Woods Point dairy runs best from family bond

Even at 80-years old, Bob Afford still pitches in with everyday tasks.

Living on the same property as their family's dairy at Woods Point, near Murray Bridge, Bob is hands-on with feeding the milking herd and assists on machinery during sowing - but none of this is new to Bob.

He was born into a farming family with his parents Fred and Neta Afford running a mixed-farming enterprise in the Mid North at Wandearah.

But within a few years, they went looking for a change.

"We wanted to go into dairying as my sister married a chap down here who had a dairy and for the last two years up there, we had droughts," he said.

"One side of the farm had no feed and the cows kept us going, so we thought we'd go into dairying."

Fred and Neta bought 20 hectares of swamp land at Jervois in 1960 and started the dairy with Bob and his brother Charles actively involved.

Bob's wife Gloria (nee Gale) also moved to the region with her family - also farmers - with her moving to Jervois from the Eyre Peninsula while she was still in primary school.

The two met through the local Rural Youth Club when Gloria was just 17.

They got married in 1963 and within a few years had their two sons - Greg and Steven.

While Bob and Charles had been running the family farm as a partnership, in 1975 they went their separate ways.

Charles spent some time on Kangaroo Island, before buying a dairy at nearby Monteith and running that for the next three decades.

In 1978, Bob and Gloria inherited 405ha from Gloria's parents Alf and Dot Gale, while later in 1982 they sold the Jervois swamp land and farm to upsize to the 28ha property at Woods Point where they have been ever since.

"We have expanded our operations by buying neighbouring properties as they have become available," Steven said.

"It just means the cows have further to go and the herd is not as dense and damaging the land."

This includes 105ha of neighbouring blocks in the late 1980s and early 1990s, made up of swamp and higher lands, as well as another 405ha across the road at Brinkley in 2002, which doubled their cropping capacity.

The most recent land expansion was purchasing an adjoining 30ha of swamp and 10ha of high land in 2019 to increase feed production for the milking herd, plus give additional land to rear young stock.

The addition of the Brinkley operation has also helped secure their feed.

"In all the time we've had Brinkley there has only been one year where we've never cut hay and that was three years ago due to drought," Bob said.

While the dairy remained a passion for Bob and Gloria, they also really enjoyed a weekly Saturday night dance in the district and would go with their friends Loraine and Don Braendler - parents of their daughter-in-law and Steven's wife Michelle.

"We had lots of fun and met many people," Gloria said.

"That's how Michelle and Steven met, through the friendship of their parents."

The farm had gradually taken changes across the years but the family were always conscious to ensure they made more money than they spent and lived within their means.

"When we first moved to Jervois, we would buy in a lot of hay as we didn't have a lot of land, but now we grow all of our own," Bob said.

"We only had a dairy that milked eight cows at a time but now the farm has the capacity to milk 30 cows at any one time," Gloria said.

"I remember when we first went from 16 units to 30 units and I said I will never milk in that," Bob said.

"For the first fortnight, I hated it - now it just adds to one of the best things that could have happened.

"The cup removers are just fantastic."

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While the industry has had its ups and downs, Bob said he was always confident that dairying would keep going.

"We always had to have milk and food, that's the way I looked at it," he said.

"We had never done anything different - dairying was all we knew."

That tradition has trickled on to the next generations.

Bob said it was important to them to keep the farm going for their children.

"Our parents didn't sell the farm out from under either of us, so we weren't going to do that to the boys," Bob said.

Gloria said this attitude saw them through the tough times.

"We often say to people now who ask why we are still dairying - when the price of water went high that is when SA lost a lot of the dairies and Bob went to both of the boys and said if you want to go on dairying, we're not selling our water," she said.

"That's what kept us in it and if we sold the water the swamps would have been dead now.

"Even with the drought in 2007, I said to them if they wanted to sell up here and move to the South East I'd support them but they said no and that they were stopping here.

"Whatever either of the boys do, I will support them."

Gloria stops history from repeating

Both Bob and Gloria wanted to ensure their sons understood the business operations and how to run the books.

Much of the work on the farm is divided with Steven taking on the dairy block while Greg looks after much of the cropping.

"When we inherited the farm from mum and dad at Brinkley, we were going to retire on it," Gloria said.

"But Greg told us, we could retire on the farm and that he wanted to be out there and it's the best thing we've done.

"They work together well with it set up the way it is and they're not under each other's feet."

Bob said the brothers worked very well together, while Steven was more passionate about the dairy side of the business.

Gloria said a lot of farmers in their generation wouldn't let the kids do the books, but they were determined to be different.

"When dad died, mum got everything," Bob said.

"We didn't get any of the books or operations until I was about 35 - she ran it all and when Charles left the partnership was when we took control and ran with it.

"When I got to about 50 - Gloria said this is not going to happen with me, so she handed the books over to Steven, because he was good with books and Greg said he did not want anything to do with the books.

"I virtually handed over the running of the farm to the boys and told them I'd support them."

Gloria said she wanted to be there to help the boys, if they needed it when they took over the farm.

"I think that's what has helped us get through as a family," she said.

New management takes reins

Before working on the family farm, Greg and Steven had each had some time off-farm, working on a nearby broccoli-growing operation.

"I came home in 1987 when I was about 21 and have worked with my parents in partnership since then," Steven said.

"I took over the book work when I was 25 and it's just been ongoing."

Steven said the hardest time he has had on the farm was when the River Murray ran dry in 2007 and the drought crippled most dairyfarmers in the area.

"We sold all but 34 of our cows," he said.

"I knew if I could still rock up and milk then a dollar would still come in and we would be alright.

"Greg was working on the Jervois ferry at the time so he was happy to continue working there until it could be built up again."

But luckily, this particular tough time did not last too long.

"It only lasted around six months when Steven suggested, with the milk prices so good, why didn't we get more cows?" Bob said.

"So we bought 20 from one place and 20 more from another and we went on from there."

Steven said it probably took about five years to get back into full production but by then the river was back to its full production.

"To actually hang in there and survive it was a big success to keep it on going," he said.

Greg was also able to come back to his full-time role on the property with his wife Barbara and two children, Jack and Sam, who were living on the Brinkley property.

Tragically Sam died about eight years ago.

Jack is now 28 and works as a mechanic off-farm with a child of his own.

"Working on the farm is just what we do," Greg said.

"We just always work together and that's just been the way it is.

"It works so why hassle people to change it.

"Being with the family and doing our own thing is the best thing about our farm."

Breeding champions

While running the farm has always been a business, the dairy world has also been a passion for the Afford family.

The Billabong Holstein stud was first formed while they were still at Wandearah in 1949, making its debut at the Royal Adelaide Show in 1952.

Bob said showing cows gave him a warm fuzzy feeling.

"I loved showing," he said.

"Willow Bend LuLu Queen second was my first champion cow.

"I have shown at the Royal Adelaide Show for over 60 years - even in the years I wasn't sure I could get there, we hired someone to milk for us while I went with a handful of cows.

"My cows were special to me and showing them was an outlet."

Bob became a patron of the Holstein Australia SA Branch committee after 30 years of service, and also spent time as a member of the Registered Dairy Cattle Association for about three decades.

Gloria has been the dairy cattle convenor at Murray Bridge show since 1986.

Her other interest is the SA Country Women's Association, which she has been affiliated with for 25 years.

While Steven and Greg have spent time in the show ring, the major passion for it might have skipped a generation.

"I grew up with showing but I tried to keep the farm going so Mum and Dad could show cows - it's not really for me," Steven said.

But his daughters, Courtney and Tegan, are actively involved in the show ring.

Earlier this year both completed at the Sydney Royal Show in the national dairy handlers classes after winning at a state show level - both coming away with major ribbons.

Steven said his daughter showing cows was definitely a highlight for him.

"We had an international dairy week champion here five or six years ago," he said.

"I am proud of what they've done - they have picked up champions and plenty of firsts over the years."

The years of dedicated breeding decisions have also paid off.

In order to receive a Holstein Australia Master Breeder Award, the stud must have registered at least 300 cows across a 20-year period - a significant achievement.

The Afford family will receive their second Master Breeder Award later this year.

Generational ties

Michelle said the farm wouldn't be where it is today if it wasn't for Steven and Greg putting in the hard work with the support of Bob.

"All the sheds and infrastructure on the farm, the men put together," she said.

"They built it all themselves instead of paying someone to do it."

Bob said they bought all the sheds from Olympic, which even resulted in them being in an advertisement for the company.

Courtney and Tegan now work off of the farm, just like their father and uncle Greg did when they were their age, while still being involved in the industry, including feeding calves each morning and night and helping out with milking and breeding decisions.

Courtney works for National Herd Development as a technician, while Tegan works at the local pub but has plans to work in a veterinary practice as a nurse.

Tegan said the unconditional support from both Nan and Pop made everything the girls did worth it.

"They're at every single netball game and every single show," she said.

"Even when we don't have a show they're asking what ones we're going to take to the next show.

"And we get it from Mum and Dad too, and Mum's side of the family as well."

Courtney and Tegan said they didn't feel like their childhood was any different to anyone else but did get the itch to be lending a hand with milking at four in the afternoon if they were at a friend's house.

"We didn't really know any different because even our cousins in dairying would have a very quick holiday," Tegan said.

"We were always around other dairyfarmers."

The farm keeps on running with everyone's help pitching in despite most of the family having careers off-farm.

"Greg comes over to help Steven milk every morning and then they will stand there having a word about what they're going to do for the day - everyday," Bob said.

"I've just got to put my hay out for tonight and then I will be off rolling to help the boys because I love doing it."

For the Affords, their daily grind won't affect having a laugh around the kitchen table, sharing thoughts and memories from throughout their efforts on the farm.