The second annual Cultivate Your Career event took place in Edgecumbe and Pukehina last week.
Almost 100 Year 11, 12 and 13 students as well interested teachers from Opotiki College, Tarawera High School, Whakatane High School and Trident High School toured orchard and post-harvest sectors of horticulture.
The tour was designed to debunk myths and prove horticulture is not only about manual labour and rather showcase the commercial, scientific and technical careers the industry has to offer.
Students went 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. Then they headed to EastPack Edgecumbe where they learned about 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 , the BOP Young Fruitgrowers Upskilling Trust and the Eastern Bay of Plenty economic development agency Toi EDA.