The owner of one of the most advanced poultry factories in Europe - based in Suffolk - has welcomed an East Anglian initiative aimed at building a more diverse food and farming workforce.

Writtle University College (WUC) has launched a diversity drive to try to attract people from a wide range of backgrounds into the food and farming sector.

It hosted a weekend event for 16 to 18-year-olds from all over the UK with no farming experience as part of the New Faces For Farming initiative - which was launched by The Black Farmer brand founder Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones in partnership with WUC.

Among its supporters was national meat company Cranswick, which launched at £78m chicken processing factory in Eye in 2019. The move enabled it to increase production from 500k birds to 1.4m birds a week.

East Anglian Daily Times:

The young people participating in the weekend got to spend time sheep herding and lamb handling as they learnt about agricultural careers.

The weekend also featured industry experts from academics to business owners.

Katy Warkup, group learning and development manager at Cranswick, said the company was "delighted" to support the New Faces for Farming initiative.

"As a proud British pig and poultry producer, we are passionate about ensuring that young people are aware of the varied careers that are available throughout the supply chain and encouraging more diverse talent into the food and farming industry," she said.

"We look forward to working with the initiative by supporting the young people through mentoring relationships and wish them all the best of luck following the programme”.

Mr Emmanuel-Jones - who was awarded an MBE for Services to Farming in 2020 - said: “As a young boy growing up in an inner-city area, I found it impossible to find opportunities to develop my interest in farming.

"Fifty years on, many young people still do not know where to go to learn more. This weekend was the first step in bringing about much needed change.

"It is my mission to encourage more youth and diversity into farming and agriculture, so to be able to work with Writtle University College on these initiatives is tremendously exciting."

The young people also met Wilfred in person, and learnt how he fulfilled his dream to become a farmer.

As part of the New Faces For Farming programme, the young people will be mentored by sector experts.

WUC’s widening outreach and participation officer Amy Furney thanked everyone involved in the "fantastic, fun-filled weekend".

"It has been a collaborative effort across the institution and externally. We were so excited to meet and work with the farmers of the future and look forward to our next steps."