Research charity, the Organic Research Centre, has appointed three additional trustees – Janet Dwyer, Honor May Eldridge and Jake Pickering.

Ms Dwyer is Professor of Rural Policy at the University of Gloucestershire, and is also a director of Rural England, chairs the Defra Food, Farming and Countryside Commission and is President of the UK Agricultural Economics Society.

Ms Eldridge is a food systems consultant, and was previously head of policy for the Sustainable Food Trust, worked on post-Brexit policy at the Soil Association and was legislative co-ordinator at the Center for Food Safety in Washington DC.

Mr Pickering is the senior manager for agriculture at Waitrose, where he leads the team that is responsible for setting and implementing the Waitrose agriculture strategy. He was previously employed by Sainsbury’s in roles across sourcing and agriculture.

Commenting on their appointment, ORC board chair, Tim Bennett, said: “The addition of Janet, Honor and Jake to our Trustee Board will significantly strengthen our leadership and governance. This will help us ensure that we continue to deliver innovative research and knowledge transfer, to better equip farmers in managing the transition to naturally healthy and resilient farming systems. The wide range of experience, contacts and expertise that they bring to our organisation will be invaluable as we work to help farmers navigate the global challenges ahead.”