Farming Connect Wales - blog

News and updates from Farming Connect, the organisation funded by Welsh Government to support rural businesses in Wales.

Innovation and Diversification Wales event – the future of farming 

Our editor Victoria Galligan attended this exciting event at the Royal Welsh Showground in Builth Wells, Powys in September – the first of its kind in Wales. Here are her highlights of the show, which was organised by Welsh Government-funded organisation Farming Connect.

This well-attended, forward-thinking event really did exactly what it said in the tin – it highlighted the vast number of opportunities out there for farmers looking to innovate their practice and to diversify into new rural business ventures.

Among the highlights were: 

• Red Shepherdess Hannah Jackson, who drew the crowds with her inspiring work ethic – her message was to take risks and reap the rewards. Similarly, The Black Farmer Wilfred Emmanuel Jones wowed with his ethos and discouraged farmers from being stuck with a “play it safe” mentality.

• Glamping opportunities such as LTF Pods, who showed us their amazing and luxurious pods complete with fitted kitchen, wet room and folding bunkbeds. Glamping is an eco-friendly, profitable option which will have minimal impact on the natural environment – and as PitchUp holiday bookings told us, Wales is the fastest-growing area for new sites.

• Farming technology which can track livestock, inform farmers of crop issues and increase productivity. The overall trend being that as technology prices are coming down, it’s imperative that farmers embrace this new way of working in order to maximise income.

• Woodland – an area which has often been overlooked but means farmers could be sitting on a gold mine. Whether grown as a crop for renewable fuel or used as a draw for visitors when creating a leisure and tourism site, trees are your friends!

• Sustainability – protecting land, soil and wildlife is paramount as we hurtle towards the zero-carbon age and action must be taken now.

For more information on this event and to find out how Farming Connect can help your business in Wales, see businesswales.gov.wales/farmingconnect.