The Innovations Centre at the 2017 National Fieldays June 14 to 17 will showcase agricultural inventions and new applications with the potential to lead change in the rural sector.
Fieldays Innovations event manager Gail Hendricks says there are more than 71 award entrants. These include innovations in fencing, irrigation, pasture management and animal health.
Agricultural technology would also be on the show, with several app-based innovations and a virtual reality innovation, says Hendricks.
Leading change is the theme of the 2017 Fieldays and Hendricks says the Innovation Awards is at the cutting edge of what is happening in agriculture, and the future of the industry.
“Originally, the Innovation Awards was about widgets, gadgets and devices to improve farming, and now we are seeing how science and technology are impacting agriculture,” says Hendricks.
This year organisers have accepted entries relating to genetics, animal science and chemical-based innovations.
“There has been increased interest in this field recently so this year we have two new judges on board who can judge the science behind these innovations,” says Hendricks.
The three most important categories are Fieldays Prototype Award, Fieldays Launch NZ Award and Fieldays International Award.
Other awards up for grabs include Fieldays Young Inventor of the Year, Vodafone Innovation in Technology Award of the Year, Locus Research Innovation Award, the Crowe Horwath Agri Innovation Award, the Tompkins Wake IP and Commercialisation Award and the Origin Intellectual Property Award.
Judges consider things such as inventiveness, design and originality, the process of coming up with the innovation, commercial opportunities, intellectual property protection, technical viability and its benefit to New Zealand agriculture.
Announcing the winners is taking place on Thursday, June 15. Hendricks says they would not only receive the kudos of winning the awards and any resulting publicity but access to expert support and business advice thanks to the companies sponsoring each award.
Fieldays is partnering with Vodafone in the awards, and sponsors include Callaghan Innovation, Crowe Horwath, Enterprise Angels, Locus Research, NZFarmer, Origin IP and Tompkins Wake.
Hendricks says entrants get a lot of value from entering the Innovation Awards, as Fieldays provides access to a large group of potential customers and gives them a chance to do valuable market research.
Innovation Awards entrants also have exclusive access to business advisors, legal experts and product development consultants at a dedicated space in the Innovations Centre called The LAB – Powered by Locus Research. Also, they have a chance to meet with potential investors at an invitation-only evening, Fieldays Innovations Capital sponsored by Enterprise Angels on Thursday, June 15.
