Today’s agricultural-science students are the ‘engine room’ of the future agri-food sector, according to the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue.
Minister McConalogue made his comment at this year’s annual University College Dublin (UCD) AgSoc Careers Fair, where he gave the keynote speech to more than 100 students from across the university’s school of agriculture and food science.
Addressing those students, the minister said he was standing in a roomful of people of “phenomenal calibre” who will go on to innovate and pioneer new technologies and market practices.
“What you may not realise is that each and every one of you are the future of what is one of the most important sectors in our country. You’re starting off in a sector that is so exciting, and it will evolve over the next decade,” he said.
The student-led event was run by AgSoc, one of the longest-running societies in UCD, which has been active since 1923.
Reflecting on the past, Minister McConalogue, a former UCD student himself, said the career paths that graduates follow today are more varied and wide reaching than before.
“A decade or more ago, the typical agricultural science student studied to return to the farm, as an educated and highly trained farmer. And many of you will do the same, returning to lead the next generation of farmers and ensure we remain the best primary producers in the world.
“But so many others will go on to become pioneering food scientists and innovative food marketers; these are equally as important as the farmer for the success of our sector,” he said.
This change in student profile has come against the backdrop of an ever-changing industry, according to the minister, who said such developments are something to welcome.
“It’s fair to say the farm I was born into was very different from the farms we have today, which will be a world removed from the farms that we’ll have when our children are sitting where you are today.
“Change isn’t something to be feared and it’s something that we should, and do embrace, because it’s nothing new for us.
“We are one of the most innovative sectors over the globe, with farmers using cutting-edge technology and food companies constantly bringing new and exciting food products to kitchen tables across the world.”
Concluding his speech, Minister McConalogue said:
“I sincerely thank you for choosing agricultural science and food science as your area of study, because looking around here, I feel confident we are in safe hands, as we face into one of the most exciting periods in agriculture and farming.”