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Barley boss is best in the business

October 31, 2008

ABB Grain managing director Michael Iwaniw is Australia's best agribusiness leader.

Mr Iwaniw was last night awarded Agribusiness Leader of the Year at the 13th NAB Agribusiness Awards for Excellence.

Primary Producer of the Year was Michael Blake, Bally Glunin Park.

Bally Glunin Park, a family owned grazing and farming property near Hamilton in Western Victoria, producing 50,000 kg of wool, 150 tonnes of grain, 231 tonnes of fodder, as well as prime lamb, beef and sheep meat.

Bally Glunin Park supplies markets in Egypt, Mexico and the EU and holds QAs in Cattlecare, Meat Standards Australia (MSA), EU Accreditation and Environmental Beef production.

Over the past 30 years Mr Blake has been involved in more than 75 research projects, supported five PhD research projects and currently supports ten projects and in 2007 he completed his Masters in Education so he could influence policy on farm safety.

Mr Iwaniw, who is due to retire at the end of the year, said the award was a highlight of his career, which has seen him steer the privatisation of ABB as his toughest challenge.

"It is very rewarding to achieve these sorts of things," he told the awards dinner.

The awards were sponsored by Monash University and the National Australia Bank.

NAB Agribusiness general manager Khan Horne said the high calibre of this year’s winners shows why agribusiness has been so successful in recent years in opening up new international markets, developing cutting edge technology and moving toward sustainable environmental management.

Last night’s winners were: