John Happy To Leave Farm Behind
Illawarra Mercury
Saturday July 28, 2007
JOHN Wilson hasn't looked back since making the decision to close his Jerrara dairy in 2003.
After almost 30 years of 5am starts, being kicked by cows and working around the clock for little return, the 52-year-old now enjoys the benefits of a regular day job, as a labourer with Kiama Municipal Council.Mr Wilson said farmers were advised following deregulation in 2000 to treat their farms as a business, not a family operation."We had the decision to either sell up and make a profit, or ride out the drought and low dairy prices. I chose to sell," he said.Mr Wilson's farm, Bonnie Doone, had been operated by his family since 1954, making the decision to stop milk production especially difficult."But once I made the decision, I was relieved," he said. "It was an opportunity to clear my debts when I sold the cattle, and I no longer have the budgetary problems."I'm no longer my own boss, but I enjoy the work and the company. Dairy farming was pretty lonely."Mr Wilson has retained his 60ha property and now supplements his income by running a herd of 90 beef cattle.But while he regards the farm as a family legacy, the father of three does not envisage returning to life as a dairyman."Would I go back? No, not unless they paid me 75? a litre," he said."Once you leave, you don't go back."
© 2007 Illawarra Mercury