“Nicola has made a mark in the agribusiness sector in New Zealand and internationally. She has demonstrated distinguished achievement in the fields of food and agribusiness management in New Zealand and internationally,” Armbruster said.
“She is well-deserving of being an IFAMA Fellow.”
Shadbolt’s history with the organisation goes back more than 20 years and includes roles as a chair, moderator and presenter of research papers (both her own and on behalf of international postgraduate students who have returned home) at the annual IFAMA conferences.
She says it is an honour to be named a fellow and highlights networking opportunities as one aspect she has enjoyed from her work.
“You develop a great network of people from both other academic institutes and agribusiness companies. You see the same people each year and you get to understand their countries and issues and you identify similarities and differences to New Zealand,” Shadbolt said.
“This helps expand your thinking in terms of where we fit in, where we can play and what our opportunities are.”
She says it’s a constant refresh of what’s going on in the world of global agribusiness, which is always useful, both as an academic and in her other roles.
Shadbolt, who is a professor of farm and agribusiness management, has been one of the managing editors of the IFAMA Review journal since 2008.
“Some years I have many papers to review but it’s interesting as every time you’re reading what’s going on in agribusiness and food somewhere in the world, and it all adds to that body of knowledge.”
She has had many papers published as an academic and in 2020 received IFAMA best paper competition award as a co-author.
Alongside colleague Dr Elena Garnevska from Massey’s School of Agriculture and Environment, she has recently been involved in coaching teams of graduates for the global case study competition and travelled with them to locations around the world.
Shadbolt says those she has met during her time with the organisation have influenced the research both she and her students carry out, ensuring students get an up-to-date global perspective.
“We keep telling our students that over 90% of everything we produce gets exported, so New Zealand is global by default. Everything we do has to be connected to what is happening in the world,” she said.
“We feed 40 million people, so we need to know what those people want, how they want it, where they want it and what their changing needs are, and it all segues back to New Zealand and how we then change our systems for the better.”
Among her other accomplishments, Shadbolt was awarded Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her services to agribusiness in 2018.
She spent nine years as a Fonterra director, is a current commissioner on the Climate Change Commission and is chair of Plant & Food Research.
