The future of agriculture is in good hands

Rural Skills Agri Employability pupils paid a visit to Wallets Marts in Castle Douglas recently where they learned about the variety and range of careers available in the agricultural sector. Jim Finlayson, Livestock Procurement Officer at Wallets Marts took the pupils on a full tour of the market and on the way round Jim explained the jobs available in agriculture such as Livestock Driver, Market Stockman, Sheep Shearer, Sheep Procurement Officer, Auctioneer, Market Foreman as well as the various agricultural administrative roles available.

After the tour the pupils spent some time in the main ring and watched their weekly primestock sale in full flow. Roni Rippingale, S5, commented: “I thought the whole experience was really interesting and I particularly enjoyed watching the sale. I loved listening to the auctioneer and was impressed how he could pick up the bids from the various buyers as you couldn’t really see them bidding.”

After the tour, the group were treated to a tasty lamb burger lunch served by the very friendly staff in the café. Aileen Marchant, PT ASL who instigated the Agri Employability Project at Wallace Hall said: “We would like to thank Robin Anderson and Jim Finlayson of Wallets Marts in Castle Douglas and Craig McTaggart from McTaggart Livestock Haulier for a fantastic employability visit. Our pupils had a brilliant day out learning all about employability in agriculture while experiencing the day-to-day life of a busy livestock market. We would also like to thank the café ladies for our delicious lunch. We are very lucky to have such a supportive agricultural industry and this has been pivotal to the success of our Agri Employability project.”