Australia’s rural and regional news brand together with Coles have celebrated the nation’s agricultural sector with the 13th annual The Weekly Times Coles Farmer of the Year awards.
The Herald and Weekly Times Chairman and News Corp Australia’s Community Ambassador Penny Fowler said the awards celebrated the passion, inspiration and innovation of those who work in our agribusiness sector.
“In an effort to feed, clothe and sustain a growing world population, our farmers are constantly looking outside the box to both grow their businesses and the wider industry, which is truly world-leading,” Mrs Fowler said.
Coles Group Chairman James Graham said: “This year’s finalists and winners showcase the new generation of farmers who are leading the charge towards innovation and a more sustainable future.”
This year’s overall winner, David and Karen Altmann and their 29-year-old son Jake, run a highly intensive, zero grazing dairy farm at Murray Bridge in South Australia which milks 500 cows three times a day.
Using an innovative feeding method that emphasises a wide range of nutrients the Altmanns have boosted average daily milk production from 33 litres a cow to 38-40.
Jake said: “The cows are healthier, happier, the condition on the cows is better than when we were on a pasture based system, we are not wasting feed, they are not in the elements, have fans and sprinklers to cool them down in summer, and in winter they can curl up in the barn and be warm and don’t have to walk through mud.”
Producing an impressive 6.2 million litres of milk annually, their dairy, beef and cropping operation sets a benchmark for efficiency and sustainability.
Over the past 13 years the awards have recognised 78 winners and more than 230 finalists from thousands of nominations across the nation, recognising leading farmers in six categories: beef, cropping, dairy, horticulture, sheep and innovation.
The Weekly Times and Coles Farmer of the Year Awards have tracked all the success of the agricultural sector since the inaugural awards 13 years ago.
Profiles of the winners and finalists will appear in a special 32-page Farmer of the Year magazine, inserted in The Weekly Times on 26 February and state-based mastheads The Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun, The Courier Mail, The Advertiser and regional mastheads in the days following.
Winners of The Weekly Times Coles 2024 Farmer of the Year Awards:
- Overall winner and Dairy Farmer of the Year: Altmann Family, Dakara Farms, Murray Bridge, SA
- Beef Farmer of the Year: Hammond Family, Robbins Island Wagyu, Montagu Tasmania
- Cropping Farmer of the Year: Duncan Young, Beverley WA
- Horticulture Farmer of the Year: Musolino Family, T Muso & Co, Virginia SA
- Sheep Farmer of the Year: Kerin Family, Kerin Agriculture, Yeoval NSW
- Innovative Farmer of the Year: Said Family, Fresh Select, Werribee South Victoria.