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Week 46 · 5–11 Nov 2026 · Balanced

The week in balance

Every theme at “A bit”: the edition every reader of Your Field Report starts from, led by “Agricultural education and training”.

Watch the Week 46 film Choose your themes
  1. Policy & farm business

    Agricultural education and training

    CropLife SA urges farmers to close training gaps on chemical handling and safety, Farmer's Inside Track reports. Farmers Guardian reports new Farm Learning Hubs to boost northern farming resilience. R2Kast marks Harper Adams University's 125th anniversary with Ken Sloan, in a Howden-sponsored segment.

    Why it matters. Skills gaps and new training routes shape who can enter and stay in farming and food work.

    Listen: Farmer's Inside Track · Farmers Guardian — Sustainable Farming · Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg (by Food Tank) · Irish Farmers Journal podcasts

  2. Innovation

    Natural vs industrial farming

    Battle For African Agriculture, in an AFSA-backed episode, reports Indian farmers challenging the Green Revolution with natural farming. Agtech - So What? covers landscape-scale farming with Ebony Greaves-Zwinggi. Future Fork's Sally Higgins and GRDC's Jessica Zieltjes discuss farm economics and rotations.

    Why it matters. Questions over what makes farming systems viable and resilient affect input use and farm income choices.

    Listen: Agtech – So What? · Battle For African Agriculture Podcast · Future Fork with Paul Newnham · GRDC Podcast

  3. Innovation

    Food security and affordability

    Talking Biotech covers Danforth Centre's virus-resistant cassava for sub-Saharan Africa. S2G Podcast examines food affordability politics after the US midterms. Eat This Podcast explores Irish black pudding and subsistence food traditions; World Food Prize profiles Borlaug's legacy via the Heritage Foundation.

    Why it matters. From gene editing to affordability politics, these shape how food security is pursued and funded.

    Listen: World Food Prize Podcast: Dialogue That Feeds the World · Eat This Podcast · Talking Biotech with Dr. Kevin Folta · The S2G Podcast

  4. Food & nutrition

    Soil water storage and irrigation tech

    Farming Today's Alison Smythe says organic-rich soil acts like a sponge, aiding chalk aquifer recharge amid record October sunshine. RealAg Radio reports robotic irrigation systems gaining ground in Western Canada, enabling precision water and nutrient delivery without drivers.

    “Where the soil's in good condition and has got plenty of organic matter and biology going on, it means that can act much more like a sponge and hold it.”

    Alison Smythe, Farming Today

    Why it matters. Soil condition and new irrigation tech both affect water efficiency, with implications for drought resilience and input costs.

    Listen: Farming Today · RealAg Radio – RealAgriculture

  5. Ag commodities

    Soil health convergence

    No single event: shows covered soil health from varied angles, including India's natural farming movement (AFSA), regenerative sheep grazing (Grounded), a new Duchy tenancy (Farmers Guardian), and tillage compaction (Agriland). Working Cows featured John Kempf on weaning off chemical fertilisers; Wellness Scoop linked soil health to nutrient density.

    Why it matters. Soil health underpins yields, input costs and food quality, cutting across organic, regenerative and conventional systems alike.

    Listen: Battle For African Agriculture Podcast · Agriland · Grounded: The regenerative farming podcast · Real Organic Podcast

  6. Policy & farm business

    Avian influenza spreads across UK

    Farming Today's Anna Hill reports Scotland's new countrywide avian influenza prevention zone, requiring fenced free-range birds and biosecurity measures. Agriland reports a Lincolnshire H5N1 case triggering another protection zone; Farmers Guardian covers England's poultry housing order and Red Tractor standards review.

    “Scotland has announced a countrywide avian influenza prevention zone. That means all bird keepers in Scotland must take extra precautions, including keeping free-range birds fenced off, cleansing and disinfecting footwear and concrete areas”

    Anna Hill (host), Farming Today

    Why it matters. Disease-control measures can disrupt farm routines and markets; the requirements differ between England and Scotland.

    Listen: Farming Today · Agriland · Farming in Five by Farmers Guardian · Scotland's Farm Advisory Service Podcast

Also in this edition

Earlier weeks

The full Week 46 edition · The podcasts we follow · The weekly data