Farming conversations from across the pond

Thanks to funding from the Food & Farming Forum Yorkshire and Humber, I was recently lucky enough travel to San Francisco to attend a conference on Sustainable Agricultural Partnerships. As a UK farmer this was a unique opportunity to step out of my comfort zone, and be involved in debate of a great variety of sustainability issues. Here’s a summary of what we talked about:

Communications

It was a comment from Alison Dennis from Burgerville, a restaurant chain with a strap line of ‘Fresh Local and Sustainable’ that really rang true. She saw farmers with good communication skills as being vital for creating a sustainable supply chain, ”Farmers have a good story to tell and the last thing I want is when someone puts a microphone in front of them is that they go quiet”. The importance of speaking up is becoming increasingly important – the world’s largest banana exporter recalled a deal with a UK supermarket where the price offered was below the cost of production for the third world farmers who grew the product. This led to a chain reaction in the UK with other supermarkets stating their obligation to their customers of matching the price of their competitors.

The GM debate continues

The role of Biotechnology and GM in the future of sustainability was also a hotly contested subject.  There is probably more opposition to GM in the US than over here at the moment, mainly due to the fact that is a lot more present in the field already. Some farmers already concerned by reports of  breakdowns in pest resistance, leading to a return to a reliance on pesticides.  Bio Pesticides were a new consideration for me, whereby a crop is produced  by using bacteria, fungi and other natural products to control pests and weeds, reducing the used the amount of chemicals used. As one delegate observed, in an age when there is an obsession to show low carbon figures on food labels, surely low in chemicals would sit better with consumers.

Carbon Trading

And finally whenever I return from a visit to the States I am always asked about this. Yes it is happening but still in pockets rather than “across the piste” but the early adopters to Carbon farming are being penalised as they have already sequestered their carbon before the trading was introduced. Written protocols are being researched and written as we speak which farmers need to adhere to prove they are entitled to sell credits.

So after two eventful days, I left enthused, frustrated and confused in equal measures!  I look forward to the next chapter of this debate, the Sustainable Agriculture Partnerships conference in London this December where I will be speaking on Mob Grazing and other farming practices to reduce the Carbon footprint of Agriculture.

David Hugill farms a three-way beef cross and 25,000 free range chickens on 150 hectares near North Allerton in North Yorkshire. You can contact him by email at Davidhugill2@aol.com

Click here to find more information about the Sustainable Agricultural Partnerships conference.

Read our recent blog 'Biotechnology - magic bullet or smoke and mirrors?