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Glass young farmer in final three for BBC Countryside Champion award


By Pat Scott

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Nicola Wordie has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion. Picture: Becky Saunderson.
Nicola Wordie has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion. Picture: Becky Saunderson.

A YOUNG livestock farmer from Glass is in line for major, UK wide industry recognition.

Nicola Wordie, who farms with her parents at Cairnborrow is into the final three in Countryfile's Young Countryside Champion category of the BBC Food and Farming awards.

The 23 year old will feature in Countryfile on Sunday after the programme's presenter, Adam Henson visited the farm recently.

The family farm 1300 acres and have a herd of 240 breeding cows and 820 ewes.

Nicola (23) got an HND in Agriculture from Craibstone and had a short work trip to New Zealand after graduating before returning to the family farm where she works across all areas but has responsibility for the lambing flock which includes a small flock of pedigree Texels.

Nicola Wordie who has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion with her two sheepdogs. Picture: Becky Saunderson.
Nicola Wordie who has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion with her two sheepdogs. Picture: Becky Saunderson.

But it's not just for her commitment to the farm enterprise that she has been selected but also her efforts to promote farming to a wide audience through her Instagram account @livestock_farmher.

The call from the BBC to say she had been shortlisted came as a complete surprise to Nicola.

Her sister Sarah, a doctor in Edinburgh submitted the nomination after her friends commented on how the Instagram feed had helped them get a better appreciation of the daily challenges of farming.

Sarah said: "So many of my friends just had no idea about farming and food production, Nicola's Instagram is a great way of educating people and my friends really enjoy it. She's championing agriculture.

"I hadn't thought to tell her I had nominated her then the call came. There were 500 nominations and she's into the final three, I am really proud of her."

The Instagram feed has 1800 followers and the number keeps growing.

Nicola Wordie who has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion with one of the calves from the 240 herd of cows. Picture: Becky Saunderson.
Nicola Wordie who has been nominated for Countryfile Young Countryside Champion with one of the calves from the 240 herd of cows. Picture: Becky Saunderson.

Nicola said: "It's a day to day account of what's happening on the farm. It's about getting farming out there, showcasing the good and the bad, showing why farming is so important and why -people should promote it.

"Sarah's friends think its amazing and have learned a lot. It helps to get past the fake news about farming being bad.

"It promotes farming for women too and breaks down the perception that women can't do the work - 28 per cent of the workforce in agriculture is now women - the more women there are on farms the better."

If Nicola is selected for the award, Adam Henson and the Countryfile team will return for another filming session with her on the farm.


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