At Alpine Dairies these things are important to us:
'Nailing the basics' of dairy farming daily.
We aspire to the highest results in milk quality and animal welfare.
We take pride in every area of our farm and business.
We make financially sound farming decisions.
Key farming skills our herd manager will need:
Genuinely likes milking cows and dairy farming.
Be skilled at reading pasture covers and residuals.
Have sound literacy and numeracy skills.
Be confident detecting mastitis and lameness.
Be able to assist basic calving difficulties. Treat down cows, lame cows and common animal health concerns confidently.
Operate a tractor and feed out wagon.
Have skills in basic maintenance and permanent fencing.
Keep accurate records.
Be skilled at maintaining milk quality.
About you: We are looking for a herd manager who is…
Is respectful and brings a positive attitude to work each day.
Is reliable – makes choices to take care of yourself off and on the farm so you can be a reliable member of the team.
Shows resilience and problem solving skills.
Communicates clearly and early.
Is curious and open to improving from feedback.
Most importantly is motivated, fit and wants to work.
What we offer you:
A great location, just 35mins to central Christchurch and 10 mins to Darfield. There is an abundance of local clubs, outdoor recreation of every flavor and the sea less than 1 hour away. We are on both the local primary and high school bus routes. Kirwee is a vibrant little community with the ever popular 'Thirsty Acres' 5 minutes up the road.
We offer a 6 on 2 off roster all year round. Outside of calving and mating time we offer reduced weekend and public holiday hours with essential work only on these days so you can spend time with family and friends. We never miss your rostered days off and run a regular shift pattern with variety in your days.
We make the most of wearable technology and provide reliable machinery.
On farm mentoring – we have a passion for dairy farming with 20 years farming and business experience to share. Across NZ and Australia, we have a proven record of high performance on many different farming systems. We DIY breed our cows aiming for positive traits and few bobby calves.
This role will replace our current backpacking couple. They have been with us 6 months and are returning home from their travels at the end of September.
This role is available to NZ citizens, residents or WHV holders with dairy farming experience. We are not accredited so please do not apply if you need a work visa sponsorship.
Bealey Farm is 5km from Kirwee and 30 minutes from central Christchurch. Alpine Dairies is owned and operated by Johno and Tania Burrows. We 50/50 share milk Bealey Farm. We milk 750 Fresian cross cows, through a 40 a side herringbone shed, with in shed feeding, Allflex collars and drafting. Bealey Farm is 211 hectares under pivot irrigation on CPW and private bore water. Our wintering is on a neighboring farm. Last season we produced 350,350kgms. We provide wet weather, milking attire, and safety equipment, a tax-free phone allowance, motorbike and fuel to get to and from work to each team member. We support our team to be always learning more through a training allowance and on farm mentoring. We provide milk, meat and eggs to the team where we can. We encourage you to be part of the local community.