It is remarkable that at a time of economic doom and gloom, with business activity in many sectors in serious decline, New Zealand’s number one industry – agriculture – still struggles to attract young and talented New Zealanders.

Despite enormous investment in agribusiness-related science, research, production and marketing, despite the fact that farming is expected to be the mainstay of the country’s economy for the next four years and beyond, agriculture is still not on the radar as a career prospect for this generation of young, urbanised New Zealanders.

According to Department of Labour statistics, the agriculture industry is filling only about 65% of its advertised vacancies.

Anything less than 80% indicates sustained and ongoing skill shortages in our most important industry.

This situation cannot be allowed to continue.

Right now the dairy sector is eager to recruit a further 2000 to 3000 people.

It is doing more than ever to reach young people through television advertising and the internet.

The meat and fibre sectors have gained the commitment and vision of some of our most successful business leaders – but still the message isn’t getting through.

And what a fantastic message it is.

There are jobs available right now where young people can get paid to learn essential skills, gain qualifications and embark on a career in one of the few industries where New Zealand is a world leader.

Career pathways available encompass an increasingly sophisticated agribusiness sector, where there are as many opportunities off the farm as there are on it.

For those that love the freedom of the outdoors, the farm is still the best workplace in the world.

You would think it would be a no-brainer for parents, teachers and influencers to advise young people to take a good hard look at agriculture. Unfortunately few do so.

Most New Zealanders are lamentably ignorant of the exciting opportunities in this thriving and diverse industry.

They can’t get past fence posts and gumboots to see the lucrative and rewarding careers to be had in management, IT, research, consultancy, marketing and retail across the agriculture sector.

At a time when more than 110, 000 New Zealanders are employed in the agribusiness sector it’s alarming that the numbers students learning agriculture in schools is declining, as is the number of agriculture teachers.

This seems crazy when agriculture is New Zealand’s most cutting-edge, creative and innovative industry.

These are the buzz words that many industries use to entice young people but in the case of agriculture, the description is true.

To be successful, we need plenty of our best and brightest to work in our number one industry.

Unfortunately legions of students are heading off on autopilot to a narrow band of careers and professions, blissfully unaware of where real opportunities in New Zealand business lie.

Tertiary completion rates show that many of these initial career decisions are misguided. Half our students leave tertiary study with little to show for their efforts but a substantial student debt.

As the leader of one of the country’s biggest industry training organisations, I see this as a tremendous waste.

It’s bad for individual students and it’s disastrous for an economy struggling for skilled workers.

Too many parents, educators and policy-makers still see agriculture as a career of last resort, a job for dummies – hard yakka for little reward.

The truth is that talented young farmers and agribusiness workers are extremely well rewarded.

New Zealand agriculture’s cooperative business model enables young dairy workers, for example, to progress to farm management roles or build up equity and gain a real stake in farm ownership.

It’s a career progression model many young lawyers and accountants would envy.

There’s never been a better time to get into agriculture.

We have a world-class training system where students are paid to learn and can gain nationally recognised qualifications on the job. Once qualified, agriculture trainees and graduates are in high demand.

Agriculture is what this country excels at.

It is where our economic future lies and where great careers are to be found.

Agriculture is big business in action, it is where ground-breaking research is being done, and it is where great rural lifestyles are being enjoyed.

Anyone who can’t see all this is the real dummy.

• Kevin Bryant is chief executive of Agriculture Industry Training Organisation (Agriculture ITO).