Irrigation NZ gets new CEO

Williams, the national client propositions manager at FMG, starts in her new role on February 24.

She's a former Federated Farmers leader, having served as chair of its arable section, national vice president and board member.

Williams farms an irrigated 560ha mixed cropping, beef, and lamb finishing property in the Wairarapa with her husband Mick. They are past Supreme winners for the Wellington region in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards.

She’s a graduate of the Agri-Women’s Development Trust’s Escalator Programme and also received the Biosecurity Farmer of the Year Award in 2019 for her work on the pea weevil biosecurity incursion, and the couple won the Environmental and Sustainability Award at the 2022 NZ Arable Awards.

Williams says she’s excited to take on a new challenge and sees the chief executive officer role at Irrigation New Zealand as a natural progression to her career.

“Having held other executive and Board roles, this is an opportunity for me to combine my skills and experience, while also allowing me to help advocate for a sector I’m passionate about. There are synergies with the work I’ve been doing at FMG too – we’re both about getting better outcomes for farmers, growers and rural communities and that includes wider water users too.”

Chair of Irrigation New Zealand, Keri Johnston says Williams’ appointment to CEO comes at an interesting time.

“It’s a critical time for New Zealand in terms of how we safeguard our water for different uses, so getting Karen at the helm now is timely for advocating the best direction for irrigation in New Zealand.”