WILL Evans, the 'rock and roll farmer', made a recent visit to Gwent to urge farmers to "sell their stories" and teach the public about the people behind the profession.

Mr Evans, whose Rock & Roll Farming podcast has won awards, made his comments in Usk during his speech at a recent Monmouthshire NFU Cymru county conference.

He said: “The tasks we may consider mundane, others are fascinated by and they want to know more.

"That’s why it is so important that we sell our farming story and connect with our consumers.

"We now have an opportunity that we’ve never had before, to build that relationship with our customers through technology, we can take pictures, write blogs and create videos.

"If consumers ask questions about farming, answer them, the more that people learn about where their food comes from, the better.

"The UK farming industry has an amazing story to tell and social media is not going anywhere, so we’ve got to make it a positive tool for us.

"We all have a phone, so we have the ability to build a personal connection with our consumers.

"Farming is about the environment – the landscape has been shaped by farmers – but farming is also about people and this is what I try to show off.”

He added: “Remember, farming is super-hot right now. It’s never been more so, you might even say it’s rock & roll.

"Now is the time to capitalise on that. We are not just farmers.”

Monmouthshire NFU Cymru county chair, Kate Beavan, said: “I’d like to thank Will Evans for addressing our annual conference. His speech inspired us all to tell our farming story through social media and connect with our consumers – something we must all do more of.

"I would encourage you all to listen to Will’s Rock & Roll Farming Podcast, which showcases some of our best farmers from across the world.”