AHDB Food & Farming

Welcome to AHDBs Food & Farming podcast.

No one would argue a good education provides young people with a great start in life and as the years tick by it’s not unusual for people to fondly remember those teachers who provided knowledge and even acted as a role models, shaping the course for the future.

For those charged with the responsibility to get our children ready for the world, they must remain on top of current affairs and a shifting agenda, as a society and the world changes.

One such topic is food production and where our food comes from. John Bates speaks to Roy Ballam from the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF), Elsa Healey and Christine Watts from AHDB about the successes achieved through the BNF and AHDB education partnership and the benefits to farmers and other levy payers.

Take a listen and a few moments to look at the website www.foodafactoflife.org.uk

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

This episode was produced and edited by Aisha Shabnam, Marcomms Executive (Pork).

This week’s guest is Richard Longthorp. Richard is a cereals and pig farmer from Yorkshire and employees 20 people across his business.

 

In this episode, we delve into the topic of training and development within farming businesses – why it is important, it’s value and how to go about it.

 

Richard is a strong believer that providing learning and development opportunities for staff is a vital investment that all businesses, farming or otherwise, need to make.

 

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

1.      Be proactive

2.      Begin with the end in mind

3.      Put first things first

4.      Think win-win

5.      Seek first to understand, then to be understood

6.      Synergize

7.      Sharpen the saw

 

Our AgriLeader programme challenges individuals from leading farms and businesses to develop the skills they need to drive their businesses forward. To support this, we ran #AgriLeadershipWeek in May 2021. #AgriLeadershipWeek was a cross-organisation campaign which aimed to raise awareness of the importance of, and opportunities for, leadership training across the agricultural sector. 

 

Find out how you can get involved and take your business to the next level: 

Business and leadership courses for farmers and growers: ahdb.org.uk/business-leadership-courses-for-farmers-and-growers 

AgriLeader: ahdb.org.uk/agrileader

#AgriLeadership Week: ahdb.org.uk/agrileadership-week 

 

If you want to find out more about AgriLeader, or talk through the options for taking your career to the next level, get in touch with one of the team.

 

Mark Campbell: [email protected] 

Izak Van Heerden: [email protected]

Amie Burke: [email protected] 

 

We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis, or email John Bates: [email protected] 

 

This episode was produced and edited by Miriam Drewett, Marcomms Manager (Pork).

Mandy Nevel, Head of Animal Health & Welfare, AHDB

Jen Waters, Head of Knowledge Exchange (Pork), AHDB

Georgina Crayford, Technical Manager for Pigs, Red Tractor

Zoe Davies, Chief Executive, NPA

In this episode we focus on welfare training for the pig sector. Our guests explain and discuss a new training platform that we’ve developed with the wider pig industry, and which will be launched later this month. The first module will cover moving and handling of pigs and will become part of Red Tractor standards in November 2021.

Listen to the episode to find out what this training will involve, who will need to complete it and why it has been developed.

 

Jen Waters: @WatersJen

Georgina Crayford: @porgie_pig

Zoe Davies: @Mrs_Pig

Husbandry and welfare of pigs (AHDB resources) 

PigPro online training record

PigPro user videos

Red Tractor standards for Pork

National Pig Association

We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

In this episode Knowledge Exchange Manager Hannah Lilburn is joined by Jamie Robertson from the University of Aberdeen to discuss how to create the perfect environment for calves to get them off to the best start in life.

Find out more about dairy calf management.

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

This episode was produced and edited by Kate Smith, Marcomms Executive (Dairy).

In this AHDB Food & Farming episode, Jimmy Phillips interviews Rob Clayton, our Sector Strategy Director for Potatoes, to discuss how the planned wind down and transition of AHDB Potatoes activities will impact potato storage research. 

While Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research has built an international reputation for the quality of its work, the voting outcome of the ballot on the statutory levy in potatoes means that research activity at the centre will stop this autumn.

For further information, visit: 

Wind down and transition of AHDB Potatoes activity 

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

This episode was produced and edited by Aisha Shabnam, Marcomms Executive (Pork).

In this AHDB Food & Farming episode, catch up with John Bates as he talks about our new summertime BBQ campaign, Fire up for summer. We're encouraging Brits to elevate their barbecues with an array of inspiring recipes featuring a range of cuts – from BBQ classics like sausages and burgers to beef, pork and lamb steaks.

Led by our talented apprentices, Chris Gravett and Haydon Davis - they've done a fantastic job of creating a digital campaign to inspire consumers to use premium cuts, showing off the ease and versatility of cooking with red meat.

In this episode, you will hear from: 

Greg Emmerson, MasterChef 2018

Sue Stoneman, South West Home Cook of the Year 2017 & 2016 

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

This episode was produced and edited by Aisha Shabnam, Marcomms Executive (Pork).

In this month's Cereals & Oilseeds podcast, Teresa Meadows, AHDB’s Knowledge Exchange Manager for East Anglia, talks to Claire Hoarau, who is carrying out a PhD at Harper Adams University on biopesticide options for CSFB. Hear about the existing work in this area, the research to date and planned experiments for the season ahead in this innovative area – might this be the future of CSFB control?

 

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In this episode, AHDB’s Knowledge Exchange Manager Nicola Renison speaks to Tom Vickers, a hill and upland sheep and suckler beef farmer from County Durham about finding a balance between production and the environment. Tom is 26 years old and has been farming in partnership with his mother for five years since studying Agriculture with Environmental Management at Harper Adams University. The farm itself has been involved in agri-environment schemes since 1989 and Tom is keen to continue the emphasis on environment and land management to qualify for the new ELMS scheme.  

In their sheep system Tom runs Pedigree Swaledales and produces north of England mules. In the suckler herd he is looking at developing the breed to introduce hardier traits. Traditionally he has used a set stock grazing system but has recently introduced rotational grazing to try to improve grass growth and quality. Tom has also been working on improving his soil health on the farm through testing soil samples and comparing it to samples off farm as well.   

Tom says: “There is definitely space for us to be farming within an eco-system but it has to compliment the eco-system. We have to change our methods to suit the environment more; reduce fossil fuels, work with nature rather than against it and do this in a sustainable way that is beneficial for the environment, the communities and is financially viable for the business. 

“I am very conscious that everyone who passes through our farm footpaths is a customer and we would like to give them some information about what we are doing and why we are doing it. So we put up some signs along the footpath which explain a bit about what we do and where they can get more information from.” 

 

Follow Tom on Instagram: @northernnativeproduce

Visit the AHDB Environment page https://ahdb.org.uk/the-environment

This week’s guest was Dan Burdett, follow him on Twitter: @farmerdanb 

 

Managers and leaders need to be fit for the future to lead themselves, their teams, and their businesses. In this episode, we hear from organic dairy farmer Dan Burdett about how being part of a leadership and management group has helped him in his role. He talks about his experiences and the benefits of investing in himself and others.

 

Our AgriLeader programme challenges individuals from leading farms and businesses to develop the skills they need to drive their businesses forward. To support this, we ran #AgriLeadershipWeek in May 2021.

#AgriLeadershipWeek was a cross-organisation campaign which aimed to raise awareness of the importance of, and opportunities for, leadership training across the agricultural sector. 

 

Find out how you can get involved and take your business to the next level: 

 

If you want to find out more about AgriLeader, or talk through the options for taking your career to the next level, get in touch with one of the team.

 

Mark Campbell: [email protected] 

Izak Van Heerden: [email protected]

Amie Burke: [email protected] 

 

We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis, or email John Bates: [email protected] 

 

This episode was produced and edited by Miriam Drewett, Marcomms Manager (Pork).

This podcast outlines the issue of vine weevil in container-grown hardy nursery stock and the available control methods. The outputs from AHDB funded project HNS 195 ‘Improving vine weevil control in HNS’ (a 5 year trial) are currently being applied on a commercial nursery and will culminate in a demonstration event in September 2021, the podcast also covers this project and the topics examined – pest monitoring and crop risk assessments, control measures (cultural, biological and chemical) and application techniques, to achieve an holistic approach to vine weevil control.

Speakers:

Feedback survey: We'd love to know what you think of our podcasts. If you’d like to give your feedback, please complete our short questionnaire, which will help us to improve the podcast on an ongoing basis.

 

Podcast produced and edited by Amna Yusaf - Marketing and Communications Executive