In-house Agronomist

MorePeople; Benington Sea End; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension scheme with employer match

Life assurance

Health and wellbeing support

On-site parking

Cycle to Work

Job summary

MorePeople is seeking an experienced Soft Fruit Agronomist to own the agronomic strategy across a large-scale protected strawberry operation in the UK. You will lead crop protection, pest monitoring and IPM, shaping decisions with senior operational teams.

Working closely with growing and production colleagues, you’ll align agronomy with irrigation, nutrition, climate control and planning to deliver high-quality, high-yield crops while maintaining sustainability standards.

Qualifications

• Strong agronomy experience in soft fruit or protected cropping.
• Knowledge of IPM and crop protection programs.
• Experience resolving pest, disease and crop health challenges.
• Budget management experience.
• Experience working with growers and operational teams.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Proactive problem-solving and continuous improvement mindset.
• Ability to evaluate new technologies and growing techniques.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-quality agronomic support across protected strawberry crops.
• Lead crop protection programmes and pest/disease monitoring.
• Develop biological control strategies and IPM plans.
• Advise on irrigation, nutrition, climate management and production planning.
• Ensure compliance with sustainability standards and record-keeping.

Skills

Agronomy expertise

Soft fruit experience

Integrated Pest Management

Crop protection

Budget management

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Problem solving

Education

Degree in Agronomy or related discipline

BASIS qualification

FACTS qualification

Degree in Crop Science or Horticulture

Job description

Ready to help shape the future of UK soft fruit production? We’re recruiting on behalf of a highly innovative horticultural business investing heavily in sustainable food production, advanced growing technology and the future of British agriculture. This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced Agronomist to take ownership of agronomic strategy across a large-scale protected strawberry operation. You’ll play a key role in crop protection, integrated pest management, input procurement and technical decision-making, working closely with senior operational and growing teams to deliver high-quality, high-yielding crops. If you’re looking for a role where you can combine technical expertise with commercial influence whilst helping drive the future of a modern soft fruit business, this could be the perfect next step.

Why Apply?

• Take ownership of agronomic strategy across a significant protected strawberry operation.
• Play a key role in developing and enhancing Integrated Pest Management programmes.
• Join a progressive business investing heavily in technology, innovation and sustainability.
• Work closely with experienced growing and operational leadership teams.
• Influence crop protection, input procurement and budget management decisions.
• Opportunity to build internal agronomic capability and leave a lasting impact.
• Competitive salary, bonus and excellent benefits package.

The Opportunity

As Soft Fruit Agronomist, you’ll provide high-quality agronomic support across protected strawberry crops grown in glasshouse and tunnel environments. You’ll take responsibility for crop protection programmes, pest and disease monitoring, biological control strategies and agronomic recommendations, helping ensure crops achieve their full potential whilst maintaining compliance and sustainability standards. Working closely with the growing team, you’ll integrate agronomic advice with irrigation, nutrition, climate management and production planning, ensuring decisions are both technically robust and commercially viable. This is a highly visible role requiring strong technical expertise, commercial awareness and excellent communication skills.

About You

• Strong agronomy experience within soft fruit, horticulture or protected cropping.
• Extensive knowledge of crop protection programmes and Integrated Pest Management.
• Experience identifying and resolving pest, disease and crop health challenges.
• Strong commercial awareness and budget management capability.
• Experience working closely with growers and operational teams.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• A proactive approach to problem-solving and continuous improvement.
• The ability to evaluate new technologies, products and growing techniques.

Desirable Qualifications

• BASIS qualification.
• FACTS qualification.
• Degree in Agronomy, Crop Science, Horticulture, Plant Science or a related discipline.
• Experience within commercial strawberry production.
• Knowledge of modern protected cropping systems and biological control programmes.
• Understanding of UK crop protection legislation, MRLs and assurance requirements.

What’s On Offer?

• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• Discretionary performance-related bonus.
• Pension scheme with enhanced employer contribution.
• Life assurance.
• Ongoing learning and development opportunities.
• Retail, product and employee discounts.
• Enhanced family leave provisions.
• Employee assistance programme.
• Health and wellbeing support.
• Free on-site parking.
• Cycle to Work scheme.
• Opportunity to work within one of the UK's most progressive farming businesses.

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