DEER farmer, food blogger and author Sophie Hansen won the national 2016 Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Rural Women’s Award on Wednesday night.
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Mrs Hansen, from Mandagery Creek, received the award at Parliament House and Western Australian seed producer Kalyn Fletcher was runner-up.
The award celebrates women who make a positive impact on rural industries, businesses and communities.
As the NSW state winner, Ms Hansen received $10,000 to develop her project My Open Kitchen, an online learning course assisting food producers in the use of social media to better connect with their consumers.
As the national winner, she receives a further $10,000 to strengthen her leadership skills and share her experience with others around the country.
Ms Fletcher will use her $10,000 bursary to pursue her passion to expand tropical agriculture in Australia’s north.
Ms Fletcher will undertake a study tour of the Cerrado Region of Brazil where she will learn from South America’s highly successful tropical agriculture industry and bring new ideas and practices home to the Kimberley’s Ord River region.
Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) managing director John Harvey congratulated Mrs Hansen on winning the national award and said her desire to support farmers to use social media to capture their stories was an example of rural leadership at its best.
“Sophie will be a brilliant ambassador for the RIRDC Rural Women’s Award,” Mr Harvey said.
“She has the talent to create real change through influencing the conversation around educating consumers on where their food comes from and to buy local.
“This is a really positive message that will benefit our farmers and the broader food industry. Sophie’s passion is contagious.”
Mr Harvey also congratulated Ms Fletcher on being the national runner-up.
“Kalyn’s aspiration to further the expansion of northern Australia is exciting,” he said.
“She has the passion, drive and determination to make a difference in her region and to the wider Australian tropical agriculture industry.
“Kalyn should be commended not just for what she has already done for rural Australia, but for her leadership potential in the future.”
Applications for the 2017 Rural Women’s Award close on October 31, 2016.
