Students get an early look into ag careers

Young people from across the region packed into the sheds at Cowra Showground last Thursday, August 7, for the Central West Poll Dorset Youth Day - an event designed to give students a hands-on look at careers in agriculture. Schools from as far as Sydney to Mudgee joined the program, with many students coming from agricultural backgrounds and others getting their first real exposure to the industry. While some participating schools already offer agriculture-based curriculums, the day provided valuable insight for students without a direct connection to farming. Ruth Klingner from Ridgehaven Poll Dorsets in Cudal said the event’s reach was one of its greatest strengths. "There's 11 different schools, kids from as far away as Sydney, Walla Walla, Wagga, Cowra, Yass, Forbes, Orange, Mudgee, Canowindra and Grenfell," she said. With so many different backgrounds represented, the day offered a broad view of the industry, highlighting that there are more pathways into agriculture than simply working on a farm. "If someone's interested in the Poll Dorset stud, then they'll get a little bit out of it from that perspective. But we focus on the whole lamb industry – yes, working on a farm is a fantastic job, but there's a whole lot more in agriculture than working on a farm," Ms Klingner said. Hands-on sessions and rotating stalls guided students through every stage of the lamb industry from lambing and raising livestock to processing. For those not destined for a farm career, the lessons still connected them to the source of their food and how to select a good quality chop. "Not all these kids will work in agriculture, but hopefully most of them eat lamb," said Ms Klingner. "So, it's still helping them to know what a good chop looks like versus a not so good chop might look like." Agriculture is an exciting industry to be in and all those who volunteered on the day are excited to share their knowledge and passion with the students attending. “We have been running this event every second year since 2015, and it is great to see how much the students get out of the day. We even now have people who have previously attended as a school students, now working in the agriculture industry and returning to volunteer their time to help on the day," Ms Klingner said. "We want the students to see that ag is an opportunity, sheep is an opportunity, and expose them to the exciting opportunities available to them in Ag, because if you don't get exposed to it you might not even think of it."