Meet our team: Farm Manager, Matthew Copley

Many visitors are surprised to learn The Nostell Estate business park exists. The site hosts 50 businesses but is well hidden behind the Nostell Priory stable block courtyard. You may be even more surprised to learn that the estate is home to a four-thousand-acre farming concern, home to three farms at Nostell and East Newton in Yorkshire and Appleby in Lincolnshire. The Nostell site is just about to complete a state-of-the-art grain store due for completion ready for the 2023 harvest – update: read about the grain store here. The running of the estate’s farms falls on the broad Yorkshire shoulders of experienced farm manager Matthew Copley – and this year, he celebrates twenty-five years at The Nostell Estate. We asked him to update us on what’s changed over the years and what’s still to come…

HOW DID YOU GET INTO FARMING?

I was born into farming, and you could say it runs in my blood. I’ve never known anything else. That said, I love what I do, and it’s been a pleasure working on the land at The Nostell Estate for the last quarter-century.

WHAT KIND OF FARMING IS CARRIED OUT ON THE NOSTELL ESTATE?

Working three separate arable farms, we grow wheat and barley, amongst other types of grain. Also beans, potatoes and peas. Through merchants, we collaborate with large brands like Birdseye through to small local microbrewers. Waste reduction is a critical part of our process. It runs through everything we do, from providing viable alternatives to imported soya beans (and therefore helping to reduce deforestation) to planting trees on land that is not suitable for farming. We’re just about to plant twenty acres of trees at East Newton.

YOU MENTION WASTE REDUCTION; HOW IMPORTANT IS THIS?

For large-scale projects, the new grain store, for example, will help us sort and keep our grain in perfect condition and dry the grain more efficiently. This facility will ensure that less grain goes to waste each harvest time––because each harvest is different. We must account for the weather; preparedness is essential to success. 

Fertiliser accounts for many carbon emissions in the industry, and we use digestate to reduce our carbon footprint. Digestate is derived from food and food factory waste, acting as an excellent fertiliser that adds organic matter to the soil while providing essential nutrients. There’s a misconception that farmers spray many chemicals; we only spray when necessary to protect the crops from weeds, pests and diseases and to protect grain quality.

We also put many smaller-scale projects into action as part of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme. For example, hedges are cut on a bi-annual rotation to ensure they bear fruit, providing winter food for small birds. Any awkwardly shaped or small field corners are left alone to support wildlife.

WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHANGES YOU’VE SEEN OVER THE YEARS?

Farming can be a traditional industry, and many things remain the same year after year. However, we have seen changes. All the fieldwork on the in-hand farms used to be done with the estate’s farm staff and machinery, but today we work with trusted contractors. Technology has played a part and will continue to do so in the future. Picking, sorting and even forecasting all these things will become automated in future. 

I expect that, at its best, AI will support decision-making that protects crops and optimises yields. Agronomy (the science of soil management and crop production) is central to my work as a farmer. Eventually, tech will make it easier to cover more acres, making real-time decisions about fieldwork or harvesting. But for now, I am happiest – and most often to be found – walking the fields with my dog, Ivy, developing programmes manually.