Farm Gate

ffinlo Costain

Europe’s highest ranking food security podcast.
Produced by ffinlo Costain.
Farm Gate is part of 8point9.com

#farmingnews, #regenfarming #regenag #agroecology #landuse #naturalcapital #foodsecurity #food #farming #ecologicalsecurity

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33 episodes
a few times a week
Avg 40 min
English

Episodes 33

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Tuesday · 1 hr 4 min
Place-based preparedness in practice
Place-based food economies are an opportunity to redesign food systems, from the bottom up, in ways that distribute profit and power more fairly throughout the value chain. They are also essential if we are to create a truly defensible nation with distributed resilience and communities that can thrive in spite of an attack on the centre. But what do place-based food economies look like - how do they help towns and villages too prepare for crisis - and how can we use these different visions of food societies to reach out to under-represented groups. ffinlo Costain is joined by: * Daphne Du Cros, Coordinator and Co-Director of the Shropshire Good Food Partnership, and author of the report, Civil Food Resilience in Practice * Jenny Ekelund, the Chief Executive of Good Food Oxfordshire * Dominic Watters, a council estate single dad and PhD Researcher at the University of Southampton. This is the latest in a series of programmes drawing on conversations that took place at the UK's Conference on Food & National Security, which was co-produced by Ark and Farm Gate. Our sponsors were Howden, Savills and Saffery - and our founding patron was Marian Boswall.
November 3 · 58 min
Food industry insiders speak out
ffinlo Costain and Martin Lines (Chief Executive, Nature Friendly Farming Network) are joined by Nisreen Shahin from Inside Track, an organisation that represents an anonymous group of senior executives from major UK producers, manufacturers and retailers, who say that boardroom short-termism is leaving the food system dangerously exposed to climate change, biodiversity loss and soil degradation. They also chat through Martin's October farming operations, discuss the impact of a major railway development on his farm, talk about how to reduce on-farm fossil fuel use, and applaud Chichester's plans to survive a food crisis.
October 30 · 1 hr 11 min
"Living adventurously" in the UK House of Lords
ffinlo Costain is joined by Baroness Julia Aglionby, the long-serving executive director of the Foundation for Common Land, as she takes her seat as a Liberal Democrat life peer. ffinlo asks Julia three questions: why was she chosen, how did the appointment happen, and what does she plan to do now that she’s there?
October 27 · 1 hr 1 min
Is food sovereignty needed to face climate extremes?
As the impacts of climate change deepen, what will happen to food and farming systems in the UK and around the world? And do we need greater food independence and food sovereignty in the UK? Today, ffinlo Costain is joined by Kirsty Lewis, Applied Climate Science Fellow at the Met Office - by Vicki Hird, Strategic Lead on Agriculture at The Wildlife Trusts - by Honor Eldridge, Author of The Future of Food Policy in the UK - and by Lucy Noad, a beef and dairy farmer from Woodhouse Farm in Wiltshire. * This programme draws on conversations that took place at the UK's Conference on Food & National Security, which was co-produced by Ark and Farm Gate. Our sponsors were Howden, Savills and Saffrey - and our founding patron was Marian Boswall.
October 20 · 57 min
How to accelerate nature markets
For more than a decade, nature markets have promised wadges of new cash for farmers, promising them financial security as they work to bridge the regenerative transition and restore natural infrastructure. But while many land managers are ready to supply carbon or nature credits, the demand simply hasn't scaled, and the market that does exist is hard to navigate. So, where are we now, and what's the future for nature markets? ffinlo Costain is joined by Luke Baldwin, Chief Executive of Nature Broking - Lucy Jenner, Head of Natural Capital Consultancy at Savills - and Alastair Grizzell, former Head of Nat Cap at Zora Ecosystems, and now Commercial Director at Ark Intelligence & Events.
October 16 · 27 min
Integrated Parasite Management threatened by end of lungworm vaccine
Huskvac - the UK’s only licensed lungworm vaccine - will be discontinued after 2027. The British Cattle Veterinary Association says that this announcement comes at precisely the wrong moment, when UK cattle farming is increasingly adopting Integrated Parasite Management, of which Huskvac is a cornerstone. ffinlo Costain is joined by Rob Howe from Farm Beneficials and Helen Rogers from Friars Moor Livestock Health.
October 13 · 49 min
Mobilising capital for food and nature
UK governments spend around £4 billion a year on farming and nature, but we need a further £4-10 billion a year just to hit our nature and environment targets. Meanwhile, £11 trillion is managed by the UK's investment industry, and the gap is a rounding error by comparison. So how do we get more of that capital flowing into nature recovery and agroecological food and farming systems? ffinlo Costain is joined by Isabelle Cadignan, Co-Lead on Climate Risk & Resilience at Howden Insurance Brokers - by Annabel Ross, Director of Capital Markets Sustainability for Lloyds Banking Group - by Eoin Murray, the Chief Investment Officer at Rebalance Earth - and by Tom Pycraft, the founder of Ark Events.
October 9 · 32 min
Bonfire of the (environmental) regulations?
ffinlo Costain (8point9) talks to Martin Lines (Nature Friendly Farming Network). Martin has been with the Conservatives in Birmingham, lobbying MPs and activists on behalf of food, farming and nature. The pair discuss: A more confident Conservative party? Plans to abolish Natural England and the Environment Agency "Fewer rules" versus environmental outcomes Do the Tories have a new policy on SFI? More development, less emphasis nature? Anti-solar, anti stacking? Net zero and carbon markets Inheritance tax
October 6 · 55 min
Has the word 'regen' become toxic?
Has 'regen' become toxic - is it how we save the world, or just a niche type of farming that's been hijacked by corporate food businesses? To investigate, ffinlo Costain is joined by Baroness Minette Batters, Member of the House of Lords, farmer, former NFU president and author of Harvest: A farmer's story of heritage, home and hope - and by Clare Hill, a regen farmer and co-founder of Roots to Regeneration, a transition accelerator programme for farmers and professionals.
October 2 · 23 min
Should food, farming and nature "Hope Again"?
ffinlo Costain (8point9) talks to Martin Lines (Nature Friendly Farming Network). Martin has spent three days (and nights) lobbying Labour MPs and activists on behalf of food, farming and nature. Find out the key themes and what was said behind the scenes. Labour's conference theme was "Hope Again". How does that mood music translate into action for food, farming and nature. Labour's return to its rural roots. Food resilience, security, and El Niño. The Great British Grid as a rural opportunity. Growth in every (rural) postcode. Public procurement and diet. The SFI fallout. Finance joining the dots. How NFFN lobbying actually works.
September 29 · 56 min
'Nature doesn't do monocultures'
In this episode of Martin's Farm on the Farm Gate podcast, ffinlo Costain speaks to Martin Lines (Chief Exec, Nature Friendly Farming Network) and Holly Purdey (National Trust tenant at Horner Farm, Somerset, and NFFN England Vice Chair). They discuss: The debacle of England's Sustainable Farming Incentive How to embed resilience and adaptability into farm businesses What Martin found out at the Liberal Democrat Conference Whole farm agreements and outcome-based payments Farm Nutrient Plans And the coming impacts of the biggest El Niño ever recorded
September 22 · 42 min
The Green Revolution has failed Africa
20 years ago, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) promised African governments a transformation: subsidise fertiliser, promote commercial seed, mechanise production and open the door to private investment, and yields would rise, farmers would prosper, and hunger would fall. AGRA's promise has now been tested against nearly 20 years of national data — and, according to a new report from the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA), it has failed on its own terms. To discuss the report, AGRA's failure, its dangerous grip on African food security, and the alternative offered by agroecology, ffinlo Costain is joined by Dr Million Belay, the Co-ordinator of the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa, who's based in Ethiopia, and by Michael Farrelly, a consultant to AFSA, who lives in Senegal. Read more on this subject here: https://8point9.com/africas-food-must-be-grown-by-african-farmers/
September 15 · 1 hr 2 min
Risks and reflections
ffinlo Costain (8point9.com) is joined by Tom Pycraft (Ark Events), Jimmy Woodrow (Pasture for Life), and Sue Pritchard (Food, Farming and Countryside Commission). They discuss food system risk and reflection on the discussion and outcomes from the UK's first Conference on Food & National Security. For the key takeaways from the conference - Click the link or scroll down (https://8point9.com/key-takeaways-from-conference-on-food-national-security/) * The UK’s food system is a national security threat -Centralised processing, fossil fuel dependency, ecological degradation and import reliance create exploitable points of failure that weaken the UK’s resilience and increase strategic risk. * Resilience must replace efficiency as the organising principle of the food system - The shift from “just-in-time” supply chains to “just-in-case” value networks was a recurring theme throughout the day, with preparedness needing to sit alongside productivity and efficiency. * We must recognise nature and agroecology as strategic defence assets - Healthy soils, biodiversity and farming systems that work with nature reduce dependence on imported inputs and fossil fuels while strengthening food security, water cycling and long-term national resilience. * The missing middle is as important as the farm - Regional processing, storage, distribution and retail infrastructure are essential to rebuilding resilient place-based food economies and reducing reliance on fragile, centralised supply chains. * Britain needs practical food emergency preparedness - Local authorities, businesses and communities should work in partnership and develop clear plans and the capability to feed people during major disruptions, whether lasting days, weeks or years. * NATO Article 3 provides a powerful framework for action - Civilian resilience is a core NATO commitment, creating a strong policy opportunity to recognise distributed food systems, and natural infrastructure as key defence assets. * The capital exists - the challenge is creating investable opportunities - With UK investment managers overseeing around £10 trillion, the barriers are not a lack of capital but clear policy signals, investable projects and regulatory certainty. * The energy transition offers a blueprint for food and nature - Renewables accelerated when security, policy and investment aligned. The same conditions are now needed to unlock investment in resilient food systems and natural infrastructure. * Stronger food systems strengthen national and global stability - Building resilient food systems can reduce the risk of food insecurity, conflict and migration, while strengthening economy and society both at home and internationally. * The opportunity to act is now - This focus on defence, resilience and national preparedness presents a unique opportunity to place food, farming and nature at the heart of UK security policy, supported by collaboration across government, finance, farming, industry and civil society. Thank you to our hosts and sponsors: Howden, Saffery, and Savills. To our Founding Patron: Marian Boswall. And to our remarkable panellists and speakers.
September 7 · 58 min
"Attack is less likely in a resilient homeland"
In central London, on September the 8th, Farm Gate and Ark Events will host the UK's first Conference on Food and National Security. The conference will uniquely deal with the subjects of food, nature and national security - because ecological and defence vulnerabilities, driven by our food system itself, go beyond simply food security and resilience. We will be discussing food security, resilience and emergency preparedness - but the key focus will be food system driven insecurity. We'll be talking about what changes are necessary to improve Britain's defence, and structural deterrence. ffinlo Costain is joined by three of conference panellists to help set the scene: Lt General Richard Nugee (member of the Ministerial Climate and Security Taskforce) Adele Jones (farmer and regenerative food and agriculture leader) Mike Gooding (Farming Systems Director for AHDB) The conference is sponsored by Savills and Saffery - and by Howden, which is kindly providing the conference venue.
September 1 · 50 min
The shocks are bigger; our resilience is better
Martin Lines (Chief Executive, Nature Friendly Farming Network) and ffinlo Costain (Editor, 8point9) discuss how Britain's farms have coped under the duress of this summer's fifth heatwave, and what needs to change to make food production more heat and water resilient. They also talk about the UK's new Prime Minister and his announcement of a £65m boost to support farmers during the drought. Martin and ffinlo are joined by Owen Thomas, a 17 year old shepherd rearing sheep on Martin's farm.
August 25 · 35 min
What's next for Wakelyns?
Wakelyns is an inspirational organic farm in Suffolk; an oasis within a desert of conventional arable farming - it pioneered UK agroforestry and population grain - it runs courses, events and retreats. But Wakelyns is facing an uncertain future, for which community buyout offers a solution. ffinlo Costain is joined by, David Wolfe, Wakelyns' founder and co-owner. To find out more and to buy community shares in Wakelyns - follow this link: ⁠https://wakelyns.co.uk/⁠
August 19 · 15 min
What next after no-till?
In the final week of our 10 More Days of Groundswell series, I talk to Ben Adams (Farmer, Adams Agriculture) and Mark Palmer (Director and farm advisor, Systems4Food Ltd). Cover crops and no-till have transformed regenerative arable in England. But the easy wins are largely banked, and a more honest conversation is starting: what does soil health really look like once you've ticked the obvious boxes? Farmers funded through Defra's ADOPT programme are running on-farm trials testing cover crops with sensing, multispecies cropping, living mulches in maize, and relay cropping at field scale. The original panel was hosted in The Snug by the ADOPT Support Hub.
August 18 · 12 min
Turning waste into fertility
In the final week of our 10 More Days of Groundswell series - I talk to Doug Wanstall (Director, Beyond Zero), Joshua Wade (Director SG Wade Ltd), and Lottie Hawkins (Founder, Earthly Biochar). This an impromptu in-the-field conversation. Circular farming is the regenerative idea that everything leaving the farm should come back as something useful. Farmers funded through Defra's ADOPT programme are testing what that actually looks like: Black Soldier Fly larvae replacing soya in poultry feed, biochar produced from forestry and crop waste, and mushroom-and-biochar systems converting agricultural by-products. The original panel was hosted in The Snug by the ADOPT Support Hub.
August 12 · 14 min
The importance of seed sovereignty
10 More Days of Groundswell wasn't enough! This is the second of four summer bonus in-the-field episodes. With Holly Silvester, Future Resilience Seed Coordinator for the Seed Sovereignty Programme, and Katie Hastings, Wales Co-ordinator for the Seed Sovereignty Programme at the Gaia Foundation.
August 11 · 18 min
Comfort, shade & shelter
10 More Days of Groundswell wasn't enough! This is the first of four summer bonus in-the-field episodes. With James Robinson, Strickley Farm, Cumbria, and Dr. Lindsay K Whistance, Principal Researcher - Animal Husbandry, at the Organic Research Centre.

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