To tackle this problem, the National Dairy Council (NDC) has organised a series of school visits to dairy farms across the country.

By meeting farmers and exploring working dairy farms, schoolchildren can gain a better understanding of how milk gets from the farm to their fridge.

That, in turn, helps them to build a connection with food, farming and the people behind it.

As part of this NDC educational campaign, several groups of primary school children were invited to the paddocks and parlour of Rickey Barrett’s dairy farm - a supplier to Clona - in west Co. Cork, where he is farming with his wife and children.

“We're farming here since about 2000,” said Rickey, on the morning of an NDC farm visit.

The farm has 200 cattle, mostly Holsteins, in a high production system.

Rickey described milk as a "such a healthy product” with “so many other minerals”.*

He added that as he grew up on a dairy farm, "we take for granted that we have such a product".

"'Milk to grass' or 'grass to glass' - it's really good for the kids to see where it's produced".

The Co. Cork farmer also stressed the importance of the agriculture sector for the Irish economy.

“There's so many people employed directly and indirectly, so I think it's good for the kids to see what actually goes on," he said.

Depending on nature

Rickey is also hoping these farm visits will help combat the negative perceptions people often have of dairy farming, and farming in general.

According to Rickey, farmers “depend on nature so much", it is in their best interests to take care of the environment.

"Nobody ever goes out intentionally to do wrong against the rivers, the water. Everybody in farming is trying to do their best."

He stressed that all farmers try to maintain their farms well and keep their cows and calves healthy.

Farm visit

The schoolchildren who visited Rickey's farm came from across the county, including third and fourth class students from St. Mark's Boys’ National School, St. Brendan's Girls’ National School, Clondrohid National School, Upper Glanmire National School, and Gaelscoil Mhichíl uí Choileáin.

Once they arrived at the farm, they were decked out in ‘Moo Crew’ hats, wellies and high-vis gear and given a safety briefing.

After that, it was straight to the paddock station where they got up close to the cows. handled the grass and learned about its role in milk production.

After that, the schoolchildren were taken to the milking parlour, where a demonstration of the milking process took place.

This was followed by lessons on nutrition, with the schoolchildren tasting samples of milk drinks and dairy products from a local dairy.

However, by far the most popular stop was a visit to the calves, where the children learned about caring for the young animals.

Research

These school farm visits come as research commissioned by the NDC showed that more than half (56%) of parents with children aged under 12 in Ireland say their child has never seen a cow being milked.

Rickey said he found this figure quite shocking "because we are a rural country”, though he accepted that many people would have moved away from farming.

The visiting students were consistent with the statistic.

A couple of schoolchildren said that they had seen a cow milked “on TV before, not in real life” while another added “only on YouTube”.

After the farm visits, Rickey reflected on how the initiative had given the students the opportunity to “see the whole process” of dairy production.

"They were overall fascinated by nature, how it actually happens; how milk, a product so good for you, so healthy, that it starts where they're fed and then ends up in the fridge."*

EU School Milk Scheme

The National Dairy Council School Farm Visits initiative is part of the wider EU School Milk Scheme (SMS) which has operated in Ireland since 1982.

The SMS is managed by the NDC with the support of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).

The EU SMS provides participating schools with a daily supply of milk at discounted rates, together with educational supports that promote the nutritional value of daily dairy consumption.

Through this combination of milk provision and learning activities, the scheme is designed to help reconnect children with agriculture and encourage healthy eating habits for life.

Interested schools can find out more at: www.moocrew.ie/schoolmilk.

Keep updated on how NDC is bridging the rural/urban divide by signing up to the free newsletter here.

*Milk contains calcium, protein and iodine. Calcium is needed for the maintenance of normal bones.

The NDC School Farm Visit series is a collaboration with Agriland about the importance of school visits to farms in familiarising children with all aspects of food production.