Managing the Environment
As responsible Farmers we have an obligation to look after our environment. Not just the fields around the farm, but wider issues such as ‘food miles’ that affect us all. We believe that environmental responsibilities should affect our day-to-day operations, not just one-off token gestures and schemes. For us to genuinely improve habitat for wildlife, to use water efficiently and to minimize energy used and waste produced requires action across a wide range of areas of activity on the farm.

To help us benchmark our progress, we use the LEAF audit (Linking Environment And Farming), which is an excellent tool for producing various action points. As examples, we have created a pond and planted over five acres of mixed woodland as part of our plan to better utilize certain areas of the farm for environmental benefit. We use computer models to plan our irrigation using data from a weather station on the farm, and use the same data to predict the onset of certain fungal diseases, thereby helping us to schedule spray applications at the correct time.

We fully comply with the Assured Combinable Crop and the Assured Produce Schemes that lay down certain environmental criteria that must be met and also guarantees bullet-proof traceability from the customer back to the field. Our customers rightly demand these standards, which are independently audited.