AgriFutures Rural Women's Award

The AgriFutures Rural Women's Award is a leading accolade acknowledging the essential role women play in rural industries, businesses and communities. It is open to all women across Australia involved in:

• rural industries
• rural and regional businesses
• rural and regional communities.

Applicants must be over 18 years of age, and no formal qualifications are required.

Financial bursary and development

A $15,000 Westpac financial bursary is awarded in each Australian state or territory, providing the financial resources to support a project, business or program that will benefit rural industries, businesses or communities. The initiative may be commercially or non-commercially focused. It must:

1. Be up and running, or live within 3 months of the application being submitted.
2. Align with AgriFutures' strategic priorities.

Award finalists will also receive professional development opportunities and access to alumni networks.

All state or territory winners will participate in a separate national selection panel interview. The overall winner and runner-up will both receive additional grant funds from Westpac. These funds may be used to further progress your winning project or assist in meeting national commitments.

2025 SA Rural Women's Award winner

Entrepreneur Kelly Johnson has been named South Australia’s winner of the 2025 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award for her innovative work in transforming food waste into eco-conscious meals.

Founder of the Monarto based agribusiness SPhiker, Ms Johnson turns surplus and second-grade produce, purchased straight from farms, into eco-conscious, shelf-stable meals for the hiking, cycling and sailing markets.

Ms Johnson perfected the art of creating delicious, nutritious ready meals that could be prepared in a matter of minutes and stored without refrigeration during her 15 years as a scout leader.

Fuelled by her love of food and adventure, Ms Johnson launched her first business Woodland Orchard in 2019. She was inspired to make a difference after hearing a friend was throwing away one tonne of dried peaches a year and started selling the produce for him at markets.

Initially the business focused on stone fruit, but as winter approached and more vegetables started rolling in, Ms Johnson decided to take things in a new direction – utilising the surplus goods and seconds to create nutritious, plant-based dehydrated soups, meals and snacks. And just like that, SPHiker was born.

As the South Australian winner, Ms Johnson has won a $15,000 Westpac grant to support her business which she plans to use to invest in specialised equipment to help scale up SPhiker’s operations. The equipment will not only enhance production by reducing cooking times but also allow for the inclusion of new produce and expanded meal offerings, further reducing food waste and supporting more farmers.

^{Kelly Johnson – 2025 SA Rural Women's Award winner}

Congratulations to the finalists:

• Marie Ellul from Adelaide for her livestock reproductive test from Art Lab Solutions
• Annabelle Homer from the Clare Valley for her voice coaching business Voice It
• Emma Gilbert from the Fleurieu Peninsula for her educational egg hatching app Incubate Pro.

Previous winners

See all AgriFutures state and national winners since 2000.

Contact

Tara Donnelly – State Coordinator
Phone: 0461 506 745
Email: tara.donnelly@sa.gov.au

Angela Ruddenklau – PIRSA representative on the SA judging panel
Phone: 0417 519 228
Email: angela.ruddenklau2@sa.gov.au