Young farmers win travel scholarship
Five young farmers from across Wales have financially benefited from this year’s Gareth Raw Rees Memorial Travel Scholarship. This year has seen the highest amount awarded to scholars wishing to broaden their knowledge of agriculture.
The Chairman of the NFU Mutual Board of Directors and Chairman of the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust, Sir Don Curry, presented the awards at the Royal Welsh Show today (Tuesday).
Tomos Evans, the main winner, from Llanddarog, near Carmarthen, received £1,000 to help him travel to the USA. Tomos will use the money to research the Black Limousin cattle breed which has been developed in North America and he intends to establish a nucleus herd of his own upon his return.
Tomos graduated from Aberystwyth University in 2007 after gaining a HND in agriculture and now works full time on a local dairy farm and also does some relief milking work. He also works on the family farm where they breed pedigree Texel sheep and have a small herd of Welsh Black cattle in addition to running a farm tourism enterprise.
Commenting on his impending visit to the USA, Tomos said, "I am really looking forward to seeing at first hand how farmers in the USA are developing the Black Limousin breed.
I will also be visiting Embryo Transplant Centres with a view to importing Black Limousin embryos in the near future." Before he commences his trip Tomos also plans to visit two farms in Scotland and the north of England who are already breeding Black Limousin cattle.
There are four further recipients from the scholarship this year who received £250 each to help with their travels.
Joy Cornock is currently an associate producer for Boomerang TV company and also a freelance musician. The talented harpist and singer from Fishguard, in Pembrokeshire, will travel to Kenya for a week long trip this summer which has been arranged through the YFC movement.
Laura Andrews, from Llanllowell near Usk in Monmouthshire, is currently studying for a business management degree at Swansea University. Laura will also be travelling to Kenya this summer spending a week and a half as a volunteer in a children’s orphanage in Nairobi before moving on to join up with the YFC Discovery Programme trip to rural Kenya.
Primary school teacher Catherine Jones, also receives £250 from the scholarship towards a trip to Kenya, which has been arranged through the YFC Discovery Programme. Catherine’s travels will take her away from the family farm and self catering holiday cottages business in Parkmill, near Swansea, to broaden her knowledge of agriculture in a developing country and to see first hand how Kenyan farmers cope with the challenges of feeding its people.
Lyndsey Colohan, from Glyn Ceiriog, near Llangollen, has just completed her A level examinations and intends to take a year out to travel to Australia and New Zealand before starting a degree in agriculture with business studies at Harper Adams University in September 2011. Lyndsey will spend some time working and learning about agricultural practices in both countries.
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 London Council and Chairman of the NFU Cymru Education Committee. Gareth believed fervently that travel was an important form of education for young people.
