After not being able to meet in person for nearly two years it was great to finally be able to make the journey to the ICC in Birmingham to represent NFU Cymru and Monmouthshire at the NFU Conference.

For those of you who have never experienced the conference it really is an event to behold, with thousands of members from across the UK coming together to hear from a line up of fantastic guest speakers.

This year was no exception with a jam packed two days of informative and interesting speakers with day one being kicked off with an excellent video, which you can watch again on the NFU Cymru website, followed by an opening address from NFU President, Minette Batters.

Minette outlined the threats, challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the agricultural sector, the need for a coherent government plan and introduced the NFU’s ‘British Farming: A Blueprint for the Future’.

It was a rousing speech and just shows the passion Minette has for our industry.

Next up was a financial address from Sir David Ramsden, CBE, Deputy Governor for Markets & Banking at the Bank of England, followed by the final session of morning one titled ‘Is uncertainty the new normal for businesses?’ The panel featured Iain Dale, Broadcaster at LBC Radio, Professor Susan Jebb OBE, Chair of the Food Standards Agency, Jimmy McLoughlin OBE, Jimmy’s Jobs of the Future Podcast, and Jim McMahon, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as panellists.

After lunch, conference goers heard from The Rt Hon George Eustace MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the Political address before moving on to learn more about ‘How secure is Britain’s food supply’ with guest speakers Karen Betts, Chief Executive of the Food and Drink Federation, Olly Buston, Chief Executive of Future Advocacy, Sam Lowe, Director of Trade at Flint Global and the NFU’s very own Nick von Westenholz, Director of trade and Business Strategy. Members then broke off into smaller groups to join the sector-based sessions.

Following a dinner in the evening, NFU Cymru member, Llyr Jones, was crowned winner of the coveted Meurig Raymond Award, named after the former NFU President. I’d like to pass on a huge congratulations to Llyr, who fought off competition from the whole of England and Wales to win this award. He is a very worthy winner indeed.

The next morning, conference goers heard from the inspirational Dr Theo De Jager, President of the World Farming Organisation in the World Farming session in what was certainly a conference highlight.

After a quick break, the final session of conference, ‘Building business resilience – members experiences’ allowed members to talk about their own experiences and successes and our very own Llyr Jones taking to the stage to give what was an excellent presentation around his farming journey. Also featured were a number of members from all parts of the country who spoke so passionately and left me in no doubt tha6t we have the best farmers in the world.

It really is an event that all members should experience at least once, and it was so nice to be able to talk to people face to face again and make up for lost time.

All sessions are available to watch back on the NFU website.