Kilbeggan students runners-up at Certified Irish Angus final

Shane King

Sixth year students from Mercy Secondary School in Kilbeggan claimed the runner-up award at the Certified Irish Angus Beef schools competition final held in Croke Park last Friday, 1 March.

Students Trása and Sinéad Bracken, Chloe McDermott and Mary Ellen Colton took the prize for their project ‘Exploring the Opportunities of Low Carbon Beef’. They created a five-point plan covering all aspects of the animals’ journey from farm to fork with the aim to aid farmers in rearing cattle in a sustainable manner.

The competition challenges students to rear five Irish Angus calves over 18 months while completing a research project. It aims to promote the Certified Irish Angus brand while educating students about the care and attention required to produce quality beef for consumers.

The girls started the competition at the beginning of transition year, three years ago. They were among 150 groups from around the country who applied for the competition.

Trása Bracken explained to the Westmeath Examiner how the competition works and initial rounds that they progressed through to get to the final stage.

“The first round was when we made a video on myself and Sinéad’s farm, where we outlined our project ideas. In the second round, we went to the Mullingar Park Hotel, where we were interviewed by the judges. We got on really well at that stage and we were lucky to be one of the groups that were invited to go to Croke Park, where we had to set up a stand at an exhibition. We talked about our theme – which is sustainability – and we were interviewed by agri-industry experts on the day.

“At the end of our TY year, the three main judges called out to the school to tell us we were one of the winners of the five calves, which was a really great surprise. I don’t think the girls and I imagined getting that far when we first entered,” Trása said.

The four students received their five Angus calves at the National Ploughing Championships in 2022. Since then they have put huge work in to their project and were presented with many opportunities along the way.

A highlight of the competition was a study trip to Brussels, where they visited the EU parliament and presented their project to Irish MEPs. They also visited farms in Ireland and Belgium, and presented their project to leading industry figures.

The group organised various events to give back to the local community and raised some €12,000 for various Irish charities since they began the project.

Charles Smith, general manager with Certified Irish Angus, said choosing the winners was a difficult task this year. “The standard of projects we get is exceptional and the five finalists here today raised the bar even further. Everyone in this room is proud of what the finalists have achieved,” he said.

The Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition, sponsored by ABP and Kepak, is celebrating its 10th year in 2024. Farming experts are currently judging the next batch of potential entrants from a pool of 43 shortlisted schools who hope to be the next finalists in the competition.