Herd-i Becomes All-Region Sponsor of NZ Dairy Awards
Herd-i, a New Zealand agri-tech company, has joined the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards as a sponsor covering all 11 regions. The awards are described as the country’s largest nationwide celebration of achievement in the dairy sector.
Under the arrangement, Herd-i will present the Herd-i Health & Safety Merit Award within the Dairy Manager of the Year category at each regional awards evening. The prize will go to the entrant in each region who demonstrates strong management, systems and working practices in farm health and safety.
NZDIA Trust chair Paulette Johns said entrants would be judged against a common standard regardless of where they farm. She said the partnership added to the awards programme and gave the same award consistent presentation and visibility across the country.
Johns said Herd-i’s technology monitors every cow’s Body Condition Score or lameness score, enabling farmers to respond earlier and make decisions using more information. She said the award recognised managers who established safe, productive and sustainable workplaces, while showing leadership and commitment to on-farm safety.
She added that these capabilities were important to the dairy industry’s next generation of leaders. Johns also said that a single sponsor presenting the award in all 11 regions would raise the profile of all-region sponsorship and emphasise health and safety at the dairy-manager level.
Herd-i chair Peter Mitchell said the sponsorship would support farmers throughout New Zealand and recognise people contributing to the sector’s future. He said New Zealand farmers had helped develop the company’s technology by using it in commercial farming conditions and providing feedback. Mitchell said the company’s work on herd health and productivity was aligned with caring for people on farms, and that its team planned to visit the regions, meet entrants and celebrate their achievements.
The awards’ national sponsors are ASB, CowManager, Ecolab, Federated Farmers, Honda, LIC and Power Farming. Fonterra, DairyNZ and The Country are listed as industry partners. Entries for the 2027 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards opened on 5 October, with applications directed through the awards’ website.
