The Country 19/11/25: Shane McManaway and Nancy Crawshaw talk to Jamie Mackay

We announce the five New Zealand finalists for the 2026 Zanda McDonald Awards

 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
It is one of the most prestigious farming competitions on
the farming calendar. Yes, the Xander McDonald Awards. Let's welcome
on to the country the founder, Shane mcmanaway and the
twenty twenty four w A Nancy Crawls Shaw. Shane. I'll
start with you seeing it's your baby. You guys have
just today announced the New Zealand short list for the

(00:22):
final three, which who will be selected and a winner
will be announced I think in christ Church in early March.
But talk me through the process. Good afternoon by the way.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
Yeah, good afternoon, Jamie, thanks for having us on. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (00:35):
The process is that applications came in over the last
few weeks for the award. Then we go through those
applicants and with the judges on both sides of the
Tasman and we then identify the top five. And gee,
that's a challenging exercise because everybody that applies is doing
some outstanding stuff in our industry, Jamie.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
So we arrived at the top.

Speaker 3 (00:58):
Five and then they will come in to the wire
Rapper here for a judging first week of December, and
then out the other side of that the winner will
be announced at our Summit Conference in christ Church where
we're holding it this year, and that's always a super
exciting time.

Speaker 1 (01:15):
And the Aussies do likewise. Okay, let's bring in Nancy
Crawl Shot twenty four Wanner Nancy, do you want to
go through the short list the five New Zealand finalists?

Speaker 2 (01:27):
Yes?

Speaker 4 (01:27):
I can so. First up we have Chloe Butcher Harry So.
She's a farm manager at Matthew Station in Central Hooks Bay.
Then we have Carn Darlywall. He's the founder and owner
of greenfield development and cropping business Oheneye Why Harvest Limited
and Darlywall Egg Limited in the Wykhadow. Third, we've got

(01:51):
Lana Marshall. She's a client director at mzab so she
works in financial guidance and strategic planning for farmers as
well as been a fifty the Sheermilker and she's based
down in the Tago in Southland.

Speaker 2 (02:04):
Then we have Laura Torpy.

Speaker 4 (02:05):
She's a crop bleeder at the vegetable produce company as
Wilcox and Sons Limited and a deer farmer from Auckland.
And we also have Sophie Hurley who's a CEO of
Sustainable Luggage and Accessories brand, Honest Wolf out of Hunterville.

Speaker 1 (02:22):
Yeah, five great finalists Shane mcmana, and I do know
two of them, all of these interviewed two of them
on the show here, Chloe Butcher Harries, who was on
Country Calendar recently, also a former winner of the Fenawa
Are Farming Awards. And Sophie Hurley, she is the woman
behind the Honest Wolf brand out of Hunterville. Both great backstories,
but I'm sure the other three have equally interesting stories.

Speaker 3 (02:46):
Yeah, I certainly do, Jamie, that the caliber of people
that keep coming forward for this award is incredible.

Speaker 2 (02:52):
And look, I get the.

Speaker 3 (02:55):
Job of bringing these people and telling them they're in
the top five, and just the conversations that you have
with than the professionalism and the just just you.

Speaker 2 (03:04):
Know, they are of the very highest caliber.

Speaker 3 (03:06):
So picking a winner out any of these five is
going to be women challenging. But our judging process is
is rugged and got a lot of rigor and and
we've always come out with the best out of the
out of the group. But that being said, just being
in the top five of this award certainly will put
some wind under the wings of these people that have

(03:27):
been associated with.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
The award and the Oussies mirror that judging process on
the other side of the tasma. As we said, all
decided at your conference in christ Church in early March.
And Nancy Craulshaw, you're based in northern hawks Bay and
I'm looking at my old Kneewa or Earth Sciences New
Zealand Drought Indicator map and I and I see from
sort of Napeire Hastings down especially down to central hawks By,

(03:51):
it's very very dry. Indeed, I'm assuming you're a bit
dry as well, are you.

Speaker 4 (03:56):
Yes, we're a bit dried than we like, but we
do have rangeki good afternoon, and we're know if we're
going to get rain will respond quite well. So this
fingers crossed the weather game plays in our favor today.

Speaker 1 (04:08):
And Shane down the road and the wire a Rapper
summer dry traditionally.

Speaker 2 (04:13):
Yeah, not too bad, Jamie.

Speaker 3 (04:15):
We've had quite a bit of rain around the spot
of the place over the last few weeks. But one
of the challenges we're facing, and the Wire Rapper's facing
at the moment is cutworm and our green feed crops.
Though we've never seen anything like it for a while,
and you know, overnight these things can decimate a crop,
so we've been challenged by those, but generally we're in
pretty good order.

Speaker 2 (04:34):
Stocked, look fantastic.

Speaker 1 (04:35):
And Nancy, are you still spending half your life in Australia.

Speaker 4 (04:39):
Yes, i am, but this month, the next month I'm
a lot more New Zealand based and it's been very
enjoyable being back on farm a bit more and back
in New Zealand less instead of being on planes the
whole time.

Speaker 1 (04:50):
Yeah, exactly. Well, Well, Shane mcmanaway is a man who's
spent his life on a plane, decided he'd had enough
of it, so went farming, built a hospital as you do. Shane,
you're a great New Zealander. And Nancy, thank you very
I'm not saying you're not a great New Zealander, Nancy,
but thank you very much both of you for your
time today on the country and we look forward to
seeing who will take out the twenty twenty sixth Sanda

(05:11):
McDonald Award.

Speaker 2 (05:13):
Thank you for the ongoing support Jamie of the award.

Speaker 4 (05:15):
Thanks Jamie,