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All articles about Health and wellbeing

Farmers’ physical and mental health and wellbeing are often pushed to one side as the important tasks of managing a busy arable or livestock farm take over. See ideas to help you keep fit and healthy on the farm and combat rural isolation and stress.

Advice and tips

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Holistic farmer wellbeing health check: How are you really?

Farmers are notorious for spending more time thinking about their livestock, costs and crops than their own happiness and wellbeing. This is perhaps best explained by agriculture’s long history, slight…

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Coronavirus: Advice for managing and keeping staff safe

Farmers may be wondering how to best protect their staff during the coronavirus outbreak. We asked Oliver Dale, managing director at Safety Revolution, and Sophie Walker, business manager at the…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Advice on solving farmer lameness, joint and foot ailments

A hobble is an unwelcome rite of passage for many farmers as they transition from youth to older-middle age, but just as lameness is preventable in livestock so too is…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

8 tips from Doug Avery on being a resilient farmer

Change is happening in agriculture at a rate never seen before, with a wealth of opportunities available for those willing to take them. Doug Avery, author of The Resilient Farmer,…

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Case studies

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Son's death leads family to back mental health charity

The parents of a 22-year-old farmer who took his own life are urging youngsters facing a similar situation to seek help and support. Leonard Eadon, from Napton, in Warwickshire, died…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Britain's Fittest Farmer 2021: 4 strong women's entries

Farmers Weekly's popular health and wellbeing competition, Britain's Fittest Farmer, is attracting entries from across the country.  There's still plenty of time for you to enter the contest if you're…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Fit2Farm: How a better work-life balance benefits farm

Achieving a better work-life balance is top of the list for Britain's farmers – many of whom are working long hours with little time off. The average farmer works 65…

PAYMENTS, SCHEMES AND GRANTS

Video: Exmoor group tackles farm support and rural isolation

The unique and thriving farmer-led Exmoor Hill Farming Network has grown to support 300 local farming businesses since it began four years ago under the guidance of chairman Dave Knight…

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Community

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

FCN FarmWell Award winner announced

Andrew Dellbridge, from Norfolk, has won the Farming Community Network (FCN) FarmWell Award 2023 for his short video showing how he champions mental resilience within the agricultural sector. The award,…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Britain’s Fittest Farmer 2023: Meet the winners

The winners of the Farmers Weekly Britain’s Fittest Farmer competition have been crowned after battling it out at the finals in Essex. Among the 31 finalists, the competition was fierce…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Prince and Princess discuss mental health on farm visit

Farmers have heaped praise on the Prince and Princess of Wales for bringing into focus mental health issues in agriculture. Prince William and Princess Catherine visited Duchy tenant farmers Sam…

COMMUNITY

Former farmer launches 'Proud to Farm' campaign

A former farmworker has launched a campaign selling “Proud to Farm” wristbands to foster greater solidarity within the industry and raise awareness about mental health challenges. Martin Fox launched the…

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Insights

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Why farmers should prepare for and discuss health issues

Matthew Berryman’s role as a farm consultant sometimes involves getting clients to address topics they would rather not talk about. “When I raise the subject of wills and lasting powers…

SUCCESSION PLANNING

Why poor succession planning can impact mental health

Numerous aspects of farming can negatively impact upon mental health, but the one many might not have drawn a line to is the eternal pressures surrounding succession. Though succession is…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Analysis: The grim state of mental health in agriculture

Women, farmers who keep livestock and those running smaller enterprises are the most likely to be struggling with their mental health, results from the recent Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution’s (Rabi)…

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News

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Farmers and farmworkers taking less holiday, survey shows

People working in the agricultural sector are taking less time off as annual leave, according to a national survey of more than 122,000 workers across various sectors of the economy.…

COMMUNITY

Pop-up farmer health check scheme extended at Rugby market

A scheme run by Warwickshire Rural Hub and grant aided by The Royal Countryside Fund (formerly the Prince’s Countryside Fund) is to continue this autumn, providing pop-up health and wellbeing…

COMMUNITY

Football partnership tackles mental health in Welsh farming

Playing football is a great way to get physically fit, but a regular kickabout can also bring great mental health benefits for farmers. This is the focus of a new…

COMMUNITY

Farmers warned about increased risk of sepsis

Farmers are being warned that they are at an increased risk of developing sepsis, as the nature of their job makes them more susceptible to cuts and grazes. Joining forces…

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Opinion

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Farmers offer their younger selves some pearls of wisdom

The benefit of hindsight is a wonderful thing, and everyone makes mistakes. We can all learn from each other, too. With this in mind, Farmers Weekly and rural charity The…

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Video

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2022 - meet the winners

The winners of Britain’s Fittest Farmer have been crowned after battling it out at the finals in Essex. The competition was fierce, the camaraderie strong, and our four winners get…

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2022 - the qualifiers

Competitors from across the country converged on Adam Henson’s Cotswold Farm Park for the qualifying rounds of Britain’s Fittest Farmer.  The Gloucestershire venue saw almost 60 entrants battle in out…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Son's death leads family to back mental health charity

The parents of a 22-year-old farmer who took his own life are urging youngsters facing a similar situation to seek help and support. Leonard Eadon, from Napton, in Warwickshire, died…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2021 - the final

The competition was intense, but two winners have now been crowned in Farmers Weekly's iconic initiative, designed to spark a discussion about mental and physical health in the countryside. Erica…

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