Dairy expo dream comes true

BY SOPHIE BALDWIN

A DREAM to attend World Dairy Expo is set to become a reality for young dairy farmer Emmalea Wishart after she won the Power of Women in Dairying Scholarship for 2023.

Attending the expo has always been on Emmalea’s bucket list and now with the aid of the scholarship, her dream will come true when she heads over to the United States in September.

“I am still in the planning process but I am just so grateful to have received this scholarship and I am really looking forward to all the opportunities it will bring,” the 24-year-old said.

Along with a few tourist trips, Emmalea is hoping to visit some farms and pick up a bit of additional knowledge on calf rearing — a job she has recently taken total responsibility for on the family farm at Cohuna.

Farming with her parents Tina and Rick and sister April (other sister Kaitlyn is at Maffra) the family business milks 370 split calving cows on 520ha.

“Mum always did the calf rearing but I took over after she hurt her back a couple of years ago. I am a bit more knowledgeable and confident in my ability now, but I am always looking to do things better and I hope I can pick up some new tips and tricks while I am overseas.’’

Emmalea has spent her life among cows and tractors, although her parents did make her head off to university and have a shot at life away from the farm.

“I studied a bachelor of exercise science for three years and then went off to live with a mate in Townsville for eight months. I came home for a holiday and then the border was shut due to COVID and then I got stuck at the farm and here I am.

“I would have liked to stay a bit longer in Townsville but mum and dad needed help and really, this is where I was always going to end up anyway,” she said.

Despite being sisters, Emmalea said she and April work well together and they are starting to get involved in making some of the on farm management decisions which has been motivating and given her confidence in her ability.

Tightening up the calving pattern has been one of the changes they have implemented.

“We now use a timed AI program which means I will have about 60 calves due July 31 and that is where my entire focus will be until it is all over. I don’t milk during this time, I just concentrate on calving cows,” Emmalea said.

She said a tighter calving pattern had resulted in a more robust group of calves and less stragglers.

“We have a lot of young stock and heifers coming in and they are really thriving. I think this has got a lot to do with the attention to detail we can now give the young stock now mum and dad don’t have to do all of the work on their own.”

With the business set to milk around 370 and pushing up to 400 in the next year, Emmalea is looking forward to the future of the farm.

‘’Some infrastructure changes are probably next for us and that includes re-lasering some ground to make some of our bays bigger and easier to manage,” she said.

“Dad and I have a joint passion for cropping and growing quality fodder and we hope to improve this area and make our business more sustainable and profitable.”

Emmalea has always loved driving machinery and she can remember in Year 5 raking the hay while her dad baled, going to school on a few hours sleep.

“I do love driving tractors and whenever I get some spare time I go and drive the silage wagon, I bloody love that,” she said.

Power of Women in Dairy Committee member Clare Modra said Emmalea was a well-deserved winner.

“We think Emmalea will be a great ambassador for our region and it is great we could give the scholarship to someone who probably wouldn’t get to the expo without this opportunity,” Clare said.

“Emmalea is a hard worker and has a genuine passion for not just showing cows but also the farm.

“She is great helping out the young kids in the showroom and we think she will be a great inclusion to the Power of Women Committee when she gets back from her trip.”