Farmers urged to help on 'overdue' arthritis study

Farmers suffering with arthritis have been urged to take part in an "essential" study about the impact the condition has on the profession.

The University of Worcester has been researching the issue, but said it needed more farm workers from Herefordshire and Worcestershire to share their experiences.

The study was announced in 2025 after data from the Farming Community Network charity showed people who farmed for 10 years or more were nine times more likely to develop arthritis.

Rob Davies, a farmer in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, said he welcomed the university's study and it was "long overdue".

"Agriculture is a physical job," he added. "Producing British food for a grateful nation is hard work, it's physically demanding.

"Farmers tend to do what they do longer than other industries - it tends to be inter-generational and those 10 years go by in a flash. Having research to look into this problem is essential."

Davies said while he did not suffer from arthritis personally, he knew farmers who did and described it as "debilitating".

"They feel they can't perform as they've always performed," Davies said. "It's not just a physical issue, it has a huge impact on their mental health as well.

"I would absolutely encourage people to get in touch and take a full and active role in this research."

Dr Victoria Jones, research fellow at the university, said while there had been statistics-led studies in other countries, this one would focus more on farmers' lived experience.

But she said it would not work until enough potential participants got in touch with the university to take part.

"We really do need farmers to come and talk to us," she added. "We're looking for farmers and farm workers from a cross-section of sectors."

Asked what she had learned so far, Jones said farmers tended to ignore their symptoms until they were "quite extreme" or make adaptations, like using foam as padding on things like gear sticks.

While researchers were primarily focusing on Herefordshire and Worcestershire, she said farmers from other areas could get in touch too.

She said people needed to be 18 years old at least and family members could also take part.

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