Fewer but bigger dairy farms predicted
NEW ZEALAND - The number of dairy farms in New Zealand could drop from about 10,000 to 6000 in the next decade, says dairy farmer and Fonterra director Mark Townshend.
20 March 2007
1 minute read
Mark TownshendWaikato-based Townshend, who is involved in farming in New Zealand, Chile, the United States and Russia, said the need to achieve economies of scale was "a reality in a commodity world".
He was speaking yesterday, as a dairy farmer, before addresses to agricultural conferences in Dunedin this week and Christchurch next week.
Townshend said there were about 10,000 farms with an average of 320 cows, while in 10 years there might be 6000 with an average of 600 cows.
An example of the trend towards bigger farms was that in the past few years the number of farmers leaving Fonterra was three to four times the number of new supplier applications "but in cows and kilos [of milk solids] they actually offset each other".
The average herd size of those leaving was 130 to 140 cows and 600 cows the average of the new.
