André van Vliet Home / Onze melkveehouders / André van Vliet Meet André van Vliet, member dairy farmer cooperative DOC Kaas André van Vliet runs a dairy and arable farm in Zeewolde together with his wife Willeke and sons Sjoerd and Coen. They used to run a dairy farm in Almere but that was needed to make space for urbanisation. The Van Vliet family keeps 120 dairy cows and 70 young livestock. They also grow sugar beet, winter wheat, maize and grass, and part of the land is rented out to a tulip grower. ‘Simply the best profession there is!’ ‘Our farm is located on soil that was reclaimed in 1968 – so it’s on the seabed of the former Zuiderzee. As a family, we thoroughly enjoy our life in the country. Our daughter Maaike has also studied agriculture and helps out where necessary. Being a dairy farmer is simply the best there is. Of course, there are challenges and there’s always work to be done on the farm, but you also have a lot of freedom and you’re involved with the animals and managing nature and the landscape the whole day. Our sons want to succeed us, which means that our life’s work will continue. There’s no better motivation for us!’ Maximum returns and participation ‘We became DOC Kaas members in 2007 when we took over the dairy farm from my parents. It was a conscious choice. Being a member of a dairy cooperative means maximum returns and maximum participation for dairy farmers. The members are owners and member interests come first; something you really notice at DOC Kaas. It’s a ‘compact’ organisation with short lines of communication. The board members are, for example, present at all regional meetings and know what’s going on. That gives a tremendous feeling of confidence.’ Uniekaas ‘The merger with the German DMK in 2016 was a great strategic move. The ‘former’ DOC Kaas was too sensitive to dairy market price fluctuations. That was recognised and they took action. I was a board member at that time and was very closely involved in the process. It was an amazing period. The DMK Group dairy company was restructured in the following years and this worked out well – there’s a sound foundation, with a broad product portfolio and great brands. Including Uniekaas, the oldest cheese brand in the Netherlands. I grew up with that cheese and it’s now made from our milk. I’m so proud of that!’ Also meet Peter Netjes
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