The Farmers Guardian Podcast

Welsh farmer and World War II Royal Airforce veteran Aneurin Owen will be 100 years old on November 30, 2024. Farmers Guardian online editor Emily Ashworth meets him to talk about a century in farming and in honour of Remembrance Day, his time in the RAF.

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Following the Chancellor's announcements on Inheritance Tax and Agricultural Property Relief in the 2024 Autumn Budget, Farmers Guardian's Alex Black, Rachael Brown and Jane Thynne dig into what the changes may mean for the farming industry. The news team take a look at the implications of all the announcements this week, from the agriculture budget to the minimum wage and changes to delinked Basic Payment Scheme payments.

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For this special episode, we partner with our sister podcast (The Land, Leisure and Tourism Podcast) to bring you a discussion with Sykes Holiday Cottages and one of their latest customers. 

We talk about the logistics and challenges of diversifying your farm into holiday letting, but also the positives that it can bring to you and your farming business

For more information on the Farm Business Innovation and Land, Leisure and Tourism shows, visit www.lltshow.com

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This week Farmers Guardian's online editor Emily Ashworth went to Charlotte Ashley's farm in Cumbria to talk to her and close friend and social media star Rebecca Wilson all about showcasing real-life farming on social platforms. They also highlight the importance of future-proofing the business and attracting new talent to farming.

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After 40 years, West Midlands dairy farmer and former NFU dairy board chair Michael Oakes decided to quit milking, sold his 200 holstein dairy herd and started a new venture rearing 200 plus beef cattle on his Bournville Village Trust tenant farm on the southern outskirts of Birmingham. A decision which he described as ‘really tough' and initially something he was reluctant to share with anyone else, over concerns people would think he had 'failed'.  

Mr Oakes said there was not one single factor which led to his decision to quit, but a combination of factors including going clear of TB after being shut down for many years, the lack of succession with both his two sons pursuing other careers, a health scare after having a mini stroke, and his landlord wanting to take FBT land back in hand. He has since started a new venture, looking after 200 plus beef herd, which he will take to finish as part of a bed and breakfast scheme run by Buitelaar. He said, he still found it 'difficult' not milking every morning, but it was easier now there was cattle back on the farm.

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With the country now 100 days into the new Labour Government, Farmers Guardian has created a new manifesto on what farmers and rural businesses want from the Government.

FG editor Olivia Midgley, Patrick Holden, chief executive of the Sustainable Farming Trust, National Pig Association chief executive Lizzie Wilson, Minette Batters, tenant farmer and former NFU President, farmer John McCulloch,  Ed Barker, head of policy and external affairs at the Agricultural Industries Confederation and Mark Charter from Carter Jonas came together to discuss what the industry needs.

Farmers Guardian will always hold those in power accountable and continue to speak up for farming. 

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Wool was, at one time, the jewel of fabrics. It was a well-respected product but, over the years its value has decreased. In this episode, we look at why. Is it a pricing issue? Is it a marketing issue? Emily Ashworth and Katie Fallon look back at the timeline to find out what changed.

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As the 2024 political party conferences wrap up, Farmers Guardian's news and business team discuss the goings on at the Liberal Democrat, Labour and Conservative Party conferences and what each party has to offer for the farming sector. 

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This week's Farmers Guardian podcast is a little different.

FG's online editor Emily Ashworth joins the machinery team, Toby Whatley and James Huyton, to delve into the world of machinery and talk about the opportunities in the sector, especially when it comes to careers.

From technology talk to taking a first - and very slow - drive of the Claas combine on James' farm, this podcast really highlights that we need to bridge the gap between agriculture and the wider public. 

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On the pod this week, news reporter Chris Brayford visited students and staff at Barnsley College’s Wigfield Farm campus to discuss the importance of agricultural courses in educational settings.

@WigfieldFarm // @barnsleycollege

Should more schools be providing agricultural courses? Should agriculture be featured on the syllabus and curriculum from the moment a child starts school until they leave to kickstart their careers? Can agriculture offer a viable career path for young people to enter the industry and fulfil a dream to a farmer?

We spoke to students at Barnsley College including Jayden Taylor, Emily Hanson, Dana Bradley-Allen and Jasmine Powell about why they have chosen to study agriculture at Barnsley College, the skills they have picked up along the way, alongside their hopes to be the next generation of young farmers. They told us an agricultural course has provided them with confidence to learn and experience new things, alongside strengthening their ability to work as a team and live out a dream to work with livestock and people. Chris also caught up with Barnsley College’s agriculture and animal care teacher, Emily Smith, and Macauley Parkin, the agriculture course leader, about their enthusiasm and passion to help nurture students’ skills in the sector and how they have made courses more accommodating and exciting for students to see the value of agricultural careers. Agriculture provides us all with so many benefits, so is it time to recognise its value in an educational setting even more?

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