How do you take your coffee? With milk, of course.
Meet Paul Mumford, a dairy farmer from Won Wron in South Gippsland who helps provide the nutritious and delicious jersey milk many of us enjoy in our everyday coffees.
Q: Why did you become a farmer?
A: Paul
After nine years of working in a bank and Lisa in the local health service, we decided as a couple, that we would like to raise our family on a farm rewarding them with the same environment, memories and lifestyle that we were fortunate to have.
Q: Did you grow up dreaming of having your own farm?
A: Paul
No, we didn’t expect to own our own farm, what we were given by my parents was an opportunity to farm, we grabbed this opportunity and made it our own! Now, as a result, now we own our own farm.
Q: Is it a family affair?
A: Paul
It was a family affair at a point. Our journey started with myself as a paid employee on my parent’s dairy farm, we then with Lisa started share-farming for them shortly after and growing our portion over time.
We then took the next steps and went into partnership and eventually some eight years ago the family went through succession planning and we now own the farm business outright.
Q: If you weren’t a farmer what would you be?
A: Paul
A bonsi grower or artist!
Q: What makes your product so special?
A: Paul
Jersey milk is enriched with healthy nutrients, including vitamins A, D and E.
Jersey milk is also high in A2 protein and is one of the healthiest beverages anyone can drink.
Q: What’s your farm doing to combat climate change?
A: Paul
Firstly, we analyse ourselves and benchmark our business against others to see where we stand between our counterparts.
Jerseys are also more efficient and have a smaller Co2 footprint on the environment than other breeds.
On our farm, we reduce our energy use with planned solar installation and many other initiatives that come from our industry peak body, the Australian Dairy Industry Council and its Sustainability Framework.
Q: How are you using technology on the farm?
A: Paul
We embrace technology to help assist the people in the business and also manage and maintain our herd and their health in the most efficient way.
We use automatic cup removers in the dairy and also we’re using auto-sorting technology to keep our girls happy and healthy on a daily basis. They also have motion collars that allow early detection if one of the cows are unwell.
Q: How do you take your coffee?
A: Paul
In short, always with milk!
Q: How do we get our hands on your products?
A: Paul
All of the fresh milk you see in the supermarkets is Australian, so make sure you pick up some local, fresh milk the next time you’re at the shops.