2027 Dairy - Judging Process

JUDGING PROCESS

First Round Judging

After entering, you will be contacted by the team with further information about the process, and to set up a time for the First Round Judges visit.

Initial judging of this competition will occur during late January/early February when the First Round Judging panel visits with all entrants. This panel will ultimately select up to three finalists who go on to the next round of judging.

This First Round Judging visit will take up to three hours and will include a tour of key farm features. The judging will relate solely to the dairy components of the farm business.

The owner or owners of the business who carry the greatest responsibility i.e. Chair (or other elected representative), Supervisor and Manager are required to meet with the First Round Judges at the beginning of the visit. Professional advisors and the Manager if engaged may participate at owners' discretion.

It is important to allocate your time wisely and to demonstrate clearly to the judges how your dairy business meets the criteria outlined below.

Following the judges visits with all entrants, you will be advised of the outcome of your judges visit.

Finalist Judging

If you are selected as a finalist:

The judging to select the winner from the finalists will take place in late March/early April.

Judging Day Process:

• At 10am (or as agreed) on the day prior to the field day, the judges will meet with the owner or owners of the business who carry the greatest responsibility for the business, i.e. Chair and other members of the governance team.
• The Farm Supervisor/Consultant, professional advisors and the Manager if engaged may participate at owners' discretion.
• This meeting will focus on governance, management and financial aspects and will include a farm visit.
• Please note that further information will be provided if you become a Finalist.

Public Field Day:

• Each finalist is required to hold a field day where possible. Guidance and financial assistance is provided to finalists to assist in staging the field day.
• Judges will be in attendance at the field day and the content and standard of presentation during the field day may be taken into consideration, however the field day is not part of the judging process, e.g., should the field day be unable to go ahead due to unforeseen circumstances, this will not impact the judging process.

Judging will be based on:

A. THE EFFICIENCY WITH WHICH THE PROPERTY IS FARMED RELATIVE TO ITS POTENTIAL.

This will not be based solely on financial measures such as profit per hectare or return on business capital. These measures will be taken as a guide but consideration will also be given to other factors such as:

• The physical resources available to the farmer (e.g. local climate, soil types, water, location, contour etc).
• Stage of development, financial structure.

B. FINANCIAL RESULTS WHERE:

• Profit will be determined by the calculation of the operating profit per hectare, that is gross income, net of stock purchases (adjusted for changes in livestock numbers) less working expenses. Interest, development, capital expenditure, drawings, dividends and taxation are not included in the calculation of operating profit.
• Financial performance will be determined from annual financial statements for the three years ending at the farm balance date in 2026.

C. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE FARMS GOVERNANCE PROCEDURES AND INITIATIVES, IN AREAS THAT INCLUDE:

• The adoption of innovative farming systems and reinvestment in the business.
• The pursuit of sustainable management strategies including the up-skilling of all farm personnel.
• Keeping up to date with new farming methods and ways to monitor performance.
• The level of recognition given to kaitiakitanga and ngā tikanga Māori in the operation of the farming enterprise.

Considerations

The organisers note that in recent times a number of new measures have been introduced to assess the performance of farming and other businesses. These include:

• Triple Bottom Line Reporting — which focuses a business on its economic value, added or lost, as well as environmental and social value. Entrants are encouraged to outline their efforts in these areas to the judges during their visits.
• Cost of Production Analysis — calculating the cost of production per unit of output. This encourages the setting of goals for improved performance and allows comparisons to be made between different types of farming businesses. We encourage all farmers to discuss the benefits of adopting such an approach with their advisors.
• Innovation — is the farm looking at innovative technology, processes, tools, practices or embracing new technologies that result in real improvements i.e. financial, farming etc.

The judges will also look for best practice in relation to people management, including health and safety, and career development.

Criteria

In considering this the judges will utilise as a guideline the following weighting:

Judging Discretion

Judges will make their decisions based on a number of factors including the points allocated in the judging criteria set out above.

Accordingly, entrants need to demonstrate — both in written material supplied and in their presentation on the day — that they are performing in relation to the criteria set out in the table above.

Feedback will be given by judges to entrants on the strengths and recommendations for the farming business based on the information provided and their assessments on the days of judging.

Independence of Judges

Before the judges are appointed, they are required to declare any potential conflict of interest. Where possible the judging panel will be made up of persons who are not participating in the competition but, where this is not feasible, a judge shall not participate in judging of a farm where they have interests associated with an entry. Likewise judges shall not participate in the judging of the winner if they have an interest in one of the finalists.

The decision of the judges is final and no correspondence will be entered into.