30 new businesses formed from AgInnovation course annually
Right now is a "very exciting time" for AgInnovation in this country, according to the programme manager of AgInnovation - TechInnovation at the University of Galway, Prof. W Bernard Carlson.
"Through a variety of programmes, the government is encouraging individuals and start-ups to introduce IT, AI [artificial intelligence], and other cutting-edge technologies to improve productivity.
"At the same time, there are lots of opportunities for people from all over the country to introduce new ideas to improve their own farms and enrich rural communities," he told Agriland.
AgInnovation was launched by Prof. John Breslin in 2018. "The current class of '23-'24 will be the sixth cohort and when they finish, we will have graduated over 180 students," Prof. Carlson said.
The programme is funded through the Springboard initiative of the Higher Education Authority, with support from the government of Ireland and the EU.
Springboard covers 90% of the fees for students who are employed and 100% for those who are unemployed.
The basic entry requirement is a four-year bachelor's degree. "However, many students join the course via a recognition of prior learning interview which takes into account previous education and work experience."
"We are very proud of the students who arrive with only a Leaving Cert from 20 years ago but leave after one year with a well-earned M.Sc.," Prof. Carlson.
Every year, the AgInnovation programme generates 30 new businesses.
`'What our students, and other farmers need, is a simple scheme whereby they can apply for a few thousand euro to produce a prototype, do targeted market research, or simply have a little more time to fully launch their new business," Prof. Carlson said.
"Such funding would allow novice innovators to be ready to apply to existing accelerators as well as funding programmes at Enterprise Ireland.
"We are proud of Blatnaid Gallagher and Matty Carroll who created the Galway Wool Co-op in 2020; Brendan Guinan who did the course in 2023 and won an RDS sustainability award for his regenerative farm and Sinead Ryan from the class of 2023 who recently pitched her idea to Enterprise Ireland for a business to redistribute excess slurry from dairy to tillage farms," he said.
The programme is funded by the Government of Ireland and the EU which subsidises the students' fees. Applications are open until August 15.
Co. Waterford native Daragh Morgan who is also doing the course this year, has developed an oat bread that he supplies to small cafes and shops in Galway, a venture he plans to grow he the coming months.
"I have made my own bread for the last number of years due to stomach issues. I was introduced to oat bread as a health alternative to normal bread," he explained.
"Oats don't contain gluten, so are a lot kinder to the stomach. They are more nutritionally dense than other cereal crops found in breads.
"This has fuelled me and my adventures for several years. I was very passionate about how it made me feel and provided me with a healthy long lasting energy source.
"I told friends and they wanted to try oat bread. Once they tried it, they wanted me to bake them loaves, so it really took off from there," he said.
Daragh's plan is to build up strong distribution across Galway and expand from there.
Coffee shops and small retailers are the main source of focus in the short term, but larger stores and more distribution is planned to fulfil the company’s goal of bringing oats back to the forefront of the Irish diet.
"I loved the structure of the course and initially I was apprehensive about joining a course named AgInnovation with no real experience in this area," he explained.
"I was pleasantly surprised as many participants come from various backgrounds it is a great way to learn and share ideas with a broad range of different people from all backgrounds," Daragh stated.
