Annual Dinner 2022

We are pleased to say that the 2022 Annual Dinner saw attendance numbers well on the way back to pre-covid levels and the Executive Committee would like to thank all host companies for making the event such a success with just under 300 guests attending.

Following on from 2021, the evening remained a more informal affair with no comedian or after dinner speaker.  Our new President, Harry Todhunter, made an excellent speech at his first dinner and duly presented a cheque for £2500 to the representative of the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution, Sue Woodall, who thanked the Association for its long and continued support

Our thanks go to The Leeds First Direct Arena and the DoubleTree by Hilton for kindly donating such wonderful prizes and to all the guests who generously supported the draw which raised £2175 for our charity pot. A new venture on the evening was a silent auction that raised just over £1300 which was donated to a charity helping the agricultural industry in Ukraine - World to Rebuild Rural Ukraine (WRRU).

We were once again extremely grateful to Mark Feight from IAG for hosting the afternoon seminar. Mark was due to attend in person but a family commitment meant that, at the eleventh hour, he was unable to travel. Our thanks go to the hotel who provided us with the relevant technology to hold a webinar at short notice. Although those attending would have preferred that Mark had been able to attend in person they nevertheless found it interesting and productive.

A selection of photographs from the dinner are on the website, if you would like to purchase any copies contact Will @ nighthawkshoots@gmail.com

Annual Golf Tournament 2022

The 2022 Annual Golf Tournament took place on a glorious sunny day that provided perfect playing conditions for the day’s proceedings. Although team numbers were not back to pre-covid levels, the competition was once again a great success and was thoroughly enjoyed by those who played. We were delighted to welcome the first lady competitor for a number of years and hope that her success will encourage more ladies to join us next time.

The course was in wonderful condition and our thanks go to the club ground staff for all their hard work.  Our thanks also to Wes and his catering team for providing another delicious meal.

As our President Harry Todhunter was unable to stay for the prize giving, Executive Committee member Mark Woodall thanked everyone for supporting the tournament. Mark also thanked everyone involved with the golf club for ensuring that the event ran well. 

Before presenting her with a cheque for £1000, Mark introduced Claire Crosby from the charity KIDS. Claire gave a wonderful short talk on the amazing support that KIDS give to disabled children and young adults and their parents and emphasised how grateful they were for our donation.

The overall winners of the tournament were the team from E D & F Man with a score of 82.  Our congratulations go to Anita Beattie, Darren Beattie, Dave Beecroft and Mick Harrison. As highest placed members of the Association the team also won the HCFTA trophy.

The runners up were the team from Wold View Foods with a score of 81, Rob Page, Graham Thompson, Matt Wilkinson and Rich Riley.

Third place went to the team from James Mortimer Ltd, Jim Wraith, Andrew Nutt, Adrian Glew and Rich Bloom.

Additional prizes were given for nearest the pin and longest drive on designated holes. Congratulations to the following winners 

Nearest Pin – Hole 3                          David Campbell (Cargill PLC)

Nearest Pin – Hole 6                           Matt Wilkinson (Wold View Foods)

Nearest Pin – Hole 9                           Martin Bielby (I’Anson Bros)

Nearest Pin – Hole 13                         Rob Mackay (Thomas Mawer Ltd)

Nearest Pin – Hole 17                         Richard Slack (E D & F Man)

Longest Drive – Hole 10                     Andy Gilbey (Cranswick PLC)

 

Hull & Humber Trade Awareness Course, May 2022

This year brought a welcome return to our very popular Trade Awareness Courses (TACs).  Our first TAC since 2019 took place in May around Hull and the Humber area and was very well received.

All the host companies made us feel most welcome and provided very informative tours which were thoroughly enjoyed by all. The visits covered vastly differing aspects of our industry from goat kids and piglets to a large site dealing with the recycling of waste cooking oil and food. We were also fortunate to be able to see the storage and transport of various raw materials with some of the delegates taking the opportunity to witness at close quarters the loading of a grain ship in the Humber.

The delegates ranged from new starters in their first months of employment to those with several years of experience. Lead chaperone, Angela Sutherby commented how lovely it was to see these courses up and running once again. It was especially pleasing to see so many young people who were new to the industry getting on so well with each other and making acquaintances which should prove beneficial as their careers progress.

Angela and the rest of the Executive Committee would like to thank everyone who attended the course and helped to make it such a success. Special thanks go to all the companies that supported the course by either sending delegates or allowing us to visit their premises, we really appreciate the amount of valuable time and effort that these visits take.

New President Elected

The recent Annual General Meeting and Executive Committee Meeting saw the election of the Association’s 87th President, Harry Todhunter.

The meeting expressed thanks to outgoing President, Steve Owbridge, whose Presidency saw the Association carry on with it’s charitable donations despite the difficulties imposed by Covid. Although stepping down as President, Steve is remaining on the Executive Committee and he wished Harry best wishes as his successor.

Second Sponsored Defibrillator

Angela Sutherby, Treasurer, and Steve Owbridge, President with our latest donation

We are delighted to have been able to donate our second defibrillator to the hamlet of Kiplingcotes which lies on the Hudson Way, a popular walking, cycling and horse riding route that links Beverley and Market Weighton. It is gratifying to hear that this defibrillator has already been put to good use proving what an extremely worthwhile initiative this is for us to support.

We are currently liaising with a local parish council regarding the siting of our third defibrillator and we would welcome suggestions for suitable sites for our fourth and subsequent defibrillators. Please let us know if you are aware of a location that may be appropriate.

Annual Dinner 2021

The Executive Committee would like to say a big thank you to all the host companies who helped make this year’s event such a success. Not unexpectedly, numbers were down on previous years but there were still over 200 guests attending who welcomed the chance to socialise once again.  The weeks leading up to the dinner saw much deliberation over whether to proceed or not but the positive feedback we have received has fully justified the decision that was taken to proceed with the dinner.

The event was run on a less formal basis than usual with no comedian or after dinner speaker.  Our President, Steve Owbridge made an excellent job of his first dinner speech with top table guest Sally Conner, Regional Manager of the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (R.A.B.I.), proposing the toast to the Association.

Our thanks go to The Bonus Arena, ED & F Man and the DoubleTree by Hilton for kindly donating such wonderful prizes and to all the guests who generously supported the draw which raised £2050 for our charity pot. The Association was once again able to present a cheque to Sally Connor for £2000 for which she thanked everyone on behalf of the R.A.B.I. and the farming community that they support.

We were once again extremely grateful to Mark Feight from IAG for hosting the afternoon seminar. Our thanks go to the hotel who provided us with the relevant technology to hold the seminar online when it became clear that Mark would not be able to attend in person. Although the attendance numbers were not as high as we would have liked we hope those who did attend found it interesting and productive.

A selection of photographs from the dinner are on the website, if you would like to purchase any copies contact Will @ nighthawkshoots@gmail.com