Students get hands on experience at our Tamworth Farm

Getting out of the classroom and into the field can be an invaluable experience for agriculture students, which is exactly what BASF provided recently when they hosted a class of students from the University of New England at its research farm in Tamworth.

The visit gave the students a better understanding of the diverse range of career opportunities that exist within the industry and was hosted by Ian Francis, Technical Development Manager and Russell Ison, Farm Manager. BASF have around 25 new products coming through the pipeline over the next five years, so the farm is constantly running trials for new and existing products.

“We felt it was a great opportunity to provide students with insight into what our day to day work on the farm looks like and take them through the process that we go through to get a new product from conception to registration,” explained Ian.

Kathryn, Tom and Heather were part of the student visit and said it was a great way to learn firsthand about the key issues facing the industry and how BASF goes about getting science based solutions to Australian farmers.

“I learnt what black leg in canola looks like - there's a big difference between this (in person) and what you see in a text book. I also learnt that generics do not go through the same processes to register their products as R&D companies are required to,” said Kathryn.

Heather said she enjoyed “going out into the field and applying learnt knowledge while also developing those working connections for the future”. Tom added he thought it was great to see “the diversity of opportunities that exist within and across crops”.

BASF are strong supporters of educational initiatives throughout the communities they operate in, including an ongoing partnership with The Smith Family, graduate programs and student science experience Kids’ Lab.