10 of our best
BEGA district dairy farmer Tom Pearce is reluctant to talk about himself, but get him on to the topic of the dairy industry’s future and it’s another story.
The young, fourth-generation dairy farmer is not content to let dairying fade away in NSW and has tried to tell as wide an audience as possible that young people in the milk industry can make a go of it on a farm.
“There has long been a perception that you had to move to the city for uni and to get a job,” Mr Pearce said.
“I suppose I was lucky I found out what I wanted to do at an early age.”
What he wanted was to follow in his father’s footsteps, and keep the “Warwick Farm” dairy in operation, as his family has for 100 years.
He is now the herd manager for the family’s stud called Progressive Holsteins, run by his parents Norm and Narelle.
More than just being on the farm, however, Mr Pearce wanted to let others know they didn’t have to leave the country for a rewarding job and lifestyle.
“You might get a lot of money in the city... but I think this (life on the dairy) is more rewarding than being stuck staring at tonnes of concrete.”
Through a series of presentations at primary and high schools and an astute use of various social media platforms, Mr Pearce is gradually getting that message across.
“It’s good to educate kids about rural life,” he said of his school presentations.
“The last two talks (at the Eden Primary and High schools) went really well. There was good interaction and questions from the kids.
“Getting young people inspired – (it) feels like I’m giving something back to the industry,” he said.
“It feels like the message is getting across.”
Mr Pearce isn’t shy about getting his message across on social media, either.
His Facebook and Twitter profiles for Progressive Holsteins have a combined total of more than 1000 likes/followers, and he uses those platforms to not only promote his own herd but also promote the interests of the dairy industry in general.
A recent example had him conversing on Twitter with NSW and federal politicians about problems caused for farmers by the National Bovine Johne’s Disease (BJD) plan.
Under this plan, dairy producers must supply a declaration of the dairy BJD assurance score with every consignment of cattle they sell – establishing the risk of those cattle carrying BJD.
Already frustrated by his own battles with the BJD plan, when he heard about another producer having to postpone a sale due to them buying a suspect cow four years ago – despite many tests on that cow coming back negative for BJD since then – Mr Pearce decided it was time for answers.
A tweet fired off to Katrina Hodgkinson and Barnaby Joyce received an immediate response from Ms Hodgkinson that the matter would be looked into.
“It is definitely worth looking into,” Mr Pearce said.
“I would question the direct benefit to the farmer, compared to the costs of complying (with the BJD Plan).”
“I think it (BJD) would be better to manage on farm ourselves.”
Mr Pearce is also tackling other ongoing problems for the dairy industry such as the challenge presented by low milk prices.
One way to try and combat this challenge was to look for ways to keep costs down at “Warwick Farm”.
Mr Pearce and his father Norm have recently installed a new K Line irrigation system which will save costs by reducing both water run-off and power usage.
Feed efficiency would also be something to investigate, with plans for a concrete feed pad being given consideration to save money to limit wasted grain or hay currently lost under cows’ hooves in the paddock.
Aside from improving efficiencies at “Warwick Farm”, Mr Pearce is also enthusiastic about show judging for dairy cows.
He won the National Junior Dairy Cattle Judging Competition in 2008, and later this month he will be judging at the Great Northern Challenge for Jersey cattle, which will see him judging cattle from Bemboka to Toowoomba, Queensland.
He also likes looking outside Australia for ways to improve the dairy industry, having visited the World Dairy Expo in Wisconsin, US, a number of times.
With his enthusiasm for the industry stretching from international dairy experiences to improving his family’s farming business and campaigning on social media, Tom Pearce is leaving no stone unturned to make sure “Warwick Farm” will be a profitable dairy to hand on to yet another generation.
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