The other big winners were James Matheson, who was named the 2019 Southland-Otago Dairy Manager of the Year, and Caycee Cormack, the 2019 Southland-Otago Dairy Trainee of the Year.
The van Dorstens, aged 33 and 31 respectively, are 50/50 sharemilking 575 cows on Ray Parker and Sharon Corcoran's 204ha farm in Outram.
The van Dorstens won $11,780 in prizes, plus four merit awards.
The couple both come from dairy farming backgrounds and said the dairy industry had a good career path which allowed for equity growth and the chance for them to make progress.
They said the 2009 economic downturn had created challenges for them.
''We lost our equity and had to build it back up to where we are now,'' Mr van Dorsten said. ''We're proud we've now achieved outright herd ownership.''
Runner-up in the Southland-Otago competition was Miguel Ortiz (34). Mr Ortiz is a contract milker on a 268ha, 800-cow property near Invercargill.
Third place went to Paddy Bentham, a contract milker from Drummond.
James Matheson (25), of Gore, was named the winner of the Southland-Otago Dairy Manager of the Year category.
Winton farm manager Bridget Bell was second and Wyndham farm manager Michael Pelesco was third.
The 2019 Southland-Otago Dairy Trainee of the Year was Caycee Cormack, who works on a 220ha Heriot property, milking 600 cows.
The Southland-Otago Dairy Industry Awards winners field day will be held on April 17 at 11am at 407 Bull Creek Rd, RD1, Outram, where Share Farmers of the Year, Cameron and Nicola van Dorsten sharemilk.
Other awards
Share Farmer Merit Awards:
Human Resources Award, Cameron and Nicola van Dorsten; Farm Dairy Hygiene Award, Regan Crawford; Farmers Leadership Award, Paddy Bentham; Farm Safety, Health and Biosecurity Award, Miguel Ortiz; Recording and Productivity Award, Cameron and Nicola van Dorsten; Farm Environment Award, Cameron and Nicola van Dorsten; Pasture Performance Award, Miguel Ortiz; Business Performance Award, Cameron and Nicola van Dorsten.
Dairy Manager Merit Awards:
Most Promising Entrant, Elyse Fletcher; Southland-Otago DIA Encouragement Award, Michael Pelesco; Employee Engagement Award, Bridget Bell; Leadership Award, Bridget Bell; Feed Management Award, James Matheson; Livestock Management Award, Elyse Fletcher; Dairy Management Award, Bridget Bell; Power Play Award, James Matheson; Personal Planning and Financial Management Award, Michael Pelesco.
Dairy Trainee Merit Awards:
Most Promising Entrant Award, Jakeb Lawson; Farming Knowledge Award, Meliame Mackenzie; Community and Industry Involvement Award, Eilish Duthie; Communication and Engagement Award, Eilish Duthie; Practical Skills Award, Eilish Duthie.
