R2Kast - People in Food and Farming/All In

Today we welcome Liz Barron-Majerik to the R2Kast 🎙️ Scotland Director for Lantra and someone who has spent years working across STEM, forestry and land-based education. 🌾

We started with the ALBAS awards, celebrating excellence in land-based and aquaculture skills, and the wider development programme that supports finalists beyond the ceremony itself. Liz explained how industry champions are developed, how mentoring and partnership working are recognised, and why celebrating learners and educators matters across the sector.

We then went into her background, from studying plants and completing a PhD with the Agronomy Institute in Orkney, to leading departments at UHI Inverness including the forestry school. A big part of the conversation focused on apprenticeships, course design and the reality of creating qualifications that meet industry need rather than simply industry want.

We spoke about Lantra’s role in approving training providers, shaping national occupational standards, supporting pre-apprenticeships through agricultural rings, and working cross border to share best practice. The discussion also covered STEM engagement, the importance of conversation over process, and her move to Qualification Scotland as Chief Accreditation Officer.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Today on the Tales of a Nuffield Scholar series I had the pleasure of chatting with Trevor Alcorn 🎙️ Trevor is a dairy farmer from County Tyrone, a CAFRE dairy development adviser, and a 2015 Nuffield Scholar whose topic asked a question many farming families still wrestle with today, does the family dairy farm have a future 🌾

We started with Trevor’s own story, farming for generations near Omagh, milking just over 200 cows on heavy clay soils with high rainfall, and balancing the home farm alongside his advisory role with discussion groups across Northern Ireland. There was something really grounding about hearing how he juggles both, and how much of his scholarship topic is rooted in lived experience 🚜

Trevor’s Nuffield travels took him to the US, China, Germany, France, Denmark, Ireland and across the UK. He spoke about seeing 20 cow dairies and 4,000 cow family farms in America, the rapid shift in China towards large scale corporate dairy units, and the collaborative dairy models in France that prioritise work life balance. It was fascinating hearing how different systems approach scale, ownership and family involvement 🌍

When pushed to answer his own question ten years on, Trevor was clear. Yes, the family dairy farm does have a future, but it must communicate, collaborate and innovate. That three word summary really stuck with me. So often it is not the technical side that holds businesses back, but conversations within families and willingness to adapt 🌱

We also spoke about his ongoing role within Nuffield, from helping lead the Belfast conference to serving as a trustee and working closely with the NextGen programme. Hearing his pride in the next generation of scholars coming through was a brilliant way to wrap up the conversation.

Thank you to NFU Mutual for their support of this project.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Today we welcome Nikki and Ollie Lake to the R2Kast 🎙️ A farming couple who have built Thorabella Farm around direct sales, diversification and connecting people back to where their food comes from. 🌾

We spoke about starting from scratch, buying 40 acres and gradually building a mixed system with buffalo, Jersey cows and sheep. Buffalo became central to the business, both from a grazing and commercial perspective, with meat sold directly to customers through farm sales, catering and events.

A big part of the conversation focused on direct to consumer food systems. Why they believe consumers need to reconnect with food production, what changes when people buy straight from farms, and how transparency and face to face conversations shift understanding around meat and welfare.

We also discussed diversification, winning Diversified Farm of the Year, the realities of filming farm life for television, and the financial balancing act of making a smaller acreage work through value adding rather than scale.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Today we welcome Jemma to the R2Kast 🎙️ A sheep farmer, ultra runner and multiple time world record holder whose story covers farming, serious injury and rebuilding both physically and mentally. 🌾

We started with life on her new farm, moving from the original family place after her dad passed away, downsizing, starting again and slowly building a flock of around 300 ewes alongside a small developing suckler herd. There was plenty of chat about flooding, mixed grazing, soil health and learning what a new farm can actually carry.

Jemma then shared the accident that changed everything. Being hit by a lorry while working in London, multiple surgeries, muscle grafts and a long recovery period before returning home to farm. We spoke about PTSD, the mental side of recovery, and how getting a collie pup became part of pushing herself physically again.

Strength training became a turning point. Moving from being self conscious about scars to being proud of what her body could do. That eventually led to ultra running, cycling from Sandbanks to Saint Tropez, and being part of a team that set world records for sled push over one, twelve and twenty four hours.

We also spoke about the appeal of ultra running, not for speed, but for the places it takes you. From the Pennine Way to Peru and Kyrgyzstan, and the balance between farming, adventure and protecting your own headspace.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Today we welcome Jackie Hough to the R2Kast 🎙️ A sheep farmer in the Boland Fells and Industry Manager for Land Based at City & Guilds. 🌾

We began with life on the farm in the north of England, running around 700 to 800 sheep alongside finishing cattle. We discussed lambing indoors in challenging terrain, breed choices including Cheviot mules and Bluefaced Leicesters, and why systems have to adapt to remain commercially viable.

The conversation then moved into her role at City & Guilds. Jackie explained how vocational qualifications are developed, how employer industry boards feed directly into qualification design, and why industry voice is essential in shaping training for the future workforce.

We spoke about certificates of competence under the NPTC banner, short courses, competency based assessment and the importance of keeping qualifications relevant to real farm businesses. There was also discussion around apprenticeships, curriculum development and the need to bring agriculture more clearly into mainstream education pathways.

Enjoy! 🙂

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