The Weekly Times Coles 2019 Farmer of the Year Awards finalists
Tonight is The Weekly Times Coles 2019 Farmer of the Year Awards. See who is in the running here and follow #FOTY19 #FarmeroftheYear on social media as we reveal the winners.
INTRODUCING the finalists in The Weekly Times Coles 2019 Farmer of the Year Awards.
We’ll reveal the winners in a special 32-page magazine, free in The Weekly Times on February 26.
CROPPING FARMER OF THE YEAR
PASKEVILLE, SA
BROTHERS Grant and Ben Pontifex operate a 6800ha cropping business split between the Yorke Peninsula and Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The fifth-generation farmers are innovative when it comes to farming practices and marketing their crop.
JERILDERIE, NSW
LEASING water instead of buying it has given a healthy boost to Riverina farmers Peter and Renee Burke’s bottom line. From just 1281ha and a handful of water entitlements, they produced a whopping 6000 tonnes of grain and 8000 bales of hay and straw in the past 12 months.
CUNLIFFE, SA
MARK and Merridee Schilling run a 2000ha cropping business at Cunliffe on South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula, where value-adding plays a critical role. Their latest venture is the paddock-to-pint Yorke Premium beer label launched in late 2018.
MORE FARMER OF THE YEAR
2018 FARMER OF THE YEAR WINNERS
DAIRY FARMER OF THE YEAR
INVERLOCH, VIC
DAIRY farmers Mick and Paula Hughes run an ultra-low input, once-a-day milking system on their 284ha farm near Inverloch in Victoria’s South Gippsland. The couple push their 500-cow herd with their cost of production as little as $2.60/kg of milk solids.
MYPONGA, SA
FLEURIEU Milk Company is owned by three dairy farmers in the South Australian town of Myponga and produces fresh milk, flavoured milk and yoghurt. The business has grown more than 55 per cent in the past 22 months and recently completed a $1.2 million upgrade of its facilities.
COHUNA, VIC
BALANCING land and water availability is a key strategy for fifth-generation dairy farmer John Keely. With his wife, Michelle, father Des and son Harrison, John runs a 423ha dairy enterprise at Cohuna in northern Victoria milking up to 320 mostly Holstein cows.
SHEEP FARMER OF THE YEAR
METCALFE, VIC
Duncan and Jess Barber run a traditional Saxon Merino flock of 25,000 sheep across several properties in central and western Victoria. Members of the Vitale Barberis Canonico Wool Excellence Club, the Barbers were last year awarded the club’s prestigious wool excellence award.
SERPENTINE, VIC
People, planet and profits are front and centre for the Hooke family’s Willera Merino operation spread across three regions in two states. The Hookes run 1000 registered ewes and 13,000 commercial ewes and conducted an inaugural on-property production sale last year.
SHELFORD, VIC
Performance pays for Gordon Brown, who manages a 1220ha property at Shelford in Victoria’s Western District that runs up to 3000 highly productive ewes. The more recent introduction of Multi Purpose Merino genetics has led to a dramatic increase in wool quality and returns.
BEEF FARMER OF THE YEAR
COLERAINE, VIC
THE Wyld family joins about 1800 cows near Coleraine in Victoria’s Western District. A switch from selling weaners to growing them out on a property at the other end of the state is paying significant dividends.
ABERFOYLE, NSW
WAL and Jen Perry, and their son Charlie, run Trent Bridge Wagyu stud at Aberfoyle in the NSW New England region. The former sheep farmers run 300 Wagyu breeding females and last year juggled lows of drought and fire with highs of selling a cow for $200,000.
BARFOLD, VIC
MATT Shea and his family run Barfold Beef, a finely tuned Angus business at Barfold, near Kyneton in central Victoria. The Sheas join up to 570 Angus females each year on 1420ha and focus on investing in cattle genetics rather than land.
HORTICULTURE FARMER OF THE YEAR
DROMANA, VIC
Crittenden Estate, run by Garry Crittenden and his children, Rollo and Zoe, produces 1500-2000 cases of premium wine annually from its 4.5ha vineyard at Dromana on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. The Crittendens’ focus on soil health is winning the business acclaim across the globe.
ARDMONA, VIC
Jason Shields is the orchard manager at Plunkett Orchards, which grows 9000 tonnes of apples and pears near Ardmona in Victoria’s Goulburn Valley and is expanding at an impressive rate of 10 per cent a year. Last year Jason was named AUSVEG Horticulture Grower of the Year.
GATTON, QLD
Rugby Farm is one of Australia’s biggest horticulture players – planting the equivalent of three average-sized vegetable farms a week, producing 20 million packs of value-added produce a year and employing more than 900 staff. It is run by third-generation farmers Matt and Dan Hood.
FARM MAGAZINE INNOVATIVE FARMER OF THE YEAR
HALLORA, VIC
Niels Olsen and his wife, Marja, and sons, Shane, Jamie and Shaun, have dramatically boosted soil health on their 121ha cattle property at Hallora in Victoria’s South Gippsland, using their invention called the Soilkee Renovator. The machine has opened two new revenue streams for the family.
HODDLES CREEK, VIC
Run on half a hectare in Victoria’s Yarra Valley, Petite Ingredient is Australia’s largest edible-flower business in range and turnover. Grower Jocelyn Cross sells 10,000 products a month, in 60 different lines, and constantly reinvents her value-added range to stay ahead of competition.
COPPING, TAS
Goat farmers Iain and Kate Field run a milking herd of 75 Toggenburgs on 107ha at Copping, in southeast Tasmania. With a focus on animal husbandry and sustainable land care, the couple are respected for their approach and the gourmet goat cheese they make on farm.
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Farmer of the Year 2024 nominations now open
We are searching for the best farmers from across Australia to be honoured in The Weekly Times Coles 2024 Farmer of the Year awards.