In this month’s instalment of The Inside Track, I want to talk about some of the events and shows I’ve been to recently, and the need for agriculture to look much more outwards instead of inwards.
Early last month, I went to an AHDB farm walk up at Boddington Estates, one of AHDB’s Monitor Farms. There were around 25-30 of us, local farmers who were all really engaged, with farmers sharing performance information and best practice as a way of improving their own businesses. It was a practical session where we discussed soil health, nitrogen use efficiency, and crop health, whilst looking at crops in the ground. It was good to catch up on the issues that are front of mind and thoughts of where the season might end up.
Just after that, it was Cereals, which certainly seems to have re-established some of its popularity. This year, official figures were put at 17,500 attendees and it’s no surprise given the array of demonstrations and exhibits with which to engage. I think it’s a reflection of farmers’ thirst for knowledge in these changing times and the desire, post-Covid, for people to want to go out and talk to each other.
Later in the month, I attended Groundswell for the fourth time. I’ve really seen this event grow and develop over time. This year, 8,000 visitors, compared to 400 in its first year, six years ago. Over 50% of those who attended had a two-day ticket so, in reality, the attendance would be somewhere closer to Cereals.
The opportunity to get behind regenerative agriculture
What interests me about these events is the audience. Groundswell has been borne out of a desire by farmers to produce food in a nature friendly way, improving soil health and biodiversity. Six years ago, this approach was in no way mainstream, even though many farmers were probably implementing some regenerative practices and didn’t recognise them as such. Now regenerative agriculture is gaining momentum, and I feel there’s a real opportunity for the sector to swing in behind it. The beauty and maybe frustration of regenerative agriculture is that there is no blueprint. You can’t say ‘do this, do that, and you’ll deliver this,’ because it covers many different elements and there are many entry points. You can dive in deeper or start smaller and then go bigger.
From a branding perspective for UK agriculture and food production, the regenerative movement cuts through our traditional agriculture bubble and is bringing in new players and interested parties. In the press tent at Groundswell,
I spoke to The Times and there were journalists from consumer and food magazines, a much broader media landscape than I would normally see in our sector. In UK agriculture, we are great at talking to each other but now we have an opportunity to talk outside our own interests and complexities-and in regenerative agriculture, we have a potential brand that enables us to reach a much wider audience.
What’s intriguing is that when Groundswell started, the people who attended were passionate about regenerative agriculture, but it was still very niche. Now it has become far more mainstream, and I was just as likely to see people in business trousers and shirt as in a tie-dyed T-shirt and a pair of shorts – although it was very hot and those in shorts definitely made the right call.
Collaboration across supply chains will help address challenges
What I would like to see at Groundswell in the future is representation from whole supply chains, from farm production through input supply, processing and retail. Many of these businesses have and are investing huge amounts of time and money into research, looking at ways agriculture and ultimately the entire food system can become more sustainable. Let’s bring these together with the incredibly passionate and engaged people at Groundswell and broaden the collaboration.
The level of engagement at Groundswell was incredible. Over the two days, there were more than 100 events each day with presentations on the main stage attended by many 100’s of people – in my experience all were packed out. Proof perhaps that we have a real opportunity for the industry to get behind “regenerative agriculture” and use the brand to cut through to politicians, stakeholders and ultimately, consumers.
Next year, I’d love to see a dairy supply chain, a whisky, bakery or beef supply chain represented, as collaboration across value chains is the only way that we’re going to address the legislation that’s coming on scope 3 and finance, among other things. But it’s not just about meeting the rules, it’s about the bigger picture and acknowledging that there needs to be a shift if we are going to feed ourselves and protect the planet now and in the future in terms of soil health, biodiversity, and nature reconstruction.
The regenerative movement is gaining momentum, in all its many guises, and combined with new technology and precision agriculture will increase the chance we have of delivering what it is we need to do. It feels like Groundswell is absolutely on the up, and that’s because it represents something that speaks to all the different challenges we’re facing. Regenerative agriculture might not be perfect, but it provides a direction and the belief that we can deliver a sustainable food system.
