9, Farming Focus - Helen Browning shares her local life in farming

Farming Focus

CEO of the Soil Association, Helen Browning shares her local life in farming and how recent changes over the years have impacted the industry.

Chief Executive of the Soil Association, Helen Browning and her family have farmed at Eastbrook Farm in Wiltshire for 67 years. Today the farm produces sustainable meat, using farming methods that actively regenerate the soil, improve their pastures, help wildlife and support British farmers. Helen is proud to share the fruits of her innovative techniques such as their Good Beef range, which as a by-product of the dairy herds, has a much lower carbon footprint than standard beef. And their onsite agroforestry recycles nutrients from deep in the soil as well as other benefits, so all products are Soil Association Certified and arrives in recyclable, chilled packaging. Here is what Helen has to say.

When did your family start farming?

I’ve no idea! I do know that my grandfather was both farming and trading horses for the milk floats in Gloucester and Birmingham, and four of his nine sisters farmed together near Malvern. They were wonderful folk, and inspired me hugely. So I have always thought of myself as coming from a long line of farmers.

Did you grow up on the farm and has it always been in your family roots?

My father moved to Eastbrook, where I still farm, in 1950, taking a tenancy from the Church of England. So I grew up here, and then took on the management in 1986.

Are there any differences between the farm now and the farm growing up?

Well, it’s still a very mixed farm, as it was when I was growing up here, but in other ways it’s very different. For a start, it’s now all organically managed, so no artificial fertilisers or pesticides; we have added new enterprises, like my fabulous British Saddleback pigs and more recently, lots of fruit and nut trees; and we don’t just farm but sell our food to people both directly and through supermarkets and box schemes like Able and Cole; and we also run the village pub, with it’s own little hotel, right in the middle of the farm…so people can come to experience what we do, tour the farm and eat the produce! So it’s a busier place that when I was growing up, employing over 60 people, and focussed on enabling wildlife to thrive and giving animals a good life.

What roles do the members of your family play in farming the business?

It’s very much a family business! My daughter and her husband run the new dairy on the downland; my partner Tim Finney runs the pub, hotel and shop, and all the wildlife and farm tours; and my ex, Henry, manages the farm overall as I’m away so much due to my role as CEO of the Soil Association.

What changes have you seen in the business aspect of farming through Covid?

The farm hasn’t been too affected, except when staff have had to isolate. Through Covid we just had to carry on. You can’t milk the cows or harvest the crops while working from home! But of course the pub had to close, so we opened a shop, started direct deliveries, revamped our catering vehicles so we could offer food to walkers up on the Ridgeway. And in our marketing business we were flat out as so many people recognised the benefits of eating organically, and many more were keen to buy online rather than trek to supermarkets. So it’s been a very mixed bag, but at least we’ve all survived and are still in business.

How have advances in the modern world helped or hindered the farming industry?

Many ‘advances’ have taken us in the wrong direction, as far as animal welfare, soil health and nature are concerned. For example, the ever larger and heavier farm machinery has damaged soils; artificial fertiliser and pesticides have both impacted on wildlife directly, and allowed farmers to move away from traditional practices like rotations and use of pollinator friendly leguminous crops; intensive indoor systems are rarely good for the animals in them. But maybe that can change in the future. Some of the newest technologies such as robots and satellite mapping could allow us to tread much more lightly on the soil, and monitor changes to the environment much more accurately. And we are already using a new type of machine that allows us to plant cereals into clover without ploughing….which is the ‘holy grail’ of organic farming.

It seems you have many ideas and new in itiatives to maintain this livelihood, what's new?

What’s especially new is our exploration of agroforestry….how we can bring many more trees into our fields so that we grow more healthy and sustainable crops like fruits and nuts, as well as locking up more carbon, providing more habitat for wildlife, and more shade and shelter for our farm animals. We are also testing new ways of grazing our cattle on herbal leys, letting the grass grow taller so that insects thrive and the soils may hold more carbon. We’ve recently launched our ‘good beef’ range, with around half the carbon footprint of traditional beef. And we are always expanding the range of things we offer to guests coming here, from farm safaris and foraging trips, to secluded picnics around this glorious farm.

How do you see your role at the Soil Association and at the farm within the local community?

Whether I’m at the Soil Association or at the farm, I’m keen to involve as many people as possible in engaging with the vitally important, but also intensely enjoyable, challenge of getting our food and farming back on track. On the farm, that may start with just feeding people fantastic organic food that can spark their interest in learning why it’s so good, or creating a lovely walk through woodland that allows folk to connect with nature. At the Soil Association, we work with such a huge range of people, from government ministers and civil servants, to businesses, farmers and foresters, school cooks and members of the public. Building an ever larger community who will support all the change we need to see is vital, so if you want to help us, do become a member!

Helen Browning’s Organic Christmas shop is now open providing a selection of awardwinning, sustainable farmed freerange pork and grass-fed beef. helenbrowningsorganic.co.uk

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