My new neighbour asked the other day if we'd tied apples on to the tree in our garden. I wasn't surprised by the question. Should I have been?
It wasn't sarcasm. It was a genuine question and yes, the apples do look wonderful now that they're turning a bright rosy-red.
My partner explained that they had grown there but aren't quite ripe. When they are, we'll share the harvest. My neighbour has never eaten an apple fresh off a tree.
There's a major discussion to be had about where our food comes from, how it's grown and the nature of farming.
About 7% of the UK's total financial worth.. about £88billion a year.. comes from food and farming. Growing and processing all that food requires a lot of people (estimated four million UK jobs), a fair bit of land and lots of resources: mechanical; physical; chemical and of course, natural. Statistics are of course meaningless. What matters to many, most probably, is whether they can get a good value meal when they want it. But there's the rub. What is a good value meal?
Is it value in relation to cost? Value in relation to taste? Value in relation to where the produce has come from or how it was grown and harvested? My apple crop is not great value for money if you judge it by yield. It is great value if you think it''s started a new relationship with a neighbour, who'll get to taste an apple untouched by pesticides or herbicides and who may now be wondering where other food comes from.
My tree looks great. It's supported bees, hoverflies, wasps, some greenfly and probably many more bugs too numerous to mention. Great tits, blue tits, robins, a wren and blackbirds perch in it and may well get to the apples before I do. It's a valuable addition for the wildlife in my garden.
We owe a lot to the farmers who produce our food. Most farmers also care for the environment and are passionate about the well-being of their livestock. They need a good return on their investment and know they have to look after the land and wildlife that helps maintain a natural balance to produce quality crops. People who can afford it are willing to pay a premium for food grown this way compared with more industrially produced foods. That premium is an investment in our countryside. Part of the heritage we'll pass to our children. We'll be talking more about the value of nature over the next couple of weeks.
So, let's support our UK farmers. In association with the Telegraph newspaper, we're asking people to vote for the UK's most wildlflife friendly farmer. There's a shortlist to review and the deadline's looming.