Agronomy and business management conference for arable growers

This all-day conference will update arable growers on current agronomy and business management issues focusing on crop production in a changing climate.

The event organisers have arranged for a variety of top speakers to address delegates on the day, including:

Matt Dempsey

Matt Dempsey retired as editor of the Irish Farmers Journal after 25 years in March 2013. He is chair of The Agricultural Trust, publishers of the Irish Farmers Journal, The Irish Field and Irish Country Magazine among other titles in the group. Matt is a former president of the European Agricultural Publishers Association and the Irish Grassland Association. He was president of the RDS having been chair of the Board for 10 years. Also, Matt is a past chair of the National Agricultural Research Institute and ACOT, the national advisory and education body before their amalgamation into Teagasc. A graduate in agricultural science from UCD, he also runs an intensive tillage and beef farm in Co Kildare.

In 2010, Matt was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science from University College Dublin. In September 2011, Matt was conferred with an Honorary Doctorate (DLitt) from Harper Adams University.

Matt was a member of the Board of the National Gallery of Ireland and in 2012, was appointed chair of the National Newspapers of Ireland between 2012 - 2014. From 2013 – 2023, Matt was chair of the Irish National Stud – his term has recently concluded. In 2020, he was appointed as president of Tillage Industry Ireland.

Lisa Black

Lisa Black is head of the plant testing station at AFBI Crossnacreevy, with oversight of statutory plant variety and seed testing and associated research. Lisa has over 30 years’ experience in agronomy and started her research journey with a PhD in soil science at Aberdeen University. She is coordinator for multiple research initiatives including innovations in plant variety testing and the impact of land use on plant and soil health.

Ed Horton

Ed is a farmer and agronomist based on the family’s home estate in the Cotswolds, farming 6,000 acres of arable land in house alongside a further 3,000 acres of contract land. As part of the wider farming business, the Horton’s have a 5000-place pig finishing unit, a 1,500 strong flock of Mule x Hampshire Down x Easy care ewes and calves,180 head of pedigree beef shorthorns. Alongside the active farming activities, they have a forestry department, commercial and industrial let enterprises and a tourism diversification project.

The Horton’s run a “hybrid” farming system - a cross between organic and conventional systems. Based around the principles of soil health, water quality, biodiversity, livestock integration, direct supply cropping and hugely reduced inputs. A predominantly direct drilling approach to crop establishment is taken, agronomy is more focused on plant and soil health rather than conventional applications of chemistry. Focus is placed on disease management with livestock, weed removal via mechanical hoes and nutrition supplied predominantly with slurries and manures from the livestock operation.

Vijaya Bhaskar

Vijaya Bhaskar is a weed science and agronomy researcher at Teagasc Oak Park Crops Research Centre. His research focuses on herbicide resistance evolution in critical grass and broad-leaved weeds and implications for weed control. Just recently, Vijay has started research to underpin the development of integrated weed management approaches suited for the Irish climate and cropping systems; an essential in a future when we can rely less on herbicides. He also works with different production and crop establishment systems, as well as, with new weeds building a knowledge bank that is essential for future weed control.

Siobhan Hillman

Siobhan is a crop protection scientist in the integrated pest management team at the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). She leads on the recommended lists disease ratings for cereals and oilseed rape and currently manages AHDB funded research projects for pests. Prior to joining AHDB she was a BBSRC funded postgraduate researcher at the University of East Anglia (UEA) looking at the ecology and genetics of leaf miner pests (fly larvae) of sugar beet with the British Beet Research Organisation (BBRO). She has a background in entomology but has since branched out into weeds and diseases since joining AHDB.

Ken Boyns

Ken, AHDB divisional director for services (cereals and oilseeds sector lead) has spent his entire career in agriculture, with experience of practical farming and agricultural banking giving him a good grounding in the practicalities and business side of farming. He joined the Milk Development Council (MDC) in 2001 to set up a market information service and, in February 2007, became the chief executive of MDC. He managed the organisation through to it becoming DairyCo, now known as AHDB Dairy. Ken became AHDB market intelligence director in November 2010 managing the economics, insight, benchmarking and data services across AHDB in a matrix structure.

In September 2016 he was appointed chief finance and operations officer. Ken acted as Interim CEO from April to August 2021 and was appointed divisional director - dervices in September 2021. Ken lives in Warwickshire with his family and was educated at Cambridge University.

Jenny Brunton

Jenny is senior European policy advisor at the British Agriculture Bureau (BAB), where her role is to represent and champion the views of the UK farming unions in Brussels and ensure that the implications of decisions on British farming are heard in the EU decision making process. Jenny leads on arable and horticulture, plant health and environment issues.

She comes from Balmonth Farm, her family's sheep and arable farm near St Andrews, Scotland.

Andy Doyle

The conference will end with a panel discussion chaired by Andy Doyle.

To book visit the UFU website (events tab). If you have difficulty booking online, please contact UFU HQ on 028 9037 0222.

Please note: Tickets are £30 (£35 if booked after 19 January 2024) and places cannot be reserved. Payment in full is required at the time of booking by credit or debit card.

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