Stewart Houston CBE, FRAgS BPEX Chairman
Stewart is an AHDB Board Member and became Chairman of BPEX upon its creation, having also chaired its predecessor. Stewart, who is based in Bedale, North Yorkshire is also Chairman of NPA and a member of COPA COGECA EU committee of agricultural trade associations and a Non-Exec Director of the SAC (Scottish Agricultural Colleges).
Alastair Butler, Producer
Alastair graduated from Writtle Agricultural College in 2002 with a degree in Marketing and Supply Chain Management.
Following a supply chain role with Dalehead foods, he pursued a career in sales working with food items such as potato products, canapés and quiches. Having also held an operational role at TuckBox Ltd selling their creep feeds moved back to the family pig business. Blythburgh Free Range Pork runs 2000 sows outdoors in Suffolk finishing all progeny free range.
His current role is to control all marketing and sales activity, grow the Blythburgh brand plus a little bit more as you might expect in a family business
Adam Couch, Cranswick Country Food
Adam joined Cranswick in 1991 as a graduate trainee from Hull University, where he graduated in accountancy. Adam was appointed a director in 2003 and is managing director of the fresh pork operations.
Jon Easey, MJ & JA Easey
Jon Easey was born in Suffolk in 1968 and went to school in Hoxne and Framlingham. He read Agricultural Economics at the University of Reading then moved to London working in the wine trade. Jon progressed to the beer sector working as a Brand and Marketing Manager for a major national brewery where he developed a unique insight by spearheading national advertising and promotional campaigns such as Castlemaine XXXX. In 1996, he returned to East Anglia, joining the family business, MJ & JA Easey, running an integrated pig scheme comprising 11,500 sows (as well as finishing up to 8,000 pigs a week), a feed mill, veterinary practice and arable farm. Jon has endeavoured hard to direct industry policy and lobby government from the fringes
Clive Francis
Clive joined BPEX in July 2007 and formally became the independent member of the new Board from 1st April 2008.He has held a number of senior roles in the food industry, more recently with Associated British Foods and British Sugar.He now carries out consultancy work and lectures on business at the University of East Anglia. He holds degrees from Nottingham and Bath Universities
Steve Francis, Vion
Steve Francis is currently MD, of VION's UK Pork businesses.
Formerly Group CFO, VION UK. Joined VION in 2008 in conjunction with the acquisition by VION of Grampian Country Food Group.
Steve is a Member of the Institute for Turnaround.
Richard Hooper, Harper Adams
Richard manages the 240-sow indoor unit at Harper Adams University College. He also completed a Nuffield Scholarship in 2010 on the recruitment, training and retention of quality staff in the pig industry.
His current role involves the education of the next generation of agriculturists in modern pig production, making them aware of the great career opportunities available and carrying out near market research.
Richard Longthorp
Richard Longthorp farms arable and pigs with his family based in East Yorkshire. All sows are outdoors with 30% of progeny finished as Free Range and sold under daughter Anna's own branded product. Richard is a former chairman of the NPA. He currently chairs the Pig Industry Training Strategy Implementation Group, is chair of the England Council of Lantra and chairs the AgriSkills Strategy Group.
A former David Black Award winner, Richard is a member of his local Rotary Club and former captain and chairman of Selby RUFC
Andrew Saunders, Tulip UK
Andrew is agricultural director of Tulip, the UK’s largest vertically integrated pig production, slaughtering and processing business.
His responsibilities include overseeing BQP, the largest UK pig production business covering 250 farms predominantly in East Anglia covering all aspects from grain supply to the abattoir and the sourcing of pigs for Tulip’s four slaughter facilities.
Mike Sheldon, Greenway Farms Ltd
A 520 sow intensive pig unit in Buckinghamshire, producing slaughter pigs for a national processing company. From 1998-1999 the first Chief Executive of the National Pig Association (NPA), formed as the first united trade association for the UK pork industry. From 1982-1995 working in various roles for PIC, the worldwide pig genetics company.
Ian Smith, Producer, Bedfordia Farms
Ian is Managing Director of Bedfordia Farms with 1,100 indoor sows through to finishers, arable and grain storage. He was born and raised on a farm in East Yorkshire, educated at Newcastle University gaining a degree in Agriculture. Since graduating he worked in a number of management positions for farming businesses covering diverse range of enterprises.