About the Canterbury Sheep Milk Association
The Canterbury Sheep Milk Association Executive Team currently consists of eight members, of which five are actively milking sheep for commercial purposes. Their milking strategies range from milking ewes once the lambs are weaned to rearing the lambs from 2- 3 days old. Platform types range from herringbone, and portable trailers with one farmer milking through an internal rotary. All the farmers were part of a Red Meat Profit Partnership (Beef & Lamb sponsored) Action Group with a sheep milk focus. The facilitator of that Group is also on the Committee and has a strong Agribusiness experience along with a broad knowledge of farming systems especially in the Canterbury region. On the strategic front we have a very experienced export market developer who has worked in New Zealand and overseas for a number of economic development agencies, and has an ardent interest in fostering alternate land use, and new product and market development. The final committee member is also a farmer with the addition experience of a career in the animal health space.
All the committee members are passionate about the local sheep milk industry and are committed to seeing the CSMAI grow into a viable and sustainable association that caters for those milking just a few sheep to fully fledged commercial operations. The Committee Members would also like to see the inclusion in the Association of individuals in the sheep milk support services as well as those involved in the processing and marketing of sheep milk products.
Matt Jones - Chairman
Matt has also had deep roots in sheep farming having started his career at the age of 16 years farming in Mid-Canterbury and throughout Otago. What started out as a passion of traditional sheep farming for wool and meat has developed into a business developing hardy milking breeds and a sheep milk business to produce the best, cleanest A2 milk there is.
Matt farms 350 hectares of prime farming land in Kirwee, Canterbury with their sheep stud and milking unit based on 50 hectares; he is currently milking 600 sheep. The processing business Sheep Milk NZ began ovine milking in 2019 and produces a skincare range called Sabelle and a range of fresh milk products under the brand Jones Family Farm. The next step which is well underway is to establish a spray drying processing facility for infant formula.
Mark Hazeldine - Committee Member
Mark is an experienced export market developer, having lived and worked overseas in a number of markets and having worked for a variety of economic development agencies.
Mark has an extensive range of expertise with a particular interest in fostering alternative land use, new product and market development, and rural sustainability – sheep milk ticks all these boxes.
David Waghorn – Committee Member & Secretary/Treasurer
David farms a 205 hectare irrigated farm at Hororata, Central Canterbury. He began his sheep milk journey around 2013 with the purchase of a small number of Poll Dorsett ewes and an East Friesian ram. The next few years were spent learning about dairy sheep, especially the European milking breeds, building flock numbers and putting in the necessary infrastructure. This year (2021) with a reliable market identified for the milk David is currently building a permanent 40 bale internal rotary platform, with the ultimate aim of milking around 1,200 sheep. The operation is intended to be a relatively low labour activity, employing a full time stock manager with local seasonal staff to undertake lamb rearing and milking duties. The farm is part of the Central Plains irrigation scheme and the plan to replace the majority of the dairy support activities with milking sheep is an important aspect of the farm environmental plan and desire to reduce nitrate losses.
David was a founding member of the CSMAI and is enthusiastic to promote the benefits of sheep milk as a highly nutritional product and to encourage other farmers to consider dairy sheep as a viable addition to their current farming activities.
Sarah O’Connell – Committee Member
Sarah’s involvement in the sheep milking industry is not one of direct milking involvement.
She has a genuine interest in the industry and recognises the potential for sheep milking
within in the Canterbury environment. Her involvement with fellow sheep milkers came about
through her facilitation of the Canterbury Sheep Production Action Group, a group focused on sheep milking development in Canterbury set up through the Red Meat Profit Partnership.
Sarah does have a farming background, owing her own small Beef Shorthorn & Angus cattle stud and having grown up on a small dairy farm in Dunsandel. She now works in agricultural
facilitation and extension with The AgriBusiness Group working with farmer groups to improve their on-farm performance and production.