After being in the same family for almost six decades, a South Westland dairy farm is for sale.
When Gary (‘Mac’) MacRae’s parents Elsa and Malcolm first leased Kintail Dairy Farm in 1967 it comprised 250 hectares, of which less than 20 per cent was effective. They milked their herd of 50 cows through a five-a-side herringbone shed. Now the herd and the shed are both around nine times that size.
“Back then the catchment board gave them loans, enabling them to work on improving the drainage. Additional development was focused on burning and ploughing,” says Mac.
Elsa and Malcolm bought the property outright in 1972, purchasing and developing neighbouring blocks as they went along. Mac and his wife Sarndra moved home in 1991, initially as sharemilkers. By this stage the herd was up to 180 cows. In 2000 Mac and Sarndra bought Elsa and Malcolm out.
“We’ve had two diggers in our time. We’ve turned wet land into productive land by humping and hollowing.”
Re-grassing has been an ongoing mission, while Mac and Sarndra have also increased focus on genetics.
“We’ve progeny tested for the past 15 years, and we also DNA test our cows,” says Mac.
Since 2013 the farm has benefited from a modern 54-bail rotary shed equipped with cup removers, auto teat sprayer, Protrack drafting, and in-shed meal and molasses systems. Now supporting a 450-cow herd, Kintail comprises 425 hectares, of which 260 are effective.
“We’ve also put in Halter, now in its second season. It really has made life on the farm a lot easier.”
Over the last four years the MacRaes have been on a three in two day milking system, going to once a day for the last couple of months of each season. Their five-year average production sits at just below 160,000 kilograms of milksolids per annum.
In 2014 the district became isolated for a while as a cyclone blew down trees, wrecked fences, and washed out bridges.
“How everyone pulled together to ensure we could all manage was my outstanding memory of that time. We had 18 people trapped, all with different skills. All pulled together to make sure we could get by until the bridges were reconnected. It showed just what a great community this is,” says Sarndra.
Before and since then the community has played a huge part in the MacRaes’ lives. Mac has been president of the RSA; the committee that runs the South Westland Triathlon each April; and Whataroa RFC, which musters players from Fox to Greymouth to compete in the Woodham Shield. In addition to being the power behind the throne of Mac’s community service, Sarndra’s expertise as a midwife keeps her busy beyond the farm: a neat connection as the Kintail homestead Elsa and Malcolm moved into in 1972, and where Sarndra and Mac still live, had a previous life as the district’s maternity home.
One added attraction not to be forgotten in South Westland is the area’s great fishing and hunting, with plenty of brown trout in the Whataroa and Waitangitāhuna rivers, plus tahr, chamois, red deer and goats across the Whataroa, Butler, and Perth river valleys.
While the next MacRae generation, Steph, Jesse, Jorja and Andrew, all live on the West Coast, none aspires to take over the farm, so Mac and Sarndra have put it in the hands of Robbie Lash of PGG Wrightson Real Estate, Greymouth to find a buyer. He says Kintail’s history of development, alongside the MacRaes’ ongoing investment in infrastructure and technology, make it stand out.
“This property offers productivity and lifestyle in equal measure. Developed for performance and longevity, it is a turnkey solution for those seeking scale and efficiency in a stunning West Coast setting,” he says.
While they’ll miss the farm, the MacRaes have purchased a 10-hectare block that they intend to turn into a Whataroa base for the family.
“This is an amazing community with spectacular views and wide-open spaces. In this place, we’ve been able to give our children an ideal upbringing. They still regard this as home, and always will,” says Sarndra.
Kintail Dairy Farm, 14 kilometres north of Whataroa, is offered for sale with an asking price of $5.2 million. Stock and plant are available at valuation.
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