A herd to suit all systems
Maximising per-cow production has always been an interest of Manawatu dairy farmers Craig and Raewyne Passey - and Holstein Friesian cattle have proven the ideal breed to achieve this.
Celene and Adam Taylor are sharemilking 420 cows for Adam’s parents, Kevin and Lily Taylor (Malvern), on 177ha at Tirau. In their eleventh season on the farm, they are regularly surpassing their target of 150,000 kgMS, and aiming for 160,000 kgMS.
Their 420-strong herd is made up of 60 Jerseys, 226 registered Holstein Friesians and 134 crossbred cows.
They first registered their Holstein Friesian cattle in February 2023 – 82 older animals and 144 2022/23 animals, as well as all their supplementary animals.
While Celene grew up in Tirau township and worked in hospitality after leaving school, Adam grew up on his family dairy farm at Te Puke. His family still own the Te Puke farm, which has been converted to a beef block on which the couple run all their young stock. Adam was a builder by trade, but the couple decided to go dairy farming together after Celene fell pregnant with their eldest child, Arya.
“We thought it would be a good opportunity to get into the industry while we were young and to live a better lifestyle for our family,” Celene says.
Adam and Celene worked on the Te Puke farm before moving to the Tirau farm in 2013. They work on the farm fulltime and have a fulltime staff member as well. The farm - which sits on top of a hill – is System One, relying on excellent pasture management to ensure the cows are fully fed.
“When we first bought the herd, it was all Holstein Friesian,” Celene says. “Working within a System One farm we decided to crossbreed the majority of the cows to increase milk production.”
The herd has been in the family for three generations and has been a closed herd for 30-plus years.
Mating of the herd started on October 1 last season; a little earlier than usual as they had a few embryo transfer cows. They did eight-and-a-half weeks of AB, before finishing the last two weeks with bulls.
Although Celene has been able to choose around 30 straws of her preferred bulls to put over her best cows – including Meander Shot Alibi-ET S3F – most of the herd’s genetics are chosen by CRV, as it is a progeny test herd.
Some of the bulls picked by CRV in the last mating include Busybrook A Butterbox S2F, Ambzed Alibi Buyback S2F, CRV Delta Drone PP-Red, Muritai Hustler Watchme-ET and Waiau Alias Prescot-ET S2F.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what sort of animals we get from these bulls,” Celene says. “Although most of our bulls are picked for us, there are definite traits we are looking for – primarily milk production and conformation.”
The farm’s calving start date is July 1, and although Celene admits they haven’t yet identified any cows with particularly ‘special’ qualities, there have been some that have stood out.
“We have used Woodcote Hot Charlie S2F in the past, and have had some really good heifers out of that bull,” she says. “Our children do calf club and there have been several animals we have chosen based on their awesome conformation and temperament.”
The couple has three children: Arya (11), Mya (9) and Harrison (8). They have all competed in calf club and Arya in particular has started to demonstrate a real interest in showing.
“Arya attended the Youth Camp in Feilding in January, and she just loved it,” Celene says. “She is really getting into the showing side of things and we are excited to support and encourage her.”
Celene and Adam have an exciting development in the pipeline for the 2025-26 season.
“We are looking at farm ownership,” Celene says. “It has always been a dream of ours, and the beautiful thing about the farm we are currently on is that it was originally Adam’s Grandad’s farm. We are happy it is going to stay in the family.”
Celene says there is a lot to love about the Holstein Friesian breed.
“I have always loved the look of them,” she says. “I like their nature, too – they are easier to deal with than some of the other breeds we’ve had. They are also more robust, lasting a bit longer.
“We will definitely continue to register our Holstein Friesian animals. My aim is to get as many pedigree Holstein Friesians in the herd as we can.”
