Community News
Boherbue Students Have Beef With Emissions The Certified Irish Angus group’s competition is heating up! Their competitions are a fascinating challenge to Transition Year students that encourages them to examine the beef industry in tandem with climate, animal care, and the agri industry. Transition year students with or without farming background are invited to explore the agri-food industry in depth. This includes opportunities to meet and present ideas to industry experts from Bord Bia right up to the department of agriculture itself. Groups have the opportunity to win 5 calves from which they can benefit at the end of the competition through sales. Project themes have varied in the past; Improving animal Genetics, Women In Agriculture, and Increasing Consumer Awareness of the Quality of Irish Food have all been fascinating projects that encourage students to not only understand but solve issues in these areas.
A Cut Above The Rest; About Us We are a group of four TY students from Boherbue Comprehensive School taking part in the Certified Irish Angus Beef Schools Competition. Our group is one of 43 groups that have been called forward to exhibit project ideas at the next stage of the Certified Irish Angus Schools Exhibition to a panel of Agri-food industry experts in Croke Park on the 1st of March, 2024. The competition is run by Certified Irish Angus, ABP and Kepak. The title of our project is A Cut Above the Rest, and we are investigating if genomic selection within the Meat the team; Certified Irish Angus breed could Gavin Daly, Vy Ha O’Leary, Norma lead to the production of a lower Kerrisk, and Eoghan Moynihan residual methane emissions animal that appeals to Irish consumers. As part of our project we have created a website – www.hoof-print.com – and we have also designed a Hoof Print logo which will be printed on all Certified Irish Angus beef to inform consumers that the beef they are buying is environmentally friendly as it helps to reduce the carbon ‘hoof print’.
What we have done so far:
On Monday the 29th of January, we went to the Cork County Council to share our ideas with the Lord Mayor of Cork Frank O’Flynn and Councillor Bernard Moynihan, and they provided us with some helpful advice that will assist us to progress on in the competition.
The team also held a TY Cook off using Certified Irish Angus Beef, and enjoyed a Massaman curry made by Sophie Reidy and Danielle O’Sullivan. On Thursday the 1st of February, we visited Boherbue National School. We held a colouring competition for the junior and senior infants, and we also held an angus quiz for the sixth class based on what they learned in the presentation we gave them. We did this to promote the Certified Irish Angus Producer Group and our project. Before we left we handed out our informational leaflets to the children so they could take them home and give them to their parents.
As part of their work, the team has created a survey that looks into consumer understanding of the climate effects of their food shop as well as the changes they would be willing to make for environmentally improved beef. This survey can be taken at the QR code. For more info on beef emissions and what you need to know as a consumer or farmer, visit the hoof-print website.
Issue 107 February 9th, 2024
DiscoverDuhallow@irdduhallow.com
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