The awards recognise excellence in business management and farm performance, with Oxberry Dairy manager David Risbey-Pearn featuring in previous awards.

Currajong Dairy at Flowerdale, owned by Duncan and Sally Sadler, Wayne and Linda Hansen and Nathan and Cassidy Lawrence; Glenwood Dairy at Sisters Creek, owned by Richard and Melissa Duniam; and Remlap at Sisters Creek, owned by Rhys and Cecile Palmer, and Michael Palmer and Eliza Anderson are the remaining finalists.

The awards will be announced at the Tasmanian Dairy Conference Awards dinner in Launceston on March 15.

Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture’s Dairy Extension team has worked closely with dairy farmers through the dairy business benchmarking program.

The dairy business with the best overall results will receive the award, Dairy Extension team leader Lesley Irvine said.

“We work with dairy businesses to measure financial and physical information such as costs (per cow, per hectare and per kilogram of milk solids), milk and feed production, labour efficiency and pasture utilisation,” Ms Irvine said.

“The feedback we’ve received shows this is a great way of helping dairy businesses to make confident and effective farm management decisions that will benefit them into the future.”

DairyTas executive officer Jonathan Price said the awards acknowledged Tasmanian dairy farmers whose dedication benefited the whole industry.

“The team at DairyTas organises these awards each year to recognise the hard work and commitment of Tasmanian dairy farmers. The awards celebrate a range of important areas, from our young farmers, to business performance, farm management, safety management and environmental integrity,” Mr Price said.

Fonterra Share Dairy Farmer of the Year Award will also be presented on the night, along with four other awards.

These additional awards are Cadbury Young Dairy Farmer Encouragement Award, Moon Lake Investments Farm Safety Award, Veolia Dairy Farm Environmental Award and WFI Employer of Choice Award.