NDC is looking for class acts to enter Future Farmer contest
Irish rugby player Garry Ringrose launching the second annual Future Farmer Competition
SCHOOLS across the country are being invited to enter the National Dairy Council’s Future Farmer Competition, where they can win vouchers, an appearance at the Bloom festival and a trip to a dairy farm for their class. This is the second year of the competition and it was launched recently with the help of rugby player Garry Ringrose.
The NDC says it is looking for enthusiastic young people from around the country to tell them why they want to be a Future Farmer. Four winners will be chosen, with each receiving a €150 One4All voucher, a guest spot on the panel at this summer’s Bloom Festival in Dublin and – new this year – a class trip to a working dairy farm for their entire class.
The inaugural event last year was a huge success, with schools across the country entering the competition in the hope of winning the top prize. Last year’s winners also got to meet the taoiseach at Bord Bia Bloom, where they discussed with him what they loved about farming and what they hoped for in their future career.
To enter, students are invited to send a video, voice note, essay or poster to the NDC by email at futurefarmer@ndc.ie or Instagram via @ndc_ie before 5pm on Friday 2 May. It is not limited to students living on farms, and pupils of all backgrounds are encouraged to enter.
The winners will be announced on 9 May, with the panel at Bord Bia Bloom taking place on Friday 30 May.
Sinead Whelan, schools programme manager at the NDC, said: “The future of the dairy industry lies in the hands of the next generation of farmers who will assume stewardship over the land and the responsibility for providing us with healthy, nutritional dairy products into the future. I see first-hand the passion that young people have for a collaborative, positive future in this country, and the Future Farmer Competition is one way of encouraging them to record their hopes and ambitions for the decades to come.” For more information about the Future Farmer competition visit www.moocrew.ie.
