AgScape event inspires careers in agriculture

Students across Wellington County made real-world connections as they learned about future career pathways in the agriculture and agri-food sector.  

About 600 students attended the AgScape’s thinkAG Career Competition at the Grand River Agricultural Society in Elora last week.

Students rotated between different stations where they met agriculture and agri-food industry representatives and competed in interactive activities to test their overall employability and general agriculture and agri-food knowledge.

“Right now, agriculture and food has the largest career gap in Ontario and this is growing at an alarming rate. This is turning into what might almost be classified as a ‘crisis’ within our food system, already being affected by the number of open jobs and careers in agriculture and food,” said Mira Lyonblum, executive director of AgScape.

“At AgScape, we are here to educate and inspire young people to understand their role in our agriculture and food process. There is so much that goes into finally getting food onto your plate. And that starts even before it grows.”

Lyonblum said this includes understanding soil, research, chemistry and everything along the way.

“There are so many areas where students can have a role in agriculture, roles they don’t even know about. We need more people to have careers in agriculture and food,” Lyonblum said.

“Working with volunteers from different industries, students can interact, ask questions and get a hands-on taste in a particular area. Volunteers share not only what they specifically do and the path they took, but also other jobs within their industry.”