NZ Dairy Summer 2020

| 19 nz dairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Dairy Holdings: Gareth & Haley Lewis valued part of the lure of farming they cashed in on their cows, starting their careers with Dairy Holdings as contract milkers. Since then they have taken advantage of the opportunity to rear Dairy Holdings’ surplus heifer calves, as well as buying dry cows which they put to the bull. Peak milking 1380 cows, Gareth and Haley are in their first season as full herd-owning sharemlkers, and already have their sights on their next goal. “Dairy Holdings provides a very good platform for setting yourself up farming in the big wide world, as far as compliance, banking, business skills and dealing with people go,” says Gareth. “It’s a very good training ground. It’s almost as though they want to set you up so that when you do go out and buy your own farm you’re trained and equipped to do that. And, for high achievers, there’s the ability to build their own herd at their own pace.” Gareth says the herd owning agreement also provides the benefit of supplied bulls a significant – saving – and in-house grazing. “All our young stock and heifers are grazed in- house – for a sharemilker that’s huge. In-house, it’s a good price, it’s all sorted for us and there are no on-going costs. And all our cows are wintered off.” Gareth and Hayley Lewis have taken advantage of the opportunity to rear Dairy Holdings’ surplus heifer calves. “All our young stock and heifers are grazed in-house – for a sharemilker that’s huge.”