Will my farm be here in 20 years?

Which of our farms will exist in 20 years? Can they survive a breakdown in global supply chains? Do we need to change our stocking rates, our breeds, cropping and soil health? These are not academic questions - they're real, immediate and practical - and to discuss them ffinlo Costain is joined by a fantastic panel of southwest farmers and rural professionals.Helen Rogers is a farmer, a vet and a director of Friars Moor Livestock Health. Dan Gammon is a new entrant organic dairy farmer from Oakvale Farms. Hugh Morrison is a tenant farmer producing cereals, sheep and beef, both at Stonehenge and Amesbury. Ollie Blackburn is Farm Manager at the Dillington Estate in South Somerset. Greg Ridout is a partner and the head of agricultural auctions at Symonds and Sampsom estate agents.

'Well, I'm not going to read that to the kids at bedtime' - ffinlo Costain (Farm Gate/8point9) and Joe Stanley (GWCT Allerton Project) discuss rock 'n' roll science, the profound effects of pesticides on soil, the new Sustainable Farming Incentive for England, the intelligence chiefs' biodiversity assessment - and Joe asks, 'Is ffinlo a spy...?'More food, farming and land news at 8point9.com

Farm Gate Leaders: Nikki Yoxall, Regenerative farmerNikki Yoxall, a regen farmer based in the north-east of Scotland, embodies the UK regen farming movement - young, passionate, outspoken, media-savvy, first generation into farming, focussed on the ecological impact of her system just as strongly as she is on her cattle management and the food that she's producing.In this programme, ffinlo Costain finds what makes Nikki tick.

A new report, the RegenCompass Version 1.0, developed by EARA (Euro Alliance for Regen Agriculture), offers the first comprehensive, farmer-led evaluation of the systems designed to identify and distinguish genuine regeneration while remaining accessible and valuable to the farmers doing the work. The report evaluated 29 monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems.ffinlo Costain joined by report author, Simon Kraemer, co-founder and policy steward at the European Alliance for Regenerative Agriculture - by regen farmer, Clare Hill, from Planton Farm - and by Adele Jones from Rooted Strategies who worked for many years with the Sustainable Food trust on the Global Farm Metric.Read the report here: https://8point9.com/eara-releases-first-farmer-led-assessment-of-regen-verification-systems/https://8point9.com/eara-releases-first-farmer-led-assessment-of-regen-verification-systems/

At its heart, regenerative agriculture is an opportunity to reset a farm's relationship with both nature and economics. Most farmers who take the time to re-think their system, to reduce their use of expensive inputs, to mix livestock and crop production into long rotations, and to maximise the efficacy of free natural resources (such as sunlight and water), find that they are more economically resilient, that nature thrives in their fields and that they're just happier and healthier people.In this programme we hear from four UK farmers who've unleashed the power of regeneration on their farms - we'll hear their stories, and we'll ask what tools have enabled their success.With Graham Rutherford from Viewlaw Farm in Northumberland, Verity Megginson from Kirkburn Manor Farm in East Yorkshire, Rhys Jones from Pearson Gape Farming Partnership in Cambridgeshire, and Sian Jones from Moelogan Fawr in North Wales.This programme has been sponsored by Regenerate Outcomes.Farm Gate is part of 8point9.com.Listen to the edited audio version by searching for Farm Gate wherever you get your podcasts.

Antibiotics are critical medicines for humans and livestock - but profligate use has led to rapidly increasing resistance, which is a threat for animal and human health. How then do we replace, reduce and refine the use of antibiotics in farm settings? And what are the opportunities for livestock producers?ffinlo Costain is joined two southwest dairy farmers - Sophie Alexander from Hemsworth Farm, and Karolina Klaskova from Higher Mere Park Farm - and by two livestock vets, Rebecca Price and Lucy Hepworth, both from Friars Moor Livestock Health.

Brazil has lifted 40 million people out of food insecurity in just two years. This historic achievement was driven by political choices that put family farmers and food access first. ffinlo Costain is joined by Elisabetta Recine, the President of the Brazilian National Food and Nutrition Security Council - and by Raj Patel, a professor of food systems from the University of Texas.

Integrated pest management is about establishing a farm as a connected ecosystem. To investigate the subject ffinlo Costain is joined by horticulturalist, Andy Dibben, the head grower at Abbey Home Farm near Cirencester - by Patrick Barker an arable farmer from Lodge Farm near Westhorpe in Suffolk - and by Angus Walton, a livestock producer from Peelham Farm in the Scottish Borders.

Martin's Farm: February. ffinlo Costain finds out about integrated pest management and a hedge-laying competition run by Martin Lines at Papley Grove. Martin and ffinlo are also joined by Peter Craven, head of agriculture at Natural England, who’s talks through Natural England's new strategy and what it means for farmers and food production. ffinlo Costain is the editor of 8point9.com and producer of the Farm Gate podcast.Martin Lines is Chief Executive of the Nature Friendly Farming Network.

Dr. Jonathan G Lundgren is an agroecologist, the founder and director of the Ecdysis Foundation, and Chief Executive of Blue Dasher Farm. He's the author of 107 peer-reviewed journal articles, he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Science and Engineering at the White House, and served as an advisor for regulatory agencies on pesticide and GM crop risk assessments. On GM, Lundgren says, "I'm not saying ban stuff. As soon as you say, 'Farmer, I'm taking something away from you...', it's like, 'Oh yeah, get ready...' But if you say, 'Why're you buying all that crap - that's dumb,' then suddenly that gets their attention - because they don't want to be used by anybody, certainly not the government, but also not by large corporations. "