How I became Buffalo Phil

Phil Armstrong, 40, was a commercial fisherman for 17 years. Now he’s milking water buffalo and making cheese – after a hard day’s labour.

“It’s getting harder to make a good living off a smaller block; you have to be a bit different these days. We wanted to do something that would be a worthwhile business venture as well as interesting and fun for the family.

“We found a water buffalo farmer in the Northern Territory who was having drought problems so we bought 17 in-calf heifers and two bulls from him. After their flight across the Tasman, the buffalo were on the tarmac while the quarantine people searched for the paperwork. The animals had been travelling for 24 hours and Billy the bull, who weighs more than a tonne, decided he’d had enough. He began taking his crate apart with his horns. In the end, the only thing keeping him restrained was the sling that they used for lifting his crate!

“The animals had spent so long in quarantine we had given up on them ever coming, so when they finally arrived we didn’t even have a shed ready. The girls had never been milked so it took them a while to accept it. They had to be introduced to the whole process; they’d never had calves before, some refused to let down their milk and they all kicked their cups off. But they’re a lot better now. They look daunting but they’re actually quite gentle animals and some of them will come up for a scratch around the ears. Working with them has been most enjoyable but also a lesson in patience as the quieter you are, the better they respond. They’re quite different to the African Cape buffalo. The only way I’d milk one of them is with a lead sedative!

“When we were setting up this venture, my father had a quiet smile on his face because I used to get terrible hay fever when I was living on his dairy farm; that’s why I went to sea. But the sneezing has improved.

“I work for a builder around north Auckland during the day then drive an hour to Whangapiro near Wellsford to milk the herd at night. One day we intend to build a home on our 20-hectare block, move there and increase our buffalo herd to 40.

“We’re in our second season of milking and we’re producing some very good cheeses. We do a fresca, a blue, a brie and a really heavy, really good yoghurt. We sell our produce each Saturday at Matakana Market. We also supply direct to restaurants. We’re just starting to produce mozzarella, which is the one we’ve been aiming for. But we haven’t put it out to sell yet as we’re still perfecting it.

“My wife Annie’s catch phrase is ‘How hard can it be?’ and I tend to agree. You just do your research, throw everything you’ve got at it and get on with it.”

Interview by Rosalind Le Bas Walker.