E Tipu 2021: The Boma NZ Agri Summit
E Tipu 2021 is designed to bring together people who work across Aotearoa New Zealand's entire food and fibre sector, from the start of the supply chain to the finished products.
If you’re a farmer, producer, innovator, researcher, educator, student, government or finance worker looking at how to grow Aotearoa’s agriculture industry amidst exponential changes, you don't want to miss this.
In 2019, we hosted the inaugural Boma NZ Agri Summit: 2 days, 20+ speakers, and 600 attendees.
In May 2021, we're coming back—bigger, better, and bolder.
Our commitment remains the same: to help Aotearoa’s food and fibre sector become more innovative, sustainable, collaborative, and profitable, now and into the future.
Join us for E Tipu 2021 on 11–12 May, at Christchurch Town Hall, where you’ll:
hear from expert national and international speakers;
participate in interactive sessions and workshops; and
tackle the huge questions that exponential change presents for the future of food and fibre in Aotearoa.
To extend your E Tipu 2021 experience even further, you'll gain access to carefully curated Exclusive Experiences, hosted by our Foundation Partner Callaghan Innovation and Host City Partner ChristchurchNZ.
E Tipu 2021 Experiences are your perfect opportunity to encounter first-hand food and fibre innovation, engage with local business owners, and get your hands dirty out in the field where the real magic happens. Bookings are offered on a first come, first serve basis, with very limited capacity, so get in quick to secure your place.
Virtual Tickets Available
Can't join us physically? No problem. Grab your virtual ticket where you'll hear from all the same speakers, engage in live Q&A and polls, virtual exhibitor experiences, networking, video-on-demand sessions to fit your time zone, and more.
Confirmed Speakers
Paul Polman
Co-founder, IMAGINE; former CEO, Unilever
Paul Polman is Co-founder and Co-chair of IMAGINE, a social venture which mobilises business leaders around tackling climate change and global inequality.
Paul is the Honorary Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce, Chair of The B Team and Saïd Business School and Vice-Chair of the UN Global Compact.
A leading proponent that business should be a force for good, he has been described by the Financial Times as "a standout CEO of the past decade”. As CEO of Unilever (2009-2019), he demonstrated that a long-term, multi-stakeholder model goes hand-in-hand with excellent financial performance.
Paul was a member of the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel which developed the Sustainable Development Goals, and as an active SDG Advocate he continues to work with global organisations and across industry to push the 2030 development agenda.
Miranda Burdon
Co-founder, Food Nation
Miranda Burdon is the co-founder of Food Nation, a business whose mission is to get more plants on plates.
Miranda is Chair of Meadow Mushrooms Ltd. and the Chair of Live Ocean, an entity established by Peter Burling and Blair Tuke to support the charge for Ocean Health. She is a Te Hono alumni and recognised leader in the primary sector.
Her over 20 years of executive experience has been centred on FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) in NZ and global businesses. Miranda has also held executive positions as CEO of Global Women and Global Marketing Manager for Pernod Ricard.
Nicole Masters
Director, Integrity Soils
Nicole Masters is the founder of Integrity Soils, a company specialising in regenerative agriculture. She’s also an independent agroecologist, systems thinker, educator, and published author. She’s travelled across New Zealand, Australia, and North America to help farmers and producers use regenerative agriculture practices to improve nutrient density and decrease their environmental impact while increasing profit margins.
Her book, “For the Love of Soil,” helps people learn the tools and principles producers are using to regenerate their soils, and provides a step-by-step triage of actions anyone can take to regenerate their land.
Nicole has a formal background in ecology, soil science, and organisational learning. She’s provided agricultural consulting and extension services for nearly 20 years and is recognised as a knowledgeable and dynamic speaker on the topic of soil health.
Dr Jason Wargent
Founder, BioLumic
Dr Jason Wargent is a world-leading plant UV photobiologist and founder of BioLumic: creator of world-first, clean, green and GM-free UV technology that increases plant growth, vigour, and yields.
As Chief Science Officer, Jason leads BioLumic’s science vision and science team while also developing the company’s IP strategy. His industry-sponsored PhD from Lancaster University in the UK delivered fundamental insights for the agri-application of UV photobiology, and he received a letter of commendation on behalf of the UK horticulture industry.
Jason took up a faculty position at Massey University, New Zealand, in 2010, leading to appointments as Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Professor in Plant Photobiology. He’s received numerous research excellence and research funding awards, and is deeply committed to developing novel, world-changing technology for agriculture.
Lindy Nelson MNZM
Founder, Agri Women's Development Trust
Lindy Nelson is on a mission to amplify the connection between leadership, women, food and global sustainable goals.
She founded Agri Women’s Development Trust (AWDT) in 2010, and, as Executive Director, led the strategic and operational management of the trust and its activities, growing it into an internationally recognised organisation.
In 2020, Lindy launched the Amplifying Us podcast to amplify women’s voices and initiatives around food, food production, food security, and the challenges of leading through climate change. She also supports the need for a national food strategy.
Logan Williams
Founder, Keravos
Logan Williams (Ngāi Tahu) is an internationally acclaimed serial inventor, entrepreneur, and scientist based in Ōtautahi Christchurch. To date, Logan has developed and sold four revolutionary inventions that have been acquired by international organisations.
Logan recently joined New Zealand Merino as Director of Technology & Innovation, to create Keravos: a new product made by combining coarse wool with polylactic acid (PLA) from corn starch. Keravos pellets are not only biodegradable, they are also lighter and cheaper than the traditional plastic pellets used to manufacture consumer products.
Logan has a bachelor’s degree in Science with First Class Honors and is currently a Doctoral Candidate at the University of Canterbury. In his spare time, Logan is a National Board Member of the SPCA and a Guardian Donor.
Tangaroa Walker
Founder, Farm 4 Life
Tangaroa Walker is a passionate, award-winning farmer on a mission to make it easy for people to learn everything they need to know to work on a farm.
Through his own videos and ones he creates with industry professionals, his Farm 4 Life Learning Hub makes essential on-farm knowledge easily and readily available to anyone, anywhere, transforming the way farmworkers access training.
On his increasingly popular Facebook page Farm 4 Life—with over 150,000 Facebook Followers—Tangaroa uploads vlogs of his daily life on the Invercargill dairy farm, giving farmers and non-farmers alike a glimpse at the highs and lows of rural life. Whether he’s delivering calves, creating rosters, or talking about mental health, he shares it all.
Tangaroa has just published his first book, Farm For Life: Mahi, Mana and Life on the Land.
Melissa Clark-Reynolds
Director, Atkins Ranch
Melissa Clark-Reynolds, ONZM, is best known as a foresight practitioner and professional director, with over 25 years’ experience as an entrepreneur and strategist.
She currently sits on the board of Atkins Ranch, the first lamb producer in the world to achieve both Global Animal Partnership Step-4 accreditation and Non-GMO Project verification. She was previously Deputy Chair of Radio NZ, a member of MPI’s Primary Growth Partnership Independent Advisory Panel and the first independent director of Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
Melissa chairs Little Yellow Bird, which makes ethical uniforms and has recently moved into the circular economy, taking back any product it has made and remaking the used clothing back into fabric. She also delivers strategy and foresight advice with a number of organisations in the sector, including Kotahi, BioSecurityNZ and the Department of Conservation.
Dr Sandhya Sriram
Founder and CEO, Shiok Meats
Sandhya Sriram is the CEO and Co-founder of Shiok Meats, Singapore’s first cell-based seafood firm that produces clean seafood such as shrimp, crab, and lobster by harvesting from cells instead of animals. As a stem cell scientist with over 10 years’ experience, Sandhya believes in the potential of translating biotech research into products.
Sandhya is one of Singapore's star startup founders, with two previous successful startups: SciGlo and Biotechin.Asia. She's been featured on Forbes Women in Tech and is an author for Nature Biotechnology blog.
Dr Steve Meller
CEO, CH4 Global
Dr Steve Meller is a Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur, investor, innovator, founder and board advisor with successful careers as a corporate executive and as a research professor.
He is also the founder, President, CEO, and a member of the board for CH4 Global: a company using aquaculture to create zero methane agriculture, slash emissions from ruminant livestock and buy mankind some time to impact climate change.
Since an early retirement in late 2012 from a successful corporate executive career at P&G as Chief Innovation Catalyst, Steve has founded or Co-founded four companies in the healthcare, tech, sustainability and innovation sectors, sits on several advisory boards across a variety of sectors and also works closely with several global innovation advisory companies.
Dr Ian Yule
Research Director, PlantTech Research
Ian Yule is research Director of PlantTech Research, a New Zealand-based research and development organisation specialising in addressing scientific challenges in New Zealand’s horticulture industry with cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology solutions that produce competitive advantage.
Ian cofounded Hyperceptions, a data processing company analysing aerial hyperspectral imaging data to deliver agricultural insights and is also the founder of Stoneleigh Consulting which operates both within New Zealand and internationally.
He’s a strong education professional with a BSc(Hons), MSc and PhD focused in Agricultural Engineering from University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Ian is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the IAgrE, and the President of the International Society of Precision Agriculture.
Jono Frew
Co-founder, Quorum Sense; Founder, Natural Performance Ltd
Jono Frew is the Dunedin-born Co-founder of Quorum Sense, a network bringing farmers together to share practical knowledge about regenerative farming systems, and better agricultural practices in Aotearoa. Jono also developed Natural Performance Ltd which supports farmers all over the world, helping them increase profitability and restore joy and excitement to the sometimes lonely and isolating practice of farming.
With an extensive background in dairy, arable and sheep and beef, and as an award-winning farm manager overseeing 200ha organic mixed cropping at Harts Creek farm (HCF), Jono now uses his profound knowledge to coach, empower and educate, and transform the health and resilience of our soil and all the complex ecosystems that depend on it.
Daan Roosegaarde
Founder, Studio Roosegaarde
Celebrated Dutch artist and innovator Daan Roosegaarde is the Founder of Studio Roosegaarde, where “art meets science.”
Studio Roosegaarde’s hub of designers and engineers explore the connection between people, technology and space by creating conscious landscapes of the future, city prototypes and urban adornments, weaving together aesthetics and sustainability.
Compelling artworks include the phenomenal Smog Free Project in Beijing, a tower that filters its surrounding atmosphere, then converts pollutants to jewelry; Presence, an interactive dance floor that uses energy from dancers to create electricity (Daan’s first solo museum project, which saw an unprecedented number of visitors); and GROW, an ode to the beauty of agriculture using a combination of LED lights, UV and specific wavelengths to help crops grow and build their immunity, decreasing the need for pesticides by 50%.
Daan’s installations have won many awards including (most recently) for Presence, the Award of Merit at the 2020 AZ Awards, the Digital Dozen Storytelling Award and an Urban Design and Architecture Design Award.
He is a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum, a visiting professor at several universities, was selected by Forbes and Good 100 as a creative change maker and named Artist of the Year 2016 in The Netherlands.
Louisa Burwood-Taylor
Chief Editor, AgFunder; Founder, Agri Investor
Louisa Burwood-Taylor is a passionate and knowledgeable food and agriculture journalist at AgFunder, an online venture capital platform investing in bold, exceptional entrepreneurs revolutionizing the food and agriculture industries.
In her current role she is dedicated to covering breaking news in the agri/foodtech industry including exciting new trends and solutions, startups, research and data, as well as investments across the space. Louisa is the founder of ground-breaking and critical agri-tech publication, Agri Investor, the first publication dedicated to investment in the sector.
Amy Novogratz
Founder, Aqua-Spark
Amy Novogratz is founder and managing partner of Aqua-Spark, a Netherlands-based global fund investing in sustainable aquaculture businesses.
A powerful change-maker, Amy has been at the helm of transforming the aquaculture industry from one that was seemingly risky, stigmatized and un-investible, to one that is clean, antibiotic-free, and profitable, while having a positive impact globally. Amy is driven by positive global change, having founded the Social Policy Action Network and Chat The Planet, and having served as Director of the TED Conference’s annual TED Prize. Amy has also collaborated on Sylvia Earle’s Mission Blue, Jamie Oliver’s Food revolution, JR’s Inside Out Project, Bono’s One.org and others.
Amy serves on the boards of Love the Wild, eFishery, and Xpert Sea and is featured in the Forbes Impact 50.
Lisa Booth
Founder, CEO Kete Kai
Lisa Booth is Founder and CEO of Kete Kai, Aotearoa’s most accessible food box -borne out of her frustration with the current food system.
Lisa’s passion for people, community and learning are what drive Kete Kai’s core values, which are based upon redesigning food systems within the country and creating a more affordable, sustainable and accessible option for families on a budget. Her long-term vision is to be part of the change that accomplishes Kete Kai’s Kaupapa which is to end hunger in Aotearoa by 2030.
Lisa is also an Activator with SheEO, a radically generous, global initiative founded by Vicki Saunders that pushes the reset button on how woman-led ventures focused on the World’s To-Do List are funded, supported and celebrated.
Geoff Ross
Founder 42BELOW Vodka, Director Lake Hawea Station
Geoff is a successful serial entrepreneur, with the midas touch and a conscience. Co-founding and building many world class brands beloved to Aotearoa over the last two decades, Geoff’s entrepreneurial interests have spanned liquor to luxury beauty brands.
In the late 90s Geoff developed his stand-out enterprise 42BELOW Vodka, steadily growing the brand from humble beginnings in his Wellington garage to captivating a global audience, ultimately selling in a multi-million dollar deal in 2006. He went on to found and invest in lucrative New Zealand brands with his company, The Business Bakery, including Trilogy, Ecoya, and Turners.
Geoff’s ability to grow and champion New Zealand brands using strategy, simplified systems, and capital have led to him regularly featuring on The Deloitte Fast 50, and receiving an honorary Doctorate in Commerce from Lincoln University in 2018 for his achievements in serial entrepreneurship.
Most recently, Geoff has set about the restoration and conservation of land on his Otago high-country farm, Lake Hawea Station. His vision is to lead New Zealand farming into a carbon positive, biodiversity-rich, profitable future -while creating an ecosystem that works in reciprocity with nature.
Geoff grew up on a Dairy and Deer Farm south of Auckland, igniting his life-long interest in agriculture. He is also Executive Chair of Moa Brewing, former Director and Chairman of The Trilogy Group and Trustee of Pure Advantage.
Mike Taitoko
Co-founder, Toha; CEO, Calm the Farm
Mike is of Maniapoto descent and is a leading specialist in Māori and indigenous economic development. He is an active and passionate leader within the regenerative farming industry.
He is a Co-founder of Toha, an impact investment platform that funds projects solving climate and environmental challenges, as well as Co-founder and CEO of Calm The Farm, a Toha impact venture guiding farmers through making a safe, risk-free and affordable transition toward regenerative and biological practices by providing support from advisors, coaches, and peers within the farming community.
In 2012, Mike founded Takiwā to build innovative tools and technologies driving transformational change in areas that most impact Māori and indigenous people globally—striving for better outcomes in health, education, culture and identity, social and environmental wellbeing and economic development.
He is also a Director of Mercury Energy, Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development (ATEED) and a member of many other boards, as well as an Edmund Hillary Fellow.
Wim de Koning
Executive Director B.linc innovation, Co-founder Lincoln University’s Energy Farm
Wim is Executive Director at B.linc Innovation, a Course Director at Lincoln University and Co-founder of Lincoln University’s groundbreaking Energy Farm, as well as a visiting Professor at various international Universities.
He is a valued leader and creator within the sustainable agri-food industry space, with extensive global experience in the sales and marketing of fast-moving consumer goods in both human and animal nutrition.
B.linc Innovation focuses on what’s next for Aotearoa New Zealand’s agriculture, food and fibre sector. From farmers and entrepreneurs to scientists and academics, they create connections, encourage collaboration, share knowledge and experiences enabling innovative solutions for a better world for our future.
Lincoln University’s Energy Farm is an enterprise that seeks to create the future model of sustainable multi-crop farming for Aotearoa New Zealand. This is through the research and development of new agricultural technologies, creating exciting and innovative fossil fuel-free energy solutions while demonstrating how they can be applied on farms across Aotearoa.
