| 45 nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Greg & Ingrid McCracken The reignition of an operational dairy unit Sarah and Michaela hard at work. We all love a beautiful feel-good story, and the return of a daughter to a beloved family farm where she was born and raised is just such a story. Several years ago, due to the owner’s ill health, 200 hectares of farmland in Te Hana, on the northern boundary of Auckland, became available, which neighbouring dairy farmers Greg and Ingrid McCracken first leased, then bought. Greg farms 200 hectares that his parents had bought in the early ‘90s, and which he and Ingrid purchased a decade later. The neighbouring farm had a 40-bale rotary shed on it, and an effective milking platform of 175 hectares which hadn’t been operated as a dairy unit for many years. When Greg and Ingrid leased the farm they ran 700 cows across both farms, milking them through the home farm’s 40-aside herringbone shed which has ACR’s and a Protrack drafting system. Upon buying the farm, Greg and Ingrid decided to reignite it as an operational dairy unit, investing in an upgrade of the existing shed before literally flicking the switch. Today, the two dairy units operate independently of each other, and each is home to 400 cows. “The home farm is managed by a contract milker,” says Greg. “Jono has been with me for 23 years since he left school as a fifteen-year-old. Two seasons ago he took the role of contract milker. The other farm has had a farm manager on it and my daughter Michaela was coming home to work on that farm as 2IC. Unfortunately, the farm manager was unable to renew his contract, leaving the position vacant.” Sarah Powell, the daughter of the farm’s previous owner, had made farming her career of choice when leaving school about eight years ago, and had been managing a small dairy unit in Northland, when that farm was put up for sale. “When our manager decided to leave, Michaela happened to mention the position to Sarah, whose words were, ‘that is one job I would love to look at.’ So, she has packed her bags and will take up the new role on her parents’ old farm on the 1st of June.” From the 1st of June, the two-person farm will become an all-girl operation — humans and their cows. For Sarah, it will be a delightful full circle that will no doubt rekindle many old memories of her childhood. Greg has also made farming his career of choice since leaving school many moons ago, initially doing a stint on a sheep farm where he learned that was not where his passion lay. A Diploma of Agriculture at Lincoln University was following by his career in dairy initially farming on a family farm in Waipu, before the family bought the Te Hana Property. “For me, farming is that whole outdoors thing, the variety of work, the flexibility that it allows - I Richard Loader enjoy my fishing. But one of the big ones was bringing up a family of five children on the farm, I couldn’t think of a better way to bring up kids. I think that it teaches kids good values and work ethics. All our kids have done relief milking, and they have all had to get up at 5.00am in the weekends, and none of them have begrudged it.” “For me, farming is that whole outdoors thing, the variety of work, the flexibility that it allows - I enjoy my fishing. But one of the big ones was bringing up a family of five children on the farm, I couldn’t think of a better way to bring up kids.” Polands are Polaris, we are the company with decades of selling & servicing farm vehicles. Highly trained & experieced technicians. Please call Doug Poland for trial run of any Polaris ATV or SSV, 0800 765 263 Brendon Browne Director Rodney Honda 74 Hudson Road, Warkworth Phone 09 945 3989 Mobile 021 0238 7572 E-mail sales@rodneyhonda.co.nz www.rodneyhonda.co.nz www.rodneyhondaandhusqvarna.co.nz GET IN TOUCH 09 425 9835 www.bavagechapman.co.nz Level 1, 51 Morrison Drive, Warkworth Tailored accounting solutions for your farming business We specialise in agri-business, and provide personalised, expert accounting and business advisory solutions to help your business grow.
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