Mangarara Station owners Greg and Rachel Hart have come in for yet more recognition - this time at the 2017 Napier Port Hawke's Bay Primary Sector Awards.
The owners of the 610ha sheep and cattle station near Elsthorpe in CHB - home to The Family Farm and Mangarara Eco Lodge - won the Pan Pac Hawke's Bay Farm Forester of the Year Award, with the judges commenting on their extensive plantings of native tree species.
"They are fully committed to creating a regenerative agricultural farming system and have an innovative approach to stock management and marketing," the judges said.
Since 2008 the couple have planted 105,000 native trees on their property - some with the assistance of the Air NZ Environment Trust.
The couple made their farm operations more environmentally responsible and sustainable 15 years ago. All the meat at The Family Farm on the station is produced employing regenerative farming principles, such as a holistic grazing.