Offaly secondary school students presented with Certified Irish Angus calves at Ploughing

From Offaly, Jack O'Meara, Moya Guinan, Joseph McLoughney and Ben Younge from St Brendan's Community School, Birr, were among the students who met the Irish Angus-Cross calves they will rear for the first time at the event.

The Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition, supported by processors ABP and Kepak was first introduced to secondary school students in Ireland in 2014. The unique initiative is designed to teach students about the care and attention required to produce top quality beef, and it has engaged with more than 3,600 students in the last ten years. The five schools announced to take part in the next instalment of the Certified Irish Angus Schools' Competition include:

The students from Birr will explore the topic: "How small adjustments lead to enhancements in sustainable beef farming".

This will investigate how the platform AgNav can create an optimum plan that ensures more sustainable beef farming. This plan will be supported by research findings on cattle health and the beef production process.

The Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition, run by Certified Irish Angus and its processor partners, ABP and Kepak, aims to encourage second-level students to understand the considerable care and attention 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.

Each finalist will receive the financial benefit of selling the animals to the processors upon the project's completion. The winning students also receive an additional grant of €2,000 for their further education.