Assemble a bunch of farmers and a bunch of politicians in a room together, and don't expect to find a whole lot of positivity.
That was certainly the case in the morning "political" session at the NFU's annual conference on Tuesday. Despite valiant attempts by president Peter Kendall to remain upbeat, it was not long before the delegates started castigating the invited MPs for their manifold failings.
From badgers, Brussels and battery cages, to red tape, retailers and the RPA, many of the industry's usual gripes got a good airing. One group of farmers from the south-west even stood to attention during DEFRA secretary Hilary Benn's speech, wearing black armbands with TB written on them, in protest at the government's policy on animal health.
It was therefore refreshing to move on to the afternoon "business" session of the conference where some much more positive messages were in evidence...
First up, retail analyst Ed Garner of market researcher Kantar Worldpanel gave a hugely entertaining speech in which the key message was that the recession is over. Consumers were shunning the discount stores and returning in droves to the likes of Waitrose and M&S, paying more for food of higher quality and better provenance.
This was great news for farmers, especially those signed up to various farm assurance schemes or delivering extra quality in some other way.
Turkey producer Paul Kelly of Kelly Turkeys then went on to tell the audience what was possible in his sector, given the right drive and the determination to give consumers the right product. "Food is fashion" he said, and cutting corners would fool no-one.
His birds were fetching over £10/kg compared with £2/kg at the bottom end of the market, and his business was still on an upward curve. Keys to success, he said, were being totally open with consumers, inviting them on to the farm, explaining about production methods - in short, not letting them think you had anything to hide.
The third speaker was David Yiend, boss of farm supply company, AB Agri (part of Associated British Foods).
His company had grown from a single product feed business employing 35 staff 20 years ago (Trident Feeds) to one now supplying the whole food chain, operating in 43 countries and employing 3000 people.
He said in business it was always important to challenge the status quo, and to learn from mistakes when things went wrong. Standing still was not an option.
In particular, building partnerships was the way forward, as they could deliver scale, customer understanding and cost savings for everyone involved. But passion and pride were equally important.
All three speakers spoke with great enthusiasm, passion and, above all, positivity.
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