Arable and pig farmer, Des Allen is the new county chairman for the NFU in Nottinghamshire. He takes over from fellow pig producer, Steve Hoyland who farms at Tollerton, at the end of this month.
Des farms in a family partnership with his brother and father at Coddington, Newark where they keep 540 sows and grow wheat, sugar beet, oilseed rape and barley. The farm extends to 800 acres and is a combination of owned, tenanted and share farmed land.
Des has concerns about the farming industry in his home county. He says: “Nottinghamshire’s farmers are both pragmatic and optimistic: they are traits you have to have to farm, but just at the moment every farming sector has its challenges. In pig production, we face the rigours of a traditionally volatile market, made doubly difficult because of the Russian trade sanctions affecting not just our European colleagues, but UK producers, too. And as arable farmers, our ability to produce safe and sustainable crops in future is jeopardised by the way European legislation on plant protection products is heading. Add to this the large swings in farmgate prices for wheat and oilseeds and we have, as the Chinese saying goes, “interesting times”. Big swings in prices for arable farmers are just as difficult to cope with as they are for pig producers.
“On the positive side, we are seeing many more young people become interested and train to become farmers. Our industry has really focused on how we can attract young people into farming and I think it’s paying off. Ambassadors like Adam Henson and Jimmy Doherty have really put farming on the map as a career choice and the move to vocational courses for 16 – 18 year olds has provided an avenue for both practical and academic training in farming and growing.”
Des takes over the county chairman’s role from Steve Hoyland after the NFU’s annual conference on 24 and 25 February in Birmingham. He will serve for two years as one of the two county representatives on the NFU’s national ruling body, Council.
Married to Jeanne, they have four children, Lucy, George, Fred and Rose.
He said: “Following Steve Hoyland into the county chair means I have a hard act to follow; he’s set the bar high! I’d like to thank Steve (and his wife Kate) for steering the county so steadily for the last two years and for his hard work and dedication to NFU and our industry.”
Des’s roles in farming include being a member of the Nottinghamshire Show Council and chief steward of the pig classes at the County Show (the showground is just down the road from the farm). In wider industry roles, he is the Midlands representative on the National Pig Health and Welfare Council; he is chair of the BPEX Regional Technical Forum and chairman of the Fosseway Pig Cub.
