Land Based Industries Advice Service (LBAS)              Business Link workshop programme                                                                  .

These events are taking place in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and Sussex FREE WORKSHOPS AIMED AT INFORMING LAND BASED BUSINESSES ON THE EFFECTS OF CHANGES AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

More than 3,500 land based businesses across the South East are being given the opportunity to attend a series of workshops to help them make greater use of sustainable resources, ensure they adapt to changing circumstances and are up-to-date with the latest business legislation and market developments. The programme provides a series of intensive and interactive workshops aimed at up-skilling and informing land based industries across the South East. Following feedback from, amongst others, National Farmers Union and the Country Land Business Association, seven key workshop topics have been selected.  These workshops will enable land based industries to adapt and benefit from current issues and highlight new opportunities for growth and profitability. HOW DOES IT WORK? The workshops are FREE and will be single-topic, half day events led by professional speakers. They will be held mostly in the morning and at convenient locations across the South East that compliment the programme. The workshop topics are: Earth, Wind and Fire - Profiting from alternative energy Business diversification and possible grant opportunities Prepare to meet thy Planner Moving up the Food Supply Chain - A profit opportunity Energy crops - Food or Fuel? Water Use - How to harvest and optimise How to benefit from the changing climate EARTH, WIND & FIRE - PROFITING FROM ALTERNATIVE ENERGY   As any landowner will know the cost of energy has risen dramatically over the last years and this workshop investigates techniques to reduce costs and discuss the opportunities to become an energy provider. This session will cover many alternative suggestions on reducing current energy needs and the capture of waste power linked to individual energy audits. It will also discuss various methods of generating power for one's own use to selling to a third party with cost and payback indicators along with signposting to potential suppliers and sources of information. Nick Sandford, SEEDA biomass champion will also be joining us to share with us his own experiences of 'The Beautiful Fuel'. Typical generating methods include: Solar energy capture Wind Turbines Biomass crops Geo Thermal heat generation Anaerobic digestion Hydro electric View dates of Earth, Wind & Fire workshops >>   BUSINESS DIVERSIFICATION AND POSSIBLE GRANT OPPORTUNITIES Whilst diversification as a concept has been around for many years, this workshop will explore many of the possible new areas for business diversification open to land based industries. It will also discuss possible grant opportunities available to support innovative and sound ideas. The workshop will focus around case studies of a number of successful projects and the lessons learnt: Discussion on diversification in its widest sense Detailed examination of a complex diversification project Analysis of the resources needed and timescales Other examples of simpler diversifications and the pitfalls Discussion on the many factors to be considered; business plans, finance, planning, marketing, training etc Information on possible grant opportunities such as the SEEDA managed Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) View dates of Business Diversification workshops >>   PREPARE TO MEET THY PLANNER This workshop aims to dispel the myth that the planning system has been set up as a barrier to starting new ventures. It will provide guidance on how to approach planning applications with a step by step guide to the process. The workshops are led by ex-planning officers now working as planning consultants with advice on how to maximise the chances of making sucessful applications. It will highlight the key issues, timescales, costs etc by going through the stages illustrated by case studies of successful applicants. Key areas to be covered:   Overview of the current rules and regulations on developments How the planning process works Presentation of a successful planning application and discussion on the key elements of the project What makes a good application? A layman’s guide to getting your application approved first time The do’s and don’ts of planning View dates of Prepare to Meet Thy Planner workshops >>     MOVING UP THE FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN - A PROFIT OPPORTUNITY Many primary producers look with envy at the profits made by companies further along the supply chain, for example dairy farmers getting 20+ p per litre for non organic milk with supermarkets selling at the equivalent of 88.5p per litre. This workshop will analyse and discuss various opportunities for producers to get involved in the processing either individually or collaboratively. Jonathon Bayne, Head of Technical Services, Sustainability & Regulatory Affairs, Musgrave Retail Partners GB will also be joining us with the do's and don'ts within the retail environment.  The main elements of the workshop will be: Background to the current trading conditions and trends Analysis of the opportunities for individual products Analysis of the wide range of routes to market The implications for the business, skills, regulations etc Opportunities for collaboration Individual action plans and sources of help View dates of Moving up the Food Supply Chain workshops >>     ENERGY CROPS - FOOD OR FUEL? Over recent years growing crops as energy has received much publicity and these workshops aim to inform and debate the various opportunities and their wider impact. The session highlights the various types of crops to be considered from oil seed rape to coppicing and investigates the business implications of each one as well as the holistic impact of switching from growing for food to growing for fuel. Any grant oppourtunities will also be highlighted. The options discussed include: Wood and timber alternatives Primary crop waste Liquid fuel crops Miscanthus Anaerobic digestion View dates of Energy Crops workshops >>    WATER USE - HOW TO HARVEST AND OPTIMISE   The combination of Climate Change predictions and the Government's intention to build hundreds of thousands of new homes in the South East will put a huge strain on the existing water distribution infrastructure. New systems will have to be put in place soon to ensure that there will be adequate supplies for domestic and industrial supplies. Land based businesses are very significant consumers of water and will have to adapt to the changing demands and plan for shortages and excesses. The sessions will cover: The predicted impact of climate change on rainfall The predicted change indemand for water in the South East Wide ranging analysis of conservation methods and techniques An overview of new sources of water Individual action plans and sources of help NRoSO and Basis points available  View dates of Water Use workshops >>   HOW TO BENEFIT FROM THE CHANGING CLIMATE This workshop will explore the likely impact of Climate Change on the way that Land Based businesses will be affected and suggest ways of mitigating the effects and propose possible new opportunities in areas such as crops and activities. There are a number of tools being developed to help land based businesses to calculate their carbon footprint interms of emissions etc which will become an important element of farm planning. The key areas to be covered are: Information on implications, the forecasted timescales and the extent of the changes, particularly for the South East of England and the possible impacts on rural industries  The social impacts on housing, water requirements, energy needs, tourism and leisure activities The potential new opportunities for the supply chains particularly for local producers  Discussion on possible alternative options and alterations to business practices to mitigate the changes View dates of Changing Climate workshops >>