Rosemary is keen to grow farming knowledge
Tuesday 26 February 2008
The first woman chairman of Essex NFU is urging farmers to help build public support for agriculture in the months ahead.
Rosemary Padfield, of Rolls Farm, Ongar is keen to take advantage of initiatives such as the Year of Food and Farming. This aims to forge closer links between schools and farmers and help children understand where their food comes from.
"I think this is a great opportunity for farmers to get the message across," she said.
"The NFU is helping to organise an event for 3000 Essex schoolchildren at Writtle College on 1 May and we are also encouraging farmers to go into schools to talk about what they do.
"Open Farm Sunday on 1 June, when lots of farms will be open across the country, is another chance to show people what goes on beyond the farm gate.
"There is now so much interest in food, particularly local produce, and how it is produced and we need to take advantage of that."
Rosemary is a farmer's daughter and her parent's farm now forms part of the 1,400 acres of arable land she farms with her son Robert.
She qualified as a teacher but started working with husband James at Rolls Farm after their children were born, handling the office work, accounts and helping to market 400 acres of potatoes.
Sadly, James died in 2002 and she then stepped in to keep the farm business going, taking on a full-time management role.
"It makes you take stock when something drastic like that happens and you end up reviewing everything and costing every single enterprise on the farm," she said.
"We have made a lot of radical changes, which reflect exactly what's been happening in farming over the last six years.
"We stopped growing potatoes and have developed the farm diversifications, such as converting farm buildings into offices. We now operate a very simple farming system growing wheat, oilseed rape and beans. Instead of a workforce of 10 now it is just the three of us - myself, Robert and one other.
"I don't physically go out and drive a tractor, Robert looks after all that, but that's not the nature of the business these days."
Robert, 29, joined the farming business from Writtle College just before his father died.
"We work as a team, which is as important now as when we had more people employed on the farm. We both know our roles and what needs to be done," said Rosemary.
Rosemary is proud to be following in the footsteps of James, NFU county chairman in 1994, and her father-in-law Robert Padfield, NFU county chairman in 1958.
"I haven't really thought about being the first woman chairman but it's good that it's happening in a landmark year for the NFU," she said.
"Farming has been seen as a male-dominated industry and people still expect a man to be running the farm. That is beginning to change and people are starting to take notice that women are running farm businesses."
Away from farming, Rosemary enjoys bridge and gardening. She is a magistrate, a governor at Writtle College, sits on the council of Essex Agricultural Society and is also a parish councillor.
She has two other children. Her eldest daughter Sarah is an occupational therapist and youngest daughter Rebecca is a farming consultant with Strutt & Parker.
Notes to editors:
Rosemary Padfield succeeds Simon Brice as NFU county chairman. For a digital photo or further information please contact Brian Finnerty on 01638 672125.
