A future grounded in soil, agricultural science and passion

“The only class I really enjoyed was ag!” she says.

That interest has since grown into a full-blown career in the sector, one that now encompasses everything she cares about.

During Ffion’s final year at Feilding High School, she was involved with a programme that encouraged her to explore study options with Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University.

“I had an amazing group of ag teachers, and the programme was really cool. From there, I saw how many scholarships Massey offered, which definitely helped ease the pressure of a student loan. I enjoyed the mix of business and sciences papers,” she says.

Ffion chose to study a Bachelor of Agricultural Science, a decision that felt right, even if she didn’t yet know exactly where it would lead.

“I wanted to help future-proof the ag industry and work with farmers to make that happen. This degree gave me the knowledge to do that. And honestly, people in this industry are the coolest people on earth, so doing something that helps them just makes me happy.”

She especially enjoyed the practical components of the degree, which took her to coastal Hawke’s Bay one summer, and Ohakune the next.

Today, 21-year-old Ffion is one of six Nutrient Specialist Interns with Ballance Agri-Nutrients. After completing a two-month training programme, she’s now based in the field with a mentor and continues to grow her expertise.

“My job is to help farmers improve their soil fertility, grow better quality feed and become more efficient, which is basically the starting point for the entire ag cycle. It ties everything I’m passionate about into one role and Massey gave me a great foundation for it.”

Ffion says her parents are the reason she keeps striving, with her mum working as a veterinary technician and her dad managing a large station, all while running their sheep and beef farm.

“They work from dark to dark every day. They’ve shown me what hard work looks like and I owe a lot of what I know to them. One day I hope I can give back to the farm at home, it’s a big part of what drives me, and I know it’ll be incredibly rewarding when I can.”

Ffion also credits her Massey lecturers with fuelling her sense of purpose.

“I find passion is infectious and I got that tenfold at Massey, especially from people like Associate Professor Lucy Burkitt and Professor David Horne, who are monumental in the soil and environmental space. The ag department at Massey is amazing at promoting scholarships and graduate programmes. Those were key turning points for me and helped me make connections that changed my path,” she says.

One of those key moments came after a guest lecture by Erica Van-Reenan, Chair of AgFirstNZ, New Zealand’s largest independent agriculture consultancy. Ffion took the opportunity to introduce herself and strike up a conversation afterwards, forming a connection that later led to an internship with AgFirst Manawatū-Whanganui.

“That internship helped me find direction. I was lucky to learn from some amazing consultants, and the experience helped shape my current role at Ballance, which I absolutely love.”

Ffion’s journey has taught her that it’s okay to not have your career plan entirely figured out.

“I only had half a plan in my final year, and it’s stressful when everyone else seems to know what they’re doing. But if you keep following what you’re passionate about, things will fall into place. I was fortunate to receive over $20,000 in scholarship funding - academic achievement was a part of that, but so was knowing what opportunities were out there and taking the time to apply. You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room, just know what’s out there and back yourself enough to go for it.”