named the supreme winners of the Otago Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
The Burdons farm Glen Dene, a 6000ha station between lakes Wanaka and Hawea.
Judges said they took the premier award because of the way they farmed the landscape in association with conservation values.
At an awards ceremony at Mosgiel last night, the Burdons also received the Gallagher Innovation Award for a system of converting conventional fencing to deer fencing, efforts to improve the long-term sustainability of the property, developing a composite merino sheep breed and working
with researchers to optimise biodiversity and production goals for high country farms.
They also commented on the family's business plan, more than 20 years of nutrient monitoring and management, succession planning, financial management, integrating and managing different classes of stock with the land, the family's relationship with the Department of Conservation and
their community involvement.
Mr Burdon is the president of Otago Federated Farmers.
Glen Dene carries 15,000 stock units, mainly merino sheep, including 1900 deer and 172 cattle. Most of the wool is sold to clothing manufacturer Icebreaker, but income is also earned from trophy stag hunting and grazing dairy cows.
They are developing 200ha of scrub a year into production but plan to create a wildfowl breeding area and have started a programme of fencing off native bush with thoughts of opening it to the public.
Other winners were:
Ballance Nutrient Management Award and Hill Laboratories Harvest Award: Andre Lategan, Amisfield Winery, Cromwell.
LIC Dairy Farm Award: Philip, Heather and Geoffrey Wilson, The Taieri Dairy Company.
PPCS Livestock Farm Award and PGG Wrightson Habitat Improvement Award: Fraser and Lorraine McGarvie, Duxglen Farm, Waikoikoi.
Otago Regional Council Award: Robert, Linda and Dave Butson, Mt Nicholas Station, Queenstown.
