Entries open for 2027 AHUWHENUA TROPHY DAIRY COMPETITION AND AHUWHENUA YOUNG MĀORI FARMER AWARD

Entries are open for the 2027 Ahuwhenua Trophy - Excellence in Māori Farming, and Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award dairy competitions.

“The competition is an opportunity to recognise and celebrate our farmers who can be counted among the country’s top in agribusiness, and the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award is the pipeline to help grow our up-and-coming leaders,” Ahuwhenua Trophy Chair Nukuhia Hadfield says.

“We encourage industry groups and rural professionals to support Māori farmers, trusts and incorporations to enter.”

DairyNZ Chair and Ahuwhenua Management Committee member Tracy Brown says Māori dairy farmers make a significant contribution to the sector.

“We're proud to back the great things Māori agribusinesses are doing, and to be a strong supporter of the Ahuwhenua Trophy competition.”

New Zealand’s’ primary sector generated more than $60 billion in export revenue in the past financial year. Māori made a significant contribution to New Zealand’s primary sector exports, as landowners, suppliers of produce and direct exporters. Māori Authorities alone exported more than $850 million worth of goods in 2025, with dairy among the highest-earning categories. The Māori dairy farming asset base has more than doubled in value since 2018, now standing at more than $11 billion.

The Ahuwhenua Trophy is the most prestigious award for Māori farming established nearly a century ago by Tā Apirana Ngata and Governor-General Lord Bledisloe. Its purpose is to celebrate and grow Māori farming and horticulture excellence with an emphasis on sustainability. The Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award (AYMF), started in 2012, recognises rising talent. The competitions run on a three-year cycle, rotating between dairy, sheep and beef, and horticulture.

“It celebrates the pursuit of innovation and new approaches by Māori farmers committed to realising the full potential of their whenua,” Hadfield says.

Previous winners of the Ahuwhenua Trophy Dairy competition include Wairarapa Moana ki Pouākani Incorporation (2024) and Tataiwhetu Trust (2021). Previous winners of the AYMF Award for Dairy include Ben Purua (2024) and Quinn Morgan (2021).

Ahuwhenua Trophy entries close Wednesday 2 December 2026 and AYMF entries close Friday 29 January 2027. Ahuwhenua Trophy finalists will be announced at Parliament in February, before each hosting a field day through March and April. The winners will be named at the awards dinner 28 May at the Energy Events Centre, Rotorua.

Ahuwhenua Trophy entry details are available here, and AYMF entry details can be found here.

Our thanks to our valued Ahuwhenua Trophy sponsors:

• Platinum: Te Puni Kōkiri and the Ministry for Primary Industries

• Gold: Te Tumu Paeroa, BNZ and DairyNZ. Silver: Ballance Agri-Nutrients, PGG Wrightson, Fonterra, LIC and Affco.

• Bronze: BDO, FMG, Massey University, Ecolab, NZ Māori Tourism, Bioeconomy Science Institute – Maiangi Taiao and MBIE

• **Other: Farmax/FarmIQ and Kono Wines.

A big thanks also to sponsors of the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award:

• Kaitautoko Tuatahi: Te Tumu Paeroa,

• Kaitautoko Taketake: Te Puni Kōkiri and DairyNZ. Nga Kaitautoko: AgriZeroNZ

Notes to Editor/Media:

Material:
For further information media contact is Talisa Kupenga on 027 405 7231 or communications@ahuwhenua.maori.nz
‘Free for editorial use’ photos are available here, please contact John Cowpland from Alphapix for download access at john@alphapix.co.nz.

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