Yara UK and Ireland congratulates Chris Harrold on his promotion to Head of Crop Nutrition Agronomy

The agricultural sector is changing at pace and as farmers move towards a more regenerative approach to crop production, there’s a need to improve crop productivity and do so sustainably. “Yara is well-known for providing high quality products and sound technical advice based on strong data,” comments Chris. “The review of how our agronomy team supports our customers will ensure we continue to adapt and provide relevant advice that meets their needs.”

Chris comments that the agronomy team’s recent attendance at events like Cereals and Groundswell highlighted a prime example of the need to adapt Yara’s advice to emerging approaches to crop production. “Many farmers are adapting their cropping to deal with changes in the economics of growing certain crops and are considering growing alternatives. They are also looking at how they can best make their crops more resilient to extreme weather. Agriculture is changing, and the support and advice we offer must change with it.”

Speaking about what he is looking forward to about his new role, Chris says it’s the opportunity to collaborate. “We will achieve more as a team within Yara by collaborating and the industry will achieve more if we collaborate with external partners. From speaking to people at events over recent weeks, I think there's a recognition that we need to work together to bring real benefits to the industry. We can’t do it on our own, but we’ll have more success if we work with other businesses, advisory bodies, and policymakers,” says Chris.

Chris points to Yara’s recently formed partnerships with Simpsons Malt and PepsiCo Europe as examples of how collaboration can drive meaningful and lasting change. “Collaboration with ambitious partners like Simpsons Malt and PepsiCo Europe is really important. The agronomy team are already involved in that, and I suspect that this approach to how we do business will only grow. As a company, we have it all; the crop nutrition solutions, digital tools, and sound agronomic knowledge. How we exchange knowledge going forward will be through our partnerships,” says Chris.