Backing the next generation into farm ownership
Marc and Nia Jones could hardly believe their ears when they heard their names called at the 2026 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards.
The Waikato sharemilkers were named as one of three winners of the 2026 Fonterra & ASB First Farm Award, alongside Johno and Tania Burrows, and Jonathon and Stacey Hoets - both from Canterbury / North Otago.
“We were the last names called on the night, so we thought we’d missed out,” says Nia Jones. “Hearing our names was incredibly exciting – it’s an amazing prize.”
The award is a collaboration between Fonterra, ASB and the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards Trust, and is designed to help remove barriers to farm ownership for the next generation. Winners receive up to $1 million of ASB Business Term Lending fixed at 1% for three years, $20,000 in Farm Source account credit, and a Fonterra support package to help with the transition into ownership.
For Marc and Nia, it brings a goal they’ve been working towards for years within reach.
The couple moved to New Zealand from Wales in 2016, and since then have worked their way up through a range of dairy farming roles.
“As a family, we’ve moved between ten houses and four farms. We have sacrificed a lot, and before ownership, you make it work for somebody else. It’s nice to see the hard work pay off,” says Jones.
This meant some late nights at the dining table, piecing together their award application. Jones recalls this being a juggle with four kids on school holidays.
“After we won, our daughter said, ‘Now I get why you were spending all those late nights at the dining table. The kids understand it helps us all in the end,” she says.
Winning means more than a financial boost. It means stability, something that’s been a long time coming.
We’re now in a position to find somewhere to call home.
Not long before the awards, the couple had sat down and taken stock of their goals.
“Realising how far we’ve come was quite an emotional moment,” adds Jones.
The judges were impressed by the calibre of this year’s Fonterra & ASB First Farm Award finalists - all first-generation farmers, none with a family farm to fall back on, and all nearly in a position to own their own dairy farm.
The judging panel said all were an example of what can be achieved in the dairy industry, encouraging anyone who missed out this year to try again.
Lisa Payne, Fonterra’s Milk Supply Director, says the First Farm Award partners were pleased to recently see inaugural winners Braden and Brigitte Barnes buy their first farm.
“It was super exciting to see them buy their first farm in Canterbury,” says Payne.
That’s really what it’s all about – just backing these fabulous young couples and helping set them up for the long term.
Fonterra’s support for the First Farm Award winners is part of a broader programme of work to back the next generation of farmers.
Other initiatives include regional site tours and networking opportunities for young farmers, a new partnership with Growing Future Farmers and more flexible shareholding options for those joining the Co-operative.