Original text for Environment and Sustainability
The availability of adequate quantities of food has been paramount in the development of all cultures. Famines were recorded in the bible, World War II saw 20 million die of starvation and today around the world, 821 million people do not have enough of the food they need to live an active and healthy life.
Today we talk about environmental considerations, sustainability of our actions and environmental protection, starvation is seldom mentioned here in the West.
Agricultural sustainability means that we must meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Agricultural sustainability has been at the forefront of family farms for generations, otherwise there would be nothing to pass on.
By utilising the principles of ICM within Revive Agronomy’s approach to farming long-term stewardship of both natural and human resources occurs and is of equal importance to short-term economic gain.
Advice and consideration provided by Revive Agronomy allows farming of the land and caring for the natural resources simultaneously. In so doing this not only maintains but also enhances the quantity and quality of each.
In our modern world Sustainable Agriculture is considered under three main headings, Environmental health, Economic profitability and Social equity. Surely these are just different names for what is practically Integrated Crop Management, a system that is highly resilient, adaptive and diverse.
Resilience is critical because agriculture faces conditions that are highly unpredictable and rarely stable.
Adaptability is a key component of resilience as it may not always be possible or desirable to regain the precise form and function taken before an upheaval but it may be possible to take a new form in the face of changing conditions.
Diversity often aids in conferring adaptability because the more variety that exists whether in terms of crop type or cultural knowledge, the more tools and avenues a system will have to adapt to change.
At all times it is best to avoid nasty surprises. What you need is to ensure every aspect of farm business is as well-planned, structured, budgeted and managed as it can be.
Here at Revive Agronomy we are continually identifying areas in which we can make improvements for our client’s farm businesses
Over a 10 year period, farm rotations offer greater opportunities to optimise farm profitability and are crucial to the longer term success of the business
Agriculture moving forward
The best people to provide information about the products on sale are most often the Research and Development based manufacturers. However how they work within the fields can be the domain of organisations like AICC who regularly run a series of national field trials testing and comparing actives. The results of such trials are made available to members to enable sound decision making based on these results.
Modern electronics are an integral part of today agricultural business. These may be found in the sky, the tractor cab or our shirt pocket. Their greater integration in to future business is inevitable; however it is worth remembering that someone will still have to look in the field from time to time. Best ensure it is someone who knows what to look for!
Don’t be seduced by glittering prizes or offers, they are seldom worth the money. “Beware drones bearing gifts!”
Philip Laughton has been BASIS registered since 1981, he is also a member of the BASIS Professional register and routinely exceeds his annual Continual Professional development points requirement.
He is FACTS qualified and holds the Nutrient Management Certificate of Competence. He uses the annual assessment as a part of his own progressive learning doctrine.
Philip became Technical Director of Technicrop Ltd in 1995 having been their Agronomist since 1985. Here he directed the company towards the adoption of new and innovative technology whilst prioritising training for all agronomy staff to the highest standards.
Following Technicrop's merger with Cargill Philip remained as a senior Agronomist continuing to deliver practical and valuable advice to his loyal client’s base. In 2017 he formed Revive Agronomy Ltd.
Today, your own farms can benefit from the knowledge and services provided by a reputable and reliable agronomist in the form of Revive Agronomy.
So what is Integrated Crop Management?
In 1999 I undertook training and achieved my qualification as an Integrated Crop manager (ICM). My ICM accreditation number being ICM/410.
Today the whole process of ICM has been adopted across Europe and other parts of the world and the emphasis has changed accordingly.
For most purposes ICM may be considered under 7 broad headings these being:-
Business Management
Organisation and planning
Energy efficiency
Soil management
Animal Husbandry
Crop Management
Wildlife and landscape management
Each heading is then broken down into further sub-headings.
Based on the above, it could be said that ICM comprises proven processes along with the latest available techniques to produce high quality food
whilst considering environmental sustainability and economic viability.
Simply put, the concept is to integrate the management of individual crops in order to benefit from the interactions between them. In many respects integrating crop production strategies to provide benefits such as pest control or maintain soil fertility is an ancient technique. However, ICM also takes advantage of modern technology to improve on the system.
Food production is a business and hence must be profitable to exist.