Words and Images by Sarah Horrocks – AngusPRO Magazine 2026
Ask Jake Stokman what drives the operation at Stokman Angus Farm, and his answer is simple: “We’re trying to breed the perfect cow. We’ll get there one day…”
It’s this breeding philosophy that shapes everything at the Waikite Valley property, nestled between Rotorua and Taupo on the pumice soils that border Lake Ohakuri. The 200 bulls they produce and sell as yearlings? They’re simply the byproduct of that relentless pursuit of the ideal female.
Jake knows that the Angus breed is constantly evolving with the introduction of new technology and new genetic information, so they need to ensure they’re fluid in their direction, ensuring females produce offspring that are efficient and profitable for their customers.
“That perfect cow gets back in calf every year after breeding as a heifer; she’s fertile, maintains her condition, is structurally sound, and rears a good calf every year,” Jake explains.
“You never notice her because you never have her in the yards with any issues, and she just does her job year in and year out.
That perfect cow remains the goal, but Jake’s mother Sherrie is excited about where the herd has arrived after decades of careful breeding.
“After building the herd for so long from so few cows, we’re now at the stage where we can keep the elite females each year and tighten their uniformity. We can get those ‘peas in a pod’ cows that produce good calves consistently,” says Sherrie.
A Foundation Built on Montana Bloodlines
The story of Stokman Angus begins with Sherrie’s American roots. Her family has owned Sitz Angus in the Rocky Mountains of Montana, farming Angus cattle for over 100 years, so there’s Angus cattle running through the bloodlines.
In 1989, tragedy struck when Sherrie’s father, Bob Sitz Sr., was killed in a tractor accident. Sherrie was engaged to Mark at the time and was due to move to New Zealand, but with Sitz being an intensive operation and Sherrie’s brothers only in their early twenties, plans changed. Instead, Mark moved to Montana.
They stayed for seven years, and Mark developed a real passion and love for the Angus breed. When they returned to New Zealand in 1997, Sherrie’s condition was non-negotiable: they had to bring back embryos from a few of her personal cows.
Three cows were flushed, producing thirty embryos that were implanted into recipient cows in 1998.
“From these, we didn’t really kick off the herd we’d planned,” Mark recalls. “We got seventeen bull calves and only three heifers.”
Undeterred, they tracked down and purchased five cows at the Standen dispersal sale that traced back to QAS Traveler 23-4, owned by Sitz in the USA, and Bando 598. Both bulls were renowned for producing exceptional females. From those foundations, the herd has grown to 430 breeding females with strong maternal traits.
The Next Generation Takes the Reins
Jake now runs the farm under the guidance of Mark and Sherrie. After completing an AgCom degree at Lincoln University, he’s built a house with his fiancée Lexie overlooking the sale complex, positioning himself at the heart of the operation.
The property spans 430 hectares, split between 30 ha retained from the home block where Mark and Sherrie live, and the 400 ha farm that borders Lake Ohakuri and houses the spectacular sale barn. The topography divides roughly into thirds: one third workable with a tractor, one third rolling hills, and one third steep hill country. Much of the flatter, workable land sits down near the sale barn.
Technology Driving Efficiency
Two years ago, Stokman made a significant investment in Halter collars, placing them on all the cows and sale bulls, and after sale day, switching the bull’s collars onto the replacement heifers. The results have exceeded expectations.
“Last year we did an 8kg lift in the weaning weights of the calves in a below-average season, and dropped ½ a condition score off the cows by making the cows work to maintain pasture quality,” Jake reports.
Mark says they invested in Halter for efficiency, to better utilise the pasture on the hills and save on labour and machinery costs.
But Sherrie notes another crucial benefit: the mental health improvement.
“Work is more appealing to staff, especially over winter, with no longer having to shift fences all day.”
The Stokmans estimate that even with the collar costs factored in, they’re about $40,000 better off this past year.
Beyond Halter, Stokmans employs every available breeding technology. They HD50K everything at birth and carcass scan all heifers.
“We want to have as much information as possible on every animal on the property,” says Mark.
“We’re selling reliability to our clients, and to be honest, we probably know more about our cattle than we know about our kids,” Sherrie jokes.
Global Genetics, Local Focus
Stokman artificially inseminates 75% of their females to about 23 different sires annually. The sires come from across the world, selected not by geography but by how well they fit the program.
“Having good cow families in their lineage is really important to us for the maternal side of things,” Sherrie explains.
Her ongoing connection to Sitz Angus provides insider knowledge.
“I still call and talk to my brothers a lot about the sires, and they give me the inside word on a few bulls. The Sitz herd is run very commercially, so their feedback is invaluable.”
There are exciting calves on the ground now, particularly those sired by Hart Network and Sitz Logo. One deliberate strategy sets Stokman apart: they use fresh, diverse sires every year at mating to ensure the bulls offered annually are something new for buyers.
The AI program consists of just one round of fixed-time AI, followed by clean-up bulls going out 36 hours later for one and a half cycles. Only the top-end heifers go through fixed-time AI, about half of the yearling heifer mob. This year, they achieved a 70% hit rate with the heifer AI program, a significant lift from the usual 55-60%. Mark studied information from the USA and tweaked a few program details, which they attribute to the improvement.
Follow-up bulls come from two sources: purchased bulls from studs around New Zealand every couple of years, and their three best yearling bulls retained each year to use on the herd.
No Excuses for Fertility
Heifer mating isn’t optional at Stokman.
“If you’re not mating heifers, your mortgage can’t be that high,” Jake says bluntly. “If you’re thinking about efficiency, you’ve got to mate heifers. If they can’t breed up as a heifer, they’re not fertile enough to stay in the herd.”
Planned calving begins August 1st for heifers, with the first of four cow mobs starting August 15th. Calving finishes by October 1st, keeping the operation tight and manageable.
The Yearling Advantage
Mark and Sherrie made an early strategic decision to sell all their bulls as yearlings rather than as two-year-olds. The reasons are both practical and philosophical.
“We’re cow rich and land poor,” Jake explains. “Selling the bulls as yearlings gives us more space to grow the beef cow numbers. One thing we learned in America is that yearling bulls have a real place in the market. They’re more reasonably priced, you can use them on either cows or heifers, they’re easier to handle, and they give you an extra year of longevity.”
In the lead-up to the sale, bulls spend six weeks on saved grass pasture after being wintered in two mobs on kale and swedes.
Only a few bulls are held as back ups, in case a client has a death or breakdown with their bulls. Buyers know that the yearling bull sale is their best chance to purchase a Stokman bull.
Making the Land Work Smarter
The pumice soils at Waikite are, as Jake describes, “very forgiving and free-draining. We can utilize about 95% of the grass we put in front of cows in winter without pugging.”
The property is normally summer-safe, consistently getting rain when needed.
The autumn-calving cow herd serves a dual purpose as a clean-up tool. Once they wean their calves, they’re used to tidy pastures and mop up rank grass.
“They’re in work mode,” Jake says, though he adds with a grin, “I do despise them in winter when they’re a lactating cow.”
The autumn-born bulls are sold to regular clients, with Sherrie noting, “We pretty much have standing orders for the autumn-born 18-month-old bulls.”
The spring calving cows are wintered for eight weeks on crops to allow pasture covers to increase on the hills. They’re brought off just prior to calving, which is done behind a virtual wire for ease of management with tagging and weighing calves.
As Mark puts it, “Angus cows are bred tough. After we wean the calves, they can be put on rough pasture and they’ll burn a bale of silage off their backs.”
Breeding for the Commercial Farmer
The Stokmans are crystal clear about their client: they’re the commercial farmer looking for calves that come easily with no problems and grow well into moderate-framed adults.
When selecting herd sires, bulls must have calving ease, moderate birth weight, above average growth and positive carcass merit. They also must be physically appealing, quiet, and sound.
While Sherrie was initially sceptical about focusing on carcass traits without financial rewards for quality over quantity, that changed ten years ago. They are now placing greater emphasis on enhancing carcass quality by selecting sires that rank above the breed average for key performance traits.
“We know that marbling and grass-fed beef is a very marketable commodity, both here in New Zealand and in the export market,” says Mark.
There are fewer dairy farmers buying bulls at the sale now, but those finishing their own dairy cross beef calves continue to attend annually, seeking bulls that will deliver calves that perform. The Stokmans are seeing an increased demand for their semen, for use in AI programs.
Diversification and the Future
Since selling the dairy farm nine years ago, diversification has become a key part of the business strategy. Tourism on-farm through accommodation at ‘The Stokman’ cabins and the wedding venue at the sale barn provide additional revenue streams. The accommodation is booked for around 40-50 nights per year.
The multipurpose sale venue, built in 2018 in a spectacular position beside Lake Ohakuri on the Waikato River, hosts more than just bull sales, with outside businesses booking it for functions and parties, as well as the weddings.
No Standing Still
There are no sitting ducks at Stokman Angus Farm. If cattle aren’t progressing and moving forward, they’re down the road. It’s a philosophy that extends beyond individual animals to the entire breeding program.
“New Zealand has diversity within the Angus breed, which is good. But if we as breeders don’t progress and keep improving the economically important traits, we are at risk of being replaced by breeders selling crossbred bulls,” says Mark.
Mark, Sherrie, and now Jake feel they have a duty to provide the beef sector with cattle that improve year on year with the help of modern genetics. The improving genetic gains within their herd, combined with the premiums becoming readily available for qualifying Angus cattle, make Stokman cattle increasingly appealing for commercial farmers.
And that perfect cow? She’s getting closer with every breeding season.