The Weekly Times Coles 2018 Farmer of the Year Awards finalists

WE REVEAL the great farmers vying for The Weekly Times Coles 2018 Farmer of the Year Awards.

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INTRODUCING the finalists in The Weekly Times Coles 2018 Farmer of the Year Awards.

We’ll reveal the winners in a special 32-page magazine, free in The Weekly Times on February 27.

CROPPING FARMER OF THE YEAR

BLOMELEY FAMILY

PURA PURA, VIC

Danielle, Tim and Nathan Blomley, Pura Pura, Picture Yuri Kouzmin

A relentless hunger to do things better, and a clever mix of buying and leasing land, have helped the Blomeleys grow their farm business threefold within just four years. The family grows wheat, canola and beans, and focuses on water-use efficiency.

MERCED FARMING

WEE WAA, NSW

FOR THE WEEKLY TIMES FOTY

A strong focus on upskilling staff is the secret to the Kahl family’s success. The family employs 20-23 full-time workers on their seven properties, totalling 7500ha, where cotton is king but they also grow wheat, corn and mung beans.

CHRIS REICHSTEIN

ESPERANCE, WA

Chris Reichstein of Mt Burdett Farming Co in a barley crop on his farm near Esperance in Western Australia. November 2018. Picture: Corrina Ridgway

Chris has evolved his 4600ha farm to the point where it is considered one of the best in Western Australia. He grows wheat, barley and canola and has adopted many innovative methods, including direct drilling and no till farming, to maximise yields.

DAIRY FARMER OF THE YEAR

CLINT THEODORE & BROOKE LANE

ALVIE, VIC

Farmer of the Year finalists, Dairy, Clint Theodore & Brooke Lane, Alvie, Picture Yuri Kouzmin

Clint and Brooke run a high-production herd of 300 Holstein cows, each producing 11,000 litres of milk, and through a scientific and economic approach to farming have been able to achieve a massive 12 per cent return on equity in recent years.

SCOTT & BELINDA McKILLOP

DEDERANG, VIC

FOCUS: Dairy farmers Scott and Belinda McKillop Scott and Belinda McKillop on their hay and Border Collie named Rosie. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

Sustainability is paramount for the McKillops, who run 360 Holsteins each producing 8200-8300 litres of milk annually. They are one of four farming families to form Australia’s newest dairy co-operative to extract the best-possible milk price.

LUKE & STACEY MADDEN

NARINGAL EAST, VIC

Farmer of the Year finalists, Luke & Stacey Madden, Naringal East, Picture Yuri Kouzmin

The Maddens, who milk 220 cows, are well aware what measures drive on-farm profitability. They have found success producing milk for the cheapest-possible price by growing as much feed for their herd as they can.

SHEEP FARMER OF THE YEAR

GLENN WHITE

DUNKELD, VIC

FOCUS: Glenn White DPC Glenn White, General Manager at Dunkeld Pastoral Co. Pictured: Glenn White Dunkeld Pastoral Co. with sheep. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

Glenn manages the 8300ha Dunkeld Pastoral Company and in the past eight years has grown it into one of Victoria’s best-known and most innovative livestock operations, producing 450 tonnes of lamb and 250 tonnes of mutton annually.

GOODE FAMILY

KINGSTON SE, SA

Farmer of the Year finalists, sheep section, Henry Goode & his family, " Barooka" , Wangolina, SA, L-R: Tom, Prue, William, Deane, Sarah, Henry, (front), dogs - Ned & Digga, Picture Yuri Kouzmin

The Goodes, who run 6900 Multi-Purpose Merino ewes on 2772ha, are enjoying spectacular results from changes to their breeding and management techniques. Wool production has increased 15 per cent and lambing rates 17 per cent.

TOM & PHOEBE BULL

HOLBROOK, NSW

Tom Bull, with his kids Hamish, 10, Hattie, 8, Eddie, 6, Kinross, Holbrook, Picture Yuri Kouzmin

The Bulls operate the Lambpro sheep studs – a performance-based genetics business producing rams for clients that will this year produce a collective 800,000 lambs. They now have their eyes on creating Australia’s best-tasting lamb.

BEEF FARMER OF THE YEAR

BEN & JANE YOUNG

MACARTHUR, VIC

Ben and Jane Young, Chiltern Park.

Innovation is the key for the Youngs, who run 1100 Angus breeding cows and 1040 weaners. They have found superfood kale a winner for their beef herd during winter, when harsh conditions drastically slow the growth of traditional grasses.

TEXAS ANGUS

WARIALDA, NSW

FOR THE WEEKLY TIMES FOTY

Despite the drought, Ben and Wendy Mayne notched up perhaps their most successful year yet during 2018. Their cattle took out two of the nation’s biggest carcass competitions and they sold bulls for a whopping $11,580 average

MACQUARIE WAGYU

LEYBURN, QLD

Farmer of the Year - Managers Anthony and Chantelle Winter, Macquarie Wyag in Leyburn. 198km south-west of Brisbane. 9th January 2019, pic David Martinelli

Anthony and Chantal Winter’s approach to beef farming is unique. They oversee 650 fullblood Wagyu females, producing about 250 tonnes of beef a year, and make all breeding decisions based on how a cow’s offspring ultimately performs on the plate.

HORTICULTURE FARMER OF THE YEAR

PINATA FARMS

WAMURAN, QLD

Gavin (left) and Stephen Scurr from Pinata Farms in their pineapple crop at Wamuran on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.

Gavin and Stephen Scurr oversee a family business that grows nine million pineapples, 130 million strawberries and 13 million mangoes a year. It has 1010ha of fruit under production in Queensland, the Northern Territory and Tasmania.

WINDHUM FARMS

BUNDABERG, QLD

NewsCorp, Bundaberg QLD, Darren Zunker who runs Windhum Farms sweet potato business near Bundaberg. Photo Paul Beutel

Darren and Linda Zunker have built their diverse horticulture business to a point where it now supplies 100 pallets of sweet potatoes a week across Australia. They have also ventured into sweet corn, watermelons and macadamia nuts.

SUNNY HILL FLOWERS

SILVAN, VIC

FOCUS: Sunny Hill Flowers Rob and Mariske De Witt from Sunny Hill Flowers at Silvan produce up to six million stems of flowers a year from their farm, which includes 6.2ha of glasshouse and . Pictured: Mariske and Rob De Witt from Sunny Hill Flowers with lillies. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

Dutch natives Rob and Mariske de Wit have transformed a humble flower-growing business into a multi-million dollar vertically integrated company that produces up to six million stems of specialist lilies and Dutch iris annually.

FARM MAGAZINE INNOVATIVE FARMER OF THE YEAR

GLENELG RIVER HERBS

BALMORAL, VIC

Anita Watt in a rosemary plot at her Balmoral-based Glenelg River Herbs farm. Photo: DANNIKA BONSER

Anita Watt runs of one of Australia’s largest rosemary operations, producing 35 tonnes of herbs a year from 20ha. The business has the market cornered on fresh rosemary and dried herbs, supplying supermarkets and food-service customers.

LUPINS FOR LIFE

BROCKLESBY, NSW

Siblings Gary Drew, Roger Drew and Chris Johnston at the Lupins For Life processing plant at Jindera, NSW. They co-own the business. Picture: DANNIKA BONSER

The Drew family have created a farm-to-fork operation like no other. They launched Lupins for Life three years ago to process their entire 100ha annual lupin harvest. It now produces lupin flakes, flour, kibble, crump and semolina, sold in 400g packets.

OUTBACK HARVEST

WAKOOL, NSW

FARM: Outback Harvest Father Shane and son Fraser and McNaul run Outback Harvest, value-adding their crop of teff into a variety of products including flour Pictured: Fraser and Shane McNaul in their teff crop. PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

The McNaul family launched Outback Harvest to utilise the ancient grain teff grown on their 1820ha farm. The range, stocked in almost 300 outlets across Australia, includes teff grain and flour, teff pancake, bread and muffin mixes, and teff pasta.