NFU Mutual Northern Ireland Tidy Farm Award

The society would like to congratulate Samuel Allen from Droghed Farms in Coleraine for claiming first place in the dairy category of the NFU Mutual Northern Ireland Tidy Farm Award. 

Held to demonstrate the importance of a safe working environment, the competition attracted some quality entries from farmers keen to show they have done everything possible to make their farmyards safe for workers, family and the public. This was the third time the competition has been run in Northern Ireland, following a positive response from farmers in 2018 and 2019.

Farmers were able to nominate themselves, or local people could nominate a farm in their area. Family members and friends can also make nominations. Entries were shortlisted from eight submitted photographs showing how common farm hazards had been addressed to reduce the risk of an accident.  

In previous years, the judges visited shortlisted farms to assess their safety features first hand. With Coronavirus restrictions preventing face-to-face judging this year, the last stage of the competition was assessed through virtual walk arounds sent in by finalists.  The award judges were: Stephanie Berkeley, Farm Safety Foundation; Barclay Bell, former UFU President; Camilla Mackey, HSENI Farm Safety Inspector and Martin Malone, NFU Mutual Manager for Northern Ireland.

The initiative was supported by the Farm Safety Partnership, HSENI, NFU Mutual Risk Management Services and the Farm Safety Foundation, the charity set up by NFU Mutual to help farmers work safely.

Martin Malone, NFU Mutual Manager for Northern Ireland, said: “I’d like to congratulate this year’s winners, who stood out in a pool of extremely high standard entries. While the judging could not go ahead face-to-face as planned, we were able to collect virtual walk-arounds from the farming families showing how safety had been addressed on their farms. This gave us a great opportunity to see those farms in practice and assess the safety features that had been put in place.  We set up the awards to recognise farmers who had really gone the extra mile to ensure a safe, tidy and healthy working environment. As a mutual insurer which is closely connected with most of Northern Ireland’s farms, we are all too aware of the heartbreak farm accidents cause. Because most farms are homes as well as a workplace, this scheme stands as a reminder that safety should be front of mind for the whole farming family.”

Stephanie Berkeley, who manages the Farm Safety Foundation, said: “The Farm Safety Foundation were delighted to, once again, be part of the judging panel in this competition celebrating the best of our industry. “With the Balmoral Show being cancelled due to the current situation, it felt right to announce the winners during our Farm Safety Week, an annual campaign supported by the NI Farm Safety Partnership that brings together five countries over five days to highlight that farming may still have the poorest safety record of any occupation here, but there are many farmers and farm businesses in Northern Ireland investing time and effort and taking safety seriously.

Although judging the shortlist proved a bit of a challenge, by using FaceTime, videos and commentary, we were able to get a clear indication of the measures farmers have taken to create a safe and tidy farm and the pride they have in their farming business.

“The standout dairy winner Samuel Allen of Droghed had invested in good separation between home and and yard, and demonstrated some excellent examples of animal welfare, hygiene and biosecurity and very impressive handling facilities. Everything was well thought out from a business perspective and we need to reward the commitment that farmers like this make to safety, normalise good practice and celebrate all those taking time, effort and pride in their farms.”