Nicholas Saphir re-appointed as Chair of the AHDB
The Government has re-appointed Nicholas Saphir as Chair of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) for one year, with effect from 1 April 2023.
Mr Saphir, who was originally appointed as AHDB Chair in 2020, will remain in the role until the end of March 2024. This is a Ministerial appointment, made by the Secretary of State for Defra.
Within horticulture, The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board funds applied research and development to address crop protection, labour, resource use and technical innovation. It is funded by a levy of 0.45% of grower’s turnover.
Growers ballot
In 2020 107 horticulture growers called for a ballot on the continuation of the statutory AHDB levy. In 2021 the HTA’s Ornamental Management Committee unanimously backed a resolution calling for the AHDB to be given the chance to reform to be fit for purpose for our sector.
Nicholas Saphir, said: “The AHDB has a vital role to play in helping our levy payers meet the challenges that lie ahead. The organisation has been through a radical period of change including delivering better value and more targeted services, which levy payers have highlighted as priorities.”
Nicholas Saphir
The AHDB announcement says ‘Nicholas Saphir has a wide background in agriculture and horticulture, having built and been engaged in running public companies farming and processing food in the UK, Europe, Southern Africa and South America.
‘He also has a long and successful record of chairing industry and government bodies in the food and farming sector, including being the chairman of the Central Council for Agricultural and Horticultural Cooperation, founder chairman of Food from Britain, president of the Fresh Produce Consortium and chairman of the Agricultural Forum.’