The search is on to find the very best farmers on the Isle of Man as the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture launches the nomination process for this year’s Tomorrow’s Farmer Award, which is again sponsored by supermarket chain Shoprite.
Now in its seventh year, the award recognises and rewards farmers who are committed to the future of food and farming in the Isle of Man.
In order to keep supplying that demand for premium food products, farmers must keep rearing, growing and producing and constantly refining their businesses to focus on quality and efficiency.
The Tomorrow’s Farmer Award provides recognition for those who have chosen, not only to carry on the farming tradition, but to go the extra mile with ambition and imagination.
As part of the process of choosing a winner, each farm will be visited and assessed by the panel of judges against criteria for farming efficiently and profitably, their focus on customers, their efforts to promote local food production, their plans to diversify their business and the conservation activity on the farm.
The entries will be whittled down to four finalists and the winner will be announced at this year’s Royal Manx Agricultural Show in August.
One of last year’s finalists who won the Judges’ Special Award for a Young Farmer, Alan Teare, has demonstrated the hard work, commitment and farming knowledge necessary to succeed in a tough industry.
Alan farms around 420 acres at Ballakelly, in Andreas, where he lives with his partner, Rachel, and their two young children, Alice and Harvey.
Alan, 35, took over from his father, Billy, who is now retired and is the fourth generation of his family to run the farm.
Ballakelly is unusual in that sheep, cattle and pigs are all reared there and Alan explained that this was about getting the right balance for the acreage: ‘Everything we do seems to fit in well and my soil is in very good health,’ he said.
He began rearing pigs when he realised that he was using more straw than grain for his cattle from the barley he was growing and he decided the excess grain could be fattening little porkers.
He now has around 100 breeding sows. Their barn-raised piglets grow at an astonishing rate and reach their required weight of 75 to 80kgs (around 13 stone) in just a few short months.
All their pork goes to the Andreas Meat Company, just up the road from the farm on the old Andreas airfield, where it is used for bacon, a variety of sausages and cooked, sliced gammon. These products are all in local shops, including Shoprite and a number of convenience stores.
However, whilet it’s all very well having the satisfaction of knowing you are producing premium pork, lamb and beef it is still not an easy life,
‘Covering costs is very tight,’ Alan said.
The Tomorrow’s Farmer Finalist Award offers at least some recognition and encouragement.
‘It’s good to be seen that you’re trying your best to do it right,’ he said.
John Speakman, senior buyer at Shoprite believes the awards are an important way not only to demonstrate the economic, social and environmental benefits of supporting local producers but also to highlight individual best practices and quality.
He added: ‘Shoprite is a firm believer in providing genuine support for local producers and the fact that many of the farmers are stocked on our shelves demonstrates that it is much more than just a marketing exercise on our behalf – it is actually tangible support for the local farming community.’
Richard Ronan, Minister for the Environment, Food and Agriculture, said: ‘These awards recognise innovation and forward thinking, which are key components of the “Food Matters” strategy that seeks to grow the food and drink contribution to the economy.
‘Winners in previous years have demonstrated their value to the industry and should be rightly proud of the recognition.
‘Future winners will be a measure of the health of farming and food production in the Isle of Man and I look forward to awarding the prize this year to another worthy winner’.
Nominating farmers for the award is easy. All you have to do is send their name and address plus a brief explanation of why you think they are worthy of the award to Audrey Fowler, Marketing Officer, DEFA, Thie Slieau Whallian, St John’s, IM4 3AS or email: audrey.fowler@gov.im before April 17.