General News
10 September, 2025
Dairy farmers dare to do things differently
THE Atherton Tablelands dairy industry is continuing its push to build a sustainable, community-backed farming region, with a second Tablelands Dairy Pathways (TDP) information night on Tuesday, 2 September.
Held at the Malanda Dairy Centre, the meeting attracted a crowd keen to understand the steps in creating a dairy sector that provided ownership opportunities for the next generation of young farmers.
“We had a solid turnout of 48 people,” TDP chair Colin Daley said.
“There was a good mix, about half were local farmers keen on the future of dairy here, and the rest included community members, some business folks from town, and a strong following of aspiring share farmers. Everyone from long-time locals to newcomers showed up, which tells us the word’s getting out.”
TDP first introduced the collective farming concept in November last year, under the name Far North Queensland Dairy Pathways Program.
“As we met as locals, we realised it was really all about the Tablelands, our home ground with its rich soils and strong dairy roots. The name Tablelands Dairy Pathways just feels more grounded and local, like it belongs here,” said.
“It’s a small tweak, but it captures the heart of what we’re building for our community.”
The pathways program was launched, and is based on, the highly successful Circular Head project in Tasmania, which now has up to 12 locally-owned farms with more than 9,000 cows, and which has provided career opportunities for young farming families.
It works like a land trust, with local investment assisting in farm purchases, and next-generation farmers managing the farms as a share farm deal to ultimately buy the farm off the investors.
“Tablelands Dairy Pathways is about creating real, sustainable pathways for the next generation to own and run dairy farms right here on our fertile soils, while preserving local ownership, building a low-risk investment model that benefits everyone involved, and strengthening our dairy supply chain to keep fresh milk flowing to North Queenslanders,” Mr Daley said.
“It’s not just about farms, it’s about holding on to our heritage, supporting resilient communities, and making sure the wealth generated stays local, circulating through jobs, businesses, and families for years to come.”
TDP is also supported by Ag Management and the Dairy Farmers Milk Cooperative.
Tuesday night’s meeting was the first time the TDP board met with the community.
Led by Mr Daley, it includes Mark Kebbel, Rob Cooper, Ross McInnes, Stephen Fisher, Thomas O’Connor, Howard Smith, Trevor Ball and Bill Tranter, and brings “deep expertise in agriculture and governance”.
“We’ve been working hard behind the scenes since the board formed earlier this year, and it was great to finally share our faces, stories, and progress with everyone,” Mr Daley said.
“We spoke about our vision to strengthen the local dairy supply chain, the importance of local ownership, and how we’re analysing farms to find the right first one,” Mr Daley said.
He said since the first meeting last year, TDP had run six training sessions to build a core group of leaders, some of whom had joined the board, and which covered everything from local investment strategies to adapting the Circular Head model for the Tablelands.
“We’ve put together a solid business plan and target financial model, formed the board with strong governance in place, and started reviewing legal structures for handling investments.
“We’ve analysed multiple farms, set criteria for selecting share farmers, and got the ball rolling on due diligence on a number of farms.
“It’s been boots-on-the-ground work, field trips, number-crunching with experts like Tim Pilkington, and weekly meetings to keep things moving. We’re not there yet, but we’ve laid a strong foundation without rushing it.”
The next steps were focused on the practical.
“That means finalising the legal setup and company structure, doing full due diligence on one or two promising properties, raising funds from the community, securing a motivated share farmer, and making that first purchase, hopefully by the end of the year if things align,” Mr Daley said.
“Then we’ll repeat the process to grow. We’re inviting people who are inspired by the vision to chat one-on-one if they’re interested in investing, share farming, or just sharing ideas.
“It’s about steady progress, building trust, and making sure this works for the long haul for our farmers and the whole Tablelands community.”
