Tilly’s Farm, through its annual Career Day programme, has enlightened second cycle Agriculture students on their role in contributing to the sector of the economy. The event, held at the Achimota School, brought together experts in the agric space who, through their interactions with the students, drew their attention to the numerous opportunities available in the agric value chain.
Addressing the students who were also taken on a field trip to Golden Exotics, the Co-Founder of Tilly’s Farm, Boatemaa Hammond, noted that with the right direction and support, many youths will gladly venture into the agricultural space.
Similarly, the Executive Director of Kosmos Innovation Center (KIC), Benjamin Gyan-Kesse, speaking at the event, urged the students not to underrate the path they have taken, but rather view it as a big task since everyone relies on food to survive. “You have chosen a path that will help you to do a lot for yourself. There is a lot of responsibility on you, so when you walk around campus, I want you to walk around with confidence, knowing that your choice of study is critical to human existence.”
He stressed on the need to leverage technology to grow the sector and added that agribusiness is not only about production but also includes rendering of services and distribution of agricultural products.
The second edition of the Career Day was themed ‘The Right to Wholesome Food, our Shared Responsibility’, which Mrs. Hammond explained highlights Tilly’s Farm’s contributions to making quality food available to the consuming public.
Sharing the genesis of Tilly’s Farm with the students, the Managing Director and Co-Founder of Tilly’s Farm, Maxwell Q. Hammond, advised them to utilise every opportunity they come across while in school.
“Years ago, people thought agric was not a cool area of study because of the delivery and the practical aspect of it which included students going to work in the piggery, etc. But I ask that you take those experiences seriously; before you create better systems and products you need to master the basics. It is the basis of great things. Now, young people are doing great things, but what you don’t see is that they have a solid foundation, which is what you are also doing now.”
Head of Department – Agric at the Achimota SHS, David Ziga, emphasised the significance of the event to the students, saying: “It trains them to be creators and not job seekers; and serves as a platform for students to learn from experts as well”.
Every October, Tilly’s Farm embarks on a number of activities to draw awareness on pig production, its consumption and value chain. The activities, which include training for farmers, climaxe with field trips and Career Day for Agric students in SHS to commemorate Porktober, an international celebration of pork.
Talking about the future for Tilly’s Farm, Boatemaa Hammond said: “We intend to widen the scope of Porktober celebrations to include more schools. Also, we intend to expand our operations to include more farmers and assist them technically with more training so they can produce the wholesome pork that we are known for”.
Tilly’s Farm Limited (TFL) is a Ghanaian-owned agro-processing company that works with a network of smallholder farmers to raise pigs for processing into pork and pork products, which includes different kinds of fresh and smoked sausages as well as cuts of pork like ribs, shanks and thigh.
