The first round of judging of Maori dairy farmers vying to win the national Maori Excellence in Farming Award has wrapped up.
Over the past fortnight a panel of four judges has visited the properties of all entrants, and assessed the merits of each farm from profitability to sustainability.
One of the judges is Peter McGregor who is the Strategic Relationship Manager with the training organisation AgITO.
He says the line-up of dairy farming entries was more varied than usual.
Mr McGregor says this year four were owner-operators, whereas in recent years it's mostly been large trusts and incorporation based operations.
He says there was a wide range of expertise on farm and of farming management and operations, which is challenging for the judges.
The finalists are expected to be decided by Monday.
Mr McGregor says a separate panel of four judges will visit each of the finalists before deciding on a winner, who will be announced in June at an awards dinner in Auckland.
