Focusing on the world of agri-business and the jobs of the future

WELCOME to the first edition of the Ag Focus series which is intended to provide an insight into the world of agribusiness and the many opportunities attracting today’s young students.

The industry is a thriving one, from the expansion in the dairy industry to the cutting edge Irish engineering that is behind many of the machines being sold throughout the world.

In this series, we plan to deliver key information for school-leavers and display the wide variety of positions that are on offer throughout the growing sector.

Teacher Louise O’Hora will bring you tips, concise content accompanied by key graphics, bullet point information and also a revision quiz to help guide you through the second-level Agricultural Science course.

There are many graduates from Agricultural Science and related courses that are now working thousands of miles from home. We catch up with them to see what benefits they have gained from working on large-scale agricultural operations throughout the world.

A competition designed to increase interest in agriculture in schools has really taken off with heated competition among school-goers to take charge of calves to rear for beef throughout the country. We catch up with some schools to see how they fared on their 18-month project.

Innovators from diverse backgrounds tell how they have taken their ideas and managed to turn them into viable business ventures that are carving a niche in the industry.

And a lecturer at the forefront of creating the new business leaders of tomorrow tells how the sector lends itself to many diverse future careers — and, her advice. “There are so many opportunities in the whole area. Just enjoy doing it.”