Jock Brownhill of Spring Ridge said some highlights were meeting other passionate ag advocates from across the state, being involved in varied Sydney Royal Easter Show sections, and even “helping” to set up one of the district exhibits.

He said he’d go forward with even greater commitment to his local show and important issues on the land, and would “absolutely” encourage others to be involved in Rural Achievers.

Mr Brownhill was one of eight finalists in the program, which is in its 28^th year and “recognises and celebrates the positive contribution young people make to their local rural communities and the agriculture sector more broadly”.

The winner was Timothy Green from Wagga Wagga, who is now the NSW representative for the 2019 National Rural Ambassador Award.

Mr Brownhill said his week at the Easter show in the lead-up to the announcement on Tuesday had been, for one, a great chance to learn about different industries.

Now an agribusiness analyst with a major bank in Dubbo, he hails from a property running cattle and growing cereal crops.

“I was lucky enough to be involved in the poultry – when I had absolutely no idea about poultry,” he said.

“You just wouldn’t really get the opportunity to do this anywhere else.

“We just all learnt about all the different industries so much, otherwise I would have gone to the sections I knew a bit about.”

Mr Brownhill also assisted with red Angus cattle, pigs, goats and the woodchop.

“The program was pretty action-packed,” he said.

“We were not only doing that stuff during the day, but each night we’d have different functions.

“Those dinners were great, because you sit next to someone you don’t know and can ask all sorts of dumb questions about them and their career.

“There’s a lot of networking; talking to people in different industries about what they’ve done through their lives, what they’ve enjoyed or haven’t enjoyed, and what’s in stock for the future of Australian agriculture.”

Mr Brownhill said a memorable occasion was having dinner with the district exhibits teams.

“You look at [an exhibit] and think, ‘That’s impressive’ – but then you meet the people who come up with the ideas and see how carefully they put it together,” he said.

“We were stacking lemons the second night, and the people in charge of it said, ‘Thanks, but we might just re-stack these ones’.

“They’re obviously so, so proud about the way the exhibits are presented.

“We were so lucky to go behind the scenes and see how everything’s run.

“Having that exposure was unreal … 

“It was something that I was very lucky to be a part of and hopefully I can use those skills and the network of people I’ve met over the last week and adapt some ideas for my own patch.”