Girls go agritech in Olsztyn (Poland)
In 2050 the number of people in the world will exceed 10 billion. One of the main challenges of the whole food sector is to be able to feed them all. To be able to do that we need skilled scientists who will take care for the development in the agri- food technology. Therefore the Embassy in Warsaw came…back to school.
The whole idea of the event was to convince your female generation to look more carefully in the direction of studies related to technology in the food sector. It is well proven that companies managed by both, female and male personnel have better financial and technological scores compared to companies run by male owners only. Still the amount of women choosing for technological study and work is very limited.
That is the reason the Embassy Warsaw supported and participated in the event organized by EIT Food, Polish Academy of Science and the food bank in Olsztyn dedicated to Polish young girls from high schools who are now on their way to decide about their future education and career.
During the seminar many (female) speakers presented their career in the agri sector. Next to a farmer who has her own animal farm and shows the life on the farm on Instagram there was also an entrepreneur who owns a vertical farm and delivers micro leaves to several supermarkets.
Other two professionals showed their startup that was dealing with upcycling unsold/ old bread to other products. The girls could listen of a story of a scientist who defend her Ph.D. on abrasion of materials in agricultural machinery and is active lecturer at the university in Olsztyn. Work in the agro tech sector is possible also in big companies, like Trouw Nutrition, where many women are present in the non-physical working places, in media and (external) communication, as a board team member and finally as a CEO of the whole company.
All the experiences and career paths showed the diversity of possibilities in the agri food sector.
All the speakers stressed the importance of the agro sector for the humanity, for the climate and for the Earth. And as Ambassador Daphne Bergsma said:
with technology and digitalization we use less inputs for producing our food, […]and as consumers we need to have a critical look on what we can contribute ourselves: a more plant based diet, or making sure that we prevent food waste by not throwing away ugly looking potatoes. Agritech is the key to develop new products and new ideas to change the consumer behavior.
At the very beginning of the session the Ambassador asked who is thinking to start the career in the agro tech sector, none of the participants raised their hand, but after the whole session, several girls said ‘yes’ to agriculture. The hope is still there.