Sharemilker of the Year

Who is eligible?

The New Zealand Sharemilker of the Year competition is open to:

• Percentage Sharemilkers.

• Dairy Farm Managers who own over 25% and up to 50% of the business they are employed in.

• Contract Milkers who own over 25% and up to 50% of the business in which they hold the Contract Milking agreement. 

Entrants need to ensure they meet all eligibility criteria, which can be found in the
Conditions of Entry (pdf 288 KB).

Here's how it works

• Fill out an Entry Form and send it off to us!

• Once your entry is received you will be sent an e-mail detailing the process you need to follow to complete the entry requirements and the additional information we require. If you do not supply an e-mail address, your information will be posted.

• The additional information we request will include completing an Entrant Information Sheet and providing a copy of your last year's financial accounts.

• From this e-mail you will also be able to access the full Judging Criteria which outlines the different categories that you will be judged on.

• Once the paperwork has been taken care of, the preparation for on-farm judging can begin!

Judging Criteria

Detailed judging criteria will be provided after your entry is received. The following is a brief outline of some of the areas you will be judged on and that an entrant should include in their presentation to the judges.

• Financial
• Making the Most of the Property
• Pasture
• Livestock
• Human Resources
• Farm Environment
• Farm Safety and Health
• Farm Dairy Hygiene
• Future Aims and Attitudes
• Family and Community Interests
• Communication

Judging - Now that's scary!

• Not really, all the judges in the competition are experienced in the field of farming and really just want to know about you and your farming career or business.  Many of our judges have entered competitions before and know how it feels to be 'on the other end'.
  
• You may be surprised to learn that most of what the judges are looking for are the things you do every day in your farming lives!  You just need to tell them about it and in return receive their valuable feedback.
  
• On farm judging takes place at different times in different regions. The earliest judging commences is late January and is finished in all regions by the end of February.
  
• You are allocated two hours for your on-farm judging. You might think two hours is a long time, but in reality it isn't!
  
• Former entrants will tell you that it is beneficial to spend some time each week on your preparation for judging.  This way, you start to feel more confident of your ability to give a good presentation and to ensure you are well prepared for judging.
  
• Use the judging criteria to work through each section to put together a presentation for the judges. Use your imagination in determining how best to get your message and information across to the judges.
  
• Most regions run preliminary judging rounds (dependant on numbers), in which their region is broken up into judging groups. These groups are judged and the first place getter from each group will progress to the regional final. In some regions all the 'seconds' from each group will also be judged to find an additional regional finalist. All finalists will be judged again to determine the regional winner and place getters.
  
• Entrants receive written feedback from their judges.
  
• In May of each year all the regional finalists are judged by the national judging team to determine the overall winner and place getters at a national level.

Other information

• Merit Awards
• Regional Dinners
• Field Days
• National Final

Note: If you would like to view any pdf files on this site, you will need the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader which is free to download and quick & easy to install.

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