Ballance Farm Environment Awards

Background information
Previous winners
Why should I enter?
What awards are there?
How are the awards judged?
Conditions of entry
Application form and guidelines
Further information

Northland 2008-09

Applications for the 2008-09 Awards open in October 2008.

Background information

In 2002, the Ballance Farm Environment Awards were established to take the Waikato initiative nationwide. The awards are held in eight regions across New Zealand.

The Jack Family of Pakaraka were Northland's first supreme award winners in 2006.

We introduced the Awards to our region in 2005-06 through partnership with the Farm Environment Awards Trust.

The key objectives of the awards are to encourage sustainable land management and to display to farmers that profitability need not compromise and, in the best examples, can restore and enhance environmental values.

Through feedback and profiling winners, the Awards encourage other farmers to be more proactive on their resource management by providing them with role models and practical ideas for sustainable land management.

Previous winners

Previous supreme winners and recipients of our Water Quality Enhancement Award include.

2008

Supreme winners: Lindsay and Erica Whyte, Taupo Bay
Northland Regional Council Water Quality Enhancement Award: Doug and Sally Lane, Kaeo

2007

Supreme winners: Evan and Sherleen Smeath, Hukerenui
Northland Regional Council Water Quality Enhancement Award: Bruce and Helen Bell, Ohaeawai

2006

Supreme winners: The Jack Family, Pakaraka
Northland Regional Council Water Quality Enhancement Award: Ian and June Wilson, Kerikeri

To find out more about the supreme and the other award winners, visit the Ballance Farm Environment Awards website: www.bfea.org.nz

Why should I enter?

The awards help many farming businesses to enhance their asset in a variety of ways. Many past participants have entered to learn new ways of doing things.

Farmers have said that the benefits to be gained from entering include:

Linking sustainable farming practices to long-term profitability
Discussing practical farm information and business with judges from a range of fields
Gather new ideas and different methods from other entrants
Confirmation that current farm management practices are sustainable
Prizes and recognition

What awards are there?

Your entry will automatically be considered for the following awards:

Supreme Award
The Supreme Winner is chosen from the 'Best of the Best' i.e. one from the group of finalists that is chosen to represent the region
- $3000 package including products and cash from all the sponsors.

Ballance Agri-Nutrients Nutrient Management Award
This Award focuses on the wise use of nutrients for productivity while demonstrating excellent care for the environment around them. A very good understanding of nutrient cycles needs to be demonstrated. Nutrient budgeting must be understood and well documented. The impacts of nutrients on both surface and groundwater will need to be understood & well managed.
- $1000 cash

LIC Dairy Farm Award
This award recognises the dairy farmer who demonstrates in a practical way the long-term choices that have been made to the farm. Consideration is given around the wise use of the land, labour and capital resource available or created. Increasingly the effects of dairy farming on both surface and groundwater and its impact on soil properties are factors the judges will consider.
- $1000 cash

PPCS Livestock Farm Award
This award recognises the livestock farmer (other than dairy) who demonstrates in a practical way the choices that have been made to farm for the long term. Considerations will be made around the wise use of the land, labour and capital resource available or created. Stock will be well cared for. Stock class and type will be well suited to the land contour & soil type and managed appropriately to suit those soils.
- $1000 cash

Hill Laboratories Harvest Award
(e.g. Horticulture, Cropping, Viticulture etc)
This award recognises the farmer who is predominantly involved in growing crops, (e.g. Grain, Seed, Viticulture, Horticulture) who demonstrates in a practical way the choices that have been made to farm for the long term. Consideration will include the effect the cropping system has on the land resource. Its effect on the water resource, along with nutrient use and effect will also be considered. Some formal monitoring or measuring of effects of cropping on these resources would be a positive. Demonstration of a good understanding of weed and pest management is also required.
- $1000 cash

PGG Wrightson Habitat Improvement Award
This is for 'special places' of habitat that have been protected or created to enhance the farm business. The habitat may add value by protecting stock or crops from adverse weather or may add value by adding to the diversity of the farm. It may include trees or other plantings, wetlands created or restored or unique characteristics of the land or area protected from stock or predators.
- $1000 cash/sponsor product

Gallagher Innovation Award
This award recognises the farmer who has been innovative either in the approach to problem solving for the farm business or innovative in the approach to technology use to assist the business. There is a need for the innovation award to be recognised as part of a long-term sustainable contribution to the business and the environment.
- $1000 sponsors product

Ian and June Wilson were 2006 winners of our Water Quality Enhancement Award.

Northland Regional Council Water Quality Enhancement Award
This award recognises the progress that the land manager is taking to enhance and/or protect quality and biodiversity values in the water that flows through and from their property. It takes into account progress towards limiting pollutant input to water through farm management and fertilizer application practices as well as sound riparian management.
- $1000 cash

Tawapou Coastal Natives Family and Community Life Award
- $500 cash and $500 native plants

How are the awards judged?

The judges perform a peer review of your whole farming system. Judging of the entrants' farming operation is an integral part of the Awards process, and is in no way based on a pass or fail situation.

To ensure entrants gain maximum value from participating, the review encourages you to discuss goals, achievements and your property at a time suitable to you, where you will have the opportunity to showcase your knowledge and accomplishments.

The judges bring a wide range of skills to the judging. They come from rural professional organisations as well as sponsors. There are also a number of farmer judges who have themselves been through the judging process of these awards.

When the judges visit, they will view your farm, talk through your plans and the implementation of them. The judges will also discuss your production goals and how they fit with long term sustainability and also how you are sustaining the land and other natural resources on your farm.

They will also be looking for innovative ways to find sustainable solutions to the limitations you have encountered on your land.

Your farming business will be looked at as an overall operation, not only in respect of environmental management but in relation to running a profitable business.

Some of the topics that will be considered are:

matching production targets to sustainability
protecting and enhancing natural features and resources
matching land use to land type
management of waterways
habitat enhancement
soil health
growth (in your business, your community etc)
Other areas considered include effluent management and waste disposal, nutrient management, weed and pest management , animal husbandry, planning in the use of chemicals, and future projects.

Conditions of entry

With these Awards, a farm will be defined as a business enterprise based on the productive or amenity use of soils or other natural resources.

The entrants property must be within the boundaries of the Northland Regional Council (check your rates assessment).

The trust reserves the right to not to judge an entry if it deems the farm does not fit the overall objectives of the Awards, and not to allocate a prize in a category should there be insufficient numbers.

The property must be an economically viable farming enterprise and must be the main source of income.

You agree to participate in and assist with publicity of any Regional and/or National Event as deemed by the NZFEA Trust.

Prizes are not transferable

Application form and guidelines

2007-2008 applications closed on 7 December 2007. The 2008-2009 round will open in October.

Further information

For more information, please contact the Regional Co-ordinator, Gayle Farrell.

Phone: 09 433 1576
Mobile: 0274 705 354
Fax: 09 433 1531
Email: northland@bfea.org.nz
Post: Drinnan Road, RD2, Whangarei
Web: www.bfea.org.nz

Regional partner:

Logo of the Northland Regional Council.