The future of agriculture is safe if this year's BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition is anything to go by, with innovative farming projects bagging top awards at the RDS this week.

One of these was Tipperary student Jack O'Meara from St Joseph's College in Borrisoleigh, who won the Teagasc Special Award for The Mastitis Meter. Entered in the chemical, physical and mathematical sciences category, the project looked at the early detection of mastitis in the milking parlour.

Jack looked at the increased conductivity of infected milk and proposed a device that would test samples of milk for increased conductivity before entering the bulk tank.

Teagasc director Professor Gerry Boyle congratulated Jack on winning the award. “Mastitis is an issue that every dairy farmer in the country can relate to, and any new way of detecting it in dairy cows could help farmers in their day-to-day management of their cows. I would also like to congratulate all students who exhibited at the event and I was very impressed with the standards they achieved in their projects," he said.

More than 60,000 visitors attended the event, which took place at the RDS in Dublin from January 7-9. Visitors to the Teagasc stand met research and teaching staff and learnt about the Irish Soils Information System and Sensory Food Network Ireland.

Overall winners

Another farming-related project won the overall competition this year, focusing on the effect of enzymes added to animal feed on worms important for soil fertility.

Maria Louise Fufezan and Diana Bura from Loreto Secondary School, Balbriggan, Co Dublin, took home the top prize for their project entitled An Investigation into the Effects of Enzymes used in Animal Feed Additives on the Lifespan of Caenorhabditis Elegans.

The students were presented with a cheque for €5,000, the opportunity to represent Ireland at the 28th European Union Contest for Young Scientists in Brussels later this year and the BTYSTE perpetual trophy.

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Farming innovations displayed at BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition