UFU members taking part in #Farm24

Thomas pictured with wife Ruth and their children Katie and Robyn.

Meet the Ulster Farmers’ Union members who are taking part in #Farm24.

• Thomas Annett

My name is Thomas Annett and I’ve grown up on the family farm just outside Newcastle County Down. I am the third generation to farm here after the farm was bought in the 50’s, and my grandparents moved to it from Mourne.

I currently work here along with my parents and brother. We run a mixed farm with sucklers, sheep, arable and potatoes and we have an ASSI on the farm which we manage with cattle.

I’m fairly new to all things Ulster Farmers’ Union and in the last year, I have had the opportunity to join the UFU Next Gen and have been co-opted onto the seeds and cereals committee. I’m looking forward to getting to know more about how the UFU works and what it can do for the farming community.

I’m supporting Farm24 to show how much work and effort goes in to producing food and looking after the environment we live in.

• Alice Gillespie

Seven years ago I married my husband, Jonny, and joined his farm near Killylea, Co. Armagh. This was a totally new lifestyle to what I was ever used to, as I came from the countryside but had no farming experience. We now have three young children, Jodie (5), Ethan (2) and Anna (1 month old) who love to get down to the farm to see what’s going on. They’ve even managed to talk my husband into having some “pet” cows, sheep and goats.

We have 300 dairy cows and nearly 600 young dairy and beef stock. We calf nearly all year round and take stock from newborn to the finishing stage. We also buy in some calves to finish. Five years ago the farm went robotic which has been a welcomed change from all the hours in the milking parlour. The date nights milking together in the parlour are most definitely not missed by myself.

We also have some sheep, but they are part of the farm that my husband doesn’t like to mention. I’ve always had a love for sheep strangely and tortured my husband to start a small flock for me when we got together. He was never keen and his famous last words to a neighbour were, “there will be no sheep on this yard”. However, for my 21st birthday my father-in-law treated me to six hoggets and we’re now working with 75 breeding ewes. I look forward to lambing each year and now our children love it as much as I do. The sheep are without a doubt the love of my life on the farm but are still very much a learning curve, even after ten years.

We also decided last year to diversify a little, starting our own artisan gelato business, ‘Moo Valley Artisan Gelato’, using our own milk from the farm and eggs from our own hens. All of our flavours are handmade using local produce where possible and our gelato is free from any artificial colours or flavours. This has been an exciting new venture and something that I can do from home, whilst also using our own produce. It has provided us with the opportunity to promote our produce and participate in lots of local events. The support from local people and local shops has been overwhelming.

I am taking part in Farm24 because I have been welcomed into the agriculture industry as a new comer and I have found a real love for the lifestyle it can provide for my family and I. Farming can be difficult for numerous reasons (financially, physically, emotionally) but can also be so enjoyable and rewarding, and I hope people can see beyond how negatively it can be portrayed at times in the media. For anyone new into the industry like myself or for the public who genuinely don’t understand the industry, I hope Farm24 can show you what it’s all about and promote the industry in the way it deserves from the relentless hours and effort our farmers in Northern Ireland put in.