Jan 10 2021 55 mins 1
For some people, an idyllic childhood was all about birthday parties, sleepovers and soccer games. And while those are undoubtedly a fixture for many, for others it was also about cleaning manure out the rabbit hutches and picking green beans until your fingers won’t move anymore. Idyllic, you might question? Yep – one of the best ways to grow up, at least the future me has determined. Having agriculture as a part of daily life when you’re young teaches many great life lessons, and shapes us, our work patterns, and our view of the world. Our podcast guest today has this perspective in common with your host, having grown up in a family that probably also hatched duck eggs in the guest bathroom and knew how to use a manure fork (thank you for your patience, Mom). Libby Henson comes from a family of agriculturalists at the genetic level. She said her father, Joe Henson, “was born an actor, but ran away to be a farmer,” and practiced that vocation robustly, both in the animals they raised and in his activism. He started Britain’s Cotswold Farm Park in 1971 and the Rare Breeds Survival Trust in 1973. Libby’s brother Eric is also a conservation farmer, showing up on the BBC’s Countryfile show on the telly every week. Libby is a force of nature, and outstanding in her field (never gets old, that one). Her resume includes titles like first Director of The Livestock Conservancy, Co-founder and Co-director of Grassroots Pedigree Software Solutions, and Very Smart British Lady (okay, we took some liberties with that last one). Our conversation took place in November of 2017, so in addition to learning about her important work, we’ll get her perspective on a few ag things starting to hit the news at that time. Funny how things change, but stay the same – they keep coming around again and again. Kind of like the production patterns of zucchini. Links: https://home.grassroots.co.uk/meet-the-team/ https://home.grassroots.co.uk/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1jOFhCkt38 https://www.rbst.org.uk/ https://www.livestockconservancy.org/ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-34456953 http://cotswoldfarmpark.co.uk/adam/about/ Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/agriCulturePodcast)
