NATURE MEANS BUSINESS: HOW NATURE-FRIENDLY FARMING CAN HELP UK FARMERS IMPROVE BUSINESS BOTTOM LINE

New virtual conference demonstrates how to get the best value from the landscape so farm businesses can become more profitable 

The Nature Friendly Farming Network (NFFN) will be hosting a new virtual conference for farmers, industry stakeholders and policy makers to learn the practicalities of working with nature in order to improve farm business profitability.

This one-day conference, taking place on 19 October 2021, will bring together accountants, economists and farmers to discuss the realities of farming with nature. Workshops throughout the day will present the case for making nature a business shareholder, with practical insights on achieving a sustainable approach.

Moving from a high-productivity-at-all-costs mindset to one that balances farming with nature, this conference is structured to give farmers the tools to identify their business costs in line with their natural assets.

In two panel discussions, farmers from across the UK will be sharing their real-life learnings on farming in partnership with nature, including the value this adds to their businesses. There will be an opportunity for attendees to ask questions throughout.

Guest speakers include Professor Sir Dieter Helm, Armstrong Watson Accountants, Professor Tim Benton and Nethergill Associates, among others.

As a Partner in Nethergill Associates and NFFN England Chair, Chris Clark says: “About three years ago, when I was a Dales farmer, I started to pick up some remarkable comments from some farmers in the north of England. Some were deciding their future, for reasons of profitability or the absence of the next generation taking on their farms, and in ‘winding-down’ they had experienced an improvement in their profitability.”

“This reflected my own attempts at profitable farming at Nethergill by downsizing stock numbers to reduce inputs. It seemed to make little sense and was counterintuitive, but I had gone into farming taking the views I had learned at agricultural college and never thought to challenge it.”

“Then I came to learn there are two costs associated with working with nature: what’s naturally and freely available, such as soil or grass, and what’s a cost associated with substituting for nature, such as bought-in feed or fertiliser. The former being a costly expense that attempts to drive production beyond the natural capacity of the land. If the naturally available fertility and health of the environment is exhausted, then the farmer pays for substituting it. The solution? Identify the costs that work with nature and remove the costs that substitute for it.”

This Nature Means Business conference will be followed by a number of free on-farm visits to NFFN farms around the UK to see this work in practise.

For more details or to book your ticket, visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/nature-means-business-online-conference-tickets-170140850865