Andrew Barlass - Mid-Canterbury dairy farmer
Andrew Barlass and family operate a fully self-contained farming system, milking 1,500 cows between two fully integrated dairy platforms, helped by the use of his three Kubota M7s. Check out the video or read his story below.
Andrew Barlass’s family has been dairy farming in the foothills of Canterbury since 1947. His grandfather purchased the property from his great-grandfather, and the property has seen a range of different types of farming over the years.
Andrew currently operates a fully self-contained farming system, milking 1,500 cows between two fully integrated dairy platforms.
His relationship with Kubota began with his father’s appreciation of Japanese engineering, buying their first MGX in 2002.
They are currently running three M7s on the farm and they’re used for farm work throughout the year. During forage season, they’ll have one with the mower on, one with a baler on, and one doing other work. In winter, they’re feeding out silage, followed by cultivation over July and August, right through to September.
Andrew likes the size of the M7. “They put the power down, which gives a lot more traction.”
He says the power profile and the torque profile come into play when working with the baler which means they don’t get many blockages. “The same thing happens in cultivation. The revs will go down, but the tractor just keeps on going,” says Andrew.
The cab has relatively small pillars and lots of surface area glass that gives great visibility. ‘It’s a fairly simple and uncomplicated cabin and, for us, that’s great because we’ve got lots of different people here,’ says Andrew.
His staff find the Kubota tractors are easy to operate – anyone can hop in and work the tractor with no issues at all. Without a lot of buttons and electronics and computer screens, it’s simple and easy to operate.
Andrew has been dealing with Norwood Ashburton for longer than he can remember. And his father before him, too. He has a regular servicing schedule for his Kubota tractors. In an emergency, the Norwood Field Technicians are usually there on the same day so he can get back up and running. Michael Gallagher, his sales representative does a great job, and Andrew’s found that prices are really strong.
Andrew would 100% recommend Kubota machinery to any farmer thinking about investing in a new tractor. He also recommends Norwood Ashburton to others, “We do a whole variety of things here, and they know exactly what we need.”