Donfield Farms in Manitoba: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Donfield Farms is a family dairy and cropping operation at Brandon, Manitoba, and one of the few dairy farms left in the Westman region. The Donohoe family received a BMO Manitoba Farm Family Award in April 2022, and Holstein Canada has awarded its herd a third Master Breeder Shield, a first for a Manitoba group.
| Location | Brandon, Westman region, Manitoba |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1970, by Garry Donohoe and his father, Blake |
| Sectors | Dairy; corn, alfalfa, barley, wheat, canola and soybeans |
| Scale | 75 dairy cows and about 2,000 cropped acres, as reported in 2022 |
| Why it is elite | BMO Manitoba Farm Family Award (2022); third Holstein Canada Master Breeder Shield |
| Ownership | Donohoe family; Garry and Garda with son Jamie as part owner |
| Official website | Cowsmo article: Donfield Farms awarded farm award after 50 years |
History of Donfield Farms
Garry Donohoe and his father, Blake, established Donfield Farms in 1970, and the family has worked the same land for more than five decades. A 2022 profile notes the dairy's parlour and free-stall setup was the first of its kind when built in 1965, indicating that the farm was already an early adopter of modern dairy housing.
In April 2022 the family received a BMO Manitoba Farm Family Award for decades of work building the operation. Earlier, Holstein Canada gave the herd its third Master Breeder Shield, a first for a Manitoba group. At the time of the profile, Garry and Garda planned to retire, with their son Jamie, already part owner and working full time, carrying the business forward.
What Donfield Farms Grows and Raises
The farm milks 75 dairy cows in a parlour with a free-stall system. The cows are outdoors year-round, on pasture in summer and on straw pack in winter. That is a distinctive approach in a province where most dairy cattle are housed indoors for the long prairie winter.
In addition to the herd, Donfield Farms grows roughly 2,000 acres of corn, alfalfa, barley, wheat, canola and soybeans. Growing its own forages and grains ties feed costs to the farm's own agronomy, and the crop mix gives rotation options on Westman soils. Dairy in Manitoba operates under supply management, so milk is produced against quota and sold through the provincial system overseen by Dairy Farmers of Manitoba.
How Donfield Farms Makes Money
Milk under supply management
Milk is the core revenue stream. Canadian dairy producers hold quota that sets how much they may ship, which makes volume predictable and keeps the focus on herd quality, components and cost control rather than chasing market share.
Cash crops
Selling surplus barley, wheat, canola and soybeans from about 2,000 acres adds a second income stream that is not tied to milk quota. Corn and alfalfa support the herd's feed ration.
Genetics and breeding
A third Master Breeder Shield from Holstein Canada signals a long-running breeding program. Superior genetics can raise production per cow and support sales of breeding stock, although the farm's public coverage does not give sales figures.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Donfield Farms
Long-term breeding discipline is the clearest lesson: consistent selection over generations earned the herd national recognition and probably supports efficiency within a fixed quota. A farm of 75 cows can compete on quality instead of volume.
The second lesson is succession planning. Giving the next generation part ownership and a full-time role before the senior generation retires makes the handover smoother, which matters in a region where dairies have become rare.
Cows that spend the whole year outdoors, even through a Brandon winter, are practically the Canadian poets of the barnyard: stoic, steady and never complaining about the weather. At farm.FM we love farm satire, farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes, and a dairy that earned a Master Breeder Shield gives us endless material about bovine pedigree, parlour gossip and who really runs the free-stall. All of it said with respect for the milkers.
Part newsroom, part radio dial, farm.FM bills itself as America's first satirical farm site and plays Tractor Tunes, its country music for farmers. Browse a farm.FM writer's back catalog to see the style.
How to Contact Donfield Farms
Website: https://cowsmo.com/?p=572140
No Donfield Farms website was found in search results. This page links to a public article about the farm. Contact the operation through local Brandon farm networks or Dairy Farmers of Manitoba; confirm before visiting.
Donfield Farms Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Cowsmo: Donfield Farms award - 2022 Farm Family Award coverage with herd and history details
- Dairy Farmers of Manitoba - Provincial dairy producer organization
- Manitoba Agriculture sector profile - Provincial farm cash receipts and trade figures
- Statistics Canada: Manitoba in the 2021 Census of Agriculture - Province farm numbers, area and crops
- Keystone Agricultural Producers - Manitoba general farm organization
Donfield Farms FAQ
When was Donfield Farms established?
Garry Donohoe and his father, Blake, established the farm in 1970, according to a 2022 profile.
How many cows does it milk?
The profile reports 75 dairy cows, outdoors year-round, plus about 2,000 acres of crops.
What awards has it won?
A BMO Manitoba Farm Family Award in April 2022 and a third Master Breeder Shield from Holstein Canada, a first for a Manitoba group.
Where is it?
Brandon, Manitoba, in the Westman region.
Donfield Farms is proof that a mid-sized Manitoba dairy can reach national recognition through breeding and family continuity. For the dairy sector in context, see the Manitoba farms guide and the other operations profiled with it.