Re Dairy

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13/06/2026

It's roasting tray season 😍🥶

This one has honey-roasted carrots, parsnips and butternut — caramelised at the edges, tender through the middle — piled onto garlicky Re Dairy yoghurt with dukkah, pistachios and fresh herbs.

Sweet, savoury, lots of texture. Pairs with roast lamb, grilled chicken or a big hunk of bread.

Honey roasted vegetables
■ 600g baby carrots, trimmed
■ 600g parsnips, cut into thick batons
■ 750g butternut pumpkin, cut into 3–4cm chunks
■ 1 red onion, cut into wedges
■ 2 tbsp olive oil
■ 2 tbsp honey
■ 3 cloves garlic, finely grated
■ 1 tsp smoked paprika
■ 1 tsp ground cumin
■ Salt and pepper
Garlic yoghurt
■ 1 cup Re Dairy Natural Probiotic Yoghurt
■ 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
■ Juice of half a lemon
■ Salt and pepper
To finish
■ 2 tbsp dukkah
■ 2 tbsp pistachios, roughly chopped
■ 2 tbsp Italian parsley, roughly chopped
■ 2 tbsp mint leaves, roughly torn
■ Pinch chilli flakes (optional)

- Preheat oven to 220°C fan bake.
- Toss vegetables with the oil, honey, garlic and spices until well coated.
- Roast for 35–45 minutes, turning once or twice, until caramelised.
- Meanwhile, mix the yoghurt with garlic and lemon. Season to taste.
- Arrange veg on a platter, dollop over the yoghurt, and finish with dukkah, nuts and herbs.
Serves 4 as a side & enjoy!

Full recipe can be found through the link in our bio 😁

Following on from our last two posts — here's a bit more detail on the fertilisers we use and why.The majority of our in...
10/06/2026

Following on from our last two posts — here's a bit more detail on the fertilisers we use and why.

The majority of our inputs are organic. In the 2022, 2023, and 2024 seasons we mainly used fish fertiliser at around 5 L/ha or roughly 0.1 kg N/ha. The goal wasn't really to fertilise the plants; it was to feed the soil biology. Keeping the microbial life active and functioning so the soil does the heavy lifting.

For the 2025 and 2026 seasons we switched to ACTAVIZE® - a blend of fish meal, amino acids, enzymes, carbohydrates, and trace elements. Still soil-biology focused, with a slightly higher N content at around 1.2 kg/ha.

We do apply some synthetic N, but it's 1–2 applications per year across some, not all, paddocks. Because the N content is higher than our organic sources, it can look dominant on a graph, but the rates are still very low. Where conventional systems apply 18–22 kg N per application on a monthly basis, we're applying 0.75–5 kg N once or twice.

We apply mainly in early spring, because Canterbury dairy has a stubborn feed problem. Calving starts before spring growth really takes off, then there's an overabundance of pasture in late spring and summer. We'd hoped diverse species mixes would close that gap by having species that grow better in cooler conditions. So far, ryegrass still wins. So we give it a small nudge on the first rotation.

When we've used synthetic N, we've chosen SOA (Sulphate of Ammonia) in some years and CAN (Calcium Ammonium Nitrate) more recently. Both chosen over urea for good reasons. Urea volatilises badly in cold, wet conditions and you can lose a significant portion of the N as ammonia gas before it ever reaches the plant. SOA avoids this, and also delivers sulphur, which supports both soil biology and pasture quality. CAN takes it further: the nitrate fraction is immediately plant-available without relying on soil microbes to convert it, which matters when soils are cold and biology is still sluggish.

Still a small fraction of what a conventional Canterbury system applies. But we'd rather be transparent about what we use than imply it's nothing.

07/06/2026

💩🔄 The P**p Loop 🔄💩

If you have been curious about how we farm with such low levels of Nitrogen - here are more details 🤓

The numbers:
■ 1 protozoa eats 10,000 bacteria per day
■ 1g of healthy soil contains 50,000 protozoa
■ 500 million bacteria eaten per gram of soil, per day
■ 400 million molecules of plant-available nitrogen released
■ 7 nanograms per square centimetre of root — the fastest-growing plant on earth only needs 0.2

Shout out to Dr Elaine Ingham (R.I.P 🕊️) and the Dr Elaine's Soil Food Web School for teaching Clare what she knows 💜

The industry standard for fertiliser use on dairy farms in New Zealand is 190 kgN/ha, while we have used between 5-13 kg...
04/06/2026

The industry standard for fertiliser use on dairy farms in New Zealand is 190 kgN/ha, while we have used between 5-13 kgN/ha the last 5 seasons.

Regenerative farming focuses on building soil biology that does the heavy lifting, so the land feeds the grass, the grass feeds the cows, and we don't have to heavily rely on synthetic inputs. This is more relevant than ever, given the disruptions to fertiliser supply chains through the Hormuz Strait. 😬

When we say Dairy Done Differently, this is what we mean 😎

Humans have been drinking milk for millennia, and for good reason🥛Before anyone called it a superfood, milk helped us su...
31/05/2026

Humans have been drinking milk for millennia, and for good reason🥛

Before anyone called it a superfood, milk helped us survive. Nutrients, fat, protein, beneficial bacteria. It helped our ancestors thrive, built communities around the animals that provided it, and became woven into food cultures across the world.

For us in Canterbury, that connection runs deep. Dairy has been part of how families here have built their lives for generations. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦🚜

At Re Dairy, we get to make something from milk that honours both its history and its potential. And none of it happens without our girls 🐮💜

So Happy World Milk Day to them first, and to the farmers and communities who've built their lives around these animals and the goodness they produce 🐄

28/05/2026

Do you know where your yoghurt comes from? 🤔

Choose Re for that single-farm origin guarantee 💜

28/05/2026

Do you know where your yoghurt comes from?

Choose Re for that single farm origin guarantee 💜

👀 Fonterra has signed a global regenerative agriculture declaration alongside Unilever, Danone and others.There will alw...
25/05/2026

👀 Fonterra has signed a global regenerative agriculture declaration alongside Unilever, Danone and others.

There will always be scepticism around greenwashing when larger corporations adopt these frameworks. And a declaration of intent is not a guarantee of actual change on farm.

But we try to focus on the good, and there is a lot of good in this. It shows that big players are becoming aware of how healthy, functioning ecosystems impact food production and quality.

Moves like this also increase awareness around regenerative and agro-ecological practices, and get more people asking questions about how their food is produced.

The more people understand what real regen looks like, the better. For farmers doing the hard work, and for the consumers choosing to support it.

At Re Dairy, we're not working toward regen. We're already farming this way, with published peer-reviewed research from Lincoln University showing what it actually produces in the milk.

Declarations are a start. Measurable outcomes are the point 💜

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368 Kings Road
Leeston
7682

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