September 1, 2016
Bill Hardy
How long does it take to milk a cow?
BY BILL HARDY
co-owner of Trice Farms/Grow & Gather in Maple Ridge, B.C., and Business Manager for HortEducationBC
I was pondering that question while trying to determine how many workplace hours a dairy professional required to complete level-one apprenticeship as a Dairy Production Technician. While it may seem odd that HortEducationBC looks after the dairy profession, linking the only B.C. agriculture apprenticeship to horticulture has been a very good fit.
HortEducationBC (HEBC) has been in existence for almost 12 years now. Its mandate has evolved over those years, from being about any and all training for horticulture, to becoming B.C.’s first government-funded Industry Training Organization (ITO) responsible for activities and resources related exclusively to horticulture apprenticeship in B.C. Now, HEBC has returned to fulfilling a much more encompassing role.
Three years ago, the B.C. government reclaimed a great deal of the administrative tasks that the ITOs had been performing, giving HEBC greater leeway in serving the educational needs of its subscribers.
Certainly, HEBC still provides apprentice and sponsor support. It continues to set and maintain standards, market and promote our industry’s various options to youth and others, and it develops learning resources and training materials. Additionally, HEBC is responsible for assessing individuals who are challenging a trade designation, and is the avenue for sponsors to affirm their apprentices’ work hours. However, the lightening of bureaucratic constraints has HEBC reviewing its capacity and demand for performing a wider scope of training opportunities.
The potential is remarkable, considering that HEBC presently plays a significant role to Red Seal Landscape Horticulture, Production Horticulture, Arborist Technician, Climbing Arborist, Field Arborist, Utility Arborist, Falling and Bucking, as well as Dairy Professional designations.
Now that HEBC is no longer tied directly to government, the sky is the limit as far as what it can do to promote horticulture, agriculture, and those developing skills to work in these industries. Its board welcomes feedback as to gaps in currently available educational offerings.
By the way, the answer is 1,500 hours — not to milk a cow — to become a designated Dairy Professional.