NZ Dairy Winter 2021

44 | nz dairy DAIRY AWARDS » Karl Wood Financial planning strengths rewarded Virginia Wright • to page 45 PKF Rutherfords Ltd 06 350 7900 | pkfr.co.nz Our Mission “caring for you” PKF Rutherfords are proud to support Karl Wood • Hay and Balage • General Cartage • Grazing Dairy Youngstock & Winter Cows Duncan 027 453 9354 db.contracting@xtra.co.nz AG R I C U LT U R E LT D . K arl Wood and his partner Jessica Hodges decided to head back to manage his family farm in the Manawatu around the time the country went into lockdown last March, having left the Manawatu a couple of years earlier to farm in Canterbury. The 120 hectare farm, milking 290 cows, is about five kilometres out of Bunnithorpe with a 220 hectare dairy support and beef block on Colyton Road about six kilometres away. “I was the youngest of four kids,” says Karl, and the one who said they wouldn’t be a farmer, and now I’m fourth generation on the farm we’ve had since 1933.” At any given time they’re running around 800 animals between the two blocks, including all the calves they’re growing out thanks to having a no bobbies policy, bulls, beef heifers, steers and diary replacements on top of the 290 cows they’re milk- ing. “It’s a big job, but the strength of Mum and Dad’s business is having that ability with the other farm to be able to grow everything including the supple- ment to bring back here,” says Karl. With Jessica running the front desk for the vet in Fielding it suits them to live in their house off-farm in Fielding, about 15 minutes away, while Karl’s par- ents David and Johanna live on-farm, and his sister Anja lives in the farm cottage and works with Karl. “We decided to come back because Mum was having serious health issues, then Dad had an accident in July and is only just starting to get back into it so I’m glad we were around. Also we had an opportunity here to buy a few cows and start to grow some numbers for ourselves,” says Karl. With interest-rates low they bought 40 mixed- age cows that they’re running with a friendly lease arrangement on the family farm. “Jess and I have plans to carry on and share-milk, although not necessarily here,” says Karl. “We’re looking to save up and get out on our own in the next three to five years.” Following in the family footsteps Karl has started his herd under the stud prefix Kowhai, which was originally his grandfather Jim’s stud name too. He bought 12 Shorthorns and the rest Holstein- Fresians. “The herd here on the family farm is almost a full Shorthorn,” he says. “I definitely like them and I’ll always breed them going forward, but I’m interested in pedigree breeding in general, and I like Holstein – Shorthorns so I’ll likely end up with a bit of a mix.” This year Karl won the Dairy Manager of the Year Award for Manawatu, which he entered as much to hold himself to account as anything else. “It’s always interesting to benchmark where you’re at in your career,” he explains. “When you have to explain where you’re going to someone else it has to make sense and it was really good for me personally to break down where I want to go in dairy, and what I want to do and how “We decided to come back because Mum was having serious health issues, then Dad had an accident in July and is only just starting to get back into it so I’m glad we were around. Also we had an opportunity here to buy a few cows and start to grow some numbers for ourselves.” I want to go about it. It meant Jess and I had to nut out some goals together and plan how we want to get there.” Manawatu Dairy Manager of the Year Keith Wood with partner Jessica Hodges, went on to take the Personal Planning and Financial Merit award at the National awards. Milking shorthorns are a family favourite.