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Building a Dairy Legacy

There’s a special pride that is only felt by farmers. It’s the pride that comes from being part of a family-owned farm – the kind of farm that will be passed on from generation to generation. For the van Stuyvenberg family, they’re well on their way.

Gerald, his sister, two brothers and their parents came to Canada from Holland in 1987. Together, they started Orion Holsteins. It was a modest start with 35 cows, but they had big goals and an even bigger vision. A year later their first tie-stall barn was up to milking 90 cows. One year after that, they expanded and purchased the neighbouring farm. This was just the beginning.

Fast forward to 1998 when both Gerald and his brother married, both women joined the family and the farm. Together, this family expansion set their sights much farther. They immediately expanded to milking 150 cows in their tie-stall and raising families. Just a few years later, they bought out a neighbour to move milking operations across the road, to where they are today, and built their first free-stall barn. That original barn is now a heifer facility. The operation expanded again in 2010 with Christine and Gerry at the helm, adding two more buildings: a cow barn and a parlour facility – and just two years ago they upgraded from a double 20 parlour to a 60-stall rotary unit.

Today, Gerry, Christine, Leah and Noah van Stuyvenberg are the benchmark of a successful farming family, milking 640 cows, raising their own calves and heifers, and producing their own crops for feed. In just 35 years, they have grown by 600 cows. And yet, despite their impressive size and even more impressive growth, you can still walk in on any given day and see the day-to-day tasks almost entirely accomplished by the “core four” – Christine, Gerry, Leah and Noah. They are some of the proud faces of Canadian dairy farming today.

FAMILY FORWARD
The van Stuyvenberg family’s story isn’t revolutionary – yet it’s certainly impressive as you tour their farm. There are no hidden secrets to their success. It’s simply the story of hard work, a vision, and a family committed to setting goals, and exceeding them. It’s also a remarkable and inspiring success story that shows other aspiring Ontario and Quebec family-run dairy farms how far you can go with the right mix
of determination and know-how.

Christine believes their success is linked to the strong relationship they have as a family, as well as their committed, dedicated employees, who feel like part of it – including one who has been with them for
almost a decade. Several part-timers, including a “second generation employee” whose parents met while working on the farm, have also been hugely important.

One thing is for certain: dairy farming isn’t for everyone. But there’s a quiet beauty that only a dairy farmer can understand. At least that’s what Gerald says. It starts at the crack of dawn when he wakes up and takes that first early morning walk through the barn. It feels familiar and there’s a comfort in the routine – he’s been doing it for over 35 years and doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. This is when he makes his daily assessment; will today be calm or is he in for “complications”? His primary concern is for the welfare of his cows. This is something the whole family cares deeply about. How can they harness new innovations and how can that advance the comfort level for their livestock?

Christine and daughter, Leah, oversee milking the cows; sometimes that means scheduling employees, but often they do the milking together. Initially, Leah didn’t believe she would end up back on the farm when she went off to university. To her surprise, she found herself longing to go back.

“I found that I felt very accomplished after working here. As the years went by, I became more involved with the farm while I was still in school. I realized how fulfilled I felt, there’s just so much opportunity here. Not a lot of people get to say they work with their families everyday and enjoy it. I consider myself very lucky.” – Leah van Stuyvenberg

Christine came from 17 years in the corporate world before marrying Gerald and working on the farm. The family laughs when Christine eloquently describes her experience: “I’d rather deal with the cow#@# than the corporate bull%#$. It can be stressful – but it’s a happy, good place to be.”

Their son Noah’s story follows a similar arc. When asked about how they gravitated to their roles, Noah shared that it really came down to interests. He came back to the farm after college because he “missed waking up to the sunrise and working with [his] family… and driving the tractors”. Sometimes he just wants to come into the barn to say good morning to his mom.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
While it may seem like an obvious choice to want to carry the family torch, it’s not always the case and Christine knows they’re lucky to have kids that want to take over all that they’ve built. She attributes their continued progressive thinking and goal setting as a reason the kids are excited for a long career at Orion Holsteins. Gerry and Christine have always had their family top of mind when making these important long-term investments.

The van Stuyvenbergs have always worked with nutritionists, most recently with Dustin Newell. Dustin has watched the farm and family grow. He’s also been there to witness the shift of the next generation wanting to come onboard and embrace the farm. He recalls the early days when the conversations were all about growing and getting bigger – now they’re about this being a family business and wanting the kids to take over.

“Your kids are of a generation that really needs to love what they do, if they’re going to do it and be good at it. I really get the sense there’s a legacy involved here…building something then having the next generation take it over. It’s really cool.” – Dustin Newell

NEW GOALS, NEW HORIZONS
There is plenty of love for this lifestyle along with optimism for what’s to come. There are always new goals on the horizon for Orion Holsteins – maybe it’s a grain elevator or a feed mill, or maybe even another farm acquisition – who knows? One thing that is certain is that together, with their combined knowledge, experience and eye to the future, they will only continue to evolve, thrive and prosper. Their shared love for the family and all they’ve accomplished together on the farm shines through, as clear as day.