Agrico UK
If you were a leading potato scientist, what do you think would be among the highlights of your job? The satisfaction of seeing your research shape what appears on the shelves of Scotland’s biggest supermarkets, perhaps?
Or that eureka moment when months of experimenting in the lab, running sensory evaluation ‘taste’ tests, and computer work, bears fruit and brings your firm success?
Well for Agrico’s Steven Muir, one of the greatest rewards actually comes from helping shape the next generation of innovators in his role as a STEM Food and Drink Ambassador.
Strathmore Valley-based seed potato producer Agrico UK has won multiple awards for its outreach work with local young people, most notably the amazing “Tattie Tastic” challenge.
Colleagues from right across the business have been involved in delivering this fun annual educational project since 2012 – among them Steven and his fellow Ambassador, Technical and Procurement Manager Gavin Prentice.
It truly engages primary pupils by taking them on a hands-on journey right from planting their own potato crop, nurturing to harvesting it, conducting all manner of fascinating taste tests and experiments and exploring how to market and distribute the end product.
“Food and drink is one of the most significant industries in Scotland and it needs people for the future”
By covering every aspect of the process, young minds are opened to just how much skill, expertise and science goes into what we put on our plates – and to all the different career paths that are available within the industry.
Agrico UK also organises popular visits involving other firms – such as allowing young people to get up close and personal with ScanStone’s farm machinery or the production line of Taylors crisps and snacks.
Lead Data Analyst and Consumer Research Manager Steven - whose work identifying perfect potatoes for the UK’s palate contributed to him receiving the Food and Drink Federation’s Food and Drink Scientist of the Year accolade in 2020 - remembers the impact outreach work had on him at school and finds this part of his work particularly rewarding and understands its value.
“Tattie Tastic really is one of the most satisfying parts of my job. Volunteering is very worthwhile.
“When Tattie Tastic first started I was based in the lab, running experiments continuously, and this was something completely different and it makes you think differently.
“The pupils get a lot out of it and when we have them in the lab they ask lots of really interesting questions. You can see their potential. We show them how to use pipettes and other scientific equipment and some of them clearly have personalities well-suited to science.”
He sometimes wonders about how these sessions may have sparked an interest that led someone to pursue a particular career.
“Food and drink is one of the most significant industries in Scotland and it needs people for the future,” he adds.
“As an Ambassador you are helping encourage pupils to move into the sector and that is very satisfying.”
Download the case study as a pdf here
Want more tips and advice on how to recruit, retain and develop your workforce?
Check out Feeding Workforce Skills, an online resource that signposts the relevant support for food & drink employers.