#ThisIsAgriculture & Covid-19: Luchia Garcia-Perez

Luchia Garcia-Perez, 27, Sustainable agricultural consultant, ADAS

I was relatively new to all the Office 365 technology, so wasn’t skilled in navigating Microsoft Teams, but I actually find I talk to my team more now in lockdown than I did when we were all scattered around different offices.

I have had to adapt to more independent work, which has forced me to become more confident in myself and abilities.

Before the change, I didn’t really use much software to facilitate virtual work, but I don’t think I could do my work without them now.

Software I would regularly meet with clients through Skype, which although served a purpose, didn’t have the same scope for sharing files and accessing shared data which my current software does.

Sometimes it can feel less personal, but at least it allows work to continue while conforming to lockdown rules.

I think this has also allowed time for some farmers to take a step back and think about their own sustainability, especially moving into a post-crisis world.

The farmers I have spoken to are really interested in improving soils and protecting the future of farming.

I think one of the better things to come out of the crisis has been the appreciation for the agricultural industry.

Despite a crisis, crops still need to be grown, livestock need to be reared and silage still needs to be cut.

It has highlighted the importance of farmers and all the hard work they do year-round.

Once lockdown began, I, like most people, found supermarket shelves apocalyptically empty and I think this urged consumers to think about where food actually comes from.

We are all guilty of just expecting food to be there, so when it is not, it forces us to think about the process behind getting it onto shelves.