Potato Council now AHDB Potatoes

New branding and a proposed new way of working for the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) was formally launched at the Cereals event in Lincolnshire earlier this month.

This will see AHDB’s sector-focused activity delivered under six brands, AHDB Beef and Lamb, AHDB Cereals and Oilseeds, AHDB Dairy, AHDB Horticulture, AHDB Pork and AHDB Potatoes. Cross sector projects will be delivered as AHDB.

Last week, the main AHDB Board agreed to start a reorganisation of AHDB’s senior team into wider functional roles. This is to drive collective delivery of activity in five areas covering industry strategy, technical, communications and market development, finance and HR.

Speaking at the launch, AHDB Chair Peter Kendall said the new look and proposed way of working was a step change in future AHDB delivery to levy payers.

He stressed that sector specialisms would continue as part of the new plan: “Key to our new way of functional working will be retaining sector expertise and the input of AHDB’s Sector Boards. We will also continue to ensure that levies raised in a sector will be spent for the benefit of that sector.”

“Our role is to help put a number of building blocks in place to support the future growth of a competitive farming industry.

“By working together, sharing expertise and skills across our organisation, I know that AHDB can build on the excellent work it is already providing for levy payers.

He said the past six months had seen AHDB roll out a number of key joint projects to deliver long term benefits for farmers and growers:

“Earlier this year AHDB funded the UK’s first Agriculture and Food Counsellor to China. This new three year appointment will help pave the way for building on the estimated £215 million of UK food and drink exports to China each year.

“Our role in leading the new AHDB Crop Nutrient Management Guide means that future nutrient management research will be undertaken in a co-ordinated way to address the gaps in existing RB209 advice and to remove duplication.”

Mr Kendall added that innovation would be central to future AHDB activities: “Encouraging farmers and growers to innovate will be crucial for the future sustainability of our industry. To that end, we will be holding a brand new AHDB Smart Agriculture Conference in September to see how the latest technologies could transform the future of farming.

“These activities are just some examples of how a joined up approach can deliver more return on investment for levy funds. I hope that by anchoring this strategic way of working in AHDB, we can deliver more benefits for farmers and growers.”

AHDB’s Sector Boards will be meeting later this month to discuss priorities for their sectors and for AHDB as a whole. This is prior to a planned wider industry discussion on future AHDB activity later this year.

In order to minimise rebranding costs, existing supplies of legacy branded materials will be run down over the next few months. Earlier this year the AHDB Board said it aimed to keep the core costs of the rebrand at £60,000.