Eight young farmers from across Wales have financially benefited from this year’s Gareth Raw Rees Memorial Travel Scholarship.  A total of £3,550 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 their contribution to the Travel Scholarship Fund.

 This year’s awards were presented by Simon Painter, Head of Regional Sales at NFU Mutual at the Royal Welsh Show on Tuesday.

 This year’s main winner is 25 year old Gwern Thomas who received £900 to help fund his travels to Australia.

Gwern, from Felinfach, Lampeter, grew up helping on his uncle’s smallholding, working with sheep and cattle and was inspired by the industry. After gaining a qualification in plumbing he reassessed his career and created a business plan with Farming Connect and is now share-farming with his uncle. The award will help towards his expenses as he participates in the NFYFC exchange programme in Australia.

Gwern said: “This trip is not just a journey but a pivotal learning experience. By engaging with Australian farmers and observing their strategies for animal husbandry and crop 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.”

There are seven further recipients from the scholarship this year who are each receiving a financial contribution to help with their travels among them Thomas Yeomans, from Abergavenny received £750 towards a trip to New Zealand.

The 18-year-old has recently finished his education at Monmouth School. Thomas has been working with livestock his whole life, having grown up on the family’s mixed farm. He works on the home farm milking goats, working with stock and tractor driving, as well working with several local farmers with general farm jobs from TB testing, hauling silage to carting corn. He also just started work experience on a fruit farm in Kent lined up for the summer. Thomas said: “I plan to use my travel to New Zealand in order to expand both my experiences and knowledge of farming to further grow my understanding of how different farms operate.”

Cerys Baker, from Monmouth, who grew up on a beef and sheep farm, will receive £150 towards her trip to Albania.