Welcome to Coles Farms
We are a family owned and operated agricultural business based around dairy farming, but we also have interests in dairy grazing, beef farming, cropping and agricultural contracting. We are proud to call South Canterbury home and believe it is one of the best places in the country to farm, live and play.
Having quality people in our team is one of the keys to the success of our business, and we strive to find opportunities which allow our people to grow alongside us.
So if you’d like to be part of our team, contact us today.
BARKERS CROSSING
Located alongside State Highway One between Orari and Winchester in South Canterbury, this is the Coles Family’s home farm, where approximately 900 cows are milked through a 60-bale rotary shed.
The original 104ha block was purchased in 2004, and over the years it has grown to its current size of 287ha.
The farm is irrigated by centre pivots and soft hose guns, and has a branch of the Ohapi Creek begin from a spring on the property.
This is also where the Coles Farms office and workshop are situated.
AFRESCO
This property is owned by an equity partnership consisting of the Coles and another couple. Situated near the Fonterra factory at Clandeboye, the original part of the farm was purchased in 2006 with the neighbouring property purchased and converted a year later.
The original part of the farm has since been sold, leaving the current 300ha platform where approximately 900 cows are milked through a 54-bale rotary shed.
It is irrigated mainly with centre pivots drawing water from a deep well and two on-farm storage ponds linked to the Rangitata South Irrigation Scheme.
ORARI GRAZING
Located near Albury on the boundary of the Timaru and Mackenzie Districts, this 400ha rolling hill country support block is where the Coles graze young stock from the dairy farming operations they are involved with, along with Angus and Hereford beef herds. Various supplementary crops are also grown here.
The farm offers opportunities for hunting along with spectacular views over the Mackenzie Basin and out to the coast.
In 2017 the Barkers Crossing property became one of Synlait’s Lead With Pride certified farms, and Afresco followed suit in 2020. Lead with Pride recognizes and financially rewards suppliers who achieve dairy farming best practice, with independent assessments on an annual basis. Skills and industry leadership must be demonstrated in four pillars: Environment; Animal Health & Welfare; Milk Quality, and Social Responsibility.
The Coles have always had a goal to be a leading agribusiness, recognizing that this is about treating the land, their animals and people well and being the kind of farmers their community is proud to support. To find out more about the Lead With Pride programme, click here: Lead With Pride
INITIAL DAIRIES
The Coles are one of nine investors in a company which purchased a 103ha dairy farm at Hilton in 2018, after being set up in 2012 to take on a 50:50 sharemilking contract on a 500-cow property at Papakaio, North Otago.
The aim of this business is to provide an opportunity for smaller investors to pool their equity and skills with others in the group to achieve a common goal of operating a high quality and financially stable farming operation.
Due to the large number of investors, shareholders are able to come and go as their own circumstances change, without the entire company needing to be wrapped up, providing a flexible and sustainable model for a long-term business.
DRILL & TILL
A small contracting business, which primarily services properties under the management of Coles Farms, carrying out cultivation and direct drilling.
This is another example of growing a business alongside one of our key employees, who has been with the Coles Farms team for a number of years.