Fantastic lifestyle a huge part of the lure of dairying

Brad Markham is relieved of the pressure of doing daily pieces-to-camera.

The world’s constantly increasing need for food is another big factor in this young farmer’s decision to change his career

When television journalist Brad Markham found himself tiring of working as a state political reporter for ABC News in Tasmania, an exciting new career idea came to mind.

"Most weeknights I could be found standing outside Parliament House in Hobart crossing live into the 7pm TV news. However, working as a journalist, people were being made redundant almost daily.

"I felt my career prospects in the media were bleak, but I knew a new generation of farmers was needed to produce food for the world's soaring population," says Brad.

"After four years of interviewing MPs, which can be like banging your head against a brick wall, I decided I needed a change."

In June this year, Brad, with his Australian partner Matthew Herbert and their two dogs, moved to the lush, green pastures of New Zealand to work as a contract milker on his brother's dairy farm.

"My brother Lee's farm is west of Huntly in the North Waikato. We milk 240 cows through a 27 a side herringbone shed. It's been a huge change, a massive learning curve."

Growing up on a dairy farm in Pukekawa and helping to milk the cows in school holidays gave Brad some idea of what he was getting into, but the responsibility was greater than when he was a kid.

"I have to be confident [that] every decision I make is the right one.

At ABC News, there were editors and sub-editors constantly casting their eye over my work. Now, I'm responsible for the daily welfare of hundreds of cows. If one gets mastitis, I have to know how to identify and treat it."

With a whole new industry to get his head around, Brad went to industry training organisation Primary ITO to help him hone his skills and knowledge.

"Training adviser Karen Wightman visited me to discuss my training options. The first course Karen recommended was Milk Quality Stage One. At first, I was sceptical about how much I could learn in a five-hour workshop. However, I was proven wrong. I learnt why it's important that milk is cooled to a certain temperature quickly and how to ensure we have an effective and efficient cleaning routine. Immediately after the course I went home and tweaked my routine."

Brad believes training can benefit your bottom line.

"Training can help you build up your knowledge quickly to ensure your farm is profitable and productive. If you don't know how to identify mastitis, that can cost you money and lost production.

"You need to know how to nip any problems in the bud early. I think it's also vital to remember you're producing food for human consumption."

He says he found the course incredibly valuable and would recommend it to all dairy farmers.

"Our tutor was a Fonterra shed inspector, so he had countless real life examples of how to avoid getting slugged grades and fines."

With his National Certificate in On Farm Milk Quality almost completed, Brad is looking to his next step. He has Primary ITO's flagship qualification in his sights: Level 4 Dairy Farming.

"I look at qualifications as a stepping stone. I find it's best not to tackle a qualification that's suited to the job you're in, but one that's targeted at the job you want to be in."

After that, Brad contemplates enrolling in the ITO's Diploma in Agribusiness Management. This is divided into a series of modules targeting key areas of agribusiness management, from business and finance, to taxation and investment, ownership and risk, to human resource management.

"With the diploma, there's limited time off the farm, which is a huge drawcard for me."

For now, Brad's main focus is on contract milking and getting through his first year successfully, while building on skills and qualifications.

As for job satisfaction, Brad says it's huge.

"Farming is extremely rewarding. Even on days when I feel like I haven't done much, I've milked and fed hundreds of cows, looked after the environment and provided one of the world's biggest dairy companies with thousands of litres of milk."

With his first calving season almost behind him, he has thrived on the challenge.

"The day I calved my first cow was really exciting and rewarding."

The important question is whether Brad is enjoying his new career path.

"I love the outdoors, and I love that I get to see the sun rise and set every day. I also like the independence of farming.

"There's no one constantly demanding new versions of a news story, just to fill air time. It's just me, the cows, and my brother's old, working dog, Glen. For me, it's a fantastic lifestyle."

• For more information on Primary ITO see www.primaryito.ac.nz or call 0800 208 020.