By Isle of Wight Observer
The Isle of Wight’s first-ever farming conference took place on Thursday, February 27, at East Afton Farmhouse, in Freshwater, bringing together over 150 farmers, land managers, and industry professionals. The event, organised by Wight Rural Hub, aimed to unite the farming community during turbulent times, addressing challenges such as government policy changes, climate change, and sustainable land use and sharing expertise.
The keynote speech was delivered by Rob Shepherd, director of the Environmental Farmers’ Group. Rob described how he runs his mixed farm in Hampshire, with livestock and grass rotating around crops. He helped set up the first farmer cluster group, and then worked with other local clusters to set up a co-operative to attempt to get fair financial reward for the environmental work they do – an idea that is spreading in popularity and he has been helping to promote.
Robyn Munt, county chairman of NFU Isle of Wight, told the IW Observer she would like to see the idea taking root on the Island to bring similar benefits to local farmers. She said: “I think there are some very difficult conversations at the moment in terms of farm profitability, sustainability and land use. These are real issues – and we are trying to strike the right balance. There are two ways we can turn. We can be depressed and complain about the situation, or we can get out there and embrace the opportunities that are coming over the horizon. We are on the cusp of another agricultural revolution.
“Only 8 per cent of land is in use in nature reserves. If the government thinks they can do what they want to do without farmers being on their side, they are in cloud-cuckoo land.”
Graham Biss, of the Wight Rural Hub, agreed. He added: “Change brings opportunities and there are tremendous changes that farmers are having to deal with at the moment. We might not like it, but we’ve just got to grab it with both hands and say we can make this happen.”
Other topics discussed included inheritance tax changes, introduced in October’s budget which generated angry debate.
