- Leading voices in the arable sector will tackle the greatest contemporary challenges facing British farming in an exciting seminar programme marking The CropTec Show’s 10th anniversary
Bringing together practical know-how and scientific research the sessions will help growers future-proof their businesses in the following areas:
Coping with change: Costs, environmental regulation & cultivating resilience
Trusting data: How tech adoption could be key to controlling fertiliser costs
Maximising natural capital revenue opportunities
Strategies for disease control in a changing climate: Where next?
Farmers Guardian Head of News Abi Kay, chair of the Coping with Change session, said: “As farmers grapple with soaring input prices, whether energy, fertiliser or diesel, there has never been a better time to discuss cost management. We have a great set of guests on the panel at CropTec to explore the implications of the current crisis.”
Another pressure point being addressed is the loss of agri-chemicals for combatting plant diseases and pests, which may be further exacerbated by the effects of climate change. “It looks highly likely that tebuconazole, and some other related ingredients, will be banned in the UK within two years,” said Andrew Watson, East Regional Agronomist at NIAB and panel member discussing strategies for disease control.
“Teb is really the only pesticide that can quickly eradicate yellow and brown rust already established in a wheat crop. If it is banned, around a third of the current recommended list winter wheat varieties may be too risky to grow. Integrated control of yellow rust is possible, however planning and risk management are key.”
As costs of inputs continue to rise, farmers are under increasing pressure to improve efficiencies. Matt Culley, NFU Combinable Crops Board Chair, hopes that the Trusting Data session he is chairing, sponsored by YARA, will provide plenty of practical advice.
“It has never been more important to get crop nutrition right, which means not just focussing on nitrogen, but also potassium, phosphorus, and sulphur. My aim is to help growers learn a bit more about the technologies available and ways that they can get the best out of the fertiliser that they will use next spring.”
Rounding off the 2022 CropTec Show series, the Maximising natural capital opportunities session will help farmers understand how they can make the most of new opportunities. Session chair, Director of ADAS Policy and Economics Dr Liz Lewis-Reddy hopes the discussion will start to shift mindsets over environmental markets.
“My goal is for this session is to break down some barriers and help others overcome their resistance to environmental markets and natural capital, and instead see them as an opportunity for the long-term viability of the agricultural sector.
“Every farm has natural capital and is generating environmental goods and services, so this is not necessarily about fundamental change. This is about revealing that existing value, maximising its production potential and turning it into something that works for farming businesses.”
The CropTec Show will be held at the East of England Showground in Peterborough from 23-24 November 2022. Free ticket registration and additional details about the 2022 seminar programme can be found at www.croptecshow.com.
