After 17 years at Milne Feeds, and a career in Ag spanning over 4 decades, Dean Maughan is hanging up the boots and getting ready to enjoy his retirement. Dean is well respected in many areas of the industry, and his passion, enthusiasm and ‘can do’ attitude will be sadly missed at Milne Feeds. Here is his story:
‘In mid 2005, I joined Milne Feeds for one year, following attendance at a two-day workshop which explained new feed technology that Milne wished to introduce to the WA cattle and sheep industries. I could see that this technology would reduce acidosis, improve production and simplify the feeding of animals. That one year has extended to 17 years and this month I have retired to enjoy the next phase of my life.
On joining Milne, I was given the title of ‘Sales’ Manager. At the time, this did not fit well with me as I was not interested in ‘selling’ anything to farmers, many of whom were close friends. I made it clear that I was not going to sell or ‘flog’ pellets to anyone. However, after working for 20 years in the dairy industry, I knew all too well the issue that farmers had managing acidosis and transitioning the rumen to high grain rations. I thought that by taking on the role with Milne I would be able to help farmers by introducing them to this new technology. I firmly believed that it would make a real difference for them – and what a difference it did make. A few years down the track and we see that dairy farmers, using Milne Feeds’ pellets, can now feed their cows their maximum ration 2-3 days after calving, instead of the standard 10-14 day introduction period. We see that sheep farmers in WA, using EasyOne® and LambGro®, no longer have a 14 day introductory feeding program before commencing the ‘finishing’ feeding for lambs. We also see beef producers being able to introduce cattle on to the finishing ration, EasyBeef®, without the need to go through the challenge of feeding a “starter” ration. Thanks to the technology in Milne Feeds’ products, feeding is now ‘simpler’, in that careful attention to mixing rations is not required. It is also ‘safer’ because animals can be put straight on to high production rations. The risk of the worker getting the mix wrong, resulting in sick or dead animals, has also been greatly reduced. I like to think that I have had a small role in helping many farmers to change the way that they feed their animals, and reap the resulting rewards.
Through my work in the northwest, I have gained a great deal of satisfaction from helping pastoralists to change the way they manage their small weaners. Historically, a small weaner, at the time of the final muster before the wet season, was either weaned and sent out to ‘fend for itself’ (and hopefully survive long enough to get the fresh green feed), or it stayed with the lightweight mother, risking the survival of both. If both survived, there was then a good chance that the cow may not get pregnant. About 15 years ago, I was visiting stations and seeing firsthand what was happening with these small weaners. In either situation, they became unproductive poddy animals, requiring at least another year before being saleable. I introduced Early Weaner® to a couple of stations and saw how well it worked. For the first time, pastoralists had a high-energy, high-protein feed with balanced minerals and vitamins, so that they could literally cut the top off a bulka bag and feed to weaners ad lib. It was totally safe, foolproof and well-suited to the station conditions. ‘Carefully’ introducing feed to weaners on a station is something that is often on the bag feeding label but, with the workload and relatively unskilled labour on stations, it is totally impractical for pastoralists. Early Weaner®, using the Milne Feeds technology, came along, eliminated the need for introduction, and changed the way small weaners could be managed. Today a very large proportion of WA pastoralists use Early Weaner® as a management tool to improve weaner survival and growth, and to improve cow conception rates.
I have always taken an approach that I wanted to ‘help’ a farmer or pastoralist to improve their animal feeding and profitability, rather than to ‘sell’ them something. I have never ‘flogged’ a pellet and have been happy to walk away if a farmer was happy with what he was doing. This approach and opportunity to help people has given me tremendous job satisfaction.
I have been very fortunate to have made so many acquaintances and friends from simply doing my job. Farmers and pastoralists are, in the large majority, such nice, genuine people and they have helped me to gain so much satisfaction from my work. I will miss the regular contact with so many of the great people that I have had the pleasure to work with, but I know that I will be able to get on the phone or call in for a chat at any time. How lucky am I!
Finally, I have been so fortunate to work for Graham Laitt and with the very dedicated staff at Milne Feeds. They are an amazing bunch of committed people. As clients, farmers see Milne Feeds as me, the sales person, and the product that they buy, but I can assure you that the best part of Milne Feeds is the commitment to research and development and continuous product improvement, and the great people who, at times, work their butts off to ensure that the product gets to customers on time. They really are a fantastic bunch of people.
I wish you all the very best and trust that you receive the best returns for the work you do in your efforts to feed WA consumers. I know what it takes to put the milk, yoghurt, meat, lamb, chicken and pork on my table, and I do hope that you get well rewarded for what you do to make this happen.
Thank you for your support over the years and all the very best. Please feel free to call any time for a chat.’
