Supporting the wellbeing and skills development of young farmers
NZ Young Farmers and ACC are proud to announce a new partnership centred on the iconic FMG Young Farmer of the Year contest series, strengthening support for the next generation of leaders in Aotearoa’s food and fibre sector.
The FMG Young Farmer of the Year competition is New Zealand’s premier agricultural event, showcasing the skills, innovation, leadership and practical know-how of young farmers from across the motu.
Setting farmers up for a long and healthy career
This new partnership brings ACC’s expertise in injury prevention, wellbeing, and recovery into the heart of the contest series, reinforcing NZ Young Farmers’ commitment to developing confident, capable and healthy future leaders.
Agriculture remains one of the highest-risk industries for injury in New Zealand, with thousands of farming-related injury claims recorded annually. In 2024, ACC received over 23,000 claims for injuries on farms (injuries where the accident scene is 'Farm'). The cost to help people recover was around $120 million.
“Farming is one of New Zealand’s most demanding and rewarding industries, requiring skill, resilience and constant decision-making in often unpredictable conditions,” says Young Farmers CEO Cheyne Gillooly.
“The contest showcases the real pressures and realities of farming life, and we’re proud to welcome ACC as a partner who shares our commitment to keeping people safe and ensuring young farmers are supported to build long, successful careers on the land.”
Focus on prevention and recovery
ACC’s involvement brings stronger safety and wellbeing messages into the FMG Young Farmer of the Year programme, helping contestants understand how to work safely, manage risks, and support recovery as they build successful careers in agriculture.
ACC is also focused on supporting farmers to stay active and connected to their workplace after injury and to understand the recovery at work process. A work-related injury in the agriculture sector led to an average of 36 days off work in 2024.
“We are really excited to be partnering with the New Zealand Young Farmers for the first time this year,” says Michael Frampton, Deputy Chief Executive Service Delivery at ACC.
“By sponsoring the FMG Young Farmer of the Year competition, we have a unique opportunity to work together to support the next generation of farmers to stay safe and well, and learn the right knowledge and practices they can use throughout their life.”
“This collaboration is especially important to us because it allows us to connect with the wider agricultural community and encourage farmers to take practical steps to keep themselves safe and, if an injury does happen, take part in an active recovery so they can get back to what matters, sooner.”
Farm without harm
This partnership builds on ACC’s broader work with the rural sector, including collaborations like the Safer Farms initiative, to reduce harm and embed safer practices across on-farm activity.
Lindy Nelson, Chair of Safer Farms, says the industry-led initiative is proud to bring its expertise to the design of the FMG Young Farmer of the Year programme module.
“Too many farmers and farming families are still getting hurt or killed producing our food and fibre, and that’s not something we should accept as the cost of doing business.
“Farm Without Harm is the sector’s own plan to stop preventable harm, built by farmers for farmers. Our role is to bring practical, real-world solutions that look at how work is designed, how risks build up over time, and how good systems let people fail safely and still get home at the end of the day.
“The Young Farmer of the Year contest reflects the real pressures and realities of modern farming, which makes it the perfect place to embed these messages. By contributing our expertise to this module, we’re helping the next generation see safety and wellbeing as core farming skills - right alongside productivity, innovation and leadership.
“This is about a culture of care, not box-ticking. When we design work better, look out for each other and deal with risks at the root, we create farms that are not just safer, but stronger and more productive too.”
Farm Without Harm | Farm Safety Resources for Safer Farms
More information
To check out more on what ACC is doing to support the rural sector visit the farming section of our website.
