Carys Martin, from Greyabbey, has just commenced her placement with Moy Park, through the McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmer Scheme. The programme aims to give a full overview of the entire poultry supply chain from farm to fork.
Name: Carys Martin
Age: 20
Job title: Progressive young farmer student.
Company: Moy Park, various locations across Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Education: I am currently in my third year on placement from Harper Adams University, where I study Agri-Food Marketing with Business.
Why did you decide on a career in the food industry? It is a diverse, exciting and constantly evolving sector, that continues to find new ways to meet consumer demand for food.
Explain your job to us in a sentence (or two): In my role I experience all areas in the poultry supply chain that gets food from farm to fork. This includes spending time on farm, in hatcheries, in marketing departments, and at McDonald's head office.
What does a typical day look like for you? At the minute I am on a laying farm where eggs are produced for commercial use or go on to the hatcheries. Here I am learning all about the care that goes into egg production and animal welfare. Soon I will be relocating to Ashbourne a in the East Midlands, where I will spend an initial period on a broiler farm before being based in the Ashbourne hatchery for the majority of my placement. In the final few months, I will then be based in the McDonald’s head office in London getting experience on how they work with all suppliers including Moy Park, before finishing off in a busy McDonald’s restaurant in London.
Tell us about how you went about applying for your job: My job was actually advertised by McDonald's as they co-ordinate the Progressive Young Farmer programme. I had to submit an application form before being selected for interview. Unfortunately, due to Covid, we weren't able to have these face-to-face and instead they took place virtually over Teams. We also had to submit a video of ourselves answering a range of questions set as part of the process, before finding out I had been successful!
What’s the best part about working for a food company? The variety of work is something that I find exciting as food companies have so many different areas making up the business. This combined with the constant innovations in the sector make it an appealing place of work where no two days are the same. It is a fulfilling role knowing you are playing a part in feeding the nation.
What advice would you give to other young people looking to get into the food & drink industry? Jump straight in! There's a job to suit everyone's strengths in the industry and there are so many opportunities for you to work your way up from wherever you start.
What’s your ultimate career goal? To work in an agriculturally based role for a large company with the opportunity of spending time both in and out of office.
Applications for the next McDonald’s Progressive Young Farmer cohort are now open, visit https://people.mcdonalds.co.uk/early-career-opportunities/progressive-young-farmer/
