For some young people raised in rural Australia, graduating from Year 12 is often seen as an opportunity to finally fly the coop and head for the nearest major town or city. Curious to experience life beyond the parameters of their small farming communities, these young men and women set about exploring the diversity and opportunities of urbanisation. This trend was no less evident than in Claire Wallace’s family in South West Victoria, where all three of her brothers left several generations of dairy farming to pursue trades and professions totally unrelated to the dairy industry.
Claire had no intention whatsoever of following her brothers off the farm. Dabbling briefly in outside employment as a Green Corp member, after she finished high school, Claire found that her heart and mind was still often drifting back to the farm. After 6 months with Green Corp the determined 17 year old decided to follow her heart and returned to work on her parent’s 500 acre dairy property. Four and a half years later Claire is still bucking the trend and has no real desire to leave home, never mind what most people her age are doing. “I am really passionate about this place and I love being part of this local farming community. If staying here is seen as going against the grain – so be it,” she states adamantly.
Currently Claire is in the process of buying out her brothers’ shares in the property so that she can eventually own the farm outright. “I guess, traditionally, farms are usually passed on to at least one of the men in the family,” she explains. “But when my parents announced that they wanted to consider retirement, there wasn’t a lot of objections when I put up my hand to take over,” she reflects. “This commitment to taking over my parents’ farm has meant I am now responsible for supervising day to day activities, managing income and expenditure by keeping relevant records, maintaining and evaluating accounts of farming activities, watching what the market is doing and planning accordingly. It is essential that we maintain equipment and other systems on the farm in order for the property to run smoothly. As you can see, dairy farming is not just about milking cows, it’s about running a business and to survive, we have to be organized and structured.”
back to topIn 2003 Claire began a traineeship in dairy farming and it was here that her obvious intelligence and aptitude for the industry became evident. With a string of achievements to her name it could be safely said that the young dairy farmer cleaned up in just about every award for which she was nominated. “I was Trainee of the Year for the Glenormiston Campus, VSS Trainee of the Year, Victorian Trainee of the Year and Runner Up for the Australian Trainee of the Year in Dairy Farming,” she says with unmistakable pride. “My successes allowed me to travel to New Zealand on a study tour for 10 days and I also won cash prizes that I put back into the farm.” Now with her traineeship successfully behind her, Claire is currently studying for her Diploma in Agriculture, which will further enhance her knowledge and skills of the dairy industry.
At 22 years of age Claire is proud to be part of a family that has contributed for so long to a solid Victorian tradition. Dairy farming began in Victoria around the mid 1830s and with its lush pastures and predictable rainfall, it eventually became Australia's major dairy State. From only 155 head of cattle in 1836, it now has over 13% of the world trade in manufactured dairy products. With an annual turnover of just under $4.8 billion, over 7,000 Victorian farmers feed a dairy manufacturing industry that accounts for nearly 10% of the value of the entire Australian food and beverage market. However, in an industry of this size, diversification and modernization can clash with old traditions and Claire is fearful of what some aspects of this modification might mean. “Within 10 years so many of the dairy farms could be owned by large companies and run by just managers and staff, meaning that family owned farms will become increasingly rare and I am not personally convinced that this will be good for the industry,” she states.
Claire Wallace is truly committed to her role as a dairy farmer often working from 6am to 6pm, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year and during harvesting and calving frequently having to work through the night too. “On cold winter mornings we may have to get up before dawn to 2 degree temperatures and driving, ice cold rain and sleet to bring the cows in for milking,” she says with humour. As a young woman with a deep passion for her vocation, it’s not uncommon for Claire to spend hours nurturing a sick calf back to life. Failure to do so can result in bouts of sadness; however a success can leave her elated and beaming for days. It’s this personal, nurturing touch and deep sense of commitment that Claire fears will be compromised if small farms continue to be taken over by big business.
back to topPresently operating the farm with the help of her partner Kevin and at times drawing on the support of her mum and dad if things get really hectic, Claire concedes that women running dairy properties of this size could be considered rare, though she comments that it is probably more common than some might expect. “However, at 22, I’m sure to be one of the youngest,” she admits. “Though I have been doing this for a number of years and I’m well known in the district, occasionally a new salesperson or agent will come up here and ask me if they can speak to the boss. It certainly doesn’t take long for them to realise that they are talking to her,” she laughs.
Though women have traditionally taken on a supportive role within the farming industry, Claire sees no reason why girls can’t run their own business and be more than successful in managing all facets of this type of diverse, rural industry. “If your heart tells you that owning and managing your own farm is what you want to do, it’s important to follow your dream and not be put off by what some people think or what tradition might dictate,” Claire says. “If you have to go against the grain – do it.”
“Don’t get put off - try your hardest and give anything a go.”
“In this day and age you can do whatever you want. There is now nothing in this world that can stop a girl from doing what she wants to do.”
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