Positive outlook as farm expands

Mr Smart, who farms with wife Diana, son David and grandson Robert, said issues in the dairy industry had halted their expansion plans but he was positive about the future.

“There still needs to be more improvement in the industry but it is making progress,” he said.

After deregulation in 2000, the Smarts upgraded to a 50-unit rotary dairy.

They were then hit by drought which impacted their river flats, resulting in them needing to be relasered, with the Smarts about two-thirds through.

“As we laser more land, (cow) numbers will increase,” he said.

Eventually, Mr Smart expects to build production to 1000 cows, but hopes to milk 800 this year – a mix of Holsteins and Friesian-Jerseys managed with year-round calving. 

He said plans were put on hold in the past 12 months as they produced milk to the cost of production.

“With prices where they were last year, you didn’t spend money you didn’t have,” he said.

“This year the prices are improving and we hope it will increase further.

“We keep an eye on international markets but you can’t really control those.

“The biggest enemy is $1 a litre milk.”

Mr Smart said they could increase production by as much as as 33 per cent, to 4 million litres, if the price incentives were in place.