As your new Chairman I am delighted to be able to write to you all with a brief introduction and to detail some of my priorities for our Society.

I have been a passionate member of Camgrain for 30 years and a Camgrain Director for 28 years. Our own farm and those we collaborate with as Driver Farms are heavily invested in Camgrain and I am committed to the successful evolution of the business.

Driver Farms has grown from a small farm to one that covers a large area for numerous landowners in various agreements including a Joint venture, contract farming agreements and rented land. Our business has grown alongside Camgrain, which has been vital to our own growth. Our own success is therefore entwined with the success of Camgrain, both in the past and looking forward into the future.

I joined the Board in 1995, at the same time as our previous Chairman John Latham. Together we have over the years seen huge growth within the Camgrain business. We have seen the expansion from Linton into the Cambridge site, then latterly the merging of Stratford and the store being built at Kettering; projects driven by Philip Darkes drive and tenacity.

More recently the Navara Oat Milling project beside the store at NAPC has been added to the business. This is an extremely exciting venture on both a personal level and for the Members. John Latham has led the business through these expansions with passion and integrity. Together we have had some brilliants times and I feel very proud about what John and the various Board members over the years have achieved.  Thankyou John for all the work and dedication you have put into the society. I really do value your support both now and into the future. 

We are now at a crossroads in UK agriculture. Subsidies are going, input-based agriculture is changing, and the financial pressures are growing. Like all farmers are looking at everything we do both at home and within our business with ever closer scrutiny; this includes our grain storage and marketing. Grain storage is a large cost in the overhead of all farming businesses and marketing, especially in these volatile times affects a business’s output to scary levels. Sadly, I cannot tell what the future holds for farming in the UK. However, what we can all do is ensure every aspect of our businesses are running as professionally and efficiently as possible. This includes Camgrain, which for Members is an extension of their own business.

Camgrain is a Safe, Strong, and Stable business, but as with any business we must ensure we are fit for the future and do our utmost to support our members by staying true to our core values and driving performance in all aspects of the society.

The future of Camgrain is exciting and we are now in a new stage of our evolution. Therefore, together with the Camgrain Boards there are many important projects, priorities, and objectives on my agenda, these include:

• Transparency and trust - We must be able to prove where we are adding value financially to Members crops and what our costs are. This will build trust within the membership that Camgrain is working for them. 
• Communication – Continue to improve how we communicate with Members. Listen to Members grievances and takes criticism on board. Ensure no Member feels like they don’t have a voice. 
• Sweating our assets – Camgrain has large but under-utilised assets. We need to drive value from these assets whether that is getting more processors onto our sites, investigate more commercial grain storage/conditioning services, explore options unrelated to grain storage or total divestment of land assets. 
• Accountable marketing – It is important that the Marketing Committee hold the marketing partners fully accountable of the decisions made and drive performance through benchmarking and analysis. 
• Costs analysis – Ongoing reviews of the costs within the business to drive performance. Ensure Camgrain is competitive in the marketplace against on farm, commercial and other central storage options. 
• Succession – It is paramount that the next generation of Camgrain Members start to get involved with the running of the business and we are looking at a succession plan for the Board over the next few years. 
• H&S – Colleagues to embrace and own a Health and Safety culture throughout the business. Keeping each other safe.
• One Camgrain – Creation of a shared ethos between Members and colleagues; that we are all part of an exciting business that we are driving forward together in a new stage of the evolution of Camgrain. 

I also firmly believe that Camgrain must be an enviable place to work and that retaining our excellent team and attracting the best talent into the business is a priority. Colleague safety and happiness is paramount as this leads to improved performance within the business. As your new Chairman I am committed to supporting Simon Willis and the Executive team to not only ensure that Camgrain supports its members but that our colleagues feel proud to work for our business.

Our customers must see Camgrain as the “go to” place for securing their product through consistent quality and outstanding service and I would like to see further relationships like the ones we have with Hovis, Nestle CP, Navara, Yelo and Boortmalt develop.

Most importantly for our Members Camgrain must be true to its core values and mission, providing the best value grain storage and service available while maximising returns to our farmer members. We must prove our added value USP’s and ensure the society is working for the Members to the highest standards. 

If any Member or colleague would like to talk, please feel free to contact me. Your thoughts are important and welcome. 07774128074.

Carl Driver – Camgrain Chairman

Driver Farms
www.driverfarms.co.uk