FW Awards: Nominate your 2026 Farming Champion

Farmers Weekly is on the hunt for a special person who has gone above and beyond the call of duty to help British agriculture in the past 12 months.

The Farming Champion category of our annual FW Awards recognises someone every year who has worked selflessly on behalf of farmers, farming families, their community or the wider industry. 

See also: Late spring brings farms to market from Devon to County Durham

The worthy winner could be an individual, a couple or a group of people – and over the years, the reasons for those wins have been many and varied.

In 2025, it was MP Alistair Carmichael for his work on behalf of crofters, farmers and rural communities, both in Scotland and across Britain.

A farmer’s son, born and brought up on Islay, Alistair was first elected in 2001 as Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland, the UK’s most northerly constituency, but his advocacy for agriculture reached far beyond his own patch.

Former rugby referee Nigel Owens scooped the title in 2024 for his campaigning on rural matters, speaking out on issues such as mental health, bovine TB and the financial challenges that farmers face.

In 2023, it was awarded to Lynda and Andy Eadon who, following the loss of their son Len, dedicated their lives to increasing awareness and support for rural mental health.

Through their work, they raised money for suicide prevention and farming charities such as the Farming Community Network, Farm Safety Foundation and Papyrus.

Who is your Farming Champion?

If you know someone who could be a worthy 2026 winner, we’d like to hear from you.

It could be someone you know (it’s fine to nominate a relative, friend, neighbour or colleague) or it could simply be someone who you admire and respect.

If you would like to send us a few words about the person you’re nominating, please feel free to do so, but it’s fine if you would rather just send us a name. Nominations can be confidential, too.

Farmers often don’t get credit for all the work they do, so the FW Farming Champion of the Year Award aims to recognise and reward the often unsung heroes of our industry.

The winner will be announced at the Farmers Weekly Awards Night on Thursday 1 October 2026, held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.