Crowds at the Fieldays Innovations Centre at this year's National Agricultural Fieldays.
Applications are now being taken for New Zealand's most prestigious and innovative agricultural awards - the 2017 Fieldays Innovation Awards.
The awards seek to celebrate and support New Zealand's most innovative agricultural inventions and showcase emerging products and technology that will lead change in the rural sector.
Applicants in the awards will showcase their ideas, designs and products at the Fieldays Innovations Centre during next year's NZ National Agricultural Fieldays, which will run from June 14-17.
The awards have a long history - almost as long as Fieldays, which will celebrate its 49th year next year. Since its inception, Fieldays has celebrated innovation, and the awards are an important platform for showcasing New Zealand agricultural innovation.
"The theme for Fieldays in 2017 is 'leading change' and supporting innovation is vital to the future of agriculture in New Zealand," said Fieldays Innovations event manager Gail Hendricks.
Awards are given across multiple categories and winners will receive thousands of dollars in business support and advice to help get their innovations to market.
This support is of immense value, giving innovators access to New Zealand's top intellectual property and commercial lawyers, business advisors, product development and innovation consultants and others.
Ms Hendricks said there is always significant public, business and agricultural industry interest in the Fieldays Innovation Awards.
"The Innovations Centre is probably the busiest space at Fieldays and always attracts a lot of attention," she said.
"Every year, there is always broad media interest and the television breakfast shows broadcast from the Innovations Centre during Fieldays. The place is just buzzing."
Ms Hendricks said the Innovation Awards are a great opportunity for people to test their products in the market. With more than 130,000 visitors through the gates in 2016, Fieldays provides an opportunity to talk to future or potential customers and conduct valuable market research.
"Entrants' products and ideas will get exposure to the people who may use it once it's in the market, providing on the spot feedback" said Ms Hendricks.
"Fieldays also gives award entrants exposure to the judges, who are engineers, patent attorneys and people with exposure to the international market. A large number of companies come to see what's there, to see what the latest thing is to buy or invest in."
During Fieldays the Innovations Lab, which is located inside the Innovations Centre, will be set up as a dedicated space for award entrants to meet with experts such as lawyers, patent and trademark attorneys, product development consultants and other business experts for free advice and support.
"The idea is that The Lab is a space where innovators can come to thrash out ideas, seek advice or brainstorm," said Ms Hendricks.
She said that next year will see the return of the Innovations Capital Event, where a select group of innovators are invited to the Innovations Centre to mix and mingle with investors, make contacts, ask questions and hopefully find someone who will support their idea or business.
On average there are around 70 to 80 applicants for the Innovation Awards, and entries typically come from a variety of fields including dairy and dry stock farming, horticulture, information and communication technology, cloud and mobile-based software, animal health and genetics, water and waste management, environment and clean-tech, animal and farm management, farm safety and leading research.
"We get all sorts of people entering the Fieldays Innovation Awards, including farmers, engineers, business people, tinkerers and people in the high-tech sector," said Ms Hendricks. "The awards offer a great opportunity for start-up companies. If you are a backyard inventor with a quirky invention for the agricultural community or if you are an established business who wants to put your new idea out there, this is a great way to do it."
- Entries are open until April 30, 2017. For more information visit www.fieldays.co.nz/enterinnovationcentre