Katie Looks to the Future

30 Jun Katie Looks to the Future

Katie McColl of Kilmaurs YFC was announced as our second ever Junior Young Farmer of the Year at this year’s Royal Highland Show.

She impressed the judges with her informative farm plan and an essay exploring her future ambitions to become an Animal Nutritionist. She had this to say about her achievement:

“I never expected to win but when I found out I did I couldn’t have been any happier, especially as it’s a National level competition . It’s a great achievement for me and I am beyond thrilled to have won.”

This year the competition was sponsored by Lantra. With the competition tasks being tied to the fantastic training courses they have available for young people. The judges were also provided by Lantra and they were full of praise for this year’s competitors:

“Lantra’s judging panel was impressed by the quality of the entries received from Scottish Young Farmers for the National Junior Young Farmer of the Year Competition. A lot of thought and effort had gone into the entrant’s vision of the future of farming, as well as their career path into the industry. Lantra is pleased to support this initiative and help to ensure the future of the industry is in good hands.”

As mentioned before Katie’s ambition is to be an animal nutritionist and she used her essay task to explore this path and link it to Lantra’s Animal Husbandry course offered by the Next Generation Practical Training Fund – Skills Hub. Here’s an extract from Katie’s in depth essay:

“What interests me about the role of an Animal Nutritionist is the opportunity to directly influence the well-being of animals through informed dietary plans. It’s fulfilling to know that improving animal nutrition not only boosts farm productivity but also enhances animal health and reduces environmental impact.”

Claiming second place in this year’s competition was Biggar’s Joanna Dale. Joanna who alongside a beautifully hand drawn poster, used her essay to link her ambitions of becoming a land agent to a course in Sustainable Land Use.

In third place and placing for a second year in a row was Molly Poyser of Strichen, Molly’s essay was based around her love of livestock and learning AI skills that will help to develop a strong and healthy herd in the future.

Well done to all our winners and entrants.