Save the date: 2026 JerseyNZ Conference – Canterbury
Mark your calendars! Our 2026 Conference is heading to Canterbury during the week of 20 April. It’s shaping up to be an unforgettable event full of insights, innovation and connection.
Dates, itinerary and hotel location will be confirmed soon – stay tuned!
Whether you’re a long-time member or new to the fold, this is your chance to experience a Conference of learning, networking and a few good laughs. We look forward to hosting you in the South.
Watch this space for registrations…
JerseyNZ 2025 Conference – Karaka April 2025
Written by Jackie Kennedy
JerseyNZ’s 2025 Annual Conference brought members together in the South Auckland region for three lively days of insight, inspiration and celebration, with the focus on Jerseys bringing ‘The Right Balance’ to the dairy table.
Day one kicked off with a welcome lunch, featuring premium products from King’s Creamery and their mango lassi was enjoyed by many of the group. We then headed off to Cullen Farms, an impressive farm operation with four Lely robotic machines installed. Our Conference was proudly supported with a Silver sponsorship by Lely and it was great to hear from Jason Whelan, Cullen Farms’ manager and Paul Gilling from Lely to hear more about the farm’s direction and aspirations. Although we didn’t see the cows milking, the group managed to see what happens inside a robotic milker when a cow enters the unit.
The evening programme featured the presentation of the Semex On Farm Challenge Awards, with Vince Steiner, our judge for the 2024/25 Competition, giving reasonings for his placings. A delicious LIC-sponsored dinner and the highly anticipated Jersey Pride Sale followed.
Day two began with a thought-provoking industry panel discussion, facilitated by Brent Goldsack (you can read the summary of this on page 60). The discussion tackled topics such as climate adaptation to efficiency and sustainability. A number of delegates then enjoyed a tour of the Karaka grounds before heading to Pukekohe Raceday for lunch and live action, with a couple of members leaving with slightly fatter wallets – proving their talent doesn’t stop at breeding good cows! Our very own and very serious ‘cow-race-on-toilet-paper’ was held with John Ellis taking out the top prize.
The evening festivities were kicked off with a steam train ride to Waiuku where the annual JerseyNZ Special
Awards were presented. The theme for the night was ‘Cream of the Crop Cup’. The dinner was sponsored by Smaxtec and came complete with jockeys, fascinators and even a hobby horse that has since taken up residence in the JerseyNZ office.
Delegates headed back on the steam train to the Hotel where a whiskey tasting, courtesy of the Lower Waikato Jersey Club capped off the night.
The final day began with our breakfast keynote speaker from none other than Peter Nation, former CEO of Fieldays. After the cream can session and hotel checkout, attendees headed to Donald’s Farm for the ‘Right Balance Fielday’, a joint initiative with Jersey Advantage showcasing practical examples of balance in breeding, production and sustainability. The Fielday was promoted to a wider audience outside of the Conference. Unfortunately, the weather hindered attendance, but attendees that did make the effort were able to hear from Sam Waugh, manager of Donald’s Farm, Malcolm Ellis of Fonterra and Mark Williams from DairyNZ.
Whether it was catching up with friends or learning from leaders, the 2025 Conference had something for everyone, all while reinforcing the value and versatility of the Jersey breed.
We look forward to hosting members in Canterbury in 2026. Save the week of the 20th of April in your diaries!
Once again, a heartfelt thank you to our generous sponsors who made this event possible – LIC, Smaxtec, Lely, Link Livestock, World Wide Sires, CRV, Cropmark Seeds and King’s Creamery.
DAY 1 – GALLERY
DAY 2 – GALLERY
DAY 3 – GALLERY
