With identifiable and achievable goals, his ''finely tuned'' understanding of consumers helped him make significant steps to meet their expectations.
Mr Aicken, who runs Waikawa Farms Trust at Onewhero, was recently named overall winner of the Plate to Pasture Awards.
The awards, in their second year, recognise farmers' commitment to the co operative's Plate to Pasture strategy.
Five awards days were held at plants throughout the country, celebrating the top suppliers of lamb, beef, bull, deer and dairy stock who consistently supplied quality stock in 2014.
The top 50 farmers in each region were invited to the events and the top farmer for that region announced.
Selection criteria included data on specification, presentation, Farm Assurance, commitment of supply, shareholding, supply period, FarmIQ involvement and volume.
A panel, which included former Silver Fern Farms chairman Eoin Garden and 2014 Plate to Pasture Award winners William and Karen Oliver, who farm in the King Country, then visited the five regional finalists on their farms.
The overall winner was announced at a recent dinner at Silver Fern Farms' head office in Dunedin. Mr Aicken, who was also the upper North Island winner, won the bull beef category. He runs a pasture based bull beef finishing system, with 1700 rising two Friesian bulls on 456ha (effective), divided into 11 farmlets.
Judges commented that his system had the ability for young bull beef to efficiently convert pasture to red meat with a low environmental footprint.
His goals covered the productivity and efficiency of his farm, stock welfare, environmental performance and development of the people in his business, as well as financial performance.
Five years ago, Mr Aicken surrounded the business with a formal farm steering team, consisting of people who provided both strategic and practical input into the business direction to support Waikawa's goals.
Risks to the farm business had been identified and Mr Aicken had taken steps to mitigate them.
That included managing consumer perceptions, through opening up the farm's practices to groups in the community to view and ensuring there was a supply of suitable quality breeding stock through building relationships with breeders.
Waikawa also had a thorough health and safety plan and a proactive animal health plan. FarmIQ was used to test approaches and monitor farm importance.
Mr Aicken was interested in the eating quality of his beef and was working with Silver Fern Farms to assess that quality in his bull beef.
Ross and Jeff Cleveland, who farm in North Otago, won in the lower South Island, after topping the prime beef category at an event at the Finegand plant.
Peter and John Douglas Clifford, of North Canterbury, won in the upper South Island. They were first in the deer category and second in lamb.
Western North Island winners Cam and Rachel McKelvie, who farm near Palmerston North, were the regional winners in the prime beef category.
Eastern North Island winners Mike McCreary and Liz Casey, who farm on the edge of Lake Wairarapa, topped the lamb category.