This week will see the Farm Safety Foundation, also known as Yellow Wellies, run their eighth annual Mind Your Head campaign.

The charity aims to bring together a huge number of farming organisations from across the UK to raise awareness and drive change around farm safety and mental health. NFU Cymru is acutely aware that this is a time of unprecedented change for the farming industry with concerns around the Sustainable Farming Scheme (SFS), rising costs, water quality regulations, a range of animal diseases and now inheritance tax issues to add to the mix.

Whilst farmers take great care looking after their livestock and their land, they can sometimes overlook the importance of looking after themselves. The health and wellbeing of farmers and all those working in the food and farming sector is a source of considerable concern to NFU Cymru, ensuring everyone in our sector prioritises both their physical and mental well-being has never been more important.

This year’s campaign runs from Monday 10th to Friday 14th February and coincides with Valentine’s Day so will focus on love, positivity and resilience. It aims to remind those living and working in farming that we may have bad days but there will always be good days, so we should encourage each other to open up, reach out and normalise conversations about how you feel and how valued you are, not only at home, but to the farming community and wider public.

We need to continue to break down the stigma attached to poor mental health in the farming sector. It can often be difficult share your own personal experiences or begin a conversation with a family member, friend or colleague on an issue like mental health. This is why a week like this is so important to highlight the initiatives that are driving better mental wellbeing; to inspire us all to take positive steps to prioritise our mental health; to ensure we are all aware that help is available ; and finally to share evidence, experiences and real stories to illustrate the steps taken by those in the industry and by many individuals to improve mental wellbeing in farming.

There are a number of fantastic organisations here in Wales who offer support and advice specific to farmers struggling with mental health issues. You can contact The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Fund (RABI) on 0800 1884444. The DPJ Foundation is another Welsh mental health charity who supports those in agricultural and rural communities. You can contact them by calling 0800 587 4262 or text 07860 048799. Tir Dewi are also available for support, and they recognise the growing and serious need to help farmers who are experiencing difficult times. You can contact them by calling 0800 121 47 22. Finally, the Farming Community Network (FCN) is a voluntary organisation and charity that supports farmer and families within the farming community. You can contact them on 03000 111 999.

You can get involved in the campaign by visiting the Yellow Wellies social media accounts to comment, share your story and use #MindYourHead