The Machars YFC member collected his trophy at a packed Scottish Agriculture Awards after excelling throughout a tough final day of competition.
Reacting to his win Ross said:
โIt was a great honour to win Young Farmer of the Year. I knew it was a big competition, but I didnโt realise quite how big until I received so many messages and such a positive reaction, particularly from the district.โ
Ross takes home one of the biggest prizes in SAYFC including a brand-new Can Am Outlander ATV generously provided by main competition sponsors ATV Services.
A spokesperson for ATV said:
โWe would like to extend a huge congratulations to Ross on being named the 2026 SAYFC Young Farmer of the Year, along with all the finalists who took part.
As a business with strong roots in Scottish agriculture, supporting the next generation of farmers is something we are proud to be involved in. Our longstanding relationship with SAYFC has allowed us to meet and support many talented young people over the years, and we look forward to seeing where their futures take them.โ
Ross claimed the title following a busy final day of competition held at SRUC Oatridge.
โIt was a very challenging day with the six challenges to do, using an electric quad bike was certainly a bit difficult and took a bit of getting used to! I particularly enjoyed using the Te Pari sheep handling system for the sheep challenge as itโs a very high-tech handling system.โ
The 6 practical challenges on the day were:
ATV handling with ATV Services, risk Assessment with NFU Scotland, sheep handling using a Te Pari handling system, chemical storage with Agrii, connecting a water trough, and checking and securing a loaded trailer.
Alongside this, contestants had to present their final business plan to a panel of judges. For this section of the competition, facilitated by Galbraith, each of the 6 finalists had 2 months to design, develop and then present business plans based on Lumphinnans Farm in Fife. The contestants had access to experts from Galbraith, Royal Bank of Scotland and Johnston Carmichael to help guide them as they created a detailed proposal including projected outgoings and income for the farm. This was then presented in front of a panel including farmer Charles Ekin and experts from Galbraith, Royal Bank of Scotland, Cefetra, and Johnston Carmichael.
Ross took a lot from the experience:
โI enjoyed presenting the business plan, after spending many hours putting it together it was nice to finally present it. I gained a lot of confidence to back myself and my ideas, and having industry professionals on hand to help assist with the financial side of the business plan was invaluable. ย I gained a lot from listening to their advice.โ
Judge, Jenn Stewart of Johnston Carmichael was impressed by the standard of the presentations:
โIt was a real privilege to be involved again as one of the judges for the Young Farmer of the Year competition.
The standard from the finalists was hugely impressive. Strong business plans, confident pitches, challenging Q&A sessions and, above all, plenty of innovation, ambition and entrepreneurial spirit. Well done to all the finalists, you should be incredibly proud of your achievements.
Supporting and investing in the next generation of our industry is so important, and if this group is anything to go by, there is a huge amount to be positive about.โ
Alongside the ATV and the title, Ross has also been awarded with a trip to the Oxford Farming Conference provided by the SAYFC International Trust. This is one of the UKโs leading Farming Conferences and an opportunity to meet and learn from those at the forefront of the industry.
Our runners up on the day were Harry Neill of Ednam and Euan MacRae of Vale of Alford, who both got a share of ยฃ1000 in prize money from sponsors Royal Bank of Scotland.
Ross hopes that he can use his win to encourage other members to have a go at the competition, especially in his home West Region. When asked what he would say to members considering entering the competition he said:
โGo for it, you only regret the things you donโt do in young farmers, itโs a great way to get first-hand knowledge from industry professionals and other farmers, you will come out of it a better person and will go a long way in helping your business or career! Plus, the prize from ATV Services is probably the best prize you can win in young farmers.โ
Well done once again to Ross and to all our finalists. Many thanks to our competition sponsors and supporters for helping deliver another successful year.ย Thanks to our Young Farmer of the Year committee for their hard work behind the scenes and a final thank you to the Scottish Agriculture Awards for hosting the award again this year.
