Lord Don Curry, who authored an influential UK Government report in 2002 “Farming and Food – A Sustainable Future”, delivered the prestigious 2017 George Scott Robertson Memorial Lecture recently.
![Lord Donald Curry, keynote speaker at the recent George Scott Robertson Memorial Lecture Lord Donald Curry, keynote speaker at the recent George Scott Robertson Memorial Lecture](https://www.afbini.gov.uk/sites/afbini.gov.uk/files/styles/inline/public/images/%5Bcurrent-domain%3Amachine-name%5D/news/17.11.216-2.jpg?itok=mKxR91ot×tamp=1511276702)
Jointly organised by AFBI, Queen’s University, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs and the Ulster Farmers Union, this year’s lecture was hosted in the Riddel Hall, Queen’s University Belfast.
In reflecting on progress in the fifteen years since the 2002 report, Lord Curry commented on the relevance of the original report and the fact that many of the key recommendations still applied. For example, the options for farmers, post Brexit, were the same as those identified in the original report in 2002:
![Members from the host organisations which includes AFBI, QUB, DAERA and UFU pictured with Lord Curry at this years lecture in the Riddel Hall, Belfast Members from the host organisations which includes AFBI, QUB, DAERA and UFU pictured with Lord Curry at this years lecture in the Riddel Hall, Belfast](https://www.afbini.gov.uk/sites/afbini.gov.uk/files/styles/inline-expandable/public/images/17.11.216-1%201200.jpg?itok=Fvcf7cgw)
- increase efficiency;
- add value to raw material to capture more of the retail value;
- diversity into some other income stream;
- or do all three.
![Audience members at the George Scott Robertson Memorial Lecture Audience members at the George Scott Robertson Memorial Lecture](https://www.afbini.gov.uk/sites/afbini.gov.uk/files/styles/inline-expandable/public/images/17.11.216-3%201200.jpg?itok=zIXUXKMe)
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