Tangaroa Walker has won the inaugural Ahuwhenua Young Māori Trainee/Cadet of the Year Award. Tangaroa, 22, is a Farm Manager for Toa Farms, Kennington, Southland.

Tangaroa says that he is driven by what gives meaning to his life and helping others progress and find meaning in their own lives.

“I want to be the most successful Māori in the world and I want to motivate young Māori by directing them down the path I have followed to show them that the opportunities are out there if you are willing to sacrifice and put in the hard yards.”

Tangaroa wants to own his own farm and, having set his goals, he says that he knows how he’s going to do it.

Mark Coughlan Farm Assistant, Wairarapa Moana Farms Dairy 2, Mangakino, and Tyson Kelly, Farm Hand, Corboy Farms, Te Awamutu, were runners up for the Award.

The new award was created to encourage young Māori, aged 16 – 25 years, into leadership roles while supporting them on their learning and career pathways as well as encouraging their personal development. It operates under the banner of the Ahuwhenua Trophy BNZ Māori Excellence in Farming Award. Both Awards recognise outstanding achievement and excellence in Māori farming. They also alternate on an annual basis between beef and sheep and dairy farming. This year both competitions are for dairy farming.

The three finalists travelled to Hamilton for a three day study tour prior to the Ahuwhenua Trophy Awards evening held on 8 June in Auckland. During the study tour they attended a variety of sessions held by leaders in the dairy industry including Dairy Woman of the Year, Barbara Kuriger and DairyNZ strategy and investment leader, Mark Paine.

The group also visited AgResearch dairy farm, Tokanui Farm, where they looked at technology in the dairy industry, and held discussions that focused on their values as Māori and their relationship with their iwi, hapu and whanau.

Fred Hardy, strategic business development manager at AgITO and one of the judges, said, “The study tour was about helping the finalists expand their horizons, learn things they didn’t know and work out some pathways for their future. It was also for us as judges to observe them and make our final decision.

“We had to consider more than just how good they were at milking and managing cows and that added an interesting dimension to it. As a result we believe that we were working with three focused young men who will have a large and positive impact on Māori dairy farming.”

The award was judged by Fred Hardy, Abe Seymour, Strategic Adviser for AgITO, and John Troutbeck, manager at Dairy Training Ltd.

Tangaroa received a trophy along with a framed photograph of the presentation, a certificate awarding a training scholarship and $3,000 cash. The two runners up received a taonga, a certificate awarding a training scholarship and $1,000 cash.

The Ahuwhenua Young Māori Trainee/Cadet of the Year award is sponsored by AgITO, Te Puni Kōkiri, Allflex and the Māori Trustee.

ENDS

Further info
The three finalists in the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Trainee/Cadet of the Year Award were:

Mark Coughlan (Tuhoe/Ngai Tai)
Farm Assistant, Wairarapa Moana Farms Dairy 2, Mangakino, Waikato

Tyson Kelly (Tuhoe/Whakatohea)
Farm Hand, Corboy Farms, Te Awamutu, Waikato

Tangaroa Walker (Ranginui/Pukenga),
Farm Manager, Toa Farms, Kennington, Southland

Media Contact
Stephanie Robertson
Communications Adviser
AgITO
04 382 2853
027 436 6469
stephanier@agito.ac.nz

About AgITO
Agriculture ITO (AgITO) provides leadership in education and training, develops national qualifications, maintains national standards and provides on-going support for their trainees and employers. AgITO training is subsidised by industry and Government. For more information on our qualifications, please visit www.agito.ac.nz.