The competition was hot on Saturday as over 60 teams went head-to-head in a bid to take out the East Coast FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year and AgriKidsNZ titles.

It was a clean sweep for Napier Boys’ High School in the FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year competition, with the top three spots taken out by Napier Boys’ students.

Quinn Redpath and Cameron Brans are the East Coast FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year Winners for 2022, with William Murphy and Harvey Trent coming in second, and Matt Bennett and Ryan Redpath in third.

Meanwhile, the Farm Girls team, made up Hannah Tyler, Zita Pedersen and Eva Pedersen from Sherwood School took out the crown of 2022 East Coast AgriKidsNZ Champions.

Both the East Coast AgriKidsNZ and FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year contests were held alongside the FMG Young Farmer of the Year Contest on Saturday in Waipukurau.

East Coast FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year winning team teacher Rex Newman said Quinn and Cameron were very excited to make the Grand Final, saying they couldn’t believe their luck. “It’s an amazing competition, we’re so lucky to have it,” he said.

After the challenge of Covid, the pair were just happy to get to the competition in the first place. They knew they had their work cut out for them, knowing that everyone there had a chance at the top spot.

“They couldn’t take anything for granted, they tried to make sure they answered everything as accurately as they could," he explained.

The hard work will continue in the lead-up to Grand Final, with Newman explaining that the team will be working on their practical skills as well as learning each other’s strengths.

The AgriKidsNZ runner-up spot was taken out by The Agri-Beasts made up of Hannah Newman, Kaitlin Bush and Phoebe Mitchell. Following in third place was the Omakere Shepherds team, made up of James Martin, Caitlyn Humphries and Madi Hunt.

The top two FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year teams and top three AgriKidsNZ teams have been invited to the FMG Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final in Whangarei this July.

The FMG Young Farmer of the Year Contest Series would not be possible without support from its family of sponsors: FMG, Ravensdown, Worksafe, Ministry for Primary Industries, Environmental Protection Authority, Honda, STIHL, Massey University, Lincoln University, New Holland, and PTS Logistics.

© Scoop Media