Fieldays 2025 Innovation Awards: 63 entrants to vie for accolades

Fieldays just announced the entrants for this year's innovation awards.

The Fieldays Innovation Awards just announced the 63 entrants vying for accolades in five categories this year.

The organisers said the competition attracted a diverse and impressive array of innovations from across the primary industries.

Among the applicants that have met the entrant criteria and been invited to participate in the awards are innovations from New Zealand, Australia and the United States.

Fieldays programme manager Steve Chappell said what stood out about this year’s entrants was the breadth of areas the entries come from.

“From eco-friendly materials that transform waste into valuable resources to AI-powered tools optimising livestock management, precision monitoring, and crop growth, each development embodies the future of smart, sustainable progress.”

The Prototype category comprises 23 entrants, the Early-Stage category has 32, the Growth and Scale Award has eight entrants, and five people are vying for the Young Innovator of the Year award.

All participants are in the running for the People’s Choice Award.

Entries include autonomous feeding systems, methane-reduction technologies, innovations championing data-driven farming, like a soil test for earthworm DNA, robots, apps, and innovations turning waste into more valuable products like vegan leather made from kiwifruit waste and a protein ingredient made from sheepskin offcuts.

The participants are vying for a share of a prize package worth more than $75,000 to help launch or accelerate their new product.

Entrants will be judged by a panel of 18 sector experts, including new judges Emma Poole, Michelle Good, Justin White and Oliver McDermott.

Five finalists in each category will be selected later this month.

For the people’s choice awards, Fieldays visitors are invited to cast their vote for their favourite innovation at the event.

The innovator with the most votes will receive $2000, while one lucky voter will win a voucher for $500.

Fieldays 2025 will be held from Wednesday, June 11 to Saturda,y June 14 at Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton.

The Innovation Awards ceremony is on June 12 and will be livestreamed on social media.

For more information and to view the full list of participants, visit fieldays.co.nz.