Nor'West News: July 02, 2019
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NOR’WEST NEWS Latest Christchurch news at www.star.kiwi<br />
Tuesday <strong>July</strong> 2 <strong>2019</strong> 11<br />
<strong>News</strong><br />
Local<br />
<strong>News</strong><br />
Now<br />
Final looms in young farmers’ competition<br />
Fire rages, homes at risk<br />
A GRUELLING agri-food<br />
event will be the culmination<br />
of months of preparation for St<br />
Andrew’s College students Jack<br />
Stokes and Charlie Kinney.<br />
Jack, 17, and Charlie, 18, are<br />
two of four Canterbury high<br />
school students who will<br />
compete in the FMG Junior<br />
Young Farmer of the Year<br />
grand final in Hawkes Bay on<br />
Thursday.<br />
Almost 30 students across New<br />
Zealand will take part in the<br />
competition which tests practical<br />
and theoretical knowledge of<br />
farming.<br />
“We’re really excited. It’s been<br />
a few years since a team from our<br />
school has made it through to the<br />
grand final, so it’s an amazing<br />
opportunity,” Jack said.<br />
“We’ve had an unbelievable<br />
amount of support in the lead up<br />
to the event,” he said.<br />
“We’ve been meeting weekly<br />
with our school’s two leaders of<br />
agriculture who’ve been quizzing<br />
us on our general and agricultural<br />
knowledge. It’s been really<br />
helpful.”<br />
The duo will go head-to-head<br />
with Caitlin Rhodes, 17, and Luci<br />
Grigg, 17, from Rangiora High<br />
School.<br />
“We’re starting to get a bit nervous,<br />
it’s not long now until the<br />
YOUNG FARMERS: St Andrew’s College students Charlie Kinney, 18, and Jack Stokes, 17, will<br />
head to Hawkes Bay on Thursday to have their farming knowledge tested..<br />
competition kicks off,” said Caitlin,<br />
who lives on a lifestyle block.<br />
“We’ve been doing a lot of<br />
study and trying to grow our<br />
knowledge and skills as much as<br />
possible.”<br />
It will be the first time both<br />
teams have competed at the<br />
grand final.<br />
Last year’s national final in<br />
Invercargill was won by St Bede’s<br />
College students Angus Grant<br />
and Nick O’Connor.<br />
Last week the school’s teacher<br />
in charge of agriculture John<br />
McPhail organised a mini version<br />
of the competition.<br />
Seventeen teams of students<br />
competed in the event, including<br />
the two teams which will<br />
represent Tasman in Hawkes<br />
Bay.<br />
“Students were given eight<br />
minutes to complete each module.<br />
It was a really successful<br />
day and I hope it helped them<br />
prepare for the grand final,” said<br />
Mr McPhail.<br />
The modules included calculating<br />
and allocating feed to dairy<br />
cows, sheep genetics, measuring<br />
a soil’s water holding capacity,<br />
fencing, freshwater ecology, onfarm<br />
risks and 50-question agriculture<br />
and horticulture general<br />
knowledge quiz.<br />
The teams heading to the final<br />
finished in the top three – a good<br />
omen for next week.<br />
“Competing in the mini<br />
contest helped a lot. It was great<br />
to get in some more practice to<br />
help us sharpen our skills and<br />
highlight areas we need to work<br />
on,” said Jack.<br />
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