“Whaia te iti kahurangi ki te tūohu koe me he maunga teitei.” Aim for the highest cloud so that if you miss it, you will hit a lofty mountain. 

Entries are now open to the Ahuwhenua Trophy Award for 2025, with the focus on sheep and beef farmers this year. PGW has been a proud sponsor of the Ahuwhenua Trophy Awards for more than 15 years, joining Māori farmers and growers in celebrating improved farming practices and role modelling excellence in farming for future generations. 

The competition is open to individual Māori farmers along with trusts and other entities around Aotearoa. Judged by respected agricultural professionals, the winner will receive the prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy and prizes up to $100,000 with finalists receiving prizes up to $30,000. Young Māori sheep and beef farmers under the age of 30 are encouraged to enter the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award. 

“It was a hotly contested final the last time the Ahuwhenua trophy was competed for in the sheep and beef category back in 2021, with Wi-pere coming out on top. With Māori farming continuing to go from strength to strength, we anticipate another hotly contested competition as each rōpu attempts to secure their place in history as the pinnacle of Māori farming excellence in sheep and beef operations for the 2025 year.” Matt Hill, Iwi Relationship Manager. 

The prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy competition was first held in 1933 and is designed to showcase and celebrate excellence in Māori agriculture and horticulture. 
 
The competition was initiated by the great Māori leader Sir Apirana Ngata and the Governor-General at the time, Lord Bledisloe, who was a highly successful farmer in his own right. Their vision was to encourage and incentivise Māori farmers to improve their farming operation and for the winners of the competition to become role models for their peers. Each year the annual competition alternates between dairy, sheep and beef, and horticulture in recognition of the broad skills across agricultural and horticultural sectors in Aotearoa. 
 
By entering the Ahuwhenua Trophy competition, Māori farmers and growers have the opportunity to celebrate and showcase the standards they set as kaitiaki and stewards of the land to the world. 

Learn more about the awards and how to enter by heading to the Ahuwhenua Trophy website here.  

Photo credit: Alphapix Photography