Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) was crowned winner of the seventh annual Great Agri-Food Debate for the second consecutive year.
Organised by Dawn Meats and McDonald’s, the competition comprised four days of debates that covered topics such as regenerative farming, organic beef farming and diversity and inclusion in the agri sector.
Seven third-level colleges and one industry grouping of placement students took part in the event this year, with newcomers Munster Technological University (MTU) and Loughborough University (LU) from the UK competing this year for the first time.
This was the first year that the industry body participated, represented by McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmers (PYF).
Loughborough University (LU) was the second third-level institution from outside the island of Ireland to participate, following the University of Aberystwyth in 2021.
The three new entrants were joined by University College Dublin (UCD); University of Limerick (UL); Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT); College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CARFE); and last year’s winners Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT).
The debates took place virtually, as they did in 2021, enabling wider participation in what has become a key event for students studying agriculture-related subjects.
The debates were moderated and judged by a range of representatives from the agri-food industry and beyond, including: CEO of Bord Bia, Tara McCarthy; CEO Dawn Meats, Niall Browne; CEO of Food Safety Authority of Ireland, Dr. Pamela Byrne; secretary general of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Brendan Gleeson; and CEO of Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, Tim Rycroft.
This is WIT’s third title in just four years, previously winning last year when proposing the motion that lab-grown meats will not replace traditional livestock farming systems.
‘Regenerative agriculture is the future of farming’ was the title of the first debate this year with CAFRE opposing and PYF proposing the motion.
Debate number two saw WIT take on newcomers LU in a baptism of fire for the team from Leicestershire.
They went head-to-head on the topic of, ‘Organic beef farming at scale will not deliver a viable return on investment’ with LU opposing and WIT proposing.
In the third debate, 2020 semi-finalists DkIT took on newly formed MTU. The topic up for debate here was, ‘Red meat is essential as part of a nutritionally balanced diet’ with DkIT opposing and MTU proposing.
Four-time winners, most recently in 2020, UCD took on UL in the hotly anticipated motion of ‘British and Irish agriculture is diverse and inclusive’.
One of the highlights of the four days of debating, UCD proposed the motion, while UL opposed.
WIT, UCD, DkIT and PYF all recorded wins in their individual debates and, after careful deliberation, the judging panel crowned WIT as 2022’s winners.
The individual best speakers in each debate were:
- Jake Delaney, WIT;
- Ciara Fox, UCD;
- Isla Soutter, PYF;
- Sarah Armstrong, DkIT.
Commenting, Dawn Meats CEO Niall Browne said:
“This year saw some of the most well-accomplished debating since the competition’s inception.
“It has been excellent to continuously add new talent and perspectives to the competition.”
The CEO of Bord Bia added that she was proud to have been part of the debate and hear the “insightful opinions of our future leaders in the agri-food sector”.
“This event is a valuable opportunity for students to really stretch themselves, and further develop transferable skills of critical thinking, problem solving and impactful communication,” she said.