Join Map of Ag's Technical Director of Sustainability, Hugh Martineau, to learn more about how they are working with Ceres Rural to support farmers in measuring and managing their greenhouse gas emissions and how this links to improvements in farm resilience.  George Badger of Ceres Rural and Ben Wilson of Glympton Farms Ltd will share their experience of delivery through the Defra Future Farm Resilience programme and the benefits it has brought to their farm.  The discussion will cover:

• The challenges facing farmers in terms measurement and monitoring GHG emissions
• How decision support systems can help farmers to overcome these challenges
• A case study of a farm’s input efficiency and carbon footprint journey

Ecosystem services that provide farmers with new income to deliver greater biodiversity, protect precious species or curb pollution, are growing fast. Our speakers provide an insight on some of the schemes providing farming businesses with economic and environmental benefits.

· Annie Leeson, CEO at AgriCarbon explores the science of carbon measurement and future-proofing the trade in selling carbon credits.

· Fergus Lyon, Professor of Enterprise and Organisations at Middlesex University and Managing Partner at Easthall Farm, covers his latest report on natural capital markets for the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, while also explaining the projects implemented at the home farm

· Jenny Phelps, Senior Farm Environment Adviser at FWAG, talks about the opportunities of using farm clusters to access accessing blended finance.

This is your opportunity to quiz political and industry leaders on their thinking – from food security to trade deals, grant schemes to new technologies and everything in between. What are they doing to help shape the opportunities, and a better future, for British arable businesses?

· Mark Spencer, MP Minister of State for Food, Farming and Fisheries

· Minette Batters, NFU President

Sharing knowledge, resources and research builds a better business for all. Our three speakers have first-hand experience of the benefits that come from collaborating closely with other farming businesses and across the sector.

Roger Dalrymple, Director at Waitatapia Farming, New Zealand, describes how a landscape scale collaboration and knowledge exchange is benefitting the businesses of many NZ farmers.

Will Gemmill, Executive Partner at Ceres Rural, has set up a wide range of joint ventures and agreements, including pooling labour and machinery with neighbours at his home farm on the Essex / Hertfordshire border. He explains how it works and the considerable benefits it brings to everyone.

Alison Rickett from Landscape Enterprise Networks (LENS) outlines the organisation’s trade in nature-based solutions, where farmers are already securing deals with Nestle Purina, Cereal Partners UK, West Northants Council and Anglian Water.

Healthy soils are the lifeblood of farming. Our keynote farmer speaker explains how he has improved his low-grade land to such an extent that is now part of a high-yielding arable rotation, followed by presentations of the latest soil health research and resources.

Chaired by Shaun Dowman, Agroecology Lead Adviser at FWAG East

LEAF farmer, John Renner will discuss how he tailors soil management and fertility to individual fields and rotations on his 500-acre arable business. Non-inversion tillage, added organic matter and crop selection to enhance soil structure are key.

Dr Lydia Smith, Head of NIAB’s Innovation Farm, explores the use of herbal leys in a fully arable system to improve soil structure and resilience.

Prof David Powlson, Lawes Trust Senior Fellow at Rothamsted Research, gives new insights on global research – is it possible to attain target soil organic matter in an arable rotation and does it influence soil function?

Farmer, Angus Gowthorpe, explains his work with the Yorkshire Agricultural Society Science Network and Newcastle University to produce a new online cover crop resource to improve soil health.

The British Farm Data Council will be announcing the principles that are expected of companies working with Farm Data.

Chaired by Geoff Sansome, Head of Agriculture Natural England

Our farming speakers provide new insights and their unique practical experience of the benefits of circular and regenerative farming methods. Charlie Steer, Arable Manager at Grosvenor Farms and Nuffield Scholar, describes how a circular economy works. The three ‘R’s’ of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle, should become a vital part of modern food production, helping to transform our systems to eliminate waste, better circulate resources and regenerate the natural world. Farmer Edward Reynolds explains how adopting regenerative practices has reduced his overheads from £715/ha and 121 litres/ha of diesel five years ago to £494/ha and 47 litres/ha, respectivel,y on his 329ha Cambs arable farm.

Jenny Jefferies, Author and Presenter, talks about how consuming and producing food more sustainably was at the heart of her husband’s decision to convert to regenerative agriculture 7 years ago. She discusses the importance of sharing stories about regenerative and conservation agriculture with each other and the general public.

Join the morning coffee and tea break kindly sponsored by Environment Bank with a quick presentation entitled Future proof your farm business: Unlock the BNG income stream with Habitat Bank creation.  

Chaired by David Exwood, NFU Vice President

There are still more questions than answers on the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and other publicly-funded environmental incentives, like Countryside Stewardship Plus, which are designed to encourage biodiversity, protect and enhance precious habitats, and prevent pollution. The insight and experience of our two speakers helps to address those questions.

Janet Hughes, Programme Director at the Future Farming and Countryside Programme, provides an update on Government-funded schemes to encourage greater biodiversity, landscape and wildlife protection.

Clive Bailye, from TWB farms, Staffs, provides a unique insight into the practical and economic opportunities and challenges of the SFI, based on his experience of taking part in the pilot environmental land management scheme.

Chaired by Sophie Cath, Business Development Manager at Eurofins.

Expert speakers and farmers explore the challenges and opportunities presented by climate change and the drive to net zero.

Dr Nicola Randall, Director at the Centre for Evidence-Based Agriculture at Harper Adams University, explores whether cereals farmers can be both sustainable and profitable.

Robert Smith, Director at Russell Smith Farms, explains what he is doing to adapt to and mitigate climate change in his arable and vegetable rotation.

Prof Jonathan Storkey, Agro-Ecologist at Rothamsted Research discusses the major new AgZero+ project, which looks at how farmers could use agro-ecological approaches to achieve net zero.

Chaired by Prof Mario Caccamo, CEO at NIAB

New innovations and technology are essential tools for a more sustainable and competitive future. This quick-fire session explores some of the most exciting new ideas and thinking.

Prof Nigel Halford, Crop Scientist at Rothamsted Research, looks at the latest developments with gene edited wheat.

Dr Matthew Paul, Co-founder of SugarOx, explores the use of sugar signalling to boost wheat yields by 20%.

Kit Franklin, Senior Engagement Fellow at Harper Adams University, explains how autonomous vehicles are managing crops and fieldwork at the Hands Free Farm.

George Mills, Alternative Fuels Manager at New Holland, explores the practicality and reality of various fuel alternatives, from methane to hydrogen, electric and biofuels – what does the future hold?

Casey Woodward, Chief Executive at AgriSound, talks about a new way to monitor pollinators and therefore crop yields at home and abroad.

Jack Wrangham, CEO at DroneAg, explains how Skippy Scout, an app to control autonomous drones, can supplement crop walking, providing leaf-level analysis and actionable crop data.

Robert Pearson, CEO at Autospray Systems, has been championing the use of large drones for spraying and spreading on UK farms of all topography. Now that spraying from drones can be done under license, he explores the potential uses.