The Farmers Club Issue 285

0 Farmers SPRING 2020 • ISSUE 285

Club

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INSIDE Club events p4 Supermarket controls p6 New Committee Members p8 Meat health issues p10 Meating consumer demands p12 Livestock enviro guardians p13 Rural youth project p14 City of Beasts p16 Burgundy wine tour p17 Dairy’s carbon footprint p18 Summer at the Club p18 Chef’s Kitchen p19 Under 30s Event p20 Under 30s OFC Scholar p21 Easter Opening p22 Club Calendar p24 INSERTS Burgundy wine tour Summer Shows Beating retreat

Veggie/Meat debate Consumers, diets & climate change p10-13, 18

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Farmers Club Serving the farming industry for 175 years 3 Whitehall Court, London SW1A 2EL Patron – Her Majesty The Queen

Contents

FRONT COVER Meat versus veggie really isn’t the argument – it’s what’s best for the health of humans, the environment, the climate and the planet. Our special four-page centre section examines some of the key issues.

Photography: Shutterstock Disclaimer: The articles published in The Farmers Club Journal do not necessarily reflect the views of The Farmers Club. No responsibility for the quality of goods or services advertised in the magazine can be accepted by the publisher.

Advertisements are included in good ­­­­ faith. All rights reserved.

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Chairman’s Comments Wet weather, Brexit, skiing and summer shows

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Club News Club events, bedroom plans, strategy and Easter offerings

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Monday Evening Lecture: Supermarket Code Adjudicator Christine Tacon shows how her strategy worked

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New Committee Members Welcome to two new faces joining the Club’s General Committee - from Hampshire and Worcestershire

10 Health risks of low/no meat diets Vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian – what’s at risk?

12 Giving consumers what they want Meeting public food demands reaps dividends

13 Livestock key to climate change solutions Managing livestock better can help address climate change

14 Rural Youth Project makes waves

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Major funding is supporting efforts to encourage rural youth to stay in the countryside

16 City of Beasts Evocative book profiles livestock in Georgian London

17 Burgundy wine tour Join the Chairman’s visit to Burgundy’s best vineyards

18 Milk’s carbon footprint in figures Some key facts on dairying’s true environmental profile

19 Chef ’s page

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Kitchen team puts wonderful food on the table

20 Under 30s New Members Event An inspiring weekend included AGM and underground farming

21 Under 30s OFC scholar’s report Food as the foundation for a healthy society

22 Club Information and Contacts

02 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

Chairman’s Comments • Allan Stevenson to adapt to deliver climate change solutions, whilst convincing UK consumers that we can also deliver a healthy and sustainable food production system.

A profitable transition for many working farmers is likely to be very challenging.

Skiing I took off after my first Committee meeting in January, to represent the Worshipful Company of Farmers in the Inter-Livery Ski Championships in Morzine, France. Our skilful Captain is another Club member, Hugh Wykes, who led us through three days of relaxed racing against 260 other competitors, aged 22 to 70-plus. It was very sociable, so it was the taking part that mattered.

We apparently had the largest team ever, and I encourage other members of the WCF to apply in 2021, if you are young, fast and fit…!

Chairman’s Comments “Relationships with our friends in Brussels are already strained by initial negotiating positions and thick ‘red lines’ on both sides… Brexit is far from done!”

WHO would have thought that after the awful autumn flooding, we would again experience such dreadful rainfall early in the new year? It has been very disheartening to see the impact on so many farming and rural communities, from the SouthWest right across the whole of the UK and into my home county of East Lothian. We can only hope we soon see the end of the continuous rain in good time to catch up with some urgent land work.

Brexit Battles For many people, the election of a Conservative government has been a relief, resulting in a useful spike in business confidence in the UK; finally, ‘Brexit is done’, according to our Prime Minister.

Whilst this removes the immediate uncertainty, it is becoming very clear that we are a long way from the reality of new trade deals, within and outside the EU. Relationships with our friends in Brussels are already strained by initial negotiating positions and thick ‘red lines’ on both sides. I fear we will need to prepare for a hard Brexit at the end of this year, as I doubt either side will be willing to back down, until there is a bigger immediate imperative to deal with – Brexit is far from done.

Legislation We now have new Agricultural Bills in both Westminster and Holyrood. It seems that whilst the Bill in Westminster contains huge changes to agricultural policy, in Scotland we don’t have the prospect of such sweeping changes; instead we have a pledge to continue the current agricultural support systems for four years, giving greater financial stability for Scottish farmers in the medium term. It is now clear to me that our industry needs

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Oxford Farming Conference I first attended OFC about 30 years ago with my father and after about 15 past visits attended this year following four years off. How things have changed, yet stayed the same. There were too few farmers as usual, great presentations, and a whole generation had disappeared, with lots of enthusiastic younger people. The chat was of meat v. vegans, climate change and nutritional food etc. plus some depressing politics.

Extinction Rebellion protested on the pavement outside, so I had two rewarding chats with respectable protesters about what motivated their protests in my quest to understand. As usual, lots of common concerns at a broad level, but a serious lack of knowledge about farming practice and sustainable food production (‘what’s LEAF?’). I gave them my business card and invited them to visit my farm, without the ‘masks and onesies’, to talk to me and my staff and explore their issues for themselves.

So far I’ve had no response.

Events Our members’ events programme continues to evolve, with the Chairman’s trip to Edinburgh and East Lothian taking bookings – I am pleased to see it has filled up so quickly.

We hope to add some more trips during the year, but I’m really looking forward to going to Burgundy with Club wine lovers in September. The show season will soon be upon us and Ali and I are planning to attend almost all those that the Club is supporting around the country this year. We look forward to meeting lots of members.

For full details of the services available in The Farmers Club over the Easter weekend please turn to p22.

EASTER OPENING

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The Farmers Club Page

www.thefarmersclub.com • 03

Andrei Spence • Club News

Club News Spring arrives at your busy Club

As in each year, the new Chairman, Allan Stevenson, made his first appearance as Club Chairman at the Oxford Farming Conference, writes Club Secretary & Chief Executive Andrei Spence. Allan and Alison then made their first visit to the Club (as Chairman) on 20th January, to tour the Club and meet many of the team.

I think they were both surprised at those parts of the Club few members ever see, which gave them a greater understanding of the very many elements that are required to make the whole organisation work.

New Committee Members On the same day it was my pleasure to take our two new Committee members, Sue Bullock and Sarah Cowlrick, on a similar tour and brief them on their duties and responsibilities. That evening the Club settled down for the first Monday evening lecture of the year. Many will recall we 04 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

were expecting Lord Gardiner of Kimble to speak, but a Government embargo on Ministers taking engagements before the BREXIT Bill was passed on 31 January, put paid to that. We were very fortunate to secure Ms Christine Tacon CBE, the Groceries Code Adjudicator, at very short notice, who delivered a superb lecture and took a raft of questions from the audience of over 45 members and guests (see p6).

Committee objectives With ‘manic’ Monday over, the Club subcommittees (with two new sub-committee Chairmen) met for the first time in 2020 before meeting for 2020’s first General Committee. The Chairman laid out some broad objectives for the year, including a strategy paper he had commissioned from me, laying out where we hoped to take the Club over the next three years.

Under 30s February started with an Under 30s New Members Dinner in the Farmers Suite, attended by 70 of our younger members, who heard guest speaker Richard Ballard, Co-Founder of Growing Underground, explain how he started

the world’s first underground farm in Clapham. It also marked the final event at which Scott Hayles would preside as Under 30s Chairman after a very successful year. Attendance at Under 30s events has grown year on year, the number of members has risen to around 400, new governance guidelines were produced and Scott and Eleanor’s (Vice Chairman) contribution to the Club Sub and General Committees was seen as a very important development. The following day (a Saturday), the Under 30s AGM thanked Scott for his tireless efforts, welcomed new Chairman Eleanor Kay (see p20+21). Later the Under 30s committee elected three new members and voted in Alice Hind to become Vice Chairman.

City Food Lecture In late February, the Chairman, Virginia and myself attended the City Food Lecture. Keynote speaker Professor Louise Fresco gave a thought-provoking talk posing many questions, including: what should we eat in times of climate change, obesity and animal welfare? Should our diets be local or global, vegetarian or flexitarian? Can cities restore their link to the countryside where the food comes from? And, to complicate these essential questions, what will science bring us for the future in terms of new proteins, intensive and vertical agriculture and personalised nutrition? A few days later, the Chairman attended the NFU Conference in Birmingham, where many of these issues were discussed further.

On Thursday 5th March 40 Club members enjoyed early supper at the Club before departing for a superb performance of Puccini’s opera, Madam Butterfly, which was enjoyed by all – a very good night.

Following the sad death of his father last year, Club member Martin Shaw (Golf Society) has very generously donated a painting in memory of his father. We will find a suitable place for this in the near future.

Bank Holiday Alert!

In order that you can plan your diary please remember that the first Bank Holiday in May has moved. Normally it falls on the first Monday in May, which would be 4th May, but to mark the 75th Anniversary of VE Day the Bank Holiday will now be on Friday 8th May. Some 2020 diaries were printed before this decision was made, so you may wish to make a note.

Club News • Andrei Spence

Club Calendar

Mind-blowing Cirque du Soleil

Diary Dates

At the end of January the Club’s first social event of 2020 kicked off with Anita taking 40 Club members to the Royal Albert Hall for Cirque du Soleil’s new performance ‘Luzia’. In the words of one member a ‘mind-blowing’ show. This evening was preceded by early supper at the Club.

See back cover of this Journal for Calendar of Club events

Tutankhamun Due to huge demand we took two parties of 60 members each to the Tutankhamun exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery in Chelsea on consecutive days at the very end of February. The exhibition was preceded by fascinating talks by our resident historian, Anne Haworth, who superbly provided the context to the exhibition, followed by lunch in the Club.After this UK exhibition tour none of the artefacts will leave Egypt again, but will be housed in the new Museum of Egyptian Antiquities in Cairo.

Room refurbishments

Plans are forming for a light refurbishment of the last section of rooms to undergo this transformation in a cycle started some 6 years ago. In subsequent years we will start light refurbishments of the first section we completed and go through the cycle again. I view this as vital routine, but planned upkeep, ensuring rooms look their best despite being used very frequently throughout the year.

IT project update

The IT Project is working well, but as I write, we are still missing a couple of important functionalities, including member access to the website booking of rooms and events. I am very hopeful that by the time this Journal reaches your doormat, I will have been able to issue an e-newsletter informing you of how you can use these features. I also hope the invoice issues will be a distant memory!

Strategic issues

Early March saw meetings of the Trustees to conduct their financial review of the investment portfolio, and also as a Lease Company Board, one of their regulatory duties. The Officers & Trustees also met to discuss strategic issues prior to the F&GP meeting the same day to discuss end-of-year numbers with myself, Zarreena and the auditors (to be reported at the AGM in July).

Charitable Trust

The Trustees of the Farmers Club Charitable Trust are due to hold their general meeting in late March, before the annual Agricultural Educator Award interviews (coronavirus permitting). Grants are made, predominantly, to Higher Education lecturers (singly or in groups) who wish to investigate a specific topic, with findings fed back via student teaching and industry engagement (see Summer Journal for report).

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Just a note to thank you and your colleagues at the Farmers Club for yesterday. It was an excellent lunch, a great lecture and a fine visit to the Saatchi Gallery and King Tut. It appeared to go without a hitch!

Richard Knight

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For full details of the services available in The Farmers Club over the Easter weekend please turn to p22.

EASTER OPENING CORONAVIRUS INFO Keep up to date with the Club’s response to coronavirus at www. thefarmersclub.com/news

AGM CALLING NOTICE The Farmers Club will be holding its 178th Annual General Meeting on Tuesday 7th July at 12 noon. All Club members are invited to attend.

www.thefarmersclub.com • 05

Charles Abel • Club Lecture

Grocery Code Adjudicator Christine Tacon

SUPERVISING fair play in the food chain is not for the faint-hearted. But after seven years as the UK’s Grocery Code Adjudicator Club member Christine Tacon has shown what tenacity, industry expertise and a readiness to grapple with the nitty-gritty can achieve.

Amusingly, in her first year, Grocer magazine featured a cartoon of the new adjudicator as a shark with teeth bared. A similar cartoon appeared a little later – with ‘Tesco’ in the shark’s jaws! But is punishment the answer to curbing supermarket abuses?

The legally binding Code stipulates how designated retailers must treat their direct suppliers, and the Groceries Code Adjudicator Act gives significant powers of investigation and enforcement, including fines of up to 1% of turnover, in a sector worth over £100bn annually. Today 13 retailers deal with 1000s of direct suppliers, some big enough to look after themselves, but many not.

Bullying retailers “Supermarkets can take advantage of their power, making it the suppliers’ problem if the weather changes, a customer complains, or even if the supermarket gets their order wrong.

This bullying behaviour can build up and lead to situations like I found at Tesco when I investigated.”

The Code had existed for three years before Christine’s tenure, without much impact. Several notable cases show how Christine’s approach has veered away from ‘investigation and punishment’, towards ‘collaboration and enhanced efficiency’.

The results have been significant.

Collaboration for efficiency “I’m a production engineer, I love efficiency, making systems work better,” Christine explained.

“Bad practice is inefficient. It takes up time and energy. I wanted to be measured by how things have improved for suppliers, not the size of the fines.”

Supermarket

regulation The Club’s latest Monday Evening Lecture heard from Grocery Code Adjudicator Christine Tacon.

Charles Abel reports

06 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

The notorious Tesco investigation in 2015 is a case in point. It found the retailer was in breach of the Code, not paying in full, and not paying on time. Some suppliers were paid up to a year late, others were charged twice for promotions.

Mistakes were taking months to correct, during which the retailer held onto millions of pounds.

Suppliers could do nothing about it.

The investigation took a year, damaged Tesco’s reputation and cost it millions. At the time the adjudicator had no powers to fine, so Tesco was given a list of required changes and it took them 6 months to prove it was paying on time and correcting mistakes quickly.

More recently the Co-op was found to be in breach, cutting the stores that suppliers were stocked in without reasonable notice, and

Club Lecture • Charles Abel

introducing charges, such as £10/case for a depot rejection, again without fair notice. “You will appreciate a supplier with a fixed price contract for a year cannot have new charges imposed at six weeks’ notice.”

and are generally lawyers, audit or finance people.

Using a blame-free approach the issues are examined and solutions sought – soon. “I do expect them to put it right and will escalate it to the top if it is not.”

A fine could have been imposed, but wasn’t.

“I required Co-op to make significant changes to their governance, oversight, processes and training and they have now demonstrated to me they have done this.” But the investigation still took a year, plus nine months for Co-op to implement changes to the adjudicator’s satisfaction, all with significant costs.

It seems to work, changing how supermarkets do business. Morrisons, for example, was heard to be asking suppliers for money to continue supplying. “I told the retailer’s CEO, David Potts.

It stopped overnight. An internal investigation looked at millions of emails and money was paid back.” Such case studies can be faster than an investigation and drive learning. Five have been published so far.

“The Tesco investigation was a success – for me, for suppliers and for Tesco. But in nearly seven years I have done two investigations. I think the answer is collaboration, focusing on encouragement and reward. There needed to be a culture change so supermarkets put things right themselves.”

Supplier feedback vital Rather than waiting for nervous suppliers to report abuses, Christine went looking, listening at industry events and talking to suppliers, privately and confidentially. “Supplier feedback is the oxygen I need to do my job. I read between the lines to build a picture of what is going on – in real time.

And I tell the supermarkets the general themes of what I am hearing.”

Compliance Officers at the retailers are key people. They are excluded from the buying chain,

Annual survey trump card The real trump card though is the Annual Supplier Survey. Six have been done so far, highlighting which retailers have improved, how they rank against each other, and where there is still work to do around specific practices.

It has driven change. In 2014 the suppliers ranked retailers from 58% to 90% for Code compliance. In last year’s survey, with 1500 responses, only two retailers scored below 90%.

“Every single major issue that suppliers have made me aware of has improved,” says Christine, who ends her second period as GCA in June.

Supermarkets are recognising Code compliance aids efficiency, and may help explain why the retailers which top the survey are also doing well commercially. Aldi topped all six surveys. Suppliers also say the approach has made it a less unfair playing field. “The sweet spot has been retailers realising it is more efficient to sort problems identified by suppliers – it costs all parties less.”

Professionalism may be improving, and moving up the supply chain, but will the Code extend beyond direct suppliers – to farmers? Direct suppliers already have written contracts now, but many farmers do not, for example. More is needed, Christine accepted, and attempts are being made to address this in the Agriculture Bill and European Directive on Unfair Trading Practices.

“ It’s about getting Code Compliance Officers listened to.” “ It’s more effective to use my regulatory position to show retailers where to improve, rather than to punish them for abuses.”

APRIL MONDAY EVENING LECTURE The next Monday Evening Lecture is on Monday 6th April, from 5:30-7:30pm.

All members and their guests are welcome. Full details of the speaker will be announced soon – see the Secretary’s e-newsletter, the Club Noticeboard, Facebook and Twitter.

www.thefarmersclub.com • 07

Charles Abel • Membership

Industry experts join Committee Industry experts Sue Bullock and Sarah Cowlrick are newly elected members of The Farmers Club’s General Committee.

Charles Abel introduces them

“The importance of the diversified business means Nigel now checks the exchange rate every morning, rather than the weather!”

“It is fabulous to have a safe haven in central London – warm, comfortable and relaxing, and a focal point for intellectual debate of the key agricultural issues of the day.”

TWO new committee members joined the General Committee of The Farmers Club in January – Sarah Cowlrick from Hampshire, who sits on the newly re-named Marketing & Communications Committee, and Sue Bullock from Worcestershire, who serves on the House Committee.

Worcestershire farmer Sue Bullock brings extensive business experience, especially in rural insurance, and an involvement in Welsh hill farming.

Her career in insurance started in 1987 as assistant NFU Group Secretary/ NFU Mutual agent in Wantage. After marrying Nigel in 1989 she moved to Frizzell Countryside, insurance brokers for the CLA and HTA, in Malvern.

Worcestershire’s Sue Bullock Sue arrives with a deep knowledge of insurance, specialising in farms, estates and rural businesses, and is married to Nigel, who runs an arable farm and machinery business near Malvern.

Following a 10 year career break to raise two daughters she joined the NFU office in Pershore, becoming a partner in 2014. “The work is varied and fascinating with the broad range of services now offered by the NFU Mutual to the agricultural industry and wider market.”

She grew up on a mixed farm on the Penrhyn Estate in North Wales. “As a child I can remember the great excitement when all the local farmers grouped together to gather the thousands of sheep from the open mountain for lambing and shearing.”

Husband Nigel’s 400 acre arable farm has been in the family for 500 years, initially rented from the Foley Estate, until Nigel’s great grandmother, Emma Bullock, bought the farm as a sitting tenant. “Quite an achievement at a time when women didn’t have the vote.”

“My sisters and I still jointly own and rent out some hill land in North Wales, mainly for mountain sheep, but occasionally wild Carneddau Welsh Mountain ponies stray onto the land. Henry Vlll ordered the destruction of feral ponies that weren’t strong enough to carry knights in armour – fortunately the harsh terrain and unforgiving elements deterred his henchmen and the wild ponies have survived.”

It employed 12 staff in 1910, but the dairy is now gone and all the work is done by one man, plus an occasional contractor. Bullock Tillage, established in 2013 to sell slug pellet applicators and small seeders, now designs a comprehensive range of bespoke arable cultivation equipment, mainly manufactured in Europe.

Sue studied General Agriculture at Harper Adams followed by Advanced Farm Management at The Royal Agricultural College Cirencester.

“When I arrived at Cirencester it was the fifth intake of girls, so there were just about enough to make up a ladies hockey team! Now even the Vice-Chancellor is female – Professor Joanna Price.”

08 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

Under 30s role In 1986 Sue joined the Farmers Club Under 30s – for the farm walks and London social base – and recalls the help of senior members while an Under 30s Committee member. “The late Jim Blanchard, former Club Chairman, helped organise a farm walk in Oxfordshire and Mark and Sue Hudson (now Sir and Lady) helped us organise a farm walk in North Wales. Hugh and Fiona Fell (current

Membership • Charles Abel Westenholz, a leading figure in UK Agriculture, and his uncle.

Sarah studied Business Finance and Management at Brooksby Agricultural College, Melton Mowbray and then Farm Management at Berkshire College of Agriculture. In her early thirties she was a partner in a Berkshire mixed farm, until circumstances brought that chapter to a close.

Her first farming post was working for a farm business administration business in Wiltshire, where she beta tested a new era of electronic farm accounting software. “It stood me in good stead for the future. When the company was sold, I set up an independent professional farm advice business and took on a contract with ICI, giving advice to farmers who through the purchase of ‘Blue Bags’ were given their first computerised farm accounting package. I was responsible for collating the benchmarking data for the south.”

Sarah Cowlrick from Hampshire is Chief Executive of the professional body for independent crop consultants (AICC) and a huge enthusiast for new entrants to farming.

“I have many fond childhood memories of visiting the farm in Hertfordshire, and spending hours with my Grandfather, preferring to be on the farm than anywhere else.”

“I love the principles The Farmers Club holds, mixed with adapting to the needs of the next generation.”

Committee member) were brave enough to organise a fascinating Under 30s trip to France.

“It was a great honour to meet guest speakers, including the Duke of Edinburgh and The Duchess of Devonshire, and to meet her Majesty the Queen when the Club celebrated its 150th anniversary in 1992. Both our daughters have recently become members.

“I very much hope I will be able to contribute to the Club to ensure it continues to be a thriving place for farmers. As a Committee member I also look forward to helping and encouraging the Under 30s.”

Hampshire’s Sarah Cowlrick Sarah Cowlrick brings a wide ranging knowledge of farm businesses and the organisations that support them, with a particularly strong focus on farm business advice through her role as Chief Executive of the Association of Independent Crop Consultants.

Despite being born at Barts, London – “I’m no stranger to the city” – farming has long been Sarah’s passion. Her parents met at a Young Farmers Club, her father’s side of the family having farmed for generations.

During World War 2 her grandfather’s Lincolnshire farm was requisitioned for a military runway, but shortly after he was offered a position managing Baron Westenholz’s mixed farm in Hertfordshire. Sarah’s father also worked on the farm and went on to create a farm machinery business. The farm is now farmed by Nick Von

Her own company has provided independent business support since 1985, but Sarah is best known as Company Secretary and Chief Executive of the Association of Independent Crop Consultants, where she has been actively involved in the growth of independent agronomy to almost 50% of the UK Arable advice market. She manages the national 3-day conference, a recognised event in the agronomic calendar, each January. She also created The Independent Agronomist Magazine, which is produced annually.

Sarah has served on a wide range of agricultural committees, including Young Farmers Clubs, The Wessex Cereal Group (a Hampshire-based discussion group ahead of its time), The Hampshire Farmers Club and the Hampshire Farms and Conservation Competitions. She was Chairman of her local School Governors and Director on the BASIS Board and currently sits on the LEAF Advisory Board. She recently stood down as Director and Company Secretary of Rothamsted Research Association.

Sarah has three grown up children: Emma, a surveyor in Bristol; Laura a teacher; and George in his final year reading Biological Sciences at Reading University. Her husband, Peter is an established Agronomist Director with CCC Ltd, who provide independent agronomic advice across the south of England.

Sarah is particularly passionate about new entrants. “The AICC Academy (AICCA) has proven extremely successful and currently has 53 members, all working with established AICC Members, providing future-proofing for independent agronomy.”

A member of The Farmers Club for 14 years, Sarah fully embraces its ethos. “It is an excellent venue for business meetings and very convenient for social purposes. I’m very much looking forward to being involved.”

www.thefarmersclub.com • 09

Charles Abel • Health

Red meat rumpus rebuffed

HAVE YOUR SAY Share your views on the role of meat/dairy/veggie in the health/ environment/ climate change debate. Email: editor@ thefarmers club.com

Red meat and dairy are taking flak in health and environmental debates. But is it justified? Here Charles Abel reviews some key health issues, and over the page considers ways to better meet consumer demands Prof Alice Stanton of Ireland’s Royal College of Surgeons and Devenish Nutrition

CONTRARY to the findings of last year’s EATLancet investigation into sustainable human diets both red meat and dairy products have a vital role to play. Attention instead needs to turn to balancing the nutrient density of foods with the environmental impact taken to produce them.

The logic was that animal-sourced foods were causing damage to the planet. Eating more plantbased foods was necessary to save the planet.

The public went a step further and assumed animal-sourced foods damaged human health too.

So says Alice Stanton, Professor of Cardiovascular Pharmacology at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and also Director of Human Health at Devenish Nutrition.

Health impacts of diet In Lancet’s April 2019 issue Chris Murray, one of the EAT-study authors, reported that nutritional factors were really important, with 15 key factors more important than smoking or disease when assessing human health impacts, measured in DALYs (see panel). That has big implications for human misery, health care costs and death.

EAT-Lancet suggested diets needed to shift from the UK Government’s Eatwell guide, which recommends a diet of one-third plant-based (fruit and veg), one-third cereals and one-third animal-sourced (meat, dairy etc) to twice as much fruit, veg, legumes and nuts and half the amount of animal sourced, with a 90% reduction in red meat consumption.

10 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

Of the 15 top factors a diet low in grains scored highly, as did a salty diet, and diets deficient in vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and omega 3 fatty acids. Significantly, diets with

Health • Charles Abel

too much red meat came well down the list, accounting for just 0.5% of DALYs. In studies where red meat caused higher DALYs high consumption was considered to be more than a portion a day. By contrast 2-5 portions a week appeared to reduce DALYs. Moderate red meat consumption appeared to be protective.

Red meat is rich in amino acids and micronutrients such as iron, selenium and zinc, with iron deficiency already responsible for considerable disease burden, especially fatigue and impaired childhood development, with childhood stunting and impaired brain development impacting academic learning and career development.

Globally low meat consumption is associated with Africa and Asia, where childhood stunting exceeds 30%. Although other factors may be at play a Harvard study of school-children fed extra vegetable stew, meat or milk at school showed those receiving extra meat improved academic results by 20%.

The EAT-Lancet diet recommends a halving of dairy intake. But researchers are already clear that dairy reduces DALYs, Prof Stanton noted.

The PURE study in the Lancet showed more than two dairy servings a day cut major cardio-vascular disease and mortality by 25% compared with a diet of less than half a serving. “So what happens if we reduce to a maximum of one portion?”

Significantly, the data was strongest for whole-fat dairy, and least for low-fat.

Nutrient density key The prospect of doubling fruit and veg intake, from five to ten portions a day, seems unrealistic, given that most people currently fail to manage five-a-day. “My thoughts are that we need to balance and optimise human nutrient intake, while reducing carbon footprint.” That means looking at nutrient density per unit of greenhouse gas emission.

Significantly, wholefoods delivered far more nutrient per unit of emissions than processed foods. Furthermore, ultra-processed foods were likely to cause obesity, due to additives included, whereas wholefoods typically brought weight loss.

Furthermore, veggie burgers, while nutrient dense, were high in salt and additives, to increase consumption, making them a poor health option.

Currently, an unprocessed wholefood diet could cost £150/week, compared with £100 for ultra-processed foods. That sent the wrong signals. Taxes and subsidies could help shift perceptions. A 30% healthy foods subsidy has

been calculated to be capable of cutting cardiovascular disease by 30%, DALYs by 8.4 million and save £billions in healthcare costs.

Breeding for more nutrient dense foods could help, especially when it comes to omega-3 fatty acids. Important for brain development, international guidelines suggest 250mg/day consumption. Less than a fifth of the world achieves that, with the UK scoring poorly. A halving of omega-3 content in farmed salmon over the past 10 years could be partly to blame, as omega-3 rich wild fish by-product in feedstuffs has tumbled.

Reversing that is important. Algal production could help, but is costly. Camelina oilseeds genetically engineered for high omega-3 are another alternative.

Trials by nutrition firm Devenish have shown that high omega-3 feed for chickens raises omega-3 levels in meat and eggs, raising levels in humans eating them, potentially reducing the risk of heart attack, stroke, dementia and depression.

MORE INFO Paper as given at Oxford Farming Conference 2020: www.ofc.org.uk/ conference/2020/ papers See also: www.gov.uk/ government/ publications/theeatwell-guide www.us.devenish nutrition.com/ products-services/ poultry/c/specialityproducts1/ omegapro

Food labelling has a role to play too. Shifting from purely sign-posting negative aspects of foods, to including beneficial aspects too, could help tremendously, she suggested. Improving convenience would be important too.

Switching to lab-grown meat alternatives might be seen as an option, but would still require potentially unsustainable nutrient and energy inputs. “And there’s the cultural element too – do we really want to eat the equivalent of dog food,” Prof Stanton concluded.

EAT-Lancet Report The EAT-Lancet report reviewed what constitutes a healthy diet from a sustainable food system, and actions to support and speed up food system transformation. The EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet, Health brought together 37 world-leading scientists to answer the question: Can we feed a future population of 10 billion people a healthy diet within planetary boundaries? The answer was YES, with the caveat that it would be impossible without transforming eating habits, improving food production and reducing food waste. www.eatforum.org/eat-lancet-commission

DALYs Disability-Adjusted Life Years for a disease or health condition are calculated as the sum of the Years of Life Lost due to premature mortality, plus Years Lost due to Disability, for people living with the health condition or its consequences. www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/metrics_daly/en

www.thefarmersclub.com • 11

Charles Abel • Livestock Farming

Making meat work Meat production is under pressure. Two food chain businesses are turning challenge to opportunity. Charles Abel reports

Jago Pearson of Northern Ireland bacon producer Finnebrogue Artisan

Innovation can give consumers what they want

“We can’t be an industry that just bemoans consumer trends, we’ve got to embrace innovation to answer them.”

Jago Pearson

INNOVATION is essential and the consumer is king. Ignore that and food production businesses are doomed, according to two food business entrepreneurs determined to profit from changing consumer and society preferences.

Nitrite-free bacon Tackling a food fear of millions head-on has helped Northern Ireland meat processor Finnebrogue grow from an artisanal food producer, with farming in its pedigree, turning over £3m/annum ten years ago, into an employer of over 500 staff turning over £100m today.

Its tale reverses the 40 year decline in pigmeat sales, which saw the £1bn UK market shrink by £1m/week last year. Embracing consumer fears around nitrite in cured meat and developing an innovative solution was key.

“Consumers are more engaged and in-tune with what we produce and how we do it than at any time in history,” says Jago Pearson, Finnebrogue’s Communications Director. With thousands cutting meat consumption, and millions interested in its nutritional pros and cons, rather than ignore consumer sentiment Finnebrogue embraced it.

12 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

Fix what’s wrong “When it comes to meat, we meat producers and processors are in the dock. That’s a very real threat if we sit on our hands. But there is a fabulous opportunity for those who want to innovate and fix what’s wrong.”

Bacon is a prime example. Until recently there was no alternative to using nitrite to preserve and keep bacon pink. But the World Health Organisation’s 2015 landmark study linking nitrites in food with cancer raised consumer awareness.

That was turbocharged by subsequent studies suggesting 34,000 bowel cancer cases a year globally could be directly attributed to processed meats, and further studies linking it with mental health and breast cancer.

Whilst nitrites in vegetables are harmless, in processed meats, when cooked, the over-whelming body of evidence is that they cause health problems.

Worse still the meat industry’s own work shows nitrite does not prevent, or even control, botulism.

The firm came up with an alternative based on a blend of Mediterranean fruit extracts to keep bacon pink and tasty. Two years later Naked Bacon

Livestock Farming • Charles Abel has retail sales of £25m/year. “The technology is there to do it, and the general public wants us to do it. Consumers will reward innovation, they want sustainable.”

The plant-based foods revolution isn’t going away, and consumers want better animal welfare too, he says. “There is a degree of inertia in farming. But if we aren’t happy to change, we’ll be left behind. If we rely on Government, we will not move at the pace we need. But if we don’t innovate and do things differently Government will drive change.”

Red meat the saviour Pasture and livestock have created the upland landscape for 1000s of years, so why question that system now, asks Alexander Brewster, a forwardthinking Scottish red meat farmer based in central Perthshire.

He farms 3000ha of mainly LFA farmland, with 300 breeding cows, 2200 ewes and a flock of 4000 organic laying hens for direct egg marketing, is director of Powered Pasture, an electric fencing and grassland management retail business, and has just completed a Nuffield Scholarship investigating the relevance of red meat in the 21st Century.

In 2018 he started building ecologically sustainable grazing platforms using a ‘total nutrition’ approach. “There are a couple of schools of thought on nutrition. One is the Moron approach: the more product you buy, the more you need, the more you use, the more you buy, the bigger the moron.”

The alternative is the ‘less on’ theory. Reflect on what it is, exactly, you are trying to achieve, and how the system is designed and how that design can evolve. In the hills the main driver is undoubtedly the herbivore, so adopting an ecosystem approach to producing pasture, using every microbe in every hectare to build organic matter, is key.

harmony to build organic matter. Healthier soils mean healthier plants and healthier animals.”

And a healthier planet too.

“We can improve water-holding capacity by 250t/ha, pull in an extra 9t/ha of carbon and above every hectare on the planet is 80t of atmospheric nitrogen – and as a Scotsman, it’s all free, and that’s great.

“So is the herbivore the creator or the saviour of climate change? It’s time to turn this argument on its head. There’s no villains in this process, but there is an ignorance of its effectiveness.

“My job as a land manager is all about time management – we drop big mobs of cattle onto pasture to graze the best, trample the rest, and bring sheep in 30-40 days later when it is optimum for their rumen. It’s about stretching parasite windows, and moving away from drug reliance, but at the same time integrating genetics.”

NZ Omega Lamb In New Zealand he saw efforts to breed healthier, more productive, more profitable, more resilient ewes, using Texel/Finn/Romney/Perendale crosses for raised levels of healthy omega-3 fatty acids.

“It’s some of the finest lamb I’ve ever eaten – the veg was still on the plate when I left.” A similar approach to beef breeding makes sense.

Farmers can increase soil health and mineralisation, sequester and stabilise carbon to depth, increase water infiltration, and grow a greater diversity of species to increase photosynthetic capacity, the only true currency, so livestock can be fed at a higher plane of nutrition, to produce higher quality meat, to secure premium prices from discerning customers, he believes.

“In the 21st Century the relevance of red meat has never been greater. We need to manage for total ecological nutrition to grow a healthier society.”

MORE ON-LINE Jago Pearson and Alex Brewster spoke at Oxford Farming Conference 2020 www.ofc.org.uk/ conference/2020 www.finnebrogue. com www.powered pasture.co.uk

SHARE THE MESSAGE Communicating credible information about food products is key, notes Mr Pearson. “It’s why we are working with universities to establish our case and communicate it.”

HAVE YOUR SAY Share your views on the role of meat/dairy/ veggie in the health/ environment/climate change debate.

Email: editor@ thefarmersclub. com

“ Omega fats bring huge benefits to human health. I have no ambition to be a price taker, but a price setter.”

“We want the digesters, spreaders, aggregators, N-fixers, fungi and earthworms all working in

Alex Brewster

Alex Brewster, making the most of Scottish livestock Livestock have huge un-tapped potential to help solve environmental issues

www.thefarmersclub.com • 13

Charles Abel • Rural leadership

Engaging rural youth Keeping young people engaged in the countryside is a priority.

A new initiative aims to champion fresh approaches to re-energise rural communities YOUNG people leaving the countryside puts untold pressure on rural communities. So what can be done? A major new project is seeking answers and acting as a pathfinder for fresh approaches.

The initiative is the brain-child of Jane Craigie, a Farmers Club member and beneficiary of the Farmers Club Charitable Trust’s Windsor Leadership Trust programme, which helps aspiring leaders develop their vision and skills to enact positive change within their communities and industries.

Unlike agricultural leadership programmes the WLT involves individuals from a broad range of sectors, including the military, church, retail and health care. So far the FCCT has supported over 20 people from the UK’s agricultural sector to undergo the programme.

Inspired by her Windsor experience Jane teamed up with 30-year old colleague Rebecca 14 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

Dawes to start the Rural Youth Project early in 2018. She describes it as a ‘side project’ from her main agrifood marketing business, its aim being to understand what challenges young people feel they have in rural areas and what can be done to encourage 18-28 year-olds to build their lives in the countryside.

Widespread issue “There is a universal problem that almost all rural areas face, the loss of the young people to other places, most often to towns and cities,” she explains. “With the exodus comes the death of crucial local services like schools, public transport and GP surgeries; and once the young people and services go, it’s rare they return.

“I travel overseas a lot and perpetually see the consequences of losing young rural people – there is less creative thinking, less energy in local communities and a smaller pool of potential

Rural Youth Project team (l-r) Susannah Pate, Rebecca Dawes (co-founder), Rebecca Rainnie and Jane Craigie (co-founder).

“There is a universal problem that almost all rural areas face: the loss of young people to other places, most often towns and cities.”

Rural leadership • Charles Abel talented employees for farms and other rural businesses.

“I was propelled to start this project quite simply because we need to do all that we can to reverse this outflow, because young people are the lifeblood of rural areas and I believe that they have the natural ability to reimagine what rural places, land management and food production could be in the future.”

Running a small rurally based business herself – in north east Scotland - Jane employs a number of young people, so sees first-hand the frustrations, as well as the joys, of daily rural living.

CASE STUDY JAKOB EUNSON Jakob is 22 years old and lives in Uradale, Shetland Isles with his father, where they run mainly Shetland breeds, organically managed, as a complete “field to fork” business, supplying lamb and beef direct to wholesalers and retailers.

Better understanding “There was a lack of any current research on what rural young people felt were the positives and negatives of living in rural and remote places, so we decided to find out,” she explains.

Although Jakob, a trained butcher, has been busy building his businesses, he has experienced personal and professional obstacles living in such a remote location; the distance from the mainland being the dominant challenge.

The Rural Youth Project was launched with an online survey [see panel] and, in late 2018, the now, not-for-profit organisation, was awarded close to £300,000 of funding from LEADER* and Scottish Enterprise, the trade and industry arm of the Scottish Government.

“Transportation costs severely impact and limit my business. It’s the same issue for my social life. Sport in Shetland is very big, and if you’re a part of a football or rugby team it’s a great social thing. I’d feel bad

The funding has allowed the Project to employ a full-time staff member, to run a number of Ideas Festivals, workshops and international learning journeys, to inspire talented young people to build their leadership, enterprise and activism skills.

During 2020, the team will be running a Rural Youth Ideas Festival in July 2020 in the Scottish Borders, a series of Big Rural Ideas workshops and learning journeys to Finland, Norfolk, Ireland and the USA. The team will also be ‘story-seeking and telling’ to share youth engagement and community ideas from all over the world and has started connecting young people with mentors within the network.

for those not into these activities, because it can be limiting here for them.”

With such a small community, friendship has no age limit and there are strong intergenerational ties.

“The older people teach the younger ones skills for work, and because it is an island community, we all depend on each other to make things work.

It’s not just all the old people who do everything, they depend on the young for work, but also to keep the community and economy going.”

Despite the challenges, Jakob has a strong connection with Shetland.

“The scenery is fantastic; the folk of Shetland are so nice and it’s so safe. I never worry about where I’m going. It’s not like London, there’s no knife crime, so it’s nice that I don’t have to be watching my back. Unless something was to drastically change, it will always be home.”

International attention The initiative is gaining a lot of international traction, with organisations and policymakers from other countries asking for advice about engaging this hard to reach age-group and to partner the Project. Jane recently spoke at the OECD Rural Development Conference in South Korea.

“The power of our activities resonated with delegates from all over the world, because they share the same challenges and also recognise that the creative approach we are taking is having a really positive impact,” Jane comments.

RURAL YOUTH PROJECT SURVEY RESULTS The 2018 Rural Youth Project surveyed a total of 755 responses from the UK and overseas. The results highlighted that the inter-related issues of limited job opportunities, poor transport links and insufficient, or expensive, housing make living in rural places challenging for young people.

Forty-five percent said they found it difficult to find work close to where they live and 60% wanted more access to activities to meet other young people in their areas.

The results also highlighted that 94% consider digital connectivity essential to their future, in the context of 12% of respondents having no mobile coverage and more than a third citing internet speed of less than 4MB per second. Only 13% of respondents felt they had a say in the future of their local community, yet over 72% loved living

where they do and were optimistic about t he future.

“We also discovered the power of ‘cool’ businesses – those with a strong sense of purpose, a positive and inclusive attitude, creative workspaces and flexible working – in keeping young people engaged and loyal to rural businesses,” notes Jane.

“ We need to do all we can to reverse this outflow – young people are the lifeblood of rural areas.”

MORE INFO www.ruralyouth project.com Podcast: www.ruralyouth project.com/listen email: jane@janecraigie.com Farmers Club Charitable Trust: www.tfcct.co.uk Windsor Leadership Trust: www.windso rleadership.org.uk *RYP funding has come from five LEADER Action Groups in Scotland – Perth & Kinross, the Outer Hebrides, Lanarkshire, Angus and the Scottish Borders.

www.thefarmersclub.com • 15

Charles Abel • Book Review

CITY

Beasts of

“Thomas AlmerothWilliams adds vibrant colour to the landscape of Georgian London through his cast of horses, jackasses, livestock and watchdogs large and small.”

YOU are about to enter an unfamiliar world, a city at the dawn of the modern age in which large, four-legged animals abound and influence every aspect of urban life.

You will follow in the hoof and paw prints of the city’s horses, cows, sheep, pigs and dogs to wherever they may lead, from West End mews to East End industrial yards.

You are heading where few historians have ventured. Watch your step, hold your nerve / nose and be ready to jump out of the way of speeding carts and enraged bullocks.

Farmers Club members are sure to be fascinated by the powerful imagery conjured by author Thomas Almeroth-Williams as he traces the historic intersection between livestock and London.

‘City of Beasts: How animals shaped Georgian London’ includes chapters on cow- and pig-keeping in the city, and another on the Smithfield livestock trade, plus a wealth of material on horse work and canine crime prevention!

The author, a University of York Research Associate, is a pig farmer’s son, hence the sympathetic desire to understand the challenges faced in managing livestock in such a busy urban environment.

CITY OF BEASTS Hardback £25.00 Paperback £13.99 www.cityofbeasts london.info www.manchester universitypress. co.uk/978152 6150325/

29 black and white images, many never before published, and five maps.

“Almeroth-Williams interrogates a lost world of human-animal relations to expose something quite new,” comments Professor Tim Hitchcock, Co-Director of The Old Bailey Online. “This book will change how you see the pre-industrial world and every mutt you meet on the street.”

• Share your cracking reads with fellow members – email: editor@thefarmersclub.com

CARAS SECRETARY CHANGE After 18 years in office, Prof Malcolm Stansfield MBE, is to retire from his position as Secretary of the English Panel of the Council for Awards for the Royal Agricultural Societies (CARAS) in June. A popular member of The Farmers Club and frequent visitor to Whitehall Court, Malcolm is to be replaced by Milly Fyfe a former NFYFC chairman, who has worked for RABI and the Shorthorn Society, and was an active member of the Farmers Club Under 30s. https://royalagriculturalsocietiesawards. org/about-caras/

Animals are placed centre stage in the major debates of eighteenth- and early nineteenthcentury English social and urban history, as he reassesses London’s role in the industrial, agricultural and consumer revolutions.

“Beautifully written, attentive and thoughtful, City of Beasts is alive not only with the sights, sounds, smells of the eighteenth century metropolis, but also with its animal voices,” says Lucy Inglis, author of Georgian London: Into the Streets.

The nine chapters range across 308 fascinating pages, from mill horses to watch dogs, with

16 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

“Animals made eighteenthcentury London work, from guard dogs to drays, they provided the ‘horse power’ that made society turn.”

Wine Tour • Anita Kaur

Burgundy Wine Tour

Monday 14th - Thursday 17th September 2020

The Club is pleased to be able to offer a customised wine tour to Burgundy this September, organised in conjunction with Uncorked Wine Tours.

The itinerary, for a group of 20, is as follows:

Monday 14th September Lunchtime flight from London Heathrow to Lyon, meeting with guide and transfer to the Burgundy wine region (specifically the Côte D’Or) with a brief presentation en-route. Check in to Hotel Henry II in Beaune, the centre of the Burgundian wine industry, before walking to dinner nearby.

Tuesday 15th September Throughout the tour, the group will visit wineries along the narrow 50km band of vineyard, known as the Côte D’Or. Split between Côte de Nuits in the north and Côte de Beaune in the south, it is the source of the greatest and long-lived wines of the region. This first day will be spent in the north, in the villages of Vosne-Romanée and Gevrey-Chambertin, sources of some of the finest reds in the world.

After two visits and tastings, lunch will be served overlooking the vineyards of one of the estates. The afternoon will then be free, to explore the town of Beaune or relax at the hotel before dinner in a nearby restaurant.

Wednesday 16th September Some free time to discover the Beaune food market, then we head south of Beaune, where some of the great white Burgundies come from. Part of the day will be focused on the appellation of Puligny Montrachet, where the visit at Domaine Olivier Leflaive will include a visit of the vineyards and cellars with a wine tasting during lunch. Afternoon at urban organic farm Le Loups Bio in Beaune, followed by a visit and tasting at Joseph Drouhin. Dinner in nearby restaurant.

Thursday 17th September Breakfast at hotel. Visit Boyer Martenot, in the Municipalities of Meursault, followed by Antoine Olivier in Santenay, a gorgeous village with breath-taking views of the Côte d’Or. The owners are very friendly and welcoming, and make great wine. Lunch here before a late afternoon flight to London Heathrow Airport.

The total cost of the tour is £1671.00 per person (double occupancy) including four star hotel accommodation, three lunches, three dinners with wine, all visits and flights from London Heathrow Airport (there is a £105 single supplement charge).

TO REGISTER INTEREST To register interest please complete the insert enclosed with this Journal, or contact Administrator Anita Kaur on 020 7930 3751 or email: administrator@thefarmersclub.com

www.thefarmersclub.com • 17

Virginia Masser • Summer at the Club

Farming Figures X

A look at… the role of dairy farming in climate change… told through some key statistics

2050

Your Club in the Summer

Year Government wants UK to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions; NFU target is for farming to be net zero by 2040

49%

Share of global cattle farming’s total GHG emissions from feed production/processing

7.1

gigatonnes Annual GHG emissions from global livestock, measured in CO2 equivalence

3%

Dairy production’s share of global natural and man-made GHG emissions

121.4

million tonnes GHG output from UK transport (in CO2e)

1.25kg

Carbon footprint from producing 1 litre of UK fat-corrected milk

243kg

Carbon footprint of one person flying from London-Rome

17.1kg

C-footprint of a typical 100 mile car journey

21

times more

GHG emissions from UK transport compared with all UK agriculture

Less than 1:11 Share of British GHG emissions due to agriculture, dairying being less than 2% Sources: RABDF, NFU, FAO, AHDB, Alltech, www.theccc.org, The Guardian, BBC

18 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

I can’t believe that March is at an end, where did the beginning of the year go?

With Easter plans in progress, including a visit to the Club for a couple of days break, my mind wanders to the brighter, lighter, longer, hazy days of Summer.

To enable you to make your summer plans here are 6 things you need to know about your Club in the Summer months;

The view of the summer planting in Embankment Gardens and the River Thames bring the outside in.

3. An array of Club Events will be taking place throughout the summer months. (a lovely excuse to have a quick, relaxing few days away)

1. The Club is fully open throughout including bedrooms, The Restaurant, Bar and use of the function rooms (long gone are the days when the Club is closed!)

4. The Terrace of course comes into its own. It can be used to dine al fresco (first come first served), to reserve in part for your function (subject to availability) or to simply watch the world go by and enjoy the buzz of London, 2. Function rooms are available for tinged with a warm sunny glow. you to book for lunches, dinners, special occasions and meetings.

5. During the month of August the relaxed summer dress code applies.

6. London has an endless list of things to do for all the family.

Hope this helps and we look forward to seeing you all during the Summer months.

Virginia General Manager

Head Chef & Director of Food • Paul Hogben

THROUGH THE

kitchen window I suspect you were expecting an article on the problems we are facing in the food industry after our departure from the European Union. Well, as I write, we haven’t encountered any new issues, and why should we when 98% of our produce is sourced from these shores with our simply cooked seasonal, quality British food all being prepared on site. And so, instead l thought l would give you a little insight into what happens behind the scenes in the kitchen.

My team are from the United Kingdom, Europe & North African Countries. We are a close-knit bunch of guys and girls who in the main look out for one another and work tremendously well as a team producing food and keeping the kitchen clean.

Leading the early and late teams are Senior Sous Chefs Michael and Roman, both with years of experience in top end restaurants that they are now sharing with the others. Piotr oversees all our functions and covers all areas during holidays. Billel and Marco are on Sauce covering main courses, Petar is our breakfast & staff food chef, Fade and Tamas take care of starters and bar food. Carl and Rae look after garnishes and vegetables that accompany the main courses, whilst Jack & Sarah

Kitchen Team Front row left to right: Sarah, Michael, Carl, Fergilles, Jack.

Back row left to right: Marco, Tamas, Petar, Roman, Piotr, Rae, Fade, Paul.

are in charge of the dessert section. Keeping everything clean and hygienic are our porters; Fergilles, Pius and Younouss.

The days are split into early and late shifts with the team alternating throughout the week allowing them to have some mornings and some evenings off. Everyone has a part to play, whether it be ensuring there are clean plates or showcasing their skills on the plate either in the Restaurant, the Bar or function rooms and of course and by no means least, the on-site Club team are a hungry bunch!

In addition to the day to day, sourcing food from the UK is an on-going process and our network of suppliers changes regularly. The team suggest ideas for seasonal menus which are trialled, tasted and refined with costings and seasonal price variations all being considered before a final decision is made on the new season’s menu.

“ It really is teamwork and whilst many will want to thank ‘the Chef’ every member of the team is vital in making it happen.”

It really is teamwork and whilst many will want to thank “the Chef” every member of the team is vital in making it happen. So, next time you take a glance through the kitchen window…

Enjoy!

Chef

www.thefarmersclub.com • 19

Eleanor Kay, Chairman; Alice Hind, Vice Chairman; Anita Kaur, Secretary • Under 30s

Chairman’s Jottings

I joined the Under 30s shortly after graduating and was resolutely determined to enjoy the events but not rush into any position of responsibility. It didn’t last long, and I’ve been on the Under 30s Committee for five years. In that time, it’s been great to see the Committee become more and more organised, including the introduction of specific roles and a better understanding of our budget.

This structure helps us deliver more for the Under 30s membership and we hope encourages younger members to use the Club outside of our events.

It was a privilege to be Scott’s Vice-Chairman and I must congratulate him for an excellent year – the range of speakers and the fantastic farm walks to both Hampshire and Rutland created lasting memories and friendships. We also had some of our highest attendances at events, something I hope to continue. Fortunately, we are not losing Scott, who steps into the immediate past chair role and will continue to be involved in the Jill Willows Scholarship work, which I know he is passionate about.

A little about me – I grew up in Clitheroe, Lancashire but am now based in Edinburgh.

I completed my BSc (Hons) Agriculture at Royal Agricultural University and specialised in Sustainable Soil Management before going on to work for Birds Eye in pea production, Rothamsted Research as Knowledge Exchange Manager and now as Agriculture Policy Adviser at Scottish Land & Estates.

Our 2020 calendar is looking busy with Christopher Price, CEO of The Rare Breeds Survival Trust, as our Spring Dining speaker, Farm Walks to both Lancashire and Scotland along with some exciting speakers. I am delighted to have Alice Hind as my Vice Chair, and to welcome three new committee members: Emily Pile, Laura Hancox and Rose Franklin.

Please visit our “The Farmers Club U30s” Facebook page to keep up to date. I look forward to seeing you all at Main Club and Under 30s events this year.

Contact Eleanor for more information: Eleanor Kay Edinburgh Under 30s Chairman 2020/21 07964 909108 eleanorkay@live.co.uk

20 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

New Members Weekend The Under 30s New Members Weekend was exceptionally well attended with a great mix of returning, new and prospective members. The food was outstanding, thank you Chef, and the conversation even better.

Could you ask for more for the first event of the Under 30s year?

Our guest speaker for the evening was Richard Ballard, Co-Founder of Growing Underground and was very much enjoyed by all in attendance.

Having entered the industry through an interest in film, Richard and cofounder Steven have developed a micro-salads farm using hydroponics in the redundant tube lines under Clapham. As someone who presently works on Clapham Common it was fascinating to hear all about the developing farming enterprises in the tube tunnels in that very area.

Richard spoke to us about their sustainable growing practices and how they are presently working towards carbon neutral certification.

Their hydroponics system presently uses 70% less water than traditional open-field farming, and all nutrients are kept within the closed-loop system removing any risk of

agricultural run-off. Limiting food miles and keeping produce local, leaves can be in the kitchen within four hours of being picked and packed.

The Under 30s AGM happened the following morning and after a fantastic tenure, outgoing chairman Scott Hayles officially handed the reins over to Eleanor Kay and our new committee members were introduced.

The weekend concluded with a wonderful evening at Swingers Crazy Golf in the City. It appears that the highest score does not win in golf…!

• See: www.growing-underground. com/the-farmers-club Alice Hind Pre-Prep Teacher at Parkgate House School Under 30s Vice-Chairman

UNDER 30s EVENTS 2020 17th April Spring Dining Evening 29th-31st May Spring Farm Walk - Lancashire 17th July Cocktail Evening 4th September Autumn Dining Evening 23rd-25th October Autumn Farm Walk - Loch Lomond 27th November November Dining Evening

Under 30s • Eleanor Kay, Chairman; Alice Hind, Vice Chairman; Anita Kaur, Secretary

Oxford visions inspire Laura Hancox attended the Oxford Farming Conference as the Farmers Club Under 30s Scholar. Here she relays her highlights

I am a relative newcomer to the farming industry.

I read Human Geography at UCL and then worked for a management consultancy firm in London for five years. I made the move into fresh produce in 2019 and now work for the Fresca Group as a Project Delivery Manager. I am passionate about change and innovation, and the future of agriculture in the UK. The theme of the Oxford Farming Conference 2020 was “Growing a Healthy Society” – videos of the main presentations can be viewed at www.ofc.org.uk/conference/2020/videos.

The annual Politics Briefing highlighted our diminishing agricultural workforce, the challenges agriculture will face as the UK strives to reach net zero carbon emissions and the importance of coherent trade deals post-Brexit to protect our high food quality standards.

In scholar breakout sessions we were asked to consider what the term “healthy society” really means. There was a consensus that health encompasses environmental, social and economic

well-being. We discussed the inevitability of opportunity cost and unintended consequences, and agreed that compromise and long-term planning are required to grow a healthy society in the holistic sense.

We also discussed how large retailers and food corporations can support farmers to deliver high quality food whilst protecting our environment.

Extinction Rebellion used the Conference to lobby Government on biodiversity loss and cutting greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2025. The Conference Chair commented on the positive engagement between Rebels and Delegates and encouraged the industry to continue to engage in the climate change debate.

My favourite session by far was Henry Dimbleby in conversation with Kamal Mouzawak on the topic of The Power of Food in Society. Kamal is a restaurateur, hotelier and all-around foodie based in Beirut, Lebanon. Over 15 years he has used food to unite Lebanese people from different faiths and political backgrounds. He shared stories of people from different ethnic groups coming together at the Farmers’ Market he founded to learn to cook each other’s traditional dishes and to share food.

His resounding message was: “be the change you want to see, don’t wait for someone else to make the first move”. Kamal reminded us that food is more than a commodity. It is a builder of community, friendship, health, and love.

JILL WILLOWS SCHOLARSHIP Under 30s are reminded to watch out for details of the 2020 Jill Willows Scholarship to be emailed out shortly. Following on from the successful Scholarship trip to the 2018 RASC Conference in Alberta we will be offering another Scholarship for this year’s conference in Norfolk, UK.

My thanks to The Farmers Club for the opportunity to spend three interesting days at the Oxford Farming Conference 2020.

www.thefarmersclub.com • 21

The Farmers Club • Club Information

Club Information 020 7930 3557 • www.thefarmersclub.com @thefarmersclub The Farmers Club Page

Office Holders

Patron – Her Majesty The Queen HONORARY VICE PRESIDENTS Sir Mark Hudson, Peter Jackson CBE, Roddy Loder-Symonds, John Parker, Norman Shaw CBE THE COMMITTEE OF MANAGEMENT OF THE CLUB 2020 VICE PRESIDENTS Barclay Forrest OBE, Mrs Susan Kilpatrick OBE, Paul Heygate PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN Allan Stevenson TRUSTEES Jimmy McLean, Mrs Nicki Quayle, Julian Sayers (Chairman), Tim Bennett VICE-CHAIRMAN Keith Redpath HONORARY TREASURER Richard Maunder IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIRMAN Nick Helme CHIEF EXECUTIVE AND SECRETARY Andrei Spence CLUB CHAPLAIN The Reverend Dr Sam Wells COMMITTEE Elected 2016: Nick Helme, Peter Jinman OBE Elected 2017 to serve from 2018 to 2020 inclusive: Ian Bell OBE, Matt Dempsey and Revd Cannon Gerald Osborne Elected 2018 to serve from 2019 to 2021 inclusive: Fiona Fell, Meurig Raymond CBE DL, John Hardman, Andrew Brown JP (re-elected) Elected 2019 to serve from 2020 to 2023 inclusive: Sue Bullock, Sarah Cowlrick, Kevin Beaty (re-elected), John Lee OBE DL (re-elected), Karen Mercer (re-elected), Christopher Riddle (re-elected)

EASTER OPENING SCHEDULE 2020 London has a wonderful array of activities for all the family during the Easter holidays. To help you plan your break take a look at www.timeout.com for inspiration. See below for services available in the Club over Easter weekend: THURSDAY 9TH APRIL • Bedrooms available • Breakfast in The Restaurant 7am-9.30am • Bar open normal times with normal offering • Lunch and Dinner service as normal in The Restaurant • Reception open as normal GOOD FRIDAY BANK HOLIDAY 10TH APRIL • Bedrooms available • Breakfast in The Restaurant 8am-10.30am • Bar open 12noon-8pm for light lunches and supper, last orders 7.15pm • Reception open 8am-12noon EASTER SATURDAY 11TH APRIL • Bedrooms available • Breakfast in The Restaurant 8am-10.30am • Bar open 12noon-8pm for light lunches and supper, last orders 7.15pm • Reception open 8am-12noon

BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY 13TH APRIL • Bedrooms available • Breakfast in The Restaurant 8am-10.30am • Bar open 12noon-8pm for light lunches and supper, last orders 7.15pm • Reception open 8am-12noon TUESDAY 14TH APRIL • Bedrooms available • Breakfast at normal time.

• Bar open at normal times with normal offering • The Restaurant closed at Lunch, open for Dinner • Reception open as normal WEDNESDAY 15TH APRIL • Normal service resumes in all areas

A television will be available in The Forty room throughout the period. The Club Directory in bedrooms has a host of information that may be useful whilst EASTER SUNDAY 12TH APRIL staying at the Club, including • Bedrooms available emergency procedures. When the • Breakfast in The Restaurant 8am-10.30am Club’s Reception desk is closed, • Bar open 12noon-8pm for light lunches Whitehall Court Porters are on and supper, last orders 7.15pm duty and can be contacted on • Reception open 8am-12noon extension 202, day and night.

BEATING RETREAT

Co-opted: Eleanor Kay (Chairman Under 30s), Alice Hind (Vice Chairman Under 30s) THE FARMERS CLUB CHARITABLE TRUST TRUSTEES Stephen Fletcher (Chairman), Vic Croxson DL, Meryl Ward MBE, Des Lambert OBE, Nick Green, James Squier, The Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Club (ex officio). Patron Mrs Stella Muddiman

NEXT ISSUE The Summer issue of the Farmers Club Journal, due with members in late May, will include reports on Club activities, including the April Monday Evening Lecture, St George’s Day Luncheon, Farmers Club Charitable Trust educator awards and 2020 Pinnacle Awards.

22 • The Farmers Club Spring 2020

WEDNESDAY 10TH JUNE 2020

OUTLINE PROGRAMME

The Household Division’s Beating Retreat – a spectacular evening pageant of music and military precision drill, including horses, cannon and fireworks, usually marks the lowering of the Regimental flag at sunset, performed on Horse Guards Parade in front of the beautiful backdrop of St James’s Park.

5.55pm Members arrive at The Farmers Club 6.00pm 3 course dinner with wine at The Farmers Club 7.40pm Walk to Royal Horse Guards Parade 8.00pm Parade begins 9.40pm Parade finishes and return to The Club

Soldiers of the Household Division are instantly recognisable through their distinctive uniforms and headdress and have a history spanning over three centuries. Invariably described as ‘truly spectacular’ and ‘London at its finest’ the Household Division Beating Retreat cannot be seen anywhere else in the world and is a not to be missed event.

Cost per ticket £70.00. Tickets will be sold on a first come first served basis.

To register your interest please email administrator@thefarmersclub.com or call Anita Kaur on 020 7930 3751.

Club Information • The Farmers Club Deaths It is with regret that we announce the death of the following members: Dr G Davies Shropshire Mr D Dick Clackmannanshire Mr R Keogh Irish Republic Mrs E Monk Midlothian Mr D Norman Oxfordshire Mr J Watkins Radnorshire New Members The following were elected: UK Members Mr J Allen Mr P Almack Mr C Banyard Mr J Blackburn Mrs H Bright Mrs R Davidson Mr T Deighton Mrs J Fielding Mr S Godman Mr R Haydon Mrs J Hilditch Mr R Hobill Mr R Hoskins Mr M Hutchinson Mr P Jeffery Mr D Lishman Mr D Macaulay Mr P Matthews Mr P Mews Mr N Morgan Mr M Muncey Mr R Parr Mr W Rice Mr S Tingle Mr H Wells Mr J Woods

Northamptonshire Yorkshire Surrey Cheshire Gloucestershire Warwickshire Suffolk Staffordshire Hampshire Sussex Herefordshire Leicestershire Gloucestershire Norfolk Hampshire Yorkshire Yorkshire Buckinghamshire Lincolnshire Derbyshire Cambridgeshire Devon Northamptonshire Leicestershire Lincolnshire Lancashire

Under 30s Miss C Bright Miss A Bright Mr W Carless Mr A Court Mr T Davies Miss R Hancox Mr E Jibson Miss E McGowan Mr Hamish McNeil Wilson Mr Henry McNeil Wilson Mr H Parrott Miss M Parrott Miss G Pitts Miss H Priest Mr J Russ Miss M Shelton-Agar Mr T Sowerby

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire Suffolk Staffordshire Cumberland Cambridgeshire Yorkshire County Down Norfolk Norfolk Staffordshire London Northamptonshire Staffordshire Lincolnshire Sussex Yorkshire

Associate - Whitehall Court Dr D Moore

Business Suite The Business Suite provides PCs, printing and WiFi for members. Meetings are prohibited.

WiFi WiFi is available throughout the Club at no charge.

Luggage room This is a short term storage facility only. In the event that luggage has been left for a period of over 3 months and we are unable to identify the owner, it will be disposed of.

STORAGE OF SHOTGUNS Members are reminded that the Club does not hold a license for the storage of shotguns.

SECURITY OF PERSONAL ITEMS Please do not leave valuables in the bedrooms, cloakrooms or luggage room at the Club. The Club will not accept responsibility for any loss.

The Club is holding receptions at a number of agricultural shows this year. Members are invited to join us in supporting their local show, and their Club in its efforts to reach out beyond its London base. See insert to book tickets priced £8.00 each.

Drinks Reception at Royal Bath & West Show Thursday 28th May 4.00 - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Venue: tbc Speaker: tbc Drinks at The Lincolnshire Show Wednesday 24th June 4.00 - 5.30pm

(exact timing tbc) Venue: tbc Speaker: Mr Ian Walter BSc (Hons) CEnv FRICS FAAV Senior Partner and Chartered Surveyor Drinks Reception at Royal Welsh Show Monday 20th July 4.00 - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Venue: tbc Speaker: tbc Drinks Reception at New Forest & Hampshire Show Tuesday 28th July 4.00 - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc)

Venue: tbc Speaker: tbc Drinks Reception at Westmorland Show Thursday 10th September 4.00 - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Venue: tbc Speaker: Sarah Dunning, OBE – Chief Executive of the Westmorland Services at Tebay See insert to apply for tickets or email administrator@ thefarmersclub.com or call Anita Kaur on 020 7930 3751.

Serving the farming industry for 175 years 3 Whitehall Court, London SW1A 2EL

Chairman 2020: Allan Stevenson

Chief Executive and Secretary: Andrei Spence

Club Number 020 7930 3557 London

SUMMER SHOW RECEPTIONS

Drinks Reception at Devon County Show Thursday 21st May 4.00 - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Venue: tbc Speaker: tbc

Club Contacts THE FARMERS CLUB

Reception reception@thefarmersclub.com Bedroom Reservations reservations@thefarmersclub.com Restaurant Reservations Option 3 restaurant@thefarmersclub.com Conference & Banqueting Sales Manager Liza Keoshgerian direct line: 020 7925 7100 functions@thefarmersclub.com Administrator & Under 30s Secretary Anita Kaur direct line 020 7930 3751 administrator@thefarmersclub.com General Manager Virginia Masser direct line 020 7930 3751 generalmanager@thefarmersclub.com Head Chef & Director of Food Paul Hogben direct line: 020 7925 7103 chef@thefarmersclub.com Financial Controller Zarreena Neeson direct line: 020 7925 7101 financialcontroller@thefarmersclub.com Membership Mark Fairbairn direct line: 020 7925 7102 membership@thefarmersclub.com PA to Secretary Claire White direct line: 020 7930 3751 generaloffice@thefarmersclub.com Bedrooms ext: 3+ [two digit room number] eg. ext 301 for Room1 Whitehall Court Porters 020 7930 3160 Fax 020 7839 7864 Website: www.thefarmersclub.com @thefarmersclub The Farmers Club Page THE FARMERS CLUB JOURNAL Editor and Advertisement Manager: Charles Abel 07795 420692 E-mail: editor@thefarmersclub.com Designed and produced by: Ingenious, www.ingeniousdesign.co.uk No film or film processing chemicals were used.

Printed on Lumi Silk which is ISO 14001 certified manufacturer. FSC® Mix Credit. Elemental chlorine free (ECF) fibre sourced from well managed forests

www.thefarmersclub.com • 23

2020

Club Calendar DIARY DATES 2020

Here are just some of the Club events planned for the coming months. More event details can be found at www.thefarmersclub.com/events, in Club e-newsletters, or from Club Administrator Anita Kaur (020 7930 3751 extn 216) e-mail: administrator@thefarmersclub.com APRIL

Edinburgh Visit – FULL Mon 15th - Wed 17th June

Titian: Love, Desire, Death Exhibition at the National Gallery – FULL Wednesday 15th April

Royal Highland Show Dinner at New Members Pavilion, Edinburgh Wednesday 17th June

Private talk at 12noon and lunch at 1.00pm in the Club, followed by exhibition Under 30s Spring Dinner

Under 30s Spring Dinner Friday 17th April Speaker: Christopher Price, CEO, Rare Breeds Survival Trust

Edinburgh visit

Balmoral Show Dinner at the Titanic Museum, Belfast Tuesday 12th May

Eve of Balmoral Show Dinner

Chelsea Flower Show Tuesday 19th May

JULY Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival

Devon County Show Drinks Reception Thursday 21st May

Royal Welsh Show Reception

Supper at the Club, performance at 7.30pm

SEPTEMBER Burgundy Wine Tour

JUNE Royal Horse Guards Parade Application form included with this Journal

Chatsworth House

Private tour of Chatsworth House /Gardens & Chatsworth Flower Show – FULL Wednesday 10th & Thursday 11th June Private guided tour of the house followed by an overnight stay at a hotel nearby and the flower show the following day Application form in last Journal

4.00pm – 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Speaker: TBC Application form included with this journal

1 event every week in August – TBC

4.00pm - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Speaker: TBC Application form included with this Journal

Beating Retreat Wednesday 10th June

New Forest & Hampshire Show Drinks Reception Tuesday 28th July

AUGUST

Royal Bath & West Show Drinks Reception Thursday 28th May

Beating Retreat

Light lunch at the Club – Flower Show – back at the Club for dinner

4.00pm – 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Speaker: TBC Application form included with this Journal

4.00pm - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Speaker: TBC Application form included with this Journal

La Boheme at The Royal Opera House – FULL Wednesday 27th May

Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival – FULL Thursday 9th July

Royal Welsh Show Drinks Reception Monday 20th July

Lunch 12.30pm at Club Speaker: Peter Seabrook, Flower Show

Chelsea Flower Show

The Lincolnshire Show Drinks Reception Wednesday 24th June 4.00pm - 5.30pm (exact timing tbc) Speaker: Ian Walter Application form included with this Journal

MAY

7.00pm for 7.30pm Speaker: Dame Mary Elizabeth Peters, LG, CH, DBE, DStJ. Application form in last Journal

7.00pm for 7.30pm Speaker: Aled Jones, CEO CALV Application form in last Journal

Burgundy visit Mon 14th - Thurs 17th September Application form included with this journal

For full details of the services available in The Farmers Club over the Easter weekend please turn to p22.

EASTER OPENING

BANK HOLIDAY ALERT! Please note that the first Bank Holiday in May has moved.

Normally it falls on the first Monday in May, which would be 4th May, but to mark the 75th Anniversary of VE Day the Bank Holiday will now be on Friday 8th May.