Wayne McIntosh has been managing his family’s summerfruit orchard near Alexandra for 10 years. This is, according to the award judges, “a business at the forefront of its industry”.

The undulating 64ha Earnscleugh property, which currently has about 34,000 trees producing cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, apples and a range of trial fruits, has been in the family since 1881 and producing summerfruit commercially since about 1910. Wayne came home from teaching, travelling and playing competitive rugby in 2004 and entered into partnership with his parents, Stuart and Sharyn.