Coping with the pressures of farming in the poultry sector

Farming, and being a part of a farming family comes with many responsibilities and along with each responsibility comes an element of pressure and stress.

As the agriculture sector navigates through Brexit, climate policies and uncertainty about what the future holds, the day to day running of the farm can, at times, all get a bit too much, and something like a disease outbreak can suddenly make things seem impossible.

At the end of last year, we couldn’t escape the news that the UK’s “largest ever” outbreak of avian flu was affecting all parts of the UK including Northern Ireland. The news headlines alone brought stress and fear upon those involved and indeed to the wider poultry sector.

Rural Support’s Head of Farm Support Gillian Reid commented: “Challenges like disease outbreaks can have an impact on anyone’s mental health. We believe that to be able to handle challenges like this, a high level of mental fitness is essential and with the Avian Flu outbreak affecting so many farmers, farming families and indeed many sector workers for this prolonged period, it was evident that action to support those involved was needed.

“This spring Rural Support is asking farmers and farming families in the poultry sector across Northern Ireland to make increasing their mental fitness a priority and participate in one of our free ‘Coping with the Pressures of Farming’ workshops.”

The workshops are being organised following requests from DAERA and industry leaders due to concerns related to the impact of the recent bird flu pandemic. The workshops will be delivered as part of CAFRE’s Farm Family Key Skills programme and Rural Support are offering these workshops to farming groups across the province.

They will be delivered across Northern Ireland to farmers, their families and employees and will focus on: how to recognise the symptoms of excessive stress; exploring ways to build resilience and develop strong mental fitness and learning how to access specialist support.

The workshops will also encourage participants to think practically about the changes they could make to their lifestyle and/or business to improve their wellbeing.

Dates and locations of upcoming workshops are:

Thursday, 24th February 2022 - 7:30pm - Online.

Tuesday, 1st March 2022 - 7:30pm - Omagh - Silverbirch Hotel.

Wednesday, 2nd March 2022 - 7:30pm - Glarryford - Farmers Hall.

Thursday, 3rd March 2022 - 7:30pm - Portadown, - Seagoe Hotel.

Thursday, 10th March 2022 - 7:30pm - Online.

Wednesday, 16th March - 7:30pm - Cookstown - The Royal Hotel.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions spaces are limited so to register please contact Rural Support’s Farm Support Unit by contacting Freephone 0800 138 1678 or email [email protected]. Places can also be booked via CAFRE’s website https://www.cafre.ac.uk/business-courses/coping-with-the-pressures-of-farming/

Any groups that would like to avail of this free workshop, get in touch with Rural Support.

To learn more about Rural Support’s other programmes and workshops visit the NI Farm Support Hub at www.ruralsupport.org.uk or Freephone 0800 138 1678 (Monday to Friday 9am to 9pm).