Pirongia farmer Emma Poole fencing her way to winning the 2023YFC title. Photo supplied
Hamilton is to host to one of the biggest farming events of 2024, with New Zealand Young Farmers confirming the location of next year’s FMG Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final.
The grand final event, now in its 56th year, is a highlight on the rural calendar and will see seven national finalists battle it out over three days for the prestigious title of FMG Young Farmer of The Year – a title currently held by Pirongia farmer Emma Poole.
Farmers everywhere were still buzzing after Emma made history as the first woman ever to win the grand final, New Zealand Young Farmers chief executive Lynda Coppersmith said.
“I’d love to see Emma’s win give more young people the confidence to stand up and give it a go. Last year, around 40% of competitors were female and we’d love to see that figure go even higher in 2024.”
She’s looking forward to an action-packed event in the “mighty Waikato”.
“The Waikato region really is a slice of paradise. It’s heartland, rural New Zealand and it has a long and proud farming history.”
The event, popular with contestants, is also a fan favourite.
Lynda said season 55’s grand final in Timaru attracted thousands of spectators, culminating in a substantial boost to the local economy over three days.
“It doesn’t matter whether you have a farming bone in your body, you’ll love being part of the action. The contestants that make it through to the grand final are the country’s very best young farmers. The competition is fierce, with high-pressure challenges that could focus on any aspect of modern farming across the whole supply chain,” she said.
A new format was trialled in the Northern and Waikato/Bay of Plenty regions last year. All going well this season, it could become a permanent fix.
Instead of a series of one-day district competitions to kickstart the contest, both the district and regional competitions will be rolled into a single weekend.
Day one will resemble the traditional district contest while day two will align more closely with a regional final.
“It means we don’t have to organise 14 separate district competitions, which will be a huge weight off our incredible team of volunteers who support us year-in, year-out. They put so many hours into each competition, so hopefully by streamlining the contest in this way we’ll be able to take off some of the pressure,” Lynda said.
Season 56 entries for all three levels of the contest are now open on the New Zealand Young Farmers’ website.
