Ayabulela Lajila is 28 and originally from Bizana in the Eastern Cape. He grew up in family who farmed vegetables like cabbage, spinach and maize on 3.5 hectares of land, which he always loved. However, as he grew older and would take trips into Kokstad to buy items for the garden his family would pass dairy farms, and he always wondered how they could milk so many cows, and what the process was to feed them. It interested him so much that he knew what he wanted to study at college, and was sure the dairy industry was for him.

Ayabulela travelled across to the United States in February this year and has been placed in California in the small city of Firebaugh, in Fresno County. The town has a population of 9000 people, which is quite small compared to most South African cities.

Ayabulela is serving a dairy internship on a farm which milks 751 cows! The experience he has developed in milking is on a whole new level compared to what he was used to in South Africa, but milking is still his favourite part of the job in terms of dairy work, “I just really like the process of milking that is used here”.

The most important thing that he has learned overseas is that you always need to pay full attention to what you are doing and be truthful to your employer because it is the basis of a good relationship. Additionally, he feels that when you are unemployed and looking for opportunities, volunteering is a very good idea because it will help boost your CV and if a farmer or manager sees that you're a competent staff member, they'll keep you in mind for the next available job opening. Ayabulela volunteered for six months on a farm before he left for his overseas internship.

We are excited to see what the year ahead holds for Ayabulela, as he is only at the beginning of his year overseas, he has many more lessons to learn and share with Future Farmers.