Organisers have warned there are just a few places left for the 2010 Oxford Farming Conference (OFC), which is being held at the Oxford University Examinations Halls next month.
The Conference theme, Rising to the Challenge, will tackle how British farmers can respond to the immense agricultural challenge of feeding a world population of nine billion by 2050 with minimal environmental impact.
The event takes place on January 4-6.
Heather Peck, the 2010 chairman, said: “We are already sold out for the first day of the conference [5th], but for those who have left booking late, there are around 30 places left for January 6.
The line-up on January 6 covers agricultural science and succession planning. Peck added: “Following the success of the Farmer Perceptions research commissioned by the OFC for the 2009 conference, further work has been commissioned for 2010. Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and Volac have kindly sponsored two pieces of research to determine where agricultural scientific research should be focused for the future.
“IGD explored what research the food chain would like to see in the future and the National Farm Research Unit surveyed 650 farmers to understand where they would like to see research funding to support their businesses,” said Peck.
The science-focused session includes a paper from Professor John Beddington, the government’s chief scientific adviser, and Dr Andrew West, chief executive of the innovative New Zealand research business AgResearch.
Fiona Lamotte, managing director of Scotherbs, will describe how science is at the core of their businesses.
The final session on January will probe the thorny subject of succession planning and passing the business baton to farming’s next generation. Speakers include Grant Gordon, the director general of the Institute of Family Business, Dr Matt Lobley from Exeter University and the Mercer family, farmers who have successfully managed integrating the next generation into their business.
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