Barney Kay, Agriculture Director, Noble Foods (Wed)

Agriculture Director, Noble Foods Barney leads the agricultural function within the Consumer Foods business, responsible for the production of over 30 million eggs each week. He is responsible for the network of over 200 dedicated producers (supported by a team of regional performance managers), Noble’s own rearing farms (supplying pullets for their producers) and a growing number of Noble’s own free-range farms. His team continues to develop Noble Foods’ agricultural sustainability strategy, reinforcing the company’s commitment to sustainable and ethical farming practices. Barney joined Noble from Amber Real Estates (part of the Boparan Private Office), where he supported the business's transition to higher welfare chicken production. Prior to his role at Amber, Barney served as MD of Agriculture at Pilgrim’s UK, overseeing one of the largest outdoor pig farming operations in the country. Barney has served as Head of Agriculture at both Sainsbury’s and Tesco. These roles required building strong, productive relationships with farmers and suppliers, fostering trust and cooperation throughout the supply chain. Barney previously managed Moy Park’s GB farm operation, across 110 farms supplying birds into sites at Sleaford and Ashbourne and was also regional director for the NFU in the North East and before that ran the National Pig Association. In the mid/late ‘90s he was farming in the UK, with a stint running a large arable enterprise in Romania.