Potato Review

38 POTATO REVIEW MARCH/APRIL 2020 PROFESSIONAL’S PROFILE significant challenges brought about by several well-highlighted issues such as climate change, our relationship with Europe and the rest of the world industry post Brexit, and the trading deals we manage to negotiate. Increasing loss of crop protection actives and further limitations on the use of those remaining. Falling farm incomes, plateauing yields, flea beetle and blackgrass pressure are all conspiring to produce significant problems that farmers will need to overcome to survive and remain profitable. A comment that I picked up a number of years ago which is more relevant today than it was when it was first voiced, is about attention to detail. Growers will need to micro-manage their farm businesses to ensure that they minimize waste, treat their most reliable asset, the soil to ensure it is healthy and sustainable and embrace new technology in a way that is relevant to the way they farm. What tips do you have for the future generation? As Tony Blair said in his bid to become the next Prime Minister prior to the 1997 general election “Education, Education, Education” I believe is the best way forward. This can be achieved through interactive learning coupled with knowledge from the past, the mistakes we have made and solutions used to overcome these. Bringing this together and considering what works well for the business and by adopting new practices such as the implementation of “Big Data” should enable the next generation of new farming entrants the start they need to be successful. “Adopting new practices such as the implementation of ‘Big Data’ should enable the next generation of new farming entrants the start they need to be successful.”

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