SUCCESSOR: New federal president of the Illawarra Cattle Society of Australia Geoff Cochrane (left) with outgoing president Bolong’s David Henry with Beauna Vista Cherry, which was reserve champion cow at this year’s Sydney Royal Show.
By ROBERT CRAWFORD, South Coast Register Newspaper, Nowra.
PYREE dairy farmer Geoff Cochrane has been elected federal president of the Illawarra Cattle Society of Australia.
He has taken over the three-year role from another Shoalhaven farmer, Bolong’s David Henry.
The federation president is the head of the society, who along with a board of directors represents the seven active branches around the country. The society’s head office is in Kiama.
Mr Cochrane was elected at the society’s annual meeting was staged at Malandra on the Atherton Tablelands, west of Cairns.
“Our role as a society is to deal with the affairs of the Illawarra cattle breed,” Mr Cochrane said. “We represent our members and make decisions for the betterment of our breed.”
“There is a lot happening in the breed for the society to deal with from one year to the next,” outgoing president Mr Henry added. “There are always new regulations and issues to be dealt with. Nowadays we seem to have more to do than ever; it’s not just about milking cows.”
“There is also a very social aspect to the society, all the farmers know each other and we always endeavour to get together socially at cattle shows or functions,” Mr Cochrane said.
The Illawarra Cattle Society of Australia has 270 members nationwide and represents producers from South Australia and Victoria to the Atherton Tablelands in the north.
“This is a great honour and it’s fantastic to take over the role from David. His father, Jim, was a great help and mentor to me when I was leaving school and just getting interested in the breed,” Mr Cochrane said.
“The Illawarra breed is doing great things. At the annual meeting it was announced that in the last 10 years it has had the greatest increase in production of any breed in Australia.”
Both men’s families have had an association of more than a century with the breed.
The Henrys have been farming on the Bolong flats since 1903, with Mr Henry’s son Ash, who is now the Beauna Vista property stud manager, the fifth generation to have farmed the property.
“We go back five generations to George Henry, who came out from the Shetland Islands in 1863 and settled in the area in the early 1900s,” Mr Henry said.
This year the Cochrane family celebrates the centenary of the birth of the first of the Gladys cow family. That bloodline still exists today, with a Gladys cow taking out champion Illawarra at this year’s Berry Show.
Describing himself as semi-retired, Mr Cochrane said he has never been so busy with his three sons, Tim, Daniel and Tom all dairying along with their wives Natalie, Bec and Kyleigh on properties at Terara, Wogamia and Pyree.
“I just try and keep an eye on all of them,” he laughs. “With our grandchildren we are now seventh generation farming in the district.”
The society’s previous president, Laurie Chittick, who now farms near Shepparton and was formally from Jamberoo, also has more than 100 years of involvement with the breed through his family.
“It’s pretty amazing that the past three presidents have all been born here in the district where the Illawarra breed was developed some 150 years ago and each of our families have been involved for more than 100 years,” Mr Cochrane said.
Locally the society has been running its annual Spring Fair show for more than 40 years and in recent times has also been involved in the All Breeds Calf Show, which will again be held this Sunday at the Berry Showground.
