Growers, researchers and industry members from a large cross-section of cotton growing regions are amongst the finalists for this year’s Australian Cotton Industry Awards.
Cotton Australia CEO, Adam Kay, said the finalists were selected based on their contributions to the cotton industry across a wide range of areas, including farming best practice, research and development, innovation, leadership and industry advocacy.
Finalists
Monsanto Grower of the Year and AgriRisk High Achiever of the Year
Andrew Dickson, ‘Marebone’, Warren NSW
Mark Cathcart, CSD Farms, Wee Waa, NSW
Simon Corish, ‘Yattlewondi’, Mungindi, NSW
Rod Smith, ‘Archerfield’, Gunnedah, NSW
Ross Uebergang, “Tinobah” Miles, QLD
Toscan Family Partnership, Darlington Point, NSW
ADAMA Chris Lehmann Trust Young Cotton Achiever of the Year
Fiona Norrie, Narrabri, NSW
Liz Lobsey, Toowoomba, QLD
Cameron Derbidge, Goondiwindi, QLD
Cotton Seed Distributors Researcher of the Year
Sharon Downes, CSIRO, Narrabri, NSW
Paul Grundy (Toowoomba) and Steve Yeates (Ayr), QDAF & CSIRO, QLD
Graham Charles, NSW DPI, Narrabri, NSW
Mr Kay said each of the finalists had made outstanding contributions to the industry, and deserved recognition.
“Nominations across all categories were to a very high standard this year, which made the task of selecting finalists extremely difficult for our judging panels,” he said.
“This group of people represent the strengths of our industry - innovation, dedication, the sharing of ideas and the drive to figure out a way to do things better. Without people such as these, the cotton industry would not be where it is today.
“The annual Awards program is important because it allows us to recognise excellence and hard work, foster future growth and improvement across the industry.”
The Australian Cotton Industry Awards program now moves into the judging phase, with the panel of judges travelling to the finalists’ originating regions to meet and assess each of the candidates.
Cash prizes are on offer for the winners across all categories, with an additional research bursary for Researcher of the Year.
The Australian Cotton Industry Awards evening will be held in Griffith on July 26th as part of the biennial Australian Cotton Collective.
More information on the event is available at www.australiancottonawards.com
