Originally from South Africa, Mrs Duffin and her husband Michael immigrated to New Zealand in 2006 before joining the dairy industry in 2008.
''We started off at the bottom and worked our way up,'' she said.
The couple then began contracting milking in 2012, which they have now been doing for six years.
They contract milk on two properties in Western Southland, one being 232ha with 600 cows and the other being 212ha with 560 cows.
Mrs Duffin became involved with Dairy Women's Network when she ran into Western Southland regional leader Chantal Hindrup, who she was now co-regional leader with.
Talking to her about what the network was about and wanting to meet other similar people in the industry, Mrs Duffin got involved, she said.
''I wanted to connect with other like-minded people.''
With a background in teaching, as an early childhood teacher, Mrs Duffin has had quite the career change to dairy farming and wanted to be able to share her experiences with others, she said.
''I'm passionate about dairy and what dairy stands for.''
Taking on the co-regional leader role, she was hoping to share her own journey with others as well as learn a lot along the way, she said.
''I want to bring my knowledge and share that with others.''
The Duffins' two sons, Dylan (16) and Tyrone (14), were also passionate about the dairy industry and were another reason Mrs Duffin became involved in the Dairy Women's Network, she said.
''That's why I decided to connect with other people to show them leadership and search for other opportunities. These connections are really important as well. It's not just about milking cows,'' she said.
The end goal for the Duffins was farm ownership, which may not necessarily be dairy farming, but something along those lines, she said.
When not on the farm, the family also liked to be outdoors, spending time in Manapouri and in the amazing backyard Southland had to offer, she said.