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Controlling costs and cultivating resilience
Monetising natural capital and tackling climate change are set to be examined in CropTec’s seminar programme. Coping with change: Costs, environmental regulation and cultivating resilience
This year’s CropTec Show will be the 10th to take place since the event’s launch in November 2013.
Hot topics in the seminars back then included the use of technology to optimise nitrogen inputs and the need to ‘do things differently’ when it came to crop protection, with a particular emphasis on the use of integrated crop management techniques.
Some might argue that not much has changed in agriculture in the intervening years and indeed these topics are set to feature in this year’s seminar programme.
But the context is very different. In 2013 the focus was on the push to squeeze out that little bit more yield, as well as looking ahead to the eagerly awaited arrival of new crop protection products (CPPs).
Cost effective
Today’s the emphasis is on making the most of every penny spent on inputs and reducing use of those inputs where it is cost-effective to do so.
And while new CPPs have arrived, the aim in 2022 is careful stewardship to protect the environment as well as the longevity of these new materials, against a backdrop of an increased policy focus on environmental management and ongoing loss of plant protection actives through regulation and resistance.
More information
JThis year’s CropTec Show takes place at the East of England Showground, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire on 23-24 November.
For more information on the CropTec seminars and to register for the show, go to croptecshow.com rSeminar 1: 9:30-10:30am rSession chair: Day one – Abi Kay, head of news at Arable Farming’s sister magazine, Farmers Guardian. Day two – Joe Stanley, head of training & partnerships, GWCT Allerton Project
From international trade to environmental policy, speakers in this session will tackle pressing questions around cost management facing the arable sector.
The seminars at this year’s CropTec Show will once again bring together leading farmers, policymakers, technical experts, advisers and scientists to discuss and debate the big issues facing the arable sector.
From managing costs to monetising natural capital and tech for optimising fertiliser inputs to traits for better disease resistance, the seminar programme will tackle the challenges of farming in a changing climate, providing pointers to controlling costs, while cultivating resilience.
Maximising natural capital revenue opportunities: A hard look at ways to monetise environmental deliverables on-farm
rSeminar 3: 12:30-1:15pm rSession chair: Dr Liz Reddy, director of policy and economics, ADAS rThis session will help farmers understand the options when it comes to monetising revenue opportunities in the natural capital sphere.
From carbon to water, experts will look at the drivers influencing the supply chain of these environmental deliverables to identify financial gain.
Speakers rGeorge Cook: Senior farm business consultant, Andersons As farm businesses grapple with the concept of ‘natural Sponsored by
capital’ and what it means for them, George Cook will break down the natural capital schemes in place and look at where income can be generated on-farm, specifically looking at environmental deliverables such as carbon and water rMichael Kavanagh: Co-founder and director, Green Farm Collective Shropshire farmer Michael Kavanagh will take a practical look at the Green Farm Collective’s successful efforts to quantify and profit from natural capital trading on-farm rDr Nigel Davies: Managing director at Maltdoctor With an increasing number of food and beverage companies calculating their carbon footprint, many are finding that a major proportion of carbon footprint arises from the carbon embedded in the growing of food-based raw materials.
With a requirement to change farming practices to reduce overall carbon footprint, this highlights a new potential risk to continuing supply with farmers. Brewers, distillers, millers, and maltsters are keen to work with farmers to understand these issues and potential remedies.
Dr Nigel Davies will examine the carbon footprint challenge in more detail and explain the impact that is being delivered by engaged and proactive farmers in delivering the dual benefits of improved soil health and carbon sequestration.
Michael Kavanagh
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Speakers: rCaroline Nicholls: Sustainable Farming Incentive content team leader, Defra Future Farming and Countryside Programme As the rollout of new support policy continues, Caroline Nicholls will share developments in the Environmental Land Management programme. rHarry Henderson: Knowledge exchange technical manager, AHDB Harry Henderson will look at cost management in arable farming and tackling barriers to regenerative agriculture to ask: is it just good husbandry with a fresh focus on soil care? rCarl Atkins: Agribusiness adviser and farm management specialist, Terravost
Ed Reynolds
From conflicts and climate change to trade deals and technology, Carl Atkins will look at international perspectives on regenerative agriculture, including cost and competitiveness and the implications for trade flows. rEd Reynolds: Farmer, Cambridgeshire Ed Reynolds will look at his business, focusing on how the transition to regenerative ag techniques, particularly adopting reduced tillage alongside cover cropping, has made his farm more resilient and helped to diversify income streams.
Trusting data: How tech could be key to controlling fertiliser costs
rSeminar 2: 11-11.45am rSession chair: Matt Culley, Hampshire farmer and NFU combinable crops board chairman
Against a backdrop of continuing upward pressure on fertiliser prices, this session will dive deep into the technology for optimising fertiliser applications, assessing its adoption and the potential it offers to help control fertiliser costs.
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Matt Culley
Speakers rMark Tucker: Agronomy and marketing manager, Yara UK & Ireland rTom Hawthorne: Farmer, Flawborough Farms, Nottinghamshire rAgronomist TBC
Strategies for disease control in a changing climate: Where next?
rSeminar 4: 2-2:45pm rSession chair: Anthony Hopkins, chief combinable crops advisor, NFU rWith the farming industry coming under increasing regulatory pressure, farmers are looking at ways to reduce their chemical inputs and find alternative crop protection tools.
From integrated pest management to analysing the role of plant breeding in the crop protection armoury, this session will explore strategies to help farmers deal with disease control challenges as well as looking to the future to ask ‘Where next’? Speakers: rAndrew Watson: Head of membership technical services and east region agronomist, NIAB Leading agronomist Andrew Watson will take a practical
Colin Chappell
look at the loss of fungicides and the knock-on implications of controlling yellow rust and growth of milling wheat varieties rDr Phil Howell: Head of breeding, NIAB Dr Howell leads NIAB’s prebreeding and breeding work across a range of broadacre arable crops.
At CropTec he will examine the latest technical advances in breeding for pest and disease resistance and how these must continue to adapt in the face of challenges, including a changing climate, fewer active ingredients and societal pressure to reduce inputs rColin Chappell: Farmer Lincolnshire farmer Colin Chappell will focus on ‘getting off the treadmill of inputs we find ourselves on’ to provide a practical guide to reducing fungicide use on-farm
