The Real World

Living the good life!

Tony Janssen works and lives on his parents' 188ha farm. He’s known from the age of five that he wanted to be a farmer.

“I chose farming as a career because I can get ahead quickly and move forward. You get lots of opportunities. I want to own my own farm one day.”

Tony loves the variety and excitement of working on a dairy farm. On an average day he is up at 4.30am to get the cows in and milk them. Around 8am he has breakfast for an hour then feeds out 'til 11.30am. It’s then time for a nice, long lunch break. At 2.30pm Tony gets the cows in and works until 6pm.

Of course this all changes during calving season, during July and August on Tony’s farm, when anything can happen!

“Anything can change on a calving day,” Tony tells us. “You could calve a cow straight after breakfast, which stuffs your whole day because you’ve got to calve this cow but you’ve got a lot of other stuff going on. The cow’s health comes first, so you’ve got to tend to them before any other jobs.

“Each one is different,” Tony tells us. “Some cows you hate, some cows you love. You have your favourites.”

Tony loves the outdoors, so farming is a perfect career choice.

“It’s a good lifestyle. Every day is different, there’s a lot going on all the time and I’m never bored.”

But he admits there is a downside…the hangovers on Sunday morning!

Many people think farming is a lonely life, but Tony is proof you can be a farmer and have a good time!

“I like going to rugby and cricket games, playing touch, outdoors stuff, clubbing with my town friends and going out with the Young Farmers Club.”

As Rotorua Young Farmers Club treasurer, Tony looks after the financial side of things. And he says it’s a great way for young people to meet each other, get advice and get involved in the community.

It’s also about having a good time and socialising.

“We do things like pool nights down at the pub, rock climbs and barbecues - all sorts of fun stuff. Each club decides what they want to do.”

Tony has some words of wisdom for would-be farmers.

“If you get a shit job you won’t stay in farming for that long. Don’t jump into the first job. Some are easier than others and some can be quite hard. Just be patient and shop around for a good deal.”