First time’s a winner for Jake For Jake Jarman, being crowned FMG Young Farmer of the Year for 2021 was a dream beyond imagining. He remains immensely proud of his achievement and hopes it will inspire others.
| FMG Young Farmer of the Year Jake Jarman salutes the crowd on awards night.
The ANZ Relationship Associate represented the Taranaki/Manawatu region, beating six other grand finalists for the prestigious title at Wigram Airforce Museum in Christchurch in early July. Jake said he was determined to give the Grand Final his best shot after signing up to the contest to just give it a go. “I was happy that I gave everything a go to the best of my ability and to be competitive. I loved the practical day, the challenge of having to multitask under time pressure and be a bit strategic.” The victory was a culmination of days of gruelling practical and technical challenges set out to test the seven grand finalists’ skills, knowledge and stamina.
WHO WON WHAT FMG Young Farmer of the Year: Jake Jarman, Taranaki/Manawatu Runner Up FMG Young Farmer of the Year: Joseph Watts, East Coast Third Place FMG Young Farmer of the Year: Calvin Ball, Northern Agri Business Challenge: Jake Jarman, Taranaki/Manawatu Agri Sports Challenge: Jake Jarman, Taranaki/Manawatu
Contestants participated in a technical day, a practical day, speeches, exams and the famous FMG Young Farmer of the Year buzzer quiz.
Agri Skills Challenge: Joseph Watts, East Coast
Jake won a prize package worth over $75,000 that included a $15,000 cash prize from FMG, a Honda ATV and a $30,000 package from New Holland.
FMG People’s Choice: Kieran McCahon, Waikato/Bay of Plenty
Agri Knowledge Challenge: Jake Jarman, Taranaki/Manawatu Community Footprint: Calvin Ball, Northern
An Inglewood Young Farmer, Jake is the fifth generation to work his family dairy farm. He also works as a farm systems research graduate with Dairy Trust Taranaki. “My fellow competitors certainly didn’t make it easy and honestly I feel like it was anyone's game for the whole 3 days. It’s been a privilege getting to know them and to now call them friends.”
30 | THE FARMLANDER
| Joseph Watts (East Coast) was runner-up for the second time.
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