Six young Welsh farmers will see the world thanks to travel scholarship

 A total of £4,450 has been awarded by the Management Committee to scholars wishing to broaden their knowledge of agriculture.

The scholarship, which is administered by NFU Cymru, was set-up in memory of the late Gareth Raw Rees who, for many years, was a delegate on the NFU Council and Chairman of the NFU Education Committee. Gareth believed fervently that travel was an important form of education for young people. The Scholarship is extremely grateful to the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust for its contribution to the Travel Scholarship Fund.

This year’s awards were presented by Jim McLaren, Chairman, NFU Mutual at the Royal Welsh Show on Tuesday.

This year’s main winner is Rowan Gear, who received the largest amount ever funded by the scholarship of £1,500 to help fund his travels to New Zealand.

21-year-old Rowan, from Bridgend, works on a 3,500-acre arable and sheep farm based in south Wales. 

Living on a fish farm with the need for sheep to graze around the fishponds, Rowan decided to build up a flock of breeding ewes while still in education. 

Rowan said: “This trip is not just a journey but a pivotal learning experience. By engaging with New Zealand farmers and observing their strategies for animal husbandry and sheep management, I aim to gain a fresh perspective that will enable me to address the challenges we face back at home more effectively. It will hopefully help me to continue learning in order to shape my character, expand my horizons and empower me to make a positive impact on the future of agriculture.”

Rebecca John, from Haverfordwest received £1,000 towards a trip to New Zealand. 

The 25-year-old established her own herd of pedigree Holsteins, having grown up on the family’s farm. She works on the home farm milking cattle, feeding calves, working with stock and tractor driving, as well as working as a relief milker on two local farms. 

Rebecca has secured a job on a dairy farm in New Zealand and hopes this will give her the opportunity to experience a different type of dairy system.  

Elin Rattray, from Aberystwyth, received £700 towards a trip to New Zealand, Australia, Thailand & Vietnam. 

Since leaving education, the Harper Adams graduate currently works for Woodhead Bros – Morrisons and also works in her spare time on her family- run butchers in West Wales. 

Elin is looking to broaden her agricultural knowledge, particularly in livestock production, meat processing and international food systems.

Oliver Jones, from Raglan, received £400 for his trip to New Zealand. Having finished his studies at Christ College, Oliver has secured a job working for a machinery contractor in New Zealand. In the school holidays the 19-year-old helps out on a local commercial goat farm carrying out a range of tasks from tractor work to fencing and foot trimming. Oliver hopes to broaden his experience and knowledge of the agricultural industry in general, but also to understand where and why farming practises may differ between the UK and New Zealand.

Rhun Crimes, from Llanbedr – Pont – Steffan received £400 towards his trip to America. Rhun, who will graduate from Harper Adams University in the summer with a BSc in agriculture, was bought up on the family beef and sheep farm in Ceredigion where they run a sheep and suckler beef system. Rhun’s main interest however, lays in the herd of stabiliser cattle. He has a great passion about the stabiliser breed and wishes to learn more about beef genetics, research and how they can be implemented at home.

Bethan Jones, from Crickhowell received £400 towards her trip to New Zealand. The 19-year old grew up on her family’s sheep farm where they manage a flock of 500 Welsh ewes with day-to-day jobs consisting of lambing, flock management and sheep handling. Bethan hopes to explore opportunities and gain experience in New Zealand, particularly in areas such as sustainability, diversification and resilience.