Balliang East farmer helps city kids connect with reality of primary production

Kate Sharkey’s educational farm tours teach urban VCE students about sustainable food production first-hand.

Guiding light: Kate Sharkey runs educational farm tours on her family’s farm at Balliang East to teach Year 12 students about primary production first-hand. Picture: Andy Rogers.

KATE Sharkey is tackling the urban-rural disconnect problem head on by educating city students and teachers about primary production at the source.

The farming advocate launched Boundary Fence Educational Farm Tours on her family’s Balliang East mixed farm 12 months ago. Almost 200 Year 12 food studies students from 15 Melbourne schools have taken part.

“I just felt there needed to be a platform whereby urban students could get a real world perspective on modern day food production and the opportunity to talk directly to the farmer,” Kate said. “The real challenge for food producers today is to start a conversation about our profession to people who have no connection at all.”

Kate Sharkey explains the role tech plays in a sustainable cropping system, during a tour for Year 12 food studies students. Picture: Andy Rogers.

The idea for the tours hit when a teacher Kate knew told her they were struggling to deliver units about sustainable farming, biodiversity, biosecurity and production systems, which were introduced to VCE food studies curriculum recently.

Kate and the teacher agreed a farm visit would help. So Kate researched the curriculum to design a tour to meet teachers’ objectives.

Students spend two hours on the farm, starting in a paddock to learn about grains first-hand, while Kate’s husband, Chris, illustrates the expertise that goes into sustainable food production, from managing soil health to using technology to optimise sowing and harvest.

Students tuck in to sourdough bread, made with the Sharkeys’ homegrown flour while Kate talks about biosecurity. Picture: Andy Rogers

The Sharkeys also mill some of their own wheat harvest, so they treat students to sourdough bread made with the homegrown flour.

Students also view a free-range piggery on the property, where they learn about biosecurity, animal welfare and free-range production.

“In the future I would like to develop an educational program with other peri-urban shires around greater Melbourne so urban students have access to a variety of commercial farming operations,” Kate said.

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