Tuesday, 17 December 2019
Students from the University of Nottingham are creating a sustainable business project for a new flock of hens after taking part in a dragon’s den style pitch.
The birds were brought to the university’s Sutton Bonington campus earlier this year to provide hands-on experience for bioscience students in looking after commercial free-range hens. After seeing the positive response to them from staff and students, the research team wanted to create a more sustainable way to expand the flock and egg sales business at the campus. A student-led competition was launched to showcase business ideas whilst at the same time encouraging development of core graduate competencies such as entrepreneurialism, teamworking and communication skills.
Free-range and sustainable
Teams of first and second year students pitched their ideas to researchers and a panel of SB alumni working in the poultry industry. The winning team presented a plan to increase egg sales through selling at the farmer’s market regulary held on campus and through local shops. They will also create branding and marketing for the business. The team also outlined how they would recycle packaging and shells to make the project sustainable.
Dr Cormac O’Shea, Dr Gavin White and Dr. Judith Wayte led the project which was made possible by a Cascade grant and a Faculty of Science Teaching and Learning small grant.
Having the hens here is really invaluable in giving students experience of handling and looking after commercial free-range hens. They have also proved to be very popular with staff who want to pick their own eggs or help out with looking after them. This gave us the idea to maximise their appeal and turn the flock into a sustainable enterprise project that students could take ownership of that would widen their impact and boost egg sales.
The Cascade Programme uses donations from alumni and friends of the University to support projects which enhance the student experience and communicate the positive impact students have. Staff and students can apply to solve problems and improve lives, making a significant impact on communities locally and globally.
Transferable skills
The winning team ‘Eggsfactor’ will now join forces with the other teams who entered the competition to work together to drive the venture forwards in 2020.
Laura Wrisdale is one of the 2nd year students on the winning team, she said: “We wanted to enter the competition because it looked a fun, interactive opportunity to get involved in and promote the SB hen flock, which we enjoy having on our campus. It was also a perfect opportunity to encourage local support from the community around us such as coming up with educational ideas for the local primary school and encouraging people to support local food production including at our farmers market. We also wanted to take this as an opportunity to promote sustainability as this is an ever growing topic each day and hope to achieve this by recycling the egg boxes used and distributing the eggs locally to reduce pollution.
Not only did we win, we also came together as a team and it helped us all develop communication skills, confidence to speak in front of people and give us something to add to our CVs. This alone has given us transferable skills that we can take forward when applying for jobs/placements as well as develop our innovative thinking.”
Story credits
More information is available from Jane Icke, Media Relations Manager for the Faculty of Science at the University of Nottingham, on +44 (0)115 951 5751 or jane.icke@nottingham.ac.uk
Notes to editors:
About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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