Thomas O’Neill of the Rotary Club of Simcoe in Ontario, Canada, has been selected to be the Vocational Training Team Team Leader for Rotary District 7090’s project of training and sharing information on Fruit Farming to the Shepparton and Goulburn Valley regions in the Australian Rotary District 9790.

The team, consisting of Team Leader O’Neill and three team members to be selected, will focus their training on mechanized versus traditional approaches, pest and disease treatment, marketing options, and effecting change in farm operations in pursuit of valued successful farm livelihoods. The team’s experiences will provide for identifying needs as well as efficiencies and accessing cost control methodologies. The mission will be approximately three weeks in March.

O’Neill brings a wealth of fruit farming experience from his 33 years with the Norfolk Fruit Growers’ Association as the General Manager. He has been at the forefront of industry trends and technologies for the production, storage, packaging and marketing of the members’ fruits.

His several industry affiliations, including the Apple Marketers’ Association of Ontario, Canadian Horticultural Council, and the CPMA Industry Technology Advisory Committee, speak to his expertise and continuing education of the fruit Industry.  He holds a bachelor of science in agriculture from the University of Guelph.

During his tenure as a Simcoe Rotarian, he has held most all positions at the club level, including Director and Club President, chaired the fundraiser for the Lynn River Music and Arts Festival, plus the Youth Exchange Committee. At the District 7090 level, he has been the Assistant Governor for Area 1, as well as chaired the District Conference Committee in 2010-2011.

Rotary District 7090 is still seeking team members to be part of this valuable VTT experience with a focus on fruit farming in Australia in the spring. For Team Member information, contact VTT Chair Dan Smith at 269-9900. A Team Member application may be found by visiting http://www.rotary7090.org/SitePage/vocational-training-teams. The deadline for application submission is Dec. 3, though potential participants are encouraged to submit their applications now.