Meet the Farmers

After the Drought: What Needs to Change on UK Farms? [Big Debate ep22]

The rain has returned, but after two incredibly challenging summers, can farming afford to simply move on? In our latest episode of The Big Debate, Ally and Sophie discus

Reasons to Be Confident About the Future of Farming

Big Debate hosts Ally Hunter Blair and Sophie Gregory are joined by Virgin Money's UK Head of Agriculture Brian Richardson and Head of Agriculture in Scotland Stephen Buc

What Would You Do With £1 Million on Your Farm? Big Debate ep21.

If someone handed you £1 million to invest in your farm, what would you spend it on? That's the question Ally Hunter Blair and Sophie Gregory tackle in this week's Big De

The Reality of Farming in Britain's Drought. Big Debate ep20

Join Ally Hunter Blair and Sophie Gregory for the first-ever in-person episode of The Big Debate. They discuss the UK's worsening drought, the spread of bluetongue, harve

Ben shares some news

Ben shares some news in this short episode.  🎧 Subscribe to Meet the Farmers wherever you get your podcasts, and follow us on social media @mtf_podcast for more content.

EMERGENCY EPISODE - Wild Fires, Grazing, Rewilding and the Conversation We're Not Having Enough

Summer wildfires are happening all over the UK, France, Spain, Europe and the rest of the world. Can anything be done to prevent or manage them? In this emergency podcast

Harvest 2026 and Reviewing the Road to Farm Profitability - how do we get there? Big Debate ep19

In this episode of Meet the Farmers: The Big Debate Ally and Sophie are joined by Ben Briggs to discuss politics, the new Burnham government, the Farming Roadmap and the

Derek vs Derek The Film - meet the Dereks

In this episode Ben speaks to Derek Banbury and Derek Gow - two Devon farmers who star in a new documentary film called Derek v Derek, made by James Dawson. Each Derek ta

Answers to YOUR Questions on Farm Diversification and Viticulture

In this episode, host farmers Sophie Gregory and Ally Hunter Blair put some listener questions about farm diversification and viticulture, to Annabelle Rout, a lawyer fro

Are Cover Crops Worth Planting?

Ben is joined by Sophie Gregory and Tom Gregory, Dorset farmers alongside Alex Pearson from DLF Seeds to discuss cover crops and the trials that Tom and Sophie are undert

Is ORGANIC FARMING the Answer? Big Debate ep18 LIVE from Groundswell

In this LIVE version of The Big Debate Sophie and Ally are joined by Suffolk based organic farmer John Pawsey to discuss the future of organic farming. How does John see

The Thirteenth Generation Farmer on a Mission to Get Britain Growing More Nuts

In this special Live at Groundswell special episode Ben Eagle speaks with Tom McVeigh, a 13th generation farm who farms at Kenton Hall in Suffolk. Tom describes his journ

Starmer RESIGNS, Record Heat Hits Britain and Environment Agency Inspections set to Increase - Big Debate ep17

Lots to cover in this week's Big Debate episode from record breaking heat to political upheaval, the publication of the Farming Roadmap and government response to Minette

Baroness Minette Batters - What was being NFU President REALLY Like and What's the future for British Farming?

Baroness Minette Batters DL is arguably one of the most influential voices in British agriculture in a generation. In 6 years as President of the NFU she worked with four

Smarter Farming: What is it and what's the future?

Farming has never been more complex. More decisions, more data and less time. Ally Hunter Blair headed to Cereals 2026 to ask farmers a simple question: what does smarter

1 million young people not in Employment, Education or Training - could farming be the answer? - Big Debate ep16

In the latest Big Debate episode with Ally Hunter Blair and Sophie Gregory, they discuss tech, farm safety, regen ag, World Milk Day and NEETS (young people not in employ

Farming Profitability, Contracting and a Forward Thinking Arable Business - with Tom Hawthorne

Today Ben is in the Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire borderlands meeting Tom Hawthorne who is farm manager for Flawborough Farms, farming 3200 hectares of ce

Open Farm Sunday, Mustard, Sugar and more with Michael Sly

Today on Meet the Farmers host Ben Eagle is joined by Michael Sly who heads up the Park Farm team which farms 2000 hectares in north Cambridgeshire and south Lincolnshire

Drought, Fuel Costs and Tractor Ted: What's Next for UK Farming?

This week Ally and Sophie cover several different stories from fuel prices to trade deals, drought in the US, golden eagles to chicken campaigns and agricultural shows to

Carrots, Beef and the future for a Mixed Farming Business - with Joe Howard

Today we’re in Nottinghamshire and Ben is meeting 5th generation farmer Joe Howard – his family have been farming their current farm since 1888. The Howards operation is