By 2030 the UK will need the equivalent of 7 million more hectares of land to support its growing population, according to Agri-Tech Director Dr Belinda Clarke.
The REAP conference being held in Cambridge next month will provide a unique opportunity for producers and growers to voice their needs and for technologists, entrepreneurs and investors to gain a deep insight in to the challenges facing this exciting industry sector. The conference is one of four events taking place across the Eastern region as part of Agri-Tech Week which aims to better understand the issues facing farmers and growers, to showcase some of the most interesting technologies emerging from the region and to enable better knowledge transfer.
"We now have a perfect storm where there is a clearly articulated market need for innovation and an appetite for change," said Dr Clarke.
“Agri-Tech East proposes that the East of England, the crucible of the agricultural revolution, takes a lead in identifying what ‘smart use’ means in the real world.”
Agri-Tech East is advised by a Stakeholder Group which includes producer groups and research institutes. Chair of the group Julius Joel, is managing director of Greens, the UK operating group for Spearhead International, which directly farms 5,500 hectares in the UK.
He comments: “Although yields under trial conditions have increased year on year, industry average yields have barely improved over the last 20 years. What we want to do is improve productivity and resilience of farming so that it is performing well whatever the weather or disease conditions.”
Dr Clarke agrees: “Innovation is needed, not only in the way we develop new varieties of crops that can perform well under adverse environments, but also in the way these crops are grown, harvested and processed. For farmers and growers ‘total factor productivity’ is the key consideration and a sound evidence base is required for the uptake of new approaches and disruptive technologies.”
To better understand the issues facing farmers and growers, to showcase some of the most interesting technologies emerging from the region and to enable better knowledge transfer, four well-respected organisations – Agri-Tech East, the Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association, the Suffolk Agricultural Association, and the Home Grown Cereals Authority – have joined forces to present Agri-Tech Week 2014.
Agri-Tech Week encompasses four events across the region of which REAP is directed at encouraging a greater understanding of the potential within the agri-industry for non-traditional players.
REAP includes a Producer’s Panel, presentations giving different perspectives across the industry and a Start-Up Showcase of new ideas and technologies.
