Department begins recruiting assistant agri inspectors

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has begun recruiting for assistant agricultural inspectors.

Opening lines for application today, Friday, June 7, the department posted the listing on the Public Appointments Service (PAS) website.

Advertising the position with a statement, the department noted that it services a “wide and diverse customer base which includes farmers, taxpayers, consumers, food processors and other commercial operators, those involved in sea fishing, forestry, bio-energy, research as well as diverse EU institutions, other state bodies and special interest groups”.

The Department of Agriculture would like to recruit assistant agricultural inspectors in the following specialisms:

Pest Risk Analysis;
Entomology;
Bee Health;
Nematology;
Plant Pathology (Bacteriology).

The successful candidates will become members of the Agricultural Inspectorate team.

There are over 200 Agricultural Inspectorate personnel working in approximately 20 different work areas in the Department of Agriculture, according to the statement.

The grading structure of the Agricultural Inspectorate comprises of a chief inspector, a director, senior inspectors, agricultural inspectors and assistant agricultural inspectors.

Opportunities for career development within the civil service are available, according to the department.

The inspectorate team is responsible for bringing scientific expertise to bear on the development of the Irish agri-food sector, including funding of Irish agri-food research programmes, and on the negotiation and enforcement of European Union and national legislation relating to agriculture.

For those interested, further details on the role, and how to apply, can be found on the PAS website here.