The new young gun at the helm of Agri Aware

Someone made a comment to me recently that age is no boundary. They are 100% right.” So says Deirdre O’Shea, who on 1 November 2016 was inaugurated as executive director of Agri Aware.

Given she is just 27 years old, it is probably fitting – necessary, even – that she has such a mindset.

Raised as the youngest of five on a pig farm in Arles, Co Laois, Deirdre was educated in the local primary school before her post-primary education in the 850-strong all-girls school of St Leo’s in Carlow.

It was an upbringing the Agri Aware leader recalls fondly. “Growing up with four older brothers, it would have been fight your own corner from the start,” laughs Deirdre.

Such an upbringing seems a fitting metaphor for her current role, being young and in a predominantly male industry. The thick skin she must have acquired during this upbringing of “tough love” probably didn’t do any harm either.

As a student in Leo’s, sport was one of the pillars of Deirdre’s life. Unknown to herself, it was the interest in the relationship between food and sport she developed during this period that would give direction to the career that was to follow.

Deirdre went to University College Dublin to study Human Nutrition. She says she “always had an interest in food, where it came from” and the impact it has on the body.

a healthy relationship

“I suppose because I had such a keen interest in sport, I was really interested in what we needed to fuel our bodies for optimum performance. That was the slant I was taking,” she explains.

“I spent 10 months in the University of Sheffield in a teaching hospital for our third year of college. The placement was very much lab-based. The part I enjoyed most was when the volunteers came in once a week. The one thing I discovered from the 10 months was that I do not want to do research,” explains Deirdre. “I wanted to work with people. I was more comfortable communicating the message than in the lab, discovering it,” she says.

ifa days

After graduating in 2012, an 11-month stint in Ulster Bank led to a coincidental meeting with a Teagasc advisor who informed the Laois native of an opening in the IFA. Apprehensive, she considered.

“At that time I really had no background with the IFA, nor did my family. I looked into it and applied, and got the job on the executive of the Pigs Committee in June 2013,” she says.

Deirdre was 23 and spent the next three and a half years in the IFA.

“It was challenging at the start but, to be honest, there was a really good support network.

“If you go out there and ask for help you will get it. There were people who were telling me ‘those pigs guys are hard to deal with’. To be honest, I loved dealing with them. I suppose growing up on a pig farm helped that,” she says.

“At the end of the day, no matter what you are doing in life – whether it is sport or work – there are always going to be times where you are going to ask yourself: ‘Am I capable’? But you have to get through those times and try your best,” says Deirdre.

Agri Aware’s Top Job

When Deirdre saw her current role being advertised, she was immediately interested. “Agriculture and the agri-food industry is something I am very passionate about. Sharing that passion with as many people as I can is of huge interest to me,” she says.

“As an independent educational body, Agri Aware has so much scope to educate and expose people of all ages to the fantastic farming and agri-food industry here in Ireland. When you talk to Irish people, they don’t appreciate what we have here on the island. I feel there is a gap there, that we really need to educate Irish people about the fantastic agri-food industry we have,” says Deirdre.

She also feels the experience she gained during her time in the IFA would really stand to her in the Agri Aware role.

“I felt I could bring something new and exciting to the organisation, based on my farming, educational and professional experience to date,” she explains.

There is no doubt life in Agri Aware is busy. The organisation’s application for CAP funding has ensured there has been no honeymoon period for the newly appointed leader. The organisation’s Christmas campaign encouraging consumers to buy Irish that followed, continued this trend.

“It is busy, but it is a good busy. It is no different to any job. You can get as stressed as you want, but just don’t let it affect your performance,” she says.

self-belief

“Self-belief is a big thing. If you believe in yourself that you can do it, you can. And if you’re going into a job interview, passion, enthusiasm and a love for what you want to do is worth so much more,” she says.

The future of Agri Aware’s head lies with making an impact for the better in the organisation, which she admits will take three to five years. Those next few years will no doubt be challenging, and Deirdre admits the job at hand will be tough – but capability wise it would be foolish to doubt her ability.

Age is no boundary – and Deirdre O’Shea is evidence of that.