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Chairman’s Comments
AS I write these notes some two months into my year as Club Chairman, I am delighted to report the Club is a hive of activity following two very difficult and challenging years of which we are all too aware.
Quite appropriately my most recent Club event was the relaunch of the Under 35s, with a Black-Tie Gala Dinner, held in the Farmers Suite and hosted by Under 35s Chairman Alice Hind.
Not only was the company good, but the Dinner prepared by our Banqueting team in the Kitchen was outstanding. It was so uplifting to be able to attend this event and to see and hear the future of our Club and industry enjoying the evening and debating the future direction of UK agriculture.
After the dinner I was invited by the Under 35s to continue the relaunch celebrations “out on the town” – but that is, of course, another story…!
Behind the scenes
The start of every Chairman’s year is a full tour of the Club, to not only look behind the scenes, but most importantly to meet our team in their own domain. It is only on such a tour that one can fully appreciate everything that happens, unsighted, but that is critical to the way the Club operates and achieves the high standards to which we have become accustomed.
The Club is of course not only a place to relax and enjoy good hospitality, but also a place to meet friends and colleagues, and of course to discuss and debate the future of our industry. That has always been the case and I am pleased that, after such a difficult period of isolation and social distancing, I have in recent weeks witnessed and joined several such discussions at the Bar, most recently following the Nuffield Poultry Group Dinner, which the Club was pleased to host.
Sadly, but not surprisingly, a few days after taking over as Chairman, I and all other delegates had to join the Oxford Farming Conference online. While this impacted on the networking opportunities, it did not in any way diminish the diverse range of topics covered or the debate that ensued between the various panellists and speakers as they tackled the overarching theme of “Routes to Resilience” in a global perspective.
Poignant City Food Lecture
Fortunately, by the time we got to the City Food Lecture in the City of London restrictions were relaxed, and we were able to meet in person to hear key-note speaker, Ash Amirahmadi, Managing Director of Arla Foods UK, address “Food’s Defining Decade: Finding a way to feed the world while protecting the planet”. HRH The Princess Royal summed up the debate and the challenges facing farmers, growers and processors as we adapt to change in her usual highly knowledgeable and thought provoking style.
Later in February, Club Secretary Andrei Spence, and I were pleased to accept an invitation to attend the NFU Conference in Birmingham, allowing us the opportunity to meet up with many Club members and to join the conference sessions.
George Eustice MP
As is the tradition the NFU Conference was addressed by the Secretary of State, The Rt Hon George Eustice MP, who I am pleased to say has also accepted an invitation to give the lecture and answer questions at our Monday Evening Lecture on 25 April. This will be very opportune given the dramatic change in agricultural production outlook since the dreadful events in Ukraine. Apart from the appalling impact on the Ukrainian people, wider questions will be asked about UK food security, at a time when some European states are considering bringing land back into production.
Club Tour to Devon
Looking forward, I hope we have organised an interesting Chairman’s visit to Devon in early June. Given we have just experienced three major storms, and many will have suffered damage, it will be topical to open the tour with a visit to the Met Office!
We also have plans to hold Club receptions or dinners at seven of our agricultural shows, together with a wide and diverse programme of events, which are either advertised in this Journal or will be included in our e-newsletters.
I very much hope to meet many of you in the Club or out on tour in the coming months.
