Agricultural scholarship winner Olivia Buick loves all things ag - be it the serenity of driving a tractor in the central high country, the fascination for how soil, science and the economy make up a farm system or helping others at Young Farmers.
Born and bred on a sheep and beef farm just out of Feilding, the Massey University student says nothing stood out for her as ag did for a career choice.
At Feilding High School, which has two farms, she started delving deeper into what it's really about. She gained a diploma in robotic milking and helped manage the school's milking operations.
"As far as I know, it's the only school in the Southern Hemisphere with that robotic technology." And that makes her think about what the future of farming might look like.
"I couldn't imagine myself anywhere else. I've done so much better because I went to an agricultural high school." Partly because she's familiar with topics covered in her AgriCommerce lectures at Massey University.
Now in her second year of the degree, majoring in agricultural economics, she's interested in finding profitable ways that can sustain production, and addressing the misperceptions of agriculture and its practices.
"My whole life, I have been involved with agriculture and have learned to love the complexity of the combination of environmental, economic, social and governmental factors in plant and animal production."