Bright future beckons for red meat industry
Mike Powley, a beef farmer from near York, will join a prestigious line-up addressing the third annual conference at the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate on Friday, November 9.
And, following a year in which news has been dominated by dire weather and poor prices for dairy and pork producers, he will seek to sound a positive note.
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Hide Ad“We are in a good place and I think the red meat industry has a very bright future,” he said speaking in advance of the event.
“I think it is probably more positive than it has been for 20 years. We are facing an ever growing population and an ever-expanding market place. The potential to tap into the Chinese market, for example, is huge for the red meat industry.”
The event aims to give farmers and those advising them information on developments across the agricultural industry and public sector to aid farm business planning over the next year and beyond.
Mr Powley is a fourth generation farmer who runs 100 suckler cows with the family on 300 rented acres near York. He said: “Now, more than ever, it is time to look at the detail.
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Hide Ad“Make sure your business is fit for purpose. We have to shrug off the image of a farmer leaning against a gate and chewing straw. We need to be upbeat, look to the future and work out how to do things differently in order to improve our productivity.
“I feel we have an extremely positive future ahead but we need to keep pushing forward.
“Make sure you have got the right animals and are doing the right job. One of the key messages I want people to take from this conference is a willingness to look at things differently and to try and get more from their businesses.”