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• Remaining Positive

Remaining Positive

The general outlook for the dairy industry has overtones of gloom and pessimism.  Those having this attitude are opting to join the queue of disenchanted farmers who will most likely leave the industry in the next few years.  It is likely that the decline in dairy farm numbers will continue the trend that began 40 years ago with a temporary pause over recent years.

However, there will be a significant number of excellent dairy farmers who survive these tough times and maintain a profitable and enjoyable place in the dairy industry.<BR>

These farmers will have a number of common traits:

• They will be efficient hard workers.
• They will have continued to update their facilities.
• Their dairy farms will be environmentally sustainable.
• Their farms will be quality accredited.
• They will predominantly be farms milking more than 200 cows.
• Labour and contractors will be part of their work team.
• They will have kept up with modern farming practices.
• Their business management skills will be high.
• They will grow and utilise a substantial amount of pasture.
• They will have a positive attitude to dairy farming and they will enjoy milking cows.
  

Amongst these farmers will be young and old, high and low equity farms, well established and new farms, pure bred and cross bred herds, varying calving times, those that crop and those that do not.  What they will have in common is the ability to run their dairy farming enterprise very well and be clear as to their farming and personal goals.

There are a plethora of courses, advisers, workshops, study programs and conferences that are available for farmers to assist them to achieve these goals.  Government handouts and neighbours queuing up to buy the farm are no longer a likely event.  Lets knuckle down and produce our way into the new millennium.