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Archive 2016

Northern Farming Conference 2016

You can now download the presentations given at the Northern Farming Conference 2016 in PDF format using the link below. Please be aware that permission must be sought from the owners if any information contained within the presentations is to be used for other purposes.

  • 2016 Presentations - Andrew Robinson, Sir Peter Kendall, George Eustice MP, Professor David Harvey, Ross Murray, Anthony Carroll, Robert Sullivan, David Blacker, Robert Craig, James Thornton

Top lineup for the Northern Farming Conference

Sir Peter Kendall and CLA president Ross Murray will be joining a range of farmers and industry experts to speak at this year’s Northern Farming Conference.

Under the theme: Farming: Where I see my future, leading farmers from across the country will be at Hexham Auction Mart on Wednesday 9 November to examine what the future may hold for farmers, particularly in the wake of the recent vote to leave the European Union.

Peter Kendall farms in Eyeworth, East Bedfordshire, in partnership with his brother Richard. They grow more than 600 hectares of combinable crops on the home farm and contracting and rental agreements are also operated with four local farmers. He is currently chair of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board and was previously NFU president for eight years from 2006.

Ross Murray has been actively involved in the CLA for around 15 years and was elected as president last year. He is a Trustee of Llanover and Coldbrook Estates in Monmouthshire and has been a chartered surveyor since 1991, managing rural and urban estates in South Wales.

Joining Sir Peter and Ross will be former Farmers Weekly Dairy Farmer of the Year and Nuffield Scholar, Robert Craig; AHDB Monitor Farmer for York and precision farming specialist, David Blacker; Anthony Carroll of award-winning Carroll’s Heritage Potatoes in Northumberland and Wagyu beef producer, James Thornton.

Conference Chairman Andrew Robinson said: “Following the vote to leave Europe, there is a huge amount of uncertainty within the agricultural sector and this conference will be a rare opportunity to hear leading industry figures and farmers discuss the key issues facing agriculture."    

Now in its seventh year, the Northern Farming Conference aims to give farmers the chance to consider how best to progress their businesses over the next few years.

The conference is a joint venture between the CLA, Strutt & Parker, Bond Dickinson, Armstrong Watson, Catchment Sensitive Farming, Gibson & Co Solicitors and Hexham and Northern Marts.

Programme for the day

09:30 Registration and refreshments
10:00 Morning Chairman: Andrew Robinson, Partner at Armstrong Watson
Session One
10:10 Keynote Speaker: Sir Peter Kendall: Chair of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board
10:35 George Eustice MP: Minister of State for Farming, Fisheries & Food
11:00 Professor David Harvey: Emeritus Professor of Agricultural Economics, Newcastle University
11:25 Questions
11:45 Refreshment break: tea and coffee will be served
Session Two
12:10 Ross Murray: President of the Country Land and Business Association
12:35 Anthony Carroll: Carroll’s Heritage Potatoes, Northumberland; Arable Innovator of the Year 2015 (British Farming Awards)
13:00 Questions
13:10 LUNCH
14:10 Afternoon Chairman: Robert Sullivan, Partner at Strutt & Parker
Session Three
14:15 David Blacker: AHDB Monitor Farmer for York, Precision Farming specialist
14:40 Robert Craig: Farmers Weekly Dairy Farmer of the Year 2014, Nuffield Scholar
15:05 James Thornton: Managing Director, Warrendale Farms; Wagyu beef producer
15:30 Questions
15:40 Summary and Close

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