Young growers dig deep for final

The best of New Zealand’s growing talent will be going head-to-head this month in a bid to win the title of Young Grower of the Year at Rotorua’s Energy Events Centre on Monday July 25.

The four young growers competing for the title of Young Grower of the Year are Kevin Withington, 29 from Nelson; Ben Smith, 29 from Pukekohe; Campbell Wood, 21 from the Bay of Plenty; and Chris Treneman, 25 from Hawke’s Bay.

The growers will participate in a day-long event testing in a range of practical and business activities such as driving a tractor, fencing and planting and employment relations. For the first time in the competition, there will be a Ballance Leadership Panel session where the young men will speak on their views of leadership and how it will contribute towards achieving the industry goal of $10 billion by 2020.

The growers will also give a three-minute speech to over 400 delegates at the Horticulture New Zealand annual conference dinner with the winner being announced later that evening.

This will be the third year for the Young Grower of the Year competition run by Horticulture New Zealand. The competition is supported by Platinum Sponsor ZESPRI International and others, who recognise and celebrate young leaders in the horticulture industry who have both excellent technical skills and leadership capabilities.

Andrew Fenton, President of Horticulture New Zealand, is a strong advocate of the competition. “Horticulture New Zealand believes in celebrating excellence in our young people,” he says. “These four growers have already demonstrated passion, direction and the potential to becoming significant contributors to our industry’s future. I look forward to watching their careers progress.”

ZESPRI CEO Iain Jager says, “We are very pleased to be the Platinum Sponsor for the 2011 Young Grower of the Year. This competition is a wonderful way for young growers to take their horticultural careers to the next level.”

For more information about the Young Grower of the Year competition please visit the Horticulture New Zealand website www.younggroweroftheyear.co.nz.