Harvesting excellence: Celebrating the future of primary industries

Over 200 people gathered at Palmerston North’s Convention Centre last Friday for the 31st Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University Agriculture, Horticulture and Environmental Science Awards. The annual event recognises undergraduate excellence both inside and outside of the classroom, bringing together students, industry partners and educators.

A total of 27 awards were presented, with the top six students from Massey’s agricultural science, agribusiness, animal science, horticulture, earth and environmental sciences honoured.

The evening’s top award, the prestigious William Gerrish Memorial Award, was awarded to Bachelor of Agricultural Science student Yeun An, who also came second overall for the third-year awards in agriculture. The award is made possible by the Gerrish family in memory of Bill Gerrish, who championed an annual prize to recognise an outstanding student in farm management who demonstrates a high level of personal integrity, intellectual curiosity, vision and social conscience.

Growing up in Auckland, Yeun was on a different career path until a summer internship on a dairy farm sparked a new passion. Currently working as a shepherdess on a sheep station in Tasmania, Yeun flew in from Australia to attend the awards and says it’s great to be back in Palmerston North.

“I am grateful for the opportunities Massey has given me, as I have learned so much that has helped me in my career. I came into this degree wanting to learn about agriculture, so getting these awards has been a nice bonus.”

Yeun will complete her degree over the summer, having completed the first half on campus and the latter half via distance while working in the industry. She says her plan is to continue shepherding for another year, complete her degree and then move into agribusiness.

“My parents are Korean, and I would like to do trade work in the markets in Asia. I want to see what I can bring to the table with the knowledge that I have learnt at Massey. I enjoyed my time here. Students are well supported and everyone is so enthusiastic and willing to help you. That’s why it’s the top ranked university for agriculture in New Zealand!”

The top third-year students in agriculture and horticulture were Katya De Dilva (Bachelor of Agricultural Science) and Brooke Challis (Bachelor of Horticultural Science).

Bachelor of Horticultural Science student Ben Penno won the Leading Student Award from the New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science and delivered a speech alongside Bachelor of Animal Science student Amy Toughey on behalf of the third-year students completing their degrees this year.

Ben says he enjoyed writing the student speech but hadn’t realised he would be an award recipient.

“It was a lot of fun to work with Amy and we hoped we could deliver it confidently, and that people would laugh at our jokes! I had no idea that I was going to win an award. After giving the speech, I thought I could relax and enjoy the evening, so it was a big surprise.”

He says the connections made with peers, lecturers and industry professionals are the highlight of the annual event.

“I attended the awards dinner last year as a second-year student. It’s a good mix of people – alumni, professors from the school and even the mayor congratulated me! I met with the team at Barenbrug, which was great. Being at Massey is all about the people you work and study with. I moved from the Wellington area and have connected with people who share my passions. It’s great to be a part of the school and the university.”

Ben plans to work on a hops, sheep and beef farm over the summer to gain experience before moving into a more technical role.

Animal science student Jack Foster received the top third-year award in his discipline and says it’s the practical work that sets Massey graduates up for success.

“My favourite practical was dealing with deer, where we measured their fur growth over a season.”

Following his exams, Jack will be working on a farm and is looking for internships in the dairy sector. His passion lies in statistical animal genetics and he hopes to take his skills overseas to the United States or Canada.

Bachelor of Animal Science student Leith Anderson says she didn’t expect to win the Student Leadership and Service Award.

“I’m very happy to win this award for my support of the lamb rearing team. I wanted additional practical experience, so I started as a volunteer to enhance my CV. I worked with Associate Professor Penny Back, where I coordinated the volunteers and organised the students from the years below me to help rear the lambs. Doing this job made me realise I want to look at other opportunities beyond working with cows on dairy farms, so I’ve now signed up for a master’s at Massey to expand my view.”

Leith says she was thrilled to have the opportunity to network with sponsors Pāmu during the awards dinner.

“My master’s will be in either sheep or deer milk and I have been talking with Pāmu tonight to discuss possibilities. My advice to incoming students is to do things outside your comfort zone. But more than that, get to know your professors, they are going to be your best friends. Don’t be afraid to approach them for a chat, they love talking to their students.”

The top third-year awards for earth science and environmental science went to Arthur Wickham and Kaiya Elmes, respectively. Arthur collected his prize from Professor Jon Proctor of Volcanic Risk Solutions. Although Kaiya is currently in Australia conducting environmental surveying on Great Barrier Reef, she sent a video to thank the sponsors of her award, Horizons Regional Council.

Deputy Head of School of Agriculture and Environment Professor Danny Donaghy says the awards this year topped off a successful year for the School of Agriculture and Environment. The evening, MC’d this year by Gary Massicks from BakerAg, is considered the highlight of the academic year for staff and students.

“It was a wonderful celebration of all that they and we have achieved, and it was a great honour to present 25 students with academic, practical and leadership awards. It was also wonderful to have a review of the year from students Ben and Amy,” he says.

“Agriculture at Massey continues to grow and go from strength to strength, with the inclusion of plant science and post-harvest technology disciplines and staff in our school in 2024. We have a new degree, the Bachelor of Earth and Environmental Science, as well as a new major in the Bachelor of Agribusiness launching in 2025. We have also secured $11 million in funding this year for new research. We now have 53 postgraduate diploma students, 105 master’s students, and 115 PhD students in the school, with 40 PhD students completing this year. This makes us the largest research and postgraduate cohort at the university.”

The top awards for agriculture and horticulture were sponsored by Ravensdown, Fonterra FarmSource, Zespri, Beef + Lamb and New Zealand Institute of Agricultural and Horticultural Science (NZIAHS). The award for excellence in environmental science was sponsored by Horizons Regional Council, while the excellence in earth science award was sponsored by the Volcanic Risk Solutions for the first time. The animal science prizes were once again sponsored by Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) and Aviagen.

All prize winners are listed on the awards website here.