We Can Do Both

Neil Parish
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  • FOOD
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We Can Do Both

To grow food or to protect nature? It often seems as if one can only be done at the expense of the other. In this podcast, farmer & ex-MP Neil Parish seeks to find out if, in fact, we can do both. Our relationship with food is on the brink of a massive shift. Global instability disrupting food security, UK farmers are being incentivised to promote biodiversity rather than grow food. And climate change is starting to transform what we grow, what we eat and how we live. As a Somerset farmer, Neil Parish is facing up to all these changes. And as an EU & UK parliamentarian, for 20 years he helped design the policies that shape our food system. Now, he has unfinished business. In this podcast, local, national & global experts join Neil to tackle crucial questions about the past, present and future relationship between food and the environment. Produced by: jakelloyd.co.uk Social media by millyfyfe.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

  1. OCT 31

    Professor David Rose on robotics, technology and behaviour change on UK farms

    PROFESSOR DAVID ROSE is an expert in sustainable agricultural change, with a focus on how farmers can be supported to adopt and implement new technology that will improve outcomes for nature and for their business. In this episode he gives Neil a tour of the Harper Adams campus in Shropshire.  Listen and you’ll hear: the best way of supporting farmers to adapt to change (1m45s); how technology could enable more ecological farming (9m04s); why government regulation struggles to keep pace with technological development (12m35s); using robots in the milking parlour (14m29s); how technology impacts the human-animal relationship (17m30s).  Follow Professor Rose on Twitter/X here Visit Harper Adams University website here This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    23 min

  2. SEP 26

    Ben Goldsmith on UK food security, rewilding and more

    BEN GOLDSMITH is a financier, environmentalist, rewilding enthusiast and farm owner, who first met Neil when he was advising DEFRA on its food policy. In this episode, Neil visits Ben to catch up where they left off. They discuss the past, present and future relationship between farming and the environment, Ben outlines his vision for better land management and food security in the UK, and they even catch a glimpse of some wildcats. Listen and you’ll hear: Ben’s role in helping create current government policy (0m27s); reintroducing species to the UK (10m23s); protecting the most productive farmland for food production (18m31s); why nature should also be seen as ‘infrastructure’ (21m20s); a tour of Ben’s farm (28m18s).  Listen to Ben’s ‘Rewilding The World’ podcast This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1h 10m

  3. AUG 29

    The Allerton Project

    JOE STANLEY is head of sustainable farming at The Allerton Project, a 320 hectare farm in Leicestershire, which researches the effects of different farming methods on wildlife and the environment. In this episode, Neil tours the farm with Joe to find out about their latest research and to hear why Joe is optimistic about the future of British agriculture. In this episode: why DEFRA’s top team visit this project (2m25s); how farmers could get a fairer price from supermarkets (10m15s); a tour of their agroforestry trials (18m02s); striking the balance between tree-planting and food production (34m55s). Visit the Allerton Project website This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min

  4. JUL 25

    In the shadow of Hinkley Point: the future of farming on Somerset’s coastal marshland

    In this episode Neil and neighbouring farmer WILLIAM BARNARD chart the ups and downs of farming for food and nature in Somerset’s unique tidal landscape known as the Pawlett Hams. Top of mind for both of them: the threat now posed to their centuries-old way of managing this landscape by the energy company EDF, and its plans to create a saltmarsh by the site of nearby Hinkley Point nuclear plant, which is currently under construction. In this episode they discuss: the wildlife in the hams (2m50s); the role of cattle in the ecosystem (7m30s); EDF’s plans for the saltmarsh (8m44s); William’s reflections on the plans (18m25); and the uneasy relationship between their farming methods and corporate structures (24m05s). Visit the ‘Protect Pawlett Hams’ campaign website here Read the EDF statement in full here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    31 min

  5. JUN 27

    Professor Jude Capper on the evolving science of sustainable livestock production

    What is the latest research on sustainable livestock production telling us? And what might the future hold for beef and sheep farmers? In this episode, Neil seeks answers to these questions and lots more, over a cider in an Oxfordshire pub with Professor JUDE CAPPER from Harper Adams University. Listen and you’ll hear: an overview of her research (1m07s); the task of making livestock production work both economically and environmentally (5m05s); assessing the carbon footprint of farms across the UK (7m10s); the challenge of creating behaviour change (12m24s); the role of retailers and consumers (15m46s); exploring the controversial role of GM crops and hormone-treated animals (18m22s); and TB vaccines - a help or a hindrance? (28m35s); Follow Jude on X here and on Instagram here. This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    39 min

  6. JUN 13

    Bonus episode - Neil takes a closer look at herbal leys

    As part of its sustainable farming scheme, the UK government is offering farmers £382 each year for every hectare of ‘herbal leys’ they grow. This mixture of grasses, legumes, herbs and wildflowers is said to produce a high volume of food for grazing animals; greater resilience to drought; improved soil fertility; and more carbon sequestration. In this bonus episode, Neil puts these claims to the test in the company of award-winning organic farmers RACHEL and JOE HORLER. They've had herbal leys for more than ten years, and here they tell Neil: the theory behind it (2m24s); how they graze their cattle on it (4m58s); how they turn it into silage (8m21s); and the health benefits to their cattle (9m14s). More on the government scheme here: www.gov.uk/find-funding-for-land-or-farms/csam3-herbal-leys Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    14 min

  7. MAY 30

    Neil meets the protesting Welsh farmers

    In recent years, farmers across Europe have protested against environmental measures being imposed on them by their governments. Campaigns and public rallies have taken place in the Netherlands, France, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, and this year, Wales too. The Welsh protests began in response to the Welsh Assembly’s planned ‘Sustainable Farming Scheme’, which included within it a proposal that farmers should commit to ensuring 10% of their land is under tree cover. Many farmers argue this would be costly, impractical and lead to job losses, and the Welsh Government subsequently pushed back its planned scheme to 2026. In this episode, you will hear Neil's visit to a protest in early spring at Cardiff's Senedd building: he finds out why farmers are concerned about the plans (1m43s); former Welsh Woman Farmer Of The Year CLAIRE MORGAN discusses alternative solutions to make farming more profitable and more nature friendly (4m46s); and the current head of NFU Wales ALED JONES reflects on the future of farming in the nation (16m51s). Read latest details of the scheme here Follow Aled Jones on Twitter/X here This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    28 min

  8. APR 25

    ‘Slow farming’ with water buffalo in Somerset

    JOHNATHAN CORP runs one of the first water buffalo farms in the UK. In this episode he shows Neil around his ‘Buffalicious’ farm near Yeovil in Somerset, and explains how he rears these animals for meat and dairy in a sustainable way. On his tour, Neil also meets the farm’s enthusiastic butcher MATT DYER and in the milking parlour, MATT LONG. In this episode: the character and behaviour of water buffalo (2m00s); the taste of ‘proper’ mozzarella (4m50s); making the business sustainable (10m05s); the taste of buffalo meat (14m53); looking after the animals (17m00s); Neil meets the butcher (23m26s); and Neil visits the milking parlour (28m00s). Visit the Buffalicious website: www.buffaliciousuk.com This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    32 min

  9. MAR 28

    Reducing nutrient run-off and methane emissions

    BRUCE GRIFFITHS is from North Wyke Farm near Oakhampton in Devon. His job: to a run a team that’s researching how farming can reach net zero and become resilient to the effects of climate change. In this episode Neil joins Bruce for a tour of the farm, and finds out what clever methods they are employing to understand and reduce the environmental footprint of farming in the UK. In this episode: an introduction to the work of the farm (1m02s); using satellite data in order to apply fertiliser more judiciously (3m48s); ways to monitor methane gas emissions from livestock (7m14s); ways to reduce methane from livestock (12m36s); a tour of the run-off monitoring shed (16m43s); and a demonstration of the methane monitoring device (25m27s). Read about Bruce and Rothemstead Research Follow Rothemstead Research on Twitter/X This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    32 min

  10. FEB 21

    Producing craft cider from traditional orchards

    Traditional orchards are a “priority habitat” according to the Government’s Biodiversity Action Plan. In this episode, Neil is led through one such orchard by farmer JUSTIN WEEKES and his father, whose Ridge & Furrow Cider farm has won awards both for its sweet craft cider, and for the wildlife that the orchards support. In this interview: what a ‘ridge and furrow’ orchard means (2m07s); Justin’s approach to grazing in the orchard (6m10s); the perils of drinking alcohol after being stung by bees (8m43s); biodiversity on the farm (11m03s); their thoughts on fertilisers (13m28s); Neil meets their cattle (18m40s); Neil finds out how the cider is made (21m45s). Visit the Ridge & Furrow Cider Farm websiteRead about the Biodiversity Action Plan’s Priority HabitatsLearn about the countryside stewardship scheme of which Justin’s farm is a part This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    27 min

  11. FEB 21

    Managing flooding on lowland farms

    Neil farms on low-lying land near the mouth of Somerset’s River Parrett. For this first episode he makes a short journey upstream to the beef and arable farm of JAMES WINSLADE. Sitting at James’s dining table they discuss the challenges of farming for both food and nature on the flood-prone, man-made landscape of Sedgemoor.  They discuss: how pumps are used to manage water here (3m22s); the impact of prolonged flooding on biodiversity and carbon storage (10m22s); how James would like to see water being managed here in the future (12m30s); his work supporting UK farmers during severe weather events (16m29s); how flooding impacts food production (21m18s); a cautious optimism for the future (28m37); and his call for farmers to be compensated for storing flood water on their fields in order to protect nearby towns (34m19s). Follow James on Twitter/XRead more about James and the floods in 2014James’s work with Forage Aid This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    42 min

  12. JAN 12

    We Can Do Both - Promo

    How can UK farmers both grow good food AND protect the environment? Join NEIL PARISH at his dining table to find out why he'll be seeking to answer this question in this new podcast. This podcast is produced by jakelloyd.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    2 min
  • 12 Episodes

About

To grow food or to protect nature? It often seems as if one can only be done at the expense of the other. In this podcast, farmer & ex-MP Neil Parish seeks to find out if, in fact, we can do both. Our relationship with food is on the brink of a massive shift. Global instability disrupting food security, UK farmers are being incentivised to promote biodiversity rather than grow food. And climate change is starting to transform what we grow, what we eat and how we live. As a Somerset farmer, Neil Parish is facing up to all these changes. And as an EU & UK parliamentarian, for 20 years he helped design the policies that shape our food system. Now, he has unfinished business. In this podcast, local, national & global experts join Neil to tackle crucial questions about the past, present and future relationship between food and the environment. Produced by: jakelloyd.co.uk Social media by millyfyfe.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Neil Parish
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Neil Parish
  • Show Website
    We Can Do Both

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