British Broadcasting CorporationDairy farms are “working hard” to recruit young people into the industry, experts say.
The recruitment drive has been launched at the annual Dairy Show at the Royal Bath and Western Showgrounds near Shepton Mallet, Somerset.
Ruthie Peterson, careers counselor at the Agricultural Research Institute, blames “negative myths” about farming.
“People think it’s all low pay, long hours and dirty stuff,” she said, “but the reality is completely different.”
Emily Paul and her sister Georgie enjoy working on their family dairy farm.
“It’s wonderful to be here on a beautiful day,” said Emily, surrounded by her “beautiful creatures.”
“It’s good for your physical health and your mental health,” the 24-year-old added.
“Of course it’s not a 9 to 5, it’s a whole lifestyle – but I wouldn’t do anything else.”
Georgie left home for a few years to pursue another country industry, horse racing. She traveled the world and worked in the United States for a while, but eventually her cows brought her home.
“You can’t beat it here, with the family, the cows, the farm, and — this.”
The Mendip Hills that George showed me were beautiful on the sunny day I visited the farm. But I wonder how many 23-year-olds are out there getting up at 5am every morning to do the dirty but important job of milking cows?
“It’s an early start and it’s like that every day,” Emily agreed.
“But you can’t beat sunrises, they’re beautiful too.”
But Emily and Georgie seem to be exceptions.
“Getting young people to consider dairy farming is a real challenge,” said Ruthie Peterson, director of careers at the Agricultural Research Institute.
A recent survey of dairy farmers found that 50% struggled to find suitable employees.
She blames what she calls “outdated myths” for discouraging people from pursuing a career in dairy farming.
Modern dairy farms use robotic systems to milk cows, collect vast amounts of data for analysis, and increasingly use green technology to reduce carbon emissions. They even changed the cows’ diet to reduce hiccups, a significant source of methane.
Ms Peterson’s team created a series of videos about dairy farms to give students “virtual work experience” of what modern farming is actually like.
“The technology involved is incredible and we need highly skilled people to operate them.”
Beyond technology, there’s good old-fashioned husbandry skills.
Sophie Phillips shows off her new rosette in the cattle hall at the Royal Bath and Western Showground. Her young Guernsey steer, Empress Bountiful Crunch, had just won first prize in the class.
Sophie is only 19 years old and has devoted her life to farming.
“It’s a very rewarding job,” she told me.
“You’re out there, you’re working for your own future, not someone else’s, and I wouldn’t do anything else.”
Outside I met other young people who were handing out projects, as well as young veterinary students hoping to work on farms in the future.
“So far, I’ve worked on a few dairy farms, a sheep farm, and even an alpaca farm,” said third-year student Azra Anzar.
The 22-year-old added: “It’s great to be able to help these animals and see them running around the next day, these calves are just overgrown puppies.”
What’s the best thing about working with animals?
“Believe it or not, I love scraping poop! It’s actually quite peaceful.”
This is one of the features of farming life that I don’t see prominently in recruiting events.
