Aiming high produces result

19-07-2010 | Rebecca Harper

The Young Farmer of the Year contest is a gruelling test of physical, mental and emotional strength. Rebecca Harper watched from the sidelines then spoke to the winner.

Grant McNaughton was meant to be back working on the family farm in Oamaru last Monday - but the phone wouldn't stop ringing.

It seems everyone wanted a piece of the 2010 Young Farmer of the Year.

And it's not a title easily won.

Seven contestants put themselves through what could only be described as the ironman of farming events which tested them physically, mentally and emotionally over three days before McNaughton was crowned eventual winner in Gore on July 10.

It was the second crack at the competition for the 26-year-old from Dunsandel Young Farmers Club who was representing the Tasman region.

McNaughton farms a 4500 stock unit, sheep, beef and cropping property at Kia Ora, Oamaru, in partnership with his parents, works as a private consultant for both businesses and farmers and has also made an investment in a separate dairy farm.

After completing a Bachelor of Commerce and Agriculture at Lincoln University McNaughton worked for Ravensdown before spending a year managing a Dunsandel dairy farm.

He recently took on a more active role in the family farm and is also trying to grow his off-farm investments.

In the 2007 grand final he placed fifth when representing the Aorangi region then made a conscious decision not to compete the following year, opting to give something back to the club instead and taking on the role of practical convenor.

Last year he tied for first equal with Tim O'Sullivan in the Aorangi regional final and O'Sullivan went through on countback and carried on to take out the 2009 overall title.

Speaking from home on Monday, McNaughton said the win was starting to sink in.

"The realisation it's really happened, I'm still over the moon though and pretty overwhelmed, actually winning the title."

Becoming Young Farmer of the Year was something he had dreamed about from a young age.

"It's a massive goal ... it's an opportunity to get recognised as the best in the industry for a young person."

On the profile he submitted when entering the competition McNaughton listed one of his farm management policies as "operating at the top of your field" and to strive for the top 5%. In the Saturday night final he demonstrated that aiming high has its rewards.

"You build yourself up to go down there and win.

"Well heck, I've done it and it is an amazing feeling to put all those things you have practised into place."

The competition is an ultra marathon of farming with competitors on their feet from dawn to dusk, pushing themselves through a gruelling set of challenges that are demanding of both body and mind.

The plan was to go to Gore to win.

He felt if he could consistently do the small things right, hopefully, the overall result would come - and he was correct.

Things got under way on Thursday with the technical challenges.

Contestants were required to sort out a human resources dispute between two employees and have an interview with three judges.

Young Farmers chief executive Richard Fitzgerald said this was designed "to explore their characteristics and perspective on life - what drives them."

The second part of the technical day was the AGMARDT agribusiness section where contestants presented projects they had prepared before the grand final.

"They had to identify an opportunity for a product to be developed through the supply chain," Fitzgerald said.

"It's about effectively communicating, innovation and assessing an opportunity. For the guys it's really stimulating."

They finished Thursday with a written exam, including a business plan for a farm property to be diversified and the nerve-wracking public speaking evening where contestants delivered a three-minute speech to a capacity audience on a topic they had been given only that morning.

Friday saw them work their way round four practical modules - dairy, sheep, deer and arable - as well as performing a number of tasks including building a mailbox, duck pond, wind vane and a spot of beekeeping on their own "farmlet" throughout the day.

They went head to head in two fast-paced half hour agrisports challenges, the first a fencing challenge and the second to perfect a French rack then build a wooden wheelbarrow. While it was a race against the clock marks were deducted for poor workmanship so the emphasis was on speed and quality.

Fitzgerald said the three returning finalists, including McNaughton, looked sharp.

"They weren't shocked by the pressure. For the new guys the intensity is so different to anything they would have done before."

McNaughton believes contestants need to have a "well rounded business head" to handle the technicalities of dealing with human resources and thinking strategically about business planning and growth as well as the practical grassroots farming skills to win the competition.

"It demands you to be a well-rounded individual and think about things in a bigger picture business sense."

He hoped to create some new opportunities personally from winning the competition but also to help encourage more people into the Young Farmers movement.

"That's what it's about - trying to get people excited about agriculture as a career option."

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