Former top farmer at Elveden Estate joins Home Farm Nacton

Andrew Francis left frontline farming two years ago to pursue an agri-business venture - but missed it so much that he has now joined a large farming enterprise in Ipswich.

He has become managing director of Home Farm Nacton - a large 1,170ha farming operation at Orwell Park Estate by the Orwell Estuary which also contract farms a further 814ha.

The farm grows vegetables and cereals - including around 240ha of potatoes, 100ha of onions, 50ha of cauliflower, 110ha of vining peas and 40ha of herbs, 22ha of cabbage, 16ha of broccoli and 16ha of brussels sprouts.

He succeeds Andrew Williams, who retired in June 2023 after 26 years in the role.

Towards the end of 2022, Andrew Francis left his job as farms director at Elveden Farms, near Thetford - the largest ring-fenced arable farm in lowland Britain at around 4,000ha - after 29 years working for the historic estate.

He used his considerable experience in the sector to launch a farm consultancy business called Transformational Estate and Agricultural Management - or TEAM Ag (UK) Ltd - with two other partners.

But he soon found he missed hands-on farming - and has quit that role to devote himself full-time to his new job at Home Farm Nacton while his two partners continue the TEAM business.

At Nacton, Andrew heads up a young team of 46 "really good and talented" permanent staff and 18 to 20 seasonal workers.

"I'm extremely pleased to be here and part of the team. It's a great opportunity to join a very pro-active business," he said.

"For me, having had a year away from the coal face was a very good opportunity to learn how the sector is perceived by the outside. I wanted to utilise that knowledge back on the farm.

"There are key components of running a day-to-day business which I have missed.

"The opportunity to join the team at Home Farm Nacton was too good an opportunity to miss."

Now aged 57, Andrew described his new job - which he started at the end of January - as a "great opportunity".

"What's good for me - for all of us in farm management - is you are just a small part of an ongoing story. We are just custodians of a business for a period of time,"  he said.

"I think being able to pick up the mantle from Andrew (Williams) effectively and continue that work and to continue to enhance what the business does is just a natural process of land management and food production."

The team has been "extremely welcoming" and very helpful and supportive, he said.

"Effectively it's enabled me to hit the ground running so it's a very good business culture."

Among his key concerns will be water security as well as producing food while at the same time helping the environment.

"The next five to 10 years are going to be absolutely crucial in terms of trying to ensure we are resilient from a water perspective," he said.

With unprecedented rainfall during autumn and winter and very wet conditions in the fields, this season is going to be particularly tough for farmers - and could lead to less food being grown.

"I would say we are probably two to three weeks behind where we would like to be ideally. What we are facing now is a work calendar that's condensing," said Andrew.

"We are probably locked into some yield loss because of where we are in the calendar. Some of these fields are going to want one to two weeks to dry them. The challenge is how do we optimise our resources."

He added: "There may well be areas of the farm that may end up with no food crop in them. We may put them in a cover crop for this season."

Chairman of Home Farm Nacton Keith Girling described Andrew’s appointment as "an exciting moment" for the business.

"With his proven track record in managing large scale fresh produce rotations, he is an exceptional addition to an already strong and committed team," he said.

"We look forward to a future working with Andrew as he cascades his experience throughout the business and injects his own style and knowledge."