Organic dairying - a natural fit for Māori

Collectively, they produce 7.1 million kgMS/year which they supply to Fonterra, Synlait and the Māori-owned Miraka, based in Taupo.

Pamu has 11 organic farms, four of which are near Taupo. Broadlands is on the left-hand side of the road heading north to Reporoa and therefore backs on to the Waikato River which was one of the reasons that four years ago, Pāmu began the three-year process to convert it to an organic farm. It's now done its first season as a fully certified organic farm and is now into its second season.

The farm is part of the wider organics cluster of Pāmu farms, another seven are located near Moutoa, on the banks of the Manawatu River near the township of Foxton.

At 515 effective ha, Broadlands is the largest of Pāmu's organic farms, running 1150 kiwi cross cows with a target of producing 380,000 kgMS/year. The organic farms are all run in accordance with the conventions around organics, but what sets Broadlands apart is that this is overlayed with unique Māori values such as kaitiakitanga and manaakitanga - essentially caring for the land and people, physically and spiritually.

Jacob Ratu was born in Whakatane 48 years ago and spent his early life in the township of Kawerau where his father worked for the railways. After leaving school he headed for Waikato where he studied law and where he met his wife Mere who was studying accountancy.

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"I did three years of law but also decided I liked the outdoors and, with a family on the way, decided I needed a real job and got a job as a dairy assistant on a farm at Te Pahu in the Waikato," he says.

That was the start of Ratu's progression through the dairy industry. In 2007 he was offered a job as a dairy assistant on a new Pāmu farm, Resolution which was just being developed. He quickly rose through the Pāmu ranks becoming third-in-charge (3IC) at the Pinta farm, then 2IC at Broadlands and finally became the farm manager there in 2011. His next challenge came in 2020 when it was decided that Broadlands should convert to organics.

Since taking on the manager's role at Broadlands, Ratu has employed all Māori staff, partly because he wanted to see more Māori in dairy farming which is a good career. He says some staff have been there for about nine years, while others have joined more recently. He believes there's a natural fit for Māori becoming involved in organic farming.

"Organic farming has a lot of values similar to Māoritanga. Understanding that everything - whether it be a plant, water, animal - has a mauri and that each thing can have an impact on things around it. We at Broadlands act as kaitiaki or guardians to farm in a way that limits the negative effects of farming," he told Dairy News.

In line with that, only natural fertilisers are used on the property, thus reducing nitrogen leaching into the Waikato River. No antibiotics are used and Jacob has also reduced the stocking rate and introducing mixed grass species such as plantain, lucerne, cocksfoot, different kinds of clover, and chicory. He says cows like the variety of pasture.

"A lot of the grasses have healing properties so the cow can self-medicate. That's part of the way we manage, and this also improves soil health. When we first started here you couldn't find any worms - now you can go into pretty much any paddock and there are worms," he says.

They source organic maize grain from Hastings and this year are planting their own maize silage and as well have a run-off block.

While Ratu and his team have the flexibility to manage the farm in 'the Māori way', they have to comply with the KPI's and rules of Pāmu. In the end it's about meeting defined outcomes but there is flexibility about how these can be met.

Profitability is one of these and because Broadlands is a new conversion, it is still a little way off the performance of other well established Pāmu organic farms. But, in terms of the Wairakei cluster, it's performing well and above others.

A Tight-Knit Team

For a start, let's not forget the role of Jacob Ratu's wife Mere.

She is the compliance analyst for all the dairy farms in the Wairakei cluster. Her role is to ensure that all the farms, including Broadlands, are meeting the expectations of the assurance programmes that underpin the Pāmu brand. So in effect she must keep a close eye on her husband as well as the other farm managers, but it's fair to say he has a slight advantage and maybe sneaks some more time on the farm that he likes.

Freedom Carson tail painting cows on the farm.

The Māori team at Broadlands is tight knit and they socialise a lot together. Touch rugby, netball and trips to the gym in Taupo feature a lot - as do the families, sharing kai together on special occasions. Mere Ratu says manaakitanga - meaning the process of showing respect, generosity and care for the people who use services - is a priority for those at Broadlands.

"We do a lot with out whole farm whanau; we include the partners and kids of all our workers and that is really important. We make a special point of welcoming new workers and introducing them to the ret of the farm whanau because it can be quite isolating living rurally and being away from your actual whanau," she says.

On the farming side, Jacob Ratu and his two key assistants meet every day and there's a general staff meeting every week at which Māori protocols such as karakia are performed. Being all Māori means that Māori values are taken for granted.

"I take great pride in having a team that are all Māori. I think by staff being part of the solution and being able to have a say, it gives them a lot of ownership and pride in the farm. If you care for your staff, they will return the favour and care for you as an employer and friend and in turn care for the farm. This may be why we have such a low [staff] turnover," he says.

Right now, Broadlands is unique and a venture that has worked well both for Pāmu and Jacob and Mere and the staff.

"To me, organic farming is like our kaumātua, kuia used to farm - low inputs, no fertiliser, no antibiotics, lower stocking rates. As we all know, there is a lot of attention to detail on organic farms; you cannot take your finger off the pulse," concludes Jacob Ratu.