Croft wins new entrant award
The inaugural winner of the NEWBIE UK award for new entrant farm business of the year announced this week is Lynbreck Croft, a 150-acre mixed habitat croft enterprise located in the Cairngorms National Park, which focuses on nature friendly farming.
The European Commission-funded NEWBIE project offered the award to new entrants in eight European countries including the UK, to help new farmers, crofters and small-holders network and develop successful businesses.
Lynbreck Croft managers Lynn Cassells and Sandra Baer will be presented with €500 towards the cost of training or an international visit, at this year’s Highland Show – and will participate in a European new entrant conference where they can share experiences with award winners from other countries.
“We are really delighted to have been given the newbie award. We have worked so hard over the last few years to build the founda
tions of our new croft business which we see as being rooted in nature and rooted in our community,” said the pair.
The Horned Beef Company in the Lake District, and the Scottish Goat Meat Company in Banffshire, were also recognized as exemplary innovative new entrants, with Dr Adam Calo, of the James Hutton Institute and who co-ordinates the NEWBIE project in the UK, stating that all the shortlisted candidates demonstrated unique ability to overcome barriers in the early phases of their farming career.
With the National Farmers Union representatives from England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales involved in shortlisting the candidates, Andrew Mccornick, said that the winners had been keen to squeeze every ounce out of their business:
“To me, the winners had not a ‘thinking outside of the box’ approach but instead a ‘there is no box there’ vision.” l The Hutton Institute is also calling on farmers to enter their soil samples for the annual “Best Soil in Show” award at the Royal Highland after extending the deadline for entries until the end of April. Chief executive of the Institute, Colin Campbell said that the award recognised the growing realisation that soil had to be functionally healthy for agriculture to be sustainable.