Online effort pushes farms over 24 hours

FARMERS WILL attempt to demonstrate to the public the passion and commitment they put into producing food and maintaining the countryside during a 24-hour social media event.

Posting using the #Farm24 hashtag on Thursday this week, British farmers, growers and associated businesses will share posts, photographs and videos to explain the work they do.

The public is being asked to show their support for British farmers and food too, by sharing photographs of their meals.

The 24 Hours in Farming initiative is billed as the farming industry’s biggest online event. It is sponsored by Bradford-based supermarket chain Morrisons and run by Farmers Guardian.

Morrisons alone works directly with more than 3,000 livestock farmers and more than 200 growers in the UK.

Sophie Throup, the retailer’s agriculture manager, said: “We’re proud to support 24 Hours in Farming. It highlights the great work British land and livestock farmers do from dawn to dusk every day.

“It’s really important for Morrisons because we rely on British farming’s success.”

Farmers manage three-quarters of the nation’s countryside and supply 61 per cent of Britain’s food.

The food and farming sector is worth £112bn to the economy and employs 3.8m people.