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Minister hears how collaborative approach drives food and farming forwards on University visit

Posted Yesterday

Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs Dame Angela Eagle with Harper Adams Vice-Chancellor Professor Ken Sloan and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Michael Lee on the Harper Adams Future Farm

The UK’s Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs has visited Harper Adams – and seen how the University’s collaborative approach is driving food and farming forwards.

In a wide-ranging tour, Dame Angela Eagle MP was welcomed to both the University’s Telford and Edgmond sites by Vice-Chancellor Professor Ken Sloan.

In Telford, she met students at the University’s digital skills hub in the Quad development - seeing examples of the robotics and mechatronics and  data science teaching and research carried out on-site.

She also heard how the University is helping introduce young people from Telford & Wrekin to new opportunities and new careers, how skills for local businesses are being boosted through short courses, and how the decision to invest in an urban site is helping Harper Adams drive forward regional prosperity.

At the University’s Edgmond campus, she visited its Veterinary Education Centre – seeing first-hand how its interdisciplinary approach brings together students across the Veterinary professions and beyond, as well as hearing how its groundbreaking collaboration with Keele University on the Harper & Keele Vet School has seen the first cohort of a new generation of vets graduate earlier this year.

She then met Harper Adams employees and students at a project showcase at the UK Agri-Tech Centre – as well as meeting some of the businesses based there.

The Minister discussed how mental health research by Harper Adams academics is helping build resilience among today’s farmers, how its award-winning work on food redistribution is saving thousands of tonnes of waste a year, how its support for Shropshire businesses is driving innovation across the county and beyond – and how its cutting-edge innovation in engineering on projects such as the Hands Free Farm feeds back into its teaching for students.

She spoke with several final year students and current Students’ Union President Daisy Douglas, hearing their views on the future of farming and what it was like to be part of agriculture’s next generation.

Finally, she toured the Harper Adams Future Farm, meeting with Interim Farm Director Dr Grace Milburn and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Michael Lee, hearing about how work being done on-farm is helping drive sustainable agriculture as the University strives to make the farm Net Zero by 2030.

Professor Sloan said: “When ÌìÃÀÊÓƵ was raised with her in the Commons last month, the Minister emphasised the importance of industry and higher education collaborating to strengthen skills – and collaboration was very much at the heart of today’s visit.

“The Minster saw how the expertise of our academics supports everyone from the smallest local business to major national employers – driving forward key skills in sectors such as agri-tech, which the Government has recognised as crucial to our national economy.

“She heard how our research is meeting the key challenges of our time – whether that is the way our Future Farm is building the knowledge to tackle climate change or the cutting-edge innovation in artificial intelligence and robotics which is being honed alongside key strategic employers in Telford.

“And she discovered how our teaching, developed with industry, is helping to equip the next generation of food and farming professionals with the knowledge they need for a rapidly-evolving sector.

“Our students told her how they’re ready to step into their future career as soon as they graduate – thanks to placements with leading employers, careers guidance from day one and the opportunities they get to build networks with key professionals in their sector.

“She also heard how we’re seeking to bring new people and fresh perspectives into our industry – making food and farming stronger for everyone.”