Newspaper Article 2008 – Young farmers up for auction

Young farmers up for auction

MEMBERS of the Eskview Young Farmers Club got a taste of what it was like to be in the stockyard themselves, when they were corralled on the back of a Ford ute and put up for auction at the corner of Emerson and Market streets.

The auction took place in April to raise the profile of the National Bank Young Farmer of the Year Competition being held on Marine Parade the following day.

Organiser Suz Bremner said that when club members were first asked to take part in the auction at their monthly meeting, the suggestion was met with surprise and then horror when they realised it was no joke.

Suz said the main concern members had was the fear of not getting any bids.

“After much persuasion and promises that everyone would be bid on, even if the money would end up coming out of the Young Farmer’s own pockets, 10 members out of 25 agreed to put their names forward to be auctioned off for a good cause,” Suz says.

Even so, members were nervous when the time came to take their spot on the back of the ute to be auctioned off.

Promising to do any job, including cooking the tea, doing the shopping or cleaning as well as farming chores, passing shoppers, business owners and farmers were encouraged and cajoled with great enthusiasm by auctioneer Chris Tremain to bid top dollar for an hour of their highly skilled labour.

With prices averaging around the $32 mark, there were many bargains to be had and the young farmers found themselves being snapped up for mostly gardening chores and tree planting work.

There was even a flurry of telephone bids, as keen buyers contacted friends to ask if they wanted to have a young farmer bought on their behalf.  One delighted buyer was taking home two farmers, saying she was delighted that her section would at last be cleaned up.

The last lot of the auction was the winner of last year’s grand final of the National Bank’s Young Farmer of the Year Contest, Hawke’s Bay’s own Callum Thomsen, whose services were highly contested, and a bidding war ensued that was finally and emphatically won by his partner Kelly Dalziel.

Proceeds from the action, which raised about $200, were used to offset the costs of staging the regional final of the competition.

Photo caption –

Back, from left: Ryan McLaren and Campbell Bremner.
Middle: Chris Tremain, Ed Bell, Anton Croad, Phil Holt, Peter Heaney and Callum Thomsen.
Front: Maryanne Fouhy, Catherine Holt, Suz Bremner and Kelly Dalziel.