Another year, another set of problems?
I can only feel at the time of writing that we are getting kicked yet again with what I can only describe as the worst budget I have ever seen in my life! Aside from what they are doing to farming; what on earth are they doing to the whole UK economy? I can only see inflation going up along with unemployment. Growth will grind to a halt. Where does the government think growth and wealth comes from? Certainly not from within! I can see the effects of this budget lasting for decades to come! Basically, we need growth of all industries to move forward and to have a thriving economy. With agriculture being a primary industry and integral for all other industries, wouldn’t you think that the politicians would want to get the foundations right first? After the mistakes that were made over 100 years ago about food security, have the government learnt nothing? Obviously not. Do they sincerely comprehend where their food comes from? Rant over. Back to farming.
All crops have been drilled here. Thanks again to Micheal Kavanagh for helping out whilst I am continuing my rehabilitation. It does seem to go on and on; at the same time, getting kicked and punched from so many directions along the way! Yet on the flip side, I have had so many messages of support from around the world, of which I will always be grateful and humbled.
It has been another tough autumn but one that once again shows the benefits of getting one’s soil functioning and in order. The last time I did an infiltration test I was down to thirty seconds per inch. Where I started all those years ago it was taking six and a half minutes. You can see how my soil has improved. I always like to prove to myself what is working and what is not, or needs amending, and this year my soil came into its own, allowing us to travel and get seeds into the ground in good conditions, where others could not travel. In my experience this has always been half the battle of having the patience to only go drilling when the conditions are right. I just cannot see the point of mauling seed into the ground, knowing full well that you are likely to have half a crop which will lose you money long term in more ways than one; since, more than likely you will have compaction issues moving forward, which will have to be resolved in order to keep profitable.
All seeds are drilled with my biological seed drench, along with nutrition, humates and wood vinegar. As I explained in my last article, wood vinegar has so much to give, which I go into in a lot more detail on my website at timpartonfarming.com All wheat is companion cropped with beans, or clover, or both, depending on the field. We all should be fully aware that nature never grows monocrops, so why on earth would we? When we can now get paid for planting a companion crop through SFI, why would you ever think of planting without when there are so many benefits to be had, from fixing nitrogen, sharing nutrients, water and keeping ground covered to suppress anything else germinating, the right combination just keeps on giving and we get paid for the privilege (government allowing)?
I know, from being lucky enough to speak around the world, we UK farmers are very much envied on the help we are offered to improve our own soils and don’t we just need that help in today’s climate of inclement weather and wheat gushing into the country pushing our prices ever lower! If you had money to invest, the return agriculture gives certainly would not inspire to invest now, would it? But has the government gone far enough to want to stop corporate investors from investing in agriculture? I think not, they have just got it wrong yet again! Back to farming, I promise!
The Green Farm Collective (GFC) board has been working hard to find the right reward for our members, selling certified regenerative wheat into the baking industry and will be gaining momentum this year, if all goes to plan. One thing that we are all passionate about is that we want to be as transparent as possible, ensuring that we cannot be accused of green washing. This is something that must always be exposed, in my opinion, as we need to get full public support behind the movement of regenerative agriculture so they can regenerate themselves along the way and be part of the journey. Having a healthy body and living in a healthy environment – every person has the right to these basic needs; the right to know how their food has been produced and know exactly what they are eating. It is up to us all to demand a higher price for this nutrient rich product and not let it be diluted into conventional stores for a conventional price, as its worth so much more.
The other big thing is that it’s so important to keep control of the carbon sequestered on farm, as this belongs to farm and should be marketed separately, in my opinion along with natural capitol. They should not be allowed to be amalgamated in with produce, as once we allow that to happen, we will never get the benefits in financial gain and don’t we need every avenue of income at the moment? We all need to come together on this one whoever you decide to trade with, but at GFC we will be able to get you a good price on all three moving forward.
The other one that has saddened me this year is the introduction of gene editing (GE), which is not too dissimilar to genetic modification (GM). I am old enough (only just) to remember when GM crops were being introduced into the States, with all the claims of how farmers were going to make more money, better for the environment, blah blah. When in reality they have just been a disaster for the environment and there is plenty of evidence showing a knock-on effect to human health, meaning, for me, there is nothing to like! I can achieve most the claims that are being made for their introduction from just plain nutrition and epigenetics. Epigenetics is one of the main reasons of retaining home saved seed, with the offspring aiming to always be an improved version of their parents. Having the right immune system to go back into the environment, they have become adapted too, but as a very much evolved and therefore improved version.
Once you have let the genie out of the bottle you cannot put it back in and how many times over the years have we been told that products are safe, when in reality they are not? Household budgets spent a third of their income on food in the 1940s with 92-98% of their fruit and vegetables coming from gardens and allotments, meaning everybody had a connection to mother earth, which is so important in my opinion. Present day and we spend 10-12% on food. Some people have had little respect for what goes into their bodies, leading to obesity and other health problems. Surely once they understand the difference nutrient rich food can have on their own health, they would value what they are putting into their bodies and be willing to increase their spend on food? Similarly in industry the foundation to success, health equals wealth, all starting with soil.
I have been out on the talking circuit spreading the word of regenerative agriculture: the first one being at “Land Alive”, which is a new conference, down in Somerset. The conference was well attended and was a real pleasure for me to be speaking, along with Andy Neal (Rothamsted) and Ian Wilkson (Farm-Ed) on the big debate “Glyphosate V Tillage”, which made for a very interesting debate. I have also been speaking down in London, firstly for the under 35s Farmers’ Club chaired by Andrew Court, which was a very enjoyable evening for all those who attended. Then moving on to be part of the panel at “Banking for Change” hosted by Soil Association Exchange, which was addressing the financial barriers to farm transition to regenerative agriculture and was attended by all the major banks who are looking to be a part of helping the transition. The move towards Regen is happening, but not fast enough for me, as the clock is ticking.
