The Tenant Farmers Association (TFA) is extremely sad to report that its former National Chair, Jeremy Walker, has passed away following an accident at his farm near Bridgwater in Somerset. He was 78. Jeremy was a long-standing member of the TFA’s Wessex Regional Committee which he also served as Chair. His period as TFA National Chair was between 2011 and 2014 having previously served as the Association’s Treasurer

Jeremy was a first-generation farmer and was particularly proud of the fact that he was given the opportunity in 1979 to take on the tenancy of Haddon Farm from the Crown Estate. Initially the farm covered 200 acres but rose over time to 650 acres. He farmed in partnership with his wife Helen and son Simon with enterprises including arable, beef, sheep, free range poultry. He also contract farmed for neighbouring farmers.

Recently, he took the opportunity offered by the Crown Estate to buy the farm although he still maintained land on Farm Business Tenancies. Last year, as he took a step back from active farming, he entered into an FBT on the poultry business with a young couple of new entrant farmers.

In his early life, Jeremy attended both Plumpton Agricultural College in East Sussex and Writtle College in Essex and was awarded distinctions on each course. Before taking the farm tenancy in 1979, he held a number of farm management roles and had a period of time as a lecturer in Agricultural Business Management at Plumpton Agricultural College. He was also a past County Chairman of Somerset NFU and of Bridgwater Agricultural Society. He served as a JP for over 30 years and as Chair of his local Parish Council.

TFA Chief Executive George Dunn said “Jeremy was a huge figure within the TFA over many years. He brought rigour to our internal processes and was immensely proud of all the TFA stood for and achieved on behalf of its members. He was always willing to support, share and help where he could. During his time as National Chair I greatly valued both his challenge and support in my role as Chief Executive. We are all shocked at the manner of his passing and I know he will be deeply mourned both within the TFA and beyond. Our immediate thoughts and prayers are with his wife Helen, son Simon and the wider family.”