We’re in Wales today meeting dairy farmer Gwyndaf Thomas. Gwyndaf owns and runs a 430-acre dairy farm in the rolling hills of Carmarthenshire in West Wales. The herd consists of 270 outdoor run autumn calving cows - mainly Friesian, but also a few Jersey crosses; and the cows are grazed rotationally on grass. Gwyndaf grew up on what is now his brother’s farm and he moved to his family’s other farm once the family had expanded. He has four teenage children and there’s also one full time employee on the farm in addition to Gwyndaf. On top of this he’s a partner in another local dairy farm. In 2016/17 he lost all his cows to TB and had to establish a new herd from scratch, a truly difficult time.

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Ben Eagle is the founder and Head of Podcasts at RuralPod Media, a specialist rural podcast production agency. He is also a freelance rural affairs and agricultural journalist. You can find out more at ruralpodmedia.co.uk or benjamineagle.co.uk 

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Show References

Image credit: Gwyndaf Thomas

Timestamps

00:27 Ben introduces the show.

01:53 Gwyndaf comes on.

02:29 Gwyndaf talks about Carmarthenshire. 

03:03 Gwyndaf talks about his business and the herd.

05:55 The farm where Gwyndaf grew up.

08:03 Gwyndaf went to Aber to do a degree in agriculture but his father had an accident so he had to return to the family farm. 

12:04 Gwyndaf's dad's accident. 

14:51 A Plan Rural Insurance sponsor message.

15:37 Gwyndaf grew and developed the business and eventually moved to the other farm.

20:45 Eastern European labour. 

24:03 A Plan Rural Insurance sponsor message.

25:29 Gwyndaf's message for the public. 

26:32 Gwyndaf's message to farmers. 

28:49 Ben rounds up.