CHAP and CIEL shared a stand in the main exhibition hall, while fellow Agri-Tech Centre Agrimetrics was stationed in the next hall.
The event was chaired by BBC Rural Affairs Correspondent Tom Heap, a familiar face from Countryfile and the main reporter on Radio 4’s environment series Costing the Earth. AIC CEO Robert Sheasby spoke about the two main challenges facing agriculture: environmental commitments and the current political uncertainty. Allan Wilkinson, Head of Agriculture at HSBC, spoke about the economic outlook, and the need for UK agriculture to increase its productivity.
There were talks from Baroness Neville-Rolfe, Chair of AFS, which runs the Red Tractor scheme, and Dr Laurence Smith, who presented his findings on the environmental impact of switching UK agriculture to 100% organic.
The afternoon session was kicked off by NFU Vice President Stuart Roberts, who spoke about capitalizing on the New Horizons and then Dr Elaine Fitch from Fera considered the potential for using insect protein as an additive for livestock feed. Professor Huw Jones from Aberystwyth University then considered the contribution gene editing could make to a productive and sustainable industry.
All the sessions raised lots of questions among attendees and the day overall involved lots of networking opportunities for the more than 180 delegates attending.
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