THE NORFOLK AND SUFFOLK AGRI-FOOD INDUSTRY COUNCIL
Tuesday 21 September 2021 0930 – 1130
Via Teams
Minutes
1
Welcome from the Chair
Corrienne Peasgood, the Chair, welcomed members and introduced the meeting. She explained that this
would be Emma Taylor’s last meeting as she will be shortly leaving the LEP to move to a new post at
Suffolk New College. Emma was thanked for her support of the Industry Council and for her achievements
while in post. The Chair also explained that the administrative and support structure for New Anglia’s
industry councils will be changing, which means that Agri-TechE will no longer be providing the secretariat
for this Agri-Food Council. The Chair thanked Agri-TechE for their support both to the Council and to her
personally, and particularly mentioned the contributions of Alex Dinsdale.
2
State of the nation: Norfolk & Suffolk farming & food update.
• Greg Smith – Skills
• Rachel Brooks – CLA & rural business matters
• Andrew Francis – crop production & land management
• Rosie Begg – mixed family farming
• Ben Turner – machinery & other inputs
Skills – Greg Smith
Interventions including the Enterprise Adviser Network working in schools are beginning to operate
again and the agri-food skills group is seeing increasing opportunities to make a difference around
skills development in the sector. Labour shortages have been compounded by other current
challenges and continue to cause significant concerns. The challenges we see are not likely to be
short term 'blips' but rather will lead to longer-term structural changes.
ACTION: The Environment, Food & Rural Affairs Committee have set up an inquiry into labour
shortages and are collecting evidence. It was agreed that Council members would be separately
consulted for input into a LEP response to that consultation.
CLA and rural business matters – Rachel Brooks
The Environment Agency's updated interpretation of the Farming Rules for Water is causing
challenges for CLA members, and the organisation is collecting case studies and evidence to put to
Defra to challenge the new interpretation of the rules. Council members are invited to submit evidence
via [email protected]. Labour shortages both on and off-farm are also a major cause for
concern, in particular as the sugar beet campaign gets underway. Finally, the way that changes to
farm policy are implemented and rolled out are causing difficulties. Changes are 'drip fed' to the
industry meaning that it's difficult for farmers to engage with these changes and make long-term plans.
Crop production & land management – Andrew Francis
The EA’s change in interpretation relating to the Farming Rules for Water represents 'silo thinking' and
a failure to recognise the knock-on implications on land management. The new approach in practice
makes it difficult for farmers to use more sustainable and environmentally friendly soil management
methods, and has the potential to undo good practice undertaken by the industry in recent years.
Increases in prices are having, and will continue to have, dramatic impacts on input prices which
farmers are unable to pass onto consumers. For instance, the price of nitrogen fertiliser has increased
by 32% since June, and this represents a 68% increase over the past 12 months, and a 37% price
hike since 2019. Likewise, machinery costs have increased by 43% in the past six years, while
agricultural output commodity prices have increased only by 0% - 10% during the same period.
Combined with the ongoing uncertainty over ELMS and other post-CAP policy, business planning and
financial modelling is very challenging. Finally, rural crime continues to be a major problem; recently,
in one night, seven tractors had their management control screens taken from the cab, as part of a
larger haul of around 40 tractors broken into that night across East Anglia.
Mixed family farming – Rosie Begg
The main focus of Rosie’s business is on making the business environmentally and financially
resilient. Its main crop is blackcurrants, a niche crop, which are being grown regeneratively, with the
crop’s agronomy based on 60 year-old research. Blackcurrant equipment is niche and these factors
combine to present multiple challenges. The business is a part of a farmer cluster, working towards
landscape-scale habitat restoration. Being involved in this project has highlighted uncertainties around
tax implications for this kind of work, and whether it is subject to the same kinds of tax relief that other
agricultural activities can benefit from. The business doesn't have a substantial labour demand but
would be keen to offer apprenticeships, although the small size of the business makes that difficult.
There would, however, be interest in a scheme allowing smaller farms to offer apprenticeships and
training collaboratively and collectively.
ACTION: This will be explored at the next skills meeting.
Machinery and other inputs – Ben Turner
Availability and prices remain major challenges for the machinery sector. The business is only just
taking delivery of tractors ordered 18 months ago. Stock orders are being placed now with delivery not
expected until Spring 2023. Availability of product has changed dramatically, and prices can change
week-on-week, which makes it extremely difficult when talking and quoting to customers. Some
manufacturers are putting their prices up 15% at a time. Prices are rising partly due to problems
around the availability of components and also because of a rise in orders for machinery around the
globe. Uncertainty in the market remains, with some customers having a great year and investing, and
others holding back due to market and ELMs uncertainty. Finally, Ben Burgess received last week the
difficult news that the planning application for its new site in Swardeston has been withdrawn having
been recommended for refusal by South Norfolk Council. The application was supported by New
Anglia LEP and the Agri-Food Industry Council, and the outcome was acknowledged as a huge
disappointment, presenting the business with significant premises difficulties going forward.
Additional comments
Current gas price and availability issues, and associated CO2 shortages, are likely to have an impact
on food processing, with a knock-on effects on pig and poultry farms as CO2 shortages will reduce
abattoir operations. Regarding labour shortages, additional provision from Government was
considered unlikely, so the industry would need to develop medium and long-term solutions. This is
likely to include modifying production techniques to create more full-time jobs (and reducing the need
for short-term seasonal labour), and make greater use of automation and robotics.
3
Norfolk and Suffolk Economic Renewal Plan: This will replace the Economic Strategy and Local
Industrial Strategy as Norfolk & Suffolk's primary regional economic strategy
To receive Council’s feedback on agri-food priorities for the plan
Emma Taylor from New Anglia introduced Item 3. She talked through slides which had previously
been circulated and which described the objectives of the renewal plan in respect of the agri-food
sector and explained that the LEP is currently gathering evidence to inform the development of the
plan. The discussion focussed on the following five questions:
What are the barriers to embedding net zero in the sector?
The following feedback was provided in response to this question:
• Regulation is a specific barrier, for example, the Environment Agency’s change in interpretation
around the Farming Rules for Water (see above).
• There is a need for adequate consultation and impact reports in advance of such changes being
made by government, to avoid imposing unnecessary and unforeseen restrictions.
• There’s a lack of consistency in standards; there are different ways to measure carbon footprint but
until a standard approach is adopted, it's very hard for business to find a way forward.
• Regarding imports, we need government to accept the need for consistent food production
standards for both home-produced and imported food, and without this UK food production could
be further hampered leading to its global environmental footprint increasing.
• There is a current lack of a 'whole supply chain approach'; food businesses are beginning to
understand these issues but find it very hard to understand the broader supply chain either side of
them. This underlines the need to consider the supply chain as a whole in order to make progress.
• As on-farm energy demand changes, for example through a switch from diesel towards renewable
electricity and other fuels, then energy infrastructure requirements are also going to change. The
industry needs to be able to plan, and be supported, in responding to these changes. For example,
energy storage is a real challenge and will require a structured approach to make it possible for
businesses to make use of new sources of energy. As well as supporting those businesses which
can have a role in the adaptations described above it’s also vital to put in place the necessary
energy infrastructure to support the growth of controlled environment farming which is energy
intensive.
• There is a real need to improve understanding around terminology and processes in the supply
chain, specifically in relation to embedded emissions or environmental impact of the food we eat,
but also about exactly what net zero means and exactly how it relates to the entire food chain, not
just the obvious and visible on-farm elements of food production.
How do we best support sector innovation?
The following feedback was provided in response to this question:
• A combination of both innovation and skills support is needed. This includes infrastructure which
enables industry to interact efficiently with the R&D sector, both for development and innovation,
and also to enable those with the right skills to move into the industry where they're needed. This
could be through local initiatives or wider national partnerships. The strategy to underpin this
needs to be transparent and easily accessible to and by industry.
• Innovation is also about businesses doing new things in new ways, not just about new research.
Business innovation must be enabled through a range of means, including via connections with
industry outside of our region, with technology businesses, and also with global research. Current
gaps are less in the research itself, but in industry adoption.
• Challenges remain in the availability and provision of 'basic' services, such as water (for irrigation)
and electricity, in respect of businesses being able to exploit opportunities.
How can the agri-food sector work with the other two key sectors?
The following feedback was provided in response to this question:
• An analysis of skills needed for controlled environment farming shows that digital skills are crucial
for - artificial intelligence, data analysis, automation, robotics, smart lighting, and irrigation.
• Companies must be incentivised and encouraged to collaborate more. This could be supported via
signposting investment opportunities to support in these sectors. This could take the form of an
industry forum to develop needs and ideas, before challenging the research sector to respond.
• It was explained that New Anglia LEP is already mapping capabilities in digital, agri-food and
energy within the region, and will explore how to connect these to support cross-sector innovation.
The LEP is also exploring how best these capabilities can be promoted, to understand what is
needed from outside the region, and to challenge the research base to support this innovation.
• Change in agri-tech is happening at a rapid pace: in 2019 around $20b was invested into the
sector, and this increased to $30b during 2020. During the first six months of 2021 investment
reached $24b and is forecast to reach around $45b by the end of the year. Most of that is focussed
on digital, including digital supply chains, precision agriculture, and remote sensing. The farming
and food sector is second only to the defence sector in its use of this kind of technology.
What do we need to do to address skills shortages in the sector?
The following feedback was provided in response to this question:
• It's important to consider the whole industry and not to compartmentalise parts of the sector. There
is a need for a skills plan for the next decade(s) and covers what our requirements will be, where
the skills we'll need will come from, and where the competition for those skills is. It will also be
necessary to take a more structured approach around communicating where these skills will be
needed and what the opportunities are for young people, and for those working in other sectors.
• Both the Suffolk Agricultural Association and the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association hope to put
on skills and careers events in 2022, with a skills and careers festival for both counties on the 9th &
10th of March 2022, at the Royal Norfolk Showground. While these initiatives have received
support from the LEP, county councils and businesses, this has been provided in a rather
unstructured way, and a longer term (3 - 5 years) funding plan is required. The Food and Farming
Discovery Trust hopes to attract those who might not typically look at the sector and will highlight
the opportunities available to young people in agri-food. A digital hub will soon be commissioned
which will provide a platform for learning and sharing knowledge and will also act as a first point of
reference for young people to learn about opportunities and skills in the sector.
• The two county agricultural societies see themselves as enablers for young people who want to
get into the sector and recognise the need for collaboration. Opportunities which County Shows
can provide for engagement with young people must be recognised.
• While the public sector funding landscape is a little 'hand to mouth' in all areas at the moment, the
UK Shared Prosperity Fund will provide opportunities for the sector and could potentially support
embedding inspiration in agri-food careers as part of a wider project.
• In terms of teaching, qualifications and learning, raising awareness of the opportunities available to
young people is not sufficient. A new curriculum, improved resources and access to relevant and
contemporary expertise are required by colleges to support the objectives described above.
• The role of geography needs to be considered, especially when trying to attract young people into
rural areas with limited or costly accommodation and providing accommodation which is linked to
employment could provide social as well as agri-food benefits.
• The attitudes of young people are as important, or maybe more so, than the skills they have. This
provides an opportunity to look outside of the 'agricultural pond' when 'fishing' for new recruits,
subject to having some really good job propositions, looking beyond salary and at lifestyle too.
What should the focus be for future local support and grants?
The following feedback was provided in response to this question:
• Over the coming years there will no longer be access to existing LEADER or Rural Growth
programmes. Funding to replicate grants previously provided under these schemes will be subject
to bidding into the UK Shared Prosperity Fund for a share of the limited finance that it provides.
• In the past, one of the challenges has been too many schemes. There is a need for a single, joined
up approach to new schemes, with just one route for skills support, innovation support, business
support and grants. It's also vital that individual businesses can make applications themselves,
without feeling that they need to pay consultants to do this.
• As well as the complexity, some current grant schemes take too long to process; by the time the
grant becomes available, the prices (for example, quotes for new machinery) can often be out of
date.
• There is a need for longer lead-in times; it’s difficult to react at short notice or have projects ready
to go (because of the complexity of applications) when grant schemes open with short notice, and
often with very short application windows. To adequately reflect business planning and agricultural
cycles we need to allow eighteen-month lead in times for these kinds of grant schemes.
• Some of these problems should be addressed in the comprehensive spending review, which is
expected to provide departments with three year budgets and provide greater certainty.
• Funding application materials should be simplified if they're to benefit smaller businesses.
• A challenge facing applications for new reservoirs is that to secure a grant, planning permission
needs to be in place, and for the planning application to succeed an Environment Agency
abstraction licence is required, although it's currently very difficult to acquire such a licence.
• Historically, businesses being a part of a marketing group has worked well, especially in the soft
fruit sector. Such structures no longer operate and their re-establishment should be explored.
• There must be more collaboration within the sector and across other sectors. There needs to be
more challenge in the system, with industry challenging researchers to deliver what is needed.
4
Business intelligence and Food Innovation Centre update and discussion
To discuss and seek views on the best way to gather business intelligence from the agri-food sector
Work has begun on building the Broadland Food Innovation Centre and the linked innovation support
programme will begun later in 2021. A programme for a Dutch delegation attending next week’s Local
Flavours event is being developed. The cluster programme is moving forward and interviews take
place next week for three positions at the Centre: a food cluster manager based at UEA and business
support and food business advisers at Hethel Innovation. Work is underway to develop cluster support
for SMEs, and Brown & Co has been appointed to market the units.
Two recent questionnaires to agri-food businesses have received a very poor response, partly due to
not having the right individual contacts in the targeted businesses. Emulating Lincolnshire LEP, which
has created an industry leaders Food Board, could help improve engagement with agri-food
businesses and should be considered by this Council and New Anglia LEP.
There is an opportunity to consider, as identified by the Savills report, a food conference to sit
alongside the existing agriculture-focussed Norfolk Farming Conference which will take place next
year on the 10th of February 2022 at the Norfolk Showground.
A comment was made that responding to surveys places a significant demand on businesses,
especially when not being given access to the survey outcomes or feedback which can act as a
disincentive to participation.
ACTION: A request was made for feedback and comment from the Council on the needs of small
businesses and how they can be supported through the Food Innovation Centre cluster programme.
5
Update on regional LEP collaboration and development of the Regional Narrative
For Council’s information
Council was updated on the content of the Regional Narrative (created to cover the areas of New
Anglia LEP, Greater Lincolnshire LEP and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority) at
the previous meeting in June. The narrative will focus on regional strengths including in research,
automation, diet, health, and the environment. The joint initiative will be launched at an event during
Agri Tech week, on 8 November between 2-3pm, and will provide insights on recent and existing
regional collaborations, and with a push on developing the next set of regional agri-food
collaborations.
ACTION: Event information will be circulated in due course. Prior to the report's publication a draft will
be shared with Council.
6
Date of next meeting and any other business
The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 14th of December. There was no other business.
In Attendance
Philip Ainsworth, Suffolk Ag Association; Martin Collison, Collison and Associates; Ben Turner, Ben
Burgess and Co Ltd; Jonathan Clarke, JIC; Jo Middleton, Norfolk County Council; Viv Gillespie, Suffolk
New College; Tim Place, Place UK; Rosie Begg, Gorgate Ltd; Matt Jones, Suffolk County Council;
Corrienne Peasgood, (Chair) City College Norwich; Greg Smith; Emma Taylor, New Anglia LEP;
Clarke Willis, Food Enterprise Park, Belinda Clarke, Agri-TechE; Andrew Francis, Elveden Estate;
James Allen, New Anglia LEP; Rachel Brooks, CLA; Mark Nicholas, Royal Norfolk Agricultural
Association; Alex Dinsdale, Agri-TechE
By invitation
Stuart Catchpole, New Anglia LEP
Apologies for absence
Nigel Davies, Muntons; Andrew Fearne, UEA; Mike Edwards; Albanwise; Gary Ford, NFU; Emily
Norton, Savills; Peter Mason, Uphouse Farm Ltd; Robert Gooch, The Wild Meat Co.
