News list - Page 6 of 7 - Worshipful Company of Farmers

WCFA Learning Extension Day

One hundred WCFA members, guests and partners attended the 2022 WCFA Learning Extension Days – over a day and a half at Loughborough University – for a full programme entitled “Insight & inspirations from the wider world”.

The 29th November started with an action packed speed networking event – which made many hoarse, shouting over others – followed by a drinks reception and dinner with Amie Burke as our after-dinner speaker. At the dinner, Chris Manley was presented the new Farmers’ Company Alumni award – a silver rose bowl donated by Liveryman Peter Bennett.

Peter Bennett (L) presents Chris Manley with the Alumni Award

The 30th November kicked off with keynote speaker Gareth Timmins, former Royal Marine and author of “Becoming the 0.1% – how to build an elite mindset” – who made many think. Three streams then took place during the day, on social media (Tom Martin), the value of mentoring (Nicola Miller) and funnelling great ideas to enhance your business (Sian Gardner & Martin Horton consultants).

The Master and question time panel

A debate on “farming’s image will only be fixed if we all take responsibility for fixing it ourselves” took place with Charlie Ireland of Ceres Rural; Anna Jones, author of “Divide: the relationship crisis between town and country”; Tom Martin, social media influencer; and Jonathan Roberts, director of external affairs for CLA.

Now the Committee starts planning for 2023 – save the dates of 28th and 29th November.

Annual visit to RAF Waddington

Tuesday the 8th of November 2022 brought two of the oldest and most important professions together with our annual visit and presentation at RAF Waddington, the Farmers that feed the nation and the RAF that defend the nation.

The day commenced with a very warm and informative presentation from the Station Commander Group Captain Mark Lorriman-Hughes, who briefed us on many interesting facts about the base, which is home to around 3500 service personnel and, as one of the RAF’s busiest stations, the hub of UK Intelligence.

During his tenure, the base has already welcomed the Red Arrows, who have recently transferred from RAF Scampton. We were then briefed on plans to improve their single persons accommodation which dates back to the 1940’s and 50’s to equal that of modern University Students Accommodation, but all the quotes are coming in at double what they have budgeted for and so there would inevitably have to be some cut backs, a great example of how input cost inflation is affecting everyone!

Bird strike is an ongoing H&S issue, and to help combat this, the entire air field has recently been reseeded after discovering that the existing grass was infested with Leatherjackets which were attracting the birds. Providing that you don’t count the cost of aviation fuel as this is an essential requirement, this will help the base reach their target of Carbon Net Zero, as the new variety of grass (Fescue) is deeper rooting and so will store more carbon!

We then moved onto the awards ceremony, following the reading of the citation of the winner, the Master then presented the award to Senior Air Traffic Control Officer (SATCO) David Pickard, along with a keep sake, both of which were sponsored by Liveryman Tony Ireland.

The Master with Senior Air Traffic Control Officer David Pickard

After enjoying a three-course lunch, we then split into two parties for a tour of the control tower and the station’s Vulcan bomber.

The control tower was staffed by four personnel who are responsible for all air traffic movements in the area, as well as ground movements on the base and road traffic on the adjacent A15, where traffic lights are located which are put on red every time an aircraft is coming into land. We were very lucky to witness an F-35 Lightening Aircraft, which is one of the most advanced fighter aircraft in the world, coming in for a test landing.

All Pilots regularly carry out practice landings as part of their training, at the same time we also witnessed the potential issue of Bird Strike by seeing a flock of Gulls feasting on hopefully the last remaining leather jackets.

We were then briefed on the base’s history with the Vulcan. Waddington was the first base to receive the ground breaking Vulcan Bomber in 1957 with No 83 Squadron. The base’s last remaining Vulcan XM 607 is one of the most famous after carrying out the bombing of the runway in Port Stanley during the Falkland Islands War. The aircraft is currently being restored for ground use only by a small but very enthusiastic team of volunteers, who have just six months of Hanger space in which to complete the task. We look forwards to seeing the results.

The Lord Mayor’s Show

Sunday 13th November saw the Master and Wardens, with the team from Surrey Docks Farm, take part in the annual Lord Mayor’s Show.

Richard Price writes: “It has been a both a pleasure and honour to work with a great team of people to deliver this year’s Worshipful Company of Farmers’ entry for the Lord Mayor’s Show. The journey had started in January 2022 when we assembled the team of people charged with delivering an entry, which showcased British produce and celebrated 70 years of the company supporting farming in the City.

Richard Price (L) and Andrew Blenkiron

“The original theme was to celebrate Her Majesty’s Jubilee, which would include a grey Fergie from 1952 and the current T8 model from 2022. After the passing of the Queen, the royal household and Pageant Master’s office were still very keen to see the tractor in the procession, so we removed the Jubilee material and promoted the 70 years of farming in the City.

“The team included Massey Ferguson, NFU, Red Tractor and Surrey Docks Farm. It was great to pull everyone together and we managed to deliver a fantastic float which included 10 of the youngsters from the Surrey Docks farm. Gemma and Claire do a fantastic job at the farm and I was amazed at the volume of people that visit the farm over the course of the year.

“The visit on the day before the show with the NFU ambassadors was excellent and everybody enjoyed seeing the nuggets of innovation around the site and to experience the passion that they all have in what they do. It was great to catch up with all the NFU ambassadors and for the Master to be able to thank all the relevant people and organisations for everything that had done for the 2022 entry. The post-meeting meal at Haz restaurant near St Paul’s was kindly sponsored by Massey Ferguson.

“NFU and Red Tractor put a lot of time into the graphics, design and look of the float, which was excellent. It was Amy Hubbard’s first Lord Mayor’s Show and she was very organised and proud of what she and her team had achieved. We are also very grateful to Andrew Blenkiron of Euston Estate, for all the preparation of the float, and to Jonathan in the Estate workshop for putting it all together. Andrew has looked after the last five years of our entries in the Lord Mayor’s Show and has quietly put a lot of time into this with his Euston team. We are very grateful to him.

“Saturday morning started at 6am for Andrew and I, meeting Rainthorpe’s Transport, who delivered the tractor trailer and grey Fergie. By 11am all of the NFU ambassadors, Surrey docks youngsters and the Master and his team were ready to start their journey through the city of London on the 3 mile procession.

“The cloudless, warm day went very well and we had a great response from the public supporting the float, our Company and British agriculture.”

Service of Remembrance

On Monday 7th November, The Senior Past Master, Follett Balch (pictured below), together with the Clerk, represented the Master at the Service of Remembrance held in the garden of St. Paul’s Cathedral. Even though called off at the last minute, the train strike meant that several Masters were unable to travel to the City so Follett was delighted to take up the mantle.

The Service, which is attended by the Lord Mayor, the Royal British Legion, all the Liveries and Guilds with music provided by the band of the Scots Guards, has been arranged by the Livery Committee for the past two years.

The Senior Past Master, Follett Balch

Installation of the new Master

11 October saw the installation of the new Master of the Company, Richard Davies, the elevation of Guy Brogden to Senior Warden and Richard Crane to Junior Warden. The service, set in the magnificent Norman surroundings of the church of St Bartholomew the Great, doubled as our harvest thanksgiving. The choir provided a wonderful musical thread throughout the service, which culminated in a stirring rendition by the congregation of ‘Jerusalem’. A reception and lunch at Haberdashers Hall followed, with delicious fare provided by our own caterers, Graysons.

Safe fields for Ukraine

By Karen Mercer

There has been a great desire within the Worshipful Company of Farmers Livery Company to help support the Ukrainian farmers.

The project below has been bought to my attention. Frendt are a team of 70 specialists who work exclusively in the field of IT solutions for agriculture. Over the past 8 years, they have worked with over 7,000 farms in Ukraine.

Many have already donated generously to Ukraine and I would not want to presume you are able to do more. However, any support to raising the funds for this urgent and worthwhile project would be much appreciated.

‘Safe Fields for Ukraine’

Russia has contaminated agricultural land with mines in six of the main agricultural regions of Ukraine, devastating the recovery process…

40% of the World Food Program’s wheat supplies come from Ukraine…

In 2021, Ukraine exported $27bn agricultural products, $7.6bn to Europe

This will contribute to further global refugee crises and cost of living increases for us all in addition to the loss of life and livelihood among Ukrainian farmers.

In response, a Ukrainian agricultural firm FRENDT in partnership with a Ukrainian University have designed an Unmanned Anti Mine Equipment Prototype using drones and unmanned vehicles based on farmers’ own small tractors.

In a tie up between a group farmers in Ukraine and a British finance professional the aim of this crowdfunding round is to help fund the operationalisation of the prototype to help speed up the de-mining of millions of acres and bring back online millions of acres of agricultural land.

Please also pass share with any friends, firms, organisations who may be interested in supporting this vital and urgent initiative.

For full details and please give any support you may feel able.
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/safe-fields-for-ukraine

Master’s Summer Visit

More than 70 Liverymen and partners enjoyed the hospitality of the Master at the annual Summer Visit in the last week of June. This year we were treated to a packed programme of events around her home county of Staffordshire, which a show of hands revealed had not been visited by many before. Proceedings commenced with a visit to Castle Hayes Farm, courtesy of James and Rupert Major, where we saw state-of-the-art milk production from grass as well as the extraordinary crater caused by the largest non-nuclear explosion in history when 4,000t of stored munitions exploded by accident during WW2. The first day was rounded off by a black-tie dinner where the speaker was Tom Mercer, who regaled us with stories of his fascinating career and his successful Moma Foods business.

James Major shows the massive crater as it was in the 50s

Day two saw us exploring the diverse and hugely successful Mercer Farming business. From outdoor pigs and poultry production to the commercial lettings and charitable works, it was a tour de force of what a family business can achieve when a visionary leader (Roger) is supported by ambitious and entrepreneurial children (Robert and Alec). Giving young people real responsibility early on in their careers, and making them accountable for their decisions had been the key to the expansion of the impressive business.

Robert explains Mercer Farming to the group

The outdoor farrowing fields

We then made our way to an intimate service at St Leonard’s Church led by the Master’s Chaplain, followed by dinner at the Master’s home. This was a very lively affair, with the world-renowned Horn Dancers of Abbotts Bromley performing their unique act, accompanied at one stage by a herd of Past Masters. Lord Stafford entertained us with aristocratic anecdotes in a highly amusing after-dinner speech. The evening was rounded off by Sally Mercer and Friends singing a medley of catchy songs.

The Abbotts Bromley Horn Dancers at Karen’s home

On the final day, the group were fascinated to visit to Busby Partners at Chilcote. John started with an acre of PYO strawberries in 1976, and his two sons Phillip and Robert are also in the business. 110 acres of strawberries are produced on an efficient tabletop growing system and 9 acres of raspberries in grown in pots, both using coir substate. There is a borehole for the irrigation, with the water going through two plant rooms where the correct nutrients are added for the crops. A great focus is placed on biological control for the pests in the crops, rather than using insecticides. The pack house is impressive, with all fruit bring rapid chilled to below 5 degrees, before supplying Tesco and Sainsburys. Staff reaching 240 at peak times from Romania, Bulgaria and Nepal are all housed on site. Quite an operation.

Some of the delicious Busby fruit

We were all extremely privileged to visit such successful family farms and for them all to be so open about their businesses. In all cases attention to detail was of paramount importance. We all drove home with plenty to think about.

Pat and her team followed us around for the three days ensuring we were well fed and watered.

Livery Familiarisation Day

This event, which took place on 13 June, introduces the City of London and its Livery Companies to new and prospective liverymen. Experts – in this case Julia Sibley, Past Master Innholder, together with our own Master and Deputy Master plus Ted Prior, the Beadle, led a fascinating discussion.

Introduced and guided by our charming Steward Hugh Wykes, some 25 participants heard about the history of the Livery, the City of London Corporation and our own Company. Lunch at our Hall provided an opportunity for the Beadle to expand on some customs, including the Loving Cup. In the afternoon we were treated to a city tour, guided by Murray Craig, whom many liverymen will recall granting them the Freedom of the City when he was Clerk of the Chamberlain’s Court. This is a fascinating introduction to the ancient customs and practices of the City Guilds and Livery Companies. Make a note to come to next year’s event.

The Master explains the history of our Livery

The Beadle demonstrating the Loving Cup with the Master, Murray Craig and the Assistant Clerk

Murray Craig and the group at St Bartholomew the Great

WCF Platinum Birthday Luncheon

7 June saw the Livery’s 70th (Platinum) birthday luncheon after Common Hall, the annual occasion which all Liverymen can attend to hear about the business of the Company and all the latest news. Stuart Roberts and John Wilson were clothed as Liverymen at the meeting and welcomed by the Company at the capacity lunch in the Great Hall. Our new caterers, Grayson’s, excelled themselves with the quality of food and service on the special occasion.

The Master with guest speakers and special guests

The principal guest at the lunch was President of the NFU, Minette Batters, who gave an impassioned speech of two halves. She reflected on some of the defining moments of her time at the NFU over the past eight and a half years, the major challenges the industry has faced during this period with Brexit, the pandemic and now the war in Ukraine, and confirmed that her focus has always remained on food production. However, she acknowledged that both policymakers and the public have become deeply disconnected with the people who produce our food, forgetting that without agriculture there is no food, and called for a statutory underpinning of food production.

Minette Batters gives an impassioned speech

Looking to the future, Minette shared the success story that has been the Environmental Farmers Group in exploring the value of natural capital and most importantly, building a financial portfolio – a prime example of what the NFU is looking to achieve for its members on the journey to net zero. Beyond that and with COP27 on the horizon, she argued that that there is a massive opportunity for this government to lead the green economy, the most important requirement of which is a single agreed carbon metric, and – especially – and a reliable tool for measuring it.

The toast to the company was proposed by the force of nature that is our oldest Liveryman, the incomparable centenarian Olive Clarke OBE JP DL. Olive had us all in stitches with her wry comments. All who were lucky enough to hear it agreed that it was one of the best speeches ever heard at one of our events, receiving an unprecedented standing ovation at the end.

Olive Clarke thrills the audience with her witty speech

Obituary: Lord Plumb

Lord Plumb – Henry to most Liverymen – died aged 97 on 15 April 2022. One of our pre-eminent Liverymen, his achievements would fill this Newsletter several times over.

It amused him that even though he was the only Briton ever to become President of the European Parliament, he was always known here as President of the NFU. Henry was clothed in June 1974 and served as Master in 2005-6.

Few knew him better than our current Master, who writes:

“Lord Plumb, Henry, and I go back many years, in fact, I have always known him. The Plumbs farmed at Maxstoke, and my mother’s family farmed in the neighbouring village of Shustoke in Warwickshire. Henry often recounted stories of when he and Mum were at Young Farmers together and helping her with the stock judging and public speaking competitions.

It was in the late 80’s that Henry and I became firm friends. I was Chairman of Staffordshire Women’s Farming Union, and I asked Henry if he would be my guest speaker at a dinner I was planning. Any day any time to suit him, as being President of the European Parliament I fully understood that his time was precious! He didn’t hesitate and he flew back from Strasbourg, and
as you would expect, we had a memorable evening. Henry on top form, engaging with the audience and answering their questions. There was no eight-minute speaking rule that evening!

Henry’s greatest friend was my beloved godfather Jim Windridge, they had been friends since early school days and the friendship was strong and constant. When Uncle Jim died in 2005, Henry wrote to me and said that Uncle Jim had left very big boots to fill but if he may, he would like to take on the role of my godfather. And so it came to be.

In the past 17 years, Henry and I have shared a special friendship. He has always been there to advise and guide me. It was Henry and Stephen Fell who proposed me for the Livery and when I became a Freeman of the City, Henry was there to take me out to celebrate.

I was so thrilled that Henry managed to make my Installation last year (he was determined to be there) and I was able to pay a special tribute to him.

Thank you, Henry, for all that you have done for me, and for our industry, over the years. For all the lunches, dinners and teas by the fire that we have enjoyed together. The wonderful conversations and your never ending stories of the amazing life that you have lived. You have always been interested in others and had such a profound and positive impact on so many lives. You truly are an inspiration and your legacy lives on. I feel truly blessed to have known you as I did. God bless you.”

This from Past Master Julian Sayers:

“He always had time for young people no matter how busy he was or who else was in the room at an event. In seeking his help, the response always came with a cheerful smile and wisdom that
knew no bounds. Ensuring there was a future for the generations to come within our farming industry was at the heart of so much that he set out to achieve. This is clearly demonstrated by his legacy of The Henry Plumb Foundation which was established with the support of Rosie Carne as one of the Trustees and with Philip Wynn leading on the all-important mentoring programme.

A truly inspirational leader who committed his life to the service of the farming community on so many front fronts. Time spent with him was always deeply rewarding and lessons learnt will remain with me for many years to come.”

And from Past Master David Bolton:

“I first met Henry at Wye whilst he was NFU President in 1971, as his son John was an undergraduate then. Henry clothed me as a Liveryman in 2005. He’d sit next to me when I was Chairman of Finance as he said it made him smile. We shared taxis from West Smithfield to the Farmers Club last year. 50 remarkable years. A remarkable man and a pleasure to have known him.”

Current NFU President Minette Batters led tributes from the farming world and described Lord Plumb as,

“A truly remarkable man. British farming has lost one of its greatest ever advocates and the NFU has lost its greatest ever president.”

News

WCFA Learning Extension Day

Annual visit to RAF Waddington

The Lord Mayor’s Show

Service of Remembrance

Installation of the new Master

Safe fields for Ukraine

Livery Familiarisation Day

WCF Platinum Birthday Luncheon

Obituary: Lord Plumb

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Obituary: Lord Plumb