Alex Parkinson, farm manager for RBOrganic (part of Burgess Farms), one of the largest organic carrot growers in the UK, has been crowned winner of the Organic Research Centre’s (ORC) Young Organic Farmer/ Grower of the Year (YOFY) Award 2022/2023.
He was publicly announced as winner at the National Organic Conference (NOC) this week, however the Norfolk farmer was not present due to work commitments.
Because of this he received his prize of £1,500 and a selection of books on organic and agroecological farming worth over £500 on an earlier date.
He was however represented at the conference by Andrew Burgess, agricultural director for Burgess Farms, who said:
“Alex arrived with us as a young man without a farming background and settled in very quickly to the farm. He’s a quick learner, hungry for knowledge and a hard worker with a great personality.
“We’ve just watched him grow and develop over his 10 years with us, taking on more and more responsibility and building his knowledge base.
“In organic farming – and horticulture in particular – attention to detail is the difference between making it or not, and he has got that.”
Young Organic Farmer of the Year
This year’s awards judges said that Parkinson stood out for his “wide vision for organic farming, the way he has learnt on the job, and his influence on larger producers to think organic”.
Donald Peck chair of ORC’s board of trustees, visited Alex with the other judges and said: “What came across was his enthusiasm, technical knowledge – much of it picked up on the job – and willingness to experiment.
“His success should show how feasible and sensible it is for larger producers to think organic.”
Parkinson was one of three finalists for the awards, the others being vegetable producers Adam Payne and Dee Butterley from Pembrokeshire, and dairy farmers Sophie and Tom Gregory from Dorset.
Lucy MacLennan, ORC CEO, said the quality of entrants for this year’s award was extremely high and all finalists shared a passion for organic farming and demonstrated all the skills required to make a success of their business.
“As the need to embrace organic farming methods becomes ever more evident if we are to combat climate change and address biodiversity loss, we are so proud of our finalists for the difference they are making,” she said.
The 2023/24 Young Organic Farmer/Grower of the Year award is anticipated to open for applications in October.
The award aims to highlight the achievements of young organic farmers and growers who are passionate about implementing organic principles.
