Farm to Fork: The Challenge of Sustainable Farming in 21st Century Britain

Providing a seasonal tour of a traditional farming year, passionate beef farmer Joe Stanley seeks to inform the reader about the journey their food takes before it gets to the plate, revealing the reality of life for a modern British lowland farmer. Stripping observations of the countryside and agricultural practices down to the core of his day-to-day activities, he invites the British public to learn exactly what goes into putting bread, milk, meat and beer onto their tables. He provides answers to commonly-asked questions, from interrogations of the daily routine, such as how crops are planted, why livestock is brought in for winter, and what happens at harvest, to the bigger, more topical questions regarding food standards, pesticide use, sustainability, the environment, rural heritage and the future of agricultural policy outside the EU. Often undermined as an antiquated pastime, agriculture is actually the core of a GBP122bn food and farming sector (the UK’s largest manufacturing industry), and Farm to Fork stands as a celebration of British agriculture and a testament to the heart that goes into the food our farmers produce, the environmental stewardship they deliver and the landscape they maintain, whether through the assurance of food quality, animal welfare or environmental sustainability. This is a wonderfully-detailed and candid account of the life of a British farmer - of the highs and lows and lessons learned from a lifetime on the land. AUTHOR: An engaged grassroots NFU member, Joe Stanley is a well-known advocate for the food and farming sector via both mainstream and social media. A dedicated columnist for national newspapers and farming magazines, he has become a progressive voice for the farming industry and all that it represents for British farmers.