The need to engage young people in the agriculture industry at an earlier stage was a key finding at the NZAgInvest Youth Day held at Massey University last week.
Four groups of high performing accounting, economics and business high school students were individually selected for the Agribusiness Scholarship Programme, which allowed them to experience the industry from a real-life perspective.
Students were taken to a variety of agribusiness sites to interact with experts and young professionals from the likes of FMG, ASB, PGG Wrightson, NZX Agri, Fonterra and Massey University.
The NZAgInvest Youth Day was the final step in the Agribusiness Scholarship Programme where students used these experiences to deliver presentations to the Primary Industry Capability Alliance (PICA). These focused on how alliance members could engage young people and encourage them into the industry.
The Ministry of Primary Industries has identified by 2025 the agriculture sector will need to employ 50,000 more people, with around half of them requiring a level four NCEA qualification or higher.