42 | nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Fortuna Group Totally committed to Southland farmers Chief executive Matthew Richards. VETSOUTHARE PROUDTO SUPPORT FORTUNA GROUP BALCLUTHA | GORE | WINTON | INVERCARGILL | LUMSDEN | OTAUTAU | CLYDEVALE | TAPANUI 0800 VETSOUTH | vetsouth.co.nz Robert 027 439 5096 Email: rivertonfarmdrainage@xtra.co.nz Russell Fredric Southland’s regional dairy farming company, Fortuna Group, is a business with a big heart for the local economy. The group owns 19 dairy farms throughout the province as well as an engineering business that provides maintenance support. Chief executive Matthew Richards says the group is absolutely committed to supporting local businesses as much as possible. “They are important to our business, without them we couldn’t operate so it’s important to acknowledge that; we like to be very loyal to our supporters. We are quite lucky in Southland, we’ve got some great people, some great businesses. “Through the last couple of years with covid lockdowns and uncertainty, most of the people we deal with have been essential services so we’ve been able to continue to operate, which we are extremely thankful for.” Fortuna Group also recognises the importance of the many farm staff that work at the coal-face of the business through its own awards ceremony. The seven award categories include staff excellence, health and safety, core values and a supreme award. As well as recognising commitment, excellence and successes, the awards are a great opportunity to bring the Fortuna team together, Matthew says. Like many industries which face labour shortages, attracting staff is one of the ongoing challenges the group faces. “I think dairying is a great career, I started out as a dairy assistant myself many years ago and it’s been good for me and many, many others.” Matthew believes attracting and retaining good workers requires the group to create an environment where opportunities for personal and career growth are provided, as well as their wants and needs being met as much as possible. Fortuna Group is totally committed to Southland and has no intentions to expand outside the province, he says. “Part of our strategy is we are proud to farm in Southland, we know Southland well and to do that you’ve got to have great people, you need to have expertise in cow and grass management and disciplined cost control.” This rapid growth and the scale of the business has enabled it to attract “really talented people”. The group’s operations perform in the top quartile of dairy farms in Southland, including farm conversion opportunities and farms with potential productivity gains. Its governance and management structure is designed to effectively manage the ongoing growth and scale of the business, however, Matthew emphasises adding value for the shareholders and developing people is key rather than “growth for growth’s sake”. “Key to our growth is the people who operate and support our farming operations. All in all, we aim to do what is right by the company, for our people, for the environment and for our animals. We want to be great custodians of the land.” Central to Fortuna Group is an environmental ethos which goes back to the Dodunski’s being former Ballance Farm Environment Supreme award winners. Walking the talk of this ethos resulted in committing to employing a full-time sustainability manager last year. “We’ve got ambitious targets in that space. Ultimately it takes time but all our farms are monitored, they’re managed and we’re involved in many initiatives.” An example of an initiative on one of the group’s farms, Glenarlea, involves converting biogas from its effluent pond into a significant power source for the dairy shed. The biogas powers a diesel engine converted for natural gas and produces enough biogas on average to create 30kWh (kilowatts of power an hour), or about 70%, of the energy needs of the shed. Supporting our farmers in their contracting needs www.caldwellcontracting.co.nz (03 206-6465)
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