Participating in Dairy Australia’s Our Farm, Our Plan program has given Leigh and Ange Verhey great insight into their business.
The couple are dairy farmers on the outskirts of Koondrook in northern Victoria’s Murray Dairy region. They have been on the farm for 17 years, and currently milk 350-400 cows across a pasture-based system spanning 600 acres.
The Verheys have been considering succession planning for their business, and Our Farm, Our Plan provided the structured and personalised support they needed to develop a customised plan for their farm and their family.
“Doing Our Farm, Our Plan was a real opportunity to look at our business and where we are currently at, where we want to get to and looking back on where we have been,” Leigh says.
“Dairy Australia supported this immensely. The handbook that was put together and the process that we stepped through was mapped out so well. There was no stone unturned in how we thought about our farming business and where we want to end up.”
The one-on-one tailoring of Our Farm, Our Plan and being able to connect with other like-minded farmers was also beneficial for the Verheys.
“It's great to be in a room with progressive farmers, having conversations of growth and going forward and how we manage our businesses,” Leigh explains.
“I got a lot out of the other participants in the program – just as much as being a participant myself.”
Leigh is optimistic about the farm’s future.
“For our business, it's all about developing and going forward with reliable, good staff. We've had a fair crack for 17 years and we want to see some reward for all the effort we've put in,” he says.
“One thing that was holding us back was the ability to attract people into our business. Having people support us in this is just phenomenal. We’re really understanding we can’t do it on our own for the size of what we are but if we get the right people in there, it builds that work/life environment.
“We’ve identified some key things in our business that we need to do better at. It was irrigation – the system in general – and the breed of our cow, our labour unit and our holdings, whether we need more or less.”
Leigh and Ange’s journey into the dairy industry has been a successful one, and Leigh says he’s in it for the long haul.
“We're not generational. We've worked together and built what we've got today. This is something we're quite proud of – and we’re proud to be in the dairy industry.”
Learn more about the Verheys and their experience with Our Farm, Our Plan.
For further details about Our Farm, Our Plan and how it can help enhance your farm business management, visit dairyaustralia.com.au/ofop or call 1800 548 073.
