Hawke’s Bay’s only raw milk supplier moving to new pastures

Hawke’s Bay’s only raw milk supplier is on the market after 18 years of selling milk direct to families across the region.

Lindsay Farm owners Paul and Christine Ashton have decided to retire, with the business currently supplying about 2000 customers and selling around 5000 litres of raw milk a week.

Their daughter, Ange Brooks, who has worked in the family business for about 13 years, told Hawke’s Bay News the decision was bittersweet.

“They've put their heart and soul into this business and selling direct, so I think they'll be sad to go, but also looking forward to having some rest. They've worked incredibly hard to create the business, so it's time for their next chapter.”

The business has faced challenges over the years, particularly as regulations around raw milk sales changed and Lindsay Farm dealt with the Ministry for Primary Industries.

“We've definitely had our challenges. The rules around selling raw milk changed in 2016 and were incredibly prohibitive around the model that we were using, and so we had to try and think outside the square and had some huge challenges with MPI, which has been resolved.

“Mum and Dad are in their late 60s now, so it's just their time to retire, really.”

The family began selling raw milk 18 years ago after people started approaching the organically run farm wanting to buy milk directly.

Brooks said her mother became curious about the demand and began researching raw milk, believing there could be more families across Hawke’s Bay wanting access to it.

That demand has continued to grow, with the business now having a waiting list.

“We've always sold around that sort of 5000 litres and we just can't keep up, it's crazy.”

What happens to the raw milk business will depend on who buys the property.

It could be sold as a going concern, allowing the raw milk operation to continue, or become a conventional dairy farm supplying Fonterra or be used for dry stock.

For now, it is business as usual.

If the eventual buyer did not want to continue the raw milk operation, Brooks said she would try to find another farmer interested in taking it on.

“I'm very committed that if it doesn't sell as a raw milk [business], if someone doesn't want to continue the raw milk business, I will try really hard to see if we can find a like-minded farmer who'd be interested in potentially taking the business and continuing it.

“No one else in Hawke's Bay supplies raw milk, so we're it, really, for all these families.”

The customers have been one of the highlights of running the business.

“You would find many families in Hawke's Bay who have either bought our milk or know people that have bought our milk, so we've supplied to thousands and thousands of families in Hawke's Bay.”

The family also branched into pasteurised milk about five years ago, at one stage supplying five supermarkets and eight smaller outlets.

Production was put on hold last year after demand grew beyond what the farm could supply.

“We were growing exponentially in the supermarkets and selling so well. It was really neat to do so well in that really fierce market.”

Brooks believes there is significant potential for someone wanting to continue the business and could potentially help a new owner through the transition.

Paul and Christine are not planning to give up farming altogether.

Her mother still loves farming, and the couple hope to buy a dry-stock block closer to Hastings where they can run beef cattle at a more leisurely pace.

For Brooks, what comes next is less certain.

“Hopefully someone takes on the business and there might be a transition role for me to support someone. It's an enormous amount for one person to try and figure out without some kind of support, but yeah, I don't know. World's my oyster, I guess.”

She said the family was grateful for the support it had received from the Hawke’s Bay community over the years.

“We've always done this business from a place of producing a quality product for families and it's never been about the money, it's about the passion and love for knowing that we do something really neat for our families.

“They have been incredibly supportive and done a lot for us and gone over and above just buying the milk. We're incredibly grateful to have had them all on this journey with us.”