Omarama farmers Richard and Annabelle Subtil have shared the title of the Lincoln University Foundation's South Island Farmer of the Year with a Marlborough mussel-farming operation.
It is the first time the title has been awarded to two entrants, with the judges unable to separate the top two performers.
The finalists were whittled down from 12 entrants throughout the South Island.
Earlier this year, Mr and Mrs Subtil won the supreme award in the Canterbury Ballance Farm Environment Awards and recently hosted a field day on their property.
Omarama Station is a 12,000ha property farming merino sheep and beef, with extensive irrigation development, a hydro-electricity plant and a homestay.
The finalists were all very diverse and but there was a common theme throughout the awards function evening about the need to get closer to customers, Mr Subtil said.
Clearwater Mussels is a greenshell mussel producer with 90 mussel farms, ranging from 2.5ha to 80ha, supplying a variety of food and pharmaceutical markets.
Chief judge Nicky Hyslop described both winners' operations as ''just absolutely stunning''.
They exhibited above industry standards in their respective fields, showing leadership in innovation, technology, human resource management, marketing and entrepreneurship and, crucially, very strong relationships with their customers.
Another key feature was the way they both championed their product and resources.
''Richard Subtil's passion for merinos and the land, and John Young's passion for mussels and the seas as an organic, sustainable and new farming system, are strong influences on the success of both of these companies,'' she said.
Mr and Mrs Subtil and Clearwater Mussels will share a $20,000 business travel grant for research, education or marketing purposes. Both winners will host field days next year.
Mr and Mrs Subtil also won the Silver Fern Farms red meat producer Plate to Pasture award for best consumer awareness and Clearwater Mussels won the Farmlands award for best resource management.
The AgStaff award for human resource management went to Tony and Pam Plunkett, who manage Coleridge Downs Ltd, a high country beef, sheep and deer enterprise in the Rakaia Gorge.
Paul and Tracey Ruddenklau, from Kilbrannan Farm, an organic sheep and beef property at Te Anau, won the Lincoln University award for innovation and technology.
