Wilma Van Leeuwen started the large scale, high performance dairy operation in the South Island at Morven when Aad emigrated from the Netherlands in 1983. After working their way up the dairy ladder in New Zealand they purchased their first farm in 1988 in the Waikato. Five years later they moved to Morven and bought land in 1993 that they converted to dairy. They continued to expand their business over the years and it now milks 11,000 cows through nine dairy sheds and four freestall robotic milking barns. The operation has its own support land and harvesting equipment, mitigating risk from factors that can affect performance. Land comprises 4133 dairy hectares with 3757 hectares of dairy support land. The support land is a combination of owned and leased land and its primary purpose is to winter cows, carry replacement stock, rear finishing bulls and harvest silage to carry to the dairy platforms when additional feed is required in the shoulders of the season. Now after nearly four decades of building it up the Van Leeuwens are in the process of restructur- ing their business for family succession and want to pass it on to the next generation, who Aad says, are full of energy and new ideas. The Van Leeuwens farms currently produce just over five million kilogrammes of milk solids a year and they say that there is a potential to further increase production. Over recent years one of their biggest challenges has been mycoplasma bovis, which hit some of their farms in 2017 and meant around 4800 dairy cattle had to be culled on four farms and a calf rearing complex mid season. Since then they have eradicated the disease from their farms, but the bigger challenge they say has been sorting out the government compensation. They liken it to the battle many people in Christchurch have had to get earthquake problems sorted. “We’re still working on getting reimbursed by MPI. It’s been stressful and you have to be resilient but luckily as farmers we are,” says Aad, who thinks farmers have been too busy to publically voice their concerns over the handling of this issue. They still have no idea how mycoplasma bovis even entered their farm in the first place, as it is a closed system. It shows how tricky diseases can be to control and how vigilant farmers need to be and the Van Leeuwens have strict procedures in place. Environmental challenges have been another focus for the group for many years. Riparian plant- ing and fencing off of waterways is well underway. Their milking barns have helped the farms’ compli- ance with effluent easier to capture and disperse in a more controlled manner. It’s also enabled them to reduce fertiliser inputs by two thirds on the farms, which have the milking barns. The beauty of the barns is also improved animal health and ease of operation, says Aad. “When in the barn they lay in cubicles on mats and can go for a brush. There is plenty of feed and they can milk themselves any time they like by walking to a robot.” Aad says that because their farms are based in an area that is known for its abundance of water for irrigation, along with flat to rolling topography and strong soils, these factors drive the business towards high productivity. DAIRY PEOPLE » Van Leeuwen Dairy Group ro.c Calf Meals Commodity feeds - PKE Flexible Contracts Customised Blends FEEDS LIMITED Phone: 03 352 0301, Mob: 021 611 848 Email: noel@enerpro.co.nz www.enerpro.co.nz PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED WI TH VAN LEEUWEN DAIRY GROUP 3 Usk St, Oamaru 9400 | www.nops.co.nz | 03 434 7766 Are proud supporters & Agronomists for Van Leeuwen Dairy Group. NORTH OTAGO PASTORAL SERVICES Group Hutch For enquiries contact Dean on 021 737 474 How Tough? View for Yourself: www.youtube.com/agriplastics $1113.05 plus gst and discount for bulk orders Van Leeuwen Dairy Group’s Home Farm robotic dairies at Morven – two 500 cow barns.