Organic Arable Annual Meeting 2025
When we asked last year's attendees , "How likely are you to recommend other organic farmers to attend the OA Annual Meeting? We are delighted to say 97% said they would!
Programme
We have an exciting programme of speakers covering a broad range of topics from soil health, organic agronomy to business and staff development. We will hear about the importance of soil health and a new approach in assessing this fundamental requirement of an organic system. We'll learn about how organic agronomy is developing and some of the new approaches being implemented on farm with interesting results.
We'll have an policy insight and some ideas about how we need to be presenting organic farming systems to extol their benefits to a wider audience.
We're introducing TIAH which is a relatively new organisation with the objective of improving the training and staff development in the agricultural industry.
Soil Health
We are delighted to be joined by Dr Suzie Haryanti Husain who will provide us with her approach to improving soil health and her experience of developing soil health assessments through the SHE Soil Health Expert framework she has developed.
Better understanding of soil health not only helps you farm better but it also helps communicate the benefits organic farming can deliver.
Organic Agronomy
Tom Tolputt and Will Maris from Terrafarmer will share their experiences of developing and implementing agronomic strategies using permitted organic inputs both chemical and biological to overcome soil deficiencies and boost yields.
Can they help your farm yields?
Policy Update & Thoughts on the Future
Adrian Steele will provide us with his usual insightful view of the politics at Defra and provide hints at where Environmental Stewardship may be heading.
He is increasingly working on how organic can relay what we see and know is happening on our farms to the market.
Get to Know TIAH - tbc
TIAH has been created to provide everyone involved in agriculture opportunities for life-long learning. To support farmers, business owners and staff develop their farming & business skills to help build a better trained and skilled industry. Learn about how they can support your farming business.
Some responses from last year's attendees:
"I took something from all the talks, I thought it was a really interesting day, which covered a whole variety of the complex issues that make up organic farming. Thank you for organising it! "
"Thank you for your hospitality. The speakers were interesting and we valued the variety of topics represented."
"Really good day, the best one I remember, thanks. The range of speakers was great, with interesting, short presentations combined with a good opportunity to catch up with colleagues..."
Dr Suzie Haryanti Husain
Founder of the SHE™
A Global Soil Health Expert with over 16 years of experience working at the intersection of regenerative agriculture, soil intelligence, and systems strategy. She founded the SHE™ Framework (Soil | Health | Evidence) to help organizations shift from input-heavy models to biology-first solutions that are measurable, scalable, and rooted in real-world field data. Her approach blends scientific precision, strategic thinking, and deep respect for the land. She doesn’t just speak about sustainability. She builds systems that live it.
Adrian Steele
Soil Association
Adrian has been involved with the organic sector for many years as a farmer, and has been instrumental in creating and developing marketing initiatives in the livestock, seeds and cereals sectors. His farming business in Worcestershire also hosts vegetable production and dairy heifers, and is linked with other local landowners through share farm and rental arrangements. He has worked closely with food processors and marketing agents for over 25 years. Adrian is also a qualified solicitor and has served as a Trustee of the Soil Association.
Will Marris
Terrafarmer
Growing up on a mixed family farm in Lincolnshire sparked Will’s interest in sustainable farming, particularly how integrating livestock and arable systems can help to create a more robust and resilient business, centred around good soil management.
After studying at Newcastle University, Will worked as an agronomist for six years, delivering regenerative farming advice alongside SFI and soil consultancy. His passion is helping and supporting farmers on their transition to regenerative farming systems.
Tom Tolputt
Terrafarmer
Based in Cornwall, Tom is an organic farmer and has worked as a livestock nutrition consultant for over 25 years. He farms around 600 acres with his wife, Nicola, where they put regenerative and biological farming into practice, running an Angus suckler herd and growing organic oats, barley, and fodder beet.
Tom’s view of regenerative farming changed fundamentally in 2017 after working in the states with the ‘father of biological farming’, Gary Zimmer of MidWestern Bioag.
Passionate about the wide-ranging benefits of good grazing management, diverse cropping, and soil health, Tom believes regenerative farming practices offer a win-win when it comes to farm profitability, public ecosystem services, and the wider environment.