Students HorseBit product pitch at RBC fast pitch competition wins $100,000 in cash and in-kind prize!
This past month five UFA employees assisted a group of University of Calgary students in preparation for the RBC Fast Pitch competition held at the University of Calgary every year. The group of students were matched up with the UFA mentors by a contact through one of our brand partners, Alberta Community & Co-operative Association.
The students, Joannie Kwok, Fizza Owasi, Ally Penic, Aniket Sagar, and Richard Zhang’s product is called HorseBit. It’s along the lines of a Fitbit for horses, but it does more than just count steps and monitor heart rate. Their study found that approximately 64,000 horses die every year in the U.S. due to health issues that go undetected. The new technology is meant to assist with early detection of health issues in a horse, allowing humans to react faster to their condition, preventing deaths.
One of the mentors, Jeff Rucci, Senior Product Merchant, Retail Operations-Merchandising, said, “We were glad we could help the students out and the experience got all of us thinking a bit differently about what could be next for the agriculture industry.”
After the hour-long meeting and multiple questions, the students took the mentors’ feedback and put it into action. They took first place in the RBC-hosted competition and the prize of $100,000 dollars in cash and in-kind support for their business.
UFA is committed to helping guide the next generation, be it in agriculture or business.
Do you have a mentorship idea that would support your community? Reach out to Kimberly MacDonald, Manager, Community Investment, atKimberly.MacDonald@ufa.com
