"Minette Batters Admits Misconception: Thought to Instruct fellow African Farmers in Agricultural Practices; Discovers There's Much More to Learn from Them"

In the summer of 2026, readers will have the opportunity to delve into the life and experiences of Minette Batters, a crossbench peer and former NFU president, with her debut book titled Harvest. The memoir-manifesto will be published by Ebury, a non-fiction division of Penguin.

Batters, who currently resides in London, has signed a book contract for this highly anticipated work. The book will take readers on a journey that begins in 1973, as the UK prepares to join the Common Market, and concludes with a manifesto for food and farming.

While the book is not a suspenseful story set in the woods of upstate New York, as some may mistake, it is a deeply personal account of Batters' time working with four Prime Ministers and six Defra Secretaries. The author's experiences will be interwoven with insights from her current role as a farmer in Wiltshire.

During her travels, Batters has had the opportunity to participate in the Farm Africa: Grow for Good Challenge in Kenya. She worked on three smallholder farms in Embu county, which sits in the foothills of Mount Kenya. Batters' experiences in Kenya have led her to question the advice often given to ministers, as she acknowledges that there is much to learn from African farmers.

Kenya is home to approximately 7.5 million smallholder farmers who manage land between one and five acres. These farmers account for 80% of Kenya's agricultural output, and many children in the region often walk long distances to school with minimal food for breakfast and lunch. Farm Africa is working to change this by helping farmers learn to farm more sustainably, resulting in increased yields and weekly income, thereby making the families self-sufficient and able to sell surplus produce to the community.

James Fisher, the Digital Commissioning Editor of a platform, is open to publishing good stories and is not involved in the production of Batters' book. Fisher's work primarily focuses on writing about motoring, travel, and things that upset him.

[1] Note: This information about a book titled Harvest by James Fisher with a different plot and themes was provided in error and is not related to Minette Batters' book.