The Lords EU Committee on Energy and the
Environment visited three Hampshire farms
including Vitacress, as part of its inquiry into
price volatility and agricultural resilience.
The Committee, which is chaired by Baroness Scott of Needham Market, visited Kingsclere Estates Ltd, followed by Manydown café, near Basingstoke, and then toured Vitacress Salads Ltd, at St Mary Bourne, near Andover, on Tuesday March 10.
Baroness Scott of Needham Marked summed up the Committee’s thoughts. She said: ““Our visit to the Hampshire really brought our current inquiry to life. It was an honour to hear from farmers who have had to weather the storm of price volatility in recent months and years. What was clear from our conversations was that price volatility is here to stay and that the true potential of much of UK agriculture depends on farmers’ ability to innovate and diversify. We were impressed with the vision and the confidence of the people we met and we were grateful for the time that they took to share their thoughts with us as we begin to prepare our final report.”
Chris Hall, Vitacress Salads MD, said “It was a pleasure to welcome the House of Lords to our St Mary Bourne site, to see our farm and show them around our watercress beds and our factory where spring water is used to wash salads and watercress. Resilience at Vitacress revolves around continually improving efficiencies and looking for opportunities to add value whilst being cost effective - so reducing our reliance on fertilisers and retaining our own transport are just some examples of our commitment to this. Considering vulnerability and resilience is high on the agenda for all farmers, it was a great opportunity to be able to share our existing initiatives and plans for the future.”
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