Media Advisory - Farming 2.0: Recruiting the next generation of innovators to lead Ontario's vital agriculture sector

TORONTO, March 3, 2014 /CNW/ - Hundreds of Grade 10 students are joining Grain Farmers of Ontario, in partnership with Ontario Agri-Food Education, to explore exciting career opportunities in the province's fast-evolving agriculture sector on Tuesday, March 4th, during Canadian Agriculture Literacy Week. The first-ever Careers in Agriculture event will showcase the province's diverse and dynamic agriculture sector, with professionals in environmental science, technology, business and communications providing first-hand examples of the challenges and rewards that await students interested in working in Ontario's multi-billion-dollar food production industries.

Canada's rapidly expanding agri-food sector will need to fill more than 50,000 positions in the coming years, with roles ranging from robotics to plant science to marketing. Event emcee Adamo Ruggiero will help demonstrate how agriculture is, for the first time, making the exciting shift from the farm to the city. Advances in business, technology, communication and resource management are rapidly transforming career opportunities, prompting companies to attract the best and brightest students.

What

Careers in Agriculture—Showcasing the evolution of careers in Ontario's ever-growing agriculture sector

Opportunities

Meet event emcee Adamo Ruggiero, actor from Degrassi: The Next Generation and host of YTV's The Next Star seasons 1 through 5

• Special guest speakers with careers in the agriculture sector, including business, communications, engineering and more!
• Nearly 500 Grade 10 Careers students from across the GTA
• Demonstrations include a UAV robotic drone, used to scan land resources and crop fields

Where

The Ontario Science Centre Auditorium, 770 Don Mills Rd., Toronto

Online conversation at #CareersinAg

When

Tuesday, March 4, presentation from 10:00 a.m. to noon

About Grain Farmers of Ontario:

Grain Farmers of Ontario is the province's largest commodity organization, representing Ontario's 28,000 corn, soybean and wheat farmers. The crops they grow cover 5 million acres of farm land across the province, generate over $2.5 billion in farm gate receipts, result in over $9 billion in economic output and are responsible for over 40,000 jobs in the province.

SOURCE: Grain Farmers of Ontario

Rebecca Myers, [email protected], 416-306-6734