Frank Carr, who has died aged 35.
The farming community is mourning the loss of Frank Carr, the fourth-generation farmer at Lee Gate Farm in Malhamdale, who died aged 35 on September 25.
Frank was a familiar and much-loved face to Farmers Guardian readers, having shared his farming journey with us on numerous occasions in recent years.
Farming more than 2,000 acres of owned and rented land in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Frank worked alongside his family running a substantial beef and sheep enterprise, with around 250 breeding cows and 1,300 breeding ewes, as well as store and finished cattle.
Frank had a deep connection to the farm, the landscape and the generations who had gone before him.
In 2023, FG visited Frank at Lee Gate Farm after he had returned to the family business following several years away for further education and travel. Looking out across the vast landscape, he spoke with pride about the heritage of the farm and his determination to carry it forward.
That commitment to the next generation was something Frank embodied. He understood the challenges facing hill farming, from weather and markets to the cost of investment and the need to make a living from some of the country's most challenging agricultural land.
His approach was captured as part of Farmers Guardian's Next Generation Hill Farmers series, which followed his efforts to secure the future of the family business.
Frank was a #Farm24 campaign ambassador for a number of years helping to showcase the reality of modern farming and the people behind the food we eat.
His story reached an even wider audience when Adam Henson visited Lee Gate Farm for BBC One's Countryfile. As Frank walked the fields and checked on newborn lambs, he spoke candidly about the unforgiving nature of the Yorkshire Dales, the pressures of farming in such a landscape and his hopes for the future.
FG editor Katie Jones said: "For those who met Frank through his farming, his work with the industry or his appearances in the farming media, he will be remembered not only as a talented young farmer but as someone who represented the very best of the next generation - committed to his family, his livestock, his land and the future of British farming. He was a true friend of FG. His loss, at just 35, is immeasurably sad."
Mental health support for farmers
Where farmers can find help:
- RABI: 0800 188 4444
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- Addington Fund: 01926 620 135
- Samaritans: 116 123
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