Waikato's top share farmer regrets historic 'poor decision'
The major winners in the 2024 Waikato Dairy Industry Awards are proof that poor decisions of the past can be overcome to carve out a successful career in milking cows.
The former registered land valuers are 50:50 sharemilkers for the Pouto Topu A Trust. The 460ha property on the Pouto Peninsula,at the northern head of Kaipara Harbour, milks 1020 cows.
The Duncans finished top in three of the nine judging categories, winning the PrimaryITO Interview Award, Ravensdown Pasture Performance Award and Westpac Business Performance Award at the awards night in Invercargill.
After picking up the Share Farmer of the Year title Daniel Duncan told the 500 guests that he would be celebrating hard.
“I don’t get on the piss very often but I’ll make an exception tonight,” he said.
The Duncans won $49,700 in cash and prizes.
Both Daniel and Gina, aged 32, hold Bachelor of Applied Sciences majoring in Rural Valuation and Management, with Daniel holding a double major including Agriculture.
The judges noted that the Duncans have clear, realistic but challenging goals and gave an outstanding presentation which flowed and kept the judges fully engaged.
The judges said they “managed to get that information across to us in a way we could understand and follow it”.
