The five secondary schools that have been selected as finalists in this year’s Certified Irish Angus Schools’ Competition have each been presented with five Angus calves.
The finalists were presented with their calves at the Certified Irish Angus stand at the 2023 National Ploughing Championships at an event hosted by broadcaster and comedian Mary-Claire Fitzpatrick.
The five schools, from counties Tipperary, Limerick, Westmeath, Laois and Cavan, were chosen out of over 170 groups after several stages of the competition.
The schools have each received five Irish Angus-cross calves and will be exhibiting their projects for the full three days of the National Ploughing Championships.
The five schools announced to take part in the next instalment of the Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition are:
- Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel: Students Emma Carey, Katie Butler, Sophie Dennehy and Lucy Kearney. The group will explore ‘Using Technology to raise Awareness of Health and Safety’. They plan on researching farmers’ knowledge of health and safety and creating an app to aid farmers and contractors in improving safety when hiring new staff;
- Mercy Secondary School, Kilbeggan: Students Jack Larkin, Eoin Robinson and Shane King will research ways of ‘Applying Technology to Improve Angus Cattle Breeding’. They will demonstrate the use of Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) evaluations to further trace Angus beef. The group will be creating a podcast ‘Angus to the Fore’ on which they will interview personnel in the agri sector and advocates for the Angus breed;
- Scoil Chríost Rí, Portlaoise: Students Carol Sheehy, Sinead Slevin and Jill Sheehy will research ‘Optimising Sustainable Animal Nutrition for Better Angus Beef Cattle’. They will focus their research on reducing carbon emissions by using a fully traceable local input supply chain. The students also aim to explore the opportunities for linking tillage and beef enterprises to deliver mutual benefits;
- St. Clare’s College, Ballyjamesduff: Students Ellen McCaul, Nicole Briody, Blathnaid Farrelly and Tara McCabe will focus on ‘The Importance of Rearing Healthy Livestock’ as their research project. They will be educating farmers on the practical ways they can reduce the number of antimicrobial products used on their farms;
- Villiers School, Limerick: Students Patrick Barry, Ben Atkinson, Simon Austin, and Seán O’Brien will explore ‘Mental Health and Well-being among Farmers’ which will investigate how young people think about farming and how this perception affects farmers. The group will highlight to farmers how rearing the Angus breed can greatly benefit them mentally and physically.
The Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition is run by Certified Irish Angus and its processor partners, ABP and Kepak.
The competition aims to encourage second-level students to gain an understanding of the considerable care and attention that is required to produce and market the highest-quality beef for consumers.
In addition to rearing the calves, the students will complete research projects focusing on different aspects of farming, the food chain, and sustainability.
The Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition aims to inspire students to consider the Irish agri-food industry as a valuable career choice.
Each of the finalists will receive the financial benefit involved in the selling of the animals to the processors on completion of the project. The winning students also receive an additional grant of €2,000 for their further education.
Elite Breed Improvement Programme
In addition to the schools competition activity at the National Ploughing Championships, Certified Irish Angus is also introducing visitors to its newest programme which will reward breeders through subsided sexed Angus semen and a €200 premium on every participating bull.
The aim of the programme is to achieve a 9% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per kilo of beef while also highlighting the substantial financial and environmental improvements that can be made through genetics.
The initiative, which is the first of its kind for any breed in Ireland, will enhance the genetics of Angus-cross cattle in order to reduce carbon emissions and provide a cross-sectoral solution that will benefit pedigree breeders, dairy farmers, and beef producers.
The exhibition will feature experts who can offer information about the programme, an engaging visual explaining the process and Angus calves that have been produced through the Elite Breed Improvement Programme.