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The 2023 Fieldays Innovation Awards winners.
In addition to commemorating its 55th anniversary, Fieldays is also celebrating 55 years of highlighting and supporting innovation in the primary sector.
The Fieldays Innovation Award winners, announced at a gala last night, exemplify the full innovation lifecycle, encompassing three award categories: Prototype, Early-Stage, and Growth & Scale.
The judging process involved the expertise of numerous judges, who lent their insight and knowledge to identify the most remarkable innovations. The awards also paid tribute to the younger generation of innovators, culminating in the presentation of the prestigious Fieldays Young Innovator of the Year Award.
Peter Nation, chief executive of the New Zealand National Fieldays Society, acknowledged the standard of entrants and their willingness to give it a go.
“Fieldays is the home of innovation and it started here in 1968 with Shoof owner Geoff Laurent taking money tagged by wife Bev for a family couch purchase and entered the awards instead. Highlighting the Kiwi number 8 wire mentality of having a crack and backing yourself. That braveness and can-do attitude are again evident in this year’s entrants,” said Nation.
The 2023 Young Innovator of the Year Award winner was St Paul’s Collegiate School with their Capra Skin Goats Milk lip balm.
The student group, who placed in the top three of the school’s version of the Shark Tank, The St Paul’s 2023 Crocodile Pit. Where students are put to the test to create a new agri-business product and service and learn the process of pitching innovation and business strategy.
The Judges commented on how the group had identified a need, formulating steps and iterations to come up with a final product to make a real difference to its target market of youth combining primary products and the benefits that come with these.
The 2023 Prototype Award winner was local dairy pioneers Waikato Milking Systems for their ErgoPOD. Aimed at both the local and international market, the ErgoPOD provides a step change in milking and revolutionises the way cups are presented and managed in the milking shed.
Early-Stage Award winner for 2023 was won by eClean Envirotech. Exhibiting within the new Fieldays Sustainability Hub this year, this team has blended strong contemporary science and Mātauranga Māori authentically. With Kawa and Tikanga of traditional Māori science.
The final award of the evening, the 2023 Growth & Scale Award went to first-time entrants Wilderlab.
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Wilderlab, the 2023 Growth & Scale Award Winners. |
Wilderlab embody a unique New Zealand approach to protecting and mapping our environment through their environmental DNA monitoring solution.
Steve Chappell, Fieldays Programme Manager, says that the calibre of this year’s entrants was incredibly high and even more outstanding considering the quick turnaround.
“This demonstrates how the innovation eco-system is thriving, it’s fantastic. The judges had a difficult time selecting the winners and we echo their sentiment and wish the entrants luck for the future”.
Fieldays and its renowned Innovation Awards are celebrating their 57th year, marking a longstanding tradition in the agricultural calendar, with the latter delivering a platform for problem-solvers to showcase their innovation to the primary industries.
Growing up on a South Waikato sheep and beef farm, Penny Ranger has firsthand experience on the day-to-day challenges.
Product design and development consultant Blender says as part of its commitment to fostering innovation in agriculture and technology, it’s sponsoring the prototype category of the Fieldays Innovation Awards for the third year in a row.
Entries for the 2024 Fieldays Innovation Awards have been announced.
Back to its “normal” mid-June timing, it looked like all the stars were in alignment for the Fieldays at Mystery Creek.
Farmlands says that improved half-year results show that the co-op’s tight focus on supporting New Zealand’s farmers and growers is working.
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) says that discovery of a male Oriental fruit fly on Auckland’s North Shore is a cause for concern for growers.
Fonterra says its earnings for the 2025 financial year are anticipated to be in the upper half of its previously forecast earnings range of 40-60 cents per share.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is having another crack at increasing the fees of its chair and board members.
Livestock management tech company Nedap has launched Nedap New Zealand.
An innovative dairy effluent management system is being designed to help farmers improve on-farm effluent practices and reduce environmental impact.
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