Placement allows Emma to ‘meat’ her future career

HELLO, my name is Emma McCombe and I am from Newtownhamilton, County Armagh. I first joined Loughry six years ago as a National Diploma student and I have now entered my final year of the BSc (Hons) Food Technology programme.

During the second year of my degree I applied for the bursary that ABP was providing for students. I was lucky to win the bursary of £1,000 to help towards my living costs along with a year’s placement with ABP on the Newry site.

This was just perfect for me as I have a keen interest in beef production and regularly show commercial cattle at agricultural shows. I knew ABP would provide me with the best opportunity in linking agriculture and meat production.

I loved my placement. My role within ABP was mainly within the Technical and Laboratory departments, but the staff were fantastic in ensuring that I got experience in every department. This allowed me to identify the area in which I would like to pursue my career.

I was also so lucky to get opportunities to spend time on other sites within the ABP group, such as Linden Food site in Dungannon, and ABP Lurgan. The staff were so friendly and helpful everywhere I went, and they all taught me so much.

What I enjoyed the most from placement was learning the whole process from farm to fork – I could not believe how little waste there is throughout the entire process.

As my placement progressed, I developed on a number of skills such as problem solving, decision making, organisation and technical knowledge, that are invaluable for me in my career ahead.

Management within ABP recognised this skills development and gave me an opportunity to apply for their graduate programme before I finished my placement.

I was successful in getting through the interview and I secured employment and a place on their programme before I even started my final year at Loughry.

The red meat sector is a fascinating part of the agri-food industry, and I am really excited to further my career within this area. I am so thankful to ABP and Loughry for all they have done for me in helping me hit the ground running and supporting me to achieve my dream job.