Youth were given the spotlight to share their passion for the agriculture sector at the Calgary Stampede earlier this month.

On Wednesday, July 10, the 2019 Alberta Young Speakers for Agriculture public speaking competition saw participants between the ages of 11 to 24 put their communication skills to the test, speaking on one of several given topics.

Twenty one-year-old Jordan Vos from Burdett took the opportunity to bust a common myth in Canadian agriculture through her speech.

"Just because you're eating vegetables, doesn't mean you're doing the world a favour," Vos explained. "Beef does have a very important role to play, and they (cattle) do a lot more beneficial things for the planet than just providing food."

Vos says cattle replace the role of bison in prairie ecosystems, which unfortunately, are a decreasing habitat.

She was awarded first place in the senior division, winning a $1,000 cash prize along with a trip to Toronto to advance to the National competition hosted at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair this November.

Vos says it's important to use these opportunities to be an "agvocate", especially as the younger generation.

"We find that we have a lot of the older generation that represent it, but because the younger generation is a lot more technological, we need to be out there giving our voice, especially on social media, and through events like these."

Vos is a student at Lethbridge College and is studying renewable resource management.

(L-R) Ryley Mappin and MC Chancey Lane. July 10.

In the Junior category, it was 14-year-old Ryley Mappin from the small Central Alberta Hamlet of Byemoor who won his way to the National competition in Toronto, along with a $500 cash prize.

Mappin wrote his first place speech on the topic, "Food Fraud", saying these types of events spread the good word about the beef industry.

"We run a mixed farming operation, so if you want your oilseeds and stuff, our cash flow is also coming from our cows to produce oil crops," he said.

Mappin says he doesn't know what to expect in Toronto, as Calgary alone was enough city for one day.

The Alberta representatives will go head to head with speakers across the country at the Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition on Saturday, November 2.

 

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