As a Bachelor of Agriculture student at The University of Melbourne, James Meggitt has developed a broad understanding of the challenges facing the sector, from sustainability issues to emerging industry trends. His curiosity and creative perception saw him selected as a 2024-25 Horizon Scholar, sponsored by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC).

“The Horizon Scholarship program is a great opportunity to engage and support university students who are curious to explore fishing and aquaculture,” explained Capability & Capacity Manager at FRDC, Sally Roberts.

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The AgriFutures Horizon Scholarship, in partnership with industry sponsors, supports full-time university students by providing a $5000 annual bursary for the final two years of their degree, professional development workshops, industry work placements and networking opportunities to build their knowledge and career prospects.

As part of the program, James has recently completed two industry placements in Tasmania where he was able to immerse himself in the world of aquaculture. His first week saw him working with Skretting – a fish and animal feed manufacturer owned by Nutreco, an animal nutrition company.

“At Skretting, I got to do a bit of everything. I spent a lot of time in the lab, looking at fish feed diets and formulas, checking things like oil content and fat levels to make sure the feed met their quality targets,” said James.

“We also visited an experimental aquaculture facility with the University of Tasmania, where Skretting was conducting a three-month experiment testing fish feed formulations and their impact on the growth rate of Atlantic salmon. We were involved in setting up controls and manipulating the diets to observe how the salmon responded and performed,” he said.

In his second week, James took a deep dive into salmon farming with Tassal Aussie Seafood where he spent a couple of days at their hatchery and a couple of days on their offshore site, preparing pens for harvest and cleaning nets.

”It was super interesting seeing the whole process of salmon farming up close,” said James.

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While James grew up in the world of fish farming, the dominance of livestock and agronomy-based subjects at university left him hungry for more exposure to the aquaculture industry, an opportunity he’s grateful to the Horizon Scholarship program for providing.

“The unpaid nature of the work experience was actually a great learning opportunity – I could ask as many questions as I wanted without any pressure. I’m really looking forward to a couple more placements before I finish up. Overall, it was super fulfilling and rewarding, and I really enjoyed the experience.”

James is keen to explore the red meat sector after university but is confident that aquaculture and the family business will be part of his future. The Horizon Scholarship has been instrumental in broadening his experience, offering valuable opportunities and insights that will shape his career moving forward.

AgriFutures Australia is committed to supporting the next generation of leaders that will drive the future prosperity of Australian rural industries and communities. The AgriFutures Horizon Scholarship is awarded to students studying an agriculture-related undergraduate degree or a Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths/Finance (STEM) degree with relevant majors which align to agriculture.

Applications for the 2026 AgriFutures Horizon Scholarship open in November 2025.

Find out more about the Horizon Scholarship