Eketāhuna young farmer prepares for nationals

Archie Woodhouse was crowned FMG Young Farmer of the Year East Coast and is working towards the national final to be held in July.

Archie Woodhouse reckons the calibre of those competing in the FMG Young Farmer of the Year is pretty high.

“The calibre of the people has lifted the competition a lot,” he says. “The last three years have seen great rural people who will be positive leaders for the industry.”

Archie, who lives on a farm in Eketāhuna, was crowned the winner of the East Coast regional competition last month.

It was his first time competing in the regional competition under the South Wairarapa club, as he competed with Tasman last year.

From left: Ben Irwin, third, Archie Woodhouse, first, Callum Woodhouse, second in the FMG Young Farmer of the Year East Coast.

What may be the icing on the cake is not only did he just beat his older brother Callum, but his father also went to the grand final in the 1990s.

Archie has spent much of the past few years studying a Bachelor of Agriculture at Lincoln University, finishing with a Masters in Agribusiness.

While he spent his holidays working on different farms all over the country, he feels it’s nice to be back on the family farm.

“It’s nice to come back and get stuck into some farm work,” he says.

Archie enjoyed the competition, saying it gave him the opportunity to meet a whole different group of people from those he met at Lincoln.

He says competitors learn a lot of skills as well.

“Even if you don’t know the answer, you can have a crack and they go through them and teach the correct answer.”

The competition tested skills in agri-business, agri-sports, skills and knowledge in agriculture.

Archie, competing in the regional final.

Agri-sports involves head-to-head race-type events such as putting a chain back on a chainsaw where contestants are timed but also tested on safety and tidiness.

In agri-business, they were asked to write essay-based answers on a particular scenario.

“I’m pretty lucky coming off the back of studying for four years,” Archie says. “I really enjoyed the exam part of it, sitting down and articulating my thoughts.”

His three months being back on the farm helped him brush up his practical skills as well.

Archie says the next three months will be “full-on” as he works towards the grand final to be held in July in Hamilton.

“There’s a lot to cover.”

He knows, however, that there are a lot of people he can reach out to who will be willing to help, both from the Wairarapa and the Tararua District.

Part of preparing for the competition will be identifying areas he hasn’t had as much experience in and learning skills from knowledgeable people.

“I’ll learn as much as I can, but it’s nice because it’s a new challenge I can work towards.”

Archie is sure to get a lot of support from the South Wairarapa Young Farmers Club.

“We all want each other to do well. We’re all passionate about agriculture.”

He says it’s a good club.

“It’s a good way to meet people who are facing the same challenges in agriculture. It’s a very positive environment as well. We’re all in it for the same reason.”