A major review of the AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds Recommended Lists (RL) will begin at the end of November as part of AHDBs Delivering the Future of Farming update.
The review will explore if the lists are robust enough to cope with the challenges the industry faces.
The RLs scored very highly in AHDBs Shape the Future vote which took place in the spring, and are recognised as a well-used and accessible tool for arable farmers and agronomists, Patrick Stephenson, North Yorkshire-based independent agronomist and cereals and oilseeds sector council member told the online meeting.
We can build a system that will go forward and be robust in what will be very challenging environmental and political times.
While this might not necessarily mean more trials in new areas, such as crop establishment, it will mean making relevant data more accessible to growers.
Mr Stephenson said: For example, we have no way of easily dealing with variability in yield results from trials because they are normally written off. It may not be statistically robust, but levy payers have paid for those trials and there is no way of us giving that information at the moment.
Delivery
The review will take place over two phases. At the end of November levy payers will be asked for feedback on the RL through channels including questionnaires, meetings and focus groups.
Next spring, the second phase will communicate the findings, consider where action is needed and start to implement these where feasible.
Dr Jenna Watts, head of crop health and IPM at AHDB said: Some actions could be completed in the short-term, such as presenting or using data in a different way, but other actions are going to take longer, for example information on a new [variety] trait could take several years of trials to get a robust data set.
AHDB will also strengthen its research base by ensuring that all work explores a whole systems approach, rather than focussing on individual topics, said David Bell, a mixed, Fife-based farmer who also sits on the sector council.
Markets
AHDBs market intelligence provision, which also scored highly among its levy payers will continue to provide core data such as supply and demand and cropped areas, as well as analysis of emerging carbon and biodiversity markets, and the impact of input prices such as fertilisers on profit margins. It will also focus on gaps in its environmental work, which scored poorly in the Shape the Future vote.
Mr Bell said: As farmers, we know it is a subject of importance for customers further up the supply chain. We will only do work where there is clear knowledge gaps in industry. We also see a role to work with industry and Government to standardise environmental measurement, as we know this could have the potential to be used against us as levy payers and farmers.
Assurance
In response to levy payer comments about farm assurance, council member and Cambridgeshire farmer Tom Clarke said AHDB had no such line to take regarding the future of assurance.
The future is very much up for grabs. We have our own views but we need to hear from you about its future too. The overall premise is that we support appropriate assurance. It enables us to provide confidence to consumers and processors about our produce and manages liability when things dont come up to standard.
Funding for Red Tractor from AHDB has been suspended while its future is under discussion.
AHDB will also continue its work to roll out the digital grain passport, which Mr Clarke said had the potential to give more quality information back to the grower and streamline bureaucracy.
AHDB Cereals & Oilseeds priorities:
- Trusted variety and product testing, including a major review of Recommended Lists
- Independent, practical research and market intelligence, including a need to re-engage farmers in research decisions made by AHDB
- Work across the supply chain, for example the current ongoing work to investigate the potential benefits of introducing a Digital Grain Passport
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To find out more about how AHDB is adapting the RL, hear Dr Paul Gosling speaking on the Crop It Like Its Hot podcast episode producing crop varieties of the future - at croptecshow.com/crop-it-like-its-hot-podcast or on your podcasting app.
