increase font size
Marty Deans says while initially reluctant to enter the competition it turned out to be a good move for his farm.
Otago farmer Marty Deans says he entered this year’s Ballance Farm Environment Awards to benchmark the farm he manages and learn more about improving sustainability.
Marty and wife Lynette live on Barewood Station, a 6300ha sheep and beef property between Middlemarch and Outram. Barewood is one of eight farms owned and operated by Tom and Heather Sturgess of the Lone Star Farms group.
Deans says he was “encouraged” to enter the station in the 2016 Otago awards.
“I’m not normally the type to enter competitions, but I could see the benefits of being involved with this one. It was a good process and I learnt a lot from it. You get to meet like-minded people and make great contacts in the industry.”
Barewood Station won two category awards, including the CB Norwood Distributors Ltd Agri-Business Management Award.
The judges said the station’s farming systems are continually evolving to meet the difficulties of farming in a harsh environment while still achieving above-average production. They say management decisions are optimised by comprehensive measuring, monitoring and the analysis of farm performance.
Deans says he was “pretty chuffed” by the win, even though that wasn’t a key reason for entering.
“I went in for the knowledge I could gain from the judges and the other entrants, but getting those awards was a bonus.”
Deans was impressed with the calibre of the judges and the professionalism of the report he received after the judging process.
“We had eight different judges come onto the farm on two different occasions and they asked totally different questions. But it wasn’t a scary process, more like a general chat over a cup of tea,” he says.
“The feedback they gave was excellent and I was able to ask them questions as well. The advice in the report was useful and the whole thing makes you look hard at what you are doing to improve sustainability.”
Deans was surprised at the number of people he met who had entered the awards two or three times.
“It’s clear they were taking on board the free advice of the judges and using it to improve their operations. So I’ll have another go.”
With entries now open for the Ballance Farm Environment Awards, organisers have launched a campaign to bust some of the biggest myths they think might be preventing farmers and growers from putting themselves forward.
Michelle and Tony Roberts didn't inherit the farming business they have today. They’ve built it from the ground up.
The bumpy road you travel on teachs you a lot, believes Don Watson. And that’s the message he and wife Kirsten, supreme winners of the Auckland Ballance Farm Environment Awards, aim to pass on to their three sons.
Helensville farmers, Donald and Kirsten Watson of Moreland Pastoral, have been named the Auckland Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
Philip and Lyneyre Hooper of the Hoopman Family Trust have tonight been named the Taranaki Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
Bigger, bolder salads packed with colour, crunch and flavour are making headlines overseas — and the arrival of fresh spring vegetables means New Zealanders can now get chopping too, creating their own Great Kiwi Spring Salad.
Chinese beef trade quotas and a looming suspension of Brazilian beef imports into the European Union are expected to reshape global beef trade flows over the remainder of 2026, with implications for New Zealand exporters, according to Rabobank's Q3 Global Beef Quarterly report.
James Blair, an agronomist for AS Wilcox and the Pukekohe regional champion, has won the 2026 Young Grower national title.
An Auckland gelato shop and an established New Zealand ice cream maker have both been named Supreme Champions at the NZ Ice Cream & Gelato Awards 2026.
As the cost-of-living crisis continues to put pressure on household grocery budgets, new figures show pork remains one of the most affordable fresh meat options for New Zealand families.
OPINION: In politics, credibility is and should be big. It must surely rank higher than charisma, which is quite trite and superficial. Yet, voters nowadays are often wooed and influenced by how someone looks or talks at a superficial level. TV plays a huge role in this.
