Virtual farming in East Anglia

30 March 2014

With many people becoming more interested in where their food comes from and the increase of home grown food, the National Trust with the support of the NFU set up a “virtual farm” experiment called MyFarm in Cambridgeshire. 

The project which lasted for 18 months gave subscribers the opportunity to be involved with large scale food production without getting dirty. 

Based at Wimpole Home Farm with the aid of a dedicated website set up by the Trust, subscribers were able to watch life evolve on the farm as well as having the chance to vote on key decisions for the farm.  Such votes ranged from which animals should be bred to what crops should be planted. 

Despite the project having now come to an end, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) described the project as “an opportunity for a wider audience to see some of the competing priorities that 21st Century farmers have to manage” and it is hoped that the MyFarm experiment will provide a long lasting legacy to increase communication with the public about the decisions farmers have to make on a daily basis to ensure their farms continue to survive.

More information on this story visit the BBC website. 

This is not legal advice; it is intended to provide information of general interest about current legal issues.