New Committee members

Farming briefs

Potato industry figures are making progress towards establishing GB Potatoes to represent the sector after producers voted to end the statutory AHDB levy last year. Using a voluntary subscription model of £5-10/ha for growers and up to 10p/t for first buyers, it could generate £500,000/year to co-ordinate key lobbying, research and marketing work, they argue. Source: FG

A clearer legislative and policy framework is needed if farmers are to play their full role in a pivotal decade for food production, the 2022 City Food Lecture at London’s Guildhall heard. Better coordination between government departments is key to prevent the sector being held back, said keynote speaker Ash Amirahmadi, Arla Foods UK Managing Director.

Source: FG

New Countryside Code guidance from Natural England aims to help farmers and landowners help the public enjoy the countryside in a responsible and respectful way. Advice includes reporting anti-social behaviour, fly-tipping, littering, livestock worrying and other offences correctly, making rights of way more accessible, creating safer environments, including safe bale and log storage and tree management, and installing clearer signs. Search Countryside Code at www.gov.uk

3Skilled Farming Trio

Three new members of the General Committee bring a wealth of farming experience to the Club

TOM RAWSON

Farming entrepreneur West Yorkshire-based

TOM established Evolution Farming in 2010, building from 60 dairy cows on 150 acres to 3,300 dairy cows on 9,500 acres, employing 55 staff, with units in Cumbria, Lancashire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Norfolk and Cheshire, as well as Yorkshire (www.evolutionfarming.co.uk).

Specialising in farm management, particularly dairy, the focus is maximising stakeholder returns through joint ventures, management agreements and land rental, with nine dairy units plus drystock support, beef, sheep arable, contracting and building enterprises.

“The aim is to grow the business and support the aspiration of everyone that works with us by being a strong, vibrant and reliable business, providing secure, enjoyable employment through responsible and prudent business practice, whilst still maintaining a family feel as the business moves towards a more corporate structure,” says Tom.

The business won Dairy Innovator of the Year in the British Farming Awards and Dairy Employer of the Year in the Cream Awards. Tom has been a board member of AHDB Dairy and vice chairman of the NFU National Dairy Board. A Nuffield Scholar and now a Nuffield Trustee, he is a member of ARAgS and a recipient of the Henry Plumb award. He is a member of Arla’s organic committee and is part of the McDonalds Supplier Group.

He is married to Catherine with three children and lives at Thornhill Hall Farm beside the Calder and Hebble Navigation, near Dewsbury, West Yorkshire.

At The Farmers Club Tom sits on the Membership Sub-Committee and General Committee. “It’s an absolute privilege to join the Farmers Club General Committee and be able to give something back to the Club that Catherine and I both enjoy using on a regular basis”.

JANATHA STOUT

Fan of Club fellowship and debate Gloucestershire

JANATHA first worked in agriculture as a land agent, before moving into agricultural education. She is now UK Operations Director for food certification body NSF International (www.nsf.org), a US-based business focused on protecting and improving food, water, consumer products and the environment.

Drawing on her strong agricultural experience Janatha is an independent member of the Welsh Government Agriculture Advisory Panel, a member of the RPA Independent Agriculture Appeals Panel and a former member of the TB Eradication Advisory Group. At The Farmers Club she sits on the Marketing & Communications SubCommittee and General Committee. “Belonging to the Farmers Club has been really beneficial for me,” she says. “It’s in a great location for business, work and leisure. I always enjoy my stays and have met some very interesting people over breakfast or dinner, whilst also catching up with old friends.”

The Club ethos of fostering a strong sense of fellowship amongst members and facilitating debate over the years is very much appreciated. “I have had some very enjoyable evenings dining with other members in the Restaurant. I’ve also been to some really interesting evening lectures and I am very much looking forward to the upcoming lecture from DEFRA Secretary of State George Eustice in April.”

Janatha lives with partner John at Warren Farm, Whittington near Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, a sheep and arable farm close to the highest point in the Cotswolds

STEPHEN BUTLER

HorsePower trustee Lancashire

STEPHEN joins the General Committee with an agricultural background in agribuildings / holdings. He currently runs an agri-engineering operation, a contract baling service and keeps store cattle, continuing a farming dynasty going back over 300 years in his home county of Lancashire.

He is a board member of The Rural and Industrial Design and Building Association (RIDBA), the trade association for the modern agriculture and industrial buildings industry in the UK, providing a collective voice for the sector and representing member views to government.

Stephen sits on the House SubCommittee and General Committee of The Farmers Club. “Being a member of the Club for over ten years has provided a wealth of opportunity to meet new people within the Industry and associated industries, along with a superb base in London, which is indeed a ‘home-fromhome’,” he says. “It also offers so many opportunities to attend various events and social gatherings – not least the splendid Chairman’s Tour to the Borders last summer.”

He is also a Trustee of HorsePower, the Winchester-based museum of the King’s Royal Hussars cavalry regiment. Stunning displays and interactive exhibits trace the story of how the cavalry of horse and sabre developed over 300 years, including the Peninsula War and the Charge of the Light Brigade, into today’s modern armoured regiment.

Stephen and wife Patricia live at Greenhalgh near Preston, where he is a member of the local Parochial Church Council.

LETTERS

to the Editor Dear Editor,

I noted your reference to the 5737t CO2/eq saving in emissions from replacing soya with insect protein on 10 egg farms ‘saving’ 56ha of rainforest destruction (Morrisons figures). The impression is that the soya in UK poultry feeds is directly associated with rainforest destruction and that 56ha of forest would be saved by not growing the soya used in the diet. In fact 97.5% of all UK soya bean meal imports carry no, or very low, risk of any association with deforestation (AIC UK import data). The whole of the livestock supply chain, retailers through to processors, farmers, feed suppliers, importers and producers in origin countries are all working hard towards ensuring soya used in the supply chain is certified and verified deforestation free.

The collaboration between Morrisons and Better Origin is a great example of delivering sustainable options for farmers and AIC is fully supportive of the ‘novel’ protein sectors that will help reduce our reliance on imported proteins.

James McCulloch

Head of Feed Sector Agricultural Industries Confederation Peterborough PE2 6FT www.agindustries.org.uk

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