Young Tassie dairy cattle breeder wins inaugural $10,000 Greenham Tasmania Scholarship

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Young Tassie dairy cattle breeder wins inaugural $10,000 Greenham Tasmania Scholarship

2004-01-28

Young Tassie dairy cattle breeder wins inaugural

Michael Armstrong

$10,000 Greenham Tasmania scholarship

Young dairy cattle breeder Michael Armstrong has won the inaugural Greenham Tasmania Scholarship. The winner was announced today at Greenham’s Smithton plant.

The $10,000 scholarship is funded by Greenham Tasmania Pty Ltd to help young people prepare for a future in the Australian dairy or beef industries. Applications were assessed by a panel of independent judges, including Member for Murchison Tony Fletcher, Smithton High School principal Judy Lutwyche, DairyTas executive officer Mark Smith and Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association executive officer, Roger Tyshing

The son of Philip and Julie who run a dairy farm at Togari about 20 kms south-west of Smithton, Michael last year began studying an Advanced Diploma of Agriculture (dairy) at Victoria’s McMillan campus at Warragul. The scholarship will help him cover the cost of his studies.

When advised of his win, the 19 year-old was showing cattle at International Dairy Week at Tatura in northern Victoria. Overjoyed with his success, Michael said the scholarship was going to make his life “a heck of a lot easier.”

“I am currently working 50 to 65 hours a week to put myself through university. In about 18 months, when I finish this current Diploma course, I want to start on a Bachelor of Agribusiness (degree) and I will need much more time to study if I want to achieve my goals,” he said.

“The scholarship will mean I can back off on the work a bit and put more time and effort into my studies. It will also mean I will be able to keep my own Holstein cattle breeding program going by easing the burden of my education expenses.”

Greenham’s Tasmanian manager, Peter Greenham (Jr), said that Michael’s application for the scholarship clearly showed he was prepared to work hard and long hours to support his studies.

“The judges were particularly impressed by Michael’s passion for the dairy industry, despite the fact that it is going through tough times,” Peter said. “His vision for his own and the industry's future showed the judges his potential as a grass roots leader for the industry and an influence for good in his community.”

As part of that vision Michael has invested earnings from his employment into the purchase of cows and embryos that have been registered under his own “Silkydale” stud. In the past two years he has carried out an embryo transplant program that has seen 50 embryos implanted and up to five heifers being flushed at a time.

Michael said his key objective was to pursue a career in the Australian dairy industry by obtaining a dairy farm management position on a large dairy enterprise.

“Dairy farm enterprises are becoming much larger-scale businesses where investors are willing to back operations and appoint a manager to handle the day-to-day running. This kind of business intensity excites me and I can see it becoming a career with no boundaries,” he said.

Raised on a 260-cow commercial farm on the far north-west coast of Tasmania, Michael maintains a very positive outlook for the future of dairy farming despite his parents’ misgivings about the prospects for dairy operators in the toughening economic environment and changing climatic conditions.

“Many dairy operations managed to break even or turn a profit in the recent harsh operating conditions because they focussed on efficiency,” Michael said. “I believe that if an industry can survive lack of water, drought, high input prices and the rising Australian dollar against other currencies then farm efficiency combined with forward planning will ensure a vibrant a profitable industry.”

Michael read about the scholarship through the monthly Greenham’s Corner column, which the company publishes in Tasmanian Country to keep Tasmanian farmers informed about the latest industry news. His parents saw the announcement and sent him a copy while he was away studying and working.

“I think the scholarship is a great idea for young people in Tasmania; the costs of further education makes it pretty hard to continue studying, even if you want to. This should help and encourage a lot of future farmers,” Michael said.

Peter Greenham said the aim of the scholarship was to encourage and help young people who were willing to make a commitment to farm industries but may not necessarily have the resources to realise their ambitions.

“Changing climate and economic environments will mean that the next generation of dairy and beef farmers and related industry workers will need to be better educated and skilled to be able to compete and contribute not only to the industry but also to their own future. Personal development through education is one of the best ways of achieving these goals,” he said.

Peter said the scholarship was also a way for the company to support the Tasmanian meat and dairy industries and the local community.

“It’s a way of giving something back to the many farming families who had been supporters of the company since our start-up in February 2001,” he said.

The Greenham Tasmania Scholarship is an expansion of a similar program introduced in Victoria by HW Greenham and Sons in 2000.

Among criteria considered were personal and academic achievements, potential benefits and relevance to Australian dairy and beef farmers and the industry of the chosen study area or career path and how important the scholarship might be in helping the applicant to undertake the study and potentially realise their ambitions.