A Tallygaroopna dairy farmer is set to take his career to the next level after winning this year’s Greenham Dairy Scholarship.
Jon Pearce, 31, was awarded the honour at an official ceremony in Melbourne last week by Victorian Agriculture and Food Security Minister Peter Walsh. Jon Pearce with Minister Peter Walsh
Scholarship success … 2011 Greenham Dairy Scholarship winner Jon Pearce (right) with Agriculture and Food Security Minister Peter Walsh (left) and partner Shareena Flynn (centre) in Melbourne last week.
Mr Pearce said he would use the scholarship to enrol in an Advanced Diploma of Agriculture at Shepparton’s National Centre for Dairy Education. “It’s very exciting it’s not every day you get a scholarship of $10 000,” he said. “I finished the diploma last year, and if I didn’t win this I wouldn’t be able to go on and study the next section. So to have the opportunity to do so now is going to be well worth it.”
Mr Pearce grew up on his parents’ farm in Tallygaroopna and is currently the assistant manager of a friend’s dairy farm in the same area.
He’s hoping to follow in his parents’ footsteps and stay in the dairy industry for the remainder of his career. “I’ve always grown up on a dairy farm and Mum and Dad have milked cows for as long as I can remember, so I’ve continued their passion I guess. I want to own my own farm eventually and now with some water in the dams, it should allow more younger people to get into the industry again and expand.”
By Country News
