Talk focusing on the future of farming to be held at The Great Yorkshire Show

Virgin Money’s Tea & Talks session will take place at the Country Land and Business Association (CLA) stand at the Great Yorkshire Show on July 9th.

During this presentation, Virgin Money’s UK Head of Agriculture, Brian Richardson, will explain the bank’s view on investing for a sustainable future; Kelly Hewson-Fisher, Director and Head of Rural & Research Projects at Savills, will outline the findings of their latest research publication, Food and the environment; and Tracey Jackson, Manager of the Land + Nature Skills Service, will map out the problems and practical solutions facing an industry struggling to attract the next generation into agricultural employment.

Investing for a sustainable future

For Brian Richardson, the challenges are unquestionably daunting for many in the industry, but the opportunities that change creates for improvement are equally momentous. “Agriculture has been caught in a ‘perfect storm’ of challenges over the past three years, with Covid and post Brexit restrictions on exports, huge cost inflation, soaring interest rates and a radical change in UK Government support policy. Finding a route forward out of this still changing landscape has been difficult, but I think progressive farmers are becoming increasingly positive about the future.

“As a leading agricultural bank, we are advising clients on how we think they should invest for the future and turn what at first appears to be a problem into a solution. Now that the focus of Government policy and support is on ‘environmental good’, we’ve been urging farmers to use carbon audits to benchmark their carbon emissions and identify opportunities to reduce them, and in the majority of cases our clients are telling us they find cutting carbon in the right way can also cut costs and raise productivity and efficiency, which makes their business at the same time more sustainable environmentally and economically.

“We have created an Agri E-Fund to help farmers and landowners invest in green technology like automation and robotics that can cut carbon and improve productivity, and that’s also helping to fund a growing range of farm diversification projects like energy generation, for example, that attract grant support and create additional income.”

Food production & environmental benefit

Savills Head of Rural Research, Kelly Hewson-Fisher will headline the findings of their latest research on Food and the environment, to show how farmers and land managers can respond to the challenges of producing food for a growing population whilst reducing their climate impact and facilitating environmental recovery.

“Our research makes it crystal clear that farmers and land managers must develop a long-term strategy in which food production and environmental improvements co-exist, and that is going to require behavioural, operational, and financial changes.

“Farmers and land managers will be required to understand and embrace the opportunities to maximise output using digital and biological technologies which also have the capabilities to reduce emissions. They will need to have confidence in the economic advantages that environmentally sensitive land management can bring by stacking options of regenerative agricultural with environmental financial incentives and premiums. Savills Virtual Farm’s regen system net margin was 31% higher than the conventional farmed system.”

Attracting the next generation

As the recently appointed Manager for the Land and Nature Skills Service (LANSS) in Cumbria, Tracey Jackson is pioneering a new service connecting people with learning and training opportunities in Cumbria’s land and nature-based sector. An experienced Chartered Surveyor, land manager and farmers wife herself Tracey will speak about the challenges of creating a sustainable farming future from the training, skills and employment perspective.

“We urgently need to raise awareness of career opportunities in the rural sector, and we need to find ways to engage with a wider audience of young people beyond those from an agricultural background. There are many new skills needed to enable the substantial changes in farming for both existing employees and managers, and for new entrants, and the industry needs to ensure there are enough people to do the jobs that will make farming work successfully and sustainably into the future. The aim of LANSS is to facilitate ways for the rural economy to attract the right people and raise skill levels to meet those needs.”

Brian Richardson welcomes anyone with a stake in the future of farming to come and hear a message of hope. “Farmers have always been resilient and willing to change, but the recent challenges have been somewhat overwhelming. I hope that we can show the silver lining that is emerging from the storm clouds, and encourage everyone to use this as a springboard for the future.”

The Virgin Money Tea & Talk session on Productive, Profitable & Progressive - Creating A Sustainable Future for Farming will take place at the CLA stand at the Great Yorkshire Show on Tuesday July 9th between 3.30 and 4.30 pm. Admission is FREE but Registration to secure a place is required via: www.bit.ly/4cr8E3k. Should you require assistance with registering, please contact Rachael Clayton on 01748 90707