Young Farmers and Careers

A Buckinghamshire farmer has swapped the damp, cold farmyard for fun in the sun as he joins this year’s crop of romantic hopefuls on ITV2’s Love Island.

The NFU has revealed the names of the 11 farmers chosen to be its Student & Young Farmer Ambassadors for this year.

Growing up on the family farm and having an outgoing fun-loving mother, who was heavily involved with the Scottish Association of Young Farmers Clubs (SAYFC) lead me to join my local club.  

Ryan Dakin, 25, a free-range egg producer from Malpas, Cheshire.

When opportunity knocked, Damian Barson answered. His lifelong dream of becoming a farmer has recently become a reality after being given the chance to farm 26 hectares (64 acres) at Warton, near Preston, Lancashire.

Through hard work, positivity, and a can-do attitude, new entrants Stuart and Chloe Graham, made their dream a reality when they secured a ten-year tenancy on one of Scotland’s Crown Estate farms.

Charlotte Taylor, 27, is Wiltshire Young Farmers County Chair and farms beef cattle alongside a floristry business.

Olivia Richardson, near Darlington, on the North Yorkshire and Durham border, is vice-chair of the NFU Next Generation Forum.

Research by The Prince’s Countryside Fund shows barriers new entrants face.

EX-teacher Ionela Bacioiu (known as Dana) has become the UK’s first female to complete her Level 2 FDQ Abattoir Worker Apprenticeship, blazing a trail for other women to carve out a career in the meat sector.