A student's view of the Oxford Farming Conference 2016

Posted 12 January 2016

"The Oxford Farming Conference is a fantastic opportunity for the agricultural industry as a whole, be it farmers, advisers, politicians, those involved in the allied industries and further up the food chain, to come together on an annual basis," writes 21-year-old agriculture student, Freddie Gittus.

"It aims to give a comprehensive overview of what has occurred in the food and farming world over the year, and to debate current and anticipated issues that may impact the industry.

“I had the good fortune to be offered the chance to work as a volunteer at this year’s conference by the University and after having enjoyed the experience as a Sponsored Scholar so much last year it was certainly an offer not to refuse. You are effectively being placed in the heart of a very prestigious conference and great learning platform for agricultural students.

“The theme this year was “Bold Agriculture” and with commodity prices at an all time low this was very fitting, encouraging people to think outside of the box and use entrepreneurial skills to help battle these tough times.

“The key debate at the conference was the politics debate on day two, entitled “Should we stay or should we go?” regarding Britain staying in Europe or not. I, personally, feel that it would be a very “Bold” move to exit Europe, especially with prices as they are and our current reliance on European markets as a major export route, but who knows what it would be like out of the EU?

“All in all the conference was a great experience, with lots of new friends and contacts made as well as seeing familiar faces.

“Thank you Harper Adams for a very inspiring and enjoyable experience.”