The Farmers Fast Five: Allie King

The Farming Fast Five: where we ask a farmer five quick questions about agriculture, and what farming means to them. Today we chat to Culverden dairy farmer Allie King.

1. What did your journey into farming look like?

I was born and raised in Christchurch, having no knowledge or experience of farming let alone the fact that Canterbury Dairy Farming was quite literally on our doorsteps! My family and I lived in the suburbs of Christchurch, with Dad being a banker and mum a Lawyer, I had only ever moved house once in my life- a stark contrast to my future of living on dairy farms and shifting on gypsy days to progress in the industry. 

At 19 I applied for a role with Customs and trained at Police College in Wellington for the role. It’s at this time I met Ben. Ben was a livestock agent living in Christchurch, I had no knowledge of what his job entailed. We soon decided to move to Ashburton together where he decided to try his career at farming and I worked admin for a dairy servicing company. That’s where our intro to farming began for me! 

2. Tell us a little bit about your farming operation

 We are currently 50:50 sharemilking in North Canterbury, 650 cows on roughly 170 ha. We have a mix of Crossbred and Jersey cows, running two herds consisting of the separated breeds. 

3. What challenges have you faced in your farming business, and how have you tackled those challenges? 

 There have been many challenges. I think navigating the shift in roles as a woman in farming is one of the biggest and ongoing challenges. Often, the journey starts with the husband farming while the wife works off-farm, but as you progress into contract milking and sharemilking, the farm suddenly becomes your role too; it becomes a joint business. This is a unique challenge for many women, particularly those of us without a rural background.

Finding the balance between working off-farm, supporting your husband, managing the administrative side of the business, and eventually starting a family; transitioning to a point where you leave “your job” for the farm and your family and that becomes your sole priorities. Another equally significant challenge for me, which coincides with the first one, is the “imposter syndrome” feeling. Feeling like a complete fraud, and feeling like I am not qualified to be doing what I’m doing or to label myself a “farmer” rather than a “farmers wife”, I really struggle to answer the “what do you do?” question! 

4. What has been a major highlight for you in your farming journey?

A huge highlight for me has been my involvement in the Dairy Womens Network. They’re an organisation which has been around for over 25 years, supporting and growing women in dairy. I started attending their events and eventually became a volunteer regional leader for Canterbury, and have moved into the role of Hub leader (team leader) for Canterbury and North Otago, leading the team of volunteers as well as liasing with head office and our wonderful network partners who fund us. This role has given me so much more confidence, widened my network and given me a community where I feel I belong; I feel a little less like a fish in a huge pond and more like a fish in the right pond! 

5. What advice would you have for the next generation of farmers?

Don’t be afraid to take opportunities and chances! Grow yourself and soak information up like a sponge! Get involved in discussion groups and organisations like DWN, you learn and network from this! You sometimes have to give up to go up, this may mean sacrificing some things or moving jobs to move up the ladder.