- December 4, 2025
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Myakka City resident Sophie Jo Branscomb, a rising senior at Braden River High School, used to pick gallons of strawberries every January at a small farm near her house.
She would use the strawberries to create strawberry jam.
During a trip to Ireland with the Braden River Future Farmers of America, Branscomb, who is the FFA president, was transported back to that time when visiting The Village at Wheelocks Strawberry, a farm and artisan food shop between the cities of Dublin and Wexford.
“Being able to u-pick Irish strawberries was a fun experience and it connected me back to something that I hadn't done in a while,” Branscomb said.
Five Braden River High students went on the trip — Branscomb, Kylie Mohamed, Jacob Zinkhan, Jacqueline Lopez and Cameron Brand. They were joined by agriculture teacher Megan Krueger and parent chaperone Katy Brand. The trip took place from July 7-15.
The students had various agriculture-related experiences that taught them about a different country's ways of raising animals and crops. For example, The Village at Wheelocks Strawberry farm grew its strawberries on raised planters above the ground.
“They were the best flavored strawberries I've ever tasted,” said Cameron Brand, a rising sophomore. “I've never tasted a juicy strawberry like that.”
Mohamed said strawberries in the United States aren’t as “strawberry looking” compared to the ones they saw and tried in Ireland. She said they were the most bright, red strawberries she had ever seen.
Katy Brand, Cameron’s mother, said the farm would release bugs that would target certain pests without hurting the strawberry plants.
Zinkhan, who is a rising senior at Braden River High, serves as the FFA secretary both at his school and in the district. Zinkhan does not have any agriculture background, but became involved in FFA after taking an agriculture class his freshman year.
During the visit to Ireland's Redmond Farm, a family-run farm just outside of Gorey, the students spent 30 minutes working in the field planting cabbage and cauliflower. Zinkhan said it was a meaningful experience for him. Redmond Farm has won two awards in the World's Best Steaks challenge competition and holds a Origin Green award, Ireland's national food and drink sustainability program, run by Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board.
“We all eat what's produced from the ground, so it's good for people to see where it comes from and actually see what it takes to do it,” Zinkhan said.
“The lady that ran the Redmond Farm was the cutest, most Irish lady ever,” Mohamed said. “She was adorable, so nice and hilarious. She's definitely the type of person you want to lead a tour of her farm.”
Branscomb was impressed with learning how Ireland differs from the United States in dairy production during their visit to Lynch family farm of Coolnaclehy in Skibbereen, County Cork. The Lynch farm is the 2024 winner of the NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Award, which recognizes excellence in dairy farming.
“They're a lot stricter (than the U.S.) on their carbon footprint,” Branscomb said of the Lynch farm. “Over there, they're using a lot less medications, large equipment, grain, all that sort of thing, to make their production a lot more environmentally friendly.”
Katy Brand said the cows at the Lynch farm were completely grass fed, as compared to cows in the U.S. that often receive grain.
“They would rope off parts of the pasture, so as the cows ate down the grass in one area, then they would open up another part of another pasture,” Katy Brand said. “It was beautiful.”
Cameron Brand recalled a moment where the students sat on a hill while taking photos, laughing and having fun. What stuck out to him was the grass — the length, the color and the feel of it.
“The grass felt so soft,” Cameron Brand said. “I don't know why, but it was the softest grass I've ever felt.”
“The Ireland grass is not a myth,” Mohamed said. “Sophi Jo started picking the grass and making little braided bracelets with it, because it was such long, luscious grass.”
Both Zinkhan and Branscomb work at veterinary clinics and hope to become veterinarians. Zinkhan said border collies are common house pets but they go “absolutely insane” because they don’t have a job to do.
The students went to a farm called Glengowla Mines and they watched as 15 sheep were herded by a border collie.
“We saw what (border collies) are supposed to do in person, and it was easy to understand the true purpose of the breed and how amazing they can be when they're properly trained and put to work,” Zinkhan said.
Zinkhan's favorite stop was a visit to Highbank Orchards. The farm was completely organic.
“What I thought was crazy is that their plants were some of the healthiest plants I have ever seen,” Zinkhan said. “They said they rarely have any issues with bugs, diseases, or anything because everything has a natural balance.”
Mohamed emphasized how fresh and amazing the apple orchard smelled.
The students also toured the Irish National Stud and Gardens in Tully for an “Irish racehorse experience.”
“One of the horse's names was 'Should Have Been A Ring' because (the owner) was getting engaged and spent money on the horse,” Katy Brand said.
Krueger said the students had a virtual immersion experience in which they purchased, named, trained and raced a mechanical horse. One person acted as a trainer while the other was a jockey.
“I almost killed my horse, it was so hard to hang on because my hands started getting sweaty,” Cameron Brand said.
Krueger said she plans to take students to Belgium and the Netherlands to study sustainable agriculture in July 2027.
“I am happy that I get to provide my students with the opportunity to travel,” Krueger said. “I hope that the students were bitten by the travel bug and continue to travel and be lifelong learners.”
“It is important to go out and talk to other people ... people who aren't from the same country, view the same culture, the same lifestyle. It's important to understand how other places in the world work,” Zinkhan said.
