Arable Farmer awarded top trophy at Farmers Weekly Awards
Hampshire farmer Craig Livingstone from Lockerley Estate at East Tytherley has been crowned Farmer of the Year at the Farmers Weekly Awards, the Oscars of UK farming.
Mr Livingstone, who also won the title Arable Farmer of the Year, was one of 15 farming award winners presented with the iconic yellow plaques last night (4th October) at a glittering ceremony in London’s Grosvenor House Hotel – the biggest night in the farming calendar.
Writer, broadcaster, actor, and former Conservative MP, Gyles Brandreth, presented the awards in front of more than 1,000 guests in the Great Room at the Grosvenor House Hotel on London’s Park Lane.
A former agronomist, Craig, has managed to both raise yields and cut costs on 800 hectares of arable crops, by focusing on the health of his soils and making some bold changes to his pattern of crop rotations.
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Craig has halved the area devoted to oilseed rape and added spring beans, winter barley and winter oats to widen the rotation to six years.
He is nursing his depleted soils back to health, adding lime and liberal amounts of organic matter, and is a firm believer in cover crops.
Craig has also adopted precision farming technology, with variable-rate seeding and application of P and K fertiliser.
Crop yields have increased, with wheat up 1.8t/ha, oilseed rape approaching 4t/ha and winter oats now at 7.8t/ha.
See also: More Farmers Weekly Awards 2018 coverage
Karl Schneider, Farmers Weekly Editor said: “Craig is a first-class farmer, and it’s remarkable how much he has managed to achieve in just three years at Lockerley Estate. He’s also a great ambassador for British farming.”
The Farmer of the Year Award, the overall “winner of winners”, is sponsored by McDonalds.
Full list of award winners:
Agricultural Student of the Year (sponsored by Kubota UK)
Alexandra Dunn, Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester
Arable Farmer of the Year (sponsored by KWS UK)
Craig Livingstone, Lockerley Estate, Hampshire
Beef Farmer of the Year (sponsored by ABP)
Andrew Laughton, Southfield Farm, Lincolnshire
Farm Contractor of the Year (sponsored by Fendt)
Magnus Sinclair, Sinclair Contractors, Aberdeenshire
Dairy Farmer of the Year (sponsored by Armatrac)
James Tomlinson, DJ&S Tomlinson, Lancashire
Diversification Farmer of the Year (sponsored by Innovation For Agriculture)
Charlie and Will Moreton, Welsh Road Farm, Warwickshire
Farm Adviser of the Year (sponsored by Arysta LifeScience)
Oliver Hodgkinson, Trefaldwyn Vets, Pows
Farm Manager of the Year (sponsored by Corteva Agriscience)
Mike Shapland, James Foskett Farms, Suffolk
Farmworker of the Year (sponsored by Safety Revolution)
Richard Fox, Park Farm, Hertfordshire
Mixed Farmer of the Year (sponsored by Bridgestone)
Matthew Brownlee, Loughgall, Armagh
Pig Farmer of the Year (supported by Pig Progress)
Rob and Helen Mutimer, Woodlands Farm, Norfolk
Poultry Farmer of the Year (supported by Poultry World)
Philip Crawley, Sunrise Eggs, Leicestershire
Sheep Farmer of the Year (supported by NSF International)
John and Sarah Yeomans, Llwyn y Brain Farm, Powys
Young Farmer of the Year (sponsored by RSPCA Assured)
Jacob Anthony, Cwm Risca Farm, Bridgend
Farm Supplier of the Year (sponsored by Jelf)
Compass Tractors, Bridgwater, Somerset
Farming Champion Award (Sponsored by the NFU)
Sylvia Crocker for her “Milk and sarnies” campaign aimed at supermarkets
Lifetime Achievement Award (sponsored by Woodland Trust)
The Reverend Dr Gordon Gatward
Farmer of the Year (sponsored by McDonalds)
Craig Livingstone, Lockerley Estate, Hampshire