The sweeping success of Tasmanian farmers at the Australian Farmer of the Year Awards overnight is a testament to the people behind our exceptional primary industries.
Tasmania won an incredible four of 10 awards at the annual event, which was held in Sydney, including the coveted Farmer of the Year.

Congratulations to Tasmanian farmer Matt Dunbabin who was crowned the 2015 Farmer of the Year at the awards. Matt also won the Diversification Farmer of the Year award.

Matt and his wife Vanessa have shown tremendous ingenuity, resilience and creative spirit on the land and in the new Bangor Wine and Oyster Shed venture.

Time and time again, the Dunbabins have proven that with hard work and authenticity, Tasmania’s land and its resources can be transformed into incredible opportunities.
Husband and wife duo Brian and Michele Lawrence won the Dairy Farmer of the Year Award, in a sweet victory that rewards the hard work it took to transform “Janefield” in the Meander district into a dairy farm nine years ago.

The Biosecurity Farmer of the Year award went to Launceston apiarist and President of the Tasmanian Beekeepers Association Lindsay Bourke.

Lindsay has long shared in our Government’s commitment to improving biosecurity standards to protect Tasmania’s reputation for safe, clean and premium produce, and is a very deserving recipient of this accolade.

I would also like to make special mention of Carol Bracken who was runner-up in the National Rural Women’s of the Year Award. It is the first time since the Awards were developed in 2000 that a Tasmanian has been in the top two places, which is a tremendous achievement.

I congratulate each and every one of our winners and thank them for their hard-work, dedication and excellence, which is making Tasmania’s primary produce the envy of the world.

The Tasmanian Government is committed to growing our competitive strengths, including agriculture. We have a plan to grow the value of our agricultural sector ten-fold to $10 billion per year by 2050, and our exceptional farmers will help to achieve this.
Jeremy Rockliff, Minister for Primary Industries and Water