Ahuwhenua Young Māori Dairy Farmer finalists announced

MEDIA RELEASE - 30 May 2014

After a comprehensive interview process the judges for the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Dairy Farmer of the Year award have announced the competition finalists for 2014.

The finalists are: Joshua MacDonald, 50/50 sharemilker, Waikato; Wiremu Reid, Lower Order Sharemilker, Winton; and James Matheson, Herd Manager, Gore.

Lead judge, Peter Little, Manager of Land Development at Te Puni Kōkiri, says he was very impressed with all those who entered.

"The standard of entries this year was very high," he says, "which made finalists selection an extremely difficult exercise for us."

Mr Little says that because of the extremely high technical quality of the applications, much debate was generated amongst the judges in trying to reach an agreement on how each of the applications should be considered.

"It is a real challenge to try and judge farm assistants against herd managers against sharemilkers, so we don't judge solely on technical ability."

"Applicants are assessed on a range of skills and attributes including their commitment to farming, training and education, expertise relative to their positions, community involvement, plans for the future and personal attributes," says Mr Little.

Sponsored by Primary ITO, Te Tumu Paeroa, Te Puni Kōkiri and Allflex, the competition was open to young Māori aged 16-25 who are currently enrolled in or have completed a National Certificate in Agriculture Level 3 or higher in the last year.

A total of thirteen entries were received and all applicants went through the interview process. Entries came from the Waikato, Southland, Canterbury, Taranaki and the Bay of Plenty.

The finalists will gather for a study tour based in Tauranga where further judging components will take place before the winner is announced at the Ahuwhenua Trophy Awards evening at the Baypark Arena on Friday 13 June.