More than 120 college students from the Bay of Plenty and Waikato will converge on a Katikati orchard today, to compete in timed horticulture and agriculture tasks and glimpse the world of food and fibre.

The inaugural Bay of Plenty Clash of the Colleges will see students from Tauranga, Katikati, Coromandel, Hauraki and eastern Waikato compete in teams of four to test their practical skills, knowledge and teamwork across a range of skill modules.

Agri Futures general manager Daniel O’Regan said the event began in 2019 and had steadily grown to be hosted in Franklin, near Auckland, Telford, on the border of Otago and Southland, Ashburton, in Canterbury, and Palmerston North, in the Mid Central region.

“This is the first time we’ve brought the event to the Bay of Plenty – and this is also the first time we’ve had a horticultural focus to it, to mirror the area’s kiwifruit and avocado industries.

The apiary challenge tackled by students in another regional event of Clash of the Colleges. Photo / Focal Point Photos

“For this event, we will have an increased focus on horticulture, including kiwifruit, plant and seed id, pest control and avocados, while providing students with the wider food and fibre experience,” O’Regan said.

Today, 31 teams of four from seven schools will clash at the Kenna family orchard on Matahui Rd, just south of Katikati. “Schools registered include Tauranga Boys’ High School, Katikati College, Hauraki Plains College, Putāruru College, Morrinsville College, Te Awamutu College and Pāpāmoa College.”

Two competitions will run – for juniors in Years 9-10, and for seniors in Years 11-13.

Confirmed modules would include seed and plant identification; tree identification; kiwifruit grading; avocado facts and nutrition; biosecurity; drenching; resilient landscapes, an apiary challenge; break fencing; wool identification and handpiece with local sheep farmers; an arboriculture challenge; chainsaw starting; a fencing wire tie-off; garden layout planting; a sulky horse race and equipment identification; and a gumboot cleaning exercise followed by a gumboot-throwing competition.

Teams of four will have six minutes at each station before moving to the next.

O’Regan said Agri Futures was encouraged to host the BOP event by its MC, Tangaroa Walker – a Southland farmer and social media agri-educator – and Katikati kiwifruit orchard manager Daniel Kenna, from Future Farmers.

“Future Farmers NZ is pretty keen on getting people to learn about agriculture and food and fibre who wouldn’t usually get the chance,” Kenna said.

Katikati kiwifruit orchard manager Daniel Kenna from Future Farmers will host the inaugural Bay of Plenty Clash of the Colleges on one of his family's orchards at Katikati.

He first helped the event by building an immigration module. When he heard that Agri Futures was looking to set up Clash of Colleges in the Bay of Plenty, he offered his family’s orchard.

“I think the Western Bay [of Plenty] has a huge amount to offer in terms of opportunities for young people – to not only get involved in horticulture but to sort of get a taste of what’s on offer.

“So it’s awesome to see children coming from the Coromandel, the Waikato and abroad.”

Kenna said his family had been in Katikati for nearly 50 years, and the event would be held on one of their kiwifruit orchards on Matahui Rd. “I’m super excited that we can bring this great initiative to my backyard and help support the next generation of food and fibre leaders and workers.”

The day will be MC’d by Walker, a Tauranga Boys’ High School old boy, who today has more than 360,000 online followers. He was 2011’s Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer and 2023’s Agriculture Communicator of the Year.

“Bringing the Clash of the Colleges home is special for me,” said Walker.

“I would’ve loved this at high school – competing brings out the best in rangatahi [youth] and helps them showcase their skills, but also makes them eager and keen to learn.

“I can’t wait to see the energy these students bring.”

Katikati College teacher Kate Sutherland, who heads the school’s horticultural education centre GrowHub, said she was taking seven teams to Bay of Plenty Clash of the Colleges.

“It’s a fantastic way for them [students] to get exposed to agriculture and horticulture tasks and learn new skills and techniques and integrate with other people from other schools and meet industry figures – and have fun while doing it.”

Sutherland said some of the modules at the clash would tie into some of the learning students do at GrowHub – for example, plant identification and honey tasting.

“We have standards the senior students work on that have those components to them. Some of the more practical aspects such as fencing are more agricultural-based – but they all tie into the wider picture of the industry, so I think it’s really valuable for students to have that exposure.”

Sutherland said many of her students who will compete came from lifestyle blocks, farms and orchards.

“So they’ve got a bit of the knowledge anyway – and it’s something to be proud of and something to be involved with because we need young people getting into food production and management.”