From leafy suburbs to farm ownership in Australia

Tom Cosentino and Aimee Fuller grew up, as they put it, “in family homes with small backyards” in the suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia.

They now own 119ac in the Hindmarsh Valley overlooking Port Elliot in South Australia. The couple also lease neighbouring properties totalling around 400ac on the home farm.

Three other blocks around 500ac, 180ac and 60ac, all within a 25km radius, are also leased into the farming business.

Getting started

Having studied in law school together at University in Adelaide commencing in 2009, it wasn’t until 2017 when “Tom instigated the first of many coffee dates”, as Aimee describes.

After graduating university, both had budding successful careers, Aimee as a migration lawyer and refugee settlement case manager and Tom as an accountant and consultant.

Farming experiences

The couple’s farming experiences amounted to Tom growing wheat and vegetables with his grandfather in the backyard and Aimee visiting her aunt and uncle’s farm during school holidays.

A long-held interest in how food is produced and a desire to have a home to raise a young family in the countryside away from the large city, along with a renewed interest in farming sparked by Tom beginning to work in the fishing sector, initiated a hunt for a suitable property. Aimee describes Tom as a “doer”. “So, when there's an idea, the plan will follow shortly after and more often than not will be executed.”

Aimee and Tom began looking at properties in late 2018. After a year of looking and an unsuccessful offer on a different property, the couple purchased Macloran Farm in the Hindmarsh Valley.

The couple describe the process of securing finance and negotiating the final price as not without challenges.

“We made an offer subject to finance and went through three banks before finally getting a loan.”

The bank had an upper threshold of 125ac for residential 30-year mortgages. The farm is 119ac so the couple secured a long-term loan on the property.

Farm

The farm itself and supporting lease blocks run an autumn-calving operation. The farm has predominantly black Angus cows crossed to composite black bulls and also a line of Murray Grey cows.

The farm sells calves direct at Christmas time to a local farmers’ market and private customers, as well as the weaned feeder markets in December/January. The most important key progress indicator (KPI) is a 400kg calf per cow by the calf’s second summer.

Future

The couple are optimistic about the future - Tom works off-farm as an accountant currently, but would love to be full-time farming at 40.

Aimee and Tom have two wonderful children - Ted, aged three, and Daisy, nine months. Ted is in love with anything related to tractors and Daisy is hitting her strides and starting to walk.

Both sets of grandparents are very involved in supporting the young family and, as Aimee describes, “we wouldn't be where we are without our parents”.

Tom is an Australian 2024 Nuffield scholar. He is amazed by “the Nuffield network and the many doors it has opened” for him.

With a young family at home during a busy year travelling for Tom, Aimee has a unique perspective on the support that happens silently behind every Nuffield scholar the world over.

She describes the family’s Nuffield journey as “pretty wild”.

“Tom's first trip was when Daisy was six weeks old - we were calving and feeding out hay in what would become one of the driest seasons.

“It was really difficult managing the needs of the kids and the needs of the farm - their timetables didn't really align.

“We got through and survived, but being on the other side of the trips now, I think they will contribute to our family thriving in the long run.

“I'm so glad Tom has had the opportunity to travel and meet lots of amazing people and whilst it was hard, I've gained more experience and learnt more about our farm and livestock,” she said.

John Keane, a 2024 Nuffield Ireland scholar, is a dairy farmer in Co Laois, who has chosen to research TB eradication around the globe to bring back learnings for Ireland at the end of this year.