Teagasc Special Award at the Stripe Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition 2026

Director of Teagasc, Professor Frank O’Mara presenting the winners of the ‘Teagasc Special Award’ to recipients Méabh Dorgan, Katie Fitzgerald and Muireann Murphy of St Mary’s Secondary School, Mallow at the recent Stripe Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition

Students from St Mary’s Secondary School, Mallow, have won the Teagasc Special Award for their soil-based project showcased at the 2026 Stripe Young Scientist Exhibition

Horticulture

21 January 2026

Second-year students Méabh Dorgan, Katie Fitzgerald and Muireann Murphy from St Mary’s Secondary School, Mallow, Co Cork, have been recognised for their outstanding scientific achievement at the Stripe Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition 2026.

The all-female team won the prestigious Teagasc Special Award for their innovative project investigating soil organic matter in North Cork.

“We decided to study the organic matter content of soil using low-cost unmanned aerial vehicles to collect red, green and blue images of selected soil sites in County Cork,” Méabh Dorgan said.

“We wanted to create an easy and efficient way for farmers to measure the organic matter content of different soils in Ireland,” Katie Fitzgerald added.

“Our study clearly shows the potential of UAV-derived RGB imaging and how targeted soil management could help farmers reduce costs,” Muireann Murphy said .

The team impressed the judges with their project titled: ‘An Investigation into Soil Organic Matter in North Cork Using UAV RGB Imagery: Supporting the ‘4 per 1000’ Initiative and Climate Change Mitigation’.

The Teagasc ‘Special Award’ is presented annually to the project that best demonstrates a thorough understanding of the science of agriculture or food production, or the application of science to improve technologies in these fields.

The Teagasc Special Award was presented by Professor Frank O’Mara, director of Teagasc, who invited the students to visit a Teagasc research centre to learn more about work in this area.

Their project was a strong example of how young people can be inspired by science in their local environment. Using low-cost unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the students explored how red, green and blue (RGB) imagery could be used to estimate soil organic matter content, with potential benefits for climate change mitigation and more cost-effective soil management.

“Their ability to apply science and technology to an issue as important as soil health and climate change is impressive, and we look forward to seeing where their curiosity and ambition take them next,” professor Frank O’Mara, director of Teagasc, said.

Looking ahead, the students hope to develop an app that would allow farmers to use a drone connected to their phone to identify where fertiliser is needed most efficiently.