Tuesday, 30 May 2023 14:55

Gregoire Durand wins 2023 Central Otago Young Grower of the Year

Written by  Staff Reporters
Central Otago Young Grower of the Year Gregoire Durand. Central Otago Young Grower of the Year Gregoire Durand.

Gregoire Durand of Cherri Global in Clyde has been named the 2023 Central Otago Young Grower of the Year at a regional final event held in Bannockburn late last week.

Five entrants competed in the competition, covering modules such as irrigation, first aid, tractor and machinery work, pest and disease, spraying and weed management, and biosecurity.

Originally from France, Durand, age 28, was a young backpacker when he first came to New Zealand, picking fruit in the Teviot Valley.

He then moved to Clyde to work for Cherri Global, where today he works as their Clyde-Roxburgh sector manager, overseeing a 50ha block of cherries, in a role he has been in since 2017.

“I put in a lot of study in the lead-up to the competition, because you just don’t know what you’re going to get,” he says. “Having a strong mathematics background really helped me in the irrigation section.”

Durans says he entered the competition this year because he enjoyed his experience in the 2022 competition.

“It was fun. The competition was different this year with different questions,” he says. “I learnt a lot about myself, and I met plenty of people I would have spoken to otherwise.”

Kris Robb, chair of the Central Otago Growers’ Association (COGA), says he’s proud of all the competitors for putting themselves forward.

“I’m also appreciative of all the work that took place in the background to this significant industry event,” he says. “COGA is passionate about this young grower event and is encouraged by the talent coming up through the Central Otago region.”

Durand will compete at the national Young Grower of the Year final in Pukekohe on 4-5 October. He will compete against five other regional finalists and says he hopes to gain a lot from competing in the national final.

More like this

Featured

LIC Space folds for good

Farmer co-operative LIC has closed its satellite-backed pasture measurement platform – Space.

Editorial: Time for common sense

OPINION: The case of four Canterbury high country stations facing costly and complex consent hearing processes highlights the dilemma facing the farming sector as the country transitions into a replacement for the Resource Management Act (RMA).

National

Machinery & Products

Yamaha acquires Robotics Plus

New Zealand based company Robotics Plus, a specialist in agricultural automation, has announced an agreement for it to be acquired…

Ecorobotix announces NZ dealership

Swiss-based Ecorobotix has announced its entry into the New Zealand market through a strategic partnership with Canterbury-based New Zealand Tractors.

Sorting unwashed potatoes made easy

Downs, a leader in potato reception, automated sorting, and storage, has introduced its new high-throughput optical sorter for unwashed potatoes…

Jumbo X saves time and money

A winner of a prestigious ‘Technical Innovations 2024’ award by FederUnacoma at the EIMA show in Italy, the Maschio Jumbo…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Are they serious?

OPINION: The Greens aren’t serious people when it comes to the economy, so let’s not spend too much on their…

A hurry up!

OPINION: PM Chris Luxon is getting pinged lately for rolling out the old 'we're still a new government' line when…

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter