A training programme is coming to NI in April 2025 to help give farmers a voice in the mainstream media.

Just Farmers was set up by journalist Anna Jones in 2018 when she noticed it was hard to find farmers who were willing to be interviewed or comment on agricultural news stories.

“Farmers seemed to be becoming more distrustful of journalists and were worried about how they would come across in interviews,” she told the Irish Farmers Journal.

Jones was brought up on a farm on the English-Welsh border. She has worked as a newspaper journalist and as a broadcaster with the BBC, mainly specialising in farming and rural affairs.

She has also completed a Nuffield Farming Scholarship study about the barriers between the media and farmers.

One of her key concerns is that if farmers shy away from speaking to reporters, then the issues they face are not aired to the public and the disconnect between farmers and consumers will grow.

“I am a farmer’s daughter and a journalist, so I have foot in both camps. I thought I was in a good position to do something positive to address this.

“I set up Just Farmers to provide free media education training for farmers and to build connections between journalists and farmers,” Jones explained.

The community interest company is fully funded by charitable grants and donations from different trusts and foundations.

Since setting up Just Farmers, Jones has seen that finding the confidence to speak to reporters is one of the biggest issues identified in the training workshops.

“A lot of farmers feel that they are on their own and that the outside world doesn’t care about them, whether that’s consumers, the media or the government,” she said.

NI course

Just Farmers is holding a three-day workshop for farmers and growers from NI in the Eikon Exhibition Centre from 15 to 17 April.

There are 12 spaces available and the application form to join the programme is accessible on the Just Farmers website.

“We really are a broad church. We are open to all types of farmers. It’s the diversity of farming sectors and systems that makes it special,” Jones said.

The course covers a range of media-related skills including public speaking, interviewing and writing.

While the aim is to teach farmers about the media, Jones said a key outcome is that it gives participants time away from their farms and allows them to meet new people in a different environment.

Jones believes that is an important part of helping to “bridge the urban-rural divide” which is often overlooked.

“There is a lot of work going on to get consumers and kids from urban areas on to farms, but is there enough going on to get farmers off their farms and into the cities?

“I believe it’s equally important. You need to understand your market and your customers. It can’t be a one-way street. Just Farmers is playing a part in that,” she said.