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All articles about Health and wellbeing

Farmers’ physical and mental health and wellbeing are often pushed to one side as the important tasks of managing a busy arable or livestock farm take over. See ideas to help you keep fit and healthy on the farm and combat rural isolation and stress.

Advice and tips

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Farm Doctor: What to do if you suffer from hearing loss

Working in agriculture can take its toll on hearing as farmers are exposed to many loud noises which, over time, may damage the inner ear. In fact, farming is an…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Considering a new future: Ways to deal with farming pressures

It is no secret that stress and poor mental health are endemic among the people who make their living from the land. As the UK moves away from direct farm…

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Holistic farmer wellbeing health check: How are you really?

Farmers are notorious for spending more time thinking about their livestock, costs and crops than their own happiness and wellbeing. This is perhaps best explained by agriculture’s long history, slight…

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Coronavirus: Advice for managing and keeping staff safe

Farmers may be wondering how to best protect their staff during the coronavirus outbreak. We asked Oliver Dale, managing director at Safety Revolution, and Sophie Walker, business manager at the…

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Case studies

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Son's death leads family to back mental health charity

The parents of a 22-year-old farmer who took his own life are urging youngsters facing a similar situation to seek help and support. Leonard Eadon, from Napton, in Warwickshire, died…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Britain's Fittest Farmer 2021: 4 strong women's entries

Farmers Weekly's popular health and wellbeing competition, Britain's Fittest Farmer, is attracting entries from across the country.  There's still plenty of time for you to enter the contest if you're…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Fit2Farm: How a better work-life balance benefits farm

Achieving a better work-life balance is top of the list for Britain's farmers – many of whom are working long hours with little time off. The average farmer works 65…

PAYMENTS, SCHEMES AND GRANTS

Video: Exmoor group tackles farm support and rural isolation

The unique and thriving farmer-led Exmoor Hill Farming Network has grown to support 300 local farming businesses since it began four years ago under the guidance of chairman Dave Knight…

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Community

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Neurodiversity in farming takes centre stage at roundtable

Neurodiversity in agriculture took a significant step forward on 15 July, as industry leaders gathered to shape the next phase of the Level the Field campaign, now in its second…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Melton's farmers raise funds for heart health checks

Thanks to farming community donations, heart health screening at Melton Mowbray Market will soon include simple ECG tests, improving early detection for farmers’ cardiac concerns. The Melton & Belvoir Agricultural…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

How safety campaign is putting kids and young farmers first

As the 13th annual Farm Safety Week approaches (21-25 July 2025), the Farm Safety Foundation is urging the industry to reflect on why farming remains one of the most dangerous…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Kintyre charity walk raises £89,000 for Rsabi

A charity walk spanning 100 miles along the Kintyre Way has raised more than £88,000 for the Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution (Rsabi). The walk took place in memory of…

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Insights

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Why agriculture needs people with neurodivergent strengths

Agriculture needs people with different ways of thinking, and the industry should be encouraging them to work in the sector if it is to thrive. That’s according to Dr Temple…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

How agriculture can support socialising for the neurodiverse

Social isolation can be a common feature for people with neurodiversities, especially so for children and teenagers. Occasions such as a barn dance or a formal dinner, which are undemanding…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Advice on personal resilience for arable farmers

The constant challenges of farming are nothing new. But with the political and economic uncertainty of recent times, many farmers are coping with heightened anxiety and stress. Personal resilience -…

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News

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Vegans donate £6,000 to farming mental health charity

A vegan farming group has donated £6,000 to a farming mental health charity, following a year-long campaign of fundraising at events and endurance runs. The funds were presented to The…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

IHT concerns causing significant family disputes

While the Welsh farming industry has been cautiously upbeat about the recently launched Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), mental health charity the DPJ Foundation says concerns over changes to inheritance tax…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Ag charities to focus support on finances and succession

Farming charities have sought the views of UK farmers and found financial assistance and succession planning to be the two key areas where farmers would like more support. The Addington…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Farmers offered health checks at Hawes Mart

A pop-up health centre aimed at farmers and gamekeepers launched this month at Hawes Mart in North Yorkshire, designed to make routine checks more accessible and encourage early detection of…

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Opinion

NEWS

Opinion: Simple self-help tools can be useful to farmers

An Irish podcaster known as “Blindboy”, famous for wearing a mask fashioned out of a shopping bag, may have one of the best tools for mental health. He highlights the…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Farmers offer their younger selves some pearls of wisdom

The benefit of hindsight is a wonderful thing, and everyone makes mistakes. We can all learn from each other, too. With this in mind, Farmers Weekly and rural charity The…

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Video

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2022 - meet the winners

The winners of Britain’s Fittest Farmer have been crowned after battling it out at the finals in Essex. The competition was fierce, the camaraderie strong, and our four winners get…

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2022 - the qualifiers

Competitors from across the country converged on Adam Henson’s Cotswold Farm Park for the qualifying rounds of Britain’s Fittest Farmer.  The Gloucestershire venue saw almost 60 entrants battle in out…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Son's death leads family to back mental health charity

The parents of a 22-year-old farmer who took his own life are urging youngsters facing a similar situation to seek help and support. Leonard Eadon, from Napton, in Warwickshire, died…

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Video: Britain's Fittest Farmer 2021 - the final

The competition was intense, but two winners have now been crowned in Farmers Weekly's iconic initiative, designed to spark a discussion about mental and physical health in the countryside. Erica…

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