About GrowIN
Connecting farmers and growers to share knowledge, explore new ideas and build better farming systems.
GrowIN is an Aurora Trust funded project, delivered by the Food, Farming & Countryside Commission (FFCC) in partnership with people rooted in Northern Ireland farming. We create space for conversation, collaboration and practical learning, helping people connect, share what’s working, and take positive action on the ground.
Our Purpose
We exist to support practical change in farming by bringing people together to learn from each other, share experience honestly, and explore new approaches in ways that feel doable and grounded in real farms.
We encourage innovation, experimentation and honest discussion, recognising that every farm, soil type and system is different.
Inspiration - stories and examples that help people see what’s possible
Connection - spaces where conversations and collaboration can happen
Action - more than just talk, getting on with it
How GrowIN Works
GrowIN is an independent and free to join network for all farmers, growers and land managers.
​Our members are welcoming and open to sharing their knowledge. We talk honestly, both in person and online. It’s deliberately informal and convivial (often in the pub), and never teachy or preachy.
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Farmer-to-farmer peer learning
Sharing practical knowledge, honest successes and failures, and real on-farm experiences.
Our members are a mix of beef, sheep, dairy, arable, horticulture and many alternative enterprises such as flax, hemp and comfrey!
Events and gatherings
These include workshops, talks, farm walks and discussion sessions, all focused on agroecological approaches.
GrowIN organises farm walks on members farms, webinars with influential leaders in ag and courses on anything from learning how to inspect your soil, grazing strategies, nutrient management, trees on farms to growing vegetables.
Discussion groups
You are welcome to join in the conversation on our lively WhatsApp groups.
We have 3 focus groups:
1. Soil Health
2. Agroforestry
3. Horticulture.
Simply email growin@ffcc.co.uk with your name, phone number and which group you would like to join.
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Membership of GrowIN is FREE!
By joining, you become part of a welcoming community committed to learning together, supporting one another, and shaping the future of farming through shared knowledge and innovation.
The GrowIN Team
GrowIN is shaped and delivered by people with deep roots in farming, food and rural communities in Northern Ireland.
Helen Keys MBE
Helen is a farmer from County Tyrone. She founded Source Grow, helped set up The Veg Collective, and runs Mallon Linen along with her husband Charlie. Helen specialises in innovation, working with start ups using design thinking and lean approaches. Helen is working on using plants to mop up and cycle nutrients on farms and building the horticulture sector in NI.
Professor Jim McAdam OBE
Jim is an agricultural scientist with responsibility for the agroforestry programme in Northern Ireland. He was chairman of the Farm Woodland Forum and is a director and founder member of the Irish Agroforestry Forum.
Jim promotes trees on farms throughout Ireland, has conducted research into and monitored agri-environment schemes, and has participated in nature-based water quality initiatives. He alsoled a project on the impact of climate change on carbon in Lough Neagh.
Bronagh O'Kane
Bronagh O’Kane returned to the family farm in County Tyrone after a career in the Royal Air Force. Since then, Bronagh has made it her mission to improve the farm's soil. Bronagh has trialled a range of innovative techniques including the use of worm castings to bring the soil back to life, reduce dependency on inputs and build livestock health. Bronagh was awarded Farming Life’s Young Farmer of the Year in 2022 and Runner-up Soil Farmer of the Year 2023.
Will Frazer
Will runs a diversified rural business with his family on the River Maine outside Cullybackey. The business had a long history in the linen industry but is now focused on the generation of renewable energy, farming and regenerating the old mill site as a hub for sustainable business. Previously, Will worked at the National Farmers Union and the Farmers Weekly. He started his career at Forum for the Future developing advice on farming and climate change.
Current Priorities
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Improving soil health across the farmed landscape
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Resilient grassland and grazing systems that support farm viability
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Fertility building and circular approaches, combining traditional methods with modern knowledge
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Trees in productive farming systems through agroforestry
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Diversifying production, including cereals, fibre and horticultural crops
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Improving water quality by capturing and cycling farm nutrients
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Building a culture of innovation in agriculture