More than half (56%) of parents with children under 12 in Ireland say their child has never seen a cow being milked, according to new research commissioned by the National Dairy Council (NDC).

Along with this, 57% of urban parents say their child has not seen a cow being milked, compared with 51% of rural parents.

Regional breakdowns show that parents in Munster are the most likely to say their child has seen a cow being milked (44%), compared with 39% in Dublin, 38% in Leinster and 30% in Connacht/Ulster. Commenting on the research findings, Emma Walls, CEO of the National Dairy Council, said: “They point to an urban-rural gap which is widening across the generations.

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“At one time, those of us living in towns and cities were just one generation removed from the farm, but that is clearly no longer the case, due to falling numbers of farmers and our changing, multi-cultural population.”

To increase the awareness of agriculture among school children, the National Dairy Council has organised a series of school farm visits across Ireland; the first one took place on 13 May in Co Donegal. Over the next two weeks, 1,500 children from 25 schools are set to visit five farms.

“For many children, this will be their first real experience of a working farm and their first chance to see where milk comes from, beyond their fridge or the supermarket shelf,” she said.

Students from Cashelshanaghan NS, Letterkenny; Convoy Joint NS, Convoy; Scoil Eoghain, Moville; Dromore NS, Lifford; and Drumfad National School, Letterkenny pictured at 1 of 5 National Dairy Council School Farm Visits taking place across the country this month, where upto 1,500 pupils will experience hands-on learning on working dairy farms./ National Dairy Council.