Rai Valley dairy farm worker Hazel Jones has made a strong impression in the Young Farmers stock judging scene, placing second at the West Coast and Tasman regional competition and earning a spot in the national finals in July in New Plymouth.
Originally from Shropshire in the United Kingdom, Hazel grew up on a family dairy farm milking about 120 cows through a herringbone shed. Now 22, she is gaining experience in New Zealand’s dairy industry, currently working on a large-scale Rai Valley farm milking 750 cows through a rotary shed.
Hazel says her move to New Zealand was driven by a desire to learn more about the industry.
“You guys do it pretty well here,” she says. “I wanted to come over, learn more, and hopefully take some of that knowledge back home.”
She says the contrast between farming systems has been eye-opening. In the UK, smaller herd sizes, year-round calving and winter housing are common, with more reliance on supplements. In New Zealand, she has had to adapt to seasonal calving and pasture-based systems.
“It was definitely a real change,” Hazel says. “Back home you might only be calving 10 cows a month. Here it’s full-on.”
Despite the challenges, she has embraced life in the South Island and says the scenery has been a highlight.
“The sunsets over the hills outside my window are one of my favourite things,” she says.
After arriving in Rai Valley, Hazel joined the Tasman Valley Young Farmers club, something she was already familiar with from the UK, where membership numbers can reach into the hundreds. She says the organisation has been a great way to meet people and make connections.
Hazel also has experience in the sheep sector, having worked on a 1,200-head indoor sheep farm in the UK.
She says sheep farming systems there vary widely depending on the terrain, with hill country farms often running stock outdoors year-round, while lowland farms rely more on indoor systems for lambing.
Her recent success in stock judging builds on a lifetime around livestock, having accompanied her father to cattle shows while growing up. Preparing for the competition, Hazel took a practical approach, mentally judging animals during daily work, watching videos and visiting local farms to practise.
“I just thought I’d give it a go,” she says. The competition involved judging dairy cattle, chickens and prime lambs against about 15 other contestants. Hazel says judging dairy cows involves assessing udder confirmation, capacity and configuration, along with topline, and width between legs and body length.
When judging chickens, she says competitors look for a heart-shaped body, good condition, healthy feet and the absence of issues such as bumblefoot.
“I was a bit surprised to come second,” Hazel says. “I’d never judged prime lambs before. I treated it like judging a breeding ewe and I stuffed it up a bit.”
Looking ahead to the national finals, Hazel says she is both excited and nervous. Competitors have been told to expect a wild card animal, something unfamiliar that must be judged on the spot.
“It could be anything, a donkey, a llama, even a goldfish,” she laughs.
The finals will also be Hazel’s first trip to the North Island, marking another milestone in what has already been a memorable New Zealand experience.
