A sixth-generation farmer, Will Young 鈥� aka Farmer Will 鈥� has been farming full-time since the age of 17.
鈥淚鈥檓 very much an outdoorsy person. Growing up, I didn鈥檛 like sitting in a classroom or at a desk. I would help on the farm, and I鈥檇 love it,鈥� Will said. After some encouragement from his dad to explore his options outside of farming, Will tried his hand at several different careers, from accounting to catering. 鈥淢y dad always encouraged my brother and I to go out and get an education. He said, 鈥榯he farm is always going to be here, you don鈥檛 need to rush and make a decision about farming full time, it鈥檚 a life-long commitment鈥�.鈥�
But when he did try and find a career outside of agriculture, all Will was thinking about was home. 鈥淚 said, 鈥榯his is so silly, I just want to work on the farm鈥� so that鈥檚 when I came back full time. I got on TikTok about two years ago and I guess that鈥檚 where everything started to change.鈥�
TikTok talk begins
After some encouragement from a friend, Will uploaded a Snapchat video to TikTok during lambing season. 鈥淚t just blew up and since then, I鈥檝e been trying to promote farming.
鈥淚t鈥檚 more for non-farmers than farmers in the way that I speak, so if you don鈥檛 understand farming, you鈥檒l be able to watch the videos and have an idea of what鈥檚 going on. Then I went on Love Island, which was really random, and here I am today.鈥�
鈥�Love Island has given me a bigger platform where I can actually talk about real issues within the farming community and industry, which is the most amazing thing.鈥�
Farmer Will
Today is living back on the family farm with girlfriend Jessie Wynter whom Will found love with in the villa.
With almost two million followers on TikTok, Will continues to use the platform to raise awareness about farming, taking this a step further in October of last year with his debut book, 鈥楩or The Love Of Farming鈥�, which he calls 鈥渁 real pinch me moment鈥�.
鈥淚鈥檝e tried to do it in the way of my TikTok videos, where you don鈥檛 need to be a farmer or understand farming to be able to read it,鈥� Will said.
鈥淎lthough it is educational, it鈥檚 done in a very light-hearted, easy manner and that鈥檚 what I wanted the book to be because I wasn鈥檛 great at English, I did struggle, so even having a book out still surprises me.鈥�
While it鈥檚 an easy read, the book also touches on mental health and some of the troubles of the job. 鈥淚f I write another book, I鈥檇 love to go into the issues a lot more,鈥� he said, adding one of the main things that appearing on Love Island has led to is a bigger platform.
鈥淚 was back lambing a week after leaving the villa which was really so intense, it felt like I鈥檇 never worked in my life,鈥� Will laughed. 鈥淚t humbled me, it was so tough, but Love Island has given me a bigger platform where I can actually talk about real issues within the farming community and industry, which is the most amazing thing.鈥�
He pointed to issues including sustainable farming, getting farmers a fair price, mental health, and diversification, adding he will continue to use his platform to spark conversations and get people talking.
The future of farming
Will is also passionate about the future of farming and fostering the next generation: 鈥淚t is so important because farming feeds the world. Not necessarily just the country, it feeds the world. Without farming you wouldn鈥檛 survive.鈥�
For the Love of Farming: Farmer Will's Guide to Life in the Fields is out now.
Follow Will on social media:
- _ on instagram
- on TikTok
With the average age of a farmer in the UK at 59 and across the world at 60, Will is a keen advocate for change and is eager to get more young people involved in the industry, using his social media presence to help drive awareness of farming, and the agricultural sector more widely, as a career choice.
鈥淭here鈥檚 such a stereotype around farming but it鈥檚 changing so much. You don鈥檛 have to be an old man in wellies, you can be young, you can be cool.鈥�
And it鈥檚 the younger farmers, Will thinks, who are key to driving change in the industry. 鈥淭his generation coming through who are being taught different ways of farming, how to be more sustainable and more environmental, this is where the real change is going to happen and if there鈥檚 not enough people to push that, then it just won鈥檛.鈥�
鈥�There鈥檚 a massive stigma around 鈥榦h if you鈥檙e in agriculture you have to be a farmer鈥�, when you don鈥檛. There are many different routes that you can go down.鈥�
Farmer Will
Will also would love to see agriculture on the curriculum. 鈥淚 would love to have a real big push and involvement in agriculture being taught in schools. I think it is so important.
鈥淭he only reason I work on a farm and I鈥檓 in agriculture is because my family farm, and I love it, but if I didn鈥檛 come from that sort of background, I probably wouldn鈥檛 do it because it wouldn鈥檛 have been an option at school and so many people are in that category.
鈥淚t鈥檚 so important that where our food comes from is taught as a lot of people probably just know that food comes from a supermarket and that鈥檚 how it is, but there鈥檚 so many different things that go on beforehand.
鈥淓specially as a young kid, knowing where your food comes from and knowing that it鈥檚 a career option because agriculture will always be around, it鈥檚 probably the most sustainable job. Just knowing it is an option and that there are so many jobs. There鈥檚 a massive stigma around 鈥榦h if you鈥檙e in agriculture you have to be a farmer鈥�, when you don鈥檛. There are many different routes that you can go down.鈥�
