Canterbury Sharemilkers Take Supreme Title

Canterbury Sharemilkers Take Supreme Title

Canterbury sharemilkers Leo (40) and Kathryn (38) van den Beuken were named 2005 New Zealand Sharemilkers of the Year, one of the most highly respected accolades in the dairy industry, at a supreme awards dinner in Hamilton tonight.

The van den Beukens won a prize package valued at nearly $37,000 including a Honda TRX 4x4 ATV, from a total national prize pool of nearly $64,000.

The van den Beukens are 50:50 sharemilkers, milking 620 cows on 185 hectares owned by Max and Adrienne Duncan in Rakaia.

The couple cite a combination of individual strengths, management of human resources and finances along with good farming practices and business knowledge as strengths in their business.

It was their fifth attempt at winning a Sharemilker of the Year title, having entered four times previously when sharemilking in Taranaki.

Leo and Kathryn say that through their involvement with the competition they have gained a better understanding of their business. They believe that entrants benefit from networking with likeminded people, and are likely to achieve farm ownership in shorter time frames.

They began as lower order sharemilkers in Taranaki milking 130 cows in 1990 and this year, in addition to their sharemilking role in Canterbury, purchased a 250 cow farm in Taranaki. Their goal is to own a 400 – 600 cow property within three to five years.

“We also want to continue to enjoy dairy farming and promote it as a promising career.”

The van den Beukens also won the Bank of New Zealand Financial Management Award and the Federated Farmers Leadership Award. Runners up were Kelly and Karen Shaw from Bay of Plenty who milk 650 cows on a 179ha property owned by Landcorp Farming Ltd. Third place went to Dean and Alison Smith from Taranaki, milking a herd of 250 cows on 75ha owned by Whakahau Trust.

The New Zealand Sharemilker of the Year has been running for 16 years and recognises the extraordinary determination, work ethic and goal setting abilities demonstrated by this country’s unique agricultural icon: the sharemilker, said Damian Roper, chairman of the Sharemilker of the Year Management Committee.

The New Zealand Sharemilker of the Year Competition is run in association with Federated Farmers of New Zealand (Inc) and is sponsored by Dairy InSight, ACC, Bank of New Zealand, Blue Wing Honda, Dexcel, Ecolab, Fonterra, Livestock Improvement and Ravensdown.

“Sharemilkers who succeed in this event do so because they excel in a wide range of skills from pasture management, through caring for their dairy environment, their animals’ welfare, their financial management, to their contribution to the communities in which they live and work. The title Sharemilkers of the Year goes to people who not only work for the success of themselves and their families; they represent the best of a great industry and give back as much as they receive,” Mr Roper said.

“Leo and Kathryn are the winners tonight. But every single sharemilker who took part in this competition will have gained from the experience.”

Other National Merit Awards went to:

Dairy Insight Interview Award: Dean and Alison Smith from Taranaki Ravensdown Pasture Management Award: Kelly and Karen Shaw from Bay of Plenty Ecolab Farm Dairy Environment Award: John and Jo-Anne Milne from West Coast/Top of the South LIC Herd Records Award: John and Jo-Anne Milne from West Coast/Top of the South ACC Thinksafe Sharemilker Award: John and Wendy Allen from Manawatu/Rangitikei

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