cultivate your career 2019
Western Bay of Plenty - 7 may / eastern bay of plenty- 15 August
western bay of plenty cultivate your career
Around 280 Western BOP students participated in the annual Cultivate Your Career event on Tuesday 7 May to become inspired by the Bay of Plenty’s booming horticulture industry. Cultivate Your Career introduces secondary school students to industry professionals, exposing them to the skills they need to transition from school into horticulture employment. Students toured local companies ranging from Xerra Earth Observation Institute where they investigated how moisture in soil can be measured from Space through to Savvy HR where they learnt about how and where their attributes might fit into the workplace.
Event organiser Renee Fritchley of NZKGI says, “Cultivate Your Career is a great opportunity to display the high-level careers in a range of scientific, technical and commercial areas. We love surprising students about the cutting-edge industries right here in the Bay of Plenty. The science lab at Eurofins and the automation at Apata and MPAC are great examples of how the kiwifruit industry is progressing into the future.”
Students were transported from schools around Tauranga, Te Puke, Katikati and Waihi. Each bus had two industry ambassadors on board who talked to the students about their own careers in horticulture. Students spent over an hour at each business, undertaking viewing aspects such as honey processing at BeeNZ and the latest in packing technology at Jenkins Freshpac Systems. They also learnt about the associated careers available in the industry.
Horticulture is New Zealand’s fourth largest primary industry with an export revenue increasing steadily each year from $1.7 billion in 1999 to around $5.5 billion in 2018. Cultivate Your Career is an example of how the Bay of Plenty’s horticulture industry comes together to ensure there will be enough skilled labour for this growth in the future.
A second Cultivate Your Career event will take place later in the year when students from the Eastern Bay of Plenty will have the opportunity to visit leading horticultural businesses on their very own back doorstep.
eastern bay of plenty cultivate your career
Almost 100 students from four Eastern BOP schools have seen for themselves orchard and postharvest sectors of horticulture. The second annual “Cultivate Your Career” event for the Eastern Bay of Plenty took place in Edgecumbe and Pukehina on Thursday 15 August. Almost 100 year 11, 12 & 13 students as well interested teachers from Opotiki College, Tarawera High School and Whakatane High School toured orchard and postharvest sectors of horticulture.
The tour aimed to debunk myths to prove horticulture is not only about manual labour and rather showcased the commercial, scientific and technical careers the industry has to offer. Students were taken to visit Southern Cross Horticulture’s large-scale home base in Pukehina to showcase the full spectrum of careers available in the industry, from orchard development and growing plants in the nursery, through to harvesting fruit and orchard management. They then headed to EastPack Edgecumbe, where they experienced the postharvest sector, including logistics and the supply chain.
The Eastern BOP Cultivate Your Career event is run as a partnership between New Zealand Kiwifruit Growers Inc. (NZKGI), the BOP Young Fruitgrowers Upskilling Trust and the Eastern Bay of Plenty economic development agency Toi EDA. “This year is special because it has a practical focus on kiwifruit following the cycle from nursery through to post-harvest production,” says Renee Fritchley of NZKGI.
Lee Du Preez of Southern Cross Horticulture says their values underpin everything they do. “We are proud to be able to inspire our next generation of leaders by showcasing what our industry has to offer.”
About 80 per cent of kiwifruit are grown in the Bay of Plenty region and, for the 2018/19 season, the Opotiki and Whakatane regions contributed $256 million. Kiwifruit production is forecast to increase significantly by 2030. To achieve this growth the industry requires skilled talent who can help drive horticulture’s success further.
Photos from 2017/18/19 Cultivate Your Career Day!
In this video created by Zion-Elijah Photography, students check out OPAC at the 2018 CYC event and find out what careers are available in the post harvest industry. www.opac.co.nz
Jamie Lunam from Jenkins Freshpac Systems https://www.jenkinsfps.co.nz talking about what went on at the 2018 Cultivate Your Career day held in Tauranga.
Students explore their future at the 2017 Cultivate Your Career day. Made with funding from NZ On Air. This video was featured on NZ Herald Local Focus by Jaden McLeod.