John Widdowson receives the Lifetime Achievement Award from Tom Vesey
Through the pages of the Ranger may I thank the BFREPA council along with all members of the Association for the overwhelming generosity shown to me as I officially stood down at the Free Range Conference last month.
The Lifetime Achievement Award will be treasured for ever, as will the framed print. The camera lens was exactly what I wanted and I've already used the cheque to upgrade my camera. I hope you will reap some benefit in the shape of the 2009 free range calendar!
Yes, I will still be lying in the wet grass taking photos of hens as I am not disappearing altogether. I intend to continue working in the background for BFREPA, as the free range industry is still too big a part of my life for me to abandon all involvement. In particular, over the next twelve months I will closely support Tom Vesey in what will be his final year as chairman.
In the same way I will be only too willing to offer help and advice to members who step forward and take an active role in the future running of the Association. BFREPA has grown into a highly-respected and influential organisation and it is vital from a producers' perspective that it continues to go from strength to strength.
I would urge all of you to give some serious thought as to whether you could get involved with the running of BFREPA. I know it is not always easy finding the time when you have a farm to run but it can be a very fulfilling experience.
It is sixteen years since I attended a packed meeting in London of disgruntled free range farmers. Nervously raising my hand, I volunteered to become one of two representatives from the South West on the council of the newly formed British Free Range Egg Producers Association.
Since that time I have gained a fantastic insight into the free range sector and in the process have got to know so many people from top to bottom of the egg industry. I've attended meetings with MPs; high-ranking Defra officials; top executives from leading supermarkets; and given evidence to the all-powerful Competition Commission. I've appeared on national television on several occasions and given umpteen interviews to the radio and the press.
I gained the confidence to stand up in front of audiences in their hundreds and give presentations and while my early excursions to London saw me handing fistfuls of notes to taxi drivers because I didn't know how the underground worked, now I can fight my way onto a packed Central Line tube at rush-hour with the best of them!
Without my involvement in BFREPA I would have missed out on this experience and there is a similar opportunity awaiting those who have a desire to get involved with the politics of our industry. If you do think you can find the time, I would strongly recommend you give it a go. I guarantee you will find it highly rewardingā€¦ and as an added bonus, if you put in a decent period of service you won't half get a good send-off at the end!
John Widdowson