The winners of the Bayer Rising Star Award, Elders Innovation and Technology Award for both farmer and industry, and the AMA Zoe McInnes Memorial Agronomist Award were announced last night (March 15) at the Elders Gala Dinner which wrapped up the Australian Summer Grains Conference.
Award winners Tom White and Millie Bach, together with Technical Services Manager Maree Crawford and Elders CEO Mark Allison.
The Bayer Rising Star Award was taken out by Tom White, Elders Agronomist based in Katherine NT.
Tom is a progressive young agronomist that believes his contribution to his client’s profitability is his number one priority. Tom holds a Bachelor of Sustainable Agriculture from University of Queensland, Gatton. Having progressed through the Elders Graduate Agronomist program, Tom was appointed to the branch agronomist role at Katherine NT on the back of his demonstrated capability and passion for agriculture.
The Elders Innovation and Technology Award went to Scott and Krystal Muller of Biloela, Queensland. The Mullers are fourth generation grain and cattle farmers working alongside parents Gordon and Jenny. They grow wheat and chickpeas in winter and mung beans and sorghum in summer.
The Mullers have a strong focus on ensuring their operation is farmed under a stewardship model to support their sustainable farming objectives, whilst also remaining focused on being profitable.
The challenges they have had to overcome were significant to achieve their goals given the vast variability of their farming operation, Reef Regulation legislation and climatic impacts. They were key partners in the DAF Sustainable Grains Practices program in Central Queensland. Together they worked to prioritise problematic areas and develop a plan to implement practices that improve profitability and reef water quality.
The winner of the Elders Innovation and Technology Award for industry went to DataFarming. DataFarming is an Australian precision agriculture company based in Toowoomba, Queensland who deliver leading digital solutions for customers around the world.
Established in 2017, DataFarming is owned and operated by leading Australian precision agriculture specialists, Tim and Peta Neale, who have been consultants for 20 years. Led by Tim and Peta, the team includes talented developers, technologists and consultants, who all drive the company mission to deliver precision agriculture products that are simple, automated, affordable and provide actionable on-ground solutions.
The Zoe McInnes Memorial Agronomist Award will be perhaps the most anticipated part of the three-day conference. This Award was established in memory of much loved and valued agronomist Zoe McInnes, who was tragically lost to the industry in a farming accident in 2013. Zoe epitomized the passion and dedication required to continually improve outcomes for the industry through her commitment to providing the best solutions to clients and her own personal development during her career.
The winner of this prestigious award was Elders agronomist, Millie Bach.
Millie is a well-known agronomist based in Dalby. She grew up in a grain growing family at Jandowae and worked for three years as a jillaroo in Western Australia and the Northern Territory before heading to Armidale to obtain degrees in agriculture and management.
Millie spent three years in grain trading before joining Elders Dalby in her first agronomy role in 2017, right in the middle of the drought.
Millie is also a part-time farmer who was accepted into the Farmers to Founders program Hatch 2022, her passions for sustainability and the environment have led her to her idea to produce bio-degradable, non-toxic and gluten-free straws made from Australian bred and grown oat plants. The oat straws will provide people with an alternative to paper or plastic straws and break down quickly whilst still enjoyable to drink from.
Millie enjoys working with her clients across a range of crops, including cotton, for which the Darling Downs is well known.
Millie says that she and her team are helping to build a strong reputation for the services they provide to cropping clients in the region, across cotton, winter and summer cereals and pulses.
“We all have the same objective, to help growers maximise their productivity, and I enjoy the fact that people are so willing to share their knowledge – their successes as well as their failures,” Millie said.
Elders congratulates all award winners and we thank the Australian Summer Grains team for putting together a fantastic conference.
Meet the team
