The girls, who have no farming heritage or previous experience, reared five Irish Angus cross calves for 18 months. They were announced as the winners of the competition at an awards ceremony in Croke Park this Wednesday.

The four girls, Eithne Murray, Tara Frehill, Emily Browne and Shauna Jager, are also among those who will sit the first ever agricultural science Leaving Certificate examination in Our Lady’s School, Terenure this June.

The Certified Irish Angus Beef schools competition run by the Irish Angus Producer Group, along with its processor partners, ABP Ireland and Kepak Group, aims to encourage second level students to gain an understanding about the care and attention that is required to produce and market the highest quality beef for consumers. Each year, five school groups are chosen to receive five Irish Angus cross calves. As part of their Leaving Certificate agricultural science project the students are required to set milestones through the lifetime of the animals, rear them through to slaughter and visit processing and retail facilities to understand how the food chain works.

From the outset the girls from Our Lady’s School in Terenure demonstrated the ability to take on a challenge and achieve success

As part of their winning project, the girls from Terenure reared their calves on a farm in Manor Kilbride, Tallaght, Co Dublin, from September 2015 through to their slaughter in November 2016. They also conducted research and set about increasing market awareness of the benefits of Certified Irish Angus Beef, which they succeeded in doing among their fellow students, teachers, parents, as well as targeted groups at Scifest in Tallaght IT and Bushy Park farmers’ market.

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Charles Smith, general manager of the Irish Angus Producer Group said: “From the outset the girls from Our Lady’s School in Terenure demonstrated the ability to take on a challenge and achieve success. The location of their school, within such an urban setting, brought an added air of excitement and enthusiasm for the project. Even though they are the first class in their school to ever study agricultural science for Leaving Certificate, the group exhibited a great appreciation for agriculture and an understanding of the benefits of Certified Irish Angus Beef for the consumer.”

The runners-up in the competition were a group from Salesian Secondary College, Pallaskenry, Co Limerick, who focused on the importance of farm safety in their project. Other finalists included Ballymahon Vocational School, Longford, Presentation Secondary School, Kilkenny and Coláiste Mhuire, Buttevant, Co Cork.

The five schools selected as finalists in 2016 have been blogging about their experiences for www.farmersjournal.ie. Catch up on their blogs here.

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Finalists of Angus Schools competition celebrated at Ploughing 2016