Effective immediately, Gary is providing agronomy advice and technical services to farmers across the eastern region, working closely with NIAB’s Head of Membership Technical Services Andrew Watson and agronomist Stephen Keach on-farm in Norfolk and Suffolk. Will is based in the south-west, joining the regional agronomy team of Poppy dePass, Syed Shah and Steve Cook who cover the south and west of England.
Gary and Will’s appointments are part of an ongoing process to attract both new and experienced agronomists to NIAB as the crop science organisation reinforces its position as an unrivalled source of independent crop research expertise and provider of impartial information and technical services within the UK.
Andrew Watson said: “I am hugely pleased to welcome both Gary and Will to the agronomy team at NIAB. Both are very experienced independent agronomists who will be an asset to members in their regions. This brings the national regional agronomy team up to nine in response to the increased interest in NIAB’s independent, research-based membership agronomic services.”
Gary has recently returned to the UK after 14 years in New Zealand working in independent agronomy on a wide range of crops, including cereals, grass seed, specialist small seeds, forage crops and pasture. His early career included working on-farm in Norfolk, before moving into the processing sector including roles as at Aylsham Growers and Birds Eye. BASIS, FACTS and BETA qualified Gary is also a Certified Nutrient Management Advisor (CNMA). “I still love to jump on a tractor if given the opportunity, so I am really looking forward to getting back out on farm across the eastern region, interacting with clients and sharing knowledge to bring value to their business,” said Gary.
Will has recently returned to his home county of Somerset where he has a small arable farming business following 15 years based in East Anglia and Lincolnshire. A Reading University graduate, Will’s previous career includes positions at Bidwells, Monsanto and Bayer Crop Science, as well as part of the team developing Dyson Farming’s Green Crop Information service. “Since taking on the running of the family farm in 2017 I am now keen to support farmers across the south-west with NIAB’s wide range of on-farm and strategic agronomy services to aid our members’ technical decision-making,” said Will.