Education ‘gives farmers advantage’

PROVIDING the best possible educational opportunities to farmers would be the key to giving Irish agriculture a competitive advantage in the future, Macra na Feirme president Catherine Buckley declared yesterday.

Launching the Teagasc 2007-2008 programme for adult and life long learning, she said Macra had long been involved in campaigning for better agricultural education standards.

An advanced certificate in agriculture, which will replace the 180-hour course this coming year, will require a greater commitment from participants but will leave them far better equipped to deal with the demands of modern farming.