Unique farm technician program enrolment up
Apprentices can become Blue Seal certified upon program's completion
Enrolment in the one-of-a-kind P.E.I. Farm Technician Apprenticeship Program increased this year.
Workers in the program spend 10 weeks over two years learning about a number of topics such as crop maintenance, pesticide use and equipment safety. They also work on Island farms where they are mentored by their employers.
The program, which is unique to P.E.I., usually has 10 to 15 students. This year it's up to 18.
Participants are recruited in part by the P.E.I. Agriculture Sector Council, which started the program in 2009 with help from Skills PEI and the Department of Agriculture.
Dalhousie University's faculty of agriculture created the curriculum and provides instructors.
"I think that as more and more journey people come out of this program that it is going to become something that employers look for when they're hiring some of their lead employees. They're going to be looking and saying, 'Are you a Blue Seal journeyman or not?'" said MacDonald.
MacDonald says she is happy to see increased enrolment, and that many farms are sending more than one worker for the training.
Patti Baird-Gill is the agro-manager for Indian River Farms, which currently employees seven participants from the program.
"We have more science in agriculture now. We're using science and we're using technology, so they need the skill set to use GPS in their tractors and they need the understanding of why we need the data coming back to the office," she said.
"It's a lot more complicated than people think," he said.
"There's chemistry and biology behind it that people don't see and I'm learning that now."
The entire cost of the program is covered by Skills PEI for farm workers who are eligible for Employment Insurance.