Wairarapa dairy farmer, Nick Bertram, said becoming a farm manager in NZ was a challenge coming from a non-farming background.
Award winning dairy farmer Nick Bertram never doubted he could be a successful farm manager and now he is set to celebrate another significant milestone next month.
"Just ignore the house, my fiancé is coming in a few weeks and it should look a whole lot better after that," he grins.
Mr Bertram's modest homestead is in a state of flux, amongst the clutter on the dining table, a frame proclaiming him 2014 Dairy Farm Manager of the Year lies patiently in anticipation perhaps of a more fitting place.
The award is valued he says, but it's not his only achievement this year.
"My biggest is probably getting someone to marry me," he laughs.
He reveals that Rose, his soon wife-to-be, had little chance to avoid his proposal in her home city of Perth.
"I organised for a helicopter to take us up on a date, and she said to me what should I take, and I told her she might need an extra spare of underwear!"
Next month, he heads back to Perth to marry Rose and they plan to settle in the Wairarapa with his two children, son Taj and daughter Ella. It makes for domestic bliss.
"Rose is keen to get into making cheese and butter and well, I've got plenty of milk you could say."
It's been an eventful year, he recently survived what he described as a 'paparazzi raid' when about a dozen, disorientated journalists descended on his farm unexpectedly.
"I get a phone call saying Winston Peters is coming over and all these journos suddenly appeared and it was unbelievable for a while," he said.
The 27-year-old, breaks into a smile often and the easy-going persona suggests he enjoys life's challenges. His self-deprecating manner would certainly have been invaluable on his journey to becoming a contract milker.
From time on his uncle's farm he was drawn to animals and imagined becoming a vet. Alas, he dropped out of school at 16, "I was bit naughty," and took to the road, living and working in Montana where he grew affection for country & western music, and the UK where his interest and passion for farming became embedded.
Upon return to his native Wairarapa, his aspirations towards managing a farm were initially thwarted. While he never doubted farming was his future he admitted rejection was discouraging.
"I thought it would be a lot easier, but it wasn't. I had experience managing farms in the UK, but farm owners here weren't interested, they seemed dismissive of me."
Managing a farm in the UK "was actually more complicated" and requires "being on the ball more". There's more emphasis on animals and diet than on pasture with animals indoors most of the year -- something he hopes never eventuates here.
"They are calving and mating all year-round and you are drying off every week so you have to keep very good records," he recalls.
It was tough for someone coming from a non-farming background to get a start.
"I hadn't gone to university either, so if you want to be a farm manager or sharemilker you need tertiary qualifications, as farming is definitely becoming specialised."
While the dairy industry is a lucrative career option it's not necessarily easy to climb the ladder and the co-opertisation of farming is not helping. There were fewer opportunities for 50/50 sharemilking positions.
"It's harder getting into farm ownership or milking and many guys go down the equity partnership line rather than the traditional way of sharemilking."
There has been much conjecture of late into why kiwis are apparently choosing to ignore agriculture as a career option. The Ministry for Primary Industries recently published a report highlighting the sector required a significant increase in workers to assist the Government's target of doubling primary exports by 2025.
Interestingly, that study predicted that the greatest growth would be in "support services" for the conventional farming occupations, with 90,000 'trained workers' required to meet future demand.
Mr Bertram meanwhile, has no regrets choosing a traditional farming role even though it has taken 11 years to get there. "I've never paid a day's rent in my life. There are plenty of perks. You can save lots more money compared to other jobs. Once you get to contract milking you can build up equity and you are virtually self-employed and you're your own boss."
And the downsides? "Well being on a small farm you're tied there most days unless you find a relief milker. And if you want a career you will still have to do 'the hard yards' even with a degree you have to show you are committed to the industry."
He said he would not hesitate to hire foreigners. "Many Filipinos who come down here have already worked on huge farms in Saudi Arabia. From my experience they are well trained, have a great desire to work and help their families back in their homeland."
To relax and unwind, Mr Bertram goes shooting and fishing, and enjoys spending time with his kids. "I like to drop a couch on the quad and head off to the beach for some surf casting," he said. A former flanker, he no longer plays rugby "as I cannot afford to get injured".
He's keeping his future options close but acquiring his own herd is first priority and then a likely progression to 50/50 sharemilking.
He has a 'good relationship' with the Osbornes (the farm owners) and is in no hurry to leave a farm which he has invested a great deal of time in making it more successful.
It was after-all the 'ultimate lifestyle' for raising a family: "The kids get to run outside in plenty of space chasing cows and not getting into trouble - as they might do living in town. They may never have an Xbox or PlayStation but Taj has inherited a lamb and Ella takes a pet calve sometimes to school," he laughs.
"I've been fortunate getting this position. I never wanted to farm anywhere but the Wairarapa. There were many who applied for the job - I know the human resources guy gave me a glowing recommendation - I got lucky," he smiled.
Nick Bertram contracts 260 cows on a 130 hectare farm at Featherston.