UK: Healthy food, farming tops agenda at LEAF conference

LEAF (Linking Environment And Farming), the leading organisation delivering more sustainable food and farming, have announced that the theme of their Annual Conference this year will be: Setting the Agenda: Healthy Food and Farming fit for the Future.

A wide range of speakers from across the food, farming and research sectors will set out their vision and offer tangible, integrated solutions that will enable the industry to think creatively and decisively about how to balance the competing pressures and demands on the global food system.

Dame Professor Anne Glover, Vice Principal for External Affairs and Dean for Europe, University of Aberdeen and former Chief Scientific Adviser to the President of the European Commission, will give the key note speech and will be joined by Meurig Raymond, President of the NFU; Judith Batchelar OBE, Director of Sainsbury's Brand; Sara Eppel, Head, Innovative and Sustainable Farming at Defra; Jake Freestone, LEAF Demonstration Farmer; Stephen Fell, LEAF Chairman and Caroline Drummond MBE, LEAF Chief Executive. BBC Presenter, Tom Heap will chair a debate in the afternoon looking at some of the key issues in more detail.

Caroline Drummond, MBE LEAF Chief Executive, says: “Technology, science, innovation and strong public engagement will be essential in order for the food and farming industry to address the challenges of climate change, a growing population and urbanisation in developing countries, burgeoning health issues and immense pressures on our natural resources.”

“Many of the changes that need to take place to achieve more sustainable food and farming will require trade-offs and a more effective way of strengthening our dialogue with the general public. We need to be bold, have strong leadership and be ambitious for setting the agenda in order to take our food and farming sector forward so that it is healthy, robust, resilient and fit for the future. LEAF’S Annual Conference gives us all a chance to discuss and explore these important issues together.”

LEAF’s Annual Conference, kindly supported by HSBC, takes place at the HSBC Headquarters, Canary Wharf on Tuesday 3rd November, and comes as LEAF approaches its 25th anniversary year in 2016. To follow the conference on Twitter follow #LEAFconf15.

For more information:
Raman Sahota/ David Gough
LEAF/ Ceres
Tel: +44 (0)1189 475 956+44 (0)1189 475 956
Email: Raman.sahota@ceres-pr.co.uk
or david.gough@ceres-pr.co.uk
www.ceres-pr.co.uk