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Kristy Maria Roa.
The East Coast of the North Island features prominently in this year’s Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award for Sheep and Beef.
Two of the three men work on farms on the East Coast, the others in the South Island.
The three finalists were selected from entrants NZ-wide:
Kristy Maria Roa, a shepherd on Iwinui Station near Tolaga Bay on the North Island East Coast; Tumoanakotore-I-Whakairioratia (Tu) Harrison-Boyd, a shepherd at Whareopaia Station near Tolaga Bay on the East Coast; and Taane-nui-a-Rangi Rotoatara Hubbard a shepherd on Caberfeidh Station in the Hakataramea Valley near Kurow, northwest of Oamaru.
The Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award, first held in 2012, is designed to recognise talented up-and-coming young Māori farmers, to encourage young Māori to make farming a career, and to showcase to prospective employers the talent among Māori.
The awards have always created interest within and outside te ao Māori and has given finalists and winners a huge sense of pride and achievement. All have gone on to greater things since winning.
This award runs in tandem with the senior Ahuwhenua Trophy competition whose winner is announced during the Ahuwhenua Trophy Awards dinner, to be held in Gisborne on Friday 24.
Lead judge Peter Little says it is never easy to select finalists given the pool of young Māori who, in a short time, have been making great progress in their farming careers.
Little says the finalists’ training has helped them establish themselves in good jobs and provided an excellent platform to progress them to senior positions in the industry.
He says the farming sector needs talented, motivated young people and this award recognises their achievements and shows other young people the career opportunities in the primary sector.
In a few weeks the winner of the prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy for the top Māori dairy farm will be revealed at a gala dinner in Hamilton. In the past couple of weeks, the two finalists in this year’s competition have been holding on-farm field days to showcase why they are finalists. Peter Burke has attended both field days.
The finalists in this year’s Ahuwhenua Trophy competition to select the top Māori dairy farm in the country are now busy planning and organising field days at their respective properties.
Two dairy farms – one at Mangakino in the central North Island and one at Opotiki in the Eastern Bay of Plenty are the finalists in this year’s Ahuwhenua Trophy.
The finalists for the 2024 Ahuwhenua Trophy for the top Māori dairy farm were announced at a special function in Parliament earlier this week.
Entries to select the top Māori dairy farm for the prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy competition are being invited from all Māori dairy farmers, trusts and other entities around the country.
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