A duo from Rangiora High School in North Canterbury have been awarded one of the country’s most prestigious farming accolades at the FMG Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final in Invercargill.
John Lundy and Harry Parish have secured the title of 2025 FMG Junior Young Farmers of the Year. Their impressive knowledge, quick-thinking, and strong team dynamic earned praise from judges as they worked well under pressure.
Lundy says the win feels “bloody good”.
“We’ve put in a lot of work and talked to a lot of people. We didn’t quite make the Grand Final last year, but we did this year, and we’ve taken it out.”
“We’re still in disbelief,” Parish says.
Lundy and Parish battled it out with 13 other teams from schools across Aotearoa who threw their hats in the ring for the ultimate title.
The competition, now in its 57th year, is held up as the country’s most prestigious rural contest series, dedicated to showcasing the very best up and coming talent New Zealand’s food and fibre sector has on offer.
Parish says after a lot of preparation and support from their family, friends, and Rangiora High School, they were hopeful for the win.
Parish brought solid expertise in dairy farming and science, while Lundy’s strengths lay in practical skills and sheep and beef. Both winners hope to help bridge the urban rural divide in the future.
“The competition was very, very, very close.” Parish says.
“We thought we had a pretty good shot, but we didn’t know what we were going to get,” Lundy agrees.
“And as far as I’m aware, we’re only the second team to come from Rangiora High School in a Grand Final so we’re very proud,” Parish adds.
Lundy and Parish won the Module and Farmlet sections overall. It was neck-and-neck over the Grand Final Face Off buzzer quiz, putting them only six points ahead of the second-place winners.
Kaela Brans and Liana Redpath from Napier Girls’ High School were runners-up, while Liam Leonard and Jack Dearden from Napier Boys’ High School secured third place. Liana Redpath was awarded FMG Contestant of the Year.
The next generation of young farmers, the AgriKidsNZ competitors, tackled a range of challenges during the event, including modules, quizzes, and an AgriKids race day as part of the Grand Final weekend.
In the end, the Oinks from Seddon School took out the title of AgriKidsNZ Grand Champions, winning the Race Off module and member Liam Underwood taking out AgriKidsNZ Contestant of the Year overall.
The Oinks, made up of Liam Underwood (11), Fred Maher (11) and Manawa Doonan (11), whooped with grins stretched from ear to ear as they made their way up to the stage.
When asked how they feel after the win, “really good” was Fred’s answer.
“We’ve been trying for three years now,” Manawa adds.
“I bet half of the kids at school won’t believe us that we won,” says Liam.
Jacob Bolt, Issac Wilson, and John Woodward from team King’s Country Stags, from the Waikato Bay of Plenty, were the AgriKidsNZ runners-up.
Sam Hartshorn, Caitlyn Joyce, and Hannah Stewart from team Future Farmers at Blue Mountain College in Otago/Southland also won third place.
The FMG Young Farmer of the Year Contest is proudly supported by FMG, Ravensdown, Ministry for Primary Industries, Milwaukee, Woolworths, Honda, Lincoln University, Massey University, PTS Logistics, New Holland and Bushbuck.
For more information about the Grand Final, please head to: https://www.youngfarmers.co.nz/contest/grand-final-season-57