We are delighted to introduce you Rebecca George to our fourth University of New England Young Farming Champion for 2019 . Beca has the YFC program in her DNA with her sister Diana a YFC alumna

This is Becca’s story

My name is Rebecca George & I’m a 4^th year agriculture & business student at the University of New England. I grew up on a mixed farming operation in central west NSW, near a small town called Nevertire.

Although I never thought much of it growing up, agriculture was always a major part of my life.  Farming has always been a family affair at home as not only our business but also our life.

I am the youngest of three girls, the first time in 100 years there isn’t a son to take over our property. However, we were never treated any differently in terms of chores around the farm from feeding the chooks to helping muster sheep on our pink bikes. My father was born and raised on our property and my mother grew up in the city and through both my parents influence I ended up being a farm kid who would return home to a pink fairy themed bedroom. The contrast in my parents’ upbringings taught me from a very young age that you can be both feminine & a farmer, something that has definitely  shaped my personality. My older sister and I got involved in a local cattle show when we were in primary school. That first show unleashed a new love and appreciation for beef cattle and resulted in many kilometres traveled to attend youth shows.

The many opportunities I was given and the exposure to the red meat industry was invaluable as a youth and as I grew older.  I appreciated those who put in the time and effort to invest in the next generation of agriculture. In the past 2 years I have joined several committees and now volunteer for these events and I have found a passion to support and inspire the next generation of #YouthinAg.

I studied agriculture all through high school & through this was able to develop leadership skills as I began to mentor the younger students. In 2015, during my gap year  I spent 3 months working as an agriculture contractor in County Cork, Ireland. This experience opened my eyes to the diversity in agriculture on a global scale and I began to become greatly interested in agriculture and beef as a worldwide industry.

It was here that I found two new passions; travel & international agriculture. In 2016 I started the Rural Science degree, I had deferred at the end of year 12. Throughout the year as I met new people and learnt more about what was on offer at the University of New England and found  was was very curious about the agribusiness units I saw some of my friends taking. After some further research I changed into my current degree of Bachelor of Agriculture/ Bachelor of Business majoring in International Business. Since making the change I have been able to continue learning about agriculture as well the  essential business skills that are the foundation of  our industry. I have also been given the opportunity to travel abroad & experience international agriculture through the university having been to South America in 2018 as part of the University of New England IFAMA team . In June this year I am going  to China and Vietnam.

As I near the end of my studies I am excited about a future in agriculture and the experiences I will have that will further shape my career and life in this exciting industry.