Emily Winter won the accolade at the Norfolk Rural Business Awards, organised by Norfolk County Council in partnership with the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association.

The 33-year-old said she was proud to be the first recipient of the award, introduced to mark the International Year of the Woman Farmer in 2026.

Having grown up on Darrow Green Farm in the Waveney Valley, near Harleston, she became a partner in her family's business about three years ago.

But soon afterwards, she faced emotional and professional challenges after losing two cherished family members within a year.

Her grandfather Eddie Winter, who was in his 90s but still active in the business, passed away in 2023 and then her father Simon died of prostate cancer a year later, at the age of 64.

Emily Winter with her late father Simon and grandfather Eddie at Darrow Green Farm in the Waveney Valley (Image: Winter family)

Despite being left to run the 120-hectare mixed business without their "advice, guidance and wisdom", she has pushed ahead with her vision for the farm, which awards judges described as "an increasingly sustainable, diversified operation focused on high-welfare meat........

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