Roxburghshire Monitor Farm panel night to debate ‘Regen farming: Hope or hype?’

There’s always plenty of debate about regenerative agriculture, and it will be the topic of discussion at a Roxburghshire Monitor Farm panel evening on Thursday 5 December. All farmers are invited to attend, and booking is now open.

The meeting, ‘Regenerative Farming: Hope or hype?’, starts at 7pm at the Buccleuch Arms, St Boswells. It will see a panel of four farmers with diverse businesses dig into the issue, with questions including why is it such a polarising topic, and does it need a rebrand to get away from the seemingly negative connotation for many farmers?

Panel speakers at the event are:

· Sam Parsons, farm manager of Balcaskie Estate in Fife. The farm converted to organic in 2016 in a bid to cut costs while improving soil health and natural biodiversity. Farming more than 1,300ha, the main enterprises are beef and sheep with some arable and a small pig herd. As part of the transition to organic, red meat enterprises were expanded and land was taken out of permanent arable rotation and put into grass for fertility building, with mob grazing adopted as part of the system.

· Stuart Johnston, a mixed farmer at West Wharmley Farm near Hexham, has focussed on building a resilient farming business. He started with strip-tillage and has spent the last decade focussing on reducing his reliance on fertiliser, chemicals and other external inputs, while increasing the farm’s resilience to fluctuations in the weather and economy. He is a past winner of Soil Farmer of the Year.

· Sally Williams, dairy farmer at Clackmae in the Scottish Borders where she runs a 340-cow herd, has fully embraced technology to assist her in the efficient running of the herd, including installing Lely Astronaut milking robots. She showcases her management of the dairy herd at Clackmae through numerous farmer and student visits and to the public through LEAF (linking environment and farming) open days, Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET) visits and Go Rural Scotland videos.

· Colin McGregor, director of McGregor Farms which is based at Coldstream Mains and also offers contracting services, as well as operating Contract Farming Agreements. The business is a keen advocate of precision farming, starting with yield mapping as far back as 1996, and is using technology to maintain yield and increase output. Winter wheat, winter barley and oilseed rape are the main crops grown, together with a small area of spring barley, with break crops including vining peas, potatoes and spring beans.

Monitor Farm regional adviser Maura Wilson said: “There has been lots of discussion about regenerative farming at Monitor Farm meetings, and this evening will be a great opportunity to hear both sides of the debate, and for people to ask the panel for their opinions.

“Sam and Stuart will talk from more of a regen side, whereas Sally and Colin will come from the more conventional standpoint. With all four running impressive businesses, it will be great to hear their opinions and practical experiences, and it promises to be a lively evening.”