Sponsored by The Horticentre Group
2021 YOUNG GROWER OF THE YEAR
Melissa van den Heuvel wins
‘Avocados have my heart,’ says 2021 Young Grower of the Year Melissa van den Heuvel won the Young Grower of the Year for 2021. By Andrew Bristol Melissa is an avocado grower services representative at Apata Group Limited, based in the Bay of Plenty. “Avocados have my heart, as they are an amazing fruit,” she says. “I am also over the moon to win this competition. “Competing was quite challenging. We all have day jobs and sometimes you find yourself sitting there thinking about the orchard that needs picking or frost protection. “The most challenging part of the competition itself was the leadership panel. Everyone found that daunting, not knowing the questions that would be thrown at us. “We all had to speak on the challenges facing the industry but we all took a different angle. My angle was that there’s
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The ORCHARDIST : NOVEMBER 2021
something in horticulture for everyone, from accountancy to logistics. We need people coming in from other sectors so we can meet our challenges.” Melissa says she is very proud to be part of the horticulture industry. “It is something I am very passionate about. What we produce is very top notch,” she says. Horticulture New Zealand President, Barry O’Neil, says supporting young people and encouraging more of them to join our industry is critical to our industry’s continued success and growth, in what is the new normal – life affected by Covid-19.
