Young Grower of the Year: Pip Terekia set for national final next week

Gisborne trainee orchard manager Pip Terekia goes head to head next week with five other regional finalists in the Young Grower of the Year competition. Photo / Hort NZ

Gisborne’s Pip Terekia joins five other top young horticulturalists next week who will put their skills up against one another in the national Young Grower of the Year final in Hastings.

Finalists from the Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Nelson, Central Otago and Pukekohe will compete in a series of challenges at the Tōmoana Showgrounds on October 9.

Pip, a trainee orchard manager with the Apata Group, will join the other finalists in tests involving excavator operation, nutrition and fertigation, innovation, integrated pest management, agrichemical stewardship, horticulture biosecurity, fencing and repairs.

The winners will be announced at the annual gala dinner at Toitoi: Hawke’s Bay Arts & Events Centre on October 10, where finalists also take part in the Ballance Leadership panel and FMG speech competition.

HortNZ acting chief executive Michelle Sands said the Young Grower of the Year event and the regional competitions, run independently of the national final, play an important role in supporting the next generation of industry leaders.

“The regional organisers who host and run the regional programmes do a great job and it’s very exciting to see such a high calibre of talented young people coming through these to compete for the national title,” Sands said.

“HortNZ takes great pride in hosting the national final in different parts of the country every year and we appreciate the support we receive from growers and our sponsors.”

The 2024 regional winners are - Bay of Plenty: Lilah Rosenfeldt, a trial specialist at Zespri International.

Gisborne: Pip Terekia, a trainee orchard manager at Apata Group.

Hawke’s Bay: Grace Fulford, a quality and compliance manager for T&G.

Nelson: Farrah Richards, packhouse packaging and inputs with Fairfield Orchards.

Central Otago: Luke St John, a packhouse manager for Fortune Fruit Company.

Pukekohe: Jamie Wells, an agronomist with Balle Brothers.