Young people 'the future of farming'

Ellie Scovell, 24, was the first person in her family to get into farming

A first-generation farmer has said it is crucial to support younger people into agriculture to keep the industry alive.

Twenty-four-year old Ellie Scovell, a stock woman and calf rearer in Alton, Hampshire, did not come from a farming background and had to work for free to get the experience she needed for her first job.

She said the younger generation were "the future of farming", adding "somebody needs to take over" from the older generation.

"No farmers, no food, and then there's no future… there will be none left and then the country would just go down the drain," she said.

Ms Scovell grew up on the Isle of Wight where she found there were not very many farming jobs because of the island's size.

"I worked just for free for people just to get the experience, get my foot in there, so I could build up enough to go to my first employer and go, 'trust me, give me a job and I'll show you what I can do'," she said.

"And I was very lucky - they took me on and now I've moved to the mainland to progress my career and now I'm here."

Ms Scovell worked for free to get the experience she needed

She said the rise in farmers using the social media had been beneficial to the industry, and allowed her to see what different kinds of farmers do.

"I love watching other people's videos and seeing everyone support each other, and it's so nice to see as well what other people do," she said.

"I like to see the other sides of farming that I don't do myself."

She said the TV show Clarkson's Farm, in which presenter Jeremy Clarkson tries to run a farm with no previous experience, had also helped shine a light on the industry.

"I think it's probably one of the best things to happen to farming in a very, very long time," she said.

"He shows the realistic-ness of farming - the good and the bad."