AUCKLAND/HAURAKI | DAIRY MANAGER OF THE YEAR
A dairy manager’s job is never done: Stephanie enjoys the variety of work she has taken on.
Rapid climb up career ladder WORDS BY SHERYL HAITANA PHOTOS BY EMMA MCCARTHY
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tephanie Walker says stepping into her first manager’s role autumn calving 620 cows in a System 5 operation has involved taking a giant three steps up from working as a second in charge (2IC). Stephanie works for Kauri Moor, a family farm in Huntly owned by Bruce and Kay Darby, with their sons Rhys and Phillip as equity partners. The business consists of two dairy farms, a young stock and beef runoff and a new sheep milking business. It’s a big business with a lot of technology in the shed, high inputs and she is also managing two staff for the first time. “It’s been a huge challenge - being that person who has to make the decision, not relying on someone else to do it.” However, Stephanie has always been a quick learner and was named the Auckland/Hauraki Dairy Manager of the Year 2021. She has climbed the ladder quickly after coming into the dairy industry, especially given she has no farming background. She spent three seasons as a farm 36
assistant then two years as a 2IC role, before succeeding to her current position. The 26-year-old grew up in Whakatane and went to Massey University with the intention of becoming a veterinarian. When she missed out on getting accepted into the highly competitive Bachelor of Veterinary Science after the first semester,
she decided to switch to a Bachelor of Agricultural Science. A lot of her friends were studying agriculture and they opened her eyes to the career opportunities within the dairy industry. She finished her first year at Massey, but was itching to get out into the workforce
PHYSICAL FARM DATA
218ha
620
Production
580kgMS/cow 1590kgMS/ha
206
Cows/labour unit
Wintering
12t DM/ha/yr
Friesians
Milking platform area
Milking supplement
Pasture eaten
System 5, 150t protein, 150t starch, 400t palm kernel, 650t maize silage (20% bought in), 300t grass silage, feed 18-20t/cow
Dairy Automation
Farm Dairy
ACRs, GEA milk meters, auto wash, teat spraying, drafting, Allflex collars
54-bail rotary
78%
Six-week in-calf rate
Autumn calving, winter onfarm
Not in-calf rate
12% 150kg N/ha/year
Nitrogen
9
Weeks of mating
Runoff owned
Dairy Exporter | www.nzfarmlife.co.nz | April 2021
