Property Brokers Tararua Sheep & Beef Farm Business of the Year Award

Mark Your Calendars! Entries for the next Property Brokers Tararua Sheep & Beef Farm Business of the Year Award will open in late 2025.

The Aim.

The aim of the competition is to promote business excellence through innovative, forward-thinking and sustainable farming practices by identifying industry participants that demonstrate a well-balanced and positive approach to their business.

Who can enter.

The competition is open to any farmer (lessee or owner), or farm manager within the Tararua Region, whose income is derived mainly from sheep and cattle. Previous entrants to this competition who have not won in the last five years are eligible and encouraged to re-enter.

How to enter.

All eligible entrants can enter by;

• Completing the form below and submitting via this website or downloading this entry form, completing and emailing to tararuaagawards@gmail.com

• Providing the previous 2 years’ business financial accounts (these will be requested upon receiving the entry form).

• Providing a revised forecast budget for this current financial year and an accurate stock reconciliation (this will be requested upon receiving the entry form).

• An outline of the history of the entrant and their business (this will be requested upon receiving the entry form).

Judging.

Judging for the competition will be based on a 2 stage system that allows all entrants to showcase their business on an equal platform via a presentation of the relevant business to a panel of judges.

Stage 1. Entrants have 1 hour to present their business to the 3-person first-round judging panel.

Stage 2. Final entrants have three hours on-farm with judges to present their business. It is up to the discretion of the entrants how they wish to present the business however it is recommended that at least 1 hour is set aside for face-to-face discussion allowing a deep dive into the business. 

This presentation will allow each entrant to outline their key goals and aspirations for themselves and their business, strategic plans and the management styles they are implementing, and also highlight to the judges the story that compels each individual to continue to be part of the red meat industry.

Stage 2 judging will be completed via a process that allows all businesses to be compared on a level platform, with BakerAg providing comparative benchmarking via their FAB analysis.

The judging will take into account the business as a whole, assessing business sustainability, financial and environmental, historical and short to medium-term financial performance, governance and strategic management of the business, and community involvement.

The Criteria.

Judging criteria for the competition will focus on the following:

Governance - Including business ownership structure, business vision and goals, and operational / management structure. How these aspects interrelate and work towards delivering positive outcomes for the business.

Physical Performance and Management - How the various aspects are combined to produce physical results including livestock policies and performance, animal health, agronomy, infrastructure and other related aspects.

Financial Performance - Results are analysed through the BakerAg FAB database. Consideration is given to performance trends, performance relative to land class farmed and peer performance, risk management and monitoring practices applied.

License to operate - How does the business meet current regulatory compliance requirements including Health and Safety, NAIT, consideration given to the management of GHG emissions, meeting freshwater requirements and nutrient management.

General - Consideration is given to the entrant’s contribution to the wider community, ability to demonstrate innovation and ongoing education, their overall presentation skills and ability to share their story in a positive manner and showcase a positive business story for our industry.

Feedback.

The judges will provide feedback from both stages of the competition. The first-round feedback will be offered in writing prior to the second round of judging. The judges will meet face-to-face with entrants from the second round to provide feedback in person.

Physical information.

This information will be requested upon receiving a completed entry form.

This is intended to be a guide only, feel free to change this, omit any part that is irrelevant to your business or add any extra information you see fit to best describe and detail your farm business and what sets it apart from others.

Business History - how has the business got to where it is today, ownership structure, land purchases, development programs etc.

Key Principals & Practices, Strengths, Weaknesses & Opportunities - What key principles or philosophies does this business hold that is used in decision-making.

Strengths and weaknesses - in terms of personal and physical aspects of the property. This could also include how the strengths are exploited and how the weaknesses are minimised. Opportunities - what opportunities do you see for your business going forward.

Ownership Structure of the Business - includes deatils of trusts, companies or partnerships and how they are structured. This could also include succession plans, if they are in place.

Physical Details of the Property - area, effective and non-effective, labour, rainfall, subdivision & infrastructure, number of paddocks, stockyards, water systems etc. Development, both carried out and planned, could include costings if significant to the business.

Stock policies - give a brief overview of stock policies including numbers, animal health, target and historical production, selling policies, target stock weights and any other relevant information. Numbers of sheep, cattle, deer and cropping (feed or cash cropping and re-grassing programs).

Goals & Objectives - where the business is headed, what are the goals, and what is important in the short, medium and long term.