Regenerative Farming Conference

The Middle Marches Regenerative Agriculture conference programme took place in Norbury, South Shropshire on 6th May 2022.

Aims of the Conference:

When Middle Marches Community Land Trust (CLT) was formed as a community owned organisation a little over two years ago, this was in part to encourage local action for wildlife and greater recognition of the role those natural habitats can play in providing clean water, reducing flooding, locking up carbon and supporting pollinators, sometimes grouped together and termed natural capital.

Such processes can be greatly assisted by the adoption of more sustainable systems of farming, which use less man-made inputs and produce less but higher quality outputs *to improve overall profitability*, sometimes termed ‘regenerative agriculture’.

Regenerative agriculture would also contribute to lowering greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture which in 2019 comprised 10% of the national total. Middle Marches CLT also supports ‘Marches Grow Local.’

At the same time following Brexit, the Government is changing the way that agriculture is supported financially in the UK and in future there will be schemes where farmers and landowners receive payments for practices that maintain and support wildlife habitats and natural processes.

This is a significant change for farmers, landowners and local communities which raises many questions which would benefit from informed discussion.

One of the other aims of Middle Marches Community Land Trust when it was formed was to act as ‘a catalyst for change’ and it is in this spirit that we are hosting the conference bringing together a diverse range of delegates including farmers, estate managers, politicians, ecologists and river management specialists providing an opportunity for networking and an exchange of ideas and future support.