Lord Newborough of Rhug Estate has been announced the winner of this year’s NFU Cymru Clwyd Dafydd Jones Memorial Award.
The award, now in its second year, was launched by the NFU Cymru Clwyd county branch in memory of their late County Chairman, Dafydd Jones, of Pencoed Ucha, who suddenly passed away in February 2019. The award is presented to the NFU Cymru Clwyd member who has made a great contribution and a lasting, positive impact on agriculture in the county.
Lord Newborough is the owner of The Rhug Estate, an almost 8,000-acre organic farm near Corwen producing premium wholesale organic meat including Aberdeen Angus beef, lamb, salt marsh lamb, chicken, wild game, bison, turkeys and geese. This year, the Rhug celebrated 20 years of being certified organic, something that is close to Lord Newborough’s heart.
Lord Newborough tries to seize every opportunity to promote the benefits of sustainable organic farming in Denbighshire to a local, UK and international audience. He has made an enormous contribution to promoting the benefits of organic meat and products.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic struck, he would often travel abroad with the Welsh Government food and drink team to help find new markets, whilst promoting the excellence and high quality of both Welsh and organic lamb and beef.
The Rhug is actively involved in promoting change and progress within the Welsh farming sector through its involvement in the Glastir scheme, as well as working with Farming Connect, Moredun Research Institute and the Waitrose development forum for lamb and beef. The estate is Soil Association certified and is an active member of the Organic Trade Board.
The Rhug is an important provider of local employment and contributes to the local economy and culture of the county, with the vast majority of the staff living within a 10-mile radius of the estate. As the business diversifies, the workforce grows. In 1998 the business employed nine people and before Coronavirus took hold, Rhug employed 115. A number of the staff working on the farm have been part of the team for many years, including the farm manager who has worked on the estate for 26 years. The estate actively seeks to use the services of local businesses and works with local schools and organisations, delivering educational farm tours and supporting many local charities. Rhug also operates a bilingual policy.
Dewi Jones, NFU Cymru Clwyd County Chairman, said: “Congratulations to Lord Newborough on winning this year’s award. He has made an enormous contribution to the local economy and the organic farming industry over many years. His endeavour and dedication to his work sees him frequently travelling between Corwen, London, the middle and far east to meet customers face to face to explain the virtues of buying their meat from Wales.”
Lord Newborough, owner of Rhug Estate said: “I am truly honoured to have been chosen for this award by my fellow local NFU Cymru members. This has been a tough year for the business but work on the farm has continued regardless of the pandemic and we, like all farmers, have continued to produce food for the nation.”