Companies and industry training institutes were at the Taieri Rural Open Day to show different jobs and pathways available to school leavers or people on the search for career pathways or wanting to try something new.
The event was organised by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD), Business South, Total Harvesting and Total Transport.
MSD regional labour marketing adviser Emilia St Baker said they were showcasing the entire range, not just cows and sheep.
"Rural is not just being on a farm, there is so much more that goes into it.
"We have horticulture, logging, transport, spraying, so much more than where your mind usually goes straight to."
She said it was not just a day for young people, but also the office workers in the world who may want a change of pace and to break into a new type of work.
"Any age, any stage, there is never anything stopping people from making a change if they want."
Industries pulled out all the stops to attract prospective employees. Some companies had VR headsets which showed wearers what it was like to operate their machinery, and other companies, had joystick-controlled simulators.
School pupil Logan Oke got in the driver’s seat of a harvester simulator from Mike Hurring Logging and Contracting. He said the screen looked like a video game. But he thought the real deal probably would not give that same feeling.
