2019 Semi-Final Juding Panel Announced

The judging panel for the ABP Angus Youth Challenge semi-final event, which takes place on Friday 8th March at CAFRE Loughry Campus has been announced. The independent panel represents leading organisations within the agri-food, education and community sectors. They are:

Zita Blair, Deputy President of the Young Farmers Clubs of Ulster

Darryl Boyd, CAFRE Adviser to the NI Better Farm Beef Challenge

Conall Donnelly, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Meat Exporters Association

Edith Finlay, Education Manager, Council for Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment

Daryl McLaughlin, Policy Adviser, Ulster Farmers Union

Seamus McMenamin, Economist, Livestock & Meat Commission

Ian Marshall, Institute of Global Food Security, Queen’s University, Belfast

John Meade Farm Manager, Ballyedmond Castle Estate

George Moffet, Head of Agriculture Education, CAFRE

Aurelie Moralis, President NI Veterinary Association

Naomi Rutherford, Agriculture PhD Student, Queen’s University

Andrew Wallace, Head of Membership Services, Business in the Community NI

The semi-finalist teams will be travelling from all over the province to take part. The semi-final will take the form of an exhibition of displays produced by the teams. They will be showcasing their knowledge about ABP; innovative thinking on Angus beef related themes, the promotion of Northern Irish beef as well as issues surrounding local rural life.

Pictured [front row, from left]: Helping to announce the line-up of judges for the 2019 ABP Angus Youth Challenge semi-final event are panel representatives: Andrew Wallace, Business in the Community NI; Darryl Boyd CAFRE Adviser to NI Better Farm Beef Programme; Daryl McLaughlin, Adviser Ulster Farmers Union; Conall Donnelly, Chief Executive Northern Ireland Meat Exporters Association and Seamus McMenamin, Economist NI Livestock & Meat Commission. With them, George McWhirter, Northern Irish Angus Producer Group and George Mullan, Managing Director, ABP in Northern Ireland.

FOUR SCHOOLS ANNOUNCED AS 2018 FINALISTS

The finalists of a province-wide agri-food skills competition for young people have been announced. The teams going through to the final stage of the ABP Angus Youth Challenge are Belfast Royal Academy; Enniskillen Royal Grammar; Rainey Endowed School Magherafelt and St Louis Grammar School, Ballymena. 

They will now go on to receive five Angus cross calves per group at a prize-giving ceremony on 18th May at Balmoral Show. They will take part in a programme with ABP that will see them developing skills and knowledge across the beef supply chain from farm to fork. This will culminate in the sale of each team’s Angus cattle to ABP with the net profit shared out amongst their group.

Congratulating the finalists at their training day in ABP Newry, Managing Director of ABP in Northern Ireland, George Mullan said, “It was clear from the judging of the semi-finalists by an independent panel of industry experts, the standard was very high. So, we decided to take four teams forward to the next stage.”

Each team has now been assigned a special project to develop over the next 18 months. Their projects will challenge them to explore innovative and forward-looking techniques and proposals for the future benefit of meat production in Northern Ireland.

The finalists range from 14-16 years old. Not all live on or come from a farming background. Belfast Royal Academy’s team are all urban dwellers and are interested in careers in the agri-food sector. They will be rearing their calves on the farm of the school’s Biology teacher. Their project theme is the Challenges of Farm Finance. 

Enniskillen Royal Grammar’s team are being supported by the Home Economics teacher. Their project theme is how Angus cattle production can enhance the sustainability of farming in Co. Fermanagh. 

The finalists representing Rainey Endowed School have been given the Benefits of Benchmarking and the Contribution of Women to Farm Management as their special project. The team are members of Rainey Endowed School’s Agricultural Club and all come from farming families.

St Louis Grammar’s finalists also have farming backgrounds. They will be working on the concept of Family Farms as a Driver of Sustainable Agriculture. The school’s Geography teacher is supporting them on the ABP Angus Youth Challenge.

The teams’ performance across all aspects of the final stage will be continually assessed to determine the overall winning group and the recipient of the £1,000 cash prize for their school. 

The ABP Angus Youth Challenge is organised in partnership with the Northern Irish Angus Producers Group. Judging the semi-finalists were industry experts and representatives from leading organisations across the farming and agri-food sectors including CAFRE, the LMC, NIFDA, the UFU and YFCU.

“We are looking forward to working with these enthusiast young people who are already demonstrating a strong interest in the agri-food sector. I would like to wish them every success for the next stage.”

— George Mullan, ABP