Tony Dodunski Wins Fonterra Responsible Dairying Award
Milking cows in the environmentally sensitive Lake Ellesemere/Te Waihora catchment in Canterbury has kept Tony Dodunski on his toes.
The Horowhenua dairy farmer was elected at a recent trust meeting. He replaces Natasha Tere, whose term ends in March 2023.
A NZDIA statement says the overlapping period will ensure a smooth handover as McIntyre transitions into the role.
He has been involved with the NZ dairy awards since winning the 2013 Manawatū Share Milker/Equity Farmer category and has been a Trustee since 2017.
His experience in governance and representation includes roles of Federated Farmers representing sharemilkers in the Manawatū/Rangitikei, former chair of the national sharemilkers' section and he has held a psition on the Dairy Executive since 2016.
McIntyre was elected chair of Federated Farmers Dairy group this year and is a Federated Farmers board member.
He is an elected member of the Wellington Fish and Game Regional Council and is the Wellington appointee of the Fish and Game New Zealand Council.
McIntyre says he is excited to begin his role as NZDIA Trust chair while the programme is in a stage of change.
"The awards programme must continue to change and evolve to ensure relevance in an ever-changing dairy industry," he says.
"The programme's core role is to promote and celebrate excellence in the New Zealand dairy industry and what that actually looks like is continually changing.
"We need to continue to adapt and evolve to ensure the programme remains what the dairy industry needs to be.
"Our entrants will be our farm owners of the future - encouraging best practice and excellence from the beginning will give New Zealand farmers the skills and abilities needed for the years to come."
McIntyre is pleased to be carrying on the work Natasha Tere began.
"Tash and I share the same vision of what the awards needs to be," he says.
"Tash was exactly the right person for the past few years and she was awesome at guiding the trust and awards through those unprecedented times and making the difficult decisions when needed."
NZDIA general manager Robin Congdon says Natasha has been chair during a challenging phase in the programme's history with Covid-related adversities, and has been focused on driving change and leaving the organisation fit for purpose and in good stead.
"I am looking forward to working with Richard who has a lot of governance experience, knows the programme well and is future focused," says Congdon.
"Richard has been instrumental in encouraging change to keep us relevant and focused on what's important to sustainable dairy farming."
Entries for the 2023 Awards programme are open until December 5. Further information can be found at www.dairyindustryawards.co.nz
