Award-Winning Farmer Aims to Enhance Land for Future Generations

Dr. Johnny Wake, an award-winning farmer, has expressed his desire to leave the land in a “better” condition than when he began managing it. He was recently honored with the Sustainable Farmer of the Year title at the British Farming Awards and, in the previous year, received the Royal Agricultural Society’s Bledisloe Gold Medal for Landowners. Dr. Wake oversees Courteenhall Farms, located in south Northamptonshire. This estate incorporates various sustainable practices, such as cultivating wild bird seed and pollen mixes to foster biodiversity. “I don’t particularly like the term farmer or landowner, we really are just stewards… I’m just looking after it temporarily,” he stated. The Sustainable Farmer of the Year award acknowledges individuals who protect land for future generations and adopt environmentally harmonious practices. The farm has transitioned its operational model from one centered on arable farming and residential property to a more diversified and sustainable foundation. Several initiatives have been implemented, ranging from renewable energy sources and rainwater harvesting to the reintroduction of traditional Hereford cattle and rare breed pigs. Additionally, stewardship schemes have facilitated the flourishing of nature on the farm. “My lifetime is just a blink of an eye in terms of land and I want to make sure that during my tenure it’s handed over in an even better state than it was handed over to me,” Dr. Wake commented. He further elaborated, “When you manage land you get to think in really long terms, most businesses can’t think beyond five years, let alone 20, but we think in terms of hundreds of years.” He added, “The simplest thing to do is plant a tree and you know it’ll be here long after your dead. “Everything we do here on the land is about that, so it’s leaving a legacy to be proud of.””