John Bell Cameron


1939 -

Farmer and businessman. Born in Edinburgh and educated at Dollar Academy, Cameron built up a group of seven farms extending to more than 15,000 ha (37,000 acres) in Fife and West Perthshire. He was credited as being the largest sheep farmer in Europe but sold the bulk of his holdings in 2006, retaining Balbuthie farm in SE Fife as his home. He maintains another home on the shores of Lake Malawi. Cameron served as President of the National Farmers Union of Scotland, and held several other positions on national and international agricultural bodies. He also had a second career in rail transport. He is a qualified train driver, who has served on the British Railways Board, as Chairman of ScotRail and a Director of South West Trains. He also owns two steam locomotives; the Union of South Africa and the Great Marquess, driving the former to pull the inaugural service on the revitalised Borders Railway in 2015, with HM Queen Elizabeth II and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on board.

Cameron was awarded a CBE for his services to farming (1984) and holds honorary doctorates from Edinburgh Napier University (1998) and the University of St. Andrews (2017). Cameron and his wife Margaret fund travelling scholarships for young farmers and pupils of Dollar Academy through their Cameron Trust.


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