Managing thousands of sheep is just part of his day job for Dwayne Cowin. And it’s the practical skills he’s gained in livestock farming which helped the 29-year-old win the Waikato/Bay of Plenty regional final of the 2015 ANZ Young Farmer Contest.

That happened after he graduated from Massey University with a bachelor of applied science degree.

Fergus King of Matamata welds a gate during the Waikato/Bay of Plenty regional final of the 2015 ANZ Young Farmer Contest at the Paeroa Racecourse.

Variety appeals
Dwayne moved to his current position at Lochinver from managing a 500ha drystock farm near Te Kuiti. “Drystock farming has always appealed because of the variety of the work. No two seasons are the same.”

Share farming or leasing a sheep and beef farm within the next 10 years is the aim but in the meantime Dwayne’s working on developing his management skills.

It’s the second time he’s won a place in the grand final and both times he’s represented the Reporoa Young Farmers Club.

Taking part in the competition is great for both personal development and for networking with others in the primary industry, says Dwayne.

Organisers of the finals in Paeroa did a great job in staging the event, which included some testing modules, and the venue was a good one, says Dwayne, who in his spare time enjoys fishing and water-skiing on Lake Taupo in summer and hunting during winter.

Thomas Harliwich of Te Awamutu identifies seeds during the Waikato/Bay of Plenty regional final of the 2015 ANZ Young Farmer Contest at the Paeroa Racecourse.

Modules challenge
The contestants were put through their paces in a variety of challenging modules, from stock judging to engineering, touching on all aspects of farming from practical, hands-on tasks to theory and business components.

Second place went to 29-year-old Ravensdown agronomy technical manager James Bryan of the Cambridge Young Farmers Club. He took home $2900 worth of prizes and won the AGMARDT Agri-Business Challenge.

Third place went to dairy farm owner Brady Mitchell, 30, of the Reporoa Young Farmers Club and fourth place went to 23-year-old sharemilker Josh MacDonald of the North Waikato Young Farmers Club. The Lincoln University Agri-Growth Challenge was won by Brady and the crowd-pleasing Silver Fern Farms Agri-Sports Challenge was won by 23-year-old Thomas Harliwich from the Te Kawa West Young Farmers Club.

James Bryan of Cambridge loads silage onto a truck during one of the challenges in the Waikato/Bay of Plenty regional final of the 2015 ANZ Young Farmer Contest.

Wayne Hofmann of Waihi assesses young Jersey cows.

Jono Singer of Morrinsville crutches a sheep.