Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up again, with plenty happening around SFI, regenerative farming, biodiversity and David’s ever expanding direct selling business.

A big part of this episode was the latest SFI debacle, with David explaining how he spent hours preparing a £51,000 application only for the funding to run out before he could submit it. We chatted about the uncertainty this creates for farmers, particularly those trying to change their farming systems while keeping their businesses afloat.

We also got into Martin’s recent bird survey, which recorded 514 birds across 45 species, including eight red listed species! That led into a really interesting discussion around biodiversity, soil health, leaving fields green over winter and whether sometimes doing less can actually achieve more.

David’s direct selling venture continues to grow too, with lamb boxes now joining the mix and farmers from further afield getting involved. We spoke about the power of social media, the challenges of scaling a business and why dealing directly with customers can be so much more rewarding than traditional wholesale markets.

Alongside that we chatted about the Farmers Weekly Awards, growing crops with fewer inputs, grain quality, the price of lamb and why farmers need to find ways of keeping more of the value from what they produce.

We’re keeping this going fortnightly, so feel free to send us any ideas or topics you’d like us to get into.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Today we’re back with Field to Front Door, David, Martin and Wallace catching up as plans for next season start taking shape, with plenty on heritage grains, direct selling and experimenting with different ways of growing crops.

David has made another impulse purchase, this time a roller mill, which led us into naked oats, porridge and swapping grain with Martin. We also got into heritage varieties, why bakers and millers are increasingly interested in them and whether older, taller varieties could offer another route towards growing crops with fewer inputs.

That brought us back to the ongoing no input experiments. We chatted about mixed varieties, soil disturbance, weed control, cover crops and the economics of reducing inputs when conventional crops can cost so much to establish before you even know what they’ll yield.

The direct selling experiment has moved pretty quickly too. Just over a month in, David is now bringing together produce from loads of different farms, with vegetables, fruit, milk and meat all heading directly to customers. There have been a few casualties along the way, particularly the eggs 😂, but some weeks are already seeing thousands of pounds worth of produce going out.

We also got into the bigger question of what food is actually worth, how much of that value reaches the farmer and whether becoming more efficient has really benefited producers when machinery and input costs have risen so dramatically.

We’re keeping this going fortnightly, so feel free to send us any ideas or topics you’d like us to get into.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up after a couple of weeks away, with harvest largely behind us and attention starting to turn towards what comes next.

A big part of this one was David’s growing direct selling venture. We chatted about everything from vegetables, milk and meat through to eggs, delivery companies and whether bringing produce from multiple farmers together could create something genuinely competitive while still giving the farmer a fairer share.

We also got into SFI and what it actually means for farmers. David talked through some of the options he’s considering, while Martin questioned whether schemes like this really reward the farmers who have already spent years changing how they farm.

There was plenty on low input farming too. Martin shared the results from around 100 acres grown with virtually no inputs, the money saved on fertiliser and sprays, mixed cropping with peas and cereals, and why yield alone doesn’t necessarily tell you whether a crop has made money.

And the Johnson Sue experiments continue, with David now treating oilseed rape seed and leaving untreated areas to see whether they can actually spot a difference as the crop develops.

We’re keeping this going fortnightly, so feel free to send us any ideas or topics you’d like us to get into.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up as harvest continues, with plenty happening around grain, changing markets and some increasingly ambitious plans from David.

We got into regenerative milling wheat, cleaning grain, mixed cropping and what Martin has learned from growing wheat and peas together. There was also plenty around harvest, from spelt and buckwheat through to linseed and how different crops are performing this year.

A big part of this one was David’s latest experiment with selling food directly from farms to consumers. Potatoes, vegetables, flour, apples and even milk are already involved, with meat potentially coming next. We spoke about whether farmers can work together to create a genuinely competitive alternative that gives customers fresher food while being completely transparent about what the farmer actually gets paid.

That led into a wider chat about supermarkets, postage, contracts and why the price paid to farmers can feel completely disconnected from what eventually reaches the consumer. We also got into the drought, food shortages and why farming seems to operate differently from almost every other industry when supply drops.

And we finished with the British Farming Awards, with David up for Content Creator of the Year and somehow already making friends with the competition 😂

We’re going to keep this going fortnightly for now and see where it takes us. If you’ve got ideas on what we should cover or who we should bring in, send them our way.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up as harvest continues, with plenty to chat about from heritage grains and regenerative farming through to some pretty brutal yields and what actually makes farming stack up financially.

David had been exploring heritage grains and the growing market around them, which led into a really interesting conversation about older varieties, milling, sourdough and whether sometimes the future of farming might actually involve looking back at what worked in the past.

We got properly into regenerative farming again too, including what regen actually means, whether reducing one spray is enough to call something regenerative, cover crops, soil biology and the challenge of changing a farming system when you still need to make money while doing it.

Harvest brought some fairly stark realities as well. Some crops have performed, others really haven’t, and we spoke about the frustration of putting a year into something only to find there simply isn’t enough crop there to make it pay. That led into why finding different markets, selling direct and getting paid properly for lower input produce could be so important.

We also got into saving your own seed, different varieties adapting to individual farms, soil testing, organic matter and plenty more experiments for David and Martin to try before the next one.

We’re going to keep this going fortnightly for now and see where it takes us. If you’ve got ideas on what we should cover or who we should bring in, send them our way.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up as harvest begins, discussing everything from grain markets and crop prices to social media and what’s happening on farm as another busy season gets underway.

A big part of this episode focused on grain markets and futures trading, looking at the risks of selling crops before they’re harvested and how weather, yields and global markets can completely change the financial picture for farmers. It led into a wider conversation around food security, subsidies and why producing food profitably is becoming more challenging every year.

We also spent plenty of time talking about regenerative farming, with discussions around Johnson Sue compost, compost extracts, seed treatments, soil biology and the role of farmyard manure in improving soil health. It was another fascinating insight into the practical experiments happening on farms and why there’s no single right answer.

Alongside that we chatted about harvest decisions, oilseed rape, wheat, rainfall and how sharing the realities of farming on social media can help people better understand what goes on behind the scenes.

We’re going to keep this going fortnightly for now and see where it takes us. If you’ve got ideas on what we should cover or who we should bring in, send them our way.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

David, Martin and Wallace catching up on everything from harvest preparations and regenerative farming to football, Yorkshire Show and what’s happening on their farms right now.

Field to Front Door 11.pdf

A big part of this episode was a deep dive into regenerative farming. We got into soil biology, Johnson Sue compost, seed treatments, crop rotations and why changing farming systems isn’t about finding one magic answer but learning through trial and error. There was a really honest discussion around the fear of trying something different and accepting that not everything will work first time.

We also chatted about harvest, with oilseed rape, wheat and linseed all coming into focus, how weather can completely change decisions in the field, and why growing crops is only half the challenge if you’re trying to add value and sell them differently.

One of the most interesting conversations was around how farming has changed over generations. We talked about machinery, soil disturbance, biodiversity and how modern knowledge can be combined with older farming principles rather than simply trying to go backwards.

As always there were plenty of laughs along the way, from Yorkshire versus Scotland, combine breakdowns and hats, through to planning next season before this one has even finished.

We’re going to keep this going fortnightly for now and see where it takes us. If you’ve got ideas on what we should cover or who we should bring in, send them our way.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we’re back with Field to Front Door 🎙️

This one was recorded live from Groundswell, with David, Martin and Wallace all together in person for the first time after months of recording remotely.

We covered plenty in this episode, from the atmosphere at Groundswell and why it’s become such an important event for farmers, through to regenerative farming, cover crops, soil biology and how different approaches are changing the way people think about growing food.

There was a fascinating discussion around compost, seed treatments and building healthier soils, with Martin explaining the practical side of regenerative farming while David shared what he’s learning as he starts changing parts of his own system.

We also chatted about trying new ideas, learning from other farmers, the value of collaboration and why events like Groundswell give people the confidence to take something home and have a go for themselves.

As always there were plenty of laughs along the way, from photography disasters and hats to tractors, peonies and the usual conversations that seem to appear whenever the three of us get together.

We’re going to keep this going fortnightly for now and see where it takes us. If you’ve got ideas on what we should cover or who we should bring in, send them our way.

Enjoy! 🙂

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.