Hennig Pülsch, Farmer
Like father, like son. Farmer Henning Pülsch is a farmer like his father and manages a dairy farm together with him. He talked to us about the challenges of farming.
Hello, what's your name, how old are you, where is your farm and how big is it?
My name is Henning Pülsch, I am 28 years old and together with my father I run a dairy farm with 110 cows and 80 hectares of land in beautiful Geestland
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How long have you been supplying DMK?
Good question, I'll have to ask Dad exactly. We supplied the predecessors of Nordmilch, then Nordmilch, until the merger of DMK. You could say we always have.
What are your specific challenges on the farm at the moment? What are you working on? What innovations have you seen in recent years?
We are currently in the process of slowly completing the generational change with all its advantages and disadvantages. We are also setting the course for the future, getting animal health monitoring and modernizing barn by barn to become even more efficient, but also to make our work easier. Animal welfare also plays a role here - we want our animals to be as well off as possible. My father and I work on this every day.
DMK develops quality products, improves working methods and works every day to continue to be a global player that brings farmers' milk to the customer. In your opinion, what is the company's greatest competence?
DMK follows a plan and so far it is being implemented very well. This shows me that the dairy is on the right track and that I can trust it. This gives me the security of being with the right dairy.
What is the advantage of being a milk supplier to DMK?
Personally, I like the fact that the dairy does not have monthly price fluctuations like other dairies. This makes it easier to plan. In addition, the information a month in advance about what price you will get is an advantage.
What is going well, what is difficult at the moment?
Since last year, milking has been fun again. The milk is looking better than ever. What I find more difficult is the short-term as well as the long-term future. On the one hand, the milk price is slowly coming down again due to the lack of sales. You don't know how far it will go down and whether it will become threatening again. On the other hand, it is becoming more and more difficult to plan for the long term, because politicians do not commit themselves to a course of action, but rather overturn everything year after year. This is particularly challenging because you actually plan in years. But so far we have mastered every challenge.
The political and economic environment has changed drastically - old alliances are becoming fragile, new partnerships more important. To what extent is DMK helpful to farmers when external circumstances become more stormy?
It is always good to have a strong partner at your side. Through good networking, DMK manages to continue selling the products. This is also shown by the fact that when things get stormy, the dairy does not immediately bend in the storm, but remains true to its path.
What role do fixed price models or tools such as Mymilk etc. play in the cooperation with DMK?
On the one hand, it's a pointer for us as to what course the milk price is likely to take. In addition, it is a useful tool for us to hedge milk prices in certain quantities in order to have better planning for the coming months. You can see that DMK is trying to make delivery as convenient as possible for the farmer.
What role does technological progress play on the farms when it comes to recruiting employees? Is there an advantage to relying on modernization to attract young talent? What is it like for you to find employees?
We are in the fortunate position of not needing outside labor. Because finding capable employees is becoming increasingly difficult. That's why it's important to make the workplace as attractive as possible. Modernization is an important point here - the more modern and advanced a farm is, the easier it will be for it to find employees. Because nowadays the technological progress of a farm is one of the most important criteria for employees. Nobody wants to spend eight hours pushing wheelbarrows and mucking out by hand anymore.
What do you wish for the future?
I would like to see politicians come up with a firm plan for what animal husbandry should look like in the future. I would also like to see more recognition for my profession - that would be nice.