NZ Dairy Winter 2021

32 | nz dairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Guy & Jaye Bakewell - Bakewell Creamery • Auditing • Finance Applications • Financial Statement Preparation Our Services: • Advice on Accounting Services • Business Planning & Structure Providers of quality taxation and business advice. MACMILLAN ACCOUNTANTS MACMILLAN ACCOUNTANTS MACMILLAN ACCOUNTANTS MACMILLAN ACCOUNTANTS MACMILLAN ACCOUNTANTS 31 White Street, PO Box 1208 ROTORUA 3040 | Phone: 07 350 1018 | Fax: 07 350 1024 | Email: info@macaccounts.co.nz | www.macaccounts.co.nz REFRIGERATION | AIR CONDITIONING | HEAT PUMPS | REPAIRS & INSTALLATION Reliable refrigeration services for residential, commercial & agricultural throughout Mangawhai, Puhoi, Matakana, Warkworth, Wellsford and surrounds. 027 540 4931 coastalcoolingltd@gmail.com 68E Jack Boyd Dr, Mangawhai AFFCO is proud to support Guy & Jay Bakewell Raw milk a passion for family Kim Newth The Bakewell family loved raw milk so much they started selling it direct from the farm gate through a self-serve vending machine (inset). N orthland sharemilkers Guy and Jaye Bakewell love the flavour and goodness of raw milk so much they decided to share it with others, selling it direct from the farm gate through a self- serve vending machine. The couple, who met while studying at Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre in 2004, are sharemilk- ing a herd of 150 cows on an 80ha (65ha effective) farm near Wellsford. While the farm is smaller than average, it is sited by SH1 with thousands of vehi- cles passing by. The couple realised some of those passing motorists might be tempted to stop if they were able to buy delicious fresh milk straight from the cow. While already supplying milk to Fonterra every day, they saw that direct raw milk sales had the potential to generate a useful supplementary farm income. For advice on how to start such a venture, they turned to Village Milk’s Richard Houston, who is a specialist consultant in the area of fresh milk farm gate set ups. “He helped a lot with getting this off the ground,” says Guy, who notes they purchased their Italian- made self-service milk dispensing machine through Village Milk. “It is quite hard getting started because there are so many restrictions around how you can sell raw milk but it has been an awesome journey for us.” Most milk sold in New Zealand is pasteurised to destroy any potentially harmful bacteria. Raw milk is not processed in this way but stringent hygiene practices during milking ensure the milk is safe to drink. “The milking process does take longer. It has to be pretty thoroughto make sure no bacteria get into the milk.” That means wearing full protective gear at milking including gloves and aprons and using very clean, treated water in the shed. Udders are washed before starting, sprayed with an iodine teat spray and dried. Once a year the shed has a separate raw milk inspection as well as the usual Fonterra shed inspection and their raw milk opera- tion is also fully audited. Once installed, Guy and Jaye’s vending machine quickly attracted a following and by early 2019 Bakewell Creamery had also started delivering milk direct to consumers in Auckland with supply peak- ing at around 2500 litres a week. “However, we’re not doing that anymore because the costs of direct delivery meant it just wasn’t economic and it was also very labour intensive. It was disheartening having to step back from that after all the effort we put in but you’ve got to learn these hard lessons.” The self-service vending machine is still a very useful adjunct to their dairy operation, with 150-200 litres a day set aside to supply customers’ require- ments. After trialling plastic bottles, the couple have also returned to glass. These are dispensed from a self-serve vending machine too. Most customers keep their glass bottles, clean them after use and then return to the farm for re-fills. Guy’s parents, Monty and Wendy, have provided a lot of support along the way and help with accounts and keeping the vending machine clean. They are also proud grandparents to Guy and Jaye’s two young children, Darnell-Jaye, 4 and Amalee-Jaye, born last August. Most of the couple’s herd,comprising Jersey, Friesian and crossbred cows,is spring calving but some 50-60 cows are calved in winter to keep the milk flowing. Milking is once a day, with cows sup- plying the raw milk going through the shed first. Dargaville 09 439 8415 Wellsford 09 423 8674 Whangarei 09 438 7038 Water Enabling the ow Dairy Feeding the world E uent Spreading the good • Sales • Service • Installation • Design