The hunt is on to find the best new entrant farmers and crofters in the UK.
Entries are now open for the 2020 Newbie award, run by the James Hutton Institute (JHI) as part of the EU-funded Newbie project – the New Entrant netWork: Business models for innovation, entrepreneurship and resilience in European agriculture.
The project involves eight countries, including the UK and it aims to help new farmers, crofters and smallholders network and develop successful businesses.
The Newbie project leader for the UK, Dr Adam Calo from the JHI, encouraged new entrants to enter the awards.
“The awards celebrate innovation, creativity and resilience,” said Dr Calo.
“This could be presented as economic resilience through sound financial planning or demonstrable ability to respond to challenges like Covid-19, climate change and Brexit.
“What made you start a farming business, what it covers and what you have achieved? We want to hear from you.”
The inaugural winners of the UK award in 2018 were Lynn Cassells and Sandra Baer, who run the 150-acre Lynbreck Croft in the Cairngorms National Park.
The pair won 500 euros (£445) towards training, and participated in an international new entrant farmer conference held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where they networked with Newbie award winners from across Europe.
Previous finalists have also included the Banffshire-based Scottish Goat Meat Company, which is run by Victoria Gardiner and Adam Wright.
To enter the awards, farmers are required to film a two-minute video talking about themselves and their business and send it to newbieaward@hutton.ac.uk
Full details of the awards are online here and applications close on December 2.
The winner will be announced in spring 2021.