Food and farming advocate secures Student of the Year accolade at Royal Welsh Show

Posted Today

Nerys Parry receives her award from Royal Welsh Show President 2026 Gethin Harvard with, from left, Harper Adams University Vice-Chancellor Professor Michael Lee, Ceri Harvard DL, and Harper Adams University Director of Development and Alumni Relations Doris Taylor

A keen advocate for Welsh food and farming has been named the Harper Cymru Royal Welsh Agricultural Society Student of the Year for 2026.

Nerys Parry, from Llansoy, Monmouthshire, received the accolade at this year’s Royal Welsh Show in Builth Wells – an event she has attended for many years and which she hopes to support “for years to come.”

Now in the final year of her BSc (Hons) Agri-Food Marketing with Business degree, Nerys served as secretary of the Harper Cymru Society while at University – and is delighted to see her work for Wales, Welsh students and Welsh agriculture recognised.

She said: “This award was something I have had a great desire to receive ever since I started my studies at Harper Adams.

“The cultural connection to the award means a lot to me; to receive recognition that I am a strong advocate for Welsh students at the University is an honour.

“I have visited the Royal Welsh Show since I was very young, so to be part of the award ceremony at this year’s show will certainly be a highlight.

“I hope to be an advocate for Welsh agriculture and the food industry in the future, and to support the Royal Welsh Show for years to come.”

Nerys has set up her own catering company, which she hopes to combine with work on the family farm and the graduate job she is currently finalising – and she will be showing off her culinary skills during her time at the Show.

She added: “I am really looking forward to enjoying the Harper Cymru/Royal Welsh Student of the year award ceremony and will be cooking at the Young Farmers’ Welsh finals too, so it will be a busy week!”

Aled Rhys Jones, Chief Executive of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society, said: “Congratulations to Nerys on this well-deserved achievement.

“The Harper Cymru/Royal Welsh Agricultural Society Student of the Year Award is an important opportunity to recognise the next generation of talented individuals who are already making their mark on the agricultural industry.

“It is incredibly refreshing to hear Nerys’ story and to see the enthusiasm, ambition and entrepreneurial spirit she brings to everything she does. Her passion for Welsh agriculture, food and rural communities is evident, and she is a wonderful ambassador for the industry.

“I have no doubt she has a bright career ahead of her, and we wish her every success in the years to come.”

Looking back at her time at Harper Adams, Nerys added: “My time at university has flown by due to the friendships I have made - which I will have for a lifetime - and the university have provided plentiful opportunities to expand my skillset.

“I have always had a passion for agriculture as I grew up on a beef and sheep farm - but also had a desire to learn more about the food and marketing aspects of business and entrepreneurship. I did not want to limit what career path I would be qualified to pursue.

“My course enabled me to complete modules within agriculture, food, marketing and business procedures, which provided me with a range of insight, and a steer into which avenues I was more interested in for a career.

“Harper Adams has a superb reputation within the agri-food sector and close industry links, which really appealed to me.

“The placement year also stood out to me, as I wanted to discover which career areas I could go into - and to discover both what I wanted and didn’t want to do after University.”

For her placement, Nerys chose to work at Müller UK & Ireland on the company’s Commercial Private Label Team.

She added: “I was fortunate to have commercial links to retailers, which provided great insight - right from the farm all the way through to supermarkets.

“I did a lot of presenting and work with industry category data throughout the year, which improved my knowledge of how consumer trends and retailer strategy is so closely aligned, and my confidence in presenting professionally.

“I completed my placement year at the end of July 2025 - and have seen new products in the supermarkets just this week that I worked on during my time at Müller, which shows the long processes of putting products on shelves, and is a continuous reminder of the work I did over the year.”