UPLAND sheep farmer David Raine has been confirmed as the new NFU Cumbria County chairman for 2016 and 2017.

He officially took over from Richard Geldard, of Low Foulshaw Farm, Kendal at the county's annual dinner at the Westmorland Hotel, Tebay, on Monday (25).

Mr Raine farms at Old Parks, Kirkoswald, near Penrith, with wife, Anne, and son Michael, the eldest of four children.

The farm is between 400ft and 600ft above sea level with 410 acres of typical Eden Valley pasture land, alongside 830 acres of rough grazing hill land near Hartside summit on the Penrith to Alston road.

Old Parks has 1,000 breeding ewes, predominantly Swaledales, with mules and Blue Faced Leicesters, alongside 220 cattle based on a suckler herd of 70 Limousin cross cows.

The commercial sheep and cattle are sold through Penrith and District Farmers Mart, with breeding sheep also sold through H&H.

Mr Raine is a well known figure in farming circles. He has many years experience in the NFU at county and national level, is a past chairman of the National Sheep Association, and is still its representative on the Assured Food Standards (AFS) beef and lamb advisory board.

He also sat on the Meat and Livestock Commission panel between 1994 and 1998, chaired its sheep strategy council between 1998 and 2002, and was a member of the EBLEX Executive Board until 2012.