Commodity watch by policy officer Kayleigh Ashton-Meek
Agriculture education through the stages
With the rise in popularity of shows such as Clarkson’s Farm and The Fast and the Farmer-ish, increasing events within YFCU, and the ever-changing landscape of social media, young people from all backgrounds are becoming more interested in a career in agriculture. However, with the current climate throwing battles into the agriculture sector at an alarming rate, it can be hard for young people to want to plan ahead for the future.
Primary
Within the UFU rural affairs committee, we have an interest in improving agri-education. The UFU has consistently worked on encouraging primary school pupils to learn about food and farming, using initiatives which involve bringing children onto farms and teaching where our food comes from.
One of the main initiatives that the UFU is involved with, is the Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend. It connects those from a non-farming background with agriculture and takes children out of the classroom and on to farms, bringing the importance of agri-education into the yard itself.
Secondary
At a secondary education stage, the introduction of the GCSE in ‘agriculture and land use’ across some Northern Ireland schools, has been a great success and provided students with the opportunity to study agriculture at a younger age, rather than having to wait for further or higher education. This also opens up different options within the industry and gives students a head start to decide where they want to go. There are currently limitations to this; however, most of the pupils who pick agriculture as a GCSE are already from a farming background, and many schools which offer this GCSE are rural schools.
Media
Farming in the media has opened the minds of a wider demographic to see the vast scope of day-to-day work which farmers do and is encouraging young people from a variety of backgrounds to consider a career in agriculture. Because of this, education facilities need to capture and nurture this interest at this opportune time.
With many different options for further and higher education, it can be difficult for students to know which path to take. With courses in agriculture, agribusiness management, crop production and even animal welfare as only a small selection of the options on offer, young people need to be supported and provided with the information needed to make the correct choice for themselves. The UFU rural affairs committee and policy officer are enthusiastic to build on this opportunity and are looking into developing different initiatives to assist the already available support, such as wider agri-food career days and visits and talks from key industry stakeholders.
CAFRE education meeting
At the end of May, the UFU rural affairs chair, vice chair and policy officer met with the acting director, head of education service and acting head of agriculture education of CAFRE. Discussions revolved around the current provisions for agriculture, food and land-based education, the statistics of past and current student demographic, student support availability and future developments within the industry. UFU outlined concerns regarding many students leaving Northern Ireland to attend universities across the water and discussed with CAFRE various solutions that UFU could promote and provide support. Staff within CAFRE also showed an interest in continued work with the UFU on additional programmes, such as the potential to collaborate on the Women in Agriculture Leadership Programme and the Women in Agriculture Conference, as well as new initiatives around bringing agriculture into urban schools.
