Windrush to Multi-Million Pound Brand | The Black Farmer, Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE

Join Agrivine as we sit down with Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones MBE, better known as The Black Farmer, for an honest conversation about dreams, resilience and what it really takes to build a brand from nothing. Wilfred shares his journey from a family of 11 in inner-city Birmingham, where his father’s allotment first sparked his love of farming, to leaving school at 16 unable to read and write, being discharged from the army, and working his way into the BBC, where he helped give chefs like Gordon Ramsay and James Martin their first break in television. He opens up about the promise he made at 11 years old to one day own his own farm, why he named his brand The Black Farmer despite research telling him not to, and why access to land is holding back new farmers from non-traditional backgrounds. We also hear his advice for young people on marketing, passion and the dangers of playing it safe. Wilfred was born in Jamaica and came to the UK as part of the Windrush generation. He is the founder of The Black Farmer brand, runs a farm on the Devon–Cornwall border, and was awarded an MBE for services to farming.