Opportunity Grows Here offers a range of options for getting started in the food and fibre sectors. From immediate jobs and careers, to training and taster courses to get started, people are needed with a range of interests, skills, experiences, and backgrounds.
While some are seasonal jobs, many could lead to long-term careers with opportunities to grow and advance.
Visit Opportunity Grows Here.
The Horticulture & Agriculture Teachers Association (HATA) website hosts information about a wide range of scholarships to help fund study or training in the food and fibre sector.
Visit HATA Scholarships to help fund your future.
The food and fibre sector is constantly challenged to innovate, adapt, and remain competitive. With advances in artificial intelligence and sophisticated digital technologies, food and fibre sectors are adopting agritech, which is set to transform the sector and could boost exports by $9.7bn.
Agritech technology increases precision farming, enabling farmers and growers to make data-driven decisions that can optimise productivity while reducing input costs, as well as reducing the impact on the environment.
Our industries need digitally confident employees to work with the wide range of digital technologies, including technical skills to operate and maintain technologies such as drones, robotics and automation.
Read more about the future of agritech:
Aotearoa New Zealand’s dairy industry offers a wide range of career opportunities, appealing to a diverse range of interests and skill sets. The Dairy industry generates about $25 billion in revenue and is the country’s largest export earner. In 2021, there were 44,100 people in the dairy workforce. Māori play a significant role in the sector with 14 % of people identifying as Māori and 11% of businesses being Māori-owned.
Dairy NZ believes the industry has a bright and positive future and, that by working together with farmers and others, purposeful change can be achieved.
Visit Dairy NZ for more career information.
Haumako, the Horticulture arm of Tātau Tātau o Te Wairoa, is celebrating its first commercial apple harvest, and the first cohort of cadets graduating from its horticultural cadetship programme.
Haumako began the “earn as you learn” approach to empower rangitahi and offer employment opportunities. The programme began by welcoming students aged 15 to 17, fresh out of school and new to the industry, but has since expanded to include ākonga aged up to 30 years old.
Listen to the full County Life article on RNZ Audio Player.
This story showcases innovation and collaboration between a secondary school and its local Polytechnic to smooth the transition from school to workforce. Each year, a group of Greymouth High School students spend four days a week at Tai Poutini Polytechnic in a pioneering dual-enrolment programme where ākonga learn foundational skills in a variety of fields such as cooking, mechanics, carpentry, and outdoor recreation.
Is there an opportunity to create this pathway in your community?
Dual-enrolment programme continues to give West Coast ākonga scope to succeed (Ministry of Education).
